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Posts Tagged ‘4 Corks Popped’

2008 Newsome-Harlow Calaveras County Zinfandel

19 Aug

This week’s final California Zinfandel comes from one of my new favorite California wineries and, as such, admittedly came in with a leg up on this week’s competition.  Nestled in the Sierra Foothills in the heart of California Gold Country, the tiny town of Murphys, California is working hard at transforming itself from a sleepy mountain haven into a veritable wine and food destination.  Dozens of wineries and restaurants now line the town’s quaint main street, and although some are still in their infancy (and/or simply aren’t any good), there are a few standouts, Newsome-Harlow being the prime example.

Newsome-Harlow is the love child of winemaker Scott Klann (who also has a hand in making the wines at nearby Twisted Oak and Tanner) and his wife (and Chef) Melanie.*  Scott, as a local with long-standing relationships with the area growers, sources grapes from the region’s best vineyards and somehow manages every year to create some of the most complex yet balanced wines you’ll find anywhere in California.  Zinfandel is the winery’s perennial superstar; indeed, in addition to the Calaveras County Zinfandel, Scott makes several single-vineyard Zinfandels as well (Big John being my favorite) that are nothing short of phenomenal.  But Newsome Harlow is no one trick pony, no sir.  Each time I’ve visited (J’s family has a cabin just outside Murphys, so J and I have made it our mission to become Newsome-Harlow regulars), there has been a different wine on the tasting list that was there simply because Scott was curious as to what would happen if he bought, for example, some local Petite Sirah and played around with it a bit until produced something magical.

But this post isn’t about Newsome Harlow’s Petite Sirah (or Rose or Sauvignon Blanc or Syrah or Meritage or Dry Muscat Blend).  It’s about the 2008 Calaveras County Zinfandel, quite possibly one of the best examples of California Zin you’ll find at this price point ($20/bottle or $15 with wine club membership).  Dark, brilliant garnet in color with huge aromas of raspberry, anise, pepper and cedar, I just love how the palate on this wine starts out with a rush of juicy fruit and spice that stretches out to gradually expose an almost umami flavor that just screams for something meaty and earthy (steak and mushrooms, perhaps?).  Don’t get me wrong, though, this wine neither needs food to be enjoyable nor demands red meat as a pairing.  It is, in a word, delicious.

4 corks popped!

If you can’t make it to Murphys yourself, you can find Newsome-Harlow online here.  If you do wander up that way, however, look for me and J in the Newsome-Harlow courtyard!

Cheers!

* Sadly, J and I have never managed to make it up to Murphys for one of Newsome Harlow’s winemaker dinners, catered, of course, by Chef Melly.  I find myself salivating profusely, however, every time I hear about her menus, and you can be sure that we WILL make it to a dinner one of these days….  Melly does, after all, seem to share my philosophy that the best pairings of wine and food start with the wine.

 
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Posted in 4 Corks Popped, California, Newsome-Harlow, Zinfandel, red wine

 

2007 Syncline Subduction Red

11 Aug

This week’s first wine, a 2007 Syncline Subduction Red, is a blend of 35% Syrah, 21% Mourvedre, 16% Grenache, 15% Cinsault, and 13% Counoise from Washington’s Columbia Valley AVA.  The winemaker calls it a “Washington version of a Cotes-du-Rhone Villages,” and at first sniff/sip you can easily see why.

A brilliant dark garnet in color with rich aromas and flavors of juicy black cherries, blackberries, pepper and nutmeg, this is a wonderfully complex yet balanced blend.  Though it drinks remarkably easily (I had to remind myself to save some for J, who was working late that night), this is nothing short of an example of blending at its best, where the winemaker has managed to find that perfect sweet spot so that the unique characteristics of each of the grapes in the blend compliments the others, such that the end product is far better than the sum of its parts.   Indeed, when I took my first sip I had to check to see if my notes were correct that this bottle is really only $17.99 because, to be perfectly honest, it blows away red blends I’ve had from certain other wine-producing countries that retail for upwards of twice the price.

Don’t believe me?  Check it out for yourself at wine.com.

4 corks popped!

Cheers!

 
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Posted in 4 Corks Popped, Syncline, Washington, red wine

 

2008 Babcock Rita’s Earth Pinot Noir

09 Aug


I know, I know.  I’m behind on my posts.  It’s been harder than expected to keep up with the CorkPopper Calendar this summer.  But fear not.  Though it may take me a few extra days, I will absolutely get to everything eventually.  Pinkie swear!

The final California Pinot Noir is from one of my favorite wineries and, therefore, admittedly had a significant leg-up on this week’s other two contenders.  Babcock is located along Highway 246 between Buellton and Lompoc in Santa Barbara County’s Santa Rita Hills appellation.  As my regular readers already know, this is the area where I first really fell in love with wine.  As a student at the University of California at Santa Barbara, I was barely an hour away from the vineyards of Santa Barbara wine country and would find myself inexplicably giddy every time those vines first came into view.  While the greater Santa Barbara County AVA is huge and diverse, the Santa Rita Hills might be said to specialize in Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, as those grapes directly benefit from the way the hills gently slope toward the Pacific Ocean, allowing the coastal fog to creep up the ravines at night just the way Pinot Noir and Chardonnay like.

Now, Babcock makes a wide variety of wines at a wide range of price points.  This, the Rita’s Earth Pinot Noir, is the winery’s entry level Pinot Noir, which retails for $25/bottle at the winery’s website (though I get it at an additional 35% discount with my club membership).*  A bright, deep ruby red, this wine has a beautiful aroma of cherries, pepper, and, well, earth.  On the palate, the cherries and spice are most prominent, but what makes this wine especially interesting (particularly to J) is the faint hint of savory bacon.  Indeed, on one of our last trips to the winery, J took one sip of the 2007 Rita’s Earth and could only  say one thing, “Mmmmmm….. bacon…..”  Trust me, it’s a high compliment.

4 corks popped!

Cheers!

*  Babcock’s other three Pinot Noir bottlings – the Grand Cuvee ($35/bottle), Ocean’s Ghost ($55/bottle) and Deja Vu ($55/bottle) -  don’t quite fit within the CorkPopper Budget but are worth every penny if you happen to see them anywhere.

 
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Posted in 4 Corks Popped, Babcock, California, Pinot Noir, red wine

 

2008 Foxglove Chardonnay

21 Jul

This week’s first wine, the 2008 Foxglove Chardonnay is made from grapes sourced from vineyards spanning California’s Central Coast (hence the “Central Coast” designation).  Pale gold in color with nice notes of orange zest, papaya and passion fruit, this wine shows lots of minerality and citrus on the palate.  It was entirely fermented in steel (rather than oak), so it has none of that buttery-creamy-toasty-vanilla flavor that most people think of when they think of California Chardonnay.  Indeed, you might say that this is about as pure an expression of the Chardonnay grape as you’re likely to get.  As such, I could see this wine easily pairing with all kinds of seafood, chicken, light pasta dishes, or pretty much any salad you could come up with.  I tasted it with an open-faced tuna melt with heirloom tomatoes and sharp cheddar cheese.  Remarkably good for a dish not exactly designed to pair with wine….

And at just $10.99/bottle from K&L Wine Merchants, it’s no wonder this wine earned 91 points from Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate and made it onto Parker’s “Fifty Super Domestic Wine Values List.

4 corks popped!

Cheers!

 
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Posted in 4 Corks Popped, California, Chardonnay, Foxglove, white wine

 

2008 Kanonkop Kadette

02 Jul

This, I can safely say, has been an excellent week for the CorkPopper Project.  The first wine, a 2005 Warwick Estate Three Cape Ladies, was so good it inspired a CorkPopper Moment and will definitely be the star of this weekend’s CorkPopper Dinner (although the post might not go out until Tuesday since J and I will be up at his family’s cabin in the Sierra Foothills without sans WiFi).  The second wine, a 2008 Spice Route Chakalaka, was definitely a solid red blend that gives its drinker lots to think about.  And how could it not when it’s made of a gagillion different varietals?

Last but not least, of course, this week’s third wine, a 2008 KanonKop Kadette rounded out the week perfectly.  Hailing from the Stellenbosch region and comprised of a blend of 45% Pinotage, 29% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot, and 9% Cabernet Franc, this is a Cape Blend at its best.  It has a fantastic aroma of dark berries, ripe bananas, coffee beans, leather and spice, and the palate is big and juicy, with notes of cedar and tobacco as well as a fascinating umami feel that pretty much screams for some grilled meat.  Indeed, J and I grilled up some duck breast and orange halves for dinner last night, and although our duck didn’t turn out perfectly, the wine certainly made it better!

Better yet, at just $13.49/bottle from wine.com, you would be hard pressed to find a better wine to pair with pretty much anything you’re planning on throwing on the grill this summer.

4 corks popped!

Cheers!

 
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Posted in 4 Corks Popped, Kanonkop Kadette, South Africa, red wine

 

Week 43: See the Results and the Recipe!

24 Jun

Having just barely recovered from the world’s worst cold, I’m off to the airport yet again today, this time headed for Walla Walla, Washington for the 2010 Wine Blogger Conference.  I’ll be rubbing elbows and sipping wine with professional wine journalists and citizen bloggers like myself and, hopefully, learning how to make this here blog even better and more interesting for all of you.  First, however, I’ve got to post about this week’s wines!

This week is, of course, the week of South African Sauvignon Blanc.  I found three solid wines from three different areas  – a 2009 Southern Right Sauvignon Blanc from the Overberg WO (Wine of Origin) region (and, more specifically, the Walker Bay area), a 2008 Mulderbosch Sauvignon Blanc from the Stellenbosch WO, and a 2008 Neil Ellis Groenekloof Sauvignon Blanc from the Overberg WO (from the Elgin area).  Both WO regions are located in South Africa’s Western Cape, surrounding the city of Cape Town.  Because I’ve been sick all week and will be out of town this weekend, I decided to prepare a meal likely to pair well with Sauvignon Blanc generally (it’s not a true CorkPopper Dinner since that requires tasting the wine first and then coming up with a recipe specifically designed to pair with the wine) and taste all three in one night.  In some ways, this is a superior way to do things, as it allows me to compare the three wines under the same conditions and with the same food.  J’s got three open bottles of wine to polish off while I’m gone, but something tells me he can handle it.

 

 

First, J and I tasted the 2009 Southern Right. This wine has a fantastic aroma of lemon zest, lime, golden delicious apple, and fresh herbs like chives and thyme. Though the palate felt a bit acidic at first (lots and lots of citrus), it mellowed out nicely after a few minutes in the glass and ended up finishing smoothly and made the mouth water just enough to want to pick up the glass again for another sip. At just $14.99/bottle from wine.com, this wine is a steal. 4 corks popped!!

Next, we moved on to the 2008 Neil Ellis Groenekloof, which had a much different, almost salty aroma that neither of us cared much for. The palate is full of citrus (lemon and tangerine) as well as fresh herbs and minerality, but that salty/savory aroma carried through in a way that kind of threw me off a bit. Though it’s not entirely unpleasant, this wine just doesn’t taste as fresh and crisp as the Southern Right. You can try it yourself for $17.29/bottle at wine.com. 3 corks popped!

 

Finally, we tasted the 2008 Mulderbosch, which we’ve actually had before at the bar at the Casa del Mar hotel in Santa Monica. Because of our prior experience with it, both of us expected it to be the best of the three. Interestingly, when compared directly with the Southern Right, we were both surprised to find that it wasn’t quite as amazing as we remembered. It has a nice aroma of tropical fruit and minerals and a nicely acidic palate with lots of lime, some tropical fruit and fresh cut grass. Though this is definitely a South African wine to try (it did, after all, put South African Sauvignon Blanc on the map), at $19.99/bottle from wine.com it’s not quite the stellar value that the Southern Right is. 3.5 corks popped!!

So, what does one eat with this fantastic array of South African Sauvignon Blanc?  That’s easy – Grilled Lobster Tails with White Wine, Butter and Shallot Sauce.

Recipe serves 2

Ingredients:

  • 2 large lobster tails
  • 2 medium shallots, finely chopped
  • 2 tablespoons fresh Italian parsley, finely chopped
  • Extra virgin olive oil
  • Dry white wine (South African Sauvignon Blanc, perhaps?)
  • Fresh ground pepper
  • Sea salt
  • 1 stick unsalted butter

Preparation

Preheat your grill to medium heat.

Lay the lobster tails on a cutting board, belly side down.  Using a large, sharp knife, slice them in half lengthwise.  Drizzle the exposed meat with olive oil and a bit of white wine.  Season generously with salt and pepper and then sprinkle with a small amount of chopped shallot.

Place the lobster tails, shell side down onto the grill and cover.  Cook for 4-5 minutes or until the meat is just white instead of translucent.  You don’t want to overcook lobster, as it will get tough, so be sure to keep a good eye on it.  Once the meat has turned white, remove the tails from the grill and set aside.

In a small sauce pan over medium heat, melt a couple of tablespoons of butter.  Add the remaining shallots and saute until translucent.  Add the remaining butter and melt.  Once the butter is melted, add about 1/3 cup to 1/2 cup white wine and stir to combine.  Bring the mixture to a boil and then turn the heat down and allow to simmer until the alcohol has cooked off.  Season to taste with sea salt and pour the sauce into two small bowls for dipping.

Arrange the tails on two plates and sprinkle with parsley.  Add a lemon wedge for more color and some additional flavor, and serve with a simple green salad with a white wine vinaigrette and crusty grilled bread, of course.  YUM!

Cheers!  Check back throughout the weekend for updates on the 2010 Wine Blogger Conference!!

 
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Posted in 3 corks popped, 3.5 corks popped, 4 Corked Forks, 4 Corks Popped, 4.5 Forks, Mulderbosch, Neil Ellis, South Africa, Southern Right, recipes, sauvignon blanc, white wine

 

2007 Dr. Zenzen Elite Pinot Noir

21 Jun

So, my apologies for any of you who’ve been waiting with baited breath for the review of last week’s final German Spatburgunder (Pinot Noir).  I actually tasted this wine last Thursday while watching the Lakers/Celtics game with JSo and LoSo, but I had to head out early on Friday morning for beautiful Lexington, Kentucky, where J and I attended the wedding of one of J’s good friends from business school.  It was gorgeous – a nice church wedding followed by a fantastic reception at an amazing old country estate complete with fireflies at dusk.  I thought I’d have time to post about the 2007 Dr. Zenzen Elite Pinot Noir, but it turned out that wedding-related festivities kept us busy all weekend.

The 2007 Dr. Zenzen Elite Pinot Noir actually comes from the Rheingessen region, the same region as the 2007 P.J. Valckenberg Pinot Noir “Undone”.  It tastes, however, more like the 2007 Friedrich Becker Estate Pinot Noir from the famed Pfalz region.  Bright ruby with a nice aroma of juicy black plum, raspberries, and spice, this wine has a nice, smooth palate that lingers on and on.  Though it lacks that earthy smell that I so liked about the Friedrich Becker, this is definitely a solid wine (indeed, it won a silver medal at the BTI 2009 World Value Wine Challenge), and at just $13.79/bottle from Wine Chateau, it’s certainly worth a shot.

4 corks popped!

Cheers!!

 
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Posted in 4 Corks Popped, Dr. Zenzen Elite, Germany, Pinot Noir, Spatburgunder, red wine

 

2007 Friedrich Becker Estate Pinot Noir

16 Jun

Hailing from the Pfalz region on the French-German border (near the famous French wine region of Alsace), Friedrich Becker is widely considered to be one of the great Spatburgunder (Pinot Noir) producers in Germany.  Indeed, Friedrich Becker’s single vineyard bottling from its Kammerberg vineyard is thought by some to be one of the best expressions of Pinot Noir in all the world (hence the $100+ price tag).  Luckily for us, however, the winery saves plenty of their Kammerberg grapes to include in their much more reasonably priced Estate bottling.

The 2007 Friedrich Becker Estate Pinot Noir is a lovely, clear, bright garnet color with a fantastic aroma of spicy strawberry, black plums, dried tobacco and a bit of chalkiness (a direct result of Pfalz’s limestone soil – perfect for Pinot Noir).  On the palate, those spicy strawberries are brilliant, as is the peppery dustiness that I love so much in a well-made Pinot Noir, and the lovely spiciness lingers for what seems like forever on the tongue.  In short, this is the rare Pinot Noir that is truly a value – a fabulous wine at a fabulous price.  Indeed, I think I may have finally found a German wine that even J will like!

You can find it at K&L Wine Merchants for just $16.99/bottle.

4 corks popped!

Cheers!

 
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Posted in 4 Corks Popped, Friedrich Becker Estate, Germany, Pinot Noir, Spatburgunder, red wine

 

2008 Charles Cimicky “Trumps” Shiraz

28 May

Well kids, it’s been quite a month.  I started out with Western Australia’s delectable Semillon-Sauvignon Blancs, proceeded to blow up the theory that all Australian Chardonnay is over-oaked and overworked, took my own private walkabout through the land of Aussie Cabernet Sauvignon (as J was traveling all that week), discovered the delights of the country’s fantastic red blends, and ended up almost getting J to jump on the Shiraz train.  Phew!  I’m exhausted!  Not too exhausted, however, to talk about this week’s final Shiraz (and the final Australian wine in the CorkPopper Project).

The 2008 Charles Cimicky “Trumps” Shiraz hails from South Australia’s Barossa Valley, one of the country’s most famous wine regions (surely you’ve heard of Penfold’s Grange), and the Charles Cimicky winery is located in the heart of the valley.  The wine is a deep, inky purple so rich it stains the glass. 

With a powerful aroma, this wine would definitely benefit from decanting a bit, but your patience is rewarded by pretty fantastic notes of spice, blackberries, pencil shavings and bittersweet chocolate.  On the palate, the flavors of berries and anise abound, along with some pepper, all of which is nicely rounded out by super fine tannins from the time the wine spent on oak (according to K&L, about 17 months on new American oak).

While this is a really nice Shiraz, there was just something undeniably comforting about this week’s second wine, the 2008 Gemtree “Uncut,” that the 2008 Charles Cimicky “Trumps” is lacking.  It is perfectly balanced, yes, and I’m giving it the same score as the Gemtree “Uncut,” but when pressed to choose my favorite wine of the week, I have to go with the Gemtree.

That said, if you’d like to decide for yourself, both the 2008 Charles Cimicky “Trumps” and the 2008 Gemtree “Uncut” are available at K&L Wine Merchants, both at just $15.99/bottle.

4 corks popped!

 

Cheers!

 
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Posted in 4 Corks Popped, Australia, Charles Cimicky Trumps, Shiraz, red wine

 

2008 Gemtree “Uncut” Shiraz

26 May

How did you spend your Tuesday night this week?  With microwaved leftovers or greasy delivery pizza and a sad bottle of plonk wine?  Well, do I have a solution for you, inspired by this week’s second wine and the quick and easy meal I made to go with it…..

First, the wine.  McLaren Vale is turning out to be one of my favorite Australian wine regions (second, of course, to Western Australia’s Margaret River, which I wrote about here, here, here, here and here), as the wines I’ve tasted from the region have tended to be a bit more complex and, dare I say it, artisanal-feeling than some of the wines from other regions with bigger producers.  And the 2008 Gemtree “Uncut” Shiraz is no exception.  The winery has been family-run by the Buttery family for several generations now.  Indeed, the viticulturist (the grape grower) is a Buttery herself, and her husband is the winemaker.  Talk about the “family business”….  And there’s something about this wine that makes you feel like you’re home.

This wine is a deep, opaque purple with just a tiny bit of sediment, which indicates that it wasn’t filtered before bottling (which is not necessarily a bad thing – it gives the wine a unique character not found in super-filtered wines).  It has a huge aroma of ripe blueberries, dried lavender and bittersweet chocolate, as well as something meaty – beef jerky, maybe?  Weird, I know, but yum.  On the palate, there’s tons of ripe, juicy black and blue berries, a tinge of anise, and a bit of smoky baking spice.  The tannins are generous but smooth, and the finish is long and pleasant.  J isn’t the biggest Shiraz/Syrah fan, but even he liked this one (though he wasn’t quite as sold on it as I was).  I’m giving it 4 corks popped….

And to make the evening even better, I managed to whip up an amazingly easy yet delicious meal that actually went quite well with the wine – New York Steak with Balsamic Mushrooms.  The savory steak, coated in rosemary and garlic, paired nicely with the meaty undertones of the wine, and the sweet tartness from the balsamic mushrooms brought out the fruit on the palate wonderfully. Unfortunately, I was so hungry that I forgot to take pictures, but hopefully you’ll get the idea.

New York Steak with Balsamic Mushrooms

For the steak:

  • 2 dry aged New York strip steaks
  • 3 tablespoons garlic, minced
  • 1-2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, minced
  • Extra virgin olive oil
  • Freshly ground pepper and sea salt

For the mushrooms:

  • 2 large portabello mushrooms
  • Freshly ground pepper and sea salt
  • 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
  • A pinch of rosemary, minced
  • Extra virgin olive oil
  • Balsamic vinegar

Preparation:

Allow the steaks to come to room temperature.  Rub them with a bit of olive oil, then season generously with pepper and salt.  Press the garlic and rosemary all over them so that it sticks, if possible.

Place the mushrooms on a large sheet of aluminum foil, top down.  Drizzle with olive oil, rubbing the tops with oil so that they don’t stick to the foil.  Season with salt and pepper, and sprinkle with garlic and rosemary.  Fill the caps with balsamic vinegar.  Cover with another sheet of aluminum foil and fold around the edges to seal, creating a nice little pouch. 

Preheat your grill to medium.  Place the mushrooms, tops down, on the grill, cover, and allow to cook for about 10 minutes.  Check the mushrooms to see if they’re cooked as you like them (some people prefer there mushrooms less cooked than others).  Reseal the pouch and set aside.

Once the mushrooms are done, turn up the heat on the grill to medium-high.  Place the steaks on the grill and cook one side for 7-8 minutes before flipping it over and cooking the other side for another 7-8 minutes, or until the internal temperature is about 130 degrees for medium rare.  Remove to a cutting board and allow to rest for at least 5-7 minutes.  The meat will continue to cook during this time, and the juices will be better absorbed by the meat, so you won’t have a cutting board covered in juice and a dry steak.

Serve with a simple salad with a balsamic vinaigrette and some grilled bread.  Tuesday night: Done.

You can find the 2008 Gemtree “Uncut” Shiraz at K&L Wine Merchants for $15.99/bottle.

Cheers!

 
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Posted in 4 Corked Forks, 4 Corks Popped, 4 Forks, Australia, Gemtree Uncut, Shiraz, recipes, red wine

 
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