Wine & Words

Every year at 4th of July I grow patriotic.  I re-read the heroic battles of our American Revolution (my favorite account is Rebels and Redcoats by George F. Scheer and Hugh F. Rankin) and peruse my much-worn copy of the Federalist papers.  Here at Wine & Words/The Back Bay Cafe we fly both the Stars & Stripes and the Union Jack in tribute to Chef Yvonne's Englishness and in celebration of what we call "English-American Friendship Week."  Customers ask Yvonne if they (the Brits) are still mad at us.
And we celebrate American wines and foods and music.  So herein is my list of Featured "All-American" wines, the "Reds & Whites" of the title.  As for the "Blues," well, that's The Blues, America's roots music.  We play it every day at both stores...and sell CD's.  So whether your taste is Reds, Whites or the Blues, come by and help us celebrate our American summer.
 
WHITES

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Gruet Brut (Albuquerque, New Mexico), 375ml ½-bottle, Regular Price $11.99/ Feature Price $9.60
I’ve written much about this dry sparkler from the Gruet family, how the fourth generation came to America because there was no room left for them in their native Champagne, France. And how they now make sparkling wine of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes the same way they learned in the old country. But I particularly wanted to include this wine for our July “All-American” Feature because:

1) Many people have forgotten how much the American Revolution depended on help from France. Or that Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson lived in France as American representatives and fell in love with French winemaking.

2) The story of Europeans coming to America, bringing their skills and energy to our melting pot is one I think we all should celebrate at this time of year, and…

3) This half-bottle of dry sparkling wine is the perfect any-occasion summer beverage. You should keep a couple of bottles in your refrigerator for the time when you’re just in a “life is good” frame of mind. Pop a cork. Pour a couple of glasses. Is this a great country, or what?
 
Pacific Rim Dry Riesling (Columbia Valley, Washington) Regular Price $12.50/ Feature Price $10.00
Bonny Doon winemaker and founder Randall Grahm made the first Pacific Rim Dry Riesling in 1992 by combining Riesling from the Pacific Northwest with the classic wine of Germany’s Mosel Valley. It was a real hit and developed its own loyal following. In 2006, when Grahm decided to narrow Bonny Doon’s focus, some of his staff emigrated to Washington State to form Pacific Rim winery. Their focus is Riesling (though they also make the lovely Pacific Rim Chenin Blanc that is a customer favorite here), and they are fanatics about it. (If you would like to share their fanaticism, check out their online book, Riesling Rules).
If you’ve stayed away from Riesling because you think it’s very sweet, this wine will be a revelation. The winemakers pick the grapes relatively early, before they contain a lot of sugar. The wine is then fermented in stainless steel tanks and left “on the lees” (with the yeast and grape skins) for five months. They use no oak, no malolactic fermentation (which gives some Chardonnays that “buttery” taste) - “it's as pure and unmanipulated as it gets,” say the winemakers. At only 12.5% alcohol and made with the eminently food-friendly Riesling grape, this wine really sings with seafood and any kind of “Pacific Rim” cuisine.
But there’s even more, this being America’s Pacific Northwest, the winery has an intense commitment to “sustainability” in all its dealings. For a complete list of what this commitment entails, look at their sustainability page. You know you’re in granola head country when the last bullet point is – “25% of our staff bike to work.”

Castle Rock Barrel Fermented Chardonnay (Central Coast, California) Regular Price $13.25/ Feature Price $10.60
Castle Rock is what amounts to a virtual winery. The skeleton staff, including a Business Guy and a Wine Guy, purchases grapes from growers in California, Oregon and Washington, then contracts with wineries in those regions to make its wines. It’s a great American marketing/business plan story, taking lemons (well, excess wine grapes) and making affordable lemonade in the form of very tasty wines at yummy prices. The label on this Barrel Fermented Chard says it subtly and well. The wine “is made from grapes grown in some of the finest vineyards in California’s Central Coast region.” These vineyards include well-known (and pricey) wineries like Talley and Foxen. So you’re getting premium wine that is “cellared and bottled by” Castle Rock. If you like California Chard, you’ll like this one. It’s rich with oak and butter with a long finish. Surf’s up!
 

Ehrhardt Chenin Blanc (Clarksburg, California) Regular Price $18.25/ Feature Price $14.60
 Another French/American connection is Chenin Blanc, the grape that makes the rich, soft wine of Vouvray in France's Loire Valley, was once a mainstay of major California wineries such as Charles Krug and Wente. The rise of California Chardonnay eclipsed the popularity of Chenin Blanc and many of the best Chenin Blanc vineyards were given over to other, more profitable varieties. But California wineries never gave up on Chenin and today there's more Chenin in California vineyards than in all of France. In 1984 a new American Viticultural Area (AVA) was created at Clarksburg, southwest of Sacramento as a uniquely suitable site for Chenin Blanc and Petite Sirah. That’s where this one is from. The wine is made by the fourth generation of the Herzog family, who bought the vineyard land from the Ehrhardts in 1902. It is a wine of subtlety and complexity, with some luscious fruitiness on the mid-palate and a long, cleansing finish. Don't serve it too cold, in order to let the soft aromas and gentle flavors wake up your mouth.
 
REDS

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Castle Rock California Cuvee Pinot Noir (California) Regular Price $12.45/ Feature Price $9.96
I'm often asked for "a good, cheap California Pinot."  The pace of this request increased after the success of the "Sideways" movie made Pinot Noir the wine du jour for people who wanted to seem more knowledgable about wine than they were.  But the success of the movie also raised the demand for California Pinot Noir, so the price went up.  For the better wines, it went way up.  That's where we turn to the folks at Castle Rock.
The last few releases of Castle Rock Pinot Noir have been from various areas in California.  We had one from Sonoma's Russian River Valley and another from Monterey.  This time, consulting winemaker August "Joe" Briggs (who makes some lovely and pricey Pinot from his own vineyards in Napa) has chosen to blend (cuvee) wines with various characteristics from around the state.  The result is not as distinctive as August Briggs Carneros Pinot Noir 2007 (at $40/bottle from the winery), but for everyday drinking it's got Pinot Noir's food friendly light body style; and at this under $10 Feature Price, it's a very friendly American.
 
Tobin James "Made in the Shade" Merlot (Paso Robles, California) Regular Price $20.75/ Feature Price $16.60
Not only did the Sideways movie increase the demand for Pinot Noir, it also lowered the demand for Merlot when Miles said, "if anyone orders Merlot, I'm leaving. I am NOT drinking any f*ing Merlot! "  It was a joke, folks.  Merlot is one of the noble grapes of Bordeaux.  It predominates in the Grand Cru wines of Saint-Emilion, including the Cheval Blanc Miles considers the most sublime wine he's ever tasted.
The "James Gang" down in Paso Robles certainly doesn't find anything wrong with Merlot.  They don't even see the need to blend it with Cabernet Sauvignon or Malbec as winemakers do in Bordeaux.  Instead, they bring the wonderful velvety fruitiness out of the grape.  Try it and you'll have it "made in the shade."
 
Four Vines Old Vine Cuvee Zinfandel (Paso Robles, Sonoma, Napa, Amador, California) Regular Price $16.60/ Feature Price $13.28
No selection of American wines would be complete without a California Zinfandel, and this “cuvee” or “blend” is a tour of the best Zinfandel growing regions in the state.  This is no pale pink "white" Zinfandel but a full-throated, deep, complex evocation of this grape that originated in the boot-heel of Italy.  Winemaker Christian Tietje expresses a typically American attitude about wine:

Life is a sensual experience, an adventure to be enjoyed. Winemaking is my contribution to the adventure, creating beauty from raw elements. Monster reds are my passion, and my travels have led me far and wide in pursuit of the red beast Zinfandel.

You don't have to go any further than your local Wine & Words shop to tame the beast...maybe with some barbecued ribs slathered with your favorite sauce.

Gnarly Head Cabernet Sauvignon (California) Regular Price $12.45/ Feature Price $9.96
Cabernet Sauvignon is indicative both of what's right about California winemaking and what's wrong with it.  The Napa cult Cabs are the finest expression of the American attitude -- bold, complex, inventive, cocksure.  But the current state of the business is still hanging on to the celebrity cachet of big bucks and big egos, while the international wine world moves on...to well-made, sophisticated wines like this one from Gnarly Head that doesn't cost an arm and a house mortgage to enjoy.  Gnarly Head was chosen Wine Enthusiast American Winery of the Year for 2007 because of this commitment to affordable quality.  I like the winery's description of the wine:

Gnarly Head Cabernet Sauvignon is crafted using grapes from specially selected vineyards in Napa Valley, Monterey and Lodi. The Napa Cabernet Sauvignon in this wine is from Rutherford, contributing the ripe fruit and earthy notes. Cabernet Franc from Monterey contributes aromatic notes of violets, currants and spices. Lodi delivers juicy fruit and voluptuous body to this wine through Malbec, Merlot and Petite Sirah. The finest California appellations and a selection of Bordeaux grapes create this Gnarly Cab.

That's a lot of wine for the price.  And the wine is a real summer crowd pleaser as the centerpiece with steaks, burgers, spicy sausage...  Hey, bring out those lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer.