Wednesday's Wines: Bedrock North Coast Syrah

This 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.

Bedrock 2011 North Coast Syrah

The Bedrock 2011 North Coast Syrah (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.

Beatrice's Blushes: Reichsrat von Buhl Spätburgunder Rosé Trocken

Anyone who has had children knows the first few weeks of the child's life is pretty monotonous. Sleeping, feeding and diaper changing. Repeat, but not necessarily in that order. That has pretty much been our lives for the past few weeks. One thing that we haven't had a lot of is fussing. Beatrice has been easygoing and really only fusses when I change her diapers with my cold hands. Now that her stomach is growing and she is eating more, she is starting to have a bit more gas and discomfort. However, that is usually quickly and easily resolved.

Ben's Bubbly: Clusserath Weiler Riesling Trocken Sekt

Last week, Ben started to find his voice. He would babble and grunt and squeal while he played with his toys. He is also starting to understand he can move to get toys. While he has only put a roll or two together to get a toy, he is already spinning around on his stomach to reach objects at his side or just out of reach. He is doing so much now, I don't want to miss him learning any new tricks. Nevertheless, over the weekend I went to Boston and Cape Cod for a bachelor party. While it was incredibly fun to hang out with a group of friends that I have only seen once in the past five years, I missed my little guy. It is so satisfying now when Ben gets excited when he sees me after school or a long weekend away. It will make this weekend away for the Colorado Mountain Winefest a bit easier. Who knows, maybe next year he'll be able to make the journey with me!

Clusserath Weiler Riesling Trocken Sekt, Mosel, Germany

This week's sparkler is something a bit different. This sparkling riesling was produced by the traditional winzersekt method (méthode champenoise). It is bright yellow, almost like Mt. Dew, but without the neon glow. It has a very floral nose with notes of pears and apples. The palate is quite different than most bubbly. I tasted Meyer lemons, nectarine and golden delicious apples in this viscous but not syrupy sparkler. It has a long, slightly nutty finish. Very interesting sparkling winzersekt riesling worth a try. 12% abv Purchased $13. Very Good

Ben's Bubbly: Knipser Pinot Brut

Ben had several adventures this week. He had his first babysitting adventure while mom and dad went to the Colorado Corks and Cuisine event at the Four Mile Historic Park. Local caterers partnered with area wineries, breweries, distilleries and artists to provide a lovely event despite the rain. Grandma was very excited to look after the little guy while we enjoyed our first 'date' night out in more than two months. We sampled some tasty food (the lobster mac and cheese and the wild mushroom wontons stood out in my mind) and sipped on a selection of wines from Augustina's Winery, Bonacquisti Wine Company, Canyon Wind Cellars, Snowy Peaks Winery, Water 2 Wine and Wild Women Winery.

A few nights later we went up to Boulder to have dinner with friends. Ben was a perfectly behaved gentleman while we had dinner, which we started with a Sekt for this week's Ben's Bubbly, a 1999 Knipser Pinot Brut. We also enjoyed a far too young 2000 Cos d'Estournel alongside a 2001 Cottonwood Cellars Reserve Merlot and finished with a beautiful 1993 Weingut Gunderloch Nachenheimer Rothenberg Riesling Auslese Gold Cap that will hold for many years to come. Ben slept soundly as we drove home well past our bedtime.

Our final outing with Ben this week was to downtown Denver for EatDenver's Big Eat. We arrived thirty minutes before the event was supposed to end, but the vendors were all out of food and we were out of luck. Since Ben was asleep in our new Okkatots carrier, we decided to make the trip worthwhile and grab a bite to eat at Rioja. However, against my wife's better judgment, I left the diaper bag in the car six blocks away. Needless to say that was a bad idea with explosive consequences. Not three bites into my salad did I have to rush to the car to fix the problem. I have to thank our server, skinny Mike, for his awesome service and making an otherwise uncomfortable meal enjoyable even if we did have to finish it at home. We will definitely have to return more prepared to fully appreciate the restaurant.

1999 Knipser Pinot Brut, Pfalz

Hailing from Germany's largest wine, this wine was sort of an enigma. The back label said this was a rosé, but it definitely was a lovely golden color of a blanc de noirs. I assume that this error was due to the importer believing a sparkling pinot noir would be pink. Aged ten years on the lees, this wine was young at heart and would easily hold its own against much more expensive vintage Champagne. Slightly doughy and very fruit forward on the nose, this exquisite sekt tasted like brioche french toast with a strawberry compote. If you see this rarity from this world-class producer pick up a few bottles! 12.5% abv Purchased $34. Very Good/Excellent (tasted 5/21/11)

Lesser-known grape varieties

When most people think of wine they think of the the noble grape varieties. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Riesling are the grapes traditionally associated with fine wine. Slowly, varieties such as Tempranillo, Sangiovese, Malbec, Viognier, Torrontes, and Semillon are slowly entering the everyday wine lexicon. With hundreds of grape varieties, the wine world has a diverse range of flavors and stories. All wine-producing countries have lesser-known grape varieties that receive little recognition due to unfair preconceptions or a simple lack of lack of knowledge. The U.S. has Norton and Vidal Blanc, Spain has Godello and Mencia, Greece has Assyrtiko and Xinomavro and Italy has hundreds of indigenous grapes of which most people outside of Italy have never heard. This list could continue ad infinitum.

Much of the problem with these little-known varieties is the public's ability to pronounce their names. One such variety probably comes as a surprise to most people. Austria and Germany are known for world-class white wines, and few people realize that they also produce high-quality red wines. One one of these lesser-known varieties is Blaufränkisch, also known as Lemberger. Blaufränkisch is a cold-hardy grape that is naturally high in tannin and acidity. If you haven't had the chance to experience a Blaufränkisch or Lemberger I recommend finding some!

2004 Weingut Hans Igler, Vulcano, Burgenland, Austria

This red wine is dominated by Blaufrankish (55%) with Cabernet Sauvignon (20%), Zweigelt (15%) and Merlot (10%) completing the blend. It is a beautiful garnet color. Cherries, wood and spices are the first aromas present but as the wine opens up in the glass after a few hours it becomes more aromatic and reminiscent of a Pinot Noir. Tart cherry, cedar, toasted oak, spices and pomegranate flavors fill your mouth along with tart acidity and smooth tannins. This is a well-balanced wine that only gets better in the glass. 13.5% abv Purchased ($19). Very Good (tasted 12/4/10)