Lunch With Donald Hess

A few weeks ago I had a chance to have lunch with the owner of The Hess Collection family of wines, Donald Hess. The almost three hour lunch at the Capital Grill in the Inner Harbor included around 30 other people in the wine industry and though the lunch was set in a medium sized dining room, I was fortunate enough to be seated directly next to Mr. Hess. I took advantage of this rare opportunity by asking tons of questions and just listening to his stories. By the end of the meal I was more impressed with the Hess philosophy and culture than the wines he introduced us to (which were great). Read more

Food, Wine, Culture TV- Episode 2: WineBloggingWednesday 48 - Back to my wine “roots” in Detroit!

Today is WineBloggingWednesday (which I talk about in the video) and the theme is taking it back to you roots. My wine “roots” began in Detroit with some cheap “wine” and slowly progressed to high end California Cabernet. Join me (and special guest Carlos L) for a tasting, beginning where I began and ending where I was 5 years ago- Drinking big Cali Cabernet and Bordeaux Blends. (Links pertaining to this episode and truncated tasting notes are below the video)
Read more

Food, Wine, Culture TV! - Episode 1: A cheap Malbec on the beaches of Block Island, RI

Well here it is, my journey into the world of video blogging. This first episode is a basic introduction into where I’d like to take the show and features a Malbec that’s perfect for the beach. My plan is to put out 2-3 shows per week as time permits. I’m going to do some cooking, food and wine pairings, use my science/research background to address issues pertaining to wine and health, and of course, I’ll be tasting a good amount of wine.  Another aspect of the show I’m excited for involves shooting “on location” at restaurants, wine bars and shops around Baltimore and around the world !
The resolution and sound in this episode aren’t great, yet, but I’m learning how to use the new software and hope to have the bugs worked out in a few weeks. Without further ado: Read more

Tasting Notes: Miscellaneous French Wines

Domaine Ehrhart Pinot Auxerrois 2004 - $16: Nice floral nose, notes of minerals and pear with good acidity. My rating: 85 pts

Domaine Marc-Morey Chassagne-Montrachet 2005 - $80: Flower notes on the nose with peach, citrus and mineral notes. Complex and elegant, good fruits and spice with a touch of jasmine and honey. Good structure with crisp acidity and refreshing mineral notes. Lingering finish, very good. My rating: 90 pts

Alberto Furque Malbec 2004 - $14: Dark cherry, plum, leather, solid early with rough tannins in the finish that fall off. My rating: 84 pts

Domaine Foret de Michielle, Confidentia Cotes du Rhone Villages - $20: Cane syrup, caramel, light tar, blackberry, plum, medium tannins not perfectly balanced but overall good. My rating: 85 pts

Mas des Bressades, Grenache/Syrah 2006 - $12: Great nose nice fruits, reminiscent of a Touriga Franca based wine. Rolling flavors of plum, red fruits and spice with good tannins and a subtle, but long finish. Great value wine. My rating: 88 pts

Domaine Chauvenet Chopin, Nuits St. Georges, 2004 - $54: Earthy tones, leather, medium tannins, interesting fruits, black cherry, lovely. Bought a few bottles and look forward to trying them in a couple years…should improve with age. My rating: 91 pts

Andre Brunel Chateauneuf du Pape, Les Cailloux, 2004 $45 - 90 pts: Great nose, black cherry, pepper, spice with overall well defined fruits. Balanced with medium tannins that should even out with aging. Lean but lasting finish. My rating: 90 pts

Muchas Gracias Carlos

When my friend Carlos went home to visit his family in Argentina this past May I made a request: bring me back any Malbec from Mendoza that I haven’t had before. Well, he did. And almost 5 months later we finally got together on Monday to open the bottle and give it a taste.

This Salentein Malbec Roble comes from the Valle de Uco in Mendoza, Argentina. Yet above the label is the National Emblem, or Coat of Arms (seen to the left) for Holland. It is not obvious why a bottle of wine from an Argentinian winery displays the National Emblem for Holland. In the answer lies a beautiful story.

At the February 2, 2002 wedding of Prince Willem-Alexander of Holland and the Argentine Maxima Zorreguieta (now Princess Máxima of the Netherlands), the Queen’s Sommelier chose the 2000 Salentein Primus Pinot Noir as the official wine for the event. Highlighting this spectacular event was a piece by the great composer Astor Piazzollo entitled “Adiós Nonino.” Piazzolla composed this classic piece in 1959 shortly following the death of his father. Though Piazzolla is famous for many compositions, some considered to be more important and of greater quality, this piece became forever etched in stone as his trademark work. A clip of “Adiós Nonino can be seen here:

I’m very excited to try the Primus Pinot Noir when I can get my hands on a bottle. The bottle we had, a Malbec Roble (Roble meaning Oak), was quite good. We let the Malbec breathe for about an hour before we poured it. Once in the glass, we knew we were in for a treat.

The wine was dark purple and completely opaque. (Don’t mind the wine on the label in the image, there’s a few more drips still in the carpet from two tragic incidents!) Looking down into the glass I had thought my wine was switched out for coffee! On the nose was black fruits, vanilla, pepper, and a good amount of alcohol. The high (14.5%) alcohol content was well integrated in the wine though and was not at all overbearing. Immediately I tasted blackberry and black cherry and as I worked my way through the big yet velvety tannins discovered hints of leather, chocolate, and pleasant sweetness to the wine. The 14 months in new French Oak (wine consultant Michel Rolland has a hand in operations) gave the wine great character and spice. The finish was quite long and kept going until the next sip. I’d really like to try this wine in another 6 months. My rating: 90 pts

With a little searching I found that you can find this wine at some stores in the United States. I would highly recommend this wine to accompany any grilled beef, especially a nice, medium-rare Cowboy Ribeye!
(Note: Top two images from Wikipedia)