Brown Zin

I've found a new favorite - Brown Estate Zinfandel. I tried their single vineyard 2009 Mickey's Block Zinfandel at a friend's house and loved it - smooth, chocolatey, spicy, dark-fruity. So enjoyable on its own. Then, I tried another bottling at Ubuntu in Napa, a vegetarian restaurant that really knows what to do with veggies. They made a bean stew taste meaty without any fake meat or seitan or anything. I was surprised by the number of reds on their wine list and decided that the wine pairing must have been carefully tested. I wanted the Brown Zin anyway, not caring if it went with our food choices. It was just as enjoyable as my first experience, if not more so, and it helped bring me to the conclusion that Zinfandel (and Brown in particular) is a very versatile red, pairing well with meats, of course, but also with lighter meals (of veggies) and even on its own. Some Zins have a touch of sweetness from those ripe California grapes; if it's a lower alcohol Zin (I'm talking 14% or lower), there may be some residual sugar in the wine. If it tastes like chocolate, I want it. Less calories! (Maybe?)

Brown Estate is a Zinfandel-focused family-owned vineyard, believed to be the first and only black-owned estate in Napa. The waitress at Ubuntu said they tried all their different Zins and loved them all. This winery is definitely on my list the next time I plan a trip.

Ridge Bloggers Tasting #2 - A Monte Bello Vertical

Last Friday I was lucky enough to attend my second blogger's tasting at Ridge Vineyards, my favorite California winery. The theme is always a surprise, so I was very excited as I ascended the 4 mile hill to Monte Bello in the Santa Cruz Mountains. I arrived and almost walked in on another event in the same location as the last tasting, but I was quickly redirected to the brand-new Black Mountain Room, where our tasting had just begun. Cheeses and bread were ours for the taking, 2009 Chardonnay was poured in our glasses to prime our palates, and then the theme was revealed: an 11-year library vertical of Monte Bello! Recall that Monte Bello is Ridge's famous Bordeaux-style blend, based heavily on Cabernet Sauvignon, followed by Merlot and small/varying amounts of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot.

I was thrilled by this theme. The oldest Monte Bello I have had was a 1989, and I loved it. And then, a challenge was posed: order the wines from oldest to youngest. The wines were all in brown bags, lettered from A-K. We tasted them blind, 2 at a time, noting the color, sediment, aromas, and structural development. These are the things you should observe to deduce the age of a wine. Is it bright purple, or more brick red? Does the nose give off fresh fruit or more dried, stewed fruit, or none at all? Are the tannins grippy or soft, or is there heavy sediment where tannins once lived? I focused on these attributes. I am not an overly competitive person, but there was a prize for the winner! I love prizes.

So, 2 by 2 we went. Fellow bloggers tweeted while we tasted, and a "Twitterfall" was displayed on a large flatscreen TV behind, showing the tweets as they came in. (I was the only person not tweeting. Am I missing out here?) We were mostly silent except for the occasional comment on a tweet or about the wines' ages or flavors.With each pair, I made comparisons to the previous. A is younger than B, F is older than G, F and G are older than A and B, etc. It was like a puzzle. At the end, everyone recorded their final order and then Christopher unveiled the wines in the correct order. He asked who had the most correct placements. It was me! I won the contest, with 7 out of 11 correct!

And what was my prize? A bottle of the 2010 Monte Bello, a tank sample, not even filtered yet! I might age it for around 20 years, given that I tend to prefer the Monte Bello's from the '80s and '90s.

Not to generalize, but all the wines were amazing. The ones from the '70s were fascinating in their differences, with subtle changes in flavor and structure from 1977 to 1978. The 1981 and 1985 were beautiful, with fruit and softness and a complex earthiness. The '90s were bright and spicy, and 2000 and 2006 were vibrant and fruity, with grippy tannins. The 2010 barrel sample was in a class by itself, bright purple with inky dark fruit and firm structure.

I'm very grateful to be part of the Ridge blogger family. Thanks to Christopher for including me!

Check out Ridge's blog for more:

http://blog.ridgewine.com/2011/06/21/wine-bloggers-tasting-2-6-17-11-the-aftermath/

Bubbles, bubbles everywhere, but not a drop to drink... yet!

Champagne was on tap this week at San Francisco Wine Center, where our class highlighted the awesomeness of Champagne with some very special bubblies. We had a great sampling of vintage and non-vintage plus a trio of pinks. There is no prettier wine than a glass of pink Champagne. I loved the Billecart-Salmon Cuvee Elisabeth, the first "prestige" Champagne I've ever had. This retails for around $150-$200 per bottle. My pics are blurry still but I think I may have solved the problem so I hope next time is better. For now, these will have to suffice. Think of it as looking at Champagne through bubble-filled glasses.

Billecart-Salmon Cuvee Elisabeth Salmon Brut Rose 1998

Check out the SFWC blog for the full list of Champagnes!