Lummi Island Wine Tasting October 5 ’13
What? Hungarian Wine? Dahling, you must be joking!
Okay, okay, so I have no idea at all what this wine tastes like. But it was recommended by the distributor I bought it from, so how bad can it be? (actually, so far he hasn’t steered me wrong). And, I have to admit I like the label a lot. Over the years I have developed a philosophy of “show me a good winemaker and I will show you someone who is about equal parts Artist and Geek.” The Artist is at some level a sensualist who knows what good wine tastes like, and the Geek has the techno-mind and intellectual discipline that wine chemistry requires. So I think there may be some case to be made that artistically interesting labels should predict artistically interesting wines. So we shall see…!
Besides, this particular wine is also interesting because it is from a grape (furmint) and country (Austria) we gringos rarely associate with wine. However, most of us have heard of Tokai (tokaj, or tokaji) the legendary dessert wine of Austria, of which furmint is the predominant grape, traditionally grown on a small volcanic plateau near the Carpathian Mountains with harsh winters, cool dry springs, and lingering hot summers allowing a very long ripening period. Read more
Verdicchio Dei Castelli Di Jesi
Meanwhile, across the border in Italy, in the eastern region of Marche, since Roman times has grown another noble white wine, verdicchio. a versatile and seductive wine that goes well with pungent Italian cheeses like Pecorino and Parmesan, and with nuts, olives and seafood dishes. Way back in 410 AD, when Alaric, king of the Visigoths, was passing through the Marches on his way to sack Rome, (any excuse to head for a sunnier climate…?) he reportedly ordered that 40 mules be loaded with barrels of Verdicchio to take along with him because he held that the wine was excellent for maintaining and stimulating the strength of his soldiers. Another ancient endorsement came from Tuscan poet of the 16th century Pietro Aretino, who, despite his reputation as a cynic, had nothing but warm words of praise for verdicchio’s gustatory virtues. You should also know that a Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi can only be labeled with the geographical qualification Classico when it is produced in the oldest sector of the zone…like the one we are pouring this weekend. Finally, do you suppose Alaric ever reached Rome, whether he did indeed sack it, and whether he found any wines there he liked better than verdicchio? Do we suppose the Sacking of Rome was just a bunch of teenaged heathens out to Party? Read more
Republican Crackpots: The Trendy New Terrorism
OMD..is Ted Cruz channelling Joe McCarthy…??
I’m thinking about a new sci-fi script we could pitch. It would make a great movie. It’s set far in the future (like later in 2013), and the main character is this guy who has a really bad hairline and a really bad tailor. And, like Marlon Brando’s character in Waterfront, he really, really wants to be a Contender, but he has, you know, a big Trashbag full of Flaws that he pushes around dark streets at night in a stolen IGA shopping cart.
Despite his flaws, somehow, through various twists of fate, he gets to be an actual US Senator, and in a Flash of Brilliance he realizes that he can say or do anything he wants, and the more outrageous it is, the more air time he gets! He is working hard on figuring how to play it when he is visited in a dream by Joe McCarthy and Newt Gingrich, who equip him with the Chutzpah to think he is a real player, and even to believe that his idiotic ideas have some kind of screwy merit. We leave the viewer wondering if the Populace will realize before it’s too late that this guy is a Crackpot, or if they will follow him like the Pied Piper over the Fiscal Cliff, or if they will start putting Liberals into Concentration Camps– are you now or have you ever been a member of the Green Party…???!!!
First Warning: Mark your calendars!
This is a Countdown of sorts, toward something new for the wine shop. In a little over a week, Pat and I will be heading to France for a few weeks of wine-cation. One complication is that part of the time we will be taking part in Ryan’s Loire Valley wine tour, which means that for a couple of weeks neither he nor we will be available as your dutiful weekend hosts. What to do, what to do, such a Dilemma!
The plan for the moment, modelled vaguely after our elementary school days, is to offer you Substitute Hostesses who will pour your wines, lift your spirits, take your money, and show you a good time. (Hint: they both have the same first name…!)
Your Takeaway from this is that the wine shop will be CLOSED on BOTH Friday, October 18 and Friday, October 25th, but it will be open for tastings on every Saturday in October for the usual hours, 2-6pm. More on this next week!
This week’s Tasting
Tavignano verdicchio Castello di Jesi Classico ’11 Italy $11
Bright straw. Pure, penetrating aromas of apple and pear. Clean, fresh flavors of apple and apricot lead to a long, spicy, tannic finish and archetypal, chewy verdicchio character.
Evolucio Furmint Tokaj ’11 Hungary $11
100% Furmint, unoaked. Aromatic, richly flavorful, and bursting with citrus, fresh market apples, cantaloupe, and apricots, floral, and mineral notes. Slightly off-dry, with faint hint of tangerine just enough to bid this summer a fond adieu.
St. Cosme Little James Basket Press Grenache ’12 France $12
Precise, aromatic nose of cassis, cherry and lavender. Tightly wound, rustic Old World style, with a firm mineral spine giving clarity and lift to the dark berry and bitter cherry flavors.
Rigal Malbec ’10 France $11
From Cahors, the birthplace of malbec in France (not Argentina!); lots of plum and a bit of oak on the nose and palate, with lively notes of raspberry and licorice and a touch of earthiness.
Bodegas Breca Garnacha de Fuego ’12 Spain $9
Dark ruby/purple color; nose of jammy black cherries intertwined with crushed rock minerality. Full-bodied, with notes of ripe raspberries and black currants intermixed with camphor and forest floor.
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