A fantastic Cabernet Franc

Our closest wine country of any real note is Oregon's Willamette Valley. We've had a chance to discover some big, well-known wineries (Erath) in the area as well as some small, boutique-y wineries. One of our favorite stops during a Willamette Valley wine festival a few years ago was an industrial barn shared by two small producers. Both turned out excellent wines and we walked away with numerous bottles from each. A few nights ago, we dug into our stash and opened a bottle of 2004 Dalla Vina Cabernet Franc. Oh, my.

Cabernet Franc is a red Bordeaux grape which is typically used as a blending grape. Winemakers often add it to their red varietals in order to impart acidity and aroma. However, more and more, winemakers are pulling out Cabernet Franc to stand on its own. This happened with Merlot a number of years ago. And it's just starting to happen with another grape called Malbec.

(As a side note, by law, a wine needs to contain only 75% of a grape to be called that type of wine. So, it is not uncommon for a Cabernet Sauvignon to also contain a little Cabernet Franc or Merlot or any number of other grape varietals and still be legally called a Cabernet Sauvignon.)

Cabernet Franc grapes are considered a genetic forefather of Cabernet Sauvignon. In fact, recent DNA research revealed that Cabernet Sauvignon is actually a cross between Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc. Your Two Wine Nuts think that's a pretty cool piece of wine trivia.

Cabernet Franc wines are thought to be lighter and fruitier than Cabernet Sauvignons, and that's just what we found with the 2004 Dalla Vina.

The Dalla Vina was a beautiful deep dark purple. Its aroma of dark rich berries was very similar to that of a Cabernet Sauvignon. It felt full and velvety in the mouth, something wine folks ingeniously call "mouthfeel." Overall, the Dalla Vina tasted just a touch lighter than a Cabernet Sauvignon but easily stood on its own.

While tasty to sip, we were totally blown away by this wine when we paired it with some food. We had the Cabernet Franc with a flat iron steak marinated in a huckleberry sauce. When paired with the steak, the wine suddenly came alive and burst with fruit. This is one of the things that can be such fun about wine: food can make a huge impact. One of your Wine Nuts is much better than the other at food and wine pairing. Surprisingly, this pairing was made totally by luck by the other Wine Nut. Jackpot!

Sadly, according to their website, the 2004 Dalla Vina Cabernet Franc is sold out. Judging from their other offerings, we probably paid $20-$25 for this bottle. If so, it was well priced and worth it. Keep an eye out for Cabernet Franc wines if you are wine tasting. If you are interested in buying one, visit a wine shop and ask for a recommendation. Don't be shy about saying you've never tried one; that always gets wine folks excited and eager to help.

For more info about Cabernet Franc, click here. For info about Dalla Vina, check out their website.

The best commercial wine in the county

There are all of three commercial wineries in southwest Washington’s Clark County. None of them have particularly good wine but they are fun to visit nonetheless.

A few nights ago we opened a bottle of 2002 English Estate Pinot Noir (Gravel Mine Vineyard) and deemed it the best commercial wine in Clark County (we know several home winemakers who make better stuff).

An interesting aspect of the English Estate winey is that a gravel mine is indeed right next door. According to the wine's back label:

Grapes love gravel. This porous soil forces the vines’ roots deeper to find water and nutrients, enhancing the flavor and character of the fruit.

We’ve heard the same about rocky, volcanic soil. This is what we are pinning our hopes on for our own grapevines.

As for English Estate’s Pinot Noir, we first noticed that it was a bit darker than is typical of Pinot Noirs. Not a bad sign; just something noteworthy. It had a nice light, berry smell but we could also smell the alcohol (listed as 13% on the label; not especially high). As for its taste, well, we pondered this for a good long while. It was honestly a bit difficult to come up with any descriptions. It wasn’t a bad wine by any means. It just was not memorable and there really was not much to it. And yes, since this is the best commercial wine in the county, you can imagine our thoughts about the other two wineries’ offerings! Again, fun to visit, but no need to leave room in the trunk for purchases.

This wine is likely only available at the winery (or its website) and in Clark County wine stores. The website lists this wine at $22.95. We could not have possibly paid that much for it when we bought it a few years ago. This is a $10-$12 bottle at best.

An overpriced French wine a la Costco

A number of years ago, your Two Wine Nuts read a book written by guy totally into French wines (Kermit Lynch’s “Adventures on the Wine Route”). It was a great introduction to the seduction of French wines but honestly, it didn’t make buying French wines any less mystifying. However, one thing we did learn was that Châteauneuf-du-Pape wines are generally considered very good.

A brief explanation about Châteauneuf-du-Pape. In Europe, wines are named for the area or region that the wine is made in, as opposed to the American tradition of naming a wine for the grape the wine is made from (Burgundy – a place – versus Chardonnay – a grape). There is an area in southern France called Châteauneuf. Long ago, before Vatican City, Popes lived in a town called Avignon, in the Châteauneuf area. This area produced wine, some especially for the Pope. Eventually, the wine became known as Châteauneuf-du-Pape – Châteauneuf wine for the Pope. Referring to our last post (July 12), Châteauneuf-du-Pape is also considered a Rhône style wine since Châteauneuf is in the Rhône region of France.

This is why your Two Wine Nuts focus more on American wines. SO much easier to understand the history and labeling!

We bring this all up because a few days ago while shopping in Costco, we spotted a Costco branded Châteauneuf-du-Pape wine for $19.99 and were too curious not to buy it. Specifically, it was a 2005 Kirkland Signature Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvee de Nalys. We opened it tonight to enjoy with some grilled pork chops. Bottom line: not worth the 20 bucks.

This red wine had just the slightest hint of brown color, sort of a maroon red instead of a purple red. The aroma (or nose) was very definitely strawberry jam. One Wine Nut also picked up a grape smell. With so much fruitiness in the nose, we weren’t sure what to expect from the taste. True to Rhône form, the flavor was much more earthy than fruity. Actually, the most distinct flavor was tannins. Tannin is a component of plants. Red wine gets its red color from being in contact with the skins of the grapes. The skins, as well as the seeds and stems, have tannin in them. So, red wine very typically has tannin in it. Another way to get tannin in wine is via the oak barrels. Either way, the tell-tale sign of tannin is a puckery, astringent feeling in the mouth upon sipping a wine. This Kirkland Châteauneuf-du-Pape had lots of tannin because our mouths felt like we had sucked on a cotton ball soaked in facial toner (you gals out there know what this is). It’s not as bad as it sounds, but as a sipping wine, this one needed food. When we paired the wine with our pork chops, fruit suddenly appeared. However, it didn’t last very long. The wine did get increasingly easy to drink over the course of the meal, but this was largely due to the moderately high 14.7% alcohol content.

All in all, this Costco offering was interesting to taste but not at all worth the $19.99. If you are interested in trying a Châteauneuf-du-Pape wine, we instead recommend visiting your local wine shop and asking for recommendations. A good one will definitely be worth $20; this one wasn’t.

A Tasty Rhône Varietal

One of our best finds recently was Tom, the Wine Steward at a local grocery store. He’s a retired wine guy who has great love and passion for the collection he’s assembled in the corner of a nearby QFC. You just never know where you are going to find great wines and great knowledge.

On Tom’s recommendation, we bought a bottle of a 2005 Syncline Mourvedre. We had had Mourvedres before but knew nothing about Syncline. It turns out Syncline is a winery in eastern Washington state, an area increasingly known for growing great warm-weather grapes such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel, and Chardonnay.

Mourvedre is a type of red grape grown most popularly in the Rhône region of France. Because it originates from this area, it is called a “Rhône style” wine or a “Rhône varietal." Other Rhône varietals include Grenache, Syrah, and Carignan among the reds, and Viognier, Marsanne, and Roussanne among the whites. Unlike in the United States where wine is named by its grape, wines in France are referred to by the area in which the grapes are grown. So, you might drink a Burgundy, a Bordeaux, a Châteauneuf-du-Pape, or a Côte-Rôtie…all places in France that make wine. It would be like saying “I think a Napa would go well with this steak.” Or “What Willamette Valleys do you have?” Honestly, reading a French wine label can be rather confusing since it’s often hard to figure out what the grape is versus the region versus the maker. We’re still learning how to do this. When we get better at it, we’ll add a post.

In the meantime, the state-side Syncline Mourvedre was quite lovely and almost too easy to drink. It was deep, dark purple in color and had a subtle yet earthy nose. Rhône style wines, if one were to make a huge generalization, are typically much more earthy and mineraly and less fruity and flowery. The Syncline followed suit, although its taste was much less pronounced than other Mourvedres we have had. The first time we tried a Mourvedre, we were stunned that it smelled like a two-mile-away skunk – and this was a GOOD thing! That first Mourvedre also tasted sort of barnyard-y and soil-y – again, surprisingly good things. To compare to better known wines, the Syncline Mourvedre was stronger than a Merlot. And it had the weight and body of a Cabernet Sauvignon without the typical dark fruitiness of a Cab. We had lasagna with the Syncline and it went quite nicely.

We have no idea how easy it would be to find the 2005 Syncline Mourvedre outside the local QFC or the winery itself. According to their website, Syncline distributes to “select wine stores” in a number of states. At $19.99, the 2005 Mourvedre was perhaps a touch over-priced. We would have been more excited at about $15. Nevertheless, we are likely to include Syncline on a future wine trip to Eastern Washington. And, if you have never tried a Mourvedre and find one in a local wine store or World Market, we would encourage you to give it a try. You just might be surprised how nice a barnyard can taste!

For more info about Rhône varietals, check out Rhône Rangers.

A favorite sweet Riesling

One of the really fun things about Rieslings is that they can vary so much. Some will be sweet and fruity; others will be dry and acidic. In the mood for a sweeter version, the other night we opened a 2005 Firestone Vineyard Riesling and were happy that this easily sippable white has remained consistently sweet and light since we first discovered it in 2003.

Like most sweet Rieslings, the Firestone version smelled like apricots and peaches. Its flavor was similar. The label also claims it boasts a honeysuckle flavor. Having never eaten honeysuckle, we can’t say for sure but we’ll at least agree with the concept. Because of its sweetness, the Firestone Riesling is another good wine for folks who are just starting to experiment with wine. We have a couple of very occasional wine drinker relatives who love this wine whenever we serve it to them.

Firestone Vineyards is owned by the same family famous for tires. It is located in the Santa Ynez Valley near Santa Barbara, CA. Several years ago, we visited the winery. We tasted about ten different offerings and the Central Coast Riesling – one of their more entry-level, grocery store wines – was the only one we liked.

We haven’t yet spotted Firestone wines in the Pacific Northwest. We do occasionally see it on wine lists. It is easily found at Beverages & More and online. Road trips to California usually involve a stop at BevMo and this is one of the wines we stock up. The 2005 Firestone Riesling is currently on sale for $7.99, regularly priced at $9.99. Either way, we think it’s a great buy.

An exciting break-through!

It's a very exciting day! Our homegrown Riesling grapevines are showing signs of happy roots. For the first time, several have grown past their protective green grow tubes! Of the 54 stalks we planted back in February 2006, we've got 50 still happy, living, and viable.

Our soil is very rocky; we're on an old volcanic bed. We have been assuming that once the vines are able to plow down through the rock and establish roots, we will have some pretty strong plants. So far our educated guessing is proving mostly true.

Next step: figure out how to protect these new taller vines from being munched by deer.

Another wine down the drain

A bad bottle of wine can still be a good experience. There’s a lot to learn from a wine that’s either gone bad or just doesn’t suit your taste buds. We had just such an experience a few nights ago.

Some friends opened a bottle of an Italian wine that had been imported by a favorite California winery. This is to say, we didn’t know the wine but we trusted its source. It was a red varietal we hadn’t heard of. Nevertheless, it had a smell and a taste that your Two Wine Nuts were familiar with.

The wine’s most distinctive scent was of Band-Aids. Yep, that plasticy, chemically, antiseptic smell. One Wine Nut also picked up some Magic Marker in the aroma. And there was Band-Aid in the taste, too. After a few sips and commiseration, the group deemed the wine undrinkable and we moved onto another bottle.

So what does that Band-Aid taste and smell mean? Band-Aids is a tell-tale sign of a very specific yeast hanging out in a wine. It indicates the presence of a yeast called brettanomyces [breht-tan-uh-MI-sees] – or “brett” for short. Brettanomyces is a yeast that grows naturally on grapes and in wineries. For the most part, wine makers try to avoid allowing brett into their wine. However, there is some debate among winos as to whether or not a brett-flavored wine is a good thing or a bad thing. A little brettanomyces in a wine can add some complexity and earthiness, especially in a red wine. However, too much brett and you start wondering who has the boo-boo and just opened the Band-Aids box.

For lots of microbiological info, click here. For a high-brow debate of the usefulness of brettanomyces, click here.