Year's End

This Year In Wine


As the year comes to a close and we all prepare to bask in the festivities of the upcoming year, one thing comes to mind. Champagne. Ok, that might not be entirely true, I'm sure most of us will look back at what we did and didn't accomplish, the people we met, the love we made and lost, and everything along those lines. But, from a strictly New Year's Eve point of view, Champagne is pretty universal... except for the drinks you have before that infamous toast... I am clearly not making a good case for myself here, but let's pretend you are all completely understanding and encouraging of my claim.

Champagne, that lovely drink of bubbles, yeasty flavors, exploding corks, thin eloquent flute's, and celebration. Believe it or not, champagne is actually comprised of NOT champagne grapes but rather Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Pinot Meunier. Other grapes can be used to add different flavors, or different levels of sweetness, but for the sake of simplicity, let's keep it to those three.

"So, how is it made?" you ask so curiously with such a twinkle in your eye, it is hard to not tilt my head and whisper a "awwwwww".

"Well, there are a couple of different ways, but let's stick to the classic method for the time being." I added, knowingly.

Don Perignon, a monk and later cellar master at Hautvillers circa the 1670s, is labeled at the creator of Champagne. But, that wonderful and descriptive background aside, the first fermentation is produce a still wine that is usually high acidity and medium alcohol. Before bottling this wine a bit of liqueur de tirage, which is a combination of wine, sugar, yeast, nutrients, a clarifying agent, and whispers of angel farts, is added and a temporary seal is used to start the second fermentation. Skipping all the science, we will go into sparkling wines at greater length later, we then get to the riddling. As much as I want to make a clever quip about the punny nature of such a word, I will resist such temptations and continue. Riddling is giving a bottle a shake and twist thus moving it over time from a horizontal plane to an upside-down vertical position, while sitting in a 45 degree slot. The wine is then disgorged, and taken to the automated section of the winery to start the final sealing. Simple, right?

So, that is Champagne in a nut shell. Sadly, I have no wine recommendation this week as I am waiting to taste the sparkling wine I will be bathing in tomorrow. With that in mind, I will post that next week.


I wish everybody a happy, wonderful, safe, sparkly, and bubbly New Year!

~Wine-Fitti

Pinot Noir, Part 3

Pinot Noir and Food


First off, I hope everybody had a lovely holiday filled with goodness. How's that for vocabulary?

Now, today we will be talking about pairing Pinot Noir with food. The basis of all pairing is that of matching flavors with flavors, richness with richness, and so on. Since Pinot Noir tends to run from extremely delicate and fruity, to a fuller of body with more vegetal and savory flavors. Due to this it is an extremely versatile wine that is able to be paired with many dishes.

In my limited experience, Pinot Noir has always been one of my go to wines when it comes to spicy food that is a bit heavier, like mexican food for example. It can work with hamburgers, turkey, chicken, shell fish, cheese (creamier cheeses, Gouda, Parmesan, etc), mushrooms, mustards, etc...

One of the things that has always baffled me among many professionals and "Wine Snooties" is their propensity to stick to these rules with absolution. The brilliant thing with wine is that, yes you can make horrible pairings, but in general if it is a great wine and good food it will work out just fine. 70% of the public will not notice the subtleties of the pairings unless it is brought to their attention. So it's important to keep in mind that more than anything it is the surroundings, the quality of the food, and the company that matter most. Be creative with your pairings, and don't be afraid to experiment... unless it's hot dogs with mayonnaise and peanut butter. That is just beyond me.

For more info on pairing Pinot Noir, go to google.


Wine Recommendation


Leitz Rudesheimer Magdalenenkreuz Spatlese Riesling '07 $23.99

No winemaker's notes again this week, but it is a slightly sweet wine with apple, citrus, and floral flavors.

Wine-Fitti Opinion: This is by far one of my favorite rieslings. I recently served it with an avocado bruschetta (avocado, granny smith apple, maui sweet onion) and it paired marvelously. I highly recommend this wine.

Stories: Part 1

Wine, People, Stories

Once a month I will be sharing stories, experiences, favorite varietals/bottles, and anything else wine based off of interviews and conversations I have with people about wine. Unless noted, these are all lovely people outside of the food and beverage industry. With that in mind, let's get this going.

To start things off, this will be a correspondence I had with a dear friend of mine through e-mail, Talia.

"I learned to love wine in italy ( go figure) my third year of college. Before that time drinking was more of a party thing, so no surprise that I didn't enjoy it because I 1. kinda gulped it down and 2. Was drinking the icky cheap stuff. So, italy. There it was a whole new thing. There they drank wine around the table every night. When I first got there I was staying with a sicilian family who made their own wine. Sitting around the table trying to understand them and loving them for everything they did to make me feel welcome, I also fell in love with their wine. In italy wine was part of an overall life transition. There, I learned to relax, go slow, and enjoy the good things of life. It was mostly about truly enjoying people, but since that often went hand in hand with sitting around the dinner table, it also had a lot to do with wine. My favorite wine there(Italy) is a primitivo, here(United States) it is a zinfandel (red). I like earthy, full bodied wines. No bottle in particular, tho I really like Blackjack (yum!)"

More on Pinot Noir and Burgundy next week. Happy Holidays Everybody!!

Pinot Noir, Part 2

Pinot Noir: Burgundy

The general consensus is that when people think of Pinot Noir, the first location that comes to mind is Burgundy, France. There are precisely 30 billion different growers, vineyards, appellations, and experts that devote their lives to Pinot Noir. Considering the insane amount of information that is out there covering just Burgundy, let's keep this relatively short and stick to the climate.

Burgundy has the pleasure of dealing with sometimes severe winters, rainy autumns, and hot summers courtesy of a northern continental climate. The soils are generally clayey and limey marl along with a wide variety of slopes be them steep or not... steep... For the sake of being even more vague, they also tend to grow their vines on and around these slopes. Your welcome.

One of the reasons why Burgundy is so well loved for it's Pinot Noir(and chardonnay, but that's not important right now) is because each vineyard can be so different from another in regards to temperature, soil, and topography. Luckily the grape is extremely receptive to such climates and differences, so in the end 1+1 does in fact = 2.


Wine Recommendation

Domaine de Courteillac Dominique Meneret 2005 Grand Vin de Bordeaux $20.99

I could not find any of the winemaker's notes, but from research the general consensus of flavors was: Ripe Fruit, Earthy, Smokey, Leathery, Tobaccoey, Other stuff-y...

Wine-Fitti Opinion: At first taste this was a pretty intense wine. After letting it sit for an hour or so, it really opened up and started showing it's true colors. I paired it with Seared Filet Mignon with a lemon zest/balsamic reduction and horseradish along with wasabi mashed potatoes and this is where the wine really shined. The flavors opened up, the tannins calmed down, and little angels came out of the bottle and kissed us ever so gently on the cheek. This was a lovely wine that I will definitely be purchasing again and keeping on hand for future meals of similar design. I am also pretty sure this wine will get better with age, so for those daring and patient enough to wait, you will be rewarded.

Pinot Noir, Part 1

Pinot Noir


Over the next few weeks I will be diving into the world of the Pinot Noir. Now, the Pinot Noir grape is a huge subject, and some people spend a lifetime learning about this grape. With that in mind using only a few weeks to dive into each region, especially Burgundy, would be somewhat moot as eventually I would like to write about other things. Regardless, let's dive in with a brief explanation and history to start us off.

This grape is one of the most popular grapes in the world. Also referred to as Burgundy, Spätburgunder, and Delicious, the abundant red fruit, vegetal, animal flavors(Not actual animal, it’s a residual flavor from the grape. Winemakers do not strangle raccoons and elk, then dump them into the stainless steel vats in order to get a more varied flavor in their wines.), and relatively high acid and low tannins make this an incredibly easy to drink wine. Granted, this is not a huge wine, so if you are looking for the “I need a forklift in order to spill this sweet juice in my mouth” experience, stick to your Cabernets, and Syrahs.

Said to have existed in as early as 4th century AD in Burgundy, this is an ancient varietal of wine. It is also prone to mutation, for example: Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Pinot Meunier, Pinot Turtle, and Pinot Sloth. Less successful tries at unnatural mutation have been tossed, shunned, and eventually eliminated by the wine community, as seen by the creation and extinction of the Dodo.

The regions are generally split up into Classic, Premium, and Bulk/Inexpensive regions. The Classic consist of Bourgogne (Burgundy), Gevrey-Chambertin, Nuits-Saint-Georges, Beaune, and Pommard. The Premium, or New World regions are

New Zealand - Martinborough, Marlborough, Central Otago
California - Costa Regions, Sonoma, Carneros
Chile - Casablanca
South Africa - Costal
Germany - Rheingau

Finally the Bulk/Inexpensive regions are based around Romania and Central Chile. The important thing about these two areas is to ignore the general stigma around the cheaper wines associated with these two areas, especially Romania. True you are not going to get the same quality wine as you would from Burgundy or the Russian River Valley, these wines are still very drinkable.

Being a delicate grape, it flourishes in a more Cool to Moderate climate. Cooler climates tend to bring out a more vegetal/high acid/low tannin combination, while a warmer/moderate climate brings out the Red fruit, med/high acid, and med/low tannins. Although valiant tries have been made to grow the grape in Death Valley, the Sahara, and Chechnya, it never worked out. Reasoning for this being somewhat scattered, but the general consensus has been, “It was just a really really really bad idea.”


Wine Recommendation

Acacia 2007 Pinot Noir Carneros $19.99

Winemaker's Notes: Seductive sun-warmed rose and forest loam nuances mingle with the red fruits, along with roasted coffee bean and vanilla notes from barrel aging. There's a hint of tangerine zest on the long, fruit-imbued finish. This wine's silky flavors, bright acidity and fine tannins make an elegant pairing with grilled salmon, wild mushroom risotto or roasted turkey and lamb.

2007 was a winemaker's vintage. The growing season was consistent and mild. The weather during the final stages of ripening was perfect. Notable on the Acacia estate was our lack of irrigation. Following two seasons of low rainfall, our reservoirs were dry, and we did not irrigate our vines during the growing season. Our wines show great concentration and character, and fortunately, winter brought heavy rain.

Wine-fitti Opinion: I have had this easy to drink wine on numerous occasions, and each time it has been very enjoyable. It is also a great go-to wine and last minute purchase as it is found in most supermarkets. So if you are in a pinch to bring something to a dinner or social event, this would be one of my top recommendations.

Oh Wine, You Delectable Creature

Well, without further ado... Let's get this party started!

A bit of a note on the format, first, there will be a couple of pictures of Graffiti, followed by the column on wine, and then I will add a wine or two that I would recommend. Now that that is taken care of... Art!

Wine, It's Appeal, and How to Introduce It

If you ask somebody about why they like wine, you will get somewhere near 3 billion different answers that will all, at the absolute root, boil down to a.) It tastes good and/or it is easier to drink than beer/spirits b.) It’s fun and fascinating and the more elusive c.) Because it’s wine. But for everybody that likes wine there are those that don’t mostly because they don’t enjoy the flavor. They tend to normally stray towards sweeter wines, and the cheaper “2 Dollar” varieties to have just in case company comes over, or if you just want to have wine here and there. But, before we dive into the psychological reasoning as to why these people are the way they are (and no, they are not genetically inferior in any way shape or form), let’s start at the root of it, the introduction to wine.

Barring the majority of the United States, wine is pretty much a cultural standard and introduced at an early age. Because of that, children that are introduced to that mysteriously fuzzy feeling juice that may or may not have gone bad but the adults seem to love it so therefore I in turn must love it as they get to stay up longer than I do and in general do what they want including all those annoying things that I would NEVER do to children once I get to their age, and grow a taste for it. (Ahh, the innocence of youth) For those of us that were not introduced at a young age, it can be be a bit more difficult to develop that taste for wine, but as with all things, it depends on the person and their INDIVIDUAL palate. That being said, if you want somebody to start down that path of Wine Enjoyment, there are some steps and methods you might want to consider.


** Please understand that although these methods do work, it is not guaranteed, like making sourdough bread **


First off, there are wines that you should avoid introducing to those not acclimated to the taste of wine. Zinfandel (NOT white zinfandel), Syrah/Shiraz, certain Cabernet’s, certain merlot’s (Don't even get me started on a certain movie that pertains to geometrical positioning), selective old world wines, Barolo, ports, sherrys, grenache, pinot grigio, etc. Keeping in mind that wine was originally made to drink with meals, the majority of old world wines were designed to drink with food, so they are not necessarily that “easy” to drink on their own. The safest bet will be to stick to new world wines, Pinot Noir, lighter/riper/fruitier Chardonnay, some Riesling, Sauvignion Blanc, certain sweeter sparkling wines (Moscato d'Asti, Sparkling Shiraz, etc). Pinot’s tend to be fruity and smooth especially if you stick to select regions in the Pacific North West of the United States (California, Washington, and Oregon). There are exceptions to every rule, but from my experience this has been the safest bet. Napa has long been synonymous with high quality wines, and for good reason, and some of the most drinkable and enjoyable wines I have been able to enjoy have been in the Sonoma/Russian River valley. The climate in this area and the magic in the soil just lends itself to really good wine that is easy to drink and wonderful for new comers. Washington and Oregon also have some incredible wines, as well as Santa Barbara and the Santa Ynez Valley. Yes, we can dive into wines all over the world and how good they are, but let's keep this relatively simple. Besides, most newcomers to wine in California are really only familiar with California wines.

Besides selecting the proper vineyard, vintage, and grape varietal, one of the most important things to remember is presentation. If you introduce a wine to somebody that you love and are excited about sharing with them, it will get them more excited and the chance that they will enjoy the wine is that much greater. Have a story about it, know a bit about the vineyard and the wine if possible, have a good toast, make an elaborate showing of smelling, swirling, and tasting the wine, asking their opinions only to say “This tastes... oakey” or “It’s like being slapped across the face with the herring of happiness.” On that chance that they don’t like it, don’t try another wine of the same varietal/color. Giving somebody a red wine that they don’t like probably means that they will have a bit more of a aversion to drinking any more of that color. If after that a white doesn’t work, well... Tell them you have vodka.

Key notes:

1.) Use lighter/fruitier wines that are smooth and easy to drink.
2.) Make the presentation as comfortable, fun, and memorable as possible.
3.) If they don't like wine, look on the bright side of things, more for you and those that do like it.

Wine Recommendation:

Byron 2008 Pinot Noir Santa Maria Valley $19.99

Winemaker Notes: Our 2008 Santa Maria Valley Pinot Noir displays aromas of dark cherry and plum, accented by hints of rose petals, brown spice and smoke. The flavor profile has a core of black cherry and dark plum with hints of earth and cardamom backed by a smooth, silky and toasted finish.

Wine-Fitti Opinion: This wine was recommended to me online where it was given a high rating. I had it with a vegan kale/black bean enchilada, and I found it delicious before/after/during the meal. I will definitely buy this again, especially for the price. If you are looking for a mid-priced Pinot Noir, this is a great wine to get with or without food.

Well, Here We Go

So as the different aspects of life tend to define us and shape our directions, sometimes the need to share them comes to play. Well, share might be a strong word, but considering "force upon" might be considered a bit brash it will have to do.

Over the past three years I have documented the ever changing graffiti at a certain location in Southern California every few months. Having well over 400 original designs photographed, I thought it only fitting to try and display them on a greater scale then just among the more notable online social networks. Sadly, none of these designs are of my creation, as those that know me are aware that my abilities are almost exclusively limited too stick figures.

Now, moving on to the wine aspect. With every post I will add a little tidbit about wine that I have learned during my studies. Please keep in mind that I am in no way, shape, or form an authority on this vast subject, but on my ongoing quest to become a Sommelier I have managed to come to a few conclusions. For example :

1.) Red wine is red.
2.) White wine is white
3.) Sparkling wine has bubbles
4.) Wine Snooties (n - An incredibly annoying and pretentious person who deems themselves a wine connoisseur, filled with knowledge, expert opinion, and taste in the subject of wine.) are the bane of my field of study and work.

So, if you put all of this together you get Wine-Fitti. I will be posting pictures of the Graffiti I have taken over the years along with tidbits about wine, my suggestions for different wines (Please note that these are based ENTIRELY on my palate, likes, opinions, etc), and any other random information of the grape that I feel like sharing.

I hope you enjoy my ramblings, and get a little bit of information/fun out of it.


Yours,

Wine-Fitti