A friend of mine has a new post on her Tumblr blog called 15 Wines Under $15, where she’s gathered up recommendations from a dozen or so of her wino … er … most festive friends. My contribution was a Mourvèdre (natch): the Cline Ancient Vines Mourvèdre. My favorite of the rest of the recos is one of her own: the Finca el Origen Malbec. A reliably good brand in my experience.
Check out her list and suggest your own.
Cheers!
I love wine delivery days! #vinegeek 
on Instagram: http://instagr.am/p/X2djd/
Today is my 15th wedding anniversary. Happy anniversary, my dear.
“Who does not love wine wife and song will be a fool for his lifelong!”
I had an awesome time at the Texas Craft Brewer’s Festival yesterday with my friends Scott & Roy. There is some seriously good beer being made in and around Austin. If you like craft beer you should definitely attend next year. (Come early for shorter lines.)
Here were some of my favorite beers from the day (can you tell I like ’em hoppy?):
Empire (barrel-aged IPA) from Real Ale in Blanco, TX
Cask-conditioned Wytchmaker (rye IPA) from Jester King in Austin, TX
A Cascadian dark ale from Southern Star Brewery in Conroe, TX (not sure it had an official name because it was a pro-am winner’s beer)
Fire Eagle Ale from Austin Beerworks in Austin, TX
Blur Texas Hefe from Circle Brewing Company in Austin, TX
Stash IPA from Independence Brewing in Austin, TX
Bruin (American brown ale) from (512) Brewing Company in Austin, TX
Pale Horse (American pale ale) from No Label Brewing in Katy, TX
Worth it just for the pun.
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Hat tip: wodehizzle via Instagram (wodehizzle also blogs at Corks and Caftans)
I really enjoy Wine & Spirits magazine. I’m a subscriber. Of the major wine publications in the US, it’s the one I end up spending the most time with. I like it because it stays focused on the wine, not the wine (insert air quotes) lifestyle.
But the one thing that always makes me laugh are the food pairing notes in the individual wine reviews at the back of the magazine.
I classify them into 4 main categories:
While I call them ridiculous (and they are), I have to admit they’re kind of fun. I look forward to reading them in a can-you-believe-this kind of way. And they are evocative even if they aren’t terribly useful.
Having said that, below are the 10 most ridiculous examples from the most recent issue, August 2011:
“…would match well with steamed asparagus – or the fried clam and pickled strawberry sandwich at No. 7 Sub in NYC.”
Paul Jaboulet Aîné 2010 Côtes du Rhône Parallèle 45
“For the parmesan-crusted chicken at Jean-Georges in New York.”
Fantinel 2009 Collio Vigneti Sant’Helena Pinot Grigio
“It will come in handy for early fall dinners of roasted eggplant and the season’s last stuffed tomatoes.”
Vaeni 2006 Naoussa
“Decant a bottle for pasta wth rabbit squazet.”
Gravner 2004 Venezia Giulia Breg Anfora
“Then decant it for bavette.”
Wind Gap 2008 Sonoma Coast Syrah
“A rosé for a chicken fricassee with button mushrooms, cream and plenty of herbs.”
Domaine de l’Hermitage 2010 Bandol L’Oratoire
“Check it out this winter with a rabbit stewed with cinnamon and tomatoes.”
Vaeni NV Makedonikos Semi-Dry
“For spit-roasted pigeon seasoned with juniper and bay.”
La Castellada 2004 Collio Sauvignon
“…like the soppressata it might accompany on a picnic in Muir Woods.”
Failla 2009 Sonoma Coast Pearlessence Vineyard Pinot Noir
“Chill it for an evening by the lake, with fresh-caught perch on the grill.”
Henry of Pelham 2009 Niagara-on-the-Lake Chardonnay Musqué
Keep ’em coming, Wine & Spirits! Perhaps one day I’ll have the pleasure of reading in your pages the perfect wine pairing for human breast milk cheese (eaten whilst strolling around Piazza Navona, of course).
Check out this tasty illustrated map of Italian wine. The artist is Antoine Corbineau. Click here for artist’s site and detail views of the map.
Hat tip: Lost at E Minor
I haven’t been doing a great job of keeping up with #MourvèdreMonday posts and tweets lately. But mon amie du vin, Lisa Dinsmore (@DailyWine) is a Mourvèdre-lover extraordinare and often picks up the slack via Twitter. Since I don’t have a new Mourvèdre post for you (yet again) today, check out her awesome recent post at Daily Wine Dispatch on a blind tasting of 2007 Paso Robles Mourvèdre from 11 different producers. Wish I could have been there!
Her overall winner was the Anglim ‘Hastings Ranch’, which I reviewed very favorably in this post last year. I also posted about one other wine in her lineup: the Calcareous Estate Reserve.
Drink More Mourvèdre!
Carignane is about as unsexy as grapes get. Firstly, it’s a pretty ugly-sounding word. And have you ever heard anybody say, “My favorite wine is Carignane”? I didn’t think so. When it is used, it’s most often in blend, so today’s varietal Carignane from Cline is suitably oddball. And being “old vines” adds a little extra something. Although, now that I think about it, I bet a large portion of the Carignane that exists in California is “old vines” … because who the hell is planting Carignane these days?
Producer: Cline Cellars
Grapes: 100% Carignane
Appellation: Contra Costa County (AVA, California)
Vineyard: Blended from several lots drawn from Cline’s old old old vineyards in Oakley.
Winemaking: Stainless steel fermentation then six months in French oak (35% new)
Alcohol: 15.0%
Price: About $16
Tasting notes: It’s got a meaty/savory aroma. Intense, concentrated cherry/red berry flavors. But it seems infused with more: woodsmoke, herbs, sweet tobacco. Enough acid to rein in the plump fruit. A touch too heavy with the oak treatment, perhaps. But good juice.
Overall impression: I’m enjoying this wine. Maybe Carignane is sexy after all. B
Free association:
Get the reference? Leave a comment, Bender.