the Busy Season

Dear Autumn, it's been a fun harvest season, but I miss my wife.

Pinot Gris harvest is hand sorted at Rex Hill Vineyards.

For the winemaker, fall is a season of constant preparation, incessant measuring, meticulous cleaning, lifting, organizing, mixing, watching, driving, and recording---not to mention being sticky and wet, fearful of bunch-dwelling spiders, and most likely falling on your ass a few times.

Ryan Lee Sharp (winemaker, Enso Winery) transports 4 tons of Malbec and Counoise into the winery for hand-sorting and de-stemming. He and his partner, Chris Wishart, will harvest numerous tons of Zinfandel, Petite Sirah, Pinot Gris, Mourvedre, Reisling, and more throughout the season. And this is a small production wine joint!

Wine as Art
Tons of grapes are picked, hand sorted, de-stemmed, transferred into fermentation bins, and cold soaked to encourage vivid color and complexity. After days of cold soaking, grapes are inoculated with yeasts, and fermentation begins. Yeast eats away at the grape's natural sugars and produces alcohol over several days. Sugar + Yeast = Alcohol, CO2, & Heat. Throughout the fermentation process, CO2 pushes grape skins and seeds (must) to the top, forming a tough cap which is punched down into the juice multiple times each day. When brix (sugar levels) and alcohol levels are ideal, wine is pressed into barrel or tank, aged for months, and finally bottled for further aging---and finally---release. Every winemaker has a unique process; a different approach; a special concept. All this work results in an inspiring, romantic, piece of art.

Braun and Sharp scoop the dregs of fermented Zinfandel pomace into the press.

Autumn Pick

2006 Chemin de Terre by A to Z Wineworks, Southern Oregon. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Sangiovese, etc. It's like you're hanging out with Bruce in the Bat Cave---we're talking cool, wet slate and clay with chalky, perfumed bramble berries and dark blueberries to finish. Without being too weighty, Chemin de Terre--or, Dirt Road--is an easily accessible and comforting taste for the dreary seasons. We sipped, we liked, we recommend for $20.

the Nightly Table

2007 Sineann Merlot, Hillside Vineyards, Columbia Valley WA ($25). This guy is like that well-fitted black velvet glove that perfectly accessorizes your decadent inner-1980's celebrity. We all have one of those--right?! Pairing suggestion: Rogue Creamery blue cheese, the oh-so-spicy Olli Sulameria Calabrese, and Madonna's Like a Virgin on vinyl.

Lovely youthfully robust Mondeuse. This wine is so versatile, I would open a good Vin de Savoie on any old night or for a special occasion. Domain Jean Vullien et Fils VDS St-Jean de la Porte $15.

Pyrenees Vineyard & Cellars 2005 Pinot Noir, $20---We went a little Mythbuster's on the "perfect pairing: Oregon Pinot Noir + PNW salmon" rumors. Our experience? One may have to do quite a bit of digging to find a stellar Pinot for the fish. Your best bet is a well aged, light and dusty cool-vintage Pinot. The Pyenees, though big and delicious in it's own right, struggled with the salmon's bold flavors, and left us feeling somewhat awkward... perhaps roast chicken would suit it best.

 

Wishing you a happy Autumn of good friends and fabulous libations! --Devon.

Over the Hill

I recently told a regular that I've never really had a high-end aged wine that's gone/going over the hill. Being the gentleman that he is, he brought me a bottle of 1970 Freemark Abbey Cabernet Napa Valley, Bosche Vineyard. He warned us that the wine was past its prime and would fade in the glass within 20 minutes of opening.

We decanted to remove sediment. It was acutally a bit tight, but only for about 2 minutes. It quickly opened up and was an absolute charm for the next 8. After 15, it had maderized in the glass. To watch this wine fade like a old western cowboy riding into the sunset was a fun--albeit very sad--experiment.

Initial tasting notes said "Burnt earth, black tea, fig and dried cherry on the nose while the palate showed very little fruit, a hint maybe of blackberry and cola, but mostly forest floor and leaves. Gorgeous balanced mouthfeel with bright acidity and soft tannins"---Uh oh 5 minutes later, "cinnamon toast crunch nutmeg, nuts madiera type quality." Boo.

Giacosa [jikosuh] noun.

"If one were to cut the arm of a Piemontese, he would bleed Dolcetto."

Bruno Giacosa is considered the last word in Italian wine, and Bruno himself, the genius of Neive (traditions of excellence have continued since his daughter Bruna took the reigns.) I had the lovely opportunity to soak in some of these heart-warming masterpieces at Liner & Elsen Wine Merchants. If you haven't stopped in their shop on NW 23rd, I highly recommend a nice little pursue.

I have to say Italians have never been my passion, but these wines stoked an undying flame of love. Oh, the expensive tastes...


2009 Roero Arneis
2009 Dolcetto d'Alba
2007 Barbera d'Alba
2005 Barbaresco Rabaja
2005 & 2007 Barbaresco Santo Stefano
2007 Barbaresco Asili
2005 Barolo Falletto
2005 Barolo Le Rocche del Falletto

Cin Cin! ♥ Devon.