The Weekly Wrap Up

The folks who know me mostly know what my actual “day” job is. I make it a point not to talk about it here because it has nothing to do with wine and it tends to become the topic of a conversation when it is brought up, even when I rather talk about wine. But the summer heat has finally ignited the earth’s engine and things have gotten busy.

So, a single recap of our wine tastings last week. The quick summary: I went to five tastings. They were all fun and each had some good wine!

Yet two wines really stood out last week and achieved the Wine of Note status, a white and a red. One from So Gourmet’s every-other-Wednesday Sunsets on Main tasting, and the other from the Bottle Shop on Baylen, which was featured as the mystery wine.

The first was an Italian White Wine from Puglia. Edda Bianco Salento 2021 is made with 60% Chardonnay, 20% Fiano, and 20% White Muscatel. Do not let the White Muscatel fool you, this is NOT a sweet wine and not any typical Chardonnay! It starts by filling the nose with yellow flowers and then filling the palate with savory stone fruit, good acid and a nice mineral finish. A great white to have for just about any occasion where you want a white wine!

The next was Col Solare's 2013 Red Blend from Columbia Valley Washington. Sourced entirely from Col Solare’s estate on Red Mountain, it is 88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Cabernet Franc, 4% Merlot, and 2% Syrah. It is damm good! A mix of red plum, black cherry, tobacco and earth, strong tannins and a nice finish. Even though it wasn’t part of the “official” tasting line up Friday night, you can buy it at the Bottle Shop, and I would, and did!

Two Wines of Note in one week! A solid performance from our local tastings. Yet this should not surprise anyone. The most amazing part; the people at the tastings are as fun as the wine! Bring a friend who might be apprehensive about coming out and let them join the party! Everyone stay safe this week!

Summer Wines, Part 1

Well, summer has started on the Gulf Coast. I am going to weather geek-out here: Summer officially starts for me when the wind shifts to be predominantly southern. That means the wind, most of the time, blows from the Gulf of Mexico. Every day is mostly humid and night time temps no longer get below 70F.

It’s okay! That just means it’s time to really pop open those light and refreshing wines. Beach, pool, warm evenings out with friends. Here are two picks to get your wine summer off to a good start.

The first is from New Zealand. Mohua Sauvignon Blanc. If you were lucky enough to go to Seville Quarter’s wine tasting this past Tuesday then you would have been able to speak to the wine maker himself, which is always a rewarding occasion. This wine was bright with a refreshing essence of grapefruit and acid and is right at home poolside.

The next was a Sparking Wine from the Loire Valley of France; Gratien & Meyer Cremant de Loire Brut. This wine was featured during Aragon’s Cru wine tasting on Thursday. Tight and intense bubbles that gave a very nice long finish with hints of orange and honey. Not sweet (it’s a Brut!), this Sparkling would be fantastic as the wine to greet your friends with as you start dinner.

Ready or not summer on the Gulf Coast is here. Serve cold and enjoy!

Napa Valley Day 2, Part 2 Château Montelena

What’s a good way to tell if you are a wine geek or not? A wine geek not only knows about the Judgement of Paris, but they can also explain it. A brief history refresher. Before 1976 wines from “The States” were not really taken seriously. Sure there were some good ones, but nothing compared to the likes of the best from Bordeaux or Burgundy. A blind tasting was arranged to test the “best” wines in the world at the time, which came from France, against some wines from Napa. There was a red category and a white category. A Napa wine won both categories, blowing up the wine world! It is THE reason people why when people hear “Napa” they think quality wine. The winner of the red category was a 1973 Cabernet Sauvignon from Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars. The winner of the white category was a 1973 Chardonnay from Château Montelena.

The 1976 Judgement of Paris has regained some popularity recently from the Netflix show “Somm 3.” Therefore a chance to visit either one of the two Napa Wineries that totally upturned the world of wine is worth taking! We were able to get into a tasting at Château Montelena on this visit, so we took the opportunity. You can look up the history of the Château on your own, but it is a beautiful estate. The tasting included their 2019 Chardonnay at $70 a bottle , their Estate Zinfandel at $45 (not sweet, nothing like most of the Zins from Lodi), a Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon at $85, and finally their Estate Cabernet Sauvignon at $200 a bottle! The staff was knowledgeable and enthusiastic which was a pleasant surprise considering the tourist Mecca that Château Montelena is. A walk about the idyllic grounds and the Jade Lake concluded our wine pilgrimage. Was it worth it? That depends on what you are after. If you are after a piece of wine history and a fun experience, then yes! Hope to see everyone back at our local GulfCoastWine tastings soon.

Napa Valley Day 2, Part 1 Laura Michael Winery

Sometimes you have more success going solo. Other times it pays to be part of a team. My Napa wine adventures on day 1 were a solo affair. On day two I was able to take a few members of my team to enjoy an amazing wine experience. My first choice to begin their Napa wine journey was Laura Michael Winery, just outside the town of Calistoga.Calistoga sits at the northern end of Napa Valley. The valley here is less than two miles wide. Fires wreaked havoc in this area in 2020, so be weary of any Napa wine wearing a 2020 on its label. The Winery, owned by wife Laura and husband Michael specialize in Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel, Chardonnay, and a 50/50 Zinfandel Petite Sirah desert wine, which is my favorite. In a previous post I talked about how you can taste the business culture of a winery in their wine. How do they treat guests, conduct their tasting, etc. And again, do everything that you can to make reservations, but I am always interested in how a winery handles the ones that just show up. Michael and Laura are some of the nicest people in Napa, and will do their best to try and accommodate you. They are knowledgeable and just great people to share a glass of wine with! Laura Michael’s is the refreshing antithesis of the big, impersonal, touristy wineries that everyone thinks that they “must” visit in Napa. Thank you to Laura and Michael for a great visit!

Aragon’s Tasting 1 Dec

Aragon Wine Market, owner Charlotte and Wine Expert Pepper, have created a wine shop with an atmosphere that really is amazing. Great people who will guide you to the right bottle of wine for you, not what a distributor is pushing. That truly is rare.I also very rarely write about more than one wine from a tasting that only has six or less wines to taste; unless we encounter something unique and special, to which our fellow tasters must also agree. So tonight we had two Wines of Note. Jasmine Monet, an Organic Blanc de Blancs from Argentina! And Moric Hausmarke Super Natural from Austria. What?!?Jasmine Monet is a 100% Chardonnay Sparkling wine. Everything agreed that it had just the right amount of bubbles which allowed for light green apple and soft pear, gentle minerality, and then finishing with those bubbles. And it is Certified Organic, from Argentina! This bottle will be part of my New Year. Moric with their, translated, Super Natural House blend, combines 80% Gruner Veltliner and 20% Chardonnay. Finished on oak, this SUPER complex white wine hits the mouth with a crisp tornado of stone fruit, mountain flowers, woody spice, acid and that quintessential petrol mouth feel. Super unique, and excellent with roast chicken or some very good fried rice. Looking for the right bottle of wine? Go local and ask an expert.

March 30 Tasting Notes

• 12th Ave Bottle Shop tasting

• Pensacola, FL

• Wednesday, March 30, 2022

The evening started with a surprising bubbly. Gruet Sauvage Blanc de Blancs sparkling wine from New Mexico. It was mouth awakening, zingy but not tart, not too dry in the world of bubbly wine, surprising in a good way. At $23.99 a bottle this would be a great choice to celebrate any occasion, even the end of a hard day.

Chardonnay. It seems to be the white wine grape that either you order as "what do you have for white wine," or the discerning wine searcher's white wine of choice. Very little "middle" ground. Sometimes you need middle ground. That is why Willamette Valley Vineyards Chardonnay is so unique. Even with sitting in barrels of French Oak for 10 months, it was not oakey or woody, but still had that body and structure that the wine connoisseur looks for, well rounded flavor but not buttery. At $24.99, this Oregon Chardonnay would do very well with any of our local seafood, especially during an Easter lunch.

I love pizza, and a lot of red wines go well with pizza. Casa Silva's Carmenere goes GREAT with pizza. This Italian red will give you a full nose of amazing peppers, bell, jalapeno, even habanero, then satisfy your taste with pleasant red fruit. I would also drink this with a large plate of Indian food. For $14.99, this is a perfect addition to any spicey meal.

The last wine of the evening was a Cabernet Sauvingnon from Paso Robles California called Broadside. Even though it is a "Cab," it really is a blend, a very well done blend. Check out our "Resources" section on the percentages of grape rules in wine and how it gets names. So this "Cab" is 88% cabernet Sauvingnon blended with 12% Merlot. It had good dark berry fruit, easy tannins that didn't leave your tongue dry, and finished velvety smooth. Great to just drink, or have while you are cooking dinner, then finish while eating dinner. You rarely get that kind of experience from a Californian Cab for less than $30. Thats why at $13.99 it was the evening's winner.

Don't forget that with your $10 for the tasting you get $5 off any of the bottles in the tasting. So you could have gotten any of these bottles $5 cheaper than listed above.