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Live Wines
I'm packing and have no time for this blogging nonsense....
Except someone just sent me Eric Asimov's latest New York Times Blog, a wonderful little essay on what Mr. Asimov calls Live Wines.
Eric uses Radikon's 2002 Oslavje Bianco (a wine we import and which I have consumed in large quantities) and a 2005 Lazy Creek Vineyards Riesling (which I know nothing about) as examples of Live Wines, wines which have an aliveness. He writes:
"Clumsy term? I know. But that’s what these wines are: alive. They don’t sit in the glass waiting to be swallowed. They practically come to you and pull you in, like the scent curling up from one of those cartoon pies cooling on the window sill, reaching out and causing Bugs Bunny problems.
This sense of a wine as living comes, I think, from having a captivating texture. You feel the wine coating the tongue and the inside of your mouth, and it feels so good that you are compelled to repeat the exercise. It’s not just white wines, either. Great Champagnes have this texture. So do wonderful Burgundies, but it’s not a question of profundity. Great Beaujolais has it, too. I find it in the Barolos of Giacomo Conterno and Bartolo Mascarello, and in the Brunellos of Biondi Santi and Case Bese di Soldera."
I think Eric is on to something. I've been thinking lately about how limiting natural wines, real wines, hand-crafted wines, blah-blah wines are as descriptive terms. I started using the term real wine but that also has the problem of emphasizing the process more than the final outcome.
The best I have been able to come up with is Vins Gouleyant, but that's a descriptor in another language which also has its limitations..
But Live Wines is exactly what I mean to say. I have tried natural wines which are as dead as industrial wines -- simply being viticulturally correct doesn't make the wine pop out of the bottle. There is something magic when it all comes together and has that edge and aliveness. I would argue you have to work naturally in your fields and your cellar to get that quality, but the goal of that work is to get something living and vibrant into the bottle, something which amazes, baffles and seduces us because it is so alive and has so much to say.
Of course, there is also the corollary category -- Dead Wines.
But enough for now, I have to turn off the computer, put it into the computer sleeve, and get going.
Come meet Joe Dressner, the Wine Importer, in Montréal!
August 24, 2007
For Immediate Release
American Wine Importer Joe Dressner will be meeting Montréal wine lovers, on Thursday, August 30th from 4:30 pm to 6:30 pm, at the main entrance of the Lionel Groulx Metro station.
Mr. Dressner will be signing books and discussing his latest wine discoveries and adventures.This is the second time Mr. Dressner has appeared at the Lionel Grouix Metro station, a station that has great importance in the history and culture of Québec.
Abbé Lionel Groulx (1878-1967), a native of Vaudreuil, was an influential Québécois historian. He studied theology at the Grand Séminaire de Montréal and was ordained in 1903. He taught at Valleyfield seminary from 1903 to 1915 and was named honorary canon in 1943. Abbé Groulx was also the founding president of the Franco-American History Institute in 1946 and director of the Révue d'histoire de l'Amérique française (1947-1967).
Grouix was a renowned food and wine lover with a special love for wines from the Haut Poitou.
A Mediocre Blogger
I have been an irresponsible blogger all summer and have barely written anything here. I've been busy like crazy, travelling all over France and Italy to see growers, and just haven't had the time. My apologies to my readers.
We're returning to New York tomorrow, then going to Montreal to buy goods at Ikea for our children, then returning to New York, where we will once again be like fish in the sea of the fabulous wine trade.
I've had some wonderful moments this summer, wine-related and otherwise, including:
- A fabulous stay in Corsica hosted by the incredible wine-making family of Marie and Antoine Arena
- The hospitality, vineyard work and wines of Luca Roagna
- The incredible Comté cheeses of Philippe Bouvret, available at Essencia in Poligny
-
The insanely profound Savignin Ouillé 2000 of Emmanuel Houillon and Pierre Overnoy which will be available exclusively at Chambers Street wines this winter....one of the greatest white wines I have ever consumed.
- The Saucisse de Morteau from Salaisons Bouhéret
- A great meal at the Relais de Montmartre in Viré
- Drinking the 1992, 1993, 1994, 1998 and 1999 Mâcons from Henri Goyard
- Watching the various salutes to 1967 and the Summer of Love on the French television channel Arte
-
Staying outdoors until late at night to watch the apocalyptic thunderstorm at Moulin Pey-Labrie during Vinexpo
- The fun neighborhood meal we had here in Poil Rouge Sud
-
Having my two kids come to France and spend time with us before we go to Montreal to buy them furniture at Ikea
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Discovering Erika Stucky, the San Francisco born, Swiss singer, whose video of Jailhouse Rock should be factory pre-loaded on all IPODS
But on the whole, it was a great summer for me and I hope it was also a great summer for you.
Do come to see me as I tour the country promoting our wines. I'll be in your town soon, at a liquor store conveniently located near your home.
For those of you lucky enough to be in the glamorous wine trade, place a mark on your calendar next to October 17th. That's the day we will be having our annual trade tasting, at an undisclosed location.
I have to get back to packing....see you all soon!
Holy Cow!
Everyone here in Wittenheim was sad to learn about the death of Phil Rizutto.
All of Alsace will miss The Scooter.
We've Been Invited to Dine at Captain Steubing's Table!
Alyce, Denyse, Buster and I are on board the Corsica Victoria on our way from Savona to Bastia, Corsica.
Tonight we dine with Julie and Captain Steubing.
Tomorrow we scale the Carco vineyard with Antoine Arena!
Off to Piedmont and Corsica
I've spent the summer drinking older vintages of Beaujolais and Muscadet and now feel a need for some Nebbiolo, Grignolino and a bracing white wine from a field blend of Cortese dell'Alto Monferrato, Arneis and Favorita.
So, we're driving to Piedmont today to visit Luca Roagna, the Bera family in Canelli, Teobaldo Cappellano, Stefano Bellotti at Cascina degli Ulivi and Nadia Verrua at Cascina 'Tavijn.
From there, it only makes sense to get on the Ferry and visit Antoine Areana in Corsica, come back to France, visit some growers in the Languedoc and Rhône, then return to Poil Rouge to drink some more old Beaujolais and old Muscadet.
Yesterday was the first annual Fête du Poil Rouge Sud, a fun day-long event celebrating the cultural diversity and barbecuing talents of our hamlet. The day ended in a marathon pétanque game which finished under clouds of doping accusations.
Beyond Parody
I recently received the following press release from several readers. I wish I was capable of making up such hysterical literature. Read on....
Just in Time to Release 11 New Wines, Mollydooker’s Sarah & Sparky Marquis Share Their Secrets about Creating Top-Rated, Cult-Status Wines
Marquis Fruit Weight™ and the Marquis Vineyard Watering Programme™ Are Turning Many of the Industry’s Preconceived Notions about Making Great Wine, on Their Head!
EDWARDSTOWN, South Australia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--For 12 years, Sarah & Sparky Marquis (pronounced Mar-kwis) have been “WOW”ing wine fans around the world with their award–winning Australian wines made for such brands as Fox Creek, Henry’s Drive, Parsons Flat, Shirvington, Marquis Philips, Integrity and now Mollydooker. This dynamic duo has been awarded the title of Australian Winemakers of the Year; is the only husband and wife winemaking team to receive Mclaren Vale’s prestigious Bushing Award three times; and is responsible for crafting four of only 24 Australian wines to receive 99 points from Robert Parker in the last 10 years. Mollydooker, Sarah and Sparky’s own label, has been a show-stopper since its inaugural release last year, and with the highly anticipated release of the 2006 vintage around the corner, it’s a great time to explore the secrets to their success.
When asked to share their thoughts on what separates Mollydooker wines from the pack, Sarah & Sparky answer “It’s our Watering Programme and Fruit Weight, mate.” The Marquis Vineyard Watering Programme™ focuses on nurturing strong and healthy vines with balanced canopy growth to achieve the most intense fruit flavors possible. The amazing fruit flavor achieved in the vineyard is exactly what creates the Marquis Fruit Weight™ in the wine. Marquis Fruit Weight™ is the “velvet glove” sensation of fruit that sits on your tongue before the structure of the wine is exposed. The higher the Fruit Weight, the more intense and rich are the flavors in the finished wine.
Achieving a high Fruit Weight grade doesn’t start in the winery; it starts in the vineyards, which is where Sarah and Sparky’s scientific know-how is first applied. “We ripen the vine, so that it can ripen the fruit,” explains Sparky. Knowing that healthy vines create the best fruit, Sparky studied vineyard canopy management for his college thesis. So groundbreaking was his work on Pinot Noir in Tasmania, that he won a scholarship to present it in France and the US. Over the last 20 years he’s developed the Marquis Vineyard Watering Programme™, which is used by all vineyards producing grapes for Mollydooker.
The Marquis Vineyard Watering Programme™ is based on intensive data collection and analysis, which starts at budburst and carries on with inspections of each vineyard throughout the entire growing season. Twice a week, the Mollydooker vineyard team physically measures the growth of the vines, and reports on canopy growth, rachis maturation and the Fruit Weight of the juice. The data is then fed into a complex set of formulas, the results of which provide the team with precise watering recommendations for the following three days.
For example, toward harvest time, the grapes have a rapidly accelerating sugar level, but the essential flavor level lags behind. So, the Mollydooker team applies water to control the sugar level until the flavor level catches up. Leigh, Sparky’s Dad and Vineyard Programme Manager, tells us, “It’s the range and intensity of the flavor which translates into Marquis Fruit Weight™, and ultimately into the incredibly rich, velvety wines that have become Sarah and Sparky’s trademark.”
Marquis Fruit Weight™ is the deciding factor that determines the label under which a particular wine will be bottled. Sparky explains, “Starting with our 2006 wines, Mollydooker now has four Fruit Weight grades ranging from 65% to 100%. Any wine that rates below 65% Fruit Weight is sold off as bulk wine.”
The “Lefty Wines” ($20) consist of five different wines that have been graded with a Marquis Fruit Weight™ of 65-70%. The 2005 Boxer Shiraz was one of the most highly acclaimed Lefty wines, and was actually the highest pointed wine in Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate issue #165 ‘Best Value Wines Under $20’. Next in line are the three brand new “Party Wines” ($50), crafted from Shiraz and Cabernet, which have 75-80% Marquis Fruit Weight™. The “Love Story” wines ($80) include the highly-rated Carnival of Love and Enchanted Path, and must obtain 85-90% Marquis Fruit Weight™ to qualify. And the brand new and very top wine, aptly named Velvet Glove ($175), is the easiest to grade, as it has obtained 95+% Marquis Fruit Weight™ - and stands alone in quality. “Due to the high Fruit Weight grade demanded for Velvet Glove, it’s likely it won’t be made in every vintage,” says Sarah.
Mollydooker’s highly-anticipated second vintage, with 11 wines in total, will begin to release in mid-June, at which time Sarah & Sparky are hitting the road across the United States to share their new wines, and to talk about the things that make their wines different, including the Marquis Vineyard Watering Programme™ and Marquis Fruit Weight™. They look forward to meeting you and to sharing the wines that make you go “WOW”!
For more information or a travel schedule, please contact: alicia@mollydookerwines.com.
Contacts
Mollydooker
Alicia Kelley Raymond
707-738-8858
alicia@mollydookerwines.com
Alive
I just back from a long trip through the Loire followed by a week retreat in the Crays of Poil Rouge to read the totality of Philippe Rapiteau's excellent French wine blog: La Pipette aux quatre vins
This is some great stuff. M. Rapiteau writes journalistically about wine, vignerons and events in an informative and catchy style. He's more concerned with you learning about the terroirs and winemakers than simply throwing out reductive tasting notes.
Don't miss this blog!
Off to the Loire Valley!
Coinciding with Josh Rosenberg's trip to the Loire, Denyse and I will cross France today and sleep in Chavignol.
As usual, Buster, Denyse and I will be staying at Georges LePrêtre's, famed Musée du Miel.
This is a deluxe private residence on two floors which is right next to LePrêtrés honey musuem. This fascinating multi-level visual experience takes us behind the scenes of the honey industry and shows nature in all its splendor.
The museum is only open for private showings, but don't miss this attraction when you are in the Sancerre region.
Global Warming Officially Over!
Thank goodness for the Kyoto Agreements and all the efforts made by the industrial countries to save the earth!
The past few summers in Poil Rouge have been horribly hot from late May though September.
This year, we've been freezing every day and I actually put the radiator on in our kitchen on Thursday. This is how things used to be before we started polluting the environment. In general, it would often remain cold here in Southern Burgundy until July 14th. At that time, given it is the French national holiday, the weather would warm-up.
It is great to be back on track and we are looking forward to a string of lower alcohol and balanced harvests in the years to come.
Josh Rosenberg to Leave His Children in South Orange, New Jersey While He Tours the Loire Valley
Mr. Rosenberg will be leaving tomorrow and unfortunately it won't be possible to have both Charlie and Poe just the group on the Polaner tour of the Loire Valley.
These moments of family separation are always difficult on everyone, but we are sure that the bonds between father and sons will only be stronger when Josh returns to South Orange.
Josh Rosenberg -- Up Close and Personal
While the viticultural sector of the Loire Valley prepares for Josh Rosenberg's visit next week, along with 16 other members of Polaner Selections, many of my readers have asked me for more information about Josh's background.
Josh Rosenberg is 34-years-old and was born, raised and still lives in the South Orange district of New Jersey. Mr. Rosenberg's father was a well-known wine lover and collector and Josh quickly learned to love wine. He still maintains the cellar and collection that his father built and where many great wines were laid away, taking over after his father passed away in 2001.
It only seemed natural for Josh to attend Cornell Hotel School, where he graduated with a degree in beverage management.
After college, Mr. Rosenberg traveled extensively through the wine regions of the world. He visited France numerous times, along with Australia, Italy, Spain, American wine areas, Germany and Austria.
He then worked for Gallo Wines as a starting position and pounded the pavement of Manhattan selling wine. Next was a five year stint at the New York Wine Warehouse, one of the great wine ships of New York, which specializes in fine wines for collectors and connisseurs.
For the past four years, Mr. Rosenberg has been working as a salesperson for Polaner Selections, a company which wholesales Eric Solomon Selections, along with Louis/Dressner Selections wines in New York and New Jersey.
Mr. Rosenberg is delighted to be returning to the Touraine. As a high school student, he participated in a total immersion program to learn French and spent months with a family in Tours. He developed a love for the region and an appetite for rillons.
Josh has been married with Caryn Rosenberg for eight years and they have two young children (5 1/2 and 2 1/2 years old). In addition to the children, they are also the proud owners of a Prius automobile, which is some sort of hybrid vehicle which respects the environment.
Josh Rosenberg to Tour the Loire Valley!
Legendary wine industry salesperson, Josh Rosenberg of Polaner Selections in New York/New Jersey, will be touring the Loire Valley next week and visiting numerous vignerons.
Mr. Rosenberg will be joined by 16 other salespeople and senior management members of Polaner Selections.
We hope to see Mr. Rosenberg during his trip and hope he enjoys his stay in the Loire -- both personally and professionally.
Vinexpo 2007!
Vinexpo has become a launching pad for counter-Vinexpo tastings organized outside of the official show. For four days we hopped from one great tasting to another, all of which had nothing to do with the official proceedings.
The anti-Vinexpo world of vignerons doing real work in real vineyards and making real wine might be small, but there is a lot of energy and a lot of great wine being made.
Denyse and I actually went to the actual Vinexpo for three hours and twenty-five minutes to remind ourselves how depressing the big wine world is, it all its industrial splendor.
It was worse than I imagined!
New Cuvée Buster Unearthed near Ingersheim!
We visited Laurent Barth in Bennwihr yesterday and came across a barrel of Alsace Pinot Noir which was vinified as a white wine. The wine is not yet finished and is weeks from being bottled, but it will soon join the glorious pantheon of Cuvée Busters.
Only 300 bottles of this beauty will be available so you would do well to reserve now. No one has pricing and no one is certain we will sell them this wine. This should not stop you from rushing to your local retailer to grab some bottles. Unfortunately, they will only sell you three bottles and there will be various tie-ins with merchandise they are having trouble moving that the retailers bought from our competitors.
The wine has sublime aromatics and you feel like you're sipping an Alsatian fruit brandy, as if the wine has somehow distilled the Pinot Noir grape into a perfume. It will probably have a light rosé color, but then again it might not.
Can this be the future of Pinot Noir?
Barth is a young guy who has only made two vintages, having recently taken his family's vines out of the local cooperative. The guy is doing great work and it was heart-breaking to tour his vineyard sites in Bennwihr, where a catastrophic hailstorm last week touched over 1000 hectares of vines and literally destroyed 150 hectares. Laurent has nothing left on his vines for 2007, a year that looked to have considerable promise. His vines appear to be the victim of a deliberate scorched earth policy!
Even though the wine industry is doing everything it can to industrialize and process wine, nature still holds all the power. This horrible storm will take a terrible toll on the farmers who work the land touched by the hail.
Of course, there will be other vintages and other harvests. The 2006s, a very difficult year, tasted great because Laurent eliminated nearly 40% of the crop in the fields during the harvest. After tasting, Laurent took us out to eat at a great resturant in nearby Ingersheim that I heartily recommed to my readers. Even to my nonreaders.
The restaurant is the Taverne Alsacienne and the cooking by Philippe Gugenbuhl was great Alsatian cuisine. M. Gugenbuhl was gracious enough to serve us blind a bottle of Henst Gewurztraminer Grand Cru 1993 from Josmeyer which he took from his personal cellar. The wine was dry but absolutely luscious, even thought it was from a minor vintage here in Alsace. There were some telltale signs of a Gewurz, but note of petrol and nuts with great complexity and charm. Plus, it was delicious!
You need reservations to get into the restaurant and you can contact them by phone at 03 89 27 08 41 or fax them at 03 89 80 89 75. They don't have a web site and are not preparing an IPodCast for the IPhone which will be introduced on July 1st.
The restaurant management will ask IPhone users to turn off their ringers during their meal, as a courtesy to their fellow diners.
Violent Thunderstorms Disrupt Vinexpo!
Denyse and I got horribly wet, my PocketPC fell to the ground and broke, and we tasted lots of great wines at Chateau Moulin Pey-Labrie.
I have been writing all my tasting notes on my IPAQ 4700 Pocket PC for the past four years. Poof, in one brutal fall, punctuated by a violent bolt of thunder it was on the ground, submerged in water and with a broken screen.
I have no choice but to go to a Bureau Tabac this morning and buy a memo pad and a pen and to start writing tasting notes like in the olden days before we all wore IPODS during all our waking hours.
I tasted lots of great wines yesterday and found several new producers. Unfortunately, the data was all destroyed when my IPAQ fell to the ground.
I suppose I will have to buy a replacement, but do I buy another PocketPC or do I buy an integrated phone/PocketPC? This question will haunt me for the rest of Vinexpo.
Off to Glamorous Vinexpo!
The wine world's biggest event starts on Sunday and Denyse and I will be there!
Vinexpo!
We can't wait. Unfortunately, Buster will not be able to go with us and we have to leave him tomorrow morning at a kennel in the ancient/lost town of Messé-sur-Grosne. I'm not sure how we found this kennel, but they have a sterling reputation here in the Mâconnais.
We then drive 6 1/2 hours to Bordeaux, where the charming Colette and André Texier will be putting us up. Coincidentally, they are the parents of Eric Texier the vigneron/winemaker/négociant/paysan.
I've attended Vinexpo for the past 16 years, or maybe 18, or maybe 14. I can't remember. This year, I will have the privilege of attending Vinexpo without actually setting foot at the conference.
All the best vignerons have organized satellite tastings, what we like to all offs in France, and nearly 40 of our vignerons will be in attendence at various shows. Then again, maybe it is only nearly 30.
There will be lots of other great vignerons at these shows and there is always the hope we'll meet someone new and exciting.
So, we have four packed days, starting Sunday, of whirlwind tastings and glamorous events. Even Elin McCoy and Alice Feiring are rumored to be attending this year!
Kevin McKenna to Lead Louis/Dressner Tasting in New Canaan, Connecticut on Saturday, June 16th
That's right! Kevin McKenna, a partner at Louis/Dressner, will be doing a tasting at Francos Wine in New Canaan.
According to the store's press release:
Louis/Dressner Imports is not really Louis/Dressner Imports. It is really Louis/Dressner/McKenna Imports. We're not sure why Kevin's name is constantly omitted and we certainly want him to feel as important as both Denyse Louis and Joe Dressner. Anyhow, Kevin McKenna, is a pretty sharp wine counter-culturist and he has a lot to offer.
All the above is certainly true and Kevin is consumer friendly, unlike Denyse and I, so you should really make this tasting.
The tasting begins at 1:00 pm.
The store asks that men attending the tasting wear plaid pants.
The store also asks women attending to wear plaid pants, in somewhat brighter colors than what the men will be wearing.