lummi island wine tasting april 27 ’18
(note: some photos will enlarge when clicked)
No Bread this week
Sorry, no bread orders or pickup this week.
Look for an email next Sunday regarding bread selections for next week!
Kerloo
We first encountered Kerloo wines a few years ago on a visit to Walla Walla, when they had a little tasting room downtown, and remember being impressed with their pleasing texture rich flavors. We encountered their wines again earlier this week at a distributor tasting of Washington and Oregon wines. We ordered two of them, one of which (Majestic GSM) we will be pouring for your pleasure this weekend, and the other (grenache blanc) very soon.
Kerloo began in 2007 undr the guidance of young winemaker Ryan Crane. His wines have gotten a lot of press in the last few years as he has developed into a wine maker of some distinction, in 2013 being one of the wine makers featured by Wine Enthusiast Magazine, which described him one of several young wine makers who are altering the landscape of Northwest wine.
This year’s GSM is a mostly grenache and mourvedre with just a bit (5%) of syrah. Typical of the Kerloo style, it shows freshness and purity, juicy acidity and
solid ripeness. There is a plush quality to it, showing an alluring nose of (I am not making this up!) fresh lilacs, a soft, silky texture and rich flavors that linger and please the senses. As, you know, wine is meant to do…!
St. Cosme Little James Basket Press
This is a wine we have brought in sometime every year since we opened in 2005. It’s made by a well-established, multi-generational French winery in Gigondas. Although this is perhaps their lowest-end wine, mostly grenache, it is made in an unusual and intriguing way, using a variation on what is known at the solera system. The main feature of this method is that it produces a “rolling blend” of wines from many vintages. Each year part of the wine is bottled, while the remainder is mixed with the new vintage to age for another year. That process continues for many years.
Like a sourdough, each solera has a beginning, and each time some is taken away, wine from the latest vintage is added to the blend to age. This particular solera began in 1999, so next year the addition from the 2018 harvest will mark the 20th year of this solera. Fermentation and aging are done in concrete tanks which yield a soft texture and quiet disposition.
Over the years we have seen the wine evolve from a pretty challenging “barnyard” wine with lots of rustic, earthy character to a smoother, somewhat richer style, while maintaining a certain rustic authenticity. A wine to make us all smile.
Mar a Lago Update: The Emperor’s New Clothes
Certainly all of us old-timers remember the story, probably read to us from an old hard-bound book at bedtime when we were four or five years old. As we recall, the Emperor had a new tailor, who either by Design or Ignorance took a Big Chance by convincing the Emperor that he was being clad royally in the finest material known, so fine it was hard to see. Thus the Emperor is paraded before his people in his New Clothes, to polite cheers, until one child Names the Facade for what it is: The Emperor is Naked!
My recollection is that the child’s outburst broke the bubble and All Hell Broke Loose, but not, I think, in Today’s World. If we imagine the News Conference at the end of the Emperor’s Parade, we would inevitably have Palace Officials (Huckabee Sanders) waxing Rhapsodic about the Ephemeral Beauty of the Emperor’s Outfit, Palace political Operatives (Kellyann Conway) insisting there was never a parade, or New Clothes, or a Child who Saw Anything, and Who Would Care Anyway?
Fox News would run a Special on how the Democrats had hired a 47-year-old Midget from Hackensack to play the little kid and say the Emperor was naked, I mean, How Low will these Democrats go anyway, have they Really No Shame? The Head Grasshopper in charge of the Senate would admit there may have been a Parade somewhere, and the Emperor might have been in it, and call for Hearings, but promise never to waste the taxpayers’ money by actually holding them.
Meanwhile the Emperor would praise the Tailor for his fine work and then Fire him in a Five-Part Tweetstorm for his lack of Loyalty. The Opposition would gather videos of the Emperor in the Parade and the precise identity of the child who spoke out but would fail to get them out of committee because they are, after all the Minority Party; and a few from the Majority Party would roll their eyes toward the Throne they Hope will be Empty Soon and plot how to get it for themselves without being Obvious about it.
Like the Emperor’s New Clothes, there is No There there, no real Facts, no progress, no responsibility, no aspiration to Higher Causes, no real Debate, no logical Continuity, and the growing Dysphoria of Colossal Incompetence.
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This week’s wine tasting
Quails’ Gate Chenin Blanc ’16 Canada
Honeysuckle, grass, citrus, pear, and melon mingle on the nose. The palate is dry and complex with beautifully balanced acidity, lovely weight and mid-palate texture stony mineral note. Great with NW seafood!
JM Cinsault Rose ’16 Washington $23
Bigger, more textured, and more aromatic than one expects from a rosé; in the dark could be mistaken for a full-bodied white blend…delicious!
Crios Malbec ’16 Argentina $14
Bright, dark red. Redcurrant, black cherry, ripe strawberry and spices on the nose; sweet red fruit flavors are complicated by earth, licorice and menthol; creamy fruit is firmed by smooth tannins…a terrific value.
St. Cosme Little James Basket Press Grenache ’16 France $11
An old favorite from an ongoing solera* with an aromatic nose of cassis, cherry and lavender; rustic Old World style, with a firm mineral spine giving clarity and lift to the dark berry and bitter cherry flavors.
Kerloo GSM Majestic ’15 Washington $24
Aroma of leather, black cherries, plums, black pepper, and earth. On the palate smooth and silky with bright, spicy-salty red cherry notes, dusty roses, tobacco, light baking spices, and wet stones.
lummi island wine tasting april 20 ’18
(note: some photos will enlarge when clicked)
Bread this week
Pain au Levain – Made with a nice mix of bread flour and freshly milled whole wheat and rye flours. After building the sourdough and mixing the final dough it gets a long cool overnight ferment in the refrigerator. This really allows the flavor to develop in this bread. A great all around bread – $5/loaf
Cinnamon Raisin – Made with a nice mix of bread flour and freshly milled whole wheat as well as rolled oats. Some honey for sweetness, a little milk for a tender crumb and loaded with raisins and a healthy dose of cinnamon. This is not a rich sweet bread with a swirl of cinnamon sugar, the cinnamon is mixed in and to flavor the entire bread and it is a hearty rustic loaf. Great for breakfast toast, even better for french toast – $5/loaf
And pastry this week…
Brioche au Chocolate – A rich brioche dough made with plenty of butter, eggs and sugar, rolled out and spread with pastry cream before sprinkling with dark chocolate. The dough is folded over all that delicious filling and cut into individual pieces. As with all pastry quantities are limited so if you want these delightful pastries be sure and get your order in early. 2/$5
Concert This Weekend!
Our Spring Concert with singer-songwriter-minstrel Robert Sarazin Blake is filling up but there are still a few spaces left: from 4-6 pm this Sunday, April 22 in the wine shop!
As Robert’s many local followers know, he is a modern-day troubadour who travels widely (mostly here in the Pacific Northwest and in Ireland) to share his craft, very often in pub atmospheres like our dear wine shop. And to all venues he brings his sonorous voice, open heart, wry humor, and engaging songs to weave a web of well-being around you. For those of you who have not attended any of our concerts, know that our little shop is a great venue for Robert’s style, which is is always engaging and energizing.
Suggested performance donation is a modest $15 per person, and a selection of wines will be available by the glass. And since space is very limited, please confirm reservations soon!
Learn more about Robert’s music here.
April Flowers
Just down the street is a beautiful flowering plum tree (or is it cherry?) that has grown into a bonsai-like shape next to the road. Each year around this time it Puffs Out. rich with Blossoms, perfect in its Leggy Asymmetry. It has become an annual Icon of Spring, buds slowly taking shape, and then over a day or two Bursting into Full Bloom.
Up close each blossom shows its own personality…
Further along on the same walk
On a well-work path
We find this array of mushrooms,
More little Miracles,
Graceful Parasols in the Afternoon Sun.
Mar a Lago Update: A Few More Stops at WTF Station
Some while back we mused about the Parallels between the Tweetster’s “Government” and the Mad Hatter’s Tea Party. You will recall that Time had marooned the Hatter, the March Hare, and Dormouse in an Eternal Teatime where although Chaos and Contradiction are the ruling principles, one is tantalized to suspect that some mostly incomprehensible sense of order might still exist if only we could grasp it.
In recent days the world has presented us with a series of neck-snapping, double-taking, “are you kidding me” moments in which whatever Shreds of Reality we have been clinging to for the past year have been crumbling like Graham Crackers in Hot Cocoa, a kind of soupy, Irretrievable Mess of Goo.
These scenes include the Tweetster’s “lawyer” Michael Cohen linked to Tweetsqueteer Sean Hannity of Fox News; a growing trail of bizarre “business expenses” rung up by EPA head Scott Pruitt, like Teams of Bodyguards to accompany him Everywhere; the Appearance of Stormy Daniels and her Lawyer just about Everywhere, like Surreal Punctuation Marks around everything the Tweetster does; the Release and Feeding Frenzy around ex-FBI Director James Comey’s new book, its Meaning, and the Tweetstorm it has evoked, and of course, the promised International Date between the Trumpster and North Korea’s Un-er.
Like the Hatter’s Tea Party, and like the Twilight Zone, different Rules are in play here, and No One Can Guess what will happen next. Our Hope: that the Tweetster and the Un-er meet and Get Along to the point that they decide to Swap Haircuts and Costumes, you know, for a day or so. Maybe do a few Skits together, or a little dance routine. Yes, we’d all think, “Are they Cute or What…?”
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This week’s wine tasting
Joel Gott Gruner Veltliner ’15 Washington $14
Aromas of apple, Asian pear, and Meyer lemon with a hint of white pepper. On the front of the palate, citrus and tart green apple flavors are followed by crisp minerality on the mid-palate, and a bright, refreshing finish.
Dom. Fontsainte Gris de Gris Rose ’17 France $16
Crystalline salmon color with amethyst tints; aromas of raspberry, cherry, and freshly picked strawberries, followed by exotic aromas of pineapple and mango. On the palate, direct and fresh as the density and richness of the fruit mingle with superb acidity. Stunningly balanced.
Monte Tondo Veneto Corvina ’16 Italy $12
Ruby red colour; bright lively nose with fresh cherry, black berry and black pepper hints; medium-bodied with moderate acidity and supple, well-integrated tannin – well balanced, dark fruit core with cherry, dark chocolate and spicy notes. moderate length with a smooth, seductive finish and a spicy aftertaste.
Chateau de Cabriac Corbieres ’14 France $14
Syrah, Mourvèdre, Carignan, Grenache; aromas of black berry fruits; palate shows blackcurrant, blackberry and hints of coffee. The flavors continue to develop to a dense and powerful finish.
Clos La Coutale Cahors ’15 France $16
Amalaya vineyards sit a mile above sea level in the Andes where extreme conditions stress the sustainably farmed vines, delivering fruit of intense flavor of rich red fruits and a hint of spice with soft, approachable tannins.
lummi island wine tasting april 13 ’18
(note: some photos will enlarge when clicked)
Bread this week
Spelt Levain – Spelt is an ancient wheat grain with a nutty, slightly sweet flavor and milder gluten than modern wheat. This bread is made with a levain, or sourdough, traditional bread flour and about 1/3 spelt flour, fresh milled whole spelt and fresh milled whole rye. It is a great all around bread – $5/loaf
Sweet Corn & Dried Cranberry – Made with polenta and bread flour, then enriched with milk, butter and honey for a soft and tender crumb, then loaded up with dried cranberries. Has great corn flavor but is not a traditional quick cornbread. – $5/loaf
and pastry this week…(oh boy, oh boy…)
Bear Claws! – Made with a danish pastry dough rich in cream, eggs, sugar and butter. The dough is rolled out and spread with a filing made with almond paste, powdered sugar, egg whites and just a bit of cinnamon to round out the flavor. Then, because bears love honey, topped with a honey glaze after baking. – 2/$5
Sunday Concert April 22!
The Countdown continues! Our Spring Concert with singer-songwriter-minstrel Robert Sarazin Blake! This year’s concert will be from 4-6 pm on Sunday, April 22 in the wine shop!
As Robert’s many local followers know, he is a modern-day troubadour who travels widely (mostly here in the Pacific Northwest and in Ireland) to share his craft, very often in pub atmospheres like our dear wine shop. And to all venues he brings his sonorous voice, open heart, wry humor, and engaging songs to weave a web of well-being around you. For those of you who have not attended any of our concerts, know that our little shop is a great venue for Robert’s style, which is is always engaging and energizing.
Suggested performance donation is a modest $15 per person, and a selection of wines will be available by the glass. And since space is very limited, please confirm reservations soon!
Learn more about Robert’s music here.
Montes
Chile’s Colchagua Valley is something like California’s Central Coast, boasting a perfect wine-growing climate, with semi-arid conditions much of the year, and lots of hot days moderated each night by cool ocean breezes. The steep slopes of the coastal mountains provide provide granitic soils and perfect sun exposure, and rains have deposited layers of silt and clay that add character to the wines.
The Colchagua Valley viticultural area stretches about seventy miles from Chile’s coastal hills south of Santiago eastward toward the foothills of the Andes. Its latitude mirrors California’s Central Coast wine region, and it produces many of the same varietals, including cabernet, merlot, and malbec, as well as carmenere, its “own” Bordeaux varietal that was thought extinct until recently found thriving in Chile.
This weekend we are pouring two merlots, one from Chile’s Colchagua Valley, and one from the California Central Coast. which enjoy similar climates. Should be interesting!
Mar a Lago Update: Rats and Sinking Ships, cont’d
Almost exactly a year ago we commented on the ouster of Michael Flynn, the first Eyebrow-raising Casualty at the Tweetster Corral, and we linked to a cartoon that invoked the metaphor of Rats leaving a Sinking Ship. That now seems Downright Prophetic, except of course that now the Rats aren’t Jumping so much as Being Thrown into the water.
One noteworthy Exception to this rule is House Speaker Ryan, (and a few Senators eying the White House for Themselves) who just announced he will not seek House reelection in 2018. And this comes at a time when 40 other Republican House members have also declared their intention not to run again…like Whoa, talk about Rats hitting the Life Rafts...! In that light it was something of a Comfort to read Paul Krugman’s column this morning, where he Pulled No Punches in listing the many reasons why he has always considered Mr. Ryan a Con Artist, Flim-Flam Man, and a Fraud. Not praiseworthy observations.
Still, Ryan is an ambitious guy, and you have to wonder what the longer term game plan is. He is Ambitious and Self-Anointed, and we have long thought he Has Had His Eye on the White House for himself. So, with So Many Rats going Over the Side, and water starting to Slosh Ominously in the Bilges, maybe the Speakster is beginning his Move, spreading Mutiny in the Fo’c’sle. Arrrrr, who Knows, maybe he can yet get the Crew to Rebel, cast the Tweetster and the Penster to the Sharks, and Take Control of the Bridge. Some of us thinks they already be makin’ their Move…!
This week’s wine tasting
Domaine Girard Chardonnay ’16 France $13
Medium- bodied with fleshy notes of fresh-picked apples and pears; no oak, but spends time on the lees to give it richness; clay soils at a higher elevation impart a delightful freshness.
Montes Classic Merlot ’15 Chile $13
Bright and complex, with blackcurrant and black cherry flavours and a rich, juicy finish. Aged in oak for six months before release.
J Lohr Cypress Merlot ’16 California $10
Classic varietal aromas of black cherry and plum with subtle hints of oak; savory red fruit and comforting weight finishes with a touch of chalky tannin. Seriously over-delivers for its modest price.
Clos St. George Chevaliere ’08 France $14
Dark and rich, with notes of cherry, plum, and fig with a hint of spice; complex and round, and full bodied on the palate with fully developed tannins; a great value red.
Clos La Coutale Cahors ’15 France $16
80% Malbec and 20% Merlot, creating an intense wine that juggles elegant rusticity with everyday drinkability, with rich, dark notes of blackberry paste, coffee, and slate.
lummi island wine tasting april 6 ’18
(note: some photos will enlarge when clicked)
Bread this week
Honey, Wheat, Lemon & Poppy seeds – Made with a poolish that ferments some of the flour, yeast and water, but none of the salt, overnight. This results in a very active pre-ferment which is mixed the next day with the final ingredients which includes a nice mix of bread flour and fresh milled whole wheat. Some honey, poppy seeds and freshly grated lemon peel round out the flavors in this loaf. A great all around bread – $5/loaf.
Sonnenblumenbrot – aka Sunflower Seed Bread Made with a pre-ferment before mixing the final dough of bread flour and freshly milled rye, then loaded up with toasted sunflower seeds and some barley malt syrup for sweetness. This is a typical german seed bread- $5/loaf
And for pastry this week… If you want pastry this week you have to show up at the Grange on Saturday morning to help out with the Annual Island Cleanup! There will be a great selection of muffins, scones, brioche and bostock (you’ll have to look that one up!). Show up early, have a cup of coffee and pastry, meet your neighbors then go out and give our island home a spring spruce up!
Sunday Concert April 22!
It’s become an annual Event: our Spring Concert with singer-songwriter-minstrel Robert Sarazin Blake! This year’s concert will be from 4-6 pm on Sunday, April 22 in the wine shop!
As Robert’s many local followers know, he is a modern-day troubadour who travels widely (mostly here in the Pacific Northwest and in Ireland) to share his craft, very often in pub atmospheres like our dear wine shop. Robert has visited the shop several times in the last few years, and we have grown fond of his engaging style. For those of you who have not attended any of our concerts, know that our little shop is a great venue for acoustic music, and Robert’s performances are always engaging and energizing.
Suggested performance donation is a modest $15 per person, and a selection of wines will be available by the glass. And since space is very limited, please confirm reservations asap!
Learn more about Robert’s music here.
Ripasso
Amarone is a delicious Italian wine made primarily from Corvina, Rondinella, and Molinara, the same grapes as Valpolicella, the dominant red wine of the Veneto region. The thick-skinned corvina varietal is central to the apassamiento process by which amarone is made, beginning with 100 days of drying the best grapes before pressing them. After pressing, the dried grape skins remain in contact with the juice through fermentation. However, because the sugars are so concentrated in the raisined grapes, the skins are removed from contact with the wine while they still contain plenty of sugar. The amarone-to-be is then left to age in barrels for several years before bottling.
Meanwhile, the rest of the harvest goes through fermentation without drying the grapes, to make the wine known as valpolicella. It is inexpensive, tasty, and table-oriented. However, because there is still a lot of flavor, sugar, and character in the must from making the amarone, selected valpolicella from the harvest is allowed to sit on the lees left from making amarone and allowed to go through a second fermentation. This ripasso process results in a red wine that is somewhere between valpolicella and amarone in its weight, complexity, and nuance. Under the rules of the region, wineries may only make up to twice as much ripasso as they do amarone in a given harvest.
This week we are pouring a distinctive ripasso from the portfolio of our friends as Small Vineyards. See notes below.
Lummi Island Spring Cleanup
Here it is again, folks, the annual Spring Cleanup. Sure, it’s a Tradition, when we all turn out to patrol a section of roadway and pick up a year’s worth of accumulated debris. Though the roads all look pretty good if we don’t look too closely, it is always surprising how many scraps of paper, plastic, cardboard, glass, and who-knows-what get loaded into bags and then into volunteer pickup trucks for collection and disposal.
As noted above, there is NO PASTRY this week for Bread Friday, because instead Janice is baking a great selection of muffins, scones, brioche and bostock (you’ll have to look that one up!) to lift the spirits of our Stalwart Volunteers as we head out into the Elements to do out Community Duty for an hour or so. Then, as if that were not enough, we all go back to the Grange for a Hearty Lunch. YUM!
Mar a Lago Update: Honor, Truth, and Virtue
We are all familiar with the legendary story of young George Washington’s Honor in admitting to his father that he had damaged the mythical Cherry Tree with his new hatchet. This famous myth was invented by itinerant minister and bookseller named Mason Locke Weems, who wrote and published a biography of Washington in 1800, shortly after Washington’s death. Weems saw an opportunity not only to capitalize on the public’s interest in Washington, but also to iconify Washington as a a Role Model for Virtue worthy of our Admiration. Given the persistence of the Legend, he was incredibly successful. But these days the ideas of Truth, Honor, and Virtue have become Quaint, Outdated Luxuries which are readily compromised for political gain.
The respected economist Joan Robinson wrote (with, imho, great insight), “any economic system requires a set of rules, an ideology to justify them, and a conscience in the individual…to carry them out.” Of course she wasn’t just talking about economic systems, but rather of the whole complex of economic, political, cultural, and social systems that define each society. And it makes perfect sense…how could a society Survive without such a Structure?
The Really Scary thing is that Today’s world, or maybe just Today’s America, doesn’t seem to have ANY of these essential elements. There is certainly no Unifying Ideology, no Common Vision shared by the Right and Left Mainstreams, who increasingly see each other as Enemies. Indeed, it has gotten So Extreme that The Utopia each side Yearns to Realize is the Dystopia the other side Most Despises, and that doesn’t make any sense at all unless we are operating on at least two completely different sets of Facts.
Primates in general, and humans in particular, have many characteristics of both herd animals and predators. Some people favor one set over the other. Some humans are more concerned with herd survival and well-being than with status, control, and power, and some are exactly the opposite. Both traits have been useful, in different ways for our survival as a species. The world we see around us today suggests that the ego-urgency of the Dominant Male may be becoming more of a Liability than an Asset in our long-term survival as a species.
This week’s wine tasting
For a Song Chardonnay ’15 Washington $10
Apple blossom and citrus aromas; broad, flavorful palate of quince, lemon custard, lime, and honey-tinged mineral notes; bracing acidity.
La Mijane Arpege ’13 France $14
Grenache/merlot blend; nose of blueberries and chocolate, flavors of black fruits and toast, full on the palate with lingering finish.
Ramirana Cab Reserva ’15 Chile $12
Expressive notes of red and black berries, with notes of black pepper, chocolate, and tobacco. Nicely balanced body, acidity, and tannins, with a pleasing finish.
Antonio Sanguineti Nessun Dorma Toscana ’15 Italy $15
Super-Tuscan blend of sangiovese, cab, and merlot, with notes of black currant and cherry, and spicy chocolate. Rich and spicy on the palate, the red fruit comes on strong in the middle, with chocolate rounding out the finish.
Lonardi Valpolicello Ripasso Classico Superiore ’14 Italy $19
Valpolicella becomes Ripasso when pressed through the raisined skins used for Amarone, adding complex aromatics and flavors to the wine, in this case lush cranberry notes with chocolate.
2072 Granger Way
