Barbaresco 2010 was next on the line-up, more than 80 of them spread over two days, from the three municipalities that make up the zone: Barbaresco, Neive and Treiso. Regardless of their numerous stylistic differences, the wines fell into two basic groups: Some were dark, red-black, inky and opaque, with pronounced alcohol, an earthy aroma of dull, over-ripe fruit, and harsh tannins. The others were brick red with orange highlights and a nice shiny transparency, a subtle inviting aroma, and a mouthful of ripe cherry, strawberry and/or cranberry fruit framed by firm, supple, pleasantly astringent tannins. Wines that fell into the first group seemed heavy and prematurely old, those in the second young and promising.

Same grape variety, same appellation, same year but two totally different styles; I was a bit perplexed so asked a friend for some insight.

“Harvest began towards the . . . Continue reading →]]> http://blogs.wineandspiritsmagazine.com/blog/entry/nebbiolo-prima-day-one Thu, 16 May 2013 02:25 GMT by Alan Tardi http://blogs.wineandspiritsmagazine.com/blog/entry/nebbiolo-prima-day-one#When:02:25Z In the Trenches of Barbaresco and Roero

The first day of Nebbiolo Prima: 20 Roeros and 57 Barbarescos, all from the 2010 vintage. So much for a soft opening.

The games begin in Roero, the black sheep of the three great nebbiolo appellations. While both Barbaresco and Barolo are in the Langhe, the Roero is on the other side of the Tanaro River. Both Barbaresco and Barolo must be made from 100% nebbiolo; Roero can have up to 5% of other grape varieties added to it. And while the Barolo and Barbaresco areas were formed in the late Miocene Epoch (about 16-11 million years ago), the Roero is the newer kid on the geologic block, dating back five million years (more or less) to the Pliocene.  The Roero hills are lower and more spread out but pointier—cone-heads compared to the Langhe’s elongated ‘tongues’—and the soil in . . . Continue reading →]]> http://blogs.wineandspiritsmagazine.com/blog/entry/nebbiolo-prima Sun, 12 May 2013 22:35 GMT by Alan Tardi http://blogs.wineandspiritsmagazine.com/blog/entry/nebbiolo-prima#When:22:35Z This weekend, the first ever “Marathon of Barolo and the Castles of the Langhe” took place: 42 kilometers divided between two days, up and down hills, through vineyards in 9 of the 11 towns which comprise the Barolo wine zone. Today’s race started at Barolo, circled the big castle of the village of Castiglione Falletto, down a narrow stairway right by the town’s Cantina Comunale (which I manage) before descending through the steep Scarrone vineyard to Serralunga d’Alba and the finish line at Monforte. After the race, runners replenished themselves with a plate of tajarin and, perhaps, a glass or two of wine. Unwilling to wait until the finish, some made a mid-race pit stop at the Cantina door to gulp a half-glass of Barolo instead of water. As one said, “Well, it’s the Barolo marathon, no?”

Tomorrow, Monday, a different kind of marathon begins, encompassing . . . Continue reading →]]> http://blogs.wineandspiritsmagazine.com/blog/entry/berkshire-bruschetta Mon, 06 May 2013 14:51 GMT by Joshua Greene http://blogs.wineandspiritsmagazine.com/blog/entry/berkshire-bruschetta#When:14:51Z Fresh from October Mountain…here’s my latest recipe for young ramps.

One slice People’s Bakery Four Seed Spelt Bread
Six young ramps, cleaned
1 tbsp Olive oil
Shavings of Parmigiano Reggiano

Chop ramps, keeping stems and leaves separate. Heat an iron skillet, add olive oil then add chopped ramp stems. Sauté for two minutes, then add chopped ramp leaves and continue to cook until tender (about two more minutes). Meanwhile, toast bread. Spread sautéed ramps and olive oil on toast, top with shaved Parmigiano Reggiano.

Check it out with a tart West County Cider.

What’s on the list: The wines that made the Restaurant Top 50 of our 24th Annual Restaurant Poll, plus some of the most popular sparkling wines and pinot noirs, cabernets and Ports; wines from France, Italy, Spain, Argentina, Greece and more. Wines you know well, and wines that somms have picked as their favorite new discoveries.

{image_1}

Rub shoulders with winery owners and winemakers—David Adelsheim from Oregon; Ken Coopersmith at Merry Edwards, Jay & Tobin Heminway from Green & Red, Bob Lindquist from Qupé, Michael Terrien from Obsidian Ridge and John Wurdeman of Pheasant’s Tears are just a few of our star guests. < . . . Continue reading →]]> http://blogs.wineandspiritsmagazine.com/blog/entry/de-vine-intervention Mon, 25 Mar 2013 17:00 GMT by Tara Q. Thomas http://blogs.wineandspiritsmagazine.com/blog/entry/de-vine-intervention#When:17:00Z {image_1}

Several months after Hurricane Sandy hit New York, many restaurants still remained closed—places as revered as The River Café and as legendary as the Bridge Café. Some, like Brooklyn’s short-lived but much-acclaimed Governor, will never reopen. In response to the continued challenges the hurricane left in its wake, Danny Meyer, of the Union Square Hospitality Group, and Master Sommelier John Ragan, wine director for the group, have called on the local restaurant community to launch DeVine Intervention, an online wine auction. Gathering wines from reputable restaurants and collectors, they are offering 250 lots with no buyer’s premium, and donating 100 percent of the hammer price of each lot sold to the Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City in support of Hurricane Sandy recovery efforts. A taste of what’s on offer: a 2001 Bartolo Mascarello Barolo from Maiolino; a 1990 Krug Clos de Mesnil from . . . Continue reading →]]> http://blogs.wineandspiritsmagazine.com/blog/entry/lindsey-ford-of-moonshine-on-diversity-and-spice-in-austin-tx Fri, 22 Mar 2013 22:04 GMT by Lara Douglass http://blogs.wineandspiritsmagazine.com/blog/entry/lindsey-ford-of-moonshine-on-diversity-and-spice-in-austin-tx#When:22:04Z Lindsey Ford has been at Moonshine—a bar and grill that leans toward old-school Americana—since 2005. She first worked as a bartender, then took over the wine program in 2011. Lara Douglass spoke with her about how she reformatted the wine list since then.

It was kind of incidental that we had wine before—if you think about the name. In 2011, we made the first big wine list change. I saw that we didn’t have to stick to California cabs and merlots. We have really rich food that was able to take more interesting wines for Austin—albariño and grüner veltliner, malbec and sangiovese all do really well by the glass.

With the diversity on the list, we include descriptions with our wines. It makes a big difference—to have people try something they’ve never tried before even if they don’t . . . Continue reading →]]> http://blogs.wineandspiritsmagazine.com/blog/entry/a-laurel-for-tara Thu, 14 Mar 2013 21:44 GMT by Luke Sykora http://blogs.wineandspiritsmagazine.com/blog/entry/a-laurel-for-tara#When:21:44Z {image_1}

Tara Q. Thomas, our intrepid executive editor, fell in love with Greece when she staged at a restaurant in Athens while studying at the Culinary Institute of America. When she joined the magazine in 1997, she immediately set her sites on reporting the renaissance that was happening in Greek wine—a modernization of winemaking practices, certainly, but also a concerted effort to clarify the astonishing terroirs and palette of indigenous grapes that had been there all along. Recently, she’s brought to our attention Santorini’s precise, mineral assyrtikos, and traced the emergence of malagousia as one Greece’s rising-star grapes.

In recognition of her efforts to educate Americans about Greek wines, the Greek wine industry recently awarded her the first annual Greek Wine Industry Award. They created the honor “to acknowledge outstanding contributions to the Greek Wine Industry in the fields of education, promotion, . . . Continue reading →]]> http://blogs.wineandspiritsmagazine.com/blog/entry/erik-liedholm Mon, 11 Mar 2013 15:14 GMT by Luke Sykora http://blogs.wineandspiritsmagazine.com/blog/entry/erik-liedholm#When:15:14Z {image_1}

Erik Liedholm is the wine director for Seattle’s John Howie Restaurant group, which includes John Howie Steak and two Seastar restaurants. In 2004, he was named Sommelier of the Year by the Washington Wine Commission and the Seattle Times.

Four of your top ten wines were from Washington. Are Seattle drinkers pretty loyal to hometown wines?

I think so. And when we get tourists in, they want to sample what’s local—the whole “when in Rome” theory. We do find some confusion when people come in looking for a lot of Washington white wine. We do have it, but the focus here has been more on making world-class red wines.

Then again, I think Hestia Cellars has made some really interesting wines—they make a really good chenin blanc. If you taste it blind, it’s—well, not exactly . . . Continue reading →]]> http://blogs.wineandspiritsmagazine.com/blog/entry/dana-farner-of-cut-beverly-hills-on-the-taste-for-cabernet Tue, 05 Mar 2013 15:00 GMT by Patrick J. Comiskey http://blogs.wineandspiritsmagazine.com/blog/entry/dana-farner-of-cut-beverly-hills-on-the-taste-for-cabernet#When:15:00Z {image_1}

Dana Farner has been the sommelier at CUT since it opened in 2007. Patrick J. Comiskey saw her at a recent In Pursuit of Balance tasting and she described how the taste preferences of her steakhouse guests generally fall into “an Old World camp and a New World camp.”

I have some guests who are excited to drink good Bordeaux because they know it has less alcohol; they can drink more and not feel bad the next day. I try to only put Bordeaux on the list that are ready to drink, which makes them expensive. But I have found a few good ’05s and ’06s, Right Bank stuff that’s pretty yummy right now. We did see a decline among clientele who’ll drop for an ’82 first growth without batting an eye. Since 2007, we’ve seen a continued tightening of the budget for expense . . . Continue reading →]]>