Back at The Keyboard

The last few months have been beyond hectic. In fact, it's been way too long between posts. That's not to say I haven't been enjoying some really fine wines. Or the company of good friends.

Here in the Chicago area we can't afford to wait until the weathe gets warm to BBQ or we wouldn't be able to do so often enough.  This winter I've really enjoyed my new smoker/grill I picked up on one of my trips last year.

It is a genius contraption, this Traeger grill.  It's a pellet grill that feeds pellets to maintin the correct temperature in the chamber. Not only does it smoke and BBQ, it is capable of grilling, too.

But I'm sure you're wondering how someone can grill when the temperatures are below zero.  It's the thermal blanket tht goes around the grill.  About a month ago I tested the waters of below zero smoking in Chicago.

After finding a really good brisket at Costco, I covered it with my secret recipe spice rub, wrapped it and put it in the refridgerator for a couple of days to absorb all those spices.  Since I was having folks over for a special edition of Mondays @ Mark's, I waited untiil 10 pm Sunday night to put the brisket on the smoker.

When I went outside the temperature was a balmy  -4 degrees farenheitl Even though the box for the pellets handles about 20 pounds of pellets I was worried I might run through them because the temperature was below zero. That's why i hd to get up at 4 am and check on the pellets and the brisket.

Fortunately everything was fine.  I just wrapped the brisket just before heading off to work around 7:30 am.  After that I just returned around 6:30 pm to take it off the smoker. After letting it rest for about 15 minutes, it was perfectly tender and moist.  It must have been good because the 7 pound brisket disappeared with only 7 guests.

To pair a wine witht he brisket, I turned to several different bottles throughout the night.  I started with a couple of Pine Ridge bottles -- Onyx and Tessitura. Both of these are Bordeaux style blends.

I've really enjoyed the various blends I've discovered from wineries like Pine Ridge, Seghesio Family vineyards, Francis Ford Coppola, V-M-L and Frick.  These blends really display the talents of the winemaker in addition to the growers.  The ability to blend the juice from different grapes and terroirs is nothing short of alchemy.

The match of the various bordeaux blends really went well with the spiciness of the brisket and the other accouterments. To end the evening I opened a couple of port style wines -- Donigia from Seghesio Family Vineyards and Black Diamond from Pine Ridge Vineyards.

Another fun evening with friends, good food and even better wines. That's really what Mondays @ Mark's is all about.

An Evening with Four Sisters

The other night we went to the Ravinia Festival for our third concert of the season. Tonight's show? The B52's and the Go-Go's. Nothing like enjoying a little bit of the 80's all over again. After a week of rain off and on, Saturday night was perfect.

Three sisters lined up for the evening

For those in the Chicagoland area, there's nothing like being able to spend a beautiful evening at the Ravinia Festival. They have concerts virtually every night all summer long. And for the really popular concerts it helps to be a donor.  A small contribution and you can enter the park 30 minutes before the gate opens to the general public.

This was one of those concerts. We arrived in time to take advantage of the early donor entrance. This allowed us to set up in close proximity to the pavilion so we could see the the stage screens from our seats. There's nothing like a delicious picnic on a beautiful evening with good food and great wines.

For this night's concert, I chose four sisters to share with my cousin Elizabeth and her husband Dale. These four sisters come from sister wineries, Seghesio, Pine Ridge, Chamisal and Archery Summit.  We started with the Fiano from Seghesio Family Vineyards. All of these wineries are owned by Crimson Wine Group.

Fiano is a wine enjoyed by the ancient Romans who referred to it as Apiano because bees were attracted to it as the harvest approached. The Seghesio family's introduction to this wine came through a blind tasting and they soon became the first grower in Sonoma County to grow this particular grape. With origins in the marine -influenced Italian village of Avellino, Fiano grows very well in the Russian River Valley.

This wine reminds me a little bit of a Pinot Grigio but more complex. It starts with floral aromas and a hint of pear and lime zest. The pear flavors come through very strongly, too. There's a hint of honey that comes through at the end. (Perhaps this is what the bees of ancient Rome were looking for!).

It paired well with our appetizers of several cheeses, a goat cheese, a cheddar and havarti. We also had some olives and some homemade pickles.  We also had some smoked salmon and a few slices of various charcuterie.

Our second bottle of wine was the Estate Rose from Chamisal Vineyards.  This was also a fruit forward wine with strong aromas of strawberry and cream.  Up until last summer's visit to wine country I had never really thought much of Rose wines. I put them in the same category as white zinfandel.

But I was wrong. I've found that the Rose wines make for a great summer wines. With both the Fiano and the Rose being chilled, provided some relief to a warm afternoon.

I found the Rose surprisingly fresh and yet complex. That may be the result of the calcareous, clay-rich soils of Chamisal Vineyards. Having been on the tour on a recent visit to the Vineyard, I can see how the soil could impart unique flavors.  I found the wine to be more than just a smooth drinking wine.  I found the flavors to be very rich . . . reminiscent of the Pinot Noir that forms the base of this wine.

My cousin Elizabeth determined that everything tastes better with Reddi-Whip. That includes not just the fruit and pound cake but also the peanut butter cups.  It's certainly something to keep in mind in the future.

The music began as we just finished this bottle. It was time to open up the Archery Summit Estate Pinot Noir.  From the Dundee Hills region of Oregon's Willamette Valley, this wine really reflects the quality of wines from Oregon.  I recently wrote a post about my recent visit to the winery -- it was the last of the four sisters for me to visit.

Each one of the wineries is producing fabulous estate wines but they're all unique. Each one of the winemakers takes the unique terroir of each vineyard and the grapes to develop really spectacular wines.  The Estate Pinot Noir from Archery Summit is no exception.

This wine opens with aromas of slate. You can really pick up on minerals of the wines.  When you taste the wine you can really pick up on the dark red cherry flavors of this wine along with depth of flavors. The finish of this wine is velvety smooth.

As it turns out it was a great way to finish the evening. Since we still needed to drive home from the concert, I decided not to open the Onyx from Pine Ridge Winery.  This is one of my favorite Bordeaux blends.

As the concert wound down, we ended the evening with a little coffee and pound cake (and of course the Reddi-Whip).  As we were putting away the tables and chairs, the B52's were belting out their hit single Rock Lobster.

Over the years we've developed a pretty good pattern for what we bring to Ravinia. We've seen so many different set-ups that we've created our own picnic package.  Now I'm looking forward to our next concert -- Heart.  A continuation of the 80's theme for this year.

If you haven't tried some of the other wines from these great wineries, I would encourage you to do so

Defiant as Always

After a long day at work, I came home wanting a good wine and a simple meal.  I guess nothing says simple like a grilled cheese sandwich. Most recently I have been drinking some really good pinot noirs and chardonnays and other lighter red blends.

But today I felt a little Defiant.

Defiant, as in in Seghesio's Defiant blend. This isn't a light red blend. With Aglianico, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon, you can be assured that this is a full, bold blend.  And it lives up to its name.

I discovered this little gem a couple of years. Frankly it caused me to change my membership in Seghesio's wine club.  Let me explain.

What first attracted me to this wine first by its name.  For those of you who know me well, you can say that there's a little defiant streak running through me. This delicious and bold wine got its name from the description that wine icon Mario Pinelli-Minetti during Seghesio's centennial in 1995.  He toasted Seghesio Matriarch Angela for the defiant way she faced the industry's challenges.

I imagine that she faced a number of significant issues from Prohibition to the Great Depression. Two world wars and a police action. A lot to steer a company and family through.

A few years ago, I received this wine as part of my club shipment. I called to order more and was told: "we don't have any more. It all went in the initial club shipment." Now I was disappointed.  I changed my membership from two bottles of each club wine to six.

This wine reflects that defiance. This is a bold wine. I had the 2008 vintage. I'm thinking that this wine could use a few more years. It's still young. This wine will stand up to the boldest of foods.

Frankly, it was a real treat. I loved the nose of this wine to begin.You could also pick up the oak from the barrel. The tannins are particularly strong. I think with a couple more years, this wine will mellow and turn into a devilishly delicious wine.

For those of you looking for this wine, you'll have to be a member of the Seghesio wine club since it's only available to members.

Were the Beach Boys Singing about Wine?

I'm going to show my age a little bit but I was wondering tonight as I was enjoying a glass of wine if the Beach Boys misspelled Barbara Ann and really were singing about Barbera wine.

Bah, Bah, Bah, Barbera Wine?

Ok. Now that you have the Beach Boys reverberating in your mind, perhaps that was a little too kitschy.

It is what I was thinking, though,  as I was enjoying a glass of Seghesio 2009 Barbera. Until learning of Barbera from Seghesio Family Vineyards I had never heard of the grape.

Of course I had heard of various Italian wines like Chianti (which I know is a particular blend rather than a grape) but not this specific grape.

I wonder why because it's the third most planted variety after Sangiovese and Montepulciano (never heard of this grape either). Barbera is most famously found in the Piedmont region of Italy. Would it surprise you to learn that is exactly the region of Italy that Seghesio patriarch Edoardo emigrated from? 

When he arrived in America, he planted a number of vineyards with varietals he found here but one vineyard was planted to his favorites from his homeland. Seghesio's historic and proprietary Barbera clones are ideally suited for the Alexander Valley.

One of the things that I've learned from trying different wines is that each has its own unique characteristics. The Barbera that winemaker Ted Seghesio makes has a bold aroma and a velvety texture. There's a richness to this wine.

Building on the family's heritage, Seghesio Family Vineyards and winemaker Ted Seghesio create incredible wines from a distinctively Italian point of view from Anglianico to Zinfandel. I think it sets them apart from other winemakers in the region.

As I've mentioned before, I don't have the best ability in picking out aromas or specific flavors within a wine. With this wine, everything works gloriously together. As I've been on a drive to see how I might be able to turn the tasting "rules" upside down this year, the Barbera is something of a wonder.

Over the years I've never had a bad pairing with the Barbera. Tonight I'm enjoying the wine with . . . well nothing spectacular. It's been a rough couple of weeks so I just re-heated some dirty rice I had in the freezer. But what I love is that this delicious wine is making what might otherwise be a mundane evening into something truly spectacular.

You'll want to check your local wine shop if you want a bottle of this wine because it's currently not available on the Seghesio web site. Wine doesn't have to be saved for a special occasion but it can make what might otherwise be a mundane meal.

Salute!

A Little of Grandfather's Red

In keeping with my last post, Does Wine Have to Be So Complicated,I am trying to encourage people to try to make wine an everyday part of their lives.  It really doesn't have to be complicated. As Nicole Bacigalupi from John Tyler Wines said in response to that post:

Just drink and enjoy. Nothing complicated about that.

She's absolutely right. It's really not all that complicated. So to make things simple on Friday night I opened up what I thought would be a strong companion to some old-fashioned Italian fare: Seghesio's Nonno's Rosso.

Grandfather's Red.

It was created in honor of Edoardo Seghesio, the patriarch of Seghesio Family Vineyards. This wine carries the Alta Vineyard label. The Alta Vineyard Company was purchased by the Seghesio family after World War II and is it's current location in Healdsburg.

Over the last few years I've really enjoyed several of Seghesio's various field blends. I particularly enjoy Marian's Reserve.  While this isn't necessarily a field blend, it recreates the blends and wines that the Alta Vineyard would have been making prior to it's purchase by the Seghesio family.

Grandfather's Red is a turn-of-the-century blend of Alicante dating back to 1885, some hillside Mourvedre and Grenache (with a hint of some old vine Zinfandel). At the end of a busy week the last thing in the world you want to do is to spend a lot of time in the kitchen. So dinner was fairly simple ... some pasta, some sauce and Italian sausage.

I'm not sure what I expected from this wine. First I would say that it's not a bold wine like I've come to expect from a lot of Seghesio's wines.  It was much more subtle. Not bland but more subtle. I wonder if in America we've come to expect the big. The bold. And we expect that the same wine will taste the same across various years.

I wonder if it was always that way.

I was reading an article the other day about the origin of field blends.  Not necessarily the practice of most winemakers today. Today they grow their wines separately.  In the past, several varieties were grown in the same vineyard. The grapes were harvested at the same time and fermented together.

This creates a unique depth because the various grapes ripen at different times. It also means that each year the wine is slightly different. But then again, that's not the Starbucks approach where everything is always the same. That seems to be something that we Americans want.

I think that's our loss.  There's certainly benefits to the variety. Back to Nonno's Rosso. What may have started out out as something a little more subtle became a delicious pairing with the pasta. I found that the wine opened up a bit with some air and the flavors became a little more distinct.

And then, the bottle was empty.

As far as I can tell, this wine was only available to wine club members. And since it was a part of my club shipment, I still have a few bottles left to enjoy in the future. And while it's not a wine that hits my top 10, I'm intrigued enough by the history of the blend and the flavor of the wine to continue to pull it out every now and then.

For those of you intrigued by the concept of a field blend, I think you'll enjoy Seghesio's Marian's Reserve. They have a 2009 available online. I'm beginning to expand the types of wine that I'm trying. I really am enjoying the journey to new wines and regions.  You should, too.

Does Wine Have to be So Complicated?

Do a search on wine books on Amazon and you'll find nearly 100,000 results. That's just books. There's videos, software and apps. Really?

Can wine really be that complicated?

Perhaps we're making it more complicated than we need it to be.  Just for fun, I did a search on wine pairings for Chinese chicken with cashews.  I got all kinds of recommendations. Red wine. White wine. Bold wines. Light and fruity wines.

Over the last few years I've done a number wine tastings. Some of those have been really fun experiences and some have been . . . well less than joyful.  In fact, several friends have told me how one of those wine aficionados have almost ruined their enjoyment of wine.

I've talked to others who've been incredibly intimidated by those types of folks and it's made them afraid to step out of their comfort zone. They drink the same wine all the time.  Sometimes it comes out as: "don't serve any good wine, I can't tell the difference."

That is until they taste some really good wine.  It's not the price of the wine that determines whether it's good or not.

At the end of the day, wine is something that should be enjoyed.


I'm grateful to my friends at Seghesio who helped me expand my palate from drinking just their Zinfandels to enjoying their great Grenache, Petit Sirah, Barbera, Anglianico, various field blends and of course their Sangiovese. I've branched out to other Sonoma County wineries like Frick, John Tyler Wines, Arista, Francis Ford Coppola wines.  I've enjoyed wines from Pine Ridge in Napa and Chamisal Vineyards in San Luis Obispo.


When I'm out with folks for dinner I'm often asked to choose the wine. I know I don't have a better palate than any of the people I'm with.  I tend to be a bit adventurous.  I don't always order a wine that I've had before.  I like to try something new.

But that doesn't mean that I don't have a plan. Sometimes I've had a wine that I liked from the same region.  For instance, I've never had a Chardonnay from the Russian River Valley that I didn't like.  Just last night I was out to dinner with clients and was asked to select the wines for dinner.

I had never really had any of the wines before but I do know that the Willamette Valley in Oregon has some really great Pinot Noirs. It was an Italian restaurant so I found a nice reserve Chianti as well.  As it turns out, the choices were pretty good.

This year I want to encourage those who are a little unsure of themselves to step out and try something new. Mostly I want people to enjoy making memories with friends and families over great food and wine.

I'm Thankful for My Friends -- Old and New

Last Thanksgiving was a bit crazy.  Not only was I getting ready to celebrate my 50th birthday (and my twin brother's) we found out on the Monday of Thanksgiving our Thanksgiving Day restaurant reservations had fallen through.

That meant that I ended up hosting two pretty big celebrations in three days.  I won't go into details here (you can read about it in my post The Unexpected Party. This Thanksgiving was a lot more low key.

This Thanksgiving I spent celebrating with family. There were just five of us.  Ok seven if you count the little dog and the 20 lb turkey! Pretty small considering the crowd that was there for last Thanksgiving but it was no less rewarding.

It was nice because it gave me an opportunity to reflect on a year of friends both old and new.  This past August (as you can note from my series on my trip to Sonoma, I had the real privilege to meet and work alongside three BBQ masters, Chris Lilly (from Big Bob Gibson's BBQ), Dr. BBQ (a mainstay on the professional BBQ circuit) and Pete Seghesio.

Not only did I learn a lot about the BBQ, I really had a chance to get to know more folks in the wine business.  Here's what I'm discovering -- I really like these folks.  The Seghesio team are incredible people.  From Pete and Cathy to Dave Meserli, Brandye Alexander, Dana Macaulay, Tony in the tasting room and so many others.

I'm really honored to call them friends not just acquaintances.

This fall I had the unexpected opportunity to not only meet some new friends but visit the great folks at Seghesio's sister vineyard in San Luis Obispo, Chamisal Vineyards.  You can read about the visit in my post A Special Day at Chamisal Vineyards. They're part of the reason for my reflections on my friends.  Our Thanksgiving meal featured the Chamisal's Morrito Pinot Noir.

This incredible wine was the perfect pairing for our turkey dinner.  Because of Michael's gracious tour, I can still see the view to the ocean from this little morro.  The particular terroir of this particular part of the vineyard is distinct.

It's more volcanic type rock than other parts of the vineyard and the hill is steeper.  This produced a wine that begins with a hint of strawberries and then ends with full on cranberry and the Chamisal spice. But more than the perfect pairing, it reminded me again of that special day with my new friends Michael, Alyssa and Andrea (who came in special even though she was recovering from an early fall cold).

So as we enter the holiday season, I just want to say thanks to my old friends and my new friends.  So to all those mentioned and to Bill Frick (Frick Winery), Nicole and Katey Bacigalupi (John Tyler Wines), Brooke at Chamisal and Nancy Santiago and Chistine Kyle from Pine Ridge Winery, a Giant Thank YOU.

You have made this a special year. Not only do you all make fabulous wines but you're some of the best people I know.

Something Old. Something New.

With this month's wine club shipment, they included a 2009 Quindici. This Sangiovese blend from Tuscany includes 80% Sangiovese, 10% merlot and 10% Alicante Bouschet. Quindici, Italian for fifteen, celebrates the 15 years that Ted and Alberto have been collaborating.  

There's something special about family heritage. My family heritage is mostly German with a little bit of Swedish. We're known best for our wurst not our wine. Tonight, for no special reason, I opened a special bottle of family history. Not mine but my friends at Seghesio Family Vineyards. 

Tonight was an opportunity to celebrate the Italian heritage of the Seghesio family.  When Edoardo came to United States in 1886, he began work with the Pietro Rossi at the Italian Swiss Colony winery and he planted the first vines on the Home Ranch. Edoardo knew the Rossi family back in the "old country."

Seghesio's new wine from Italy? Delicious celebration of heritage.

For the last 15 years, Ted Seghesio, winemaker for Seghesio Family Vineyards, has been collaborating with Alberto Antonini in creating wines from grape grown in Sonoma County that builds on the family heritage. Primarily known for their Zinfandels, Seghesio has quite a lineage in creating Italian heritage wines such as Sangiovese, Aglianico, Arneis, Pinot Grigio, and just this year Vermentino among others.

A century after Edoardo Seghesio planted his first Italian varietals, Ted traveled to the land of his great-grandfather's homeland to create this unique wine. What I love about this is the sense of history in this wine. I love what Ted has been able to do with various Sangiovese blends from Sonoma County so I was particularly intrigued with the Italian version.

Obviously, the terroir of Italy is different from Sonoma. But the impact it has on the wine is intriguing. I found this wine to be delicious but not as big as some of the other wines from Ted.  I will say that this wine will find it's way into my holiday festivities. 

Thanks, Ted.  Here's a wine that is both old and new at the same time. Another winner from Seghesio Family Vineyards. 

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.

Train and the First of Three Glorious Weekends At Ravinia

After returning from our trip Sonoma to BBQ and drink wine with both old friends and new friends, we had scheduled three weekends in a row to be at the Ravinia Festival. This is truly one of the great treasures of the Chicago area during the summer. The eclectic mix of entertainers who come through Ravinia every season is a real treat.

This year has been no exception to that rule. Over the course of three weekends, we traveled from Pop to Easy Listening/Big Band to Rhythm and Blues as Train, Tony Bennett and Anita Baker all came to town. Each brings not only an original sound but their own audience as well.  All three concerts were sold out and while I don't know the number of people in the audience, judging from how we were packed in like sardines, it had to be well over 10,000 per concert.

Just getting started!

And here's where the best $75 I've ever spent came into play. Because I made a gift to the Festival, I was able to get in 30 minutes before the mongrel horde was.  Nothing like walking up to the member gate while everyone else is standing in line out to the parking lot!

Being of an age where I'm not always "up" on the hottest pop/rock groups, I wasn't sure what a Train was. I am quite familiar with Duke Ellington's "Take the A Train" but Train . . .  not so much.

But then again, we were at Ravinia so frankly the music, in my mind, is almost secondary. This great venue for a picnic and music is one of my favorite summer spots. Nothing like relaxing around a picnic dinner, drinking some truly fabulous wines and enjoying some music on a Sunday night.

Having set up before everyone in our favorite spot (with a view to the screens behind the stage), we could relax as the gates opened and several thousand people rush the venue trying to find their ideal spot. I'm frankly a little surprised that no one was trampled on the way in.

For us, this is the perfect time. We've already opened a bottle of wine and are now calmly sipping away. We have some food out and we're enjoying not having been nearly killed on the entrance to the park.

The line up for Train. As you can see, the Venom is empty already.

We're on the phone as some friends are trying to find their way into the park and toward our spot. For tonight's concert I've chosen some really delicious wines from Seghesio, Barbera, Venom, Sonoma Zinfandel, Home Ranch Zinfandel and the San Lorenzo Zinfandel along with a bottle of stainless Chardonnay from Chamisal Vineyards.

These should go really well with our cheese and charcuterie, grilled romaine and portabella mushroom salad, grilled chicken skewers, fruit and olives.

While waiting for friends to arrive, we had a glass or two of Seghesio's Venom.  I love what winemaker Ted says of this wine (grown on Rattlesnake Hill on the Home Ranch): "Venom is the antidote for all other previously consumed bad Sangiovese." I understand that Sangiovese isn't one of the easiest grapes to grow or wines to make. Venom is truly a work of art.

After every inch of space around us had be covered with a blanket, a folding chair or a table of some sort, we finished putting out the food.  One of my favorites is this grilled romaine salad that I've put together.

There's something about grilling the romaine hearts that brings out a little nutty flavor.  At the same time, roasting the portabella mushrooms, peppers and corn brings out a special flavor. What really kicks it off, though, is the homemade dressing.

For my brother who's allergic to mustard, it could be considered "killer." But it's really very simple.  If you'd like the recipe for this delicious salad, be sure to respond to this post.  I'll be happy to give it out.

When our friends arrived, we put the finishing touches on the food and the wine.  This was the first visit to Ravinia for Megan, Jason, Deanna and Erick. Now all that was necessary was a little birthday celebration and to sit back and to enjoy the music as Train rolls through Ravinia.

While I know August was your birthday month, Jason, maybe you can continue the celebration a little longer.  Thanks for sharing your birthday with us . . . and about 16,000 other folks.

Not that it really mattered at all by this point, but the music was really quite good -- if this not quite too old guy can say so.  The challenge with the concert being on a Sunday night is that work rolls around Monday morning so it can't be too late.

I suppose there are 50 Ways to Say Goodbye but since there are two more glorious weekends at Ravinia coming up (with Tony Bennett and Anita Baker) I won't say goodbye yet. Just come back next week for more of Mondays @ Marks!

Wine Country Treats or Day 3 of the Great Sonoma Wine Vacation

As the sun rises on day three in wine country I'm pretty excited about the day ahead. After a little work in the morning, I head down to Santa Rosa to pick up my brother and sister-in-law and move them up to the Dry Creek Inn for the rest of the trip.

As they checked into the hotel and Roxanne finished her work for the week, I began planning the day.  Our first stop would be Seghesio Family Vineyards.  I was looking forward to experiencing the family tables. 
I had spoken with Tony earlier on Thursday to ensure that all food issues were dealt with so I wasn't too worried there wouldn't be anything for them to eat.  So when we arrived, they were ready for us.  We were a little early so we took a quick look around the tasting room. They had a few new logo items that we needed to take home with us.

So while we were waiting, we started the current tasting of the day. While it may have been 5 o'clock somewhere, it was only a little before noon in California so we were doing a leisurely tasting.  While we normally split the tastings, since we had plenty of time we each had our own.

As the rest of the folks sharing the Family Tables with us arrived and caught up on the tasting, we headed back behind the tasting room for a brief tour of the winery.  This was something I wasn't anticipating. 

It was interesting tour through time. I found the history of the winery from bulk wine production to becoming a fine wine producer. With insights not only into the the successes of the winery but some of the challenges as well.

We made our way up to the dining room where Chef Peter delivered a perfect plate to match five wines.  We started with a arm corn salad with chanterelle mushrooms, arugula and romano beans which was paired with the 2009 Costiera Pinot Noir.  This was followed by a duck confit crepinette and a Santa Rosa plum compote paired with their newly released 2010 Monte Rosso Zinfandel.

Perhaps the most unusual pairing was the swordfish, fregola sarda, early summer veggies and a cerignola tapinade paired with the 2005 Omaggio.  If you don't think a red wine can complement seafood, think again.  This was perhaps my favorite pairing of the day.This was followed by hand-cut egg noodles, rock shrimp and a piquillo almond cream paired with the 2007 Aglianico.

The lunch concluded with an almond bite paired with the Dionigia Port.  All in all a very successful lunch.

After placing an order, purchasing some souvineer glasses and a quick thank you to the team, we were off for a day of tasting at some other vineyards.  First up was a trip back up to the Francis Ford Coppola winery for the view and a tasting. 

I found the Director's Cut Cinema to be my favorite.  Once again I'm finding myself intrigued by the taste and aromas of blends rather than the straight varietals. It's not that I'm not enjoying the zins, cabs and carignane's but there's something about the the winemaker's skills coming to play putting the right mix of grapes, appellations and vineyards. 

That's what's going on here with the Cinema. A little Cabernet Sauvignon from Alexander Valley, Zinfandel and Petite Sirah from Dry Creek Valley and some Cabernet Franc from Knight's Valley.These sub-appellations of Sonoma all bring something special to the party.

Having been invited to a party with friends that evening, I picked up a bottle of the Cinema to take with me.  After enjoying the view on the patio, we got back into the car and headed off to Bella Vineyards.  This vineyard boasts really beautiful views up in the Dry Creek Valley just north of Healdsburg.

Ok. You really can't go wrong with any of the views. this is such a beautiful area of the country.  For those of us landlocked in the midwest, it's a real treat to see the majestic beauty that is found in Sonoma and Napa counties. 

With a tasting in their cave, my brother picking up a bottle of wine here, we headed back to the hotel to freshen up before an evening out.

In our travels over the last few years to the Sonoma wine country we've made a few friends and this evening one of them was hosting a party at their home.  This spectacular evening with friends old and new was the absolute highlight of the trip.  Although, the primary purpose of our trip this time would begin bright and early on Saturday morning. 

The 9th Annual Zin & BBQ Festival at Seghesio Family Vineyards and I'd be helping out the winery team as they tried to knock off world class BBQ masters Chris Lilly and Dr. BBQ.  But that's for next week's blog post.  Until then, enjoy the company of great friends with some really fabulous wines and make a few memories of the summer of 2012 before it ends all too soon in a couple of weeks.