Andes Peak Wine in a Box: Environmentally Friendly and Great Value

The 2008 Andes Peaks Select Chardonnay from Chile’s Central Valley is the best white wine in a box I’ve ever tasted and quite different from the dilute, saccharine offerings one often finds at this price point. Andes Peak is affiliated with the Viñedos Emiliana Company. This inexpensive Chardonnay [equivalent to less than $5 per 750 ml bottle] falls in the crisp, clean, high acid camp. If it has any significant exposure to oak, it’s in the background. And the high acidity suggests it has undergone little, if any, malolactic fermentation. But these are not faults. This wine is fresh and clean from the nose to the palate to the finish. It has a modicum of pear-like Chardonnay fruit that gives it just enough flavor. If one is seeking a sweet, oak-infused Chardonnay, stay away from this boxed wine, but if the goal is a slightly fruity, crisp and dry everyday wine, definitely consider the Andes Peak Select Chardonnay Valle Central. Box wine is a bit like screwcaps used to be—not very chic, but the Greens amongst us should like its low carbon footprint [relative to heavy glass containers] and the Consume Report readers amongst us will like the fact very little goes to waste, since the wine can easily last two weeks when refrigerated. Adding to the wine’s environmental friendliness is its certification for sustainable agriculture from the Institute for Market Ecology based in Europe. The importer is Banfi Vintners.

Navarra's Rosés Are Terrific Food Wines

Rosés are magnificent food wines. Highly versatile, they pair well with a wide variety of dishes from les moules to Moroccan tangines. Today almost every wine-producing country makes respectable rosé. However, few rosés can compare with the Garnacha rosés (rosados) produced in Navarra.

Navarra’s rosés are dry wines. They are not bone dry but pleasantly dry with good acidity. Most wines (eg. Chivite Gran Feudo, Bodegas Ochoa Rosado Garnacha, and Campos de Enanzo Rosado, to name but a few), are made for early drinking and thus offer fresh, fragrant, and complex red fruit aromas and vibrant flavors upon release. Navarra rosés are generally low in alcohol and, while pleasantly fruity, are dry on the finish. The best producers achieve notable purity, elegance, and balance in their wines. Some producers, most notably Julian Chivite also craft rosados such as the Colección 125 Rosado with extended lees contact that are made for aging and are simply outstanding.

The International Wine Review recommends food pairing possibilities for Navarra rose's in its recently published Report # 18 the Wines of Navarra. If you have ideas for pairing these remarkable rosés with food, please share them with us.

Thanks,

Mike Potashnik

Publisher

International Wine Review

Tasting Notes: 2008 Riesling Hochheim/Rheingau/Germany

A couple of weeks ago, the Weinfreundeskreis Hochheim, of which my wife Annette and I are founding members, invited 5 winemakers from Hochheim to present their new wines of the 2008 vintage. We were at our German domicile at that time and had the pleasure to participate in this wonderful tasting

Hochheim is one of the top wine producing villages in the Rheingau region with about two dozens winemakers. Already Goethe spoke of its distinctive microclimate: '...among the magnates of Rheingau wine, Rüdesheim, Johannisberg and Hochheim, there can be no dispute about rank!...'. The Őchsle tend to be higher here than in other areas of the Rheingau. And it was the English Queen Victoria's (1819-1901) special preference for Hochheim wine that prompted the abbreviation ‘Hock' for all good Rhine wines. But Hochheim is perhaps best known in the U.S. through President Jefferson. This is where Thomas Jefferson, when he was Ambassador in Paris, visited in 1788 and brought vine cuttings back to America to plant in his own vineyard.

Hochheim is about 50 minutes from Frankfurt Airport by S-Bahn. Most of Hochheim’s winemakers sell their wine directly to the consumer at their premise, which is typical for the German wine market, and many operate cosy Gutsausschänke (Restaurants), where you try their wines and eat hearty local food.

The previous vintage, 2007, is an outstanding one. The April 30, 2009 issue of the Wine Spectator carries an in-depth review of that vintage. 2008 was an excellent year, but in terms of Őchsle, i.e. sugar content at harvest, 2008 did not match the previous year.In 2008, relatively cool autumn weather enabled grapes to ripen gradually and remain healthy. Crisp, lean Riesling wines with a fresh, fruity acidity are typical for the 2008 vintage. After cool weather in September, the Hochheim growers decided to wait until October before beginning with the harvest. For the most part, must weights reached 80 to 85 degrees Őchsle. As such, the 2008 vintage will be known particularly for high-quality Kabinett wines. It is a vintage which tends to be high in terms of acidity. The winemakers told us about their struggle with the high level of acidity, which they tried to contain through natural methods, such as leaving the grapes longer in the vineyard, and, if necessary, with chemical methods. The latter, however, has as a side effect, a foaming of the must, which can lead to a loss of aromas.

The following winemakers were present. They are all typical German winemakers with 5 to 10 hectares of land only. All wine estates present were family-owned and family- operated wine estates, often covering three generations of the family.

Weingut Dienst has a nice Gutsausschank, which is open throughout parts of the year.

Weingut Hück sells about half of its wine in its Gutsausschank, where excellent, basic food is served.

Weingut Diefenhard

Weingut Schäfer is gaining increasingly international recognition, but does not export any of its wines. Last year, the first prize in the dry category at the Best of Riesling Competition was awarded to the 2007 Hochheimer Kirchenstück Spätlese from Weingut Schäfer. (see my posting at www.i-winereview.blogspot.com of August 9, 2008)

Weingut Rebenhof is known for its special, including cultural, events at the winery. The winemaker also stressed that the Rebenhof is one of the few wine estates in the Rheingau, that has a long tradition of biodynamic winemaking.

Also present at the winetasting, as a member of the Weinfreundeskreis, was Franz Künstler, the father of Gunter Künstler, who currently owns Weingut Künstler . Künstler is one of the very best German winemakers. Weingut Künstler is one of the two winemakers of Hochheim who have ventured out to the American market (the other one is Weingut Domchechant Werner), benefitting from the increasing popularity of Rieslings in the US and in general in the world. Franz and I have been member of the Weinfreundeskreis Hochheim since its beginnings 30 years ago. In the US, his wines are imported by Rudi Wiest, Cellars International, 1780 La Costa Meadows Drive, Suite 201, San Marcos, California 92078, Phone:001-760.566.0499, Fax:001-760.566.0533

We tasted 15 Rieslings, 3 from each winemaker, ranging from the Qualitätswein besonderer Anbautgebiete (QbA) category, where winemakers are allowed to add sugar to the must, to boost the alcohol level, to Spätlese wines, were chaptalisation is not allowed, but where winemakers can add Süssreserve (sterilyzed juice) to sweeten the wine. All the wines we drank had already been bottled. The presentation did not include any Auslese, Beerenauslese or Trockenbeerenauslese, as these wines still resting in the barrel. The large majority of the wines were dry wines, reflecting the large demand for dry wines in Germany, while the American consumer tends to prefer the sweeter wines, when it comes to German wines.

Here are my impressions of the 15 wines we tasted, all Riesling from 2008:

Kabinett, trocken (Kabinett indicates that it is a Prädikatswein, excluding chaptalisation. Trocken indicates “dry” without perceptible residual sweetness, never more than 9 grams of residual sugar per liter. All wines had around 7.5 grams per liter of acidity)

1. Dorothenhof, Weingut Dienst. In the upper range of the trocken category. Nice mineral flavors. No vineyard specification, suggesting that it is a cuvee from various individual vineyards. Euro 4.00

2. Wickerer König Wilhelmsberg, Weingut Hück From the neigbouring village, Wicker. Weingut Hück owns the entire König Wilhelmsberg vineyard. As the other two wines from Weingut Hück, a very dry wine, with a remaining sugar level of only 2.3 grams/liter. Mineral flavors. Euro 4.00

3. Hochheimer Daubhaus, Weingut Diefenhard. The fermentation stopped at a sugar level of 6.5 grams/liter. A cuvee from various individual vineyards, all belonging to the Daubhaus Grosslage (collective vineyard). Shows green apple and minerals.

4. Hochheimer Hölle, Weingut Schäfer. In the upper range of the trocken category, with a hint of white peach. Euro 6.50

5. Hochheimer Reichesthal, Weingut Diefenhard. Lean with lemon flavors. I detected a touch of Grüner Veltliner.

Spätlese, trocken (same as above, but higher Őchsle requirements, i.e. sugar content in the must at harvest):

6. Hocheimer Hofmeister, Weingut Hück. A bone-dry Spätlese, with a remaining sugar level of 3 grams/liter only. Shows grapefruit and mineral.

7. Hochheimer Reichesthal, Weingut Dienst. A dry Spätlese with tender minerality. Euro 8.50

8. Hochheimer Kirchenstück, Weingut Schäfer Euro 9.50. A dry Spätlese, displaying an elegant interplay between delicate fruit and refreshing acidity. Hint of white peach.

9. Hochheimer Kirchenstück, Weingut Rebenhof. A dry Spätles harvested at an Őchsel level of 95 degrees. With peach, grapefruit and orange hints. Euro 7.00

QbA, classic (QbA indiactes that chaptalisation is allowed; the residual sugar content of a classic wine can be twice as high as the acidity, up to a maximum of 15 grams per liter. The concept of classic was introduced a couple of years ago. A classic wine is supposed to be a good quality table wine that brings the characteristics of the region to the fore. Classic wines are often cuvees as the three wines we tasted and, in terms of sweetness, in the halbtrocken category)

10. Classic, Weingut Hück An off-dry classic wine, with nice tropical fruit and mineral flavors. Euro 4.50

11. Classic. Weingut Diefenhard. An off-dry-classic wine, with great character and a full nose.

12. Dorotheenhof, Weingut Dienst. An off-dry classic wine with beautiful aroma of ripe summer melon and soft citrus. Euro 5.50

Sweet wines

13. Hochheimer Hölle, QbA, Erstes Gewächs, Weingut Rebenhof. A sweet QbA and Erstes Gewächs. The concept of Erstes Gewächs (First Growth) was introduced in 1999 in the Rheingau region, imitating the Grand Cru designation in neighbouring France. The wine is from a specific area of the Hochheimer Hölle, which is 100 % Tonmergel (marly clay). Interestingly, this is a QbA wine, suggesting that the wine grower chaptalised the wine to boost the alcohol level, as it is common practice in France. Hint of citrus and green apple. An outstanding Rheingau Riesling. Euro 13.00

14. Hochheimer Hölle, Spätlese, Weingur Rebenhof. A sweet Spätlese with a remaining sugar level of 69 grams/liter. The elevated level of sweetness was produced by stopping the fermentation, which is the preferred method of Weingut Rebenhof (as opposed to adding Süssreserve, which I personally prefer). Floral, lime and peach aromas. Euro 6.00

15. Hochheimer Domdechany, Spätlese, Weingut Schäfer. A sweet Spätlese with 85 grams/liter of remaining sugar. Domdechany is Hochheim’s best vineyard. The nose was loaded with citrus and tropical fruits and the body was bold and round. Euro 9.00

Highest Wine Prices in the World?

In the quest to keep pace with international trend-setters, last night I ambled over to the Ritz-Carlton in Moscow, where the Obamas stayed during their visit earlier in the week. The glass-roofed bar at the top of the Ritz gives magnificent views of the Kremlin and offers an excellent wine list, but the prices are, let us say, a bit elevated. Indeed, I don't think I've seen higher prices anywhere, even Tokyo. Here's a selected list of bottles and their prices (in dollars): Rupert & Rothschild Baron Edmond ($300), NV Laurent Perrier ($500), '01 Tignanello ($1170), '03 Opus One ($1930), and '98 Dom Perignon ($2770). Just a glass of Castello di Ama Rosato costs $30, a relative bargain! Are these the highest wine prices in the world?

Wine in Japan

Tokyo is the epicurean's delight with an incredible selection of international restaurants and excellent wine shops. Japanese wine isn't very visible, however. During my stay in Tokyo I visited the YaMaYa wine shop in Akasaka. YaMaYa has a very good selection of imported wine, especially French Bordeaux, but only a half dozen bottles of Japanese wine, some of which are quite expensive and by reputation not good value. I did try a Chateau Mercian Niitsuru Chardonnay with seafood pasta and found the wine to be clean and crisp with good varietal character and tasting not all that different from a California unoaked Chardonnay. I did some internet searching to find out more about the wine and the winery and discovered that the Mercian Katsunuma Winery, which produces Niitsuru, is a large international operation that owns Markham Vineyards and Chateau Reysson in Bordeaux and began growing grapes in Japan in 1970. I also found a dated website on the winery that claims that vines are planted at a density of 300 vines to the hectare, producing 15 tons of grapes per hectare. Now that I would like to see! Another website says that to deal with the frequent problem of harvest rains the vineyard now spreads plastic sheeting over the vines at harvest time. Given the claim that 300 vines produce 15 tons of grapes, I'm not sure that's true, but it sounds interesting.

London International Wine Fair

This year's London International Wine Fair (LIWF) is being held on May 12-14. It is a superb three-day event for wine professionals filled with masterclasses, industry briefings, sommelier awards and workshops. Last year almost 15,000 people attended this event which is undoubtedly one of the most important in the international wine and spirits calendar. For adventurous and enterprising wine professionals on this side of the Atlantic the LIWF offers a great opportunity to taste wines from all over the world, network with European and international producers, importers and sommeliers, and to enjoy all that the UK has to offer. For more information on the event consult www.londonwinefair.com

Mike Potashnik
Publisher, International Wine Review

Solano Cellars East Bay Winemaker Pair-Off

I had the opportunity to participate in yesterday’s East Bay Winemaker Pair-Off held at Solano Cellars in Berkeley. Five small but prominent East Bay garagiste winemakers showed their wines, which were paired with delicious cheeses, duck pastrami, glazed venison, and other tasty tidbits. Several of the wines were absolutely delicious, and all were great values. This entry continues the International Wine Review exploration of East Bay wines that began with our December 11, 2008, posting on A Donkey and Goat Winery: Berkeley Garagiste.

Two Mile Wines of Berkeley, CA, showed their 2008 Central Coast Viognier ($25), my favorite white wine of the Pair-Off. It has a gorgeous varietally correct nose of white peach perfume and is beautifully balanced on the palate with a brisk acidity unusual for a Viognier. They also presented their 2006 Jacob’s Landing Cabernet Sauvignon/ Merlot ($30). The fruit for this 65/35 Cabernet/Merlot blend comes from Dickson Napa Ranch. It has an herbal cedar nose reminiscent of Cabernet Franc, but the rich, full-bodied palate is more traditional in character. This goes to show one doesn’t have to pay $50+ to get a good California Cab.

Eno Wines, also of Berkeley, showed a food-friendly, fruit-driven 2006 Pinot Noir “Never Say Never” Santa Lucia Highlands ($32), which also includes some Russian River fruit. But the highlight for me was winemaker Sasha Verhage’s 2005 Syrah, Las Madres Vineyard, Carneros ($25). This Côte-Rotie style wine is fermented 10% whole cluster and aged 16 months in 20 percent new barrels. It is opaque ruby purple in color with blackberry and cedar on the nose and a delicious, smoky palate of blackberry, cedar and black pepper. It finishes long with a distinct black raspberry note and quite gripping tannins. I can attest that this is an excellent food wine, too, as later in the evening my friends and I shared a bottle over restaurant Postino’s famous Coda di Bue (brasato of short ribs) in Lafayette.

Winemaker Chris Brockway of Broc Cellars specializes in Rhone varietals, and he showed two good examples at the Pair-Off. The 2006 “Vine Starr” ($25) is a blend of mainly Zinfandel and Syrah with small amounts of Mourvedre, Petite Sirah, and Graciano. It paired beautifully with duck pastrami. However, it was the 2006 Ventana Vineyard Grenache “Cassia” Monterey ($24) that captured my attention with its nose of earth and dark cherry that carries over to a beautifully balanced, medium-weight palate. Chris ages this wine in 300 liter French Hogs Heads, so the wood is subtly integrated with the fruit.

Edmunds St. John, also of Berkeley, showed an interesting white blend, the 2008 “Heart of Gold” ($23) blend of Vermentino (59%) and Grenache Blanc (41%) fruit from El Dorado County. It has a perfumed citrus nose and is clean on the palate with good acidity and a long, flavorful finish. Winemaker Steve Edmunds also showed his 2007 “Bone-Jolly” Gamay Noir ($19) from Witters Vineyard fruit, also in El Dorado County. At 3400’ elevation near Placerville in the Sierra Nevada foothills, Witters Vineyard is one of the highest altitude vineyards in the state. Edmunds St. John is the only California producer currently working with the Gamay Noir Au Jus Blanc. The wine is delicious and reminiscent of a first-class Beaujolais. It has a slightly candied nose of raspberries and a very flavorful, medium weight palate. This wine is lovely just to either sip or, better yet, to combine with a nice, healthy California brunch.

Finally, Aubin Cellars showed two Pinot Noirs from the Russian River Valley and a Syrah sourced from Columbia Valley fruit. The 2005 Verve Syrah Columbia Valley ($28) has good varietal character and shows unusual finesse, but the delicious nature of the Pinots drew most my attention. The 2005 Verve Pinot Noir Russian River Valley ($35) revealed earth and forest floor on the nose and on the palate, where tasty dark cherry fruit also came to the fore, finishing long and complex. The 2006 Verve Pinot Noir Russian River Valley ($35) includes fruit from Aubin Cellars’ new vineyard. It is quite different from the 2005 vintage, with lovely purity of fruit and minerality on the palate. It was one of my favorite wines of the entire Pair-Off.