Artisan Wine Gallery

Comments Off

Lummi Island Wine Tasting November 16 ’13

Posted at November 14, 2013

Annual Fall Regatta

Typically the second weekend of November brings not only the Winter manifestation of the Lummi Island Artists’ Studio Tour; it also brings the annual Round the County (San Juan County, that is) sailing race. Each year about eighty boats gather in West Sound near the Orcas Island Yacht Club and begin the race on Saturday morning, rounding Orcas, Clark, Sucia, and Patos before stopping for the night at Roche Harbor. On Sunday they set out on the completion leg down the west side of San Juan Island, east of Lopez, Decatur, and Blakely Islands to finish again at Lydia Shoal near Obstruction Island, a total of some 76 miles.

What all this means to us on Lummi is an unexpected bright spot in the deepening autumn gloom. More often than not the weather is bright and sometimes very breezy when sometime in late morning the second Saturday of November a long line of sailboats, colorful spinnakers flying, threads up Haro Strait between us and Clark Island. Because of the light wind this year, the boats appeared in a long, continual string rather than the usual widely spaced clumps, providing the delightful view above…!

(click image for larger view)

Not your mother’s Retsina!

It’s one of those things we all go through: the first taste of retsina, usually in a Greek restaurant, and usually when we are quite young. It is actually made by putting some measure of pine resin (“Pinus Halepensis”) in with the grape must (skins, seeds, etc.) during fermentation, yielding a white wine with a decidedly piney character. It has been around so long that it has been declared a Traditional Appellation, and can only be produced in Greece. Back in the day, we all knew retsina as the weird wine we always had in Greek restaurants, and which often gave us nasty headaches the next day.

So it is with surprise and pleasure that we offer for your tasting experience this weekend a “new wave” retsina, more judiciously made with an eye to quality, and yielding a surprisingly tasty white wine. The pine resin is definitely there, but not so much that it smothers the white wine behind it. I think you’re gonna like it!

A taste of Portugal

Although we have occasional visitors specifically seeking Portuguese wines, we don’t often encounter the wines in tastings and generally don’t have much of a selection. That changed recently when Ryan needed a couple of Portuguese wines (and a couple of Greek wines!) for his fall tasting class in town. One of our reps brought in several of each for us to taste, and the four we are tasting this weekend are the ones we liked best. It is fair to say we were both surprised by each of them. As you can see from the map at left, there are eight main wine regions in Portugal. The delicious white we are pouring is from the Dão region, and the red is from Alentejo, further south. Alentejo, we have learned, is also the world’s most important area for the growing of cork-oak, known in Portugal as “sobreiro.” It has been grown commercially in the region for the past 300 years, where it is integrally co-planted with vineyards, pastures, and citrus groves. Who Knew??

This week’s tasting

Ritinitis Nobilis Retsina Greece $16
A “new wave” style Retsina, using modern winemaking technology and carefully managed co-fermentation with fresh pine resin, results in a surprisingly elegant and refreshing wine.

Albaro Castro Dão Branco ’12 Portugal $15
A lovely combination of fragrant crisp fruit and intense mineral notes. A blend of lemony and fragrant Encruzado, crisp and apricot-y Bical, and smoky-edge Cercial.

Agricultura Vinho Tinto ’11 Portugal $11
From Alentejo, on Portugal’s south-eastern border with Spain, comes this eminently quaffable red wine with surprising depth and complexity.

Perazzeta Erio Supertuscan ’10 Italy $16
An established favorite around here, this sangiovese-cab-syrah blend from Tuscany (we also carry their olive oil!) is rich, balanced, and delicious–a great food wine.

Gaia Agiorgitiko ’08 Greece $23
A well-structured and surprisingly delicious Greek red wine with intense ripe fruit aromas, well-integrated oak, and a velvety, seductive texture.

Wine Tasting

Comments Off

Lummi Island Wine Tasting November 9 ’13

Posted at November 7, 2013

Hooray, we ARE open this Friday!

Here we are up to our knees in November, and finally we are shining our Friday night ray of light into the “I don’t think we’re saving daylight anymore, Toto” Gloom that has gathered around us since setting the clocks back last weekend. We will be open for our familiar Friday night hours of 4-7pm. We are hopeful Janice will bring the latest loaf of wood-fired bread to share, and maybe we will even turn on the fireplace to keep you warm and string our winter lights to guide your way in and out.

Autumn Studio Tour

Winter Studio Tour is a different animal from Spring and Summer studio tours. Most obviously, it certainly isn’t summer anymore, which can make for attendance obstacles. Not too many years ago, winter studio tour was the first weekend in December. However, in those days (they may come again, depending on El Niño/la Niña) it was common to get a Nor’easter in early December (or even late November), which could mean sub-freezing temperatures, high winds, and maybe even snow. There were some studio tours where absolutely No One came out, the weather was that nasty!

So it was a good idea to move the tour to the second weekend in November. I personally think it would also be a good idea to make it Saturday only, since attendance is often sparse on Sunday, but hey, maybe I am just lazy. For this tour we are continuing our show from Labor Day, adding some new works by Ryan Wildstar and Pam Miller. One or both of them will be in the shop both days from 10 till 1 to talk with you about their work, and we will be in from 1-6pm for our regular wine tasting (notes below, as usual!).

Momix to remember

As it turns out, both our birthdays fall within a week in late October/early November. We often talk about a joint celebration, but rarely actually do it. Well, this year we celebrated with dinner at Giuseppe’s (never disappointing) and tickets to the Momix dance production at Mt. Baker Theater. Momix is a small (5 men and 5 women), very creative and innovative dance troupe. They stretch the concept of choreography in lots of directions to include amazing lighting, costumes, and props reminiscent of Cirque de Soleil. Often you are not quite sure what you are looking at as the dancers seamlessly weave you into their illusions. The accompanying video gives you a taste. Bravo! see video in larger view

Were the Piccolominis really Meanies??

When we visited Italy several years ago we did a post about the 100-year-old church at St. Antimo, where a group of priests still say Mass every morning complete with beautiful Gregorian chant and huge clouds of incense, both of which hang like spirits in the morning sunlight that pours in above the altar. A short distance from the old cathedral we visited the winery at Ciacci Piccolomini, famous for its Brunello (it is Montalcino, after all), but also for many other wines. In addition, of course, the vineyard lands have been in the family since the 13th Century. The Piccolominis were a powerful family engaged in a centuries-long struggle for power against the other great Houses, including the Medici, and went through various periods of exile and triumph. The family included soldiers, prelates, literary men, and two popes—Enea Silvio, who became Pius II (1458–64), and his nephew Francesco, who was Pius III (1503).

This weekend we will pour their “Ateo,” a blend of cab and merlot (what, no sangiovese???) that has plenty of character, from a winery that has a LOT of history. Come check it out!

This week’s wines

Veramonte “la Gloria” sauvignon blanc ’11 Chile $9
Light straw and saline notes lead to a refreshing core of gooseberry, citrus and chive flavors.

Casarena ’505′ Malbec ’10 Chile $12
Dark red. Musky berries, tobacco and spices on the nose and palate, with nuances of gunpowder and pepper. Finishes smooth and persistent, with building tannins. Terrific value.

Borsao Garnacha ’12 Spain $9
Inky purple. Aromas and flavors of blueberry, blackberry and bitter cherry are brightened by peppery spices. Concentrated and velvety in texture, with good finishing breadth and cling. An outstanding value.

Ciacci Piccolomini Ateo ’09 Italy $14
Juicy cab-merlot blend that shows excellent up-front intensity, with notes of freshly cut flowers and mint that give the dark berry fruit an attractive sense of lift.

Lost River Western Red ’10 Washington $17
Lovely blend of Merlot and Cabernet Franc; dark fruits on the nose, smooth and rich in the mouth, enjoy with rich sauces or all by itself.

Wine Tasting

Comments Off

Lummi Island Wine Tasting November 2 ’13

Posted at October 31, 2013

Nope, not open this Friday, either!

Well, the good news is that Ryan is back from France, and next week we will resume our regular Friday hours from 4-7, including the latest loaf of fresh-baked bread from Janice’s wood-fired oven. The bad news is that we will not be open this Friday, November 1. We will, however, be open the usual hours on Saturday, November 2 from 2-6, and look forward to seeing you then!

Grenache Blanc

For the third week in a row we will be featuring a wine from one of our favorite French wineries, La Rocaliere located in Lirac in the southern Rhone Valley near Avignon. This week’s wine is their Lirac Blanc, a blend of grenache blanc and clairette, two varietals that may be new to you.

click on link above for lovely intro to their website…and turn your sound on

Grenache Blanc is thought to be a mutation of Grenache Noir, having originated in northeast Spain centuries ago before going to France, where it has flourished in the Languedoc and the Rhone Valley, especially in Chateauneuf-du-Pape (across the Rhone from Lirac). We found it both in Spain and France, with slightly different characteristics depending on where it is grown, and really liked it in both places. In both countries it is a major component of aromatic white blends, adding crisp acidity, medium to full-bodied texture, and slightly floral components. It can show pleasing notes of green apple, pears, cider, honeydew melon, white peaches, golden raisins, lemon, dill, white flowers, or sage. It is now grown also in Washington, and I predict it will become increasingly popular in the coming years.

Clairette is the most-produced white grape in Chateauneuf-du-Pape; it was also often used to make vermouth, because it produces wine high in alcohol and low in acidity. I confess I have not tasted a clairette by itself, so cannot say much about it, except we will look for one so we can all try it!

Library Reopens!

For those of you who may have been away on another planet for the past year, your attention is invited to our beautiful, newly remodeled Island Library, which recently reopened even though it is not quite fully completed or furnished. It is far enough along to earn lots of oohs and ahs from visitors, though. This project has literally been years in the planning, fundraising, and construction, and lots of Islanders played helpful roles, beginning with the tireless volunteers of FOIL (Friends of the Island Library), who saw the need, made a plan, raised money, put out the specs for bid, and stewarded the process through every step. So hats off, my friends, and Three Cheers for FOIL on a job well done!

artist’s conception, above

Also, kudos to Mark Sexton and his crew, who did a great job including lots of necessary adjustments as the demolition phase revealed a host of surprises about the original structure, and to KC of Island Quality Painting, who donated the labor for the entire interior painting. And let’s also raise our collective glasses to the entire community of volunteers who moved, dug, scraped, cleaned, stacked, unstacked, schlepped, measured, sawed, nailed, caulked, sanded, painted, shingled, swept, installed, and otherwise donated their time and talents to this massive community effort!

current reality, left!

Whatcom County Library System will be moving in new shelving and books in the next week or two, and the Library will hold its Grand Opening party on Sunday, November 17. Mark your calendars!

This Week’s Tasting

La Rocaliere Lirac Blanc ’11 France $16
Grenache Blanc and Clairette blend. Subtle, elegant floral aromas of jasmine, honeysuckle, and verbena. Rich and round on the palate, with wonderful notes of fresh citrus.

Montes Classic Malbec ’11 Chile 88pts $11
from nearly 100-year old vines in the Colchagua valley; ripe dark cherry and creme de cassis on the nose while the palate offers ripe, chewy, dark cherry and bilberry fruit encased in fine tannins and a pure vanilla-y finish that is satisfying.

Terres D’Artagnan Gascogne ’10 France $9
Alluring nose of black raspberry, flowers, and garrigue leads into a very juicy, round and harmonious palate with velvety, soft, ripened tannins and fresh acidity.

Scarafone Montecucco Rosso ’08 Italy $12
90% Sangiovese and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon. A rustic Italian red with aromas and flavors of dried cherry and dark blackberry, with a somewhat toasty character that includes bramble and dried herbs with a hint of leather.

Vin du Lac Les Amis Riesling ’10 Washington $8
A blend of riesling (green apple aromas and flavors), Muscat (honeysuckle), and Gewurztraminer (earthy spiciness) that combine into a delightful, aromatic, and refreshing wine.

Wine Tasting

Comments Off

Lummi Island Wine Tasting October 26 ’13

Posted at October 24, 2013

Coal Hard Cash

As we mentioned a few weeks ago, this year’s Whatcom County Council election, in which people are already casting their ballots by mail, might have global implications because of the proposed Coal Port development at Cherry Point (yes, folks, we can see it from here!). Curiously, the Coal Money we all expected to see in the race has not seemed to materialize…until just a few days ago! As a final campaign finance window was about to close, about $150k suddenly showed up in the coffers of Save Whatcom, a brand new PAC backed almost entirely by Big Coal interests. Their first nonsense-filled flyer hit our mailbox yesterday. Never mentioning coal, the message focuses on the usual job-creation mythology industry has been using for decades to squeeze sweetheart tax benefits from unwitting communities (more on this below).

(click on photos for better resolution)

Brief Rant on the Job Creation Myth

For most of the last fifty years, businesses have perpetuated the myth that local communities reap such huge benefits when businesses decide to locate there that communities should offer huge subsidies to attract them, including tax breaks, environmental compromises, or special prices on public utilities. The supposed community benefits are “jobs,” which are only a “benefit” in the very rare case when such a business arrival coincides precisely with the skills of the currently unemployed labor pool in the community. But in the general case, the entire infrastructure of the host community will have to expand to accommodate the new workers, their families, their utility needs, their cars— i.e., the phenomenon we all know as sprawl, which most rational people would agree is something most devoutly to be eschewed. So the last thing a community should do is subsidize business with sweet deals! Look for variations on the “business is doing us a favor by locating here so hey, let’s sell them our only cow for a handful of genetically engineered beans!” argument in your mailbox any minute.

The Really Scary part of all of this is that lately a whole new crop of politicians (aka “Tea Party”) has spread across the land who actually believe this nonsense. This is the knee-slapping and gut-wrenching Reality of our present time, as evidenced by the recent government shutdown: these people actually believe the idiotic rhetoric that the Republican Party and Fox News have been putting out for the past twenty years! How scary is that? Read more on job myths

Foggy Island Mushroom Bloom

It’s been the foggiest week I can remember around here, most of the day, every day for the past week. Cold, dark, and damp. A little trying for some of us, but as it turns out GREAT for mushrooms. A walk through Otto Farm yields an amazing array of exotic fungi, but even in our own neighborhood I found all of these (below) just today. Our forest-supporting, underground fungi thrive in this weather, making their presence known by sending up mushrooms –sort of “fungus flowers”– or “fruiting bodies,” of certain fungal organisms; their role is to produce spores and release them, after which they can melt back into the earth (as in last photo). Many, of course, are delicious to eat; others are deadly poisonous; and still others can turn you into Alice chasing the White Rabbit.

This week’s tasting

Cloudlift Cellars Updraft ’11 Washington $17
Tom Stangeland’s beautiful interpretation of a classic White Bordeaux (sauvignon blanc and semillon) with the added weight and ripeness that Washington’s climate usually delivers.

Eguren Protocolo Rosado ’12 Spain $8
Bright, mineral-accented aromas of redcurrant and strawberry, with incisive citrus fruit and red berry flavors that gain weight with air. Finishes dusty and long, with lingering spiciness.

Borsao Berola ’09 Spain 90pts $13
(70% garnacha, 20% syrah, 10% cabernet sauvignon; Pungent, smoky aromas of dark berry preserves, cherry pit and spicy licorice; broad and fleshy palate of cherry, blackcurrant, and a touch of succulent herbs.

Palama Negroamaro ’10 Italy $10
Elegantly expansive, rich and robust, with silky mouthfeel, aromas of violets, plums, fresh ground pepper, and palate of blackberry jam with accents of cinnamon, leather, tobacco and smoke.

La Rocaliere Lirac Rouge ’10 France $16
Equal parts grenache, mourvedre, and syrah. Clay hillsides and serene aging in cement tanks yield this
inky purple wine with deeply pitched aromas and flavors of cherry-cola, licorice and violets.

Wine Tasting

Lummi Island Wine Tasting November 16 ’13

Lummi Island Wine Tasting November 9 ’13

Lummi Island Wine Tasting November 2 ’13

Lummi Island Wine Tasting October 26 ’13

About

Search

Archives

Categories

Recent Posts

Artisan Wine Gallery latest blog

Links