Seven Pretty Pinots all in a Row

Last night was a celebration . . . a special birthday celebration. You know the kind. It's for those important birthdays that no one really notices. The kind that end in a two or a four. Really any time is the perfect time for a celebration.

And that's what we did.  What made it special was that I decided to make this a Pinot Noir tasting of from some of the wineries I have had the pleasure of visiting. The line-up included wines from Michel-Schlumberger, Seghesio Family Vineyards, John Tyler Wines and Chamisal Vineyards.  Perhaps not an extensive list but a really nice line-up of seven different wines.

Now usually I'm killing myself with preparing the hors d'oeuvres and other preparations but Saturday was filled with a cooking class (look for an upcoming post!) so it was enough trying to get the house clean and organized.

Thank goodness that I can just close the back bedroom door!

In order to take full advantage of the time tasting and pouring, I made a trip to Costco and walked through the freezer section and picked out some really nice (and easy) appetizers to bake in the oven before the guests arrived.

I had already made a trip to the Cocoa Bean in Geneva for some macaroons and for the cake. If you're in the Chicago area and looking for a great place fabulous french bakedry goods, the Cocoa Bean is the place.  Not only is their food wonderful, but they are a friendly bunch!

For the evening, I began by serving the Michel-Schlumberger 2009 Pinot Noir (Le Fou).  This was a great starting point. Michel-Schlumberger is located in Dry Creek Valley and features both hillside and benchland terroir. This unique terroir produces an elegant wine full-boidied but not overpowering.

This was followed by two excellent offerings from Seghesio. Those who have read my blogs know that I have a special affinity for the wines and people of Seghesio.  I love the way that Winemaker Ted Seghesio is able to get the most from every blend or varietal.  In this case we were tasting the 2006 Costiera and the 2008 Peter's Vineyard Pinot Noirs.

One of the first comments from this tasting was how much you could smell the fruit on this wine. I'm not sure if it has something to do with the aging or that these grapes came from the coastal region of Sonoma County (hence the name Costiera).

While Seghesio has moved toward becoming an estate winery, there are times they purchase grapes from growers equally committed to the high quality they've come to be known for.

I have to say that while there wasn't a bad Pinot in the bunch one of my top  wines was from the 2008 Peter's Vineyard Pinot. It continues to amaze me how different a wine from the same varietal can be depending on the winemaker, the terroir of the land it's grown on and the difference in location and temperatures.

The Peter's Vineyard is a single vineyard production that really touches on the quality and care put into creating a subperb bottle of wine.Thsee grapes com from ggrape grower Randy Peters.  According to my friends at Seghesio, Randy is one of those rare growers that match their commitment to quality. 

His Pinot Noir vineyard is located in the western Russian River Valley and was planted in 1973 to Pommard clones.  The Goldridge soil and benchland vineyard contribute to keeping the yields low.  This wine is a prime example of what has become a signature of Seghesio Family Vineyards and winemaker Ted -- to create excellent wines that represent the best of the vineyard and the grapes from a unique location.

I also think it's fun to see how an Italian winemaker approaches a French clone.

And that's exactly what the next Pinot Noir was as well.  Well sort of. From the Bacigalupi family and one of my favorite new finds on my recent trip to Sonoma (you can read about the trip in the previous posts from the end of July and August) and winemaker Tyler Heck (a fourth-generation winemaker with a heritage from Alsace) this Pinot Noir was a real treat.

We first found this wine when we did a tasting at the new John Tyler tasting room with Nicole. 

While talking the benefits and drawbacks of being twins (Nicole has a twin sister Katey, I am a twin  and my partner has a pair of 24 year-old sons), I got to taste some truly delicious wines. But more than that, we got to learn about one of the historic grape growing families of Sonoma County.

The 2008 Pinot Noir is no exception. Rated 92 points by Wine Enthusiast magazine this was a real treat for the evening.  My wine cellar was already full when I noted in a recent tweet that I would like to buy some of this (and their 2008 Zinfandel) but I didn't have room.  Nicole reminded me that the holidays were coming up and I couldn't have too much wine on hand.

I'm not sure that that's true or not because if Hurricane Sandy hits Chicago I'll be able to go a couple of months without having to restock my wine supply.

But I was glad to have this wine in the Pinot line-up.  A delicious wine that shows how different clones create differeent aromas and flavors.  Winemaker Tyler Heck does a fabulous job with this wine and its 92 rating is well deserved.

The last three wines for  this tasting came from my recent visit to Chamisal Vineyards.  With special assistance from Andrea, Michael and Alyssa, I came home with three unique expressions of their Pinot Noirs.

First up was the 2010 Edna Valley Pinot Noir. This wine is made from all ten of the clones found on the estate. When leaving the vineyard I picked up a couple of shirts that reflect the winemaking at Chamisal (My Pinot is bigger than your Pinot). I'm not sure what this is a play on but . . .  this is a big wine.

One of the unique characteristics of all Chamisal wines is the distinct spice that seems to find its way into everyone of their wines. 

I could tell you what the wine label says about the flavors but this is truly wone of my new favorite wines. Ok along with the John Tyler, the Seghesio and the other wines tasted.  It was a little bit of a transition from the John Tyler approach to Pinot Noir. Delightful none the less. 

Next up was the 2009 Califa Pinot Noir.  The Califa blend of the top three clones from a particular vintage give it a unique profile year after year.  This comes from the Chamisal website:

Every year the final blend of our Califa Pinot varies based on whichever clones have performed best that vintage. For 2009, it was a blend of 3 core clones: 114, 667 and 777. Clone 114 is full of lovely dark berry fruit. 667 has spice, power and structure, a great all-around performer. 777 provides powerful, ripe black and red fruit characters.

When I served this the other week to some friends at the office, I believe one of them used the phrase "This wine changed my life."   But as delicious as this wine was, the winner for the night was the 2010 Monologue.

The 2010 Monologue features the Clone 777. I'm not sure but I think that this wine changed my life. It's a big, big offering. While I couldn't tell you the fruit flavors, the fruit is very distinct in this offering.  This is a wine I can imagine pairing with everything.

I wish I could say that I thought things through on the food more but fankly I didn't. And, I don't think it matters as much as I used to think.  At the end of theday, everyone went home with a little more appreciation of the uniqueness of each offering showcasing the best  of the winemaker's skill and the unique terroir of the respective vineyards.

Now if you've had these wines yourself, I'd love to hear your perspective.  Just leave me a note below. And to my friends Nick and Annie, well, you left too early!

A special note to Nicole at John Tyler Wines, Brandye at Seghesio or Brooke and Michael at Chamisal, feel free to leave a note about each of your fabulous wines that describes them perhaps better than I can. Thanks for all you do in making and promoting some of my very favorite wines! 

 

Another Day in Paradise or Music City Day 2

Day two in music city dawned well before I pushed back the blankets and rolled my lazy backside down to get the free Hampton Inn breakfast. Nothing special but satisfying anyway. I guess the one twist on the traditional Hampton Inn breakfast was the option to go with the grits in addition to the oatmeal.

Some of the Honky Tonks on Broadway

Needing to do something healthy to start the day, we took a brief walk up to and down Broadway.  It’s not even 11 on a Sunday morning and the bars are beginning to come alive as the bands set up begin singing.

Aaah. Music City.

A quick stop in the store beside Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville suggests that there's a big sign on my back that says: "Take my money. PLEASE!"

Not only that, you can buy such things as a Beer Belly (a Camelbak) that slips under your shirt so you can sneak in beer to events you might not otherwise. Then there’s the Wine Rack (a bra that does the same with wine or any other beverage).

Patrons are already making their way into the bars such as the classic Purple Orchid, Layla’s, Second Fiddle and more. Folks can’t get enough of the country music and I’m still trying to figure out what country they’re from!

Most of the day was spent just wandering around the area including a visit to the Barnes and Noble near Vanderbilt. Couldn’t resist getting a book on making Salumi. Yes I could pick that up in just about any other B & N but . . .

After watching a little football and relaxing a bit, we went to dinner at a new-to-me Tex-Mex restaurant called Chuy’s and their should be famous Chihuahua Bar. 

With NRM friends Lynn Bogle (VP Development)
& Glen Cranfield (CEO)

Have one near you? Then you know what I’m talking about. While I don’t usually lean toward chains, this one has a couple of reasons to not miss. It begins with the jalapeño dip.

This ranch-based dip is to die for. Frankly, it could change your life.  It did mine.  Now I have to figure out how to recreate it. Along with their delicious Mojito I could spend the evening eating chips, salsa and the jalapeño dip.

But there’s much more available. Including their tortilla soup. I only wish a franchise was located in the Chicagoland area. I’m sure I would frequent it too much.

Perhaps the biggest challenge of the evening was keeping the dip and soup off my shirt. That’s because the whole purpose of the trip was coming up that evening. One of the organization’s I have the privilege to serve is the Nashville Rescue Mission.

Tracy Lawrence and Dave Innis prior to the show

This Mission is doing phenomenal things for the Music City and this fundraising event is not one to be missed. Music with a Mission was spearheaded by Restless Heart and friends playing alongside the Grammy-winning Nashville Orchestra.

Now being from Chicago, I’m really spoiled by the quality of the Chicago Symphony. The Nashville Symphony is just that good. Tonight’s lineup included a who’s who of the music world from country to jazz.

Besides Restless Heart there was Tracy Lawrence, Larry Gatlin and the Gatlin Brothers, Ricky Skaggs, Amy Grant, Branford Marsalis, Joey Calderazzo and many others.

I confess my main interest in the show was Branford.

Me with Branford Marsalis after the show.

Jazz is one of my favorite forms of music but when you’re listening to a Marsalis family member, they’re equally adept at every form of music. His classical piece was simply stunning in its orchestration.

The silent auction was filled with all kinds of music memorabilia.  I bid on a couple of items and almost left with a guitar signed by all the artists. It was just a bit over my budget for the event. 

Amazing. Signed guitars by Vince Gill and others along with a signed fiddle from Charlie Daniels. I’m not even a big fan but I was bidding anyway.

The performance?

Phenomenal doesn’t begin to describe the evening. I even found myself singing along with some of the country tunes. Gratefully the Mission provided invitations to the pre- and post-event festivities where I had the opportunity to meet several of the artists.

Greg Jennings with my co-worker Denise and me.

I’m planning on taking a trip to New Orleans sometime yet this year or early next year with a good friend from there. It’s in one of just two states I’ve never been in (Hawaii is the other) or through yet. The very gracious Branford Marsalis not only allowed a photograph but provided a couple of must see sights in New Orleans.

As I am leaving this incredible town, I’m still not sure I’m a huge fan of Country music but at least I’ve developed a new appreciation and won’t just change the channel if it happens to come on the radio.

They Don’t Call it Music City for Nothing!

It’s 6:30 am and I’m probably like many of the revelers in Music City . . . just ending the day.  Ok that’s not really true.  I’m just starting my day but this is a city that’s alive with music.

Got up bright and early on Saturday morning (flights were so much cheaper than Friday night!) and arrived early Saturday morning.  I was coming in for an event hosted by the Nashville Rescue Mission called Music for a Mission.

The best thing about this weekend is that I didn’t come alone.  Whereas last weekend I was working my way through California Wine Country, this weekend I’m in Music City.

This city has earned its name.

It begins in the airline terminal as you’re walking toward the exit. There’s a version of the famous Purple Orchid complete with live music. Every time I walk by the restaurant there’s someone different playing – and it’s not only what I would count as country music.

I have a confession to make.  I’m not a huge country music fan. Frankly I’m not a fan at all.  It goes way back (over 35 years).  I used to be an avid fan but then one fateful day a song came on where the chorus included: “there’s only two things that money can’t buy. That’s true love and home grown tomatoes.”

Really?

Over the years I’ve had folks tell me that country music is different today. I guess it is but I’m not sure with songs over the years like “Do you think my tractor’s sexy?”  Perhaps not so different.

I changed the station at that moment and never went back. That’s a bit unusual since my musical tastes are quite eclectic from classical and opera to rock to heavy metal and back to all forms of Jazz and the blues. No rap. No country.

Until this weekend. Maybe.

But I digress.  Since we weren’t able to check into the hotel early, we went over to an old favorite – Noshville – for a quick breakfast. Noshville is a great New York deli in Nashville. The quality of the food and the choices (great lox and bagel) are reminiscent of the fare you’d find in the Big Apple not Music City.

I picked up a magazine that listed all the best places in Nashville. Since I don’t always plan my trips, it provided a little direction for the day. The only thing on the docket was a dinner reservation at Whitfields with a dear family friend.

So a quick drive out to the community of Franklin. This cute little community on the outskirts of Nashville has a little for everyone. We even got in to see the Franklin Farmer’s Market. And, you guessed it; there was live music to entertain the marketers.

Even though there’s a wine road in Tennessee we decided to try something different – we took the whiskey trail.

From Franklin we headed to Lynchburg, Tennessee for a visit to an American institution. As American as apple pie, mom and Harley Davidson, Jack Daniel’s distillery is a must see.

Now here’s a unique twist – the distillery is in a dry county of Tennessee. Yep. Dry. As in no tastings. No regular purchases. Only commemorative bottles are available at the distillery. But we arrived just in time to take the tour – and a few weeks before their BBQ festival.

I was eager to learn what made the difference between Whiskey and Tennessee whiskey (not to mention bourbon etc.) When we arrived there was just one tour ahead of ours and before our tour began, they were taking reservations for tours seven after ours. 

While we have some photos, there were no photos in the distillery. Here’s what we learned. Tennessee whiskey has a minimum of 80% corn in the mash whereas bourbon has to have more than 55%. What separates Tennessee Whiskey from all the others is the charcoal filtering that takes place just after the distilling.

The tour begins with a short movie and then we load up on a bus and they take us to the Rick Yard. This is where they make the charcoal for the filtering from ricks of sugar maple. From there we get a bit of a lesson on the distilling of whiskey. 

It’s a tour I would suggest you take and the best part of it is that the price is right. Yep. It’s free.

After the tour and our free lemonade we went to Lynchburg for a quick lunch. We stopped at the BBQ Caboose Café for a pulled pork sandwich. Pulled pork was good but our side of red beans and rice was disappointing as the rice was not fully cooked. Still crunchy.

After lunch we wound our way to the George F. Dickel distillery. Just in time, as it turns out, for the last tour of the day. The name itself conjures up all kinds of inappropriate advertising slogans. Very similar to the Jack Daniel’s tour only they don’t do the bottling on site anymore.

Both distilleries are owned by huge conglomerates: Jack Daniel’s by Brown-Forman and Dickel by Diageo. Not necessarily bad but it’s not the same when you can visit with the family/owners like those of the Sonoma County wineries.

After the tour it was back to Nashville for a brief nap and to get ready for dinner. We met my dear friend Sue for dinner at Whitfield’s where her friend, Mark Sorrells and his trio, was playing. Whitfield’s is another gem in Nashville.

Seated in the bar so we could hear the music – again, it’s Music City after all – we began with a bottle of Francis Ford Coppola’s Director’s Cut chardonnay. I’m normally a red wine drinker but the Director’s Cut chardonnay was intriguing. 

After my visit in July to the Coppola winery, I’ve had the opportunity to pick out a couple of his wines to go with various dinners.  This one went with an appetizer of their mussels.

A truly delicious pairing.

This gave us time to just catch up and for Sue to meet Roxanne for the first time. After the first set, Mark joined us for a few minutes on his break. What a great opportunity to meet him. Smooth jazz. Standards. Even a little rock and roll. A very eclectic mix.

This is a place where the hours can drift away over good food and wine with friends. Dinner included a couple of their Saratoga Ribeyes and I had the Crab and Chorizo ravioli. The ribeyes were done to a perfect medium rare and the ravioli was delicious.

Dessert?

Absolutely. The perfect end to the meal was their donuts. Easily shareable and incredibly good. What’s wrong with dough dropped into hot fat and then rolled in sugar?  A perfect ending to day one in Music City.

Check back next week for day 2 and some really fabulous music.

A Special Day at Chamisal Vineyards

It's been about a year since I first heard about Chamisal.  It began with a tweet to the Winery asking what made this little jewel special. My initial interest began because one of my favorite wineries, Seghesio, had just been purchased by the same group that owns Pine Ridge, Archery Summit and Chamisal.

The Chamisal entrance. A beautiful vineyard.

After an initial shipment of some recommended wines from Brooke that expressed the uniqueness of the vineyard, I've been hooked ever since.

One of the things that sets off the wines is the particular terroir. Specializing in Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, there's something about the soils that imparts what the vineyard calls the "Chamisal spice."

Overall, the Pinot Noir's are bigger than many I've had in the past.

But I digress.

When I had a business trip scheduled for the weekend in Santa Barbara, I couldn't pass up an opportunity to drive a couple of hours north and make my first visit to the winery. There are a lot of wineries and vineyards out in the market-place producing some very fine wines.  But it's not just the wines.

It's the people of the winery.

The tasting room, formerly the production facility.

That's one of the things that deepened my connection to Seghesio Family Vineyards. Not just the people that run the winery but the people that face the public day in and day out. They represent the personality of the winery.

And after a year of tweeting, email and online purchases, I finally had an opportunity to meet some of the great people behind the wines.

When I first suggested that I would be visiting the vineyard, I had some intriguing follow-up regarding what I might like to do.

Those of you who are regular readers of this blog know that I'm not really an "expert" just someone who likes food and wine. So when I was asked what I wanted to do, I left it wide open.

A left-behind cluster of Pinot Noir.

Then just a few days before arriving at the vineyard I received a tweet from Mike Bruzus the assistant winemaker at Chamisal. Now I'm really impressed. And a little nervous.

And this is why I choose to lover certain vineyards.  I'm really no one special but they pulled out the big guns for my visit.  Even Andrea Chan, the Director of Consumer Sales, came in on her day off to do a special tasting with me.

I arrived a little before 10 in the morning when the tasting room opened.  I was a little surprised to see the gates open but then with a recent heat wave, the winery was in full swing . . . even on a Sunday morning.

Chamisal is located in the Edna Valley near San Luis Obispo. This is a stunningly beautiful area of the country. Just about 10 minutes from the ocean and the Santa Lucia Mountains, this valley shows off why I am glad that I'm not facing the 40 degree weather back home in Chicago.

Inside the tasting room.

So instead of bundling up to go outside and rake leaves, here I'm sitting outside enjoying a private tasting with the very knowledgeable Andrea.

We started the tasting with the Chamisal Stainless Chardonnay. This is one of the most broadly distributed of the Chamisal wines. I've even found it in one of my local Costco's.

That's not to say this is a pedestrian wine. This is a great entry level wine. And for my sister-in-law it's one of the few chardonnays she can drink because the heavy oakiness of some gives her a headache.

Just off the tasting room this is a great place for a tasting!

But more than that, the stainless process allows the unique characteristics of each of the chardonnay fruit to really shine.

From there we progressed through a great selection of their white wines including the Estate and Califa Chardonnays along with the Pinot Gris. Here's where the special knowledge of Andrea really helped.

The Estate blends of both the Pinot Noir and the Chardonnay are made of a blend of all of the estate clones of each particular varietal. 

Some of the vines near the tasting room.

This approach gives you the opportunity to really taste what the vineyard is all about. Then the Califa wines are really the best of the best. Taking from some of the best barrels of the top two or three clones.

What makes the Califa wines unique is that every vintage has the opportunity to take on a different mix of clones and a different taste spectrum.

As a friend from work said after tasting the 2009 Califa Pinot Noir, it has a chance to change your life.

After finishing the tasting of the white wines we moved on to the red ones with a Rose of Pinot Noir. Now as I've mentioned before, I haven't always been a fan of the rose wines. Perhaps that's because the rose wines I've had in the past were cloyingly sweet. But of the various rose wines I've had recently, all have been quite good.

The same is true of this Rose. Served chilled this was a nice transition to the other red wines we would be drinking. Then we went to the stainless Pinot Noir. Like the rose wine, it was served chilled. A nice start to the red wine tasting. This was followed by the Estate Pinot Noir and the Califa Pinot Noir.

A map of the vineyard showing the various clones.

Both of these wines represented the unique characteristics of the Chamisal spice. As Andrea suggested, the spice is a little bit like a chinese five spice mix.

Following the Pinots we sampled some of the small lot wines that the winery produces such as their Grenache and Syrah and the Cinq a Sept and the Monologue.

Now I knew that I would have a difficult time when it came time to leave. We ended the tastings with the vineyard's desert wine . . . their Floreale of Pinot Gris. The fruit for this wine is still on the vines and it will be for a little while yet.

After the tasting Mike took some time from his busy schedule to show me around the vineyard. By the time I arrived at the vineyard most of the Pinot Noir had already been harvested.

One of the differences between Chamisal and other wineries is the way they treat their vines.  They've taken to growing the Pinot Noir vines in way that provides shade at high noon and a lot of sun in the cooler morning and evenings by taking off the leaves that would shade the grape clusters.

Some of the clusters still on a few of the later ripening Pinot vines.

This approach helps create the bigger, bolder Pinot Noir wines for which Chamisal is known. We then drove down several rows to the Chardonnay grapes.  These will be harvested very soon.

Now here's where I experienced my first first of the day.  I tasted wine grapes directly from the vine. Much sweeter than any table grapes, the grapes also didn't have any seeds.

Field lesson #1: the weather at the time the berries are set determines whether or not there will be any seeds.

Chardonnay grapes just days from harvest.

Who knew?

As we drove around the vineyard looking at the various clones and the change in the soil as we went.  Part of the vineyard is made up soil with a high clay content.

Part of the vineyard has more of the ancient ocean seabed mixed with the clay and other parts of the vineyard consist of more of the volcanic rock from the Morros.

A view from Morrito where one of Chamisal's small
production Pinots comes from.

These various soils bring a unique flavor to the various wines that Chamisal produces.  Within this little winery, there are several micro-climates. This makes growing the grapes a little more challenging.

As we were making our way around the vineyard we met up with Robbie Robbins.  Robbins Family Farms produce some really fine Olive Oils and import and bottle balsamic vinegar as well.

After a brief visit, he was off to deliver some of his product to one of his local distributors.

Part of the winery is in a bit of a depression where the fog from the ocean has a tendency to linger. This means that the grapes in this part of the vineyard ripen a bit later than the others in different parts of the vineyard.

It was here that Vineyard Lesson #2: I got a lesson in knowing how to tell when the grapes are ready to be picked. Take the grape and press it against the roof of your mouth and taste the juice, then look at the seeds followed by chewing of the skin.

You can see the volcanic influence of the soil here. 

When the skin isn't chewy but melts, the grapes are ready to harvest. At this point Mike declared that the grapes were about a week away.

Our last stop before heading into the winery was heading to the part of the vineyard where their Morrito (Spanish for little Morro) small lot wine is made.

The Morros or the Nine Sisters of San Luis Obispo are a series of ancient volcanic mountains.

Morrito is right in line with the nine sisters and could possibly be part of that ancient line of mountains. A theory that seems to be supported by the volcanic soil on this hill overlooking the rest of the vineyard.

An ancient oak standing guard over the vineyard.

An ancient oak tree right near the peak of the hill seems to stand guard over the entire vineyard. The views from this point of the vineyard are breathtaking.

Now for a brief visit to the winery itself. The vineyard recently received their Certified California Sustainable Winegrowing designation.

This designation provides for environmentally sound, economically feasible, and socially equitable practices.

As part of this practice the vineyard is rebuilding their retaining pond to recycle all of the water the vineyard uses.

Chardonnay being pressed before heading to the
fermenting tanks.

The goal is to eventually use the wastewater from the winery to then be used eventually to provide water for the vines.

Our first stop on the tour of the winery was to check on the chardonnay that's currently being pressed and being transferred to the fermenting tanks.

Unlike the pinot grapes which are destemmed, the stems are retained for the chardonnay processing. They're actually helpful in pressing the grapes as the skins are not part of the fermentation process.

Pinot in the midst of fermentation.

The stainless chardonnay will spend its aging time in the stainless tanks. The estate chardonnay is then aged in larger tanks so there's some oak.

As we moved into the winery we climbed a few stairs to check on the progress of the pinot fermentation. This was another first for me to peek into the fermentation tanks.

In one of the tanks you could see the spent grapes had risen to the top of the tank as the CO2 released in the fermentation process.  You could smell the difference between the various stages of fermentation.

Fermentation complete (CO2 forces the
grapes to the top.

A quick trip into the barrel room and then back to the tasting room so that Mike could get back to work. I was amazed that, even in the midst of a busy schedule, how amazingly clean the whole winery was.  I think I could probably eat off of the floor

Returning to the tasting room I now faced the difficult decision about the wines I would add to my collection from this great winery.  

Alyssa Larson, the Tasting Room Lead, provided some great guidance as I selected the wines. I even had a chance to re-taste a few of the wines before making my final order. I also decided to add Chamisal to my club wine purchases. And not only did I order my wines but Robbie Robbins left a few samples for me to take home.  

A special thanks to Brooke, Andrea, Mike and Alyssa for setting up an absolutely wonderful day at an incredible vineyard. And to Robbie Robbins of Robbins Family Farms for the samples. I'm looking forward to trying them.

Wine aging in the barrel room. 

I can't wait for my next Mondays @ Mark's event where I'll definitely be introducing more people to these fabulous wines. 

But more than that, I've made some new friends in the Central Valley of California.  And that's the best part of enjoying wine and food.  I'd sure love to hear which wineries you've visited that not only make great wines but are great people.

Is there a "Perfect" Wine Pairing?

It seems like every time I taste a new wine, I'm pleasantly surprised.  When I first began pairing wines with food, I would let the "rules" of pairing drive my choices.  But lately I'm not so sure that the rules apply as much.

Sure it's true that often a white wine is preferable to a red wine for seafood but I'm stretching the boundaries lately. I've been known to pair a red wine with fish and and a white wine with red meat.  And I've been pleasantly surprised.  

Just the other night I was out with some clients and ordered a delicious Pinot Noir (the Director's Cut from the Francis Ford Coppola winery) that went just as well with seafood as it did with the NY Strip I had for dinner. I feel a little uncomfortable at times because it has been assumed because I really enjoy wine that I should pick it out.

Puts a lot of pressure on to live up to that reputation.  Here's the thing, I only can tell you what I like. I love the people who tell you they can taste all these wonderful flavors. Sometimes I get a hint but mostly my response is "Yep, that's good wine." 

What about you? When was the last time you were surprised by an unusual pairing?

One of the things I dearly love is cheese.  One would think with my love of cheese and my proximity to Wisconsin I would be a Packers fan. While I am surrounded by rabid Packer fans (I think rabid is appropriate), I am still a Bears fan.  I guess it's my long-term support of the Chicago Cubs that makes me long suffering. 

But I digress.  

Cheese and wine are great partners.  You may have read my earlier blog on the Cheese Clock that the Artisanal Cheese Company developed to help you.  You can find it at www.artisanalcheese.com.  Not only can you purchase some outstanding cheeses, you can pair them with wines designed to bring out their best flavors.

I'm not really a sweet wine person but . . . when I tasted some strong, even stinky, cheeses with a nice Sauternes the pairing was almost magical.  

From now on, I'm going to be a little more ambitious about the pairings of my wines with various foods.  I think the most important element isn't always what you're eating but the quality of the wine you're drinking. 

With winter coming on, I'll be spending more time in the Man Cave. And with it I'll be pushing the envelope in my wine pairings.  I hope you will be, too.