Jim Lester - (file photo)

Two of our very favorite people stopped in to visit last week, and as is so often the case when we get together, corks were popped and glasses of good wine were poured and enjoyed with some excellent food. Jim Lester was in town showing his latest Wyncroft wines to prospective buyers, and after he was finished with his day, he brought them over to taste with us as well.

Claudia Tyagi - (file photo)

We were joined by Master Sommelier Claudia Tyagi, who always makes any gathering more fun. The bonus was the fact that Jim has been threatening to cook dinner for us for some time now, and he showed up with grocery bags full of yummy delights (steaks for the grill and mushrooms and veggies for a stir fry) to go with his wines. In that regard, he acquitted himself admirably, revealing yet another talent that he possesses. Add some vintage Steely Dan on the stereo, and what more could we ask for?

We got things started with a worthy companion the Hofer Gruner Veltliner that we like so well. This was only my second or third time tasting Zweigelt, a variety developed in Austria in 1922, by Fritz Zweigelt, who crossed Blaufränkisch and St. Laurent. Based on this one, there’s bound to be plenty more of the stuff in our future!

2008 Bio-Weingut H. u. M. Hofer Zweigelt Niederosterreich, 1L, 12.5% alc., $13.99: Medium garnet color, with earthy cherry and plum flavors and aromas and a hint of pepper on the finish. Medium bodied, with moderate structure and very well received by all four of us. Likes a bit of a chill. About it, Jim remarked, “At first whiff, it reminds me of a cross between Dolcetto and Cotes du Rhone.” More, please! Find this wine

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Noëlle Lothamer - Photo courtesy of Marvin Shaouni

We first met Noëlle Lothamer through her postings on Gourmet Underground Detroit (GU Detroit), an online group of food and drink professionals and serious enthusiasts “dedicated to the propagation of gastronomic knowledge.” Like many of the GU Detroit denizens, Noëlle authors a blog and hers is smartly named simmer down!

Noëlle’s cooking style is similar to mine so I’m right there diggin’ all of her food posts and I think the Gang community might like them too.  The photography is excellent and the articles are cleverly written.

She’s also an avid collector of cookbooks and books about food and pens a book review page that I hope continues to grow.

Recently, another GU Detroit participant, Evan Hansen, filled in as guest blogger and wrote an excellent primer on building a basic home cocktail bar – it’s a worthy read even for us winos!

When Noelle isn’t “trying to make a difference one delicious bite at a time,” she is playing drums and singing in her band Scarlet Oaks.  Note the photo at left of the two drum stick styles!   – photo by Marvin Shaouni

Hope you check out and enjoy simmer down!

Since we started regularly reviewing wines made by the Perrin family in the fall of 2006, we’ve gotten to taste quite a few and our impressions have almost always been to the positive. In fact, the worst notes I can remember posting are of the luke-warm variety; I don’t think we’ve ever actually had a bad wine from them. We recently tasted through six new samples, and guess what? Nothing has changed. There may be a few surprises, but the wines all range from pretty good to very good, and if there are no real knockouts, there’s something to be said for consistency. Here are my impressions of this latest batch.

CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE

2009 La Vieille Ferme Côtes du Luberon Blanc, Grenache Blanc 30%, Bourboulenc 30%, Ugni Blanc 30%, Roussanne 10%, 13% alc., $7.99-8.99: Clean, medium color, with white tree fruit flavors and aromas; moderately ripe fruit and quite food friendly, with very good acids and intensity. Find this wine

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I first became aware of Julie Johnson’s Tres Sabores label back during Zap 2003. At that time, they were making quite a splash by operating on the novel model of producing three Zinfandels made by three different winemakers (Karen Culler, Ken Bernards and Rudy Zuidema ), all from the same fruit source. The wines were, by all accounts, quite good, and also quite distinct from each other.

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Photo courtesy of Michigan Brewers Guild

We interrupt your regularly scheduled programming for this important beer broadcast. The 2010 Michigan Brewers Guild Summer Beer Festival has just wrapped up over the weekend and it was another successful showcase of Michigan’s microbrew moxie.

The annual Ypsilanti event featured 50+ home-grown brewers, 60+styles and 400+  beer varieties this year. From statewide heavyweights like Bell’s and Founders, to regional favorites and spunky upstarts – Michigan’s brewers are surely a robust and wiley bunch. On this sticky summer Saturday, the clouds opened, sun shined and our band of hopheads set off into the Ypsilanti afternoon with only our wits and a fist full of wooden nickels.

There’s much to do, see and taste at the Beer Festival and what follows is by no means an exhaustive review of the festival, its offerings or Michigan beers as a whole. I have my beer proclivities – wheat ales, brown ales, IPA’s and Pilsners – and I tasted accordingly. Below are some of the most notable beers we tasted during the day. Read the rest of this entry »

Mac McDonald - click to enlarge

To look at Vision Cellars owner/winemaker Mac McDonald in his overalls and straw hat, one might almost expect to find him singing the blues at The Ark in Ann Arbor, instead of conducting a tasting of his wines at venues such as Shiraz or the Detroit Athletic Club, and his down-home demeanor and laid back drawl do nothing to dissuade one from that notion. In fact, Mac is both a very fine winemaker and a shrewd judge of related matters of terroir, such as soil (he’s been known to actually taste it to determine its quality and viability for growing grapes) and season (he’s allowing for a larger crop this vintage, due to the unusually heavy amount of rainfall that California received during the winter). Read the rest of this entry »

Unfortunately, due to a little excursion away from Ontario for a few days, I was unable to get to London to taste wines for the release this weekend and the weekend of August 7th. The next tasting is marked on my calendar and notes will be posted forthwith. Enjoy the summer.

CZ

Warning sign on gate entering Rosati's ranch - click to enlarge

Who might have guessed that, in southern Mendocino County, Cabernet Sauvignon is being produced from vines that came from cuttings originally sourced at Ridge Vineyards’ Jimsomare Ranch.  As unlikely as it may sound, it’s true, and while it’s not intentionally kept secret, you probably would never know unless you happened to stumble upon the Rosati Family Wines website or had chance to communicate with  Allan Bree aka califusa, who discovered this little known fact during his tireless investigations of all things Ridge.

Rosati hilltop vines - click to enlarge

The Rosati story is a fascinating one.  Mario Rosati is a lawyer, and his very first client was Ridge Vineyards.  He would go on to serve on Ridge’s Board of Directors for 15 years or more, and became good friends with many of the principals there, including David Bennion.  As Mario’s practice grew, he and his wife Danelle bought a 1,500 acre property just across the county line from Sonoma; you literally turn right off the freeway to access their sprawling property.  While visiting the Rosatis, Bennion suggested that Cabernet Sauvignon might grow well at the higher elevations, and, in 1987, cuttings from Jimsomare were planted and continue to thrive on Mario’s favorite hilltop setting, at around 900-950 feet above sea level. Read the rest of this entry »

Click image to enlarge.

This week, I had the opportunity to try a couple of Italian reds imported by our friends at US Wine Imports in Ann Arbor. As previously reported, US Wine Imports specializes in uncovering and distributing wines from boutique producers from Europe and California, selecting small batches (less than 1000 cases each) that balance quality and value. Both of these are fine examples, as they are very pleasing, both to the palate and the pocketbook. Read the rest of this entry »