Archive for November 2012

Home Archive for November 2012

I must admit I was a bit apprehensive about hosting Thanksgiving dinner at my home this year. After all, it's been years since I cooked a turkey and all the trimmings. Having spent years in the restaurant business, I was fairly confident I could pull this off without a glitch, but still....

The afternoon began just as planned. The Contadi Castaldi Franciacorta Brut was a huge hit with the pre-dinner appetizers. As my house filled with the intoxicating aroma of roast turkey, my anxiety grew. The moment of truth came when I started carving the bird and could see it was perfectly cooked...job done...or so I thought.

I had a couple of bottles of 2005 vintage Beaune Premier Cru in my wine fridge just waiting to be uncorked for the big day. Great producer, extraordinary vintage, and as so often happens with red Burgundy, the bottles disappointed rather than delivered. {Sorry to my Francophile friends but I'm sure you have experienced this as well}. The wine was supposed to be the easy part of my turkey day meal.

I knew I had to act quickly. I could see my friends were not enjoying the wine as much the food. I reached into my Danby and pulled out a bottle of Poggio Il Castellare Sant' Antimo Cervio. Tuscan cabernet is not a wine I would normally choose for Thanksgiving dinner but the wonderful scents of crushed berries and fresh herbs along with the velvety tannins was a perfect match. Fortunately I had a second bottle to get us through the dinner. Sadly, however, most of this spectacular wine is quickly disappearing from our stores.

Don't despair, though, if you don't find any of the 2008 Cervio left in our stores. The 2009 vintage of this wine should be in our stores before Christmas. Wine Spectator has once again awarded the wine 93 points and describes it as follows: "Deeply rooted black currant, cherry, spice and earth flavors mingle in this intense red. This is more about the fruit, with well-mannered tannins and structure nicely integrated. The fine finish of black currant and spice lingers. $60" Our price is $34.99 at the time of this writing.

Paul Quaglini

Follow me on twitter @abcwinepaulq

Every so often, the opportunity to get together with friends and share good food and wine presents itself and I like to be prepared when it does. When those friends also like fine wine and the good discussion fine wines bring, the get-together is what we in this business really live for! This past week I was given a boneless leg of Colorado lamb, (THANK YOU, Brad!) one of my favorite meats (and one that seems to work just fine with almost any nice red wine). It only took one phone call to find someone to help devour it. A few pounds of fresh shrimp and a baguette rounded out the menu, and we were ready!

The shrimp were sautéed in olive oil with finely diced red onion, garlic and a little butter. When they were finished, fresh lime juice and salt gave them the needed spark to pair with a 2007 Ch. Luchey-Halde blanc from Pessac-Leognan. The wine is rich and vibrant, with a nerve of lime/citrus acidity and an almost lemon curd flavor...simply wonderful.

I have to admit it was a bit difficult focusing on the white with the aroma of lamb filling the house! The leg was tied, braised, then roasted for an hour with crimini mushrooms and red potatoes…everything was shimmering with olive oil, garlic and rosemary...heavenly! We opened first the 2005 Echezeaux from Maison Champy. Rich and mouth filling, with a fair dose of new oak, the Grand Cru showed very well, but probably better in another 2 years. Next we decanted my only bottle of 1998 Chateauneuf-du-Pape from Paul Autard, the Cuvee le Cote Ronde. Should have been stunning, but was an off bottle, so down the drain it went. We ‘settled’ for a 1990 Napa Cabernet from Harrison Estate. Mature and in pristine condition, the wine was delicious but was at the end of a long journey, and began cracking up just about the time we finished it….Very herbal/sage-like and silky, it was a very nice match with the lamb.

I have had these bottles of red for years, stored in a wine fridge at home for times like this. Every once in a while, they whisper for me to open them, but as much as I enjoy them, they are wines that you need to experience with others, conversation pieces really, so they sit quietly until the opportunity presents itself. Thanks, Mr. Greeley.

Shayne Hebert, Central/Coastal Wine Supervisor

Follow me on Twitter @abcwineshayne

Beer guru Rick Swartz, a manager in Vero Beach, joins our "official" beer team. Follow him on Twitter @abcbeerRick for everything new in Beer Country, and watch for his posts here.

With all of the major beer brands touting their born-on dates and gimmicky labels that change colors when at the “proper” ice-cold temperature, it is easy to miss a couple of key beer facts. The first of these facts is that a great beer can be as age-worthy as a great wine. The second is that not all beer is most enjoyable when it is ice-cold.

Just like with wine, there are elements to consider when both selecting a beer to “lay-down” and deciding how to store that beer. A general rule is that the higher the gravity, or ABV, of a beer the better cellaring potential is has. As far as storage, if beer is stored too warm, you risk shortening the beer’s lifespan and if they are too cold, they can become cloudy. Generally, the strongest beers (quads, tripels, barley wines, and Imperial IPAs and Stouts) benefit the most from “room temperature” storage in the 55 to 65°F range. Standard ales (IPAs, doppelbocks, stouts, Belgian goldens) should be kept at a “cellar” temperature of 50 to 55°F. Lastly, lighter beer (lagers and wheat beers) should be kept refrigerated at 45 to 50°F. Just like with wine, the appropriate storage temperature is also the appropriate serving temperature.

When you are going to purchase beer for cellaring, it is also important to buy at least two of any beer you are going to store. After all, you are going to want to try one now and most likely, you will want to do vertical comparisons at some point in the future, trying several “vintages” in a single tasting session. Then, sometimes, you will just want to pull out a special bottle for a special occasion.

For me, such an occasion is today (I'm writing this on the weekend). I have the day off. College football is on the TV, meat on the grill, and a bottle of Clipper City’s Heavy Seas Below Decks barley wine from 2006. This is an English-style barley wine with 10%ABV. This beer began its life in the bottle with a deep copper color, but has darkened some with time to show a little more brown and ruby tones.

A slow pour into a tulip glass reveals a slight frothy head that builds to about a centimeter before quickly receding. On the nose, there are notes toasty malt and caramel backed up by slightly spicy, piney hops. In addition to these expected general characteristics, there are other layers of complexity in the nose including sweet tobacco, worn leather, raisin, milk chocolate, and very subtle notes of cardamom and fresh peppercorns.

On the palate, it is front-loaded with caramel and toffee sweetness. On mid-palate, it carries some semi-sweet bitterness, not unlike what one finds in a caramel latte. It finishes with some lingering sweetness balanced by very subdued English hop bitterness. Overall, it has a silky, though perhaps somewhat thinner than expected mouth-feel for a beer of this gravity; nevertheless, it is highly enjoyable.

As our trip with Nadia Galati across Northern Italy continued, we drove to the Veneto and stopped in the town of Conegliano to visit the Azienda Agricola Conte Collalto. This historic winery, which traces its family roots back to 958 AD, is one of the oldest in all of Italy. We went to the winery where we met up with a group from Argentina, who we spent the day with as we all toured the winery, castle…yes, well every Princess must have a castle. At lunch we were joined by Princess Isabella Collalto de Croy, my very favorite Princess ever! And contrary to what you may have heard about princesses, you know, about being 'princesses' and all, this is one of the nicest princesses you will ever meet. The Princess Isabella took us all on a tour of the Castello San Salvatore that lasted all afternoon. She gave us a detailed history of this old and powerful northern Italian family that ruled this area of Italy for so many centuries.

The other great part of the stop was the opportunity to taste the wonderful wines produced by the estate. The wines ranged from the complex Proseccos, the truly delicious Pinot Grigio, a couple of wines I had not had before such as Wildbacher, Manzoni Bianco and Manzoni Rosa and a wine I have enjoyed in the past, the Collalto Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon. All these wines were poured at a very special dinner we attended that evening.

The next day we were treated to a day in the historic
city of Venice, which included lunch at the famous Hotel Danieli. This memorable lunch, hosted by Princess Isabella, began with a wonderful reception of hors d'oeuvres and Collalto Wines and moved to a grand dining room for an intimate lunch that filled this beautiful room with fanciful food, delicious wines and Italian, Argentinian and American laughter. It was great fun!

It was hard to say goodbye to the incredible people we met at Collalto, but we had to move on to our next visit, which I will tell you all about next time…until then, cheers.

Ken Amendola, Wine Supervisor North Florida

Follow me on Twitter @abcwinekena

Next time you’re hanging out with your friends, look around and see who is tossing back more beer than the rest of them: that could be the most intelligent person in the group. It’s an odd thought, I know, but research shows that the more intelligent a person is, the more likely they are to consume larger amounts of alcohol.

There are a lot of theories about why this might be the case. One psychologist, Martin Smith, suggests this is because, “People higher in general intelligence…are not bothered by the strangeness of the alcohol experience.” His theory is that more intelligent people are more understanding and aware of themselves, enabling themselves to experience the sensations that go along with drinking and not be freaked out by it. Instead, to them, it is a pleasurable experience dealt with through mental maturity.

Source: http://bit.ly/TPK292

In a separate study, psychologist David Batty, explains that intelligent people most likely have more stressful jobs and drinking is a form of stress release. Essentially, rising stress is positively correlated to how many rounds a person will order, and it is more likely that an intelligent person will hold these highly stressful positions.

And another study suggests it is an evolutionarily dictated habit. Satoshi Kanazawa, psychologist and author, ran studies on this very subject. Controlling for a long list of demographics, including race, religion, gender, parents’ education, marital status, and childhood social class (among many others), Kanazawa placed people in one of five categories ranging from “very dull” to “very bright.” The results showed that the more intelligent a person was, the more they drank compared to the less intelligent participants in the study.

What’s more, Kanazawa suggests that because people drinking what he calls “modern drinks” is “evolutionarily novel,” it makes sense that intelligent people would partake in such an activity.
Modern drinks are defined by Kanazawa as beer, wine and distilled spirits made for the purpose of drinking. Thousands of years ago, Kanazawa explains, many people (and even some animals) got drunk by accident—by eating old fruit that has already started to naturally ferment. With the discovery of the process, drinking became an intended pastime.

Thus his hypothesis: “more intelligent individuals may be more likely to prefer drinking modern alcoholic beverages (beer, wine, and distilled spirits) than less intelligent individuals, because the substance and the method of consumption are both evolutionarily novel.” And his results were
the proof.

I must warn you, though: this does not mean that drinking more will make you smarter; only that your smart friends may hold their alcohol a little better than you can.

The second annual Cows 'n Cabs event took place last Saturday evening in Winter Park’s Central Park, located at 150 North New York Avenue.

Cows ‘n Cabs is a fundraiser benefitting non-profit charities assisting families in need within the Central Florida area.

This food and wine event featured live entertainment, including a band, live auction, and a raffle with all proceeds benefitting Coalition for the Homeless and Community Food and Outreach. Our guests had the opportunity to sample delicious dishes from twenty of Winter Park's finest restaurants and over 300 wines and craft-beers.

Two special guests came all the way from France to be part of this year’s Cows n’ Cabs, Pierre Meurgey, owner of Maison Champy in Burgundy, and Bruno Lafon, owner of Domaine Magellan in Languedoc.

Of all the wonderful featured drinks, my top two picks of the evening were Domaine Magellan, Coteaux du Languedoc, Pezenas 2010 and Champy, Volnay 1er Cru Les Taillepieds 2009.

Pezenas is a sub-appellation of the Coteaux du Languedoc appellation in the Languedoc region of southern France. It is one of several Coteaux du Languedoc sub-appellations, all of which are
located on the coastal plains between Narbonne in the west, Montpellier in the center, and Nimes in the east.

The area covered by the Pezenas appellation is demarcated by the Herault river in the east, he Montagne Noire hills in the north, and Faugeres in the west. The town of Pezenas is located at the southern end of the area and also marks the northern limit of the neighboring Picpoul de Pinet sub-appellation.

Domaine Magellan Pezenas 2010 is a blend of equal parts Grenache and Syrah. The wine exhibits saturated ruby color and aromas as well as flavors of ripe red and dark berries, black cherry, garrigues and hint of black pepper. This is a full-bodied red to pair with grilled meats and vegetables, meat stews and aged hard cheeses.

Two thumbs up also went to the 100% estate and organic Volnay Premier Cru Les Taillepieds 2009. This vineyard has only 10cm of top soil, followed by pure limestone. The 2.2 acres plot yielded only 2.1 tons/acre in 2009 and the wine was made at 40 hectoliter/hectare. This is a wine of great concentration and purity, full-bodied, with solid tannins; the black cherry fruit is persistent throughout and the finish is never-ending. Offered at $62.99. Drink or hold.

Atanas Nechkov, Central Florida wine supervisor

Guest blogger Daniel Eddy is a Fine Wine Consultant for ABC in Gainesville.

It’s day five of our weeklong tour of Northern Italy with Nadia Galati of Alberello Imports, and I need to pinch myself. We are in Valpolicella (near Verona) at Nicolis Winery, and we’ve just had a tour of the winemaking facilities, including the fruttaio (the big room where they air dry the grapes for their Amarone and Recioto wines), and the aging cellar. Wine Consultants (and Wine Supervisors) are just big wine geeks, and we feel like we’ve been let loose in the candy store, so to speak.

Something I’ve learned from this trip: these wineries are family businesses. Nicolis started in 1951 with Angelo and Natalia, and their three sons have taken over: Massimo heads up marketing and sales, Giancarlo manages the vineyards, and Giuseppe makes the wine. The rolling hills of Valpolicella create many opportunities for microclimates, as well as picturesque landscapes. All of their vineyards are classified Valpolicella Superiore, even though not all of their wines have that appellation.

Now we’re having a “light lunch” (which is anything but “light”) and sampling the entire array of Nicolis’ wines with Massimo Nicolis and his mother Natalia, who has made us the local specialty, Risotto all’Amarone, and picked us some fresh Corvina Nero, Rondinella and Molinara grapes for
dessert.

We begin our sampling with the Valpolicella Classico 2011 and the Valpolicella Classico Superiore 2010. We sell the former at ABC for $14 per bottle, but the Superiore is new to me, and I’m fascinated by the contrast in flavors. The Classico has tart cherries on the nose and palate, light body and hints of burnt sugar, while the Superiore, sourced from higher elevation vineyards, has richer black cherry notes, a deeper, earthier complexity, finishing with a hint of white pepper. Both are paired with grilled polenta, local salami and a cool salad of pickled local mushrooms and zucchini (mushrooms were in season, and we ate loads of mushrooms on this trip).

Our next course is the Risotto all’Amarone, which is not paired with the Amarone, but with their superb Ripasso wine, the 2009 Seccal vineyard Valpolicella Classico Superiore Ripasso (Wine Spectator 90). Unlike their Amarones, which are both over $50, this Ripasso is a steal at $23. It has much of the ripe and juicy flavors of the Amarone, because it is a refermented Valpolicella wine, on the skins of the Amarone after they have pumped out the Amarone wine. It then has 16 months of
aging in large Slovenian oak barrels (or foudres) to give it refinement. Though this might seem like cheating, using the leftovers of the more expensive Amarone to upgrade their lighter Valpolicella wines, it really isn’t; the grapes for the Ripasso are from a single Superiore vineyard. I think of it as using resources smartly, to keep that extra flavor, earned through slow air-drying in the fruttaio, and not waste any of their best flavors. This comes across on the palate where I get ripe, spicy and deep flavors, rich with black currants and black pepper. As a treat they also let us sample a wine we have yet to carry, the Testal, an IGT Rosso del Veronese, using 90% Corvina Nero late-harvested in the passito method, where the grapes dry on the vine rather than in crates. This wine had more graphite notes, hints of cassis, yet was smooth and elegant on the palate.

Next they bring out the “big guns,” their Amarones, one of the most fortuitous mistakes in winemaking history. About 100 years ago while making their late harvest, passito, dessert wine, Recioto della Valpolicella, one winery let their wine ferment too long and it went dry (or bitter, since Amarone means “bitter” in Italian). Instead of a dessert wine with normal alcohol, he had a dry, yet ripe and fruity wine, with 16% alcohol, which became known as Amarone della Valpolicella and is now one of Italy’s most prestigious (and expensive) wines. The extra expense comes in the
process, which includes three months of air-drying in plastic crates (that used to be straw mats, but the new crates are much easier to use, stack and reuse). Their traditional Amarone Classico 2006 (about $55 per bottle) smells like blackberry brandy, but is soft and rich on the palate with hints of minerality. They recommend pairing with filet mignon, venison or sharp cheeses, and they served it with Monteveronese (a local cheese), Swiss Ementaller, and Parmigiano Reggiano topped with local honey.

Their Ambrosan Amarone, sourced from a single vineyard, is the pride of the Nicolis family and has garnered great scores and is well worth the $65 price tag. We are treated with a vertical tasting of the 2005 (a challenging vintage) and 2006 (a good, or “easy vintage,” as they called it) and they recommend drinking this wine alone. Ambrosan is a higher elevation vineyard and half of the wine is aged in small French barrique barrels, bringing out vanilla notes that jump out of the glass. I also get spice box and Chambord with a hint of mocha in the 2005 (Wine Spectator 91). The 2006 has more body and structure, with spicy notes, cassis sweetness and a longer finish. I can’t say that I prefer one vintage over the other, since they are both outstanding; a good reason to try both and compare for yourself.

We finish our tasting and meal with a Torta Veronese (a crunchy almond pastry) paired with Nicolis Recioto 2008, their dessert wine. Sweet Bing Cherries, wild strawberries and fresh grape characters explode in the glass, yet the wine maintains a balanced acidity. The Recioto has less
alcohol than the Amarone (since they leave in much of the sugar) but the complex aromas are very reminiscent of its “bitter” cousin, without being cloyingly sweet. They recommend drinking it within 6 years, rather than within 20 years for the Amarone.

One of my travel compatriots dislikes most desserts (one reason they call me “The Finisher” on this trip) and dessert wines, but Recioto changed her mind, and she is very happy to have it for dessert from then on out. We end our experience with a little of their own grappa (by law their excess skins must go to a distillery to make grappa, to keep everyone in business and above board). This is an elegant and smooth grappa, not the firewater I’ve come to expect from cheaper grappas, and it makes a lovely addition (they jokingly called it “correction”) to our Italian Espresso, and we need a shot of caffeine after this tasting experience. Yes, this is what the Italians call a “light lunch” and it’s one I will never forget. Cin cin!

See more of his writings at http://www.examiner.com/wine-pairing-in-gainesville/daniel-eddy.

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