The problem with the world is that everyone is a few drinks behind.” — Humphrey Bogart
Archive for January, 2010
Trash TV week 3: Elyse Zin vs. Robert Craig Zin
01.26.2010
Well, it’s Tuesday again and we all know what that means! It is time for this week’s installment of how to survive “The Bachelor” (A.K.A. Trash TV).
Last night was a little different than in past weeks in that it turned into a girl’s night! Hooray! I thought that it was bad when I had to watch it with just my wife. Now I have to sit through two hours of Jake always taking his shirt off, 8 caddy women trying to get the next kiss and my wife and her friend chatting the entire time. Oh happy days! Because we had an extra pair of lips to support, I had to hit the cellar up for two bottles this week.
This week’s picks were the 2006 Elyse Howell Mountain Zinfandel and a 2007 Robert Craig Howell Mountain Zinfandel.
First up was the 2006 Elyse Zinfandel (only because I thought that the RC Zinfandel would need to breathe for a few minutes) which I purchased directly from their tasting room for $37.
The Elyse Zinfandel is a dark ruby color with aromas of earth, raisins and light pepper. On the palate I got flavors of plums, earth and white pepper. This is a well structured wine with medium tannins and smooth finish. I paired this wine is some spicy Thai food and it held up very nicely.
Would I buy/drink this wine again? Absolutely and I give this wine 3 out of 5 corks!
Next up was the 2007 Robert Craig Howell Mountains Zinfandel which was also purchased from the tasting room at around $50
The Robert Craig Zinfandel shows its Howell Mountain roots with aromas of black raspberry, white and black pepper. The palate has wild berry, pepper, warm spices which evolve into a great mid-palate. From there it all comes together with smooth supple tannins and strong finish that lingers around just enough at the end.
My wife and our neighbor both agreed that they liked this wine better than the Elyse. They both felt that the Robert Craig Zinfandel was just a bit better rounded than the Elyse.
Would I buy/drink this wine again? Absolutely and I give this wine 4 out of 5 corks!
And the WINNER was: 2007 Robert Craig Zinfandel
See you next week
WineDudeOnline
Build a Wine Cellar the Easy Way
01.26.2010
Looking to increase your wine collection? It’s really easy! Here’s how: Determine how many bottles you’re going to consume in a week. For the sake of example, let’s say it’s three. When you visit your favorite wine shop, buy one more bottle than you’re going to need. Drink your normal amount during the week & save that extra bottle. Easy, right?
The best part is this approach works whether you’re buying on a tight budget or you’re a big-money baller. Just buy one more bottle than you’re going to need & put it away. Do that the next time & the next & the next. Soon enough you’ll have a nice little cellar built up!
Beginner’s guide: What wineries should I visit when I go to Napa? Part 1
01.21.2010
Friends are always asking me what wineries they should visit when they go to Napa, I always tell them the same thing. “That depends on you”. Are you new to wine? Have you ever been there before? What type of wine do you like? These are just a few of the things that go into deciding what wineries to visit. Some of these go hand in hand with each other, so your answer to any of these may result in different outcomes.
If you’re new to wine then you will probably want to go to some of the bigger production tasting rooms on your first trip. These are wines which are readily available at your local supermarket. These types of wineries are good for the new or casual wine drinkers because they typically have a wide variety of wines to taste, thus allowing you to get a feel for which varietal (the grape from which the wine is made) best suits your palette.
Another appealing thing about visiting this type of winery is that you get a larger selection for your tasting fee (around $10). The tasting fee is the wineries way of covering the costs of the staff and wine should you not chose to buy any wine from them. Some of the wineries will waive the tasting fee if you make a minimum purchase, usually one or two bottles. Others may give you commemorative glasses in lieu of waiving the fee. Also, these are typically priced more appropriately for the beginner’s wallet. Usually at the larger production wineries you will find wines in the $15 – $40 range.
A few examples (in Napa) are Markham Vineyards, Rubicon Estate (aka Niebaum-Coppla) and Sterling Vineyards. Again, these are only a few of the examples. If you are looking for a nice place to have lunch and wine tasting try V. Sattui Winery. Looking for a map of the Napa Valley wineries?
The Wine Whisperer: What you need to know about Merlot
01.19.2010
I wonder why there is still some misunderstanding about the wonderful red wine grape Merlot. I think that this worldly and elegant wine was so bashed by Paul Giamatti that it might take a generation for Merlot to get “up to speed” and grab its rightful place, once again, in winedom.
Here is what we know about wine made from Merlot:
First, let me give you a very brief history of red and white wine production in California. Many of the “big oak” Cabernet Sauvignon produced in California in the late 1960s until the middle 1980s suffered from being way overdone and the wine production message in the state was “more is better” in just about all of the winemaking during these 25 years.
Oak, skin contact and pressing was dominant in the minds and cellars of many winemakers at that time. Even the Chardonnays were suffering from over extraction and hideous amounts of oak. It got so bad in the middle 1970s that I remember a “blind” tasting of white wine (all of which turned out to be Chardonnay) where none of the judges could tell what the wines were because the heavy-handed use of oak in the production masked the varietal!
Read the rest of the article at the Ashland Daily Tidings
By Lorn Razzano
