Lummi Island Wine Tasting October 29 ’11 “Back from France…sort of”
Well, we’re back. Sort of. Still trying to integrate all the experiences. If Italy was a soft series of rich dioramas, France was more of a kaleidoscope made up of an endless maze of traffic roundabouts, old villages with labyrinths of narrow streets, and a vast array of micro-regions, each with its own individual character. We’ll have more to say about these things later on. For now, we just want to say it’s good to be home, and we’re looking forward to seeing you this weekend, Friday 4-7pm and Saturday from 2-6.
One of the cornerstones of every French village is the boulangerie, where you grab your morning baguette or croissants, fresh from the oven. Here’s a photo we took outside one:
Bread:
That’s life
It gives you strength and balance
Your bread is prepared
Before you with passion …
Your Boulanger kneads and fashions
With authentic gestures
Then he lets it sit to grow long
To give it its full flavor
It smells good the bread of your Artisan Boulanger!
This week’s wines:
Calera Chardonnay 08 California WA90pts $15
Offers abundant notes of honeysuckle, orange marmalade, white currants, and tropical fruits. Crisp, elegant, mid-weight, and revealing no evidence of its wood aging.
Vinosia Aglianico 08 Italy $12
Aglianico 100%; Deep garnet-purple colour. Raisin, blueberry and underbrush aromas. Some dried rose petals and spice. Crisp acidity and a medium body, velvety tannins, long finish. Addictive!
Townshend Red Table Washington $12
Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah blend; aromas of black cherry, blackberry, strawberry, cedar and a hint of orange zest fill your glass and then your mouth with lingering pepper & tobacco . A definite winner as weather turns colder.
Cougar Crest Dedication 4 ‘07 Washington $19
44% Syrah, 32% Merlot, 14% Cabernet Franc, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon. Luch, ripe plums, red currants, black cherries, and a hint of dried roses and herbs on the nose are balanced by acidity and tannins that are smooth and graceful, not overbearing. Rich on the palate and long on the finish–a favorite around here.
France trip October ’11 Part I: “Third Exit at the Roundabout”
Well, here we are in France, and so far our lodgings have been comfy, the scenery delightful, the wine ubiquitous and for the most part very good. Vineyards are everywhere. So are traffic circles, which replace all major and most minor intersections. We have a GPS that can’t tell the difference between a major road and a cowpath (hence our title, above). And access to wifi (“wee-fee”) has been intermittent, with few opportunities to post here for you.
We are continually thankful for Ryan’s great French class the last couple of months at the wine shop; it has been invaluable in meeting the everyday conversational challenges that continually arise. Bien fait, Monsieur! We hope you are all joining him at the wine shop Fridays and Saturdays while we are gone!
As I write this we are finishing three days at a sort of B&B near Sommieres that is a restored old stone farmhouse and outbuildings surrounded by beautiful fields of garrigue. (see link; the photo above is the vineyard at the Bertrand Stehelin winery in Gigondas, where we had a wonderful tour and degustation of his delightful wines.)
The last couple of days we have toured and tasted wine in a small region called Pic St. Loup, for which I have long had a particular fondness…and it turns out to be beautiful in many ways as well—we could easily spend a week or two right here, but alas, tomorrow we are off for a week in Lagrasse, visiting the wine regions of Corbieres, Minervois, and St. Chinian, all in the Languedoc region.
Stay tuned, mes amis!
Lummi Island Wine Tasting Oct 8 ’11
Just a note to let you all know that despite the fact that we are in France at the moment, notre ami Ryan will be taking over the reins at the wine shop while we are gone. So stop by and enjoy the fun on Friday from 4-7 and Saturday from 2-6 as usual.
Watch for more posts from France…at the moment internet access is very limited. Stay tuned!
Lummi Island Saturday Wine Tasting October 1 ’11
FERRY NEWS FERRY NEWS FERRY NEWS FERRY NEWS FERRY NEWS
As we go to press, dear Reader, the stalwart passenger boat “Island Commuter” (the name gets a zero for romance, but hey,she got the job done and we are grateful) is on her way home and our trusty Whatcom Chief is steaming back to Lummi Island, ready to hit the deck running (a strange yet curiously apropos metaphor…) after three weeks of R & R at wherever Old Boats go to get their Mojos serviceable for another year. It will be a relief for all of us Islanders, and of course we always look forward to seeing the Chief’s new color scheme. For the Chief, drydock is somewhere between a makeover at the spa and a stint in Rehab; either way she is gonna look Beautiful.
FRANCE FRANCE FRANCE FRANCE FRANCE FRANCE FRANCE FRANCE
On Tuesday Pat and I are taking off for southern France for a few weeks. We will post some of our adventures on the blog; as you might expect, the world of wine will play an important role in our journey. While we are gone the wine shop will continue to be open on Fridays from 4-7 and Saturdays from 2-6 with your host Ryan Wildstar who has graciously volunteered to turn on the lights, pour the wine, and lend a sympathetic ear. He may or may not be joined by other volunteers (like maybe Judy with some new wines…?!) All you need to know is that the fun will continue while we are away.
LAST WEEK LAST WEEK LAST WEEK LAST WEEK LAST WEEK LAST WEEK
Last Saturday started with a few new faces, and like the rest of drydock, the atmosphere was quiet and conversation easy and enjoyable. New guests included young women who jump out of perfectly good airplanes (defying logic) or travel to distant continents to climb rocks (also defying logic) and Jennifer’s sister and parents from Maryland (OMG, you let in a few Talls, and they ALL want to come…!) For what it’s worth, I’m working on a theory to explain why all the Talls have such charming families…send your ideas, we will include them in the theory!)
CHOCOLATE CHOCOLATE CHOCOLATE CHOCOLATE CHOCOLATE CHOCOLATE
No, don’t get your hopes up, Pat is not making a new batch of truffles. However, the next best thing is that we are restocked with goodies from Theo’s in Seattle. You may have noticed that we have been running low, and that will be remedied tout de suite. I can also tell you that there will be a new flavor (DARK chocolate with salted almonds…omg!) to drive you wild!
Drydock is finally over, life continues at last; so please come by and wish us Bon Voyage this weekend, and please come by on Fridays and Saturdays in October so Ryan doesn’t get lonely!
This week’s wines:
La Pepiere Muscadet Sur-LIe ’10 France WA89pts $13
Scented with green apple, lime, quarry dust, and a hint of elder flower. Low-key, soft to the touch for Muscadet, but highly refreshing; and tinged with citrus rind, crushed stone, and iodine, it finishes with mouth-watering persistence.
Colome Amalaya ‘09 Argentina $12
From one of the highest and most remote vineyards in the world (8000 ft). Dark, with a core of crushed currant and plum fruit laced with black tea, fig, raisin and cherry with hints of mesquite and fruitcake. Stays fresh on the finish. Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Tannat.
Perazzeta Erio ‘09 Italy $14
From a family winery just south of the Montalcino appellation (we also carry their exceptionally good olive oil!) comes this Sangio, cab, syrah blend (”Super Tuscan)– Balance, extract, and fruit so intense it induces sensations of actually chewing cherries, prunes and fresh dates.
Masquerade “Collines” Cab Sauv ’05 Washington $23
Masquerade is Bellingham’s newest winery, just moved from Walla Walla. We poured several of their wines Labor Day weekend, including their more feminine styled 2007 cab. By comparison this cabernet is big, powerful, and lingering with hints of black cherries and plums that give way to a smooth finish of chocolate and coffee bean.
2072 Granger Way