NEW YEAR SIPS

Article by Virginia Miller

Ringing in the new year is all about celebratory imbibing, but the sometimes dreary days of January likewise call for a cheering pour. It’s a month of planning towards a new year, reaching out for fresh horizons… good reasons to have something quality in the glass, whatever the category. Here are a few worthy bottles, from sake, wine, whisky, even cocktail bitters.

Bitters

Medicinal and mixable, the glut of bitters released the last few years had  oversaturation has been achieved. But Brooklyn Hemispherical Bitters ($21 per bottle) stands out in recent years. Made in Brooklyn, the focus is on seasonal flavors like popular Meyer lemon, rhubarb or Sriracha. Heat radiates from their savory-sweet blackberry mole or spicy charred pineapple bitters, or a brisk, bitter chill from Icelandic bitters. These are some of the more inventive, elegant bitters on the market.

A couple additional stand-out bitter flavors: The Bitter End’s vibrant curry bitters ($24) made in Sante Fe and put to perfect use by  Mike Ryan at Sable Kitchen and Bar in Chicago in his Short Circuit cocktail with cachaca, manzanilla sherry and Kalani coconut liqueur. From Canada, Bittered Sling’s plum root beer evokes a sweet sarsaparilla.

Whisky

Nikka Whisky is blessedly and finally distributed in the US through San Francisco’s Anchor Distilling, just releasing two new Nikka imports – hopefully many more to come. My favorite of the two, Yoichi Single Malt ($129), is a splurge-worthy, 15 year old whisky distilled on the island of Hokkaido from pot stills heated with finely powdered natural coal, a rare traditional method. Though more akin to a Highland-style Scotch, it nods to Islay with a hint of peat alongside a balanced brightness. On the more affordable side is Taketsuru Pure Malt ($69.99): a 12 year pure malt whisky blended in vats from Yoichi and Miyagikyo distilleries. The mountain air and river water humidity of the northern Honshu region where Miyagikyo is produced adds silky, ripe pear dimensions.

This November’s Single Malt & Scotch Whisky Extravaganza in San Francisco (held in 13 major markets), offered tastings of expected Scotches. A few special drams were the fabulous Scotch Malt Whisky Society‘s 8 year Ardbeg Cask No. 33.113, a salty, smoky Scotch young with exotic fruit. The Single Malts’ Auchriosk 20 year Scotch exhibits tropical vividness, though a classic beauty. It was a joy to taste The Balvenie Tun 1401/Batch #6, the youngest whisky in its blend being over 20 yrs old. This rarity expresses layers of fruit, vanilla and spice, lively despite age.

Sake

Sake produced in a town outside Portland? SakeOne is a range of affordable sakes (those mentioned below $13-15)  made from rice grown nearby in Sacramento, CA. There’s Momokawa organic sakes, like a clean Junmai Ginjo or creamy Pearl Sake redolent of banana and coconut, or the smooth, balanced G Joy Sake.

Sangria

Despite low quality bottled sangria you may have tried before, Eppa (found at Bay Area Whole Foods and numerous shops across the country, $12 a bottle) is a refreshing mix of pomegranate, acai, blueberry and blood orange juices with Mendocino Cabernet and Syrah. Trying it chilled over fresh cut fruit this holiday season with family, it tastes homemade,  lush and dark, not too sweet, but just right.

Indy Spirits

It was the best year yet at the San Francisco Indy Spirits Expo last month. A number of newcomers merely await West Coast distribution but are available online. With a slew of “craft” tonics released lately, each using real cinchona bark (quinine) without the natural color removed, Tomr’s Tonic is one of the better I’ve tasted. 100% organic and made in New Jersey, Tom Richter’s lively tonic combines citrus, herbs, cane sugar, with cinchona. The tonic mixes beautifully with a number of gins I sampled it with at home.

Fabrizia Limoncello is produced in New Hampshire with California and South American citrus by two Italian-American brothers. Balanced, fresh, tart (unlike their sweet Blood Orange liqueur), this limoncello is a step up from most. SW4 London Dry Gin, produced in the Clapham neighborhood of London and imported through Luxe Vintages in Florida, is a smooth, solid gin made from 12 botanicals, including lemon peel and cassia.

Wine

Craving the sparkling especially at this time of year, two great value bottles ($15 each) are Nino Franco’s Rustico Prosecco, dry yet lively, clean and tight, and Coppo’s Moscato d’Asti from Piedmont, Italy, its vivd effervescence cutting through intense sweetness, vibrant with brunch or spicy food. For after-dinner dessert wine, Donnafugata’s “Ben Rye” ($45 for half bottle) from Sicily, gives off a rich, raisin-like hue in the glass, made of Zibibbo grapes from the island of Pantelleria. To taste it’s lushly elegant, with a balanced sweetness and nuttiness.

At an industry tasting this fall with Sommelier David Lynch at his restaurant St. Vincent, we explored wines of the fascinating, warm-weather Consorzio Tutela Morellino Di Scansano region of southernmost Tuscany (established as a D.O.C.G. in 2007). I learned the region requires its wines be made with a minimum of 85% Sangiovese grapes. A 2010 Tenuta Pietramora di Collefagiano stood out, unusual at 100% Sangiovese. Its pleasantly funky nose gave way to cherry, even chocolate/earthy notes, balanced by soft acidity.

Fall in PASO ROBLES

Article and photos by Virginia Miller

An October week in what has historically been a Central California ranching (some say “cow”) town, Paso Robles is now best known for wine, maintaining its small town, cowboy spirit with a thriving wine scene that has everyone from natives to the creators of American Idol and So You Think You Can Dance opening wineries (I visited the gamut). Ever since wines like Justin’s Isosceles put the laid back region on the map in the 1990′s, I’ve been coming to the region, watching it change yet thankfully remain low key despite steady winery growth.

This recent trip was my longest and most concentrated, visiting multiple wineries each day, dining with a number of winemakers each night. The first thing almost all of them talked about was of the unusual camaraderie and unity of local winemakers, something I witnessed firsthand. Paso is a community housing first time winemakers next to experienced Old and New World winemakers experimenting with a wide range of varietals.

Here are but a few taste snapshots from an action-packed week, where I zip-lined over winery grounds and dined on restaurant patios on warm, clear, fall nights.

A TASTING ROOM LIKE NO OTHER: Herman Story

Housing a well-loved legless dog and a puppy, nostalgic photos of Dad as life-sized wall art, one tiny tasting room, and wines blended from various plots not just in Paso but in other wine regions of California? Welcome to the one and only Herman Story Wines. Owner/winemaker Russell P. From named the winery after his grandfather, sells every bottle, even those that cost more to produce, at $42 each, quickly selling out of his small production wines (most produced in the 200-800 cases a year range). His vision and style is unique – a bit of Americana, rock and roll rebellion, an artist’s eye, with Old West pioneer spirit using all Rhone varietals.

Though his wines certainly are New World, calling them fruit bombs or limiting them to any California category would be a disservice. Experimenting outside typical expectations, in his Grenache, for example, he plays with Italian charred oak (up to 20%). From says, “Everyone does medium oak – that’s easy. I like to push it to the limit.” He does. The char gives the 2010 On the Road Grenache (my favorite) its toasty nose, though to taste, earthy, berry notes are balanced by a brisk acidity and green notes, not overwhelmed by char. In fact, toast on the nose feels like something you dreamed up in a Southern, BBQ-smoked haze, elusive to the taste. I was delighted to learn the BBQ aromas I was getting were actually coming from somewhere other than my imagination. From also plays with extended maceration (407 days on the skin) in his rare 407 wine, a Syrah, with crazy notes of coconut married to earthy blackberry.

While Herman Story wines could be polarizing, one thing is certain: there’s no other wines or wine tasting experience like it in Paso… or anywhere else.

GRATIFYING LOCAL MEAL: McPhee’s Grill

With the greatest sense of place and history of anywhere I’ve dined in the region over the years, McPhee’s Grill in Templeton was the most satisfying meal of my week. Massive steaks and down home staff in a warm, multi-room restaurant (like dining in a friend’s rambling ranch house) felt like a snapshot of the region’s soul. A massive double cut pork chop is hearty but gourmet, ridiculously juicy cooked low-and-slow sous vide in an ancho chile apricot glaze. A flourless chocolate decadence cake could have been standard, but caramel lime sauce enlivens it.

CHARMING FAMILY B&B: Venteux Vineyards

The Stelzle family’s (partnered with the Goldenberg family) charming, 10 acre Venteux Vineyards, marked by a red barn, was the most homey of any winery I visited. It’s a tranquil setting for their cozy B&B, beautifully decorated with old fashioned comforts (clawfoot tub and wrap-around front porch seating) alongside modern sensibilities (sleek wood bar in the communal living area, tasteful decor). Lunch with the family on their porch sipping Viognier and Petite Syrah, followed by punching down fermenting grapes, was one of the more idyllic afternoons I spent in the region.

PIONEERING WINEMAKER KEN VOLK

Over a multi-course dinner at the East-meets-West restaurant of Artisan off downtown Paso Robles’ town square, I spent much time talking with winemaker Kenneth Volk. His history since 1978 in the region and in Santa Barbara leads other winemakers to herald him as a pioneer and teacher in the region.

His knowledge is encyclopedic, his wines display balance and vision, and he brought fresh clusters of grapes for us to sample alongside bottles produced from those varietals. I particularly enjoyed tasting his whites, like a zippy 2009 Aglianico, and a citrus-laden 2011 Verdelho. Most impressive is the range of varietals he grows and experiments with, like Albarino (the first grown in CA) and one of my favorite Austrian reds, Blaufränkisch.

As we dined on octopus bolognese tossed with cured lemon, another winemaker, the delightful Steve Anglim of Anglim Winery shared his bold-yet-balanced 2008 Grenache, while later in the evening we tasted his rich 2008 Cabernet made from vines over 40 years old.

SMALL BATCH WINES GROWN ON TERRACED HILLSIDES

Not unlike tiered vineyards I’ve seen on hillsides in Italy, an afternoon with small brands grown on Caliza Winery’s peaceful grounds was a standout Paso moment. We sipped finished bottles and aging vintages of wines with the hardworking winemakers of Caliza, Brian Benson Cellars and Edmund August wineries on the hillside under the late afternoon sun. Edmund August’s Indelible and Soft Letters wines particularly stood out.

A COUPLE MORE MEMORABLE PASO WINES
From winemaker Vic Roberts’ Victor Hugo Winery (his middle name is actually Hugo), a sweet, port-style Zinfandel, 2009 Quasi Late Harvest Zin ($32), named after author Victor Hugo’s Quasimodo, is a pleasurably musky, sweet, woody dessert wine balanced by acidity.

It was a delight sipping big name winery J. Lohr’s nod to Pomerol, France: a 2006 Cuvee Pom (63% Merlot, Cab, Petit Verdot, splash of Malbec), showing restraint and elegance.

FALL WINE ROUND-UP

Photos and article by Virginia Miller

From recommended bottles and fall events in Sonoma to urban wine classes, here’s a few wine tips to start the fall right. Watch Virginia Miller’s Appetite column for restaurants making some of Napa’s best cocktails and more Wine Country dining reviews.

Urban Wine

SF WINE CENTER, 757 Bryant St. between 5th & 6th Sts., 415-655-7300, www.sfwinecenter.com

An in-house wine club, storage facilities, and wine school launched in April, SF Wine Center‘s intimate classes are held in owners Brian and Hillary McGonigle’s inviting City Room. With kitchen, library and comfy leather chairs, it feels more like a friend’s home than a classroom. This room is available for private parties, as is a wood-lined, speakeasy-like room tucked away above the wine storage area – it feels ready for a cigar and a glass of Pinot with a round of cards and good friends.

This spring, a class led by James Beard award-winning writer and Burgundy expert Jordan Mackay was a walk through regions and wines of Burgundy the best way possible: by tasting a wide range side-by-side. We discussed styles and regions as we sipped nine different wines – a steal considering class price (generally $60-75) vs. costs of wines poured. Tastes ranged from a meaty 2009 Dujac Fils & Pere Cambolle Musigny ($65 a bottle) boasting excellent acidity and earthiness, to a rare 1976 Domaine Leroy Romanee St. Vivant Grand Cru ($500), with sediment and funkiness (it’s a whole cluster wine, after all), and notes of black tea, mushroom, leather, smoke, moss, tart cherry.

Fall classes start up September 25th and sell out quickly. Watch their website for the fall schedule.

BLUXOME, 53 Bluxome St. between 4th & 5th Sts., 415-543-5353, www.bluxomewinery.com

Bluxome Street Winery already wins cool points for being an urban winery with wines actually made here in the city right with grapes from various Sonoma plots.

Already a wine tasting respite, change is afoot with new winemaker Web Marquez, who is also one of three winemakers at Anthill Farms and one of two at C. Donatiello. His early days interning at the excellent Williams Selyem – and in New Zealand and France – give him a balanced perspective on Old and New World wine styles.

While we have to wait until next year’s bottling to see the results of his approach on Bluxome’s wines, in the meantime we can enjoy a tart 2011 Rose of Pinot Noir or their acidic, balanced 2010 Sauvignon Blanc, or a Chardonnay and three Pinots (all bottles under $45). Taste in their candlelit space while watching winemaking through glass windows under a movie (shining from a brick wall) showcasing San Francisco in pre-1906 quake days when winemaking in the city was common – there were no less than 120 wineries and commercial cellars in SoMa alone. Here’s to Bluxome reviving our rich urban wine history.

Sonoma Events

SLOW FOOD’S FRESH FOOD PICNIC, Santa Rosa 9/15 (11a-6pm)

In Sonoma County on 9/15 is a foodie’s dream event. Slow Food’s Fresh Food Picnic is a picnic and then some.

Carlo Petrini, the founder of Slow Food himself, flies out from Italy for a rare appearance, while Alice Waters and Nikki Henderson (of Oakland’s People’s Grocery) join him as speakers for the event.

Then there’s the chef line-up. A family-style picnic will be served by Christopher Kostow (Meadowood), Dennis Lee (Namu Gaji), Ryan Farr (4505 Meats), Christopher Kronner (formerly Bar Tartine, Slow Club), Thomas McNaughton (flour+water, Central Kitchen), Christopher Thompson (A16), to name a few.

There will be tastes from farmers, food artisans and winemakers, local bands, guided hikes and tours of Rancho Mark West, the event’s farm setting.

Proceeds benefit A Thousand Gardens in Africa, a Slow Food International project, and California-based Slow Food initiatives focused on food and farm education.

As a zero waste event, bring your own plates, flatware, and napkins – they provide glassware. Tickets: www.brownpapertickets.com/event/263455.

HARVEST LUNCHES at JORDAN WINERY, Healdsburg, www.jordanwinery.com

Jordan is a pioneer in Sonoma’s wine history, started by Tom and Sally Jordan in 1972. These Bordeaux wine lovers built a Bordelais inspired chateau on their 275-acre Alexander Valley vineyard in 1976, a gorgeous structure overseeing the winery’s soothing grounds (tastings by appointment only). With spectacular chateau apartments reserved for overnight guests, the 1100 acre grounds go beyond winery to full working ranch with cattle, chickens, gardens, olive oil groves, and fishing lake with Tiki bar and hammock. As from the beginning, they stay refreshingly focused on only two varietals, a green apple-inflected Chardonnay ($29) and elegant Cabernet ($52 for a bold but balanced 2008 Cab). It’s a family business with son John as CFO, while Rob Davis has been Jordan’s head winemaker for 35 years, since the inaugural vintage in 1976.

You must sign up for their email newsletter and purchase wines to earn points which can be used towards winemaker tours, Christmas library tastings, and harvest lunches, which begin this week and run through mid-October. Harvest season is the most enchanting time in Wine Country, ideal for a family-style, weekday feast alongside winemaking staff and a tour of the grounds during crush season.

Bottle Recommends

K&L Wines, Jug Shop, Bi-Rite, Arlequin, Ferry Plaza Wine Merchant, SF Wine Trading Co., and D&M, to name a few, offer excellent wine selections in the city.

Family Wineries review?

CALIFORNIA

Au Bon Climat “Hildegard” White Table Wine, Santa Maria Valley
Au Bon Climat’s is one of the state’s great, small wineries – and Hildegard ($35) is one my top California whites. A blend of 55% Pinot Gris, 40% Pinot Blanc,  5% Aligoté, it’s layered and complex, unfolding with apple, almond, violet. www.aubonclimat.com

Heitz Cellar Cabernet and Sauvignon Blanc, St. Helena
Heitz Cellar is one of my longtime Napa favorites for a beautifully balanced, lively Sauvignon Blanc ($19.75), and splurge-worthy Martha’s Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon ($110-200) – the far more affordable 2007 Napa Valley Cab ($45) is a worthy substitution. This family-run winery has been going strong since 1964 with Old World balance, one of Napa’s true gems. www.heitzcellar.com

Lucia Vineyards LUCY, Santa Lucia Highlands
Lucia Vineyards’ LUCY ($18) is a a beauty of a rosé boasting zippy acidity pairs well with a wide range of dishes – another Santa Lucia treasure. www.luciavineyards.com

sTatomer Riesling Vandenberg, Santa Barbara
2008 Tatomer Riesling Vandenberg ($24.99), named for the neighboring air force base, is easily one of the best wines in the Santa Barbara region. Maintaining an Old World ethos, dry, crisp, balanced, it still boasts a New World uniqueness. Incredibly balanced, pear and apple skins shine with minerality that’s gorgeous with food. http://tatomerwines.com

Amapola Creek’s 2009 Cuvee Alis, Sonoma Valley
Glen Ellen’s Amapola Creek, from Richard Arrowood (who founded Arrowood Winery), is a small, boutique winery. Cuvee Alis ($48) is named after Richard’s wife, a hand-harvested, unfined and unfiltered blend of 55% Syrah, 45% Grenache, organically grown on a slope of the Mayacamas Mountains on the Arrowood’s 100-acre ranch. The wine gives of a nose of cherry pie, gentle pepper, smoke, tasting of dark berries, spicy meat, with silky tannins and acidic balance. www.amapolacreek.com

EUROPE

Viña Tondonia Rosé Gran Reserva Rosado, Rioja, Spain
One of the best rosés I’ve ever had, 2000 Viña Tondonia Rosé Gran Reserva ($30) is not for novices. At 12 years of age, this blend of 60% Garnacha, 30% Tempranillo, 10% Viura exhibits a velvety, rosy hue, unfolding with damp, funky, mushroom notes dancing alongside bright blood orange, berries, hazelnuts, rhubarb. It’s so unusual, it pairs beautifully with spicy foods from a range of cuisines. Thanks to sommelier Ted Glennon of Restaurant 1833 in Monterey for introducing me to this stunner, available through K&L Wines. Every time I have it, it’s a pleasure. www.lopezdeheredia.com

Vidal-Fleury Saint Joseph & Muscat, Rhone Valley, France
Vidal-Fleury is produced by winemaker and managing director, Guy Sarton du Jonchay, who understands the balance between New and Old World having made wine in France, Chile, Argentina and Australia. “Old world is terroir… New World is winemakers”, he says, as he pursues a balance of both. Stand-outs are a 2007 Vidal-Fleury Saint Joseph Syrah ($28.99), full, bright, earthy, with dark berry, black tea, pepper, and meaty notes (he only releases best vintages so there will not be a 2008 – 2009 releases next); and 2009 Vidal-Fleury Muscat de Beaumes-de-Venise ($18.99), tasting of elderflower, dried apricot, lychee, nuts, with a balanced sweetness and minerality. http://www.vidal-fleury.com

GRAPE TO GLASS:

Pre-harvest Party at Richard’s Grove & Saralee’s Vineyard, Windsor

Photos & article by Andi Berlin

The 17th annual Grape to Glass at stately Richard’s Grove celebrates the wines of the Russian River Valley, a cool atmosphere known for producing rich chardonnays and bright pinot noirs. More than 75 wineries set up booths in the toasty afternoon heat, accompanied by a host of farmers market vendors and local restaurants offering small bites.

While pinots and chards dominated, some of the most exciting pours were citrus-y Rosés, robust Cabernet Francs and an experimental Sauvignon Blanc. My top taste goes to Trione Vineyard’s 2010 Sauvignon Blanc, with a flavor profile of green apple and citrus, paired with savory cucumber. Extremely crisp and refreshing in the sun, it’s also full-bodied and complex. During the fermenting process, the winemakers added a new yeast called Alchemy II from South Africa, imparting notes of gooseberry and grass.

Other wine highlights included a cloudy and sweet unfiltered 2007 Pinot Noir from Lion’s Pride, a cooperative effort between Russian River Valley winegrowers and students at the local El Molino High School – it pleased with light flavors of apricots and peach. I also enjoyed a spicy 2008 Zinfandel from Sandole Wines in Sebastopol. A fine example of a powerful, zesty Zin, it rocks the palate with dark flavors of black pepper, plus a hint of fresh strawberries.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

MADEIRA

By Virginia Miller

At a recent industry Vinho Madeira wine tasting at the Hotel Monaco, I sampled through a range of vintages and producers of the fortified Portuguese wine produced in the Madeira Islands.

While some think sweet when they think fortified wines, I find one of the joys of Madeira is that there’s often funky, earthy notes contrasting the after dinner factor. Ranging from dry to sweet, Madeira was first fortified with neutral spirits to prevent spoilage on long voyages around the globe from the port of the Madeira Islands. Some level of oxidation is actually preferred in making Madeira, which is partly what gives it its unique character.

If you have the chance to sample Madeira side-by-side, take it, as you’ll learn far more about this interesting spirit by comparison (true with any beverage). At the Vinho Madeira tasting, my standouts from various producers:

Pereira D’Oliveira stocks rare old wines imported by The Rare Wine Co., Sonoma: Sampling eight Madeiras from 1908-1989 was the highlight of the entire event, the 1912 Verdelho amazingly full of life at 100 years old, earthy and vibrant with a dry raisin finish; a close second was the 1908 Boal, with its juicy, even dusty, acidity;  the 1969 Sercial (tends to be the driest Madeira varietal) is bright and acidic with a long finish.

Vinhos Barbeito (agent is The Rare Wine Co., Sonoma): Out of the nine Madeiras they offered for sampling, I was most impressed with a 1982 Boal (Boal being the grape varietal). It’s full bodied yet bone dry, nutty, high on acidity with a pleasantly unique funk; the 1996 Verdelho Colheita Single Cask with its long, nutty, almond finish; and the Rare Wine Co.’s Savannah Verdelho Special Reserve pleasantly evoking forest floor alongside shortbread and orange zest.

Madeira Wine Company, managed by the Blandy family (agent is Premium Port Wines, SF):  Out of the nine Madeiras they offered for sampling, standouts were Blandy’s 5 year Alvada for value and taste (nutty, spice, marmalade); and Blandy’s Terrantez 1976 toffee, meaty notes contrasting dry acidity.

PORTLAND DISTILLERIES

Article & photos by Virginia Miller

In my recent travels in Portland I trekked to three distilleries within city limits, two established, one brand new. My top priorities were Clear Creek and House Spirits which have been the best I’ve tasted historically of what is coming out of Oregon.

I also visited brand new Bull Run Distillery near Clear Creek, boasting a retro tasting room lined with vintage barware and paraphernalia, with plans for tastings and bartender parties. In tasting their light Pacific Rum, Medoyeff Vodka and Temperance Trader whiskey blended from Kentucky whiskies (which they aren’t allowed to name), unable to taste the Oregon whiskey they have begun to age (scheduled to release in 2015), thus far it’s hard to say there’s yet a standout spirit putting them on the national craft distilling map. Waiting for their Oregon whiskey to be released…

CLEAR CREEK DISTILLERY

On the one sunny afternoon during my week in Portland this May, I walked through the peaceful Alphabet District along leafy, tree-lined streets to Clear Creek Distillery. Housing four stills and smelling sweetly of apples, which they were distilling the day I visited, I spent the afternoon with Steve McCarthy, the gracious owner/distiller who started Clear Creek in the late ’80′s using fruit from his family’s orchard. He told me how he learned directly in the 1980′s from Northern California pioneers Jorg Rupf (St. George Spirits) and Hubert Germain-Robin (Germain-Robin), who pioneered the first US craft brandies on par with the best in Europe. McCarthy’s products are in that style, recalling Old World Europe. Utilizing local fruits and ingredients, he crafts everything from his best-selling pear eau de vie to grappas, an Oregon Single Malt Whiskey and Douglas Fir liqueur.

TRY: McCarthy said it and I agree: the traditional Williams Pear Brandy ($25.45 for 350ml; $40.45 for 750ml) is my favorite Clear Creek product, pure and intensely pear, on par with Poire Williams brandies I’ve sipped in France, Austria and Switzerland. I appreciate his elegant Cassis liqueur, akin to the black currant liqueurs of France, tart, sweet and ideal in a number of classic cocktail recipes. His Cranberry and Loganberry liqueurs are unique, particularly the bracingly tart, lush cranberry.

HOUSE SPIRITS

Spending a rainy morning at cozy House Spirits Distillery (launched in 2004) with distiller Colin Howard was a pleasure as we sampled future releases straight from the barrels.

House Spirits may be best known for Aviation Gin (admittedly a solid Dutch-style gin, though not one of my favorites) – they also produce Krogstad Aquavit and the small batch, limited edition Stillroom Series. Where I was particularly intrigued, however, was in tasting their upcoming Oregon whiskey (due Oct.-Nov.) and just-released rum. Howard exhibits a willingness to experiment, even play, that I admire in distillers and witness in the range of what House Spirits is creating.

WATCH FOR: As Oregon distillers pursue Oregon whiskey as a category, House Spirits is the more intriguing I’ve tasted, nuanced with spice and sweet, creamy grain, made from 100% malted barley, aged in new American oak barrels.

My taste buds were most piqued by their aged rum. It shines with a molasses sweetness from Barbados molasses, fermented with a Guadalupe Island yeast strain. Simultaneously, it exhibits a whisper of grassiness, an almost rhum agricole quality, that surprised and delighted me immediately, giving it greater character than a sweeter molasses rum. Aged in used, whiskey-washed barrels for 6-8 months, it’s smooth but stands apart with a welcome earthiness.

Two Willamette Valley WINEMAKERS

Though unfortunately this trip I did not have time to make it to Oregon’s famed wineries, I recently enjoyed long lunches with Oregon winemakers visiting San Francisco, tasting through either their entire line or in the case of Argyle, vertical tastings through vintages of the past 25 years. Both of these winemakers and wines impressed, produced with care and verve.

ARGYLE WINERY, Dundee, OR

As part of Argyle Winery’s Roadhouse Tour around various US cities, I attended a special media luncheon at Ame offering a vertical tasting of Argyle wines celebrating their 25th anniversary with head winemaker and founder, Rollin Soles. With quirky, knowledgeable insights (and timeless mustache), Soles led us through the tasting with laughter, commenting in depth on winemaking in the cool weather climate of the Willamette Valley: “We say, ‘It’s not Oregon wine unless it gets rained on.”

Soles says the climate as ideally suited not just for Oregon Pinot but for Chardonnay, Riesling and sparkling wine, all of which he produces from 650 acres of hillside slopes. His Rieslings sing with Asian-influenced dishes, like Ame’s gorgeous “Kaisen” sashimi salad, dotted with Japanese cucumber and tobiko caviar in a yuzu soy vinaigrette.

Naturally, the Pinots are beauties – Argyle’s Nuthouse, Spirithouse and Reserve Pinot Noirs exemplifying Oregon’s place as one of the world’s great Pinot-producing regions. I also savored a complex yet delicate 2007 Blanc de Blancs’ Brut (earthy minerality on the nose; tastes of white peach and hibiscus) and a meaty 2001 Nuthouse Chardonnay, lovely with cheese. A 2001 Extended Tirage Brut was aged 10 years in the bottle exhibiting a funky mushroom nose, crisp yet creamy on the tongue, while a 1999 Nuthouse Chardonnay is ripe with melon, vanilla, floral notes, and acidic bite.

STOLLER WINES, Dayton, OR

Stoller Vineyards boasts the distinction of being the first LEED Certified winery (with Gold rating) in the US. Stoller was founded by owner Bill Stoller, a third generation Oregonian on a 400 acre parcel of land – once Oregon’s largest turkey farm – which his family has farmed and lived on since his grandparents. It’s all volcanic soil above 200 feet, adding depth and earth to wines grown from clones Bill secured in Dijon, France.

Bill brought on a female winemaker in 2003, the lovely Melissa Burr, who I recently enjoyed a long lunch with at RN74. She looks too young to have been winemaking for over a decade, but has a rich history, from science major and intern at Cooper Mountain Vineyards to winemaker, her care apparent in the handful of Stoller releases. I was impressed hearing she’d just become pregnant when first interviewing at Stoller, and upon informing Bill, he welcomed it and brought her on board as winemaker, affirming his belief in a family-friendly winery and business.

A 2009 Chardonnay ($28) – again confirming the rise of Chardonnay production in the Willamette Valley – is crisp, barrel fermented and aged with enough acidity to be food-friendly. It’s pleasantly perfumed, tasting of light baking spice and mushroom. Though I enjoyed the expensive 2008 Reserve Cathy’s Pinot (merely 110 cases, $100), sourced from their oldest vines, I preferred the 2008 Pinot SV ($40), blended from their best 2008 barrels, its nose of plum and violets gives way to damp earth, dusty berries mushroom, and cardamom.

The Magic of Monterey’s Restaurant 1833

There’s nothing quite like Monterey’s Restaurant 1833 in San Francisco. Yes, our city boasts fantastic food, cocktails, wine and beer lists, competitive with the best in the world. But 1833′s magical setting sets it apart, truly the whole package – and worth a drive from SF. Housed in an adobe structure from 1833 (hence the name), I was captivated by 1833 from the moment I stood under a massive oak tree sprawling over a patio lined with firepits. A giant palm tree and redwoods tower over an expansive side deck. 

1833 evokes New Orleans or haunted Savannah in Spanish-influenced California architecture.

Enter a broad wood door unfolding into one enchanting room after another. Red velvet antique couches sit in front of a roaring library fireplace, an absinthe bar is tucked away upstairs, dining rooms are presided over by ghosts that have haunted the house over a century (note Hattie’s Room upstairs).

There’s an intimate, one table dining room (Gallitan’s Room) with a boar’s head standing guard over the fireplace and relics from the restaurant’s former incarnation as Gallatin’s, a restaurant where presidents and movie stars dined in decades past. Vintage and modern pieces combine, each room claiming a distinct personality. The bar is equally mesmerizing: an illuminated white onyx bartop glows under slanted roof rafters with coveted booth tables above gazing down over the bar.

But what about the food? This is no LA style-over-substance scenario. Chef Levi Mezick’s menu wanders from whole-roasted meats to pizzas and pastas. There’s bone-in ribeye for two ($75) or a real splurge (temporary until the foie ban kicks in this June) of whole roasted lobe of foie gras ($150). Whole truffle chicken ($38) is a blissfully decadent. The chicken is brined for two days with truffle butter injected under the skin. Pizzas ($16-17) are topped with Dungeness crab and leeks or pineapple and sopresatta, while dense, pillowy gnocchi ($22) rest in Parmesan cream with Swiss chard, chanterelles, pickled onions and crispy croutons.

Appetizers shine, like a delicate beet salad ($12) accented with Greek yogurt and hazelnuts, or a heartwarming helping of bone marrow ($16) with horseradish crust. Bites offer more gourmet delights, particularly fresh, raw hamachi ($6) dotted with pickled jalapenos, avocado, oranges. Among the best items on the entire menu are $4 biscuits: sundried tomato feta biscuits with roasted garlic basil butter or bacon cheddar biscuits with maple chili butter. Both are flaky, dreamy delights, warm and soft under a smear of butter.

Generous portions leave you fat and contented, while drink offerings threaten to outshine the food. Wine director Ted Glennon curates a playful, sophisticated wine list highlighting the best of the Central Coast and the world. His passion and palate have deservedly led to accolades such as being named one of 2012′s Food & Wine’s Top 10 Sommeliers. Glennon’s wine list is whimsically annotated with comments such as this one about Chardonnay: “The blonde bombshell has taken the hearts of so many…”

There’s no slacker in any of his pairings. I was absolutely smitten with 2000 López de Heredia Viña Tondonia Rosé ($50 bottle). This stunning rosé is unlike any I’ve ever had, crisp and acidic, yes, but also funky, earthy, with notes of mushroom and ripe cheese. As it sits it sweetens, evoking sherry while maintaining its crispness.

Local highlights were 2006 Caraccioli Cellars Santa Lucia Highlands Brut Rosé, a dry, floral, sparkling beauty, and 2007 Pelerin Wines Rosella’s Vineyard Pinot Noir, from a Santa Lucia micro-winery producing age-worthy California Pinot. With acidity and body, green tea and licorice notes play with cranberry and dark cherry – lovely with the truffled chicken.

On top of everything else, 1833 is a cocktailian’s destination with no equal in the entire area. Bar manager Michael Lay oversees aging cocktails in barrels with colonial names like Betsy and Abigail. Lay’s talent is apparent in a range of classically-influenced cocktails like Commander in Chief ($11): Bulleit Rye whiskey, Carpano Antica sweet vermouth, Campari, Cherry Heering, and orange bitters with a peaty Laphroig Scotch rinse.

Besides a tableside absinthe cart (brilliant), offering some of my favorite absinthes like Duplais or Vieux Pontarlier, Lay makes a mean Hot Buttered Rum prepared tableside. His recipe is perked up with pumpkin pie spice and lemon peel. My favorite cocktail here is a twist on the Penicillin, a Penicillin No. 2 ($11). Instead of Scotch, Lay uses Tres Agaves Reposado Tequila and tops the drink with smoky mezcal, alongside the usual lemon and candied ginger. Further fun is had comparing barrel-aged Negronis, a 9 week-aged Abigail ($12) using Tanqueray gin, Campari, Amaro Nonino, Carpano Antica sweet vermouth, and Ruth-Anne, a more gin-forward Negroni.

We’ve seen each of these parts, yes, but not this exact whole. I long for more settings in my own city as bewitching and multifaceted as 1833. Thankfully, Monterey is not too far away.

Further Monterey/Carmel Stops

While in Monterey, you won’t find another quite like Restaurant 1833, but here are a few more notable options:

MONTEREY PLAZA HOTEL & SPA
Monterey Plaza Hotel is the most elegant on Cannery Row, thankfully removed from the Row’s touristy bustle, though only a short walk from the Aquarium. In addition to stunning views from oceanfront rooms jutting out over the sea, the hotel offers one of the better spas I’ve ever been to. A striking rooftop with hot tubs and radiant ocean views feels like a Mediterranean escape, while I enjoyed a superb deep tissue massage. Even the workout room is blessed with views of the Monterey coastline and Pacific.

Just remodeled and re-opened, Schooners restaurant is downstairs in the hotel, with waves lapping underneath and blue and white ceiling contrasted against wood walls, plus sunny outdoor patio off the bar. Open all day, there’s plenty of seafood, chowders and stews, alongside steak, braised short ribs, and satisfying desserts.

HAPPY GIRL KITCHEN, Pacific Grove
Just down the street in the idyllic town of Pacific Grove is Happy Girl Kitchen. Happy Girl has long been a favorite in San Francisco, selling their pickles and canned goods at the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market. It’s a pleasure to see their full range of products, including candied lemon peels in cayenne and sugar, in their open cafe and bottling space. They serve Blue Bottle coffee and a few breakfast and lunch menu items.

CANTINETTA LUCA, Carmel

We experience a lot of “real deal” Italian food in SF, from house charcuterie to Neapolitan pizza, but for the Monterey/Carmel area, Cantinetta Luca is a rarity. They form a fine duo with Salumeria Cantinetta next door offering salumi, cheese, paninis, sandwiches and pizzas to go. Besides a strong charcuterie platter including house spicy Calabrese salame and Italian-imported speck and mortadella, they serve solid Neapolitan pizzas, and comforting, authentic, housemade pastas such as pappardelle alla bolognese ($16.95) and pumpkin ravioli ($16.95). Another selling point? Their Italian-centric wine list.

Exploring Wine at NIAGARA-on-the-LAKE,
Ontario, CANADA

Call it dessert wine if you will, icewine (eiswein in German) is definitely sweet. But winemakers prefer to call it “rich and concentrated”, an apt icewine description, which, when produced well, retains enough acidity to keep it from being cloying.

Icewine’s intensity comes from frozen grapes, allowing greater flavor concentration. Unlike in Sauternes, Bordeaux, icewine is not sweet from botrytis (noble rot), rather from frozen, concentrated juice. Canada and Germany are the largest icewine producers in the world, with most of Canada’s icewine vineyards in Ontario, which I recently visited. Besides attending the annual Niagara Icewine Festival, I spent time with three wineries and tasted winning salumi and cheeses made locally.

INNISKILLIN Winery

On a clear winter night, I arrived in Niagara-on-the-Lake, an idyllic, sleepy town on Lake Ontario, a short distance from Niagara Falls. By morning, a gentle but steady snowfall covered the woods and stately homes in a blanket of white.

Legendary Inniskillin winery, which put Canadian icewine on the map in the ’80′s, was my home base. A flat expanse of vines and shimmering, frosty grapes surround the warm, modern Inniskillin buildings, including one that is a restored 1920′s barn.

Austrian native Karl Kaiser started Inniskillin in the 1970′s with Donald Ziraldo to fill a need for premium Canadian table wine, getting into icewine in the 1980′s. Kaiser was Inniskillin’s first winemaker, while Nicholson got into wine in Niagara in the 1980′s, quickly moving up the ranks to winemaker at Jackson Trigg’s Okanagan winery in British Columbia. He returned to the East Coast and became Inniskillin’s winemaker in 2007, his wines having won over 1400 awards internationally. Terroir-driven as a winemaker, Nicholson states: “You don’t try to emulate someone else’s style because the terroir will dictate the wine you make.”

Due to icewine’s labor-intensive process, including picking in the middle of the night at lowest temperatures, the best icewine is expensive. And being as good as it gets, Inniskillin wines can be pricey.

Nicholson says for it to be icewine, they cannot legally pick until temperatures reach -8 Celsius (17.6 °F), a lower temp than required in Germany (-7 °C), but he typically prefers -10 °C or below. He calls that: “the sweet spot for balance of acidity and sweet.”

Inniskillin produces far more than icewine with Burgundian influenced Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and the like. I was impressed with numerous wines like an acidic, floral Riesling icewine. I particularly love their sweet but earthier Vidal icewines, from a balanced, bright 2008 Vidal to a  2008 Gold Vidal, uber sweet with marmalade and candied brown sugar balanced by crisp acidity and funky earth notes. Another standout is a red icewine, 2007 Cabernet Franc, robust, rosy, tasting more like strawberry conserves vs. fresh strawberries. If you’re at the winery tasting room in winter, ask for a hot chocolate made with icewine. You won’t regret it.

JACKSON-TRIGGS Winery

A sister winery to Inniskillin, Jackson-Triggs impressed with dramatic high ceilings, a modern barn-like feel, giant, roaring fireplace, and state-of-the-art production facilities.

We met with head winemaker Marco Piccoli, who is from Friuli, Italy. He brings a European aesthetic to the wines, married to New World vision, having also worked in Argentina. He was long ago fascinated by icewine and how it single-handedly put Canada on the wine map, though he produces everything from a peach blossom-redolent 2010 Sauvignon Blanc to an acidic, sandalwood-inflected 2007 Cab Franc. I enjoyed a unique 2007 Entourage Sparkling Merlot, but my favorite was their buttery yet citrus-laden Silver Series Chardonnay, which unfortunately we do not yet have available in the state.

LE CLOS JORDANNE

I met with young winemaker Sébastien Jacquey from Burgundy who creates Burgundian-style, single vineyard Pinots at Le Clos Jordanne. I wasn’t as taken with Pinots as with best wines at Inniskillin or Jackson-Triggs, but enjoyed a mint and plum-accented 2009 Pinot Noir Le Grand Clos and a dusty, earthy 2009 Talon Ridge Vineyard Pinot.

WINERY MEALS

Eating well was not a problem at the wineries. Great Estates of Niagara chef David Penny (who worked at Four Seasons Hawaii) cooked Inniskillin meals with a couple key highlights.

He smoked a luscious slab of pork belly on a smoker behind the winery. Braving the snow and wind, Penny cooked the fatty belly, slicing it on toasts with an onion jam. A superb breakfast. Penny also created an Inniskillin poutine, topping warm fries with duck confit, Niagara Gold cheese, and red wine gravy.

On a freezing cold night, I was warmed by a moveable feast all over the Jackson-Triggs winery, starting with a spread of Pingue charcuterie. The meal was prepared by pastry chef Anna Olson, a Food Network star in Canada, and culinary instructor/chef husband Michael Olson. Favorite eats from the night were a mini-tureen of choucroute garnie, a favorite Alsatian sausage and sauerkraut dish of mine, and mushrooms in Chardonnay thyme cream sauce with potato cheddar focaccia. No surprise: a round of Anna’s desserts was the perfect ending, each rich and flavorful, from raisin butter tarts to cranberry gingerbread upside down cake.

PINGUE PROSCIUTTO

It’s a family affair at Pingue Prosciutto, an authentic producer of Italian-style salumi. Brothers Mario and Fernando Pingue learned meat skills at gold standard San Daniele del Friuli, in Parma, Bologna, and in their father’s hometown of Sulmona, Italy. Their meats are found at delis and restaurants throughout Ontario though they do not sell the general public. Meeting with the charming Mario Pingue, I tasted through some of their salumi, including the prosciutto, which certainly evokes great Italian prosciutto. When in Toronto or Ontario in general, look for their meats on restaurant menus.

CHEESE TASTING
Tasting through local cheeses while in Ontario-on-the-Lake was a pleasure. Upper Canada’s Comfort Crème is a creamy Camembert-style cheese from a family with five generations of cheesemaking in the region. Comfort Crème is hand-salted, smelling delicately of truffles and mushroom, buttery in texture. Devil’s Rock Creamy Blue from Thornloe, Ontario was my favorite – a semi-soft, vegetarian friendly (no rennet used) blue cheese. It’s velvety, tangy, salty and sweet. From neighboring province Quebec, Bleu Benedictin is a milder blue made by Trappist monks at Abbaye Saint-Benoit, another delightful cheese.

Dining & Sipping
in the city of BORDEAUX

A week loaded with fatty duck, foie gras, canneles, and, of course, wine… such was my time in Bordeaux (see last issue on Bordeaux winemakers).

Try tasting numerous wines from morning till night in weather just shy of 90 degrees. Though I was craving a good cocktail and a salad by week’s end, I was complimented by locals who deemed my eat-everything-(with gusto)-approach as “very French”. Another local informed me that with picky eaters (I’m sorry, that includes vegetarians in their book), they are polite, “but we do not invite them back. We’d invite you back.”

The city of Bordeaux (founded in the 3rd century A.D.) is a pleasant surprise. Having undergone a series of renovations and renewal over the past fifteen years, its Beaux Arts architecture, narrow, cobble-stoned streets, and new tramway, enliven the ancient, narrow streets, the historic district closed to cars. As the 6th largest city in France, it is bustling and full of things to do, yet approachable and walkable.

I fell most deeply into its charms getting lost wandering cobblestone streets, happening upon exquisite, hand-crafted shoemakers, elegant boutiques and home decor shops, enchanting tea cafes, countless bars and restaurants, opening into animated squares lined with tables. Basically some of the prime joys found in European cities are present in this small, bustling city that is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

As a base from which to explore vineyards of the storied region, Bordeaux is packed with sidewalk cafes, restaurants and bars (though give up now, ye cocktail lovers, on even getting a drink that resembles a cocktail – an Americano with Campari, sweet vermouth and soda is as good as it’s going to get).

Forget even finding much cognac, armagnac, calvados or other French spirits. As I was told in many a bar, those products are not made in their region specifically (even if produced merely an hour away) so they don’t offer them (!?) Every bar stocked plenty of Bacardi, Jim Beam, and other big brand, sub-mediocrity, however. Havana Club and Coke was the only drink that didn’t do me wrong. The Cuban rum’s inaccessibility in the US makes the otherwise average rum even more appealing.

This is wine country after all, and they’re sticking to that. Thankfully, the wine is excellent and I had many an affordable  bottle with heartwarming French meals.

FOOD

JEAN d’ALOS FROMAGERIE

I wanted to sample every last cheese in the pristine, renowned Jean d’ Alos cheese store. Clean and spare, cheeses are elegant, some looking like candies in colorful herb molds. Fabulously smelly, this little store is a French cheese lovers’ paradise (exporter is Patricia Dubourg, patricia[at]fromages-jean-dalos.com).

La MAISON DARRICAU

Owner, Nathalie, and chocolatiers, Michel & Lawrence, created La Maison Darricau, a charming, romantic little shop serving memorable chocolates. Truffles are creative, made fresh daily, and consistently lovely. I enjoyed Violette, Médoc (filled with wine from the region), Gingembre (ginger), Basilic (basil), Setchuan (Szechuan pepper), Datte (date with curry), and the excellent Prunoux (prune, almond paste, Armagnac).

MAISON GEORGE LARNICOL

Despite an odd policy of no photos and seemingly disinterested staff, Maison George Larnicol, is a shop I was drawn to multiple times for bins of Les galets des Glénan (mini-chocolate discs topped with crystallized ginger, mango, apples or nuts), Les rochers des Glénan (clusters of dark chocolate, almonds,  orange), and Noisettes enrobées (dark chocolate-coated hazelnuts).

Their macarons are delightful and intensely flavored, particularly passion fruit. They are also known for their kouignette, mini kougin-amann, a Breton  sticky cake, layered with caramelized sugar and salted butter (these became trended in SF last year). The store is conveniently located off the city’s main square across from the Opera House/Grand Theater.

AMORINO

Granted, it’s a European chain with a shop in NYC, but Amorino, founded by two Italians who know gelato, is far and away the best ice cream I had in Bordeaux. It’s real deal gelato (try Amarena cherry). They won me over with Speculoos. Speculoos is a Belgian cookie redolent of cinnamon, sugar, nutmeg, pepper and spices, rather like a spiced graham cracker. It tastes amazing combined with their fresh banana ice cream.

RESTAURANTS

WINE & SOUL

The newer Wine & Soul was my favorite meal in Bordeaux. Run by a gracious young couple, the decor is reds and blacks with LPs as table settings, soulful tunes in the background, and a vintage Marx Brothers movie poster.

The food is French with a Spanish tapas approach and Italian nods. Caprese salads and shrimp cocktail stand alongside beef filets.

The best dishes? A ridiculously good baked Swiss style Camembert roti, oozing with onions over potatoes; and beef tartare a l’italianne, basically classic raw beef tartare tossed with Parmesan cheese, garlic and basil. Delicious.

Wine stand outs: a mineral, crisp pear-inflected 2010 Chateau de Malrond (100% Semillion) and a mushroom, butter 2010 Chateau Dubois Challon.

LA TUPINA

La Tupina is rustic Bordeaux cooking. The region claims foie gras. Here it is thick, buttery and rich. Stone walls, a French country kitchen, and massive hearth greet you upon entrance. In front of the blazing fire is a board laden with giant cuts of beef, duck, whole fowl.

The food is served a la carte or family style and is a hearty pleasure from start to finish. Scallops with cep mushrooms and duck fat fries earn additional points.

Wine stand outs:  Crisp, passion fruit notes of 2010 Chateau D’ Haurets, rare coastal wine, 2008 Chateau Laroche Joubert Cotes du Bourg.

DUBERN

With flirty, French waiter, elegant upstairs rooms, sidewalk seating and 30-35 Euro prix fixe menus, Dubern is a worthy dinner destination. While sipping a dry, light, seafood-friendly 2006 Benjamin de Chantegrive from nearby Graves, I savored a Tartare de la Mer of salmon dourade and local Cap Ferret oysters to start. Oysters were served with rye bread and a side of duck sausages. Nice.

My main course was monkfish medallions done tandoori style with a cool cucumber raita. Local French pastry cannele came came in threes, sliced in the middle and filled with ice cream. Already full, I could not finish the generous dessert.

However, I did finish the creamy, citrus glass of 2007 Chateau Reynon, produced in nearby Cadilliac.

DRINK

MAX BORDEAUX WINE CELLAR

Max Bordeaux is the ultimate tasting room, which they call a “wine gallery and cellar”. Their non-stuffy approach makes tasting and learning about Bordeaux wines and appellations fun.

The rarity? They have some of the best (and most expensive) wines of the region available by the taste. Buy tasting cards in increments of 25 Euros, and they will help you max out your sips accordingly. I visited affordable producers around the region, but at Max Bordeaux, I was able to sample some of Bordeaux’s Grand Crus Classés, upper tier wines.

It’s a must-visit when in the town of Bordeaux.

Here are some amazing wines I tasted here, including their by-the-bottle price:
2005 Aromes de Pavie, Saint Emilion Grand Cru:  earthy, dry, dusty, gentle spice (70 Euro)
2007 Chateau La Conseillante, Pomerol:  elegant, tart berry, violets (100 Euro)
2007 Chateau Palmer (read about my dinner with their winemaker last year), Margaux: acidic, spice, smooth, complex nose, earth, medium finish (200 Euro)
2007 Chateau Pichon-Longueville: Cru Classic Paulliac (170 Euro)
2007 Ducru-Beaucaillou, Saint Julien: long finish, vanilla, cassis, acidic (100 Euro)
2004 Chateau Guiraud 1er Cru, Sauternes:  organic (60 Euro)
2004 Chateau Climens 1er Cru, Barsac (85 Euro)

LA COMTESSE

Wandering the Rue Parlement St Pierre led me to La Comtesse, a sexy bar, reminiscent of old Paris in absinthe greens with dim corners for conversation and cocktails.

I perked up at a chalkboard listing Gin Fizzes and Cuba Libres. My intrepid digging led me to the one place in the city I could finally get a real cocktail… or so it first seemed. Though they had an actual cocktail menu, they served them the same way I’d faced around town: sometimes in an ice cream-type glass, always with a bad, neon maraschino cherry and a straw (?)

The Gin Fizz wasn’t anything like a real gin fizz, more a strange mix of Aperol and gin. Thankfully, the bar is full of Old World charm so I wanted to linger in conversation for hours.

CAFE BRUN

You’d not go wrong ending every night in the city of Bordeaux at Cafe Brun.

With personality to spare, the bar is packed with quirky locals, random visitors, exuding a festive, eccentric spirit. In dark woods, the worn space is well-loved, feeling a bit like Parisian-meets-Irish-pub.

There’s live music, spirits, beers, and French ciders. Here you catch the playful side of Bordeaux.

CAFE OPERA

Cafe Opera is along the left side of the stately Opera House. Dripping chandeliers and breezy, columned walkways mark the elegant space.

They serve solid food, though I would recommend the bar as a stylish stop for a a glass of wine (like sips from nearby Pessac-Leognan: a tart apple 2010 Domaine du Grand Maison, or full-bodied 2006 Chateau D’Eck) or a pour from their decent (for the city) spirits selection.

The Face of Bordeaux

Bordeaux surprises. Many I talk to think of Bordeaux wines as pricey, out of reach, inaccessible…. or as some of the best in the world.

Visiting numerous winemakers throughout the region during their recent harvest, I was surprised by the number of quality, affordable wines from each part of region.

I witnessed traditional chateaus and multi-generational family winemakers alongside forward thinking, modern wineries and career-changing winemakers entering the field later in life.

Here are a few of the faces, chateaus and wines of Bordeaux that made an impression on me. All recommended wines are available in the US, many through K&L Wine Merchants and JJ Buckley Fine Wines.

CHATEAU de PRESSAC, Saint-Emilion

Probably my favorite winery and couple of my Bordeaux travels is Jean-Francois and Dominique Quenin at Chateau de Pressac. Jean-Francois bursts with joy over the work he does at his stunning chateau, first built in the Middle Ages. A career changing top-level executive who went from major corporation (Darty, a huge European electronics company) to winemaker, he’s also St. Emilion’s Wine Council President.

Jean-Francois and his wife exude a tender love for the land. They hosted an unforgettable lunch in their chateau, sampling me through other winning wines from the region besides their own.

Recommended wine: 2008 Chateau de Pressac exhibits ripe cherries on the nose, with cassis, a silky texture and balanced acidity. $28

CHATEAU PALOUMEY, Haut-Medoc

Chateau Paloumey‘s female winemaker, Martine Cazeneuve, is inspiring. A teacher turned winemaker, she restored the land’s vines to award-winning status (formerly Cru Bourgeois Superieur), her vino served in many Michelin-starred restaurants. Her passion for wine, art and the Medoc region shines from both her and in her fresh, modern winery lined with paintings. Martine and staff also educated on the Medoc region and its brand new classification and rating system, with a tasting of numerous wines from the region, mostly priced under $25.

Recommended wine: Though I like the smooth, soft 2007 Chateau Paloumey, the 2009 Cru Bourgeois Grand Vin de Bordeaux, a Cabernet Sauvignon-Merlot blend, exhibits the most promise, tasting of dusty strawberry, balanced acidity, minimal oak, and a hint of smoke. $20-25

 CHATEAU OLIVIER, Pessac-Leognon

Chateau Olivier has a storied history, dating back to the 12th century when its striking, moat-surrounded chateau was built. Winemaker Laurent Lebrun uses forward-thinking winemaking techniques, replanting vines and maximizing the land’s varied, rich soil of gravel, sand, clay, and limestone.

Recommended wine: 2009 Chateau Olivier Blanc is a blend of 75% Sauvignon Blanc, 23% Semillion, 2% Muscadelle grapes. On the nose it is refreshingly grassy and bright with lemon peel, translating to acidic citrus and hint of herbs to taste. $38.99

2005 Chateau Olivier is a blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 45% Merlot, 5% Cab Franc. Earthy berries hit on the nose, with a taste of wood, dark chocolate and berries in this balanced, elegant red. $45

CHATEAU D’ARCOLE, Saint-Emilion

Delightful couple Victorie and Phillipe own a winery in Bordeaux’s Entre deux Mers region, but after turning 40 decided it was a time for a new challenge. They took on a tiny, 5 hectares plot of land in ultra-expensive Saint-Emilion. Their Chateau D’Arcole land has never seen chemicals and is certified organic, a rarity in the region. Victorie and Phillipe restored the humble winery from the ground up. In soil of gravel and sand, they planted 70% Merlot and 30% Cabernet grapes.

Recommended wine: I like their 2009 Chateau D’Arcole Grand Cru best, with soft, fresh berry on the nose, and a round, earthy, dried berry profile. $20

CLEMENT PICHON, Medoc

On an idyllic estate with a magnificent 1885 mansion, ponies, ponds and statues, sits Chateau Clement Pichon, with merely 25 hectares of vineyards and modern, sleek production facilities.

Owned by Clement Fayat of the huge Fayat Group, the peaceful grounds will soon launch five guest rooms and host outdoor parties by a fountain with full view of the mansion where the Fayat family resides.

Recommended wine: 2008 Clement Pichon is 70% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 5% Cab Franc. With high acidity and a light body, it’s elegant but easy, everyday drinking. $16.99

CHATEAU LA GRAVE & CHATEAU D’ARCHE, Sauternes

In the famously “sweet” region of Sauternes, I met two winemakers, the soft spoken, hard working Virginie Tinon, a 1st generation winemaker for Vignoble Tinon wines, and the gracious Jérôme Cosson on the peaceful grounds of Chateau D’Arche, with on-site lodging and a talented chef.

Both châteaux pick grapes completely by hand. I had the privilege of harvesting “noble rot” (botrytis) grapes with the workers at Chateau D’Arche. Painstaking work it is, with multiple picks required as the grapes rot at various stages, requiring multiple “picks”.

D’Arche’s on-site chef walked us through numerous mostly savory food pairings with their wines, showcasing Sauternes wines as more than just dessert wine.

Recommended wine: Chateau D’Arche‘s 2008 Chateau Costeau is 100% Semillion (from grapes in the Cadillac region of Bordeaux) with honey, peach notes but a vivid acidity keeping cloying aspects at bay. $15