tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-66771553567334038232024-03-14T02:54:14.542-06:00Colorado Wine PressA website devoted to Colorado Wine and beyond.kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.comBlogger367125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6677155356733403823.post-51458217646984327782017-10-18T15:30:00.000-06:002017-10-19T11:58:40.993-06:00Wine Advocate to start winery consulting service<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
A new consulting service, "Wine Benchmarking" by <i>Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, </i>being launched this fall was introduced to the Colorado wine industry. I've reached out to Editor-in-Chief Lisa Perrotti-Brown and will update this post with more information when/if I get it.</div>
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Described in the announcement, the <i>Wine Advocate</i> is providing detailed advice to wineries for $800 per winery. For this fee, wineries will get two of their wines assessed by <i>Wine Advocate</i> reviewers and receive two tickets to a "Wine Benchmarking Seminar" in February 2018. Additional wines for evaluation may be submitted subject to availability and volume pricing is available on request. It appears that the main difference between this evaluation and the normal published evaluation is that wineries will receive personalized notification of where their wines sit qualitatively to their peers. The <i>Wine Advocate</i> reviewers will also provide specific actionable advice that may be taken in the vineyard and winery to address detected shortcomings - as well as possible opportunities for future wine quality enhancement. This information will be provided to wineries in confidential, sealed envelopes after February's seminar.</div>
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It would appear to me that this new service may result in a new direction from the fiercely independent critical approach Mr. Parker has espoused for years. However, this publication is Mr. Parker's now in name only. I am all for wineries hiring consultants to help with their businesses, but I don't see how an independent critic can start taking money from those he/she is reviewing and still claim complete separation from the trade. I can't imagine how this statement: "it is imperative that I keep a distance from the trade. While this may be misinterpreted as aloofness, such independence guarantees hard‑hitting, candid, and uninfluenced commentary" remains on the Writers Ethics page on RobertParker.com form much longer.</div>
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Don't get me wrong, as a proponent of small regional wineries, I think this could be a great opportunity for wineries to improve their wine quality, improve their scores and increase sales. Yet, shouldn't this kind of feedback be what wine reviews are all about in the first place? I've been advocating that all regional wineries submit wines for critical review to Wine Advocate, Wine Enthusiast, and Wine Spectator. Critical feedback is very important to the wine industry. So is for-hire consulting services. My personal hunch is Mr. Parker had nothing to do with this. </div>
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<br />kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6677155356733403823.post-36386924001003876752017-08-01T08:02:00.000-06:002017-08-01T08:02:06.560-06:002017 Colorado Governor's Cup Results<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Happy Colorado Day! I can't think of a better way to celebrate Colorado than with Colorado Wine!</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Last month, the </span><a href="http://www.coloradowine.com/" style="color: #e06666; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none;">Colorado Wine Industry Development Board</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"> (CWIDB, and for which I work part-time) held the </span><a href="http://www.coloradowine.com/Governors-cup" style="color: #e06666; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none;">Governor’s Cup Colorado Wine Competition</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">. This year was the sixth incarnation of the largest, and most prestigious, statewide commercial wine competition (actually the First Lady's Choice was awarded the first year because the Governor had not given consent to use the title). The 2017 Governor’s Cup Best of Show winner will be announced at the History Colorado Center during the <a href="https://www.twoparts.com/event/the-colorado-governors-cup-wine-tasting/">public tasting of the Governor's Cup Case</a>.</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"> Modeled after the </span><a href="http://www.virginiawine.org/governors-cup/awards" style="color: #e06666; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none;">Virginia Governor's Cup Case</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">, the top twelve wines will be the wines that the CWIDB use for the next 12 months for its marketing and educational endeavors.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">A total of 325 wines from 45 local wineries were judged by a panel of sommeliers, wine writers, consultants, and winemakers from Colorado and around the country. This is almost a doubling of entries in just the past three years. </span></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Not to take anything away from any of the judges, but the most notable judge (once again) was Warren Winiarski, the world's first <a href="http://www.coloradowinepress.com/2014/05/the-first-flying-winemaker.html">"flying winemaker."</a> Winiarski is most famous for starting Stag's Leap Wine Cellars and winning the Judgement of Paris tasting in 1976. A bottle of 1973 S.L.V. Cabernet Sauvignon now sits in the Smithsonian Museum for that monumental accomplishment. But before changing California wine history, Winiarski </span><a href="http://www.coloradowinepress.com/2014/02/the-california-wine-industry-wouldnt-be.html" style="color: #e06666; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none;">made his mark in Colorado</a><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">. When Warren and I first met almost five years ago, he told me that he wanted to come back to Colorado to see what the industry is up to these days. He keeps coming back year after year. He even brought Mark Chien, Program Coordinator for the Oregon Wine Research Institute, out to Colorado on his own dime as a resource for Colorado wine growers. </span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Other notable judges include: Doug Frost, Master Sommelier, Master of Wine and overall renaissance man; Andrew Stover, D.C.-based regional wine pimp and <a href="http://www.winemag.com/gallery/americas-top-40-under-40-tastemakers/">Wine Enthusiast 40 under 40 Tastemaker</a>; Jeff Siegel, aka <a href="http://www.winecurmudgeon.com/">The Wine Curmudgeon</a>; and Tina Caputo, Wine Storyteller and host of <a href="http://www.winemakersdrinkingbeer.com/">"Winemakers Drinking Beer."</a> </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">The Governor’s Cup Case is composed of the top 12 wines and just so happens to include a cider, mead, white, red and dessert wines: the definition of diversity. There are 12 unique varietal and blended wines. This is the first year that the Governor's Cup Case does not have multiple wines from a single winery or duplicate examples of a specific cultivar (Syrah, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Sauvignon or Cabernet Franc have made up a bulk of the case in the past). This is the fourth straight year that Bookcliff Vineyards is represented and six of the wines in the 2017 Case have been in the Case previously. That is the model of consistency!</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Does the fact that no single variety or style stood out this year mean that Colorado has no specific wine to hang its hat on? Well, that question is hard to answer when less that a quarter of all producers submitted samples and many of those that did, did not send their entire lineups. Nevertheless, the case does include wines from two wineries that have never been included in the case before! Progress one step at a time!</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b><u>2017 Governor’s Cup Case:</u></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Bookcliff Vineyards (Boulder), 2016 Riesling</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Carlson Vineyards (Palisade), 2015 Tyrannosaurus Red Lemberger</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Colorado Cellars (Palisade), Raspberry Wine</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Colorado Cider Company (Denver), Grasshop-ah Cider</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Creekside Cellars (Evergreen), 2014 Cabernet Franc</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Guy Drew Vineyards (Cortez), 2015 Syrah</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Meadery of the Rockies (Palisade), Strawberry Honey</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">The Infinite Monkey Theorem (Denver), 2013 The Bubble Universe Sparkling Albariño</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Two Rivers Winery (Grand Junction), 2015 Port</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Decadent Saint (Boulder), 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Whitewater Hill Vineyards (Grand Junction), 2016 Sweetheart Red</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Winery at Holy Cross Abbey (Cañon City), 2015 Reserve Merlot</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Governor’s Cup Wine Competition Public Tasting will be held at the History Colorado Center (1200 Broadway, Denver) starting at 6:30 p.m. on August 3. Tickets start at $45 for General Admission or $75 for the VIP ticket that will allow a tasting of previous Governor's Cup winners. <a href="https://www.twoparts.com/event/the-colorado-governors-cup-wine-tasting/">You can find tickets here!</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Also new this year, the CWIDB received a grant from the Colorado Tourism Office to create a documentary about the Governor's Cup. Here is a teaser for the video:</span><br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" mozallowfullscreen="" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/227592586" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="640"></iframe>
<a href="https://vimeo.com/227592586">Governor's Cup—judges promo</a> from <a href="https://vimeo.com/ianfrankfilms">IAN FRANK // FILMS</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6677155356733403823.post-30751981552492706762017-06-27T07:42:00.002-06:002017-06-27T07:42:44.732-06:00Dr. Harry Oldman on replacing Jeb Dunnuck in the Wine Advocate<i>Dr. Harry Oldman has been quiet for quite sometime here on the blog, but he hasn't quit quite yet. His last appearance was his rant on <a href="http://www.coloradowinepress.com/2016/03/dr-harry-oldman-on-andy-warhol-wines.html">Andy Warhol wines</a> a little over two years ago. He recently asked if he could respond to the paparazzi rumor mill about his supposed impending employment at a renowned wine publication (other than this one). I don't normally dabble in speculation, but I figure I should give the old man a chance to set the record straight.</i><br />
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It may seem as if I have been laying low for awhile now, but I actually been working real hard in the wine industry. I was quite surprised that I was able to gain employment in the wine industry with my background as a blogger. We all know wine bloggers never amount to anything in the wine industry.<br />
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Ever since January 21, I've been working as communications director and press secretary for a major East Coast winery. I know what you're thinking - East Coast wine is an oxymoron, kind of like affordable Napa Cab or affordable health care. But after working at the highest levels of the greatest winery on Earth, I've had change of heart - granted it was a medically necessary heart transplant - about non-California wines.<br />
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I was having dinner with my friends Jared and Sergei one evening last December when they told me that their boss' hand-picked personal assistant wanted me to be the public face of <strike>his</strike> I mean his son's winery. I've been busy ever since giving daily briefings to the Atlantic Coast wine media. I've of course banned all cameras and bloggers (No Fake Media Allowed) from attending, but Jim Acosta and Jay McInerney, who is usually drunk or high, show up everyday. I suppose dealing with these two losers is a part of making wine great again.<br />
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I've been amazed with how I've gone from being a retired computational physicist to being stalked by the wine paparazzi on the Interwebs. This rise of epic porportions almost didn't happen. I remember the day so clearly. August 22, 2016. That was the day I lost one of my best friends. He was there one day and gone the next. At my age it is bound to happen, but when a moderately notorious wine writer decides to stop writing about wine to write about Crooked Hillary it is a dark, dark day. I almost gave up wine myself. I was in a funk - thank god it wasn't a 12% Contra Costa Carignan-type funk - but an emotional funk that cracking open my 15-yr vertical of Harlan Estate was able to break. That's what friends like Jared and Sergei are for. Without them opening this backchannel for me I wouldn't be in the position I am in today.<br />
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And what position is that exactly? Well, approximately 12 people in the entire country have seen my name mentioned over on <a href="http://wineberserkers.com/">WineBerserkers.com</a> as the likely replacement for <a href="http://www.jebdunnuck.com/">Jeb Dunnuck</a>'s beat in Robert Parker's Wine Advocate. Apparently Jeb decided that he actually wanted to review wine for consumers instead of traveling the world in the Singapore Dog, Pony and Wine Show. And what a pony he was. But now the speculation has turned to who will fill the heir apparent's shoes. Funny how my name got thrown into the mix. We must find the leakers! This is a big deal! Word even spread to the Robert Parker Bulletin Board. Now 14 people suspect that the one and only Dr. Harry Oldman will fill the bung-sized void to review the wines of Central California and the Rhône Valley.<br />
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Can you imagine a world in which that would actually happen? Oh boy, watch out when old Dr. Oldman strikes pen to paper in the fully made-over print editions with full-color photos, with over 25% more tasting notes and articles. I will personally guarantee that my writing will be more than 25% more colorful! If you thought the feud between the Hosemaster and Levi Dalton was epic, just you wait. I once saved <a href="http://www.coloradowinepress.com/2013/11/mr-oldman-on-how-he-saved-wine-spectator.html">Wine Spectator</a>, why not add one more American literary icon to my resume?<br />
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Despite how much sense this move would make, I must deny this speculation. Seeing as I was instrumental in helping drive the creative direction of this site, it is possible I could have done the same for another even more prestigious wine publication. I can confidently say that I've been a wine journalist, editor and taster for over a decade and am a regular wine panelist, speaker and educator for events and organizations worldwide. Those qualifications alone would make me qualified to replace Jeb. Writing alongside Bob would give me a bigger podium from which to <a href="http://www.coloradowinepress.com/2014/03/dr-oldman-on-wine-writers-symposium.html">mock those who mock he who shall not be mocked</a>.<br />
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No, Dr. Harry Oldman will not be replacing Jeb Dunnuck. Joe Czerwinski, former managing editor of Wine Enthusiast will be the new reviewer in Monkton. He will fit the corporate environment and bow down to the Master herself. For all those claiming end of days at the Wine Advocate better eat their shorts now. The ship has been righted and Joe will help Bob regain the glory of the early 1990s. This morning there is joy in Mudville! This all being said, I will not deny that I will not be joining the Wine Advocate in some capacity in the future. I better get back to my podium, I see McInerney waking up from his nap.<br />
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I will let the tweets speak for themselves.<br />
<br />kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6677155356733403823.post-36108576179602218332017-04-01T03:00:00.000-06:002017-04-01T03:00:25.482-06:00Inside 'Scoop:' Mega Wine Merger PlannedAfter years of battling each other, America's largest wine producers are joining forces. In a stunning development (and not just my first blog post in almost four months), E & J Gallo and Jackson Family Wines are on the verge of announcing a joint venture of epic proportions. The joint venture will be limited to the production and distribution of a single global wine brand: Cat Box White.<br />
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Cat Box White will be a blend of Sauvignon blanc sources from the wineries' global portfolio of vineyards and come in three-, five-, and a brand new nine-liter boxes. A majority of the grapes used for the new wine brand will be from New Zealand, France and California, though vineyards all over the world will be utilized to meet production goals. Rumor has it that Cat Box White is planning to produce over 100 million nine-liter cases of wine by its third year. Joe Wagner, of Copper Cane Wines, has been contracted to oversee the launch of the new joint venture and develop a line of lifestyle products Cat Box lovers will enjoy. Scented candles will be the first of many ancillary Cat Box-branded products.<br />
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“This makes us a much more capable competitor up against the really changing landscape,” said Barbara Banke, wife of the late Jess Jackson. “It is clear Gallo and Jackson Family will be a stronger, more competitive U.S. wine producer than either company can be on its own. With Constellation buying up many of the world's hottest brands, and thus their consumers, we decided it was in the best interest of our small family-owned companies to work with Joe to create a brand that people will be immediately embrace." Banke added that while she thought everyone will love this wine, they will specifically market to single women.<br />
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Besides cost savings, the merger will create the world's strongest brands which many consumer will be able to identify from its distinct aromas. "Cat Box White will feature the fresh fruit, brisk acidity, and the typical, uh, distinct, uh, aromas wine lovers have come to expect from cool-climate Sauvignon blanc," explained Joseph E. Gallo, CEO of E & J Gallo Winery. Gallo said that cool-climate wines and alternative wine packaging are two of the hottest trends in the sommelier industry right now and they hoped to get Cat Boxes in as many restaurants as possible.<br />
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Gallo will have a 58 percent economic stake in the joint venture, compared with Jackson Family’s 42 percent interest, but both companies will have 50 percent voting interest. The wine will be manufactured at each producers various facilities and then blended, finished and bottled at a brand new facility in Calico, CA. The manufacturers' suggested retail price $7.99 for 3-liter, $13.99 for 5-liter, and $19.99 for 9-liter boxes in the U.S. market. Price information for international distribution was not available.<br />
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<br />While Gallo and Jackson Family currently compete against each other, Steve Heimoff, former director of wine communications and education for JFW and current political journalist, said the companies’ strengths complement each other. "By working together Cat Box White will be a strong competitor to Franzia box wine and potentially steal market share from the American Lager beer segment." Heimoff added, "this joint venture is also sure to destroy the terrible Trump Winery in Virginia."<br />
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Harry Oldman, part-time wine blogger added, "Happy April Fools, you fools!"</div>
kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6677155356733403823.post-74302785392403111322016-12-08T08:07:00.001-07:002016-12-08T08:07:15.882-07:00Phylloxera identified in ColoradoI don't normally do this, but as I helped craft the press release and have inside knowledge of this situation because of my position with the Colorado Department of Agriculture, I am just going to repost the original press release here:<br />
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On November 29, 2016, an insect capable of damaging Colorado’s wine grape crop was confirmed in Mesa County. US Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service entomologists positively identified grapevine phylloxera (<i>Daktulosphaira vitifoliae</i>) on <i>Vitis vinifera</i> grapevines in the Grand Valley American Viticultural Area (AVA), which is a federally designated grape production area in western Colorado. Phylloxera is an aphid-like insect that feeds aggressively on grape roots.<br />
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“Nearly 75 percent of our grape acreage is in the Grand Valley AVA, which stretches along the Colorado River between Palisade and Grand Junction, and is known for its unique environment and high elevation allowing for production of world-class quality winegrapes,” said Doug Caskey, Colorado Department of Agriculture’s Executive Director for the Colorado Wine Industry Development Board.<br />
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In its full life cycle, phylloxera can take multiple forms. The most serious and damaging form, which was recently discovered in Mesa county, feeds on roots of grape plants. It can damage the plant by disrupting water and nutrient flow. Initially, infested plants appear weakened, stunted, and with leaves lighter in color which may look like they are suffering from a nutrient deficiency. In addition, phylloxera can live out another stage of its life on grapevine leaves. This less serious form feeds on leaves that causes leaf galls to develop, but generally not on <i>V. vinifera</i>.<br />
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“The Colorado Department of Agriculture and Colorado State University are actively investigating the source and working with the vineyard owner to contain and eradicate the pest. Extensive surveying is also continuing to determine the scope of the infestation,” said Laura Pottorff, CDA’s Nursery and Phytosanitary program manager. “Hopefully we caught this quickly enough to protect Colorado’s grape crop.”<br />
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<u><b>Recommendations for Grape Growers</b></u><br />
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The Colorado Department of Agriculture is urging vineyard operators to contact their supplying nurseries to find out what, if any, procedures they have in place for identifying and stopping the spread of phylloxera. Colorado grape growers should also take the following precautions:<br />
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1. Watch plants for symptoms of chlorotic leaves, stunting and other symptoms that mimic nutritional deficiencies. If detected sample the roots of plants for presence of phylloxera.<br />
2. All harvesting and cultivation equipment should be power washed or sanitized between fields.<br />
3. When purchasing grape nursery stock, request that the plants be hot water dipped prior to shipment.<br />
4. Examine and inspect all new nursery stock prior to planting, or schedule an inspection by CDA staff.<br />
5. Consider use of root-grafted grape nursery stock.<br />
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<b><u>Background</u></b><br />
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Colorado has approximately 150 grape growers tending 1,000 acres of vineyards and more than 140 licensed commercial wineries. These vintners produced 166,000 cases of wine during the 2016 fiscal year, which equaled more than $33 million in sales.<br />
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Phylloxera is native to the eastern and southeastern United States, where native American grape species (such as <i>Vitis riparia</i> and <i>Vitis labrusca</i>) co-evolved with the insect. Though it has spread around the world since the mid-19th Century to many other wine regions, prior surveys found no evidence of phylloxera in Colorado’s commercial vineyards. Grape species native to the U.S. are generally resistant to phylloxera, but <i>V. vinifera</i> vines have no natural resistance whatsoever. This is why phylloxera nearly wiped out all the vineyards in Europe once it survived the trans-Atlantic trip in the mid-19th Century. On <i>V. vinifera</i> grape cultivars, phylloxera normally infests only the underground parts of the plant and eventually kills the vine. The leaf-feeding, gall-producing form is not present. In susceptible American <i>Vitis</i> species and hybrids, the full life cycle occurs, including the leaf-galling form. Colorado had been one of the few wine regions worldwide to not have been affected by phylloxera and as such many grapevines are self-rooted on <i>V. vinifera</i> rootstocks.<br />
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<b><u>Additional Resources</u></b><br />
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<ul style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'Lucida Sans', Tahoma, sans-serif;">
<li><a href="http://ir.library.oregonstate.edu/xmlui/bitstream/handle/1957/19539/ec1463-e.pdf" style="color: #0062a0;">Grape Phylloxera: Biology and Management in the Pacific Northwest</a></li>
<li><a href="http://ipm.ucanr.edu/PMG/r302300811.html" style="color: #0062a0;">University of California Pest Management Guidelines</a></li>
</ul>
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kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6677155356733403823.post-35392277498206177612016-09-20T16:35:00.000-06:002016-09-20T16:35:56.754-06:00Frontier Airlines sheds light on how to operate a wineryLet me start off by saying Frontier Airlines is a terrible company. From its ownership by Republic Airways and dismantling of Midwest Airlines to current owner Indigo Partners, Frontier Airlines has been run by arrogant, greedy and apathetic people. Even its own pilots think so. Yesterday, the <a href="http://www.alpa.org/">Air Line Pilots Association</a> released a statement blaming Frontier's abysmal operations on "<a href="http://www.alpa.org/news-and-events/news-room/2016-09-20-operational-disruptions-denver-international-airport">the same executive mismanagement and misplaced focus on cost-cutting that has placed Frontier at the very bottom of the industry in operational performance and customer satisfaction. </a>" No winery should aim to operate like Frontier.<br>
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I'll get to what wineries can learn from Frontier, but it will take a bit of ranting to get there.<br>
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<a href="http://www.coloradowinepress.com/2016/09/frontier-airlines-sheds-light-on-how-to.html#more">Read more »</a>kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6677155356733403823.post-10521145010855653412016-07-28T23:38:00.000-06:002016-08-10T06:40:58.759-06:00The Judgment of DenverAt last week's 2016 <a href="http://www.coloradowine.com/governors-cup">Colorado Governor's Cup</a> wine competition I, in my capacity with the Colorado Wine Industry Development Board, organized a wine tasting I'm calling "The Judgment of Denver." For those that do not know, in 1976 British wine merchant Steve Spurrier organized a blind tasting with French wine judges (wine journalists, critics, sommeliers, merchants or winemakers). The wines were broken into two flights; in the first flight, the judges rated 10 Chardonnay, 6 from California and 4 from Burgundy and in the second flight, they rated 10 Cabernet Sauvignon-based red wines, 6 from California and 4 from Bordeaux, France. In each of these flights a California wine, a then relatively little known wine region, was declared the winner. Stag's Leap Wine Cellars' 1973 S.L.V. Cabernet Sauvignon was the top red and Chateau Montelena's 1973 Chardonnay bested some of France's best – and most expensive – wines. The results were published to the world in TIME magazine and forever changed the American – and global – wine industry.<br>
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Each year at the Governor's Cup we do a calibration tasting to have the judges calibrate their palate/scores to benchmark wine (that benchmark isn't always high). This year, I decided to model the calibration portion of the competition after the 1976 "Judgment of Paris" because it was the 40th anniversary of that original blind tasting and Warren Winiarski, founder of Stag's Leap Wine Cellars, was once again one of the judges. These two facts seemed like good enough reason to reenact the tasting once more – multiple retastings of the original wines and a New Jersey vs. French wine tasting have been reported on many times.<br>
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At the Denver tasting, <a href="http://www.coloradowine.com/governors-cup">16 wine judges<sup>1</sup></a> (wine journalists, critics, sommeliers, merchants or winemakers) from around the U.S. tasted Colorado wines against French and California wines in a blind setting. The French and California wines selected were from the same producers as in 1976 including the winning producers: Chateau Montelena and Stag's Leap Wine Cellars. Unlike the Judgment of Princeton, no First Growth Bordeaux were in the mix. Hundred dollar French and California wines are worthy enough competition! Prices of the French and California wines were $30–$110/bottle. I selected Colorado wines that would not appear in the Governor's Cup competition later that day. Prices of the Colorado wines were $15–$50/bottle The results were as similarly surprising as the original tasting. Although, the winner in each category was a California wine (Chalone Vineyard for the whites and Ridge Vineyards Estate Cabernet Sauvignon for the reds) CO wines are at the same level qualitatively.<br>
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<a href="http://www.coloradowinepress.com/2016/07/the-judgment-of-denver.html#more">Read more »</a>kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6677155356733403823.post-36001087387156659842016-05-25T21:06:00.000-06:002016-05-27T09:08:01.280-06:00Wednesday's Wines: Shafer Vineyards and Stone Cottage Cellars<i>Preface: The Napa Valley and the entire world lost two pillars of the wine community this week. Donn Chappellet and Molly Shafer both passed away recently. Both were instrumental in establishing the Napa Valley as the United States' preeminent wine region over the past half decade. Their family names are now firmly entrenched with American wine history. Their families and the greater wine community will no doubt miss them dearly.</i><br />
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Chardonnay often gets a bad rap. Sure, white Burgundy is said to be some of the finest wine in the world, but some of the Californian examples of the grape has also been labeled Cougar Juice. The cultivar has also given rise to the ABC – Anything But Chardonnay – crowd.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibAk3ItE78ff4dq9BStHEhbt_0BHK6omNjOf3NeyD7MyyOmoy8pwASEUb4olCBSAVMfDgMP0126DaabVVLt5lIjSxlu3717kCWhagAY3Z84kCH0kgJ5XMgrXnRAf9qLOFPhsXukkjx6182/s1600/IMG_2048.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibAk3ItE78ff4dq9BStHEhbt_0BHK6omNjOf3NeyD7MyyOmoy8pwASEUb4olCBSAVMfDgMP0126DaabVVLt5lIjSxlu3717kCWhagAY3Z84kCH0kgJ5XMgrXnRAf9qLOFPhsXukkjx6182/s200/IMG_2048.JPG" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Share 2013 Red Shoulder Ranch</td></tr>
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I'm not the world's biggest fan of Chardonnay because I find more pleasure in exploring other varieties – and Chardonnay is too often uninteresting. However, when produced with purpose and care. A few weeks ago, in celebration of Mothers' Day, we celebrated with a prime example of such a Chardonnay. <b><a href="http://www.shafervineyards.com/">Shafer Vineyards</a> 2013 Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay</b> (14.9% abv, Sample $52) is often cited as one of the top Napa Valley Chardonnays. It straddles the line of litheness and voluptuousness like few Chardonnay can. There is no doubt this is a rich wine from the nose. The aromas of baked apples, mango, and shortbread are complemented with flavors of pineapples, vanilla and smoke. The high alcohol comes through, but is not a distraction. Ample acidity balances the richness. This is a great wine for those that like big, rich California Chardonnays, but also enjoy a steely version of the grape.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: right; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCRZnQXpojDuUufkPLpI0_e1uoDoxgi_jlDzFEZPbfyMhJ5fckX_xhofQuF-bfQUFVtgHADe4kKHPahSa1hf1NYPi8mqYaAZPG5QZ-t0y8i6aXnYbgg-aJjocA-ZNbspXTaA35otWpCelU/s1600/IMG_2076.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCRZnQXpojDuUufkPLpI0_e1uoDoxgi_jlDzFEZPbfyMhJ5fckX_xhofQuF-bfQUFVtgHADe4kKHPahSa1hf1NYPi8mqYaAZPG5QZ-t0y8i6aXnYbgg-aJjocA-ZNbspXTaA35otWpCelU/s200/IMG_2076.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stone Cottage 2013 Chardonnay</td></tr>
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Still in somewhat of a Chardonnay mood, the following night I decided to open a Colorado rendition of the grape. <b><a href="http://www.stonecottagecellars.com/">Stone Cottage Cellars</a>' 2013 Chardonnay</b> (14% abv, Purchased $22) is grown at 6300 feet about sea level in the West Elks AVA overlooking the quaint hamlet of Paonia. When I first opened it, the nose struck me as non-Chardonnay-like. It starts coy with steely aromas of lemon and limes. After being open for a while, the wine just blossoms and I like it more with each sniff and sip. The Chardonnay characteristics start to come to the forefront as the aromas and flavors build with baked apples, pears, brioche and a touch of cinnamon. The flavors and finish kept building all night until the bottle was gone and the wine could evolve no more. The acidity is so lovely and amazingly at about a pH of 3.1! I actually prefer this to the Shafer. At only $22 for a 25 case production, this is a screaming value and I'd suggest this would favorably out-compete with Grand Cru Chablis that cost more than 10 times what this humble little Colorado Chardonnay costs. Simply put: this is an amazing wine.<br />
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kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6677155356733403823.post-77611085479157869692016-05-06T09:03:00.000-06:002016-05-06T09:03:12.209-06:00Beatrice's Blushes: Canyon Wind Cellars "Anemoi Eos"<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3fhg7AGbaBCCaYZoYAM8oCeDfY9dNg3ic3C_Mts9Zh80yQcDEUsgScCIwjaa4tY2EE17E7Tr0K-IeTQVYIozjBz8CvxuAAhlmWKYIUVWtjOePzxTDvlV9faMeaifLDg8C53qdi8Z8wF_2/s1600/IMG_2014.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3fhg7AGbaBCCaYZoYAM8oCeDfY9dNg3ic3C_Mts9Zh80yQcDEUsgScCIwjaa4tY2EE17E7Tr0K-IeTQVYIozjBz8CvxuAAhlmWKYIUVWtjOePzxTDvlV9faMeaifLDg8C53qdi8Z8wF_2/s200/IMG_2014.JPG" width="150"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Anemoi 2015 Eos</td></tr>
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<b><a href="http://www.canyonwindcellars.com/">Canyon Wind Cellars</a>' 2015 "Anemoi Eos" Syrah Rosé</b> (13% abv, Sample $28) is the first – and last – rosé of Syrah Jay and Jennifer Christianson will produce. Sadly, in March, the second-generation owners unexpectedly announced they will be closing Canyon Wind Cellars by the end of 2016. I guess it wasn't necessarily unexpected for them, but for everyone in the Colorado wine industry it was a shock. Jay said a variety of reasons contributed to the decision, but he made sure to emphasize that they did not need to close because the winery was in financial trouble. About a decade ago, the younger Christiansons purchased the winery from Jay's parents who founded the winery in 1991. Jay said they decided it was time to begin a new chapter in their lives; which involves traveling around with an Airstream and consulting for wineries around the country.<br>
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Canyon Wind Cellars had to have been one of the most successful Colorado wineries. The portfolio had grown since Jay and Jennifer took over and the quality of the wines was always very high. In fact, Canyon Wind took home Best of Show in the state's Governor's Cup competition each of the last two years. The prime location of the vineyard at the mouth of DeBeque Canyon most likely has a lot to do with high level of success achieved by the Christianson family. Now it is time for a different producer to step up and claim the crown.<br>
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<a href="http://www.coloradowinepress.com/2016/05/beatrices-blushes-canyon-wind-cellars.html#more">Read more »</a>kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6677155356733403823.post-11224309055587866162016-05-04T21:31:00.000-06:002016-05-05T21:31:39.451-06:00Wednesday's Wines: Friends Fun WineWhile the wine and the beer industries appear quite similar on the surface, they have lots of differences. One major difference is the discrepancy with creative products. Brewers can be some of the most creative beverage producers on Earth. There are almost an infinite number of beer flavors/styles. If you can dream something to put in a beer, a brewer has probably used it as an ingredient. Fruit and coffee seem to be common additions.<br>
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Winemakers tend to not be as creative. A long list of approved additives exist, but grapes are the primary ingredient in wine. Sure, oak is often used as a flavoring agent but you don't see other flavors added to the wine. Occasionally producers use different types of barrels to impart different tastes and textures. Recently, I've seen a few producers that use old bourbon barrels to add a bourbon-esque flavors.<br>
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<a href="http://www.coloradowinepress.com/2016/05/wednesdays-wines-friends-fun-wine.html#more">Read more »</a>kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6677155356733403823.post-31099116059802754812016-04-29T15:34:00.002-06:002016-04-29T15:34:58.208-06:00Beatrice's Blushes: Bonny Doon Il Ciliegiolo RosatoBeatrice is now five months old. As I type this, she is playing with her feet and talking up a storm in her crib. I guess a nap is out of the question! She is actually a very good sleeper. She usually sleeps for 10-12 hours at night, with a snack or two thrown in. She'd actually sleep longer if we didn't wake her up to go to school. It can be difficult to disturb her from her slumber with that angelic look on her face, but she usually quite full of smiles when we do. And so are we!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuFQwH_THc5adp7KFwNzRQhIbW5KJMsUVu-Jc7qg9GCVR0l5jxYwJARw5spchFdPN6Hjg_rovdUHjCTkFz_uMYR8WlMtm2GEIBVqqCJZJvxZHEVywurKip6PRhdxoIA03Uk2YzVc6ue4X5/s1600/IMG_1988.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuFQwH_THc5adp7KFwNzRQhIbW5KJMsUVu-Jc7qg9GCVR0l5jxYwJARw5spchFdPN6Hjg_rovdUHjCTkFz_uMYR8WlMtm2GEIBVqqCJZJvxZHEVywurKip6PRhdxoIA03Uk2YzVc6ue4X5/s200/IMG_1988.JPG" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Il Ciliegiolo Rosato</td></tr>
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I had a bit more of a perplexing look on my face when I tasted this week's rosé. Randall Grahm has been known to push the envelope once or twice. The<b> <a href="http://www.bonnydoonvineyard.com/">Bonny Doon Vineyard</a> 2015 Il Ciliegiolo Rosato</b> (12.4% abv, Sample $24) is another example of that trait. I think I've seen red wines that are lighter than this. It isn't bad, but is just a totally different type of wine than comes to mind when I think of pink wine.<br />
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Sourced from the Tracy Hills AVA, a small region in Central Valley due west of Modesto with only 5 vineyards, and made from Ciliegiolo. Ciliegiolo is from Italy, named after the Italian for 'cherry'. It is often a minor component of traditional blends, like Chianti. In Umbria it is made into a light quaffing wine. This rosato is what I could call a light quaffing red instead of a rosé. The grape is related to Sangiovese, but it is not really known if it is the parent or offspring.<br />
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This wine follows through on the cherry descriptor. It tastes like a cherry/blackberry pie. It has an odd buttery component that reminds me of a really butter pie crust. There is a touch of spice to it and it is rich and heavy. I don't dislike it, but I would definitely prefer a more traditional rosé – especially for the price.kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6677155356733403823.post-42855618226651312492016-04-27T21:18:00.000-06:002016-04-27T21:18:32.126-06:00Wednesday's Wines: Carlisle, Matthiasson and SandlandsCalifornia is the United States' wine country and rightly so. So many good wines come from The Golden State. But in the past few decades many California wine regions are turning into something of a monoculture where one or two cultivars dominate. These "noble" varieties are now what could also be called the international varieties. Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Merlot and Pinot Noir. The varieties and styles of yesteryear have been mostly forgotten.<br>
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However, there are a few producers looking to break the mold of the big, bold, fruit-forward style of California wine. Last week I wrote about love trying interesting cultivars and they can definitely be found in The Golden State. This past week, I opened three such wines from producers of the so-called "New California" wave. It just so happened that all three were made from unusual (for CA) white grape cultivars.<br>
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<a href="http://www.coloradowinepress.com/2016/04/wednesdays-wines-carlisle-matthiasson.html#more">Read more »</a>kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6677155356733403823.post-24323712786612487532016-04-21T12:55:00.001-06:002016-04-21T12:55:22.437-06:00Beatrice's Blushes: Bedrock Wine Co.We're approaching a time in our life when we will have two mobile children. Recently, Ms. B has been rolling and scooting around like it is her job. It definitely is fun and exciting to see how she changes each day, but diaper changes have officially entered the octopus-wrestling-match realm. If you're not a parent, you won't really be able to fully appreciate that visualization. Another new trick is yoga. She's been practicing her best downward facing dog by getting her bottom up in the air pretty well. It won't be long now until she trades yoga for track and field and we will be chasing her around. Good thing her older brother doesn't evade us like an escaped convict anymore – we'll actually have to utilize him to help corral our cute little octopus!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsPGf63LI4KjUXo0Tz2WydtVKt53ElAxHmlSMsb0O6Pz5Wz-GAM7Z1Pt_H3FvQDgJuOTsQR8m8MfvzXOGlqQiTS18G0HKBRvj33SqSs8KF-akYaMCgTsfgXautXB3lysZO9jMxQ68n2T6p/s1600/image1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsPGf63LI4KjUXo0Tz2WydtVKt53ElAxHmlSMsb0O6Pz5Wz-GAM7Z1Pt_H3FvQDgJuOTsQR8m8MfvzXOGlqQiTS18G0HKBRvj33SqSs8KF-akYaMCgTsfgXautXB3lysZO9jMxQ68n2T6p/s200/image1.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bedrock 2015 Ode to Lulu Rosé</td></tr>
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Though not as exciting as watching children change, tasting the year-to-year changes in wine is one of the things I love about it. Seeing how weather affects the final product or how winemaker choices regarding a blend causes the synapses in my brain to fire. I especially enjoy observing these changes in rosé – I think the color lends itself to visualizing changes more than with red or white wines. One year a wine is a deep fuchsia and the next it could be a pale salmon. One of my favorite pink wines is the <b><a href="http://www.bedrockwineco.com/">Bedrock Wine Co.</a> Ode to Lulu Old Vine Rosé </b>(12.3% abv, Purchased $19) from California. The 2015 incarnation is almost 2/3 Mourvèdre (Mataro) and the rest Grenache and Carignan. This is such a festive wine, but this vintage comes across as a touch more serious and feral – but just a bit. It is slightly lighter than the 2014 but darker in color than the 2012 and 2011 vintages. The 2015 is mostly about bright red fruit and citrus. Both the aromas and flavors revolve around strawberries, watermelon and limes. Its almost like Morgan (the winemaker) put all those fruit into a blender with a tequila that was meant for sipping as he was making a margarita and then salted the rim of the glass with some pink Punjabi rock salt that he obtained on a backpacking trip through the Himalayas. It is ready to party, but holds back a bit of mystery...kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6677155356733403823.post-19801692135751311672016-04-20T22:10:00.000-06:002016-04-20T22:14:02.376-06:00Wednesday's Wines: California, Maryland and UruguayAt a recent wine dinner one of the guests asked me what my favorite style of wine is. My response: new and different wines. Yes, I purchase more California wines than I probably should, but I really love tasting wine from new places and interesting cultivars. I did a pretty good job of that goal this past week.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSQGcbXF-cAhB2h7SBvh3u-rq8hsVoUQIIwPLolws-VaTGYjPsiSKhKaKBrNylTqgTADgRNlkCo5nq2sWJ2v_v82ZTD_8tUDXUFYPE69rpBVHcTl1_nOSx292Ujp62pwQRBJbdZyrFcHtD/s1600/IMG_1873.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSQGcbXF-cAhB2h7SBvh3u-rq8hsVoUQIIwPLolws-VaTGYjPsiSKhKaKBrNylTqgTADgRNlkCo5nq2sWJ2v_v82ZTD_8tUDXUFYPE69rpBVHcTl1_nOSx292Ujp62pwQRBJbdZyrFcHtD/s200/IMG_1873.JPG" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sterling Vineyards 2013 Heritage</td></tr>
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California is America's wine country. That is just a fact. Most of the wine produced in the U.S. hails from sunny California. There is some terrific wine, and some not so terrific wine. The most recent wine I had from California, unfortunately, trends toward the latter end of that spectrum. The <b><a href="http://sterlingvineyards.com/">Sterling Vineyards</a> Vintner's Collection 2013 Meritage</b> (13.5% abv, Sample $14) left a bad taste in my mouth. No, really, it tasted a bit chemically, fishy and altogether unpleasant. It tasted like a $6 bottle of plonk - it actually shows up on wine-searcher for $6.99-$7.99. There is the requisite mocha and dark fruit flavors that come with a blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, but not a whole lot of other redeeming qualities.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg48roYAHDueLwIwPZYfuSMRMdmXbhuGS4Fdx-7WlXbzkbXON1GZShYTnaXib4RCF4V_Ubv_vdqPAKxxsjjQR_dqSP7p8-PQEvdv4TXsaLmMzbJx3ELXyf9EGyhaJgHDADGZfGmAX43_v8f/s1600/IMG_1822.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg48roYAHDueLwIwPZYfuSMRMdmXbhuGS4Fdx-7WlXbzkbXON1GZShYTnaXib4RCF4V_Ubv_vdqPAKxxsjjQR_dqSP7p8-PQEvdv4TXsaLmMzbJx3ELXyf9EGyhaJgHDADGZfGmAX43_v8f/s200/IMG_1822.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bodega Garson 2013 Tannat</td></tr>
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On the other hand, the <b><a href="http://bodegagarzon.com/en/">Bodega Garzón</a> 2013 Tannat</b> (14.5% abv, Sample $20) from Uruguay is a delicious wine. Garzón is owned by Argentine billionaire Alejandro Bulgheroni, whom <a href="http://www.coloradowinepress.com/2015/12/the-curious-case-of-private-reserve.html">I pegged as responsible</a> for the Cameron Hughes Private Reserve wines made at Harlan Estate in the Napa Valley. I wasn't overly impressed by those wines, but this Tannat from Uruguay is truly tasty and perfect for Cabernet Sauvignon lovers. Tannat is perhaps Uruguay's signature grape despite its southwestern French heritage as the main grape in the Madiran region. This wine is powerful yet elegant. The deeply colored Tannat reveals the red and black fruit aromas you would expect in a Cabernet and accompanied by scents chocolate and tobacco. It is smooth on the palate with silky tannins – firm but not overwhelming – adding structure to the cherry, raspberry and mocha flavors. It paired well with our strip steak – which interestingly enough was also from Uruguay. I would expect this wine to hold up for a several years and impress those interested in Napa Cabernet and off-the-beaten path varieties alike.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDwSkHnK1btV1wgtqgU2ubBqCeuges-ZGhBaVjx412OTAkSWzuz33j_mIjpS2QqRbJ3_cvTIapLDCBdVwIvJ02o7LlEuOCSzWsu-00XsoRASTWTLb4k7goSpytJrUI1WcD4WLdYubCksMA/s1600/IMG_1811.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDwSkHnK1btV1wgtqgU2ubBqCeuges-ZGhBaVjx412OTAkSWzuz33j_mIjpS2QqRbJ3_cvTIapLDCBdVwIvJ02o7LlEuOCSzWsu-00XsoRASTWTLb4k7goSpytJrUI1WcD4WLdYubCksMA/s200/IMG_1811.JPG" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Old Westminster 2014 Albariño</td></tr>
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Finally, the <b><a href="http://oldwestminster.com/">Old Westminster Winery</a> 2014 Two Vineyards Albariño</b> (12% abv, Sample $28) is a lovely wine that other Maryland producers might want to consider looking at. Three years ago at the Drink Local Wine conference in Baltimore an Albariño from <a href="http://www.blackankle.com/">Black Ankle Vineyards</a> opened my eyes to what this Iberian grape can do on the east coast of the U.S. Black Ankle and Old Westminster are about 10 miles apart just south of Westminster, MD not too far from Baltimore. You're not going to confuse it with a Spanish Albariño, but this wine comes across more like a blend between Rhône and Rías Baixas. It is crips yet rich. There is a good amount of citrus and tropical fruit flavors present along with a bit of spice. This is a tasty and unique wine.kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6677155356733403823.post-8171055455941562562016-04-13T10:42:00.001-06:002016-04-13T10:42:28.620-06:00Wednesday's Wines: Prisoner Wine CompanyLast week, <a href="http://www.cbrands.com/">Constellation Brands</a> spent a lot of money – $285 million a lot – to acquire The <a href="http://www.theprisonerwinecompany.com/">Prisoner Wine Company</a>. Most people probably aren't familiar with Constellation, but they are one of the world's largest wine producers. Constellation owns <a href="http://www.robertmondavi.com/">Robert Mondavi Winery</a>, <a href="http://www.closdubois.com/">Clos du Bois</a>, <a href="http://www.ravenswoodwinery.com/">Ravenswood</a>, <a href="http://www.manischewitzwine.com/">Manischewitz</a>, <a href="http://www.vendange.com/">Vendange</a> and recently acquired (they spent $315 million for this brand) <a href="http://www.meiomi.com/">Meiomi</a> in addition to dozens of other wine brands. They also own the Corona, Pacifico and Modelo beer brands along with Svedka vodka. Chances are if you've bought a bottle of booze you've given Constellation some of your money.<br>
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There has been a lot written about this acquisition by the wine media. Most of the discussion revolves around the lack of vineyards or production facilities with the purchase. Just as with the Meiomi purchase, only the brand was acquired by Constellation. Some writers have been flabbergasted that so much money could be spent on a wine brand when the source of the grapes seems to be up in the air. Other companies, like <a href="http://www.gallo.com/">E & J Gallo Winery</a> and <a href="http://www.jacksonfamilywines.com/">Jackson Family Wines</a> have been buying vineyard land up and down the Pacific Coast. That certainly is a strong approach to building a wine empire, but I would argue that the Meiomi and Prisoner brands are stronger and more highly regarded than any owned by Gallo or JFW. In today's economy, brand is king. All of the most popular wines are built on brand and not on vineyard sources. From what vineyard does Two Buck Chuck or KJ's Vintner's Reserve come?? Prisoner is more about a certain style than it is about expressing a particular <i>terroir</i>. That style of wine can be produced in much larger volume than a wine based on a defined place. To most American wine consumers, consistent style and availability is much more important than the expression of time and place. As much as this disturbs me personally, it is the way the wine industry has been trending for quite some time.<br>
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As aggressive as this approach seems to be, it is actually quite conservative. Providing the same style of wine year in and year out in as many markets as possible is a tried and true path to building a strong brand. Just look at how popular America's fast food chains have become. I can buy a Big Mac in Denver, Seattle and Miami and they all will taste the exact same. However, this doesn't mean all wine is going this way as my friend the <a href="http://www.winecurmudgeon.com/">Wine Curmudgeon</a> often rants about. The number of wine brands that are privately owned, small wineries is much larger than the number owned by "Big Wine" overlords – and actually continues to grow. Yes, volume-wise they are much smaller, but we obviously still have the progressive end of the wine where the expression of place and vintage characteristics is important. Instead of converging to the same common point, wine seems to be as rapidly diverging as American politics.<br>
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A few weeks ago – and prior to the acquisition announcement – I sat down with Prisoner's winemaker Jen Beloz to taste through the lineup. Jen started in 2011 after <a href="http://www.huneeuswines.com/">Huneeus Vintners</a> purchased Prisoner from <a href="http://www.orinswift.com/">Orin Swift</a> founder Dave Phinney for $40 million. While doubling production from ~85,000 cases to ~170,000 cases Huneeus made quite a profit on that ~6 year investment! And just think, The Prisoner originally started as a single 385 case label. Now, the portfolio of wines produced by PWC includes the namesake Prisoner blend, a newer white blend called Blindfold, the Thorn Merlot, a Zinfandel called Saldo, and a Cabernet Sauvignon known as Cuttings. The wines are perhaps known best for their clever, catchy, creative and most importantly memorable labels. The Prisoner label is an image Francisco de Goya's <i>The Little Prisoner</i> etching. While the labels are cool and all that, I wanted to get to know what was inside the bottles.<br>
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</div><a href="http://www.coloradowinepress.com/2016/04/wednesdays-wines-prisoner-wine-company.html#more">Read more »</a>kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6677155356733403823.post-61829651035951996012016-04-09T21:00:00.000-06:002016-04-11T21:01:36.011-06:00Beatrice's Blushes: Bonny Doon Vineyard Vin Gris TuiléOnce again it has been too long since I posted about our weekly rosé. In that time, Beatrice has started full-time at daycare as mom has gone back to school. She seems to enjoy her time there, but she is by far the youngest of the group. Three of the four other children are walking and the fourth is almost a year old and crawling all over the place. Perhaps Bea will be an early walker like her brother because of how she observes her older classmates, but for now she is the odd man out.<br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZQzWsceGuy2oqcO45LMXvl7XIcj7j8NDR7HtA8ib6Llnq-rXqOYFzAa4O6GGptF2QL-zErNOAsTammPC9JwIWqRLK_RK6V24UZWRux_27Y1LHYZ3WiN9hsv_TQS-N-KJtcWiM7VLeiQH1/s1600/IMG_1745.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZQzWsceGuy2oqcO45LMXvl7XIcj7j8NDR7HtA8ib6Llnq-rXqOYFzAa4O6GGptF2QL-zErNOAsTammPC9JwIWqRLK_RK6V24UZWRux_27Y1LHYZ3WiN9hsv_TQS-N-KJtcWiM7VLeiQH1/s200/IMG_1745.JPG" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bonny Doon 2013 Vin Gris Tuilé</td></tr>
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Similarly, <a href="https://www.bonnydoonvineyard.com/" style="font-weight: bold;">Bonny Doon Vineyard</a><b> Vin Gris Tuilé</b> (13% abv, Sample $26) is a bit of an oddball in the realm of pink wines. A blend of 55% grenache, 23% mourvèdre, 10% roussanne, 7% cinsaut, 3% carginane, and 2% grenache blanc, but don't think of this wine so much as a rosé but as an imitation Manzanilla. This wine was placed outside where it sat, in the elements for nine months in glass carboys to be "solarized" and tastes every bit oxidized as you might expect. It is quite complex with a tiny bit of dried citrus fruit, but most characteristics are of scorched cream, toasted nuts, gasoline and cumin seed. If you're looking for a crisp, refreshing rosé you'll be sadly disappointed. However, if you have fino sherry on your mind it might work for you as this is an interesting approach to selling an oxidized wine. Let's just say I'm not a fan of it, but I don't totally hate it.kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6677155356733403823.post-22650354160019003762016-04-06T20:12:00.001-06:002016-04-06T20:12:53.453-06:00Wednesday's Wines: Bedrock North Coast SyrahThis week we celebrated our son's fifth birthday; it's amazing how fast the time flies. One of the advantages of having been afflicted with a wine collection disorder means that I have decided that birth-year wines are a purposeful component of our sizable wine stash. Now, unfortunately I do not have any from my wife's or my birthdays, but having young children makes buying their birth-year wines easy. It is looking like our second child's birth year – 2015 – will be a decent year for agreeable wines that may see her 21st birthday. However, Benjamin was born in 2011 – not the greatest vintage across the globe, with a few exceptions such as German whites and vintage Port. I do have a few wines set aside that I think will make it to his 21st birthday, but I'm guessing most 2011 wines will be best long before he is even able to operate a motor vehicle let alone legally consume a glass of wine with his parents. So, on his fifth birthday we decided to open a five-year old bottle of California Syrah from one of best value producers out their.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_TrLC0rjlemXxSsAhlvEAKDKxj17uIf2yY9leDqpMZD07SGMR0usxBz816vZMSNHBLkJW3oDjNXv_6mZc3l7GnxY63z_ltr0N481905Uuc8ndlV7OYUkXAucBETFnZqkcCGxk9iZJyCQE/s1600/IMG_1759.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_TrLC0rjlemXxSsAhlvEAKDKxj17uIf2yY9leDqpMZD07SGMR0usxBz816vZMSNHBLkJW3oDjNXv_6mZc3l7GnxY63z_ltr0N481905Uuc8ndlV7OYUkXAucBETFnZqkcCGxk9iZJyCQE/s200/IMG_1759.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bedrock 2011 North Coast Syrah</td></tr>
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The <a href="http://www.bedrockwineco.com/" style="font-weight: bold;">Bedrock</a><b> 2011 North Coast Syrah</b> (14% abc, Purchased $20) is the entry-level Syrah offered by Morgan Twain-Peterson. His single-vineyard wines tend to be in the $30-$50 range, but this blend of barrels that didn't make the cut for those pricier wines is a steal at $20. Entry-level wines are a great way to get a glimpse of what a winery's more expensive wines taste like. As with most of the Bedrock wines, this wine is full of lovely and powerful aromas. Scents of flowers, bacon, white pepper and cherries radiate from the glass. The dark purple wine shows its pedigree of richness and complexity with flavors of black olives, spicy pepper, tobacco, cedar, and dark cherries. It doesn't have the density and concentration of the more expensive wines, but it still punches above its price class. Still going strong after five years with a few more likely at its peak. Good thing I have a few more of these waiting downstairs.kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6677155356733403823.post-30188334515974846882016-04-01T08:16:00.000-06:002016-04-01T08:59:46.504-06:00WineBerserkers dot com kicks off Battles of Taste series<span style="color: #111111; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold;">Global Series of Exclusive Wine Experiences to Feature the World's Top Wine Personalities</span><br />
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NEW YORK, NY--(Spittooned - April 01, 2016) - Todd French's Wine Berserkers (Wineberserkers.com), the world's most recognized online authority on wine discussion boards (over 0.000001% of all wine consumers worldwide are members), is debuting its inaugural Battles of Taste tour on U.S. shores in 2016 as part of a global series of exclusive events for Wineberserkers.com members and guests.
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The tour is a continuation of a global series of no-holds-barred fine wine tastings and critical attacks for Wineberserkers.com members and their guests. Battles of Taste will feature hundreds of wines rated 90 points and above by The Wine Berserkers, handpicked by its world-renowned team of expert forum contributors. The inherit quality and ability of guests' palates will be mercilessly questioned at each event. Each city will celebrate a distinct theme, focusing on various major wine regions and styles with each stop.
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Taking a connoisseur's look at 'Anti-Flavor Wine Elite Wines Suck', the American leg of the tour kicks off in New York this Saturday, with wines handpicked and presented by Wine Berserker commenter and Jets fan, Jay Hack (who once famously bought a bought a bottle Château d'Yquem in a parking lot for $200). The very special evening will provide members, their guests and new wineberserkers.com subscribers with the opportunity to get up close and personal with the faceless contributors behind some of the world's most extraordinary wine related Internet posts, by bringing their own favorite wines to be criticized. Four master classes preceding an expertly paired, four-course dinner serving only Flannery steaks and Veleta olive oil will be the highlight of the evening as Hack will don a horned Viking helmet the entire event.<br />
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"Battles of Taste is our way of saying a heartfelt thank you to our members who we know are the most knowledgeable wine lovers on the planet," said Moderaror-in-Chief, Todd French. "It's a tasting for consumers to experience world-class Internet bullying in an entirely new way while meeting blowhards who craft the attacks It's also a fantastic opportunity to welcome new members into the world of Wine Berserkers opinions. Online, the forum owner CANNOT read private messages - nobody but the recipients can. This event will allow everyone's true feelings to be aired in public. Consumers will have an amazing time learning what it means to be a Wine Berserker!"<br />
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Additionally, Battles of Taste is proud to debut a semi-blind component for the first portion of each walkabout tasting, wherein members will have the opportunity to experience an entirely new levels of mockery and judgement hosted by Bill Klapp, who is coming out of retirement because, "When the time comes to call bullshit, in person or electronically, I am always equal to the task."<br />
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The Battles of Taste series commenced in 2008 with walkabout tastings in members' backyards. Following the New York debut of Battle of Taste in the U.S., walkabout Grand Tastings will be held in backyards in Tampa and Los Angeles at later dates.kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6677155356733403823.post-16772193575310165322016-03-30T20:50:00.000-06:002016-03-31T08:51:02.601-06:00Wednesday's Wines: Bailiwick Cabernet FrancFor those that aren't familiar with my Dr. Harry Oldman posts, they are satirical posts usually inspired by some curmudgeonly statement I saw elsewhere. I try to write blatantly tongue-in-cheek, but with a little bit of truth thrown in for good measure. <a href="http://www.coloradowinepress.com/2016/03/dr-harry-oldman-on-andy-warhol-wines.html">Yesterday's post</a> was inspired by a representative of a major winery criticizing wines without "classic" heritage. He started his article about differentiating character from flaws. I fully agree that a wine, regardless of its heritage, that has noticeable flaws can be less pleasant to drink or even be undrinkable. The writer then somehow got onto discussing eccentricity in wine and "being different just for the sake of being different." He suggested that such wines are bizarre and people only like them because they're told to like them by somms and "young tastemakers."<br>
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I know wine lovers and wine professionals who think wine should come from unexpected locations unless it is as good as "the classics." Why grow Cabernet Franc in California or - heaven forbid - Colorado when there is classic Cabernet Franc in Bordeaux and the Loire Valley? Why plant Nebbiolo anywhere but Piedmont in Italy? Why make sparkling wine from anything other than Chardonnay or Pinot noir? Such arguments come from ignorance. Now, I'm not saying that someone thinks Bruno Giacosa produces the finest Nebbiolo on the planet that any other Nebbiolo will change their mind. But, at the same time the preference to one wine region/style should not exclude the production elsewhere regardless if the "bizarre" interpretation bares no similarity to the "classic." I do not expect California wine to taste like French wine, and I also do not expect all California wine to taste alike. Now, what fun would wine be if it all tasted the same way?<br>
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<a href="http://www.coloradowinepress.com/2016/03/wednesdays-wines-bailiwick-cabernet.html#more">Read more »</a>kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6677155356733403823.post-33033836163767656882016-03-28T08:29:00.000-06:002016-03-28T14:14:39.513-06:00Dr. Harry Oldman on Andy Warhol Wines<i>Dr. Harry Oldman recently got back into town after spending the past few weeks in Florida to help knock on doors before the March 15 primary. He tells me he had a successful time and drank some fantastic wine, but something has been bothering him. He just had to get this off his chest.</i><br>
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<a href="http://www.coloradowinepress.com/2016/03/dr-harry-oldman-on-andy-warhol-wines.html#more">Read more »</a>kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6677155356733403823.post-1605696020722949192016-03-25T08:44:00.000-06:002016-03-25T10:46:00.151-06:00Beatrice's Blushes: Lightning Rosé<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBn9QqDS7kp_KU2UcXhXJM0uJ8w5tRhEtR5DqstXneKbOCn2S9uVtQ-aSgMR8osaixpmj2xHUPesy2zSkB5Zxt35RRgM9I0xlCEcwTK9n7PNRinkADc14HO9ULEWUV5_irRwrfPwMYmZnT/s1600/IMG_1699.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBn9QqDS7kp_KU2UcXhXJM0uJ8w5tRhEtR5DqstXneKbOCn2S9uVtQ-aSgMR8osaixpmj2xHUPesy2zSkB5Zxt35RRgM9I0xlCEcwTK9n7PNRinkADc14HO9ULEWUV5_irRwrfPwMYmZnT/s200/IMG_1699.JPG" width="200"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">16" of snow...</td></tr>
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I'm sure if you turned on your television in the past two days you saw that the Denver metro area was inundated by snow on Wednesday. You got to love Colorado weather; Monday and Tuesday both saw high temperatures of 70 °F and then we were graced with 16" of snow on Wednesday between 4 am and 4 pm. At the peak of the storm, with visibility down to a maybe 100 m and winds pushing 40 mph my whole family ventured to a nearby park to play in the snow. Bea was strapped to mom and took a nap in the blizzard while Ben and I had a good wrestling match in the snow. Yesterday, it was almost 50 °F and most of the snow on the roads melted away! Such is life in Colorado.<br>
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<a href="http://www.coloradowinepress.com/2016/03/beatrices-blushes-lightning-rose.html#more">Read more »</a>kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6677155356733403823.post-19076522187259163792016-03-23T20:15:00.000-06:002016-03-24T08:15:43.770-06:00Wednesday's Wines: Derenoncourt Lake County Cabernet SauvignonWinery mailing lists are an unusual thing. Most people buy their wine at retail stores near their homes. Depending on the state one lives in, the retail venue may be a grocery store, a liquor store where all types of beverage alcohol are sold, or a wine specialty shop. Those wines find their way on to the retailers' shelves by means of wholesale middlemen who distribute their products only to retailers. This is known as the three-tier system and is the typical model the wine world has operated since the repeal of Prohibition. The direct-to-consumer model of the allocated mailing list is something of a holy grail in the wine world as it cuts out the middleman. Most wineries have a sales option on their website where consumers may purchase products directly from them. The winery then ships the wine directly to the consumer via a common carrier (FedEx or UPS are generally the two main carriers). This process allows the winery to collect the full retail price of the wine instead of selling it at wholesale cost to their distributor. It also allows consumers (depending on where they live) to have access to most of the wines they demand. I still cannot understand, in this day and age, how and why some winery websites still do not have this functionality and why some states restrict this type of commerce. But I digress as this post is not about the disfunctionality of the three-tier system and current alcohol laws.<br>
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Some wineries have taken this approach to a different level. Consumers may sign up to receive notification when they are allowed to purchase a set amount of a winery's wine (usually in increments of 3 bottles). Most wineries suggest this as a way to allow more customers access to the wine. In some cases, which continue to become rarer and rarer, there is a waiting list just to be added to the mailing list. For the most part, you can sign up and receive an offer right away for wineries that use allocation lists. Sometimes the amount of wine a winery will allow you to purchase is dependent on previous purchases; as you buy wine, more is offered to you in subsequent years.<br>
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<a href="http://www.coloradowinepress.com/2016/03/wednesdays-wines-derenoncourt-lake.html#more">Read more »</a>kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6677155356733403823.post-21277295114626199282016-03-17T10:09:00.003-06:002016-03-17T10:09:45.082-06:00Beatrice's Blushes: Bonny Doon Vineyard A Proper PinkIt has been a busy few weeks since the last rosé post, but I really don't have an excuse for missing two weeks. However, during that time I felt quite adventurous; I took Bea on a quick solo overnight trip to Florida to visit her great grandparents for the first time. The plane rides went well (though I don't understand why I didn't buy her a seat when the fare was $38 round trip!) and her Gigi and Big Papa were so excited to meet her. As luck would have it Bea got to meet her great aunt and cousin, once removed, who were also visiting. They even got to witness (maybe teach) her first roll. Apparently she's not an underachiever because she rolled both front-to-back and back-to-front! I think we are going to be in trouble with another early mover; big brother was walking at ten months!<br />
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The last rosé we open was a very unique one. The <b>Bonny Doon Vineyard 2015 'A Proper Pink'</b> (13% abv, Sample $16) is an interesting blend of 69% Tannat and 31% Cabernet Franc. I can't say I've ever had a wine quite like this. The dark translucent red color isn't something you see every day, but it's not uncommon. Yet, this wine's DNA is closer to red than pink. It is rich and complex, but it's also weird. It is full of contrasting aromas and flavors. There's cherry tart, pie spices and black raspberries. But bay leaf, radish, beetroot and unripe guava characteristics are present, too. It's lush and savory. Taking my biases and preferences in account, this is anything but a proper pink; but I kind like it at the same time I dislike it. It's a contradiction in a glass. Maybe A Defiant Pink would be a better name.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaC4Qz90mymEY1SR8sN-dItYMrf7E15tzFZVftc6vBlTL_Rv_wCGBu9DVXifxlOEGBm-2HTXB2zaw073nWCg_sVrOpwusTrwcvsyLi-Tsi-FXkHcqiuT4lcsMbiZSYkMrPAXdQFZgTWQju/s1600/IMG_1659.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaC4Qz90mymEY1SR8sN-dItYMrf7E15tzFZVftc6vBlTL_Rv_wCGBu9DVXifxlOEGBm-2HTXB2zaw073nWCg_sVrOpwusTrwcvsyLi-Tsi-FXkHcqiuT4lcsMbiZSYkMrPAXdQFZgTWQju/s200/IMG_1659.JPG" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bonny Doon 2015 A Proper Pink</td></tr>
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kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6677155356733403823.post-54302707809666191202016-03-16T20:00:00.003-06:002016-03-16T20:00:22.722-06:00Wednesday's Wines: Two From Donnafugata<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC91wwem4A6oSo7DhtPxvVPBMi-MZ39XB_xCDJCpgq62D-efmCY8D2HX4IvK5YIWCjFVqg5u62dbTKKtPLRMWEoPxhPoB8VbUdNvJleVSI3DFp4PAZaWT1jAus1mKkMKlIgF5Vlq2EjyHZ/s1600/IMG_1648.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC91wwem4A6oSo7DhtPxvVPBMi-MZ39XB_xCDJCpgq62D-efmCY8D2HX4IvK5YIWCjFVqg5u62dbTKKtPLRMWEoPxhPoB8VbUdNvJleVSI3DFp4PAZaWT1jAus1mKkMKlIgF5Vlq2EjyHZ/s200/IMG_1648.JPG" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2014 'Sur Sur' Grillo</td></tr>
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By pure coincidence we opened two wines by the same Italian producer this week. The first, the <b>Donnafugata Sur Sur 2014 Grillo </b>(12.73% abv, Sample $23), was my choice to pair with a pasta dish I had made for dinner. I don't believe I had ever had a wine made from the Grillo grape before. Grillo is a Sicilian cultivar that withstands really high temperatures and drought. However, this wine didn't taste like a wine that was produced from a hot region. I suppose this was because 2014 in Sicily was marked by a relatively mild winter, a cool spring and the summer passed without excess heat. The nose was subtle, and revealed some timid aromas of peaches and citrus. There was a distinct grapefruit flavor on the palate that, when combined with slight herbal tone made me think this would be a good substitute for a Sauvignon blanc. The wine showed very bright acidity in the mouth, but also had hint of creaminess that fooled me in thinking this saw a bit of oak when it in fact did not. Overall, this is a lovely wine and I look forward to trying more Grillo in the future.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLX76Za4wRtiRMALtVZIXfeEfnew3koIB_wrtoMYsxxryz7zU2dVsK84jiGuypcjVr2UtTTHLBs2y9aFMypdG61Mft1SLGDMKJ3DpKVjs1OeJ0_qLE5BLK3eYBjP5SiDcvb_8gLirwfE_Z/s1600/IMG_1653.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLX76Za4wRtiRMALtVZIXfeEfnew3koIB_wrtoMYsxxryz7zU2dVsK84jiGuypcjVr2UtTTHLBs2y9aFMypdG61Mft1SLGDMKJ3DpKVjs1OeJ0_qLE5BLK3eYBjP5SiDcvb_8gLirwfE_Z/s200/IMG_1653.JPG" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2014 'Lighea' Zibibbo</td></tr>
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The second wine, the <b>Donnafugata Lighea 2014 Zibibbo</b> (12.34% abv, Sample $23), was chosen by my wife and served to me blind in a decanter. My first guess based on the nose was Riesling because it was so aromatic with notes of flowers, peaches, honey, and limes. However, it didn't taste like Riesling, but more like Viognier. There were more flavors of apricot and pineapple and it didn't have acidity I would expect in Riesling. It seemed as if it were some kind of blend of Riesling, Viognier and Portuguese Vinho Verde. I looked at my wife puzzled and I told her I had given up guessing what it might be. Well, turns out what's on the label - Zibibbo - is a synonym for Muscat of Alexandria. All those aromas and flavors make sense for Muscat! Interestingly enough, Muscat of Alexandria is believed to be one of the oldest genetically unmodified grape cultivars. Jeremy Parzen posted an interesting article on the origins of the name Zibibbo on his site <a href="https://dobianchi.com/2009/09/17/the-origins-of-zibibbo-closer-reading-part-2/">Do Bianchi</a>. It is often made into fortified wines - Rutherglen in Australia, Málaga in Spain, and off the coast of Marsala on the island of Pantelleria. It is also distilled into Pisco in Chile and Peru. It also happens to make a lovely dry, still wine from Sicily.kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6677155356733403823.post-17782743488200291592016-03-09T21:23:00.001-07:002016-03-09T21:23:59.964-07:00Wednesday's Wines: Blind Motley CrewTwo weeks ago I added a new twist to our wine consumption: blind tasting. Now, I wish I had the means to taste wines in blind flights regularly, but I don't really have the time or supply of wine to do so. My tasting regiment is like that of most people; I'll open a bottle of for dinner and have a glass or two with food and maybe another after dinner. I enjoy experiencing how wines can change over the course a few hours and how they may complement food.<br>
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Last week I decided to change it up a bit by having my wife go grab a bottle and pour it into a decanter without me knowing what it was. I still have to try to get over the bias of guessing based on knowing what wines are in the cellar, but it has been a fun modification to having wine with dinner. Since I missed last week's post, there is a variety of notes today.<br>
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<a href="http://www.coloradowinepress.com/2016/03/wednesdays-wines-blind-motley-crew.html#more">Read more »</a>kschlachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12810309689429676303noreply@blogger.com0