Tag Archives: USA

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2012 Biltmore Sangiovese

Halloween Night 2014, a night for ghouls, ghosts, and Night of the Living Dead–a classic for some but a first time for me. Just like the 2012 Biltmore Sangiovese opened for the occasion. We put some great candy outside for the trick-or-treaters (honor system and faith in humanity for our house) and fired up some homemade pizzas to go with this Sangiovese.

2012 Biltmore Sangiovese North Carolina USA

2012 Biltmore Sangiovese, North Carolina, USA.

Individual pies were the order of the day; one on wheat and one on white crust. The wheat was doctored up with a spicy pizza sauce, mushrooms, green olives with jalapeno pepper centers, pepperoni, red pepper flakes, and heaping piles of mozzarella cheese. Yes, I think wheat breads deaden the taste and thus compensated with a great mix of toppings–it turned out great and I buzzed right through this pie. The white crust I simply slathered with the sauce, pepperoni, and the same piles of shredded mozz; it was a delicious dish as well.

All that talk of pizza, you say, so what of the Sangiovese? I’ll classify this one as good but not great. I had actually cracked it last night to accompany a perfectly cooked NY Strip steak, and on both occasions the meal stands out more to me than the grapes. It was fruity, it had an easy finish, and it was rich in its appearance–but those are the key takeaways. I’m sorry I don’t have more to offer. This wine was a gift from family who’d visited the breathtaking Biltmore several weeks ago while I was away on business travel, and that’s more important to me than the taste or profile of the 2012. The gesture is what lasts here.

Maybe we’ll just have to have another go at this vino closer to Christmas when we revisit Asheville?

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2005 Concannon Limited Release Petite Sirah

The first thing you realize about the 2005 Concannon Limited Release Petite Sirah is its weight. I’m not talking figuratively but rather literally. The bottle itself is a heavy, crafted piece of art and holds so much promise in its customized glasswork. Without my muse here to document the Concannon, however, you’ll have to suffer with my crude photo instead.

2005 Concannon Limited Release Petite Sirah

2005 Concannon Limited Release Petite Sirah, Livermore Valley, California, USA.

I’m still thinking about how to best describe this 2005 Concannon Petite Sirah–which I actually picked from my mother’s wine cellar because it is from the Livermore Valley region of California. I did not have my favorite Sirah glass to further delve into the nuances of this grape, so it stands largely on its own merits. It pours rich and red, full-bodied and more tannic than the Pinot Noir we enjoyed last night. When you first sip it, the Concannon is more neutral and light…and then it warms in your mouth and has a much more substantive finish. Interesting complexity in that way for sure.

Helping to tame all the tannins here was our roasted pork loin, itself slathered in a purple fruity marmalade and expertly seasoned to taste. One of my favorites sides we had too–Wegman’s Golden Jewel Blend–and piled forkfuls of this on my plate. Alternating between bites of the couscous and pork, all the while sipping on the Concannon and listening to my family trading stories, made for an enjoyable and memorable dining experience.

Writes Jim Concannon on behalf of his vineyard, “This limited-release Petite Sirah is the essence of Concannon, displaying fantastic depth and character. It is full-bodied, rich with cherry flavors and has a hint of tasty oak for a smooth, silky finish.”

The oak eluded me but the cherry I definitely glimpsed here. Yet it presents itself to the consumer in a way very different from the Pinot Noir did just beforehand. I liked this Central Coast wine but it was not a world changer.

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2008 Robert Mondavi Private Selection Pinot Noir

A 2008–haven’t had the pleasure in some time, and a good one to be sure. This wine gets great marks for its smooth, velvety finish as well as the killer dish that accompanied the Mondavi Pinot.

2008 Robert Mondavi Private Selection Pinot Noir

2008 Robert Mondavi Private Selection Pinot Noir, California, USA.

The food was important to the overall picture, so let me paint in some details for you. You start with garlic, breaking that down in a small sauce pan, then you add some reconstituted sun dried tomatoes. Add some mushrooms into the mix, and then scallops.  When those are nice and opaque, add some lemon juice (and corn starch, itself mixed with a little water from the reconstituted tomatoes), and finally some chopped green onions. Voila. This fantastic pile of goodness goes on top of fettuccine pasta and next to a lovely green salad (bacon, egg, and blue cheese dressing–there are a LOT of likes in this meal).

So what about the vino, you ask? Really enjoyed it. It’s wild cherries on the nose and on the taste buds. The 2008 Robert Mondavi Private Selection Pinot Noir is supple and has no tart to it…yet it avoids the sticky sweet of a dessert wine. There are some spices in the mix too, a little hint or accent that winds throughout the red and plays well with the generous foodstuffs gracing our plates.

The winemaker states, “An enticing wine with alluring aromas and flavors of wild blackberries, sweet red cherries, a zing of fresh cranberry and a hint of graphite. Well-structured tannins are fine-grained and silky, and the wine ends with a long, smooth finish. Delicious and distinctive.”

In reading their summary now, I’m pretty happy with the takeaways I’d previously offered. I noted many of the flavors and smells they’d pointed out, and now I know it was ‘graphite’ that I sensed in my tasting. Hoping yours is good too and thanks for reading.

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2013 Trader Joe’s Grand Reserve Lot #51 Chardonnay

Change of pace from all the reds and my love of them is the 2013 Trader Joe’s Grand Reserve Lot #51 Chardonnay, a California-bottled citrusy white that we picked up…well…obviously. Selected and opened by family earlier in the week, I only revisited it myself as our meals lined up as fish and chicken over the last couple days.

2013 Trader Joe's Grand Reserve Lot #51 Chardonnay Napa California USA

2013 Trader Joe’s Grand Reserve Lot #51 Chardonnay, Napa, California, USA.

There’s definitely some floral stuff happening here; some pear and peach perhaps too, all working together in oak to produce a light, buttery taste. I know my folks are fans of both oak and the buttery effect, and that they left some of this bottle for us means they either had their fill of spirits (all good!) this weekend or simply ran out of time. I’m betting the latter.

The Lot 51 Chardonnay first accompanied tuna steaks (slightly more well done than intended, but expertly seasoned) with white rice and steamed broccoli. I liked the role of this Carneros chardonnay within this meal as I thought it mixed well between bites of our fish and its spices. I enjoyed it so much that I reached eagerly for it tonight as well, both to ease my nerves after a pressure-filled work day and to complement one of my favorite meals–chicken piccata with penne pasta. This meal was my go-to for some time at Rosario’s, our favorite NJ neighborhood Italian jaunt. Regrettably, the webcast I was moderating took a bit longer than anticipated and let the white wine and caper sauce lock up just a bit, but it still made for a nice little feast by the time our speaker finished up her presentation.

The 2013 Trader Joe’s Grand Reserve Lot #51 Chardonnay is bottled by BC Sellers of Napa, California, and would be an acceptable if not spectacular white gracing your table one of these future evenings.

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2011 Shelton Vineyards Cabernet Franc

It’s been some time since I last had a Cabernet Franc, and it’s not a grape to which I typically gravitate when I’m out hunting for fun new wine. This is not for any special reason other that I tend to drift more frequently toward Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Noir, and thus was a fun treat to encounter this red blend courtesy of my wife.

2011 Shelton Vineyards Cabernet Franc

2011 Shelton Vineyards Cabernet Franc, Yadkin Valley, North Carolina, USA.

Grown in the Yadkin Valley of North Carolina is this 2011 Shelton Vineyards Cabernet Franc, a Bordeaux-style blended with 10% Cabernet Sauvignon. The vineyard has approximately 136,000 vines (spanning 145 miles) growing 10 different varieties of grapes, and they employ no-till farming techniques to help reduce erosion. That’s not to say all this green emphasis diminishes the outcome; to the contrary I thought the 2011 had muscle in all the right places.

We enjoyed this Cab Franc over several nights and with different meals that included sushi as well as ground beef. The wine dressed up our meals with its fresh, red fruity scents and little bit of pepper that is honestly quite endearing. Of the 2011 vintage, the folks at Shelton remark, “The finish on this wine has essence of woodland cedar and some smoke to complement rich grilled salmon, chicken or barbeque.” Some nice tannins deliver a lasting finish, too. In hindsight, I think this bottle received our “middle of the work week” treatment when it had all the merits for a weekend glass or two.

It’s my understanding that our local grocery store had the 2011 readily in stock and I’m interested in securing another couple of these for the fall.

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Summer Reds

The summer is nearing its end, and I’d be remiss if I didn’t share several reds that we sampled along the way. Some scored high marks (like the Atilla’s Selection from Buena Vista); others like the Toro or Navardia will probably fall into the “been there done that” camp. The real fun is in discovering which is which. Here’s a fly-by for your consideration:

2011 Mannara Primitivo, Puglia, Italy.
2013 Toro Tempranillo, Spain.
2011 Cairanne La Cigalette, Rhone Villages, France.
2012 Buena Vista Atilla’s Selection Zinfandel, Alexander Valley, Sonoma County, California, USA.
2012 Cruz Alba Cabernet Sauvignon, Mendoza, Argentina.
2010 Solanera, vinas viejas, Yecla, Spain.
2012 Navardia, Rioja, Spain.
2011 Insomnia Red Wine Blend, California, USA.
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2012 Radius Cabernet Sauvignon, Washington, USA

This summer I’ve been interested in Cabernet Sauvignon. You might have seen firsthand if you’ve followed Notes in any real capacity, or even browsed through old posts on the site. Domestic, primarily, but international Cabs are fair game too. And most have been worth the chase, particularly those that range closer to the $20+ mark rather than the $10s. Don’t misunderstand me; I’m not a wine snob in any capacity and I believe in affordable wine but I think Cabernets are one grape where “affordable” is telling.

2014-08-20 Radius

2012 Radius Cabernet Sauvignon, Washington, USA.

And the 2012 Radius is yet another brick in this wall. More proof positive of this theory. In a blind taste test, even my unrefined, inexperienced palate can differentiate between a robust Cabernet and a pretender. I know the 2012 is one of the latter. Don’t be misguided, because the distressed label–cool branding that definitely (along with its Washington pedigree) grabbed my attention and made the first sale–is not indicative of your tasting experience. We had the 2012 Radius with cheese ravioli, and the pasta was the highlight of the evening. My wife is a magician in the kitchen, and fresh basil puts the ravioli into a new stratosphere, but the wine didn’t hold up to this same standard.

This vineyard is located in Walla Walla, Washington, and promoted the 2012 Radius for its “Hints of toasty oak lead to a long finish in this bold red wine.” Not an accurate description, believe me. I love to try new wine, to explore grapes from regions that I’ve visited and hope to later visit, but this one I could skip in the future. Had enough already!