My Dog Ate My Blog

For anyone who has been wondering what happened to me, the answer is pictured above.

The moments of my life that had been carved out for writing are now spent at the park or walking my neighborhood. My wine choice is now frequently based on the question, what wine goes with a slobbery tennis ball?

I have enjoyed some wonderful wines lately, although I don't remember all of them quite clearly because I was focused on the canine missile careening through my house. My comments have gone from, "This has some lovely blueberry notes" to "Hey! Put down that plant!"

Actually, Hogan is a pretty good boy, but he is high-maintenance. In fact, instead of sitting here typing, I should be running him around the park, but he's having a still moment so I'll take advantage of it to knock out a few lines.

At least my wine is well-guarded. Having Hogan on duty gives my other guard dog more time to sleep. At least someone is getting more sleep. Lucky dog.

Happy Anniversary!

Well, I missed Brim's actual anniversary by about a week, but given my track record with birthdays, anniversaries and holidays, that's not at all surprising. My family can attest to how many times they have received Christmas presents in March.

After one year, 97 posts and more great comments than I care to tabulate, I have to say writing a blog has been quite a experience. I've made some friends among my fellow bloggers, drunk some great wine and learned an awful lot. The main thing I've learned is that writing a blog (and doing it well) takes a lot of hard work. I'm a little embarrassed that there have been so few new posts lately, and I've even considered throwing in the towel. I can't expect my readers to take Brim seriously if I'm not taking it seriously.

However, I'm inspired by the efforts of some of my fellow bloggers. Wine blogs are getting much more respect these days thanks to the hard work of people like Dr. Debs at Good Wine Under $20, Lenn at Lenndevours and many, many others. Wine blogs inform, entertain and provide a welcome relief to the traditional wine press.

So, I'm going to give it another year. If I can put forth the effort to make Brim a good read, then it will live on. If not, I'll take it for that long walk in the woods - the one that involves a shovel.

Thanks to all my readers, past and present. Without your commentary and support, I never would have made it this far.

Salud!

Columbia, S.C. — Screen Door to Hell

The joke goes that the only thing between South Carolina and Hell is a screen door. After getting blasted with ten straight days of triple-digit temperatures, I’m not even sure the screen door is still there. In case you’re wondering, 107 degrees is hot, damn hot.

When it’s that hot, common sense tells us to slow down. However, since most of the modern world is not based in any way on common sense, people continue to march around in the hottest part of the day. I’m right there with them; the bills still have to be paid and someone needs to sit in my cubicle.

I envy people who live in countries where they just stop all activity during the hottest part of the day. It makes perfect sense to get up early, get things done when it’s cooler and then find a comfortable spot to ride out the heat. When the sun starts going down, everyone picks up where they left off and works (or not) and enjoys the cooler evening air long into the night.

I’m working on my plan to adopt the “siesta” lifestyle. I’ll keep you posted.

While I have been enjoying some wine (I’m way behind on posts), this part of the summer is when I do most of my beer drinking. I enjoy beer year-round, of course, and I use beer quite a bit in my cooking, so I always have some around. There are almost always a couple Newcastles hiding in my fridge.

When I get home from work, there is nothing quite as fine as heading out to my shady back yard, kicking back in my favorite yard chair and enjoying a cold beer while the dogs play. As long as you stay in the shade, dress appropriately and keep a cold beverage handy, the heat actually feels nice. It feels like August in the Deep South.

If a beer isn’t your thing — a glass of well-chilled Vinho Verde is another option to help you survive the heat. We’ve been enjoying Famega Vinho Verde 2006, a lively, crisp, effervescent, almost clear white wine with flavors of lemon, apple, peach and a hint of honeysuckle. It’s in the single digits in alcohol content, so a glass or two won’t send you over the edge.

Hot summers are a part of living in South Carolina, just as much as pork barbecue and bad driving. There is something almost masochistically appealing about the sweltering days of late summer here. I revel in them, and yet long for the cool days of fall at the same time.

Thanks to my loyal readers who are checking back for new posts. My rapidly growing puppy is still taking all of my energy, but he’s becoming less labor intensive by the day. I’ll be posting more new material before long.

Look for posts on South Carolina’s exciting new beer selections (thanks to the revision of some antiquated alcohol laws) and a rant about how much pinot grigio people drink when there are so many other great Italian white wines.

Until then, salud.

A Taste of Summer

Here’s a recipe that captures the essence of fresh summer produce. And, it’s just about as easy as putting water to boil.

Put a large pot of salted water on the stove to boil.

While you’re waiting for the water to boil, rough chop ½ medium red onion and ½ sweet bell pepper. In a blender or food processor, pulse onion, pepper and a generous handful of cherry or grape tomatoes along with a splash of good olive oil until fluid, but still chunky.

Prick three or four medium tomatoes with a fork in several places and drop in boiling water for 45 seconds or so. Remove and run under cold water. Peel, core and rough-chop tomatoes. Combine pureed veggies and chopped tomatoes.

Cook 1 lb. dry pasta (I like bowtie or penne for this dish). Toss hot, drained pasta with veggie mix. Add a generous amount of chopped fresh basil or the herb(s) of your choosing, more olive oil, if desired, and salt and pepper to taste.

I like to serve this over some greens with grated parmesan and a sprinkle of really great vinegar on top. You can dress it up in any number of ways.

This evening, I served this dish with Omaka Springs Estates Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough 2004. It’s a wonderful New Zealand SB with flavors of grapefruit, pineapple and bell pepper, framed with zingy acidity – a perfect match for the fresh flavors of the pasta.

If that ain't summer, I don't know what is.

A (Brief) Moment of Relaxation

Wow. The past couple weeks have been exhausting, and yet quite entertaining at the same time (see previous post).

I’ve made every effort to maintain my usual schedule, but it’s just impossible. My new housemate is running me ragged. If any of you are looking for a new fitness program, I highly recommend getting a puppy. It sure knocked a few pounds off me in a hurry.

I haven’t surrendered every aspect of my life to Mr. Hogan, however. The other night I managed to put a couple steaks on the grill and pop open a lovely bottle of wine.

E brought home two beautiful top sirloin fillets, which I dry-rubbed with my super-secret spice mix and grilled to a lovely medium rare (I’m really getting better with steaks). I sliced the fillets and laid them over a bed of mixed greens with red onion, sweet pepper, sweet tangerine tomatoes and fresh mozzarella, and then drizzled the whole plate with a balsamic vinegar reduction.

The warm steak and the cool greens were a wonderful combination, but a challenge for wine pairing. The perfect match turned out to be Daniel Gehrs Syrah Paso Robles 2005. This is a restrained style of syrah, with fresh raspberry and strawberry flavors accented with a touch of spicy cinnamon and herbs. It had enough body to stand up to the steak, but didn’t out-muscle the greens.

I even almost finished the entire meal before I had to chase after a wayward Malinois.

New Arrival and Other Excuses

Down the middle drops one more grain of sand

They say that new life makes losing life easier to understand

Words are kind they help ease the mind, I’ll miss my old friend

And though you’ve got to go we’ll keep a piece of your soul

One goes out, one comes in.

Jack Johnson
If I Could

Sully

1994 - 2006

Hogan
April 24, 2007 -

If I don’t write something about wine soon, I’ll have to stop calling this a wine blog. My hope is that my kind readers will forgive a scarcity of posts over the next couple weeks.

Although I had no intention of bringing a puppy into my life right now, a friend had a dog that needed a good home, and I happen to be able to provide one. I’m also lucky enough to have someone in my life to help me raise him.

I’ll spare you my philosophic comparisons of young wine and young dogs. Instead, I’ll just say that I’ll be very busy in the coming weeks, doing the hard work that will pay rewards years from now, when I have a mature, well-balanced, amazing dog.

Hopefully, before long he’ll be sleeping at my feet while I write posts.

What I Did on my Summer Vacation

I’ve been treating myself to a summer break from blogging. Here in South Carolina, we’re into the part of summer when slowing your activity level is necessary for survival. One hundred degree days with humidity that wraps you like a hot, wet blanket will slow just about anyone’s pace.

Although the break has been nice, it’s time to get back to work. I even missed Wine Blogging Wednesday #35, and the topic was Spanish bargain wines, a subject which I can drone on about for hours. If you’re so inclined, check out some of my past Spanish posts. This month's WBW is hosted byMichelle and Kevin at My Wine Education.

I have quite a few posts rattling around in my head, and I have a couple posts that are long overdue. I’ll be writing about some of my favorite dining haunts here in hot, sultry Columbia, S.C. With lots of fresh produce on hand, I’ve been working on some new summer dishes I want to share, along with the wines I’ve been enjoying with them.

So, what did I do on my summer vacation from blogging? Well, I slept in, instead of getting up early to write. I enjoyed several great wines without taking notes. As I mentioned above, I did some work in my test kitchen. Summer also brings more outdoor chores, which require a significant chunk of my time.

The rest of the time was spent relaxing in the AC, directly under a ceiling fan. That’s the place to be in July in the Deep South.

Here’s one of the wines that is helping me through the heat:

Bodegas Castaño Rosado Monastrell Yecla 2006

Bodegas Castaño makes an excellent monastrell named Hecula that I’ve enjoyed several years in a row. This is the first I’ve seen of a rosé from them. Monastrell makes for a very full, round rosé with flavors of dark berries and cinnamon with just a touch of herbs. It’s one of the most substantial rosés I’ve ever had.

Dr. Debs of Good Wine Under $20 wrote a great post on another of their wines for WBW #35, and the Wine Doctor has some interesting background on Castaño in this post.

Before and After

Before


Bulgarian #7 tomato on the vine.







After


The same tomato on my plate with fresh mozzerella, baby greens, ground black pepper and Balsamic Vinegar of Modena.

“H” is for Hondarribi Zurri

Some letters are more difficult than others.

When I dreamed up the idea of writing a post for every letter of the alphabet, my goal was to highlight the incredible diversity of wine and, hopefully, inspire my readers to try something a little different.

I have to admit I was sweating my “H” post, but then, along comes a wine made from hondarribi zuri. Talk about something different.

Arabako Txakolina “Xarmant” Txakoli Arabako Txakolina ($14)
(This is either a 2005 or 2006 vintage. I couldn't find a vintage anywhere on the bottle, but I know it is a vintage-bottled wine.)

To clear any confusion, there is no typo in the name. The name of the producer is the same as the name of the Denominatión de Origen (D.O.). The producer is actually a collective of 12 growers who pooled their resources. This collective is the only producer of any real quantity in the D.O., which is comprised of 60 hectares.

So, what’s with the funky name? Although this is a Spanish wine, it hails from a very distinct part of Spain—Basque Country.

Basque Country is one of Spain’s autonomous regions, located in the north-central part of the country, bordering Castilla y León on one side and Navarre on the other. The vineyard sites are located within the valley of Ayala, which encompasses the municipalities of Llodio, Amurrio, Okondo, Artiziega, and Aiara.

Winemaking in this region dates back to 760 A.D., but phylloxera devastated the majority of the vineyards in the 19th century. The vineyards were resurrected in the 1980’s, although the Arabako Txakolina D.O. was only created in 2003.

The grapes used in Txakoli (Chakoli in Spanish) are the traditional and indigenous hondarribi zuri and hondarribi beltza, as well as other local varieties: izkiriota, izkiriota ttippia and hondarribi zuri zerratia (is everyone taking notes?). The blend for this particular wine is 80% hondarribi zuri and 20% hondarribi zuri zerratia.

Xarmant, which is Basque (or French, depending on who you ask) for “charming,” is well-named. “Charming” is how I would describe this wine. Straw-colored and slightly fizzy from a touch of residual carbon dioxide, it is definitely reminiscent of Vinho Verde.

The nose was a bit muted and reminiscent of lemon rind and oyster shells (I swear). This turned out to be false advertising, because the flavor was definitely not muted; although it starts out lean with prominent citrus flavors, it quickly opens up to a creamy mouthful of peach, pear and fig, and finishes on a firm, mineral note.

An interesting tidbit about this wine is that it is traditionally served in a tumbler rather than a wine glass. The idea is to pour a very small amount from a great height (holding the bottle above your shoulder), thereby releasing more of the aromas and flavors. Please feel free to try this at home.

This turned out to be an outstanding discovery, just in time for the really hot weather in South Carolina. Txakolina is meant to be consumed very cold, works well as a low-alcohol (11.5%) apéritif and is very food-friendly. Try it with anything from seafood to chicken curry.

Or, pick up a bottle just to impress your friends with your comprehensive knowledge of the wines of the world.

Weekend Photo Update

Sweet, delicious, sungold cherry tomatoes.

WBW #34 is WWWBW

Could it be WBW #34 already? It seems like just the other day that I was missing the deadline for WBW #33.

In any case, we have a fantastic theme for this month. Washington is an exciting area for grape growers and winemakers.

I happened across this article about the turning point for Washington’s wine industry and the role of Walter Clore in driving the creation of Washingon's world-class wines. It’s very interesting reading.

Our kind host this month is Catie, the Wild Walla Walla Wine Woman, of Through The Walla Walla Grape Vine. Our mission was to avoid the Ch. Ste. Michelle and Columbia Crest wines and seek out cabernet sauvignon from some of the state’s numerous other wineries.

With this in mind, I went out scouting for WA cabs. To my immense delight, I found a bottle of 2001 Isenhower Batchelor’s Button Cabernet Sauvignon Columbia Valley 2001 ($32).

While this is actually a Columbia Valley wine, it is from a Walla Walla winery, which hopefully will score me some extra credit points.

As soon as I picked up the bottle, I realized that I was on to something. The beautiful label suggested a small winery. The back of the label told me that the wine was bottled unfined and unfiltered, which I love, and that 450 cases were produced. The vintage was another good sign, as 2001 was a very good year for Washington cabernet.

My hunches were nicely rewarded. It definitely needs some air, but after some time in my glass and in the decanter—it was pure heaven.

I read somewhere that Isenhower makes their cabernet more in the style of Bordeaux rather than California cabs. Bordeaux-ish is certainly an apt description in my opinion. The blend for this vintage is 90% cabernet sauvignon and 10% merlot, and it reminded me of of some of the best attributes of Paulliac.

In the glass, the 2001 Batchelor’s Button is opaque purple with a deep, concentrated nose of black cherry, cassis, currant, eucalyptus, cocoa, mint, and cigar box. Those flavors continue in the long, complex mouthfeel, which is framed by bracing acidity and persistent tannins.

It nicely sidesteps the plush, overdone fruit and oak of some California cabs, while not leaning too far towards the austerity of Bordeaux wines. Given the amount of breathing time it took for this wine to really show its stuff, I would guess it will continue to improve for another 5-10 years.

What’s even more fascinating about this wine is that this is the first vintage Isenhower produced. Bravo.

I highly recommend a visit to the Isenhower Web site. Denise and Brett have a great story to tell and clearly have a commitment to making outstanding wines. I believe I'll be back to that wine shop in search of another bottle.

Thanks to Catie, and thanks, as always, to our WBW guru, Lenn, of Lenndevours.

Who Loves an Old Wine?

The resounding silence on my earlier post regarding the locating of older wines leaves me with the impression there is little interest in such wines. Either that, or no one is reading.

Is this thing on?

Certainly, the price and hassle associated with purchasing "old" wines causes some wine lovers to decide, as a friend put it, "to save my money for Cristal and the [ladies]." New World wine drinkers are notorious for loving young, vivacious wines, but there is still a brisk trade in older vintages, both online and in bricks-and-mortar retailers.

My concerns are about pricing and bottle condition. 1969 was a good year for red Burgundy, but I really don't have four grand to put towards a bottle of wine. It was an off-year for Bordeaux, but the prices are still restrictive.

It's my good fortune, however, that the year of my birth was a good year in the Rhone. Maybe I'll be drinking 1969 Hermitage? Maybe 1969 Côte Rôtie?

But, I’m looking at other options. Cognac, Armagnac and any long-lived wine, such as Cahors, are possibilities. But, the last thing I want is an expensive, poorly-stored bottle of wine. I need to know that every effort has been given to proper care.

Thanks to Golly, of Golly’s Wine Drops, for suggesting Berry Bros and Rudd, a company that has a long history of dealing in older vintages. I believe I’m a little too far away for their services, but you never know.

Maybe they’ll send me a sample.

Weekend Update

The Canna Lillies are blooming.

Summer of '69

Normally, I do the expounding and you, as my readers, do the patient reading. For this post, however, I really want to hear from you. I need some wine advice.

If you were looking for a wine from a certain vintage, say...1969, where would you go to buy it?

What kind of wine would you look for? Bordeaux? Burgundy? Port? Something completely different?

I know nothing about buying vintage wine, so I could use some insight into the best way to find great wines in great condition without getting robbed. If you don't know, but you know someone who might, please pass this along to them. Hopefully, I'll find something cool and report back on it.

I'm just curious to see how a 38-year-old wine is holding up.

Fireflies

I saw the first fireflies of the season the other night. They appeared like magic after the first drenching rain in what has been a parched couple of months.

Luckily, my neighborhood has enough old-growth shrubs and natural areas to support a modest population of “lightning bugs.” There is something incredibly nostalgic about seeing the sparkle of fireflies on a summer evening.

Fireflies to wine, you might ask? How’s he going to make that connection?

You don’t have to be an environmentalist to love wine, but wine—like fireflies—is one of nature's products. I’m sure many of my fellow wine drinkers have a keen understanding that the product they love so much is best produced in a healthy, natural environment. Biodynamics aside, the wine industry in general seems to be paying much more regard to nature’s process, instead of altering nature to suit its needs.

For those of us who tend back yards instead of vineyards, I recommend a fine piece of reading material, Noah’s Garden: Restoring the Ecology of Our Own Back Yards, by Sara B. Stein. It’s a personal discovery of place and a guidebook for anyone who manages a chunk of this beautiful planet.

It’s been part of my inspiration to convert a sterile, empty back yard into my very own mini woodland garden. With fireflies.

Catavino Virtual Wine Tasting for May

I’ve been meaning to do this posting all month, and, of course, here it is on the very last day of May. I am nothing if not a prolific procrastinator.

Catavino’s Virtual Wine Tasting theme for May is albariño. I had hoped to compare some California albariños to some from Spain, but that did not pan out. What I did manage to do was find a different Spanish albariño to sample.

Bodegas As Laxas Albariño Rias Baixas Val do Sosego 2006

This wine is much more complicated than the albariños I've had in the past. The nose is very lemony with pronounced notes of grass and wet rocks. I tasted lemon, pineapple, pear, bell pepper and just a bit of slate. What struck me the most about this wine was the balance between a very creamy mouth-feel and bright acidity.

The albariños I’m used to drinking are a bit more simple, but pleasant all the same. Dr. Debs (and friends) at Good Wine Under $20 tasted the 2005 Martín Códax Burgáns (a past favorite) and found it a little lacking. Tasting the Bodegas As Laxas certainly opened my eyes to another, more complex, side of albariño.

Whether you know it or not, the Albariño Invasion is underway. Spanish albariños are becoming more numerous in my local wine shops. Albariño is also gaining popularity with U.S. wineries. Although I couldn’t locate any in my local stores, one of my favorite restaurants is featuring a California albariño on its list. Interestingly, when I asked a very knowledgeable wine salesperson about ordering some CA albariños, she was almost dismissive, as if they didn’t exist.

In the coming months, I’ll definitely by sampling more albariños. In fact, there’s a bottle of Martín Códax Albariño waiting at home right now. I think it would pair nicely with grilled tilapia with apple/red pepper/red onion salsa and a side of garlic pasta served over fresh spinach.

I’ll also be on the lookout for some U.S. albariños. Maybe I’ll even track down a bottle of Twisted Oak Albariño. One can always hope.

Stay tuned.

A Glass in Hand

The above photograph is a sampling of my ragtag stemware/glassware collection. I have some fairly nice wine glasses, including some Riedel glasses, and some pretty cheap glasses. I also have some favorites.

For instance, the small rocks glass in the lower right corner was “borrowed” about ten years ago from Buckley’s Tavern in Greenville, Delaware by my ex-wife. (Okay, it was at my suggestion.) When filled with two fingers of good scotch and a splash of water, it feels awfully nice in my hand.

Even though I have a Riedel scotch glass, which I do use on occasion, I really like the heft and size of that little, cheap glass.

There’s been a great deal of discussion in the wine community about stemware and Riedel glasses in particular. Riedel's selection of location/varietal-specific wine glasses is seemingly endless, and many other manufacturers have jumped on board as well. Does an Oregon pinot noir really need its own glass?

Many years ago, I attended a Riedel tasting, where we compared the same wine in various glasses: cheap wine glasses, the proper Riedel glass and the “wrong” Riedel glass.

The impact on the aroma and flavor of the wine from one glass to another was undeniable to me. The wines all showed much better in the proper glass. I became a believer.

I live in the real world, however. I can’t really afford to always drink from expensive wine glasses, much less own glasses for all the various types of wine I drink. (Where the hell is my tempranillo glass?)

Not to mention, my wine drinking does not always take place in a controlled setting—my concrete porch is quite unforgiving when it comes to wine glasses.

With all this in mind, I use a variety of glasses, depending on the occasion. Great wines get the good glasses; clumsy guests get the cheap ones.

My little story about the scotch glass reminds me of an important aspect to wine and stemware pairing—sensory pleasure.

Really great glasses feel great in your hand. They look beautiful. They’re balanced, just the right size and downright sexy. Even some of my cheap glasses fit the bill and might easily be mistaken for expensive (except for the off-key "clank," instead of the melodious ring of crystal when glasses meet).

My latest favorites are actually very simple water goblets from Nachtmann. They work great for white wines and aren’t a bad size for reds either, especially lighter-bodied reds. They're beautiful, and they feel great in my hand. They were über-cheap at a discount store—because of some minor flaw, no doubt.

Wine is definitely a sensory experience, so it makes sense that one should pay attention to what type of vessel you’re using. But, the most expensive or “correct” glass isn’t always the right one.

The right one just feels right.

Note: Buckley’s Tavern is located in Greenville, Delaware, which is right outside of Wilmington and not far from Kennett Square, Pennsylvania. It is one of my favorite places in the world—a place where blue-collar workers rub shoulders with multi-millionaires. It’s got great food, great beer and wine, and a cool roof-top deck. If you’re ever in the area, don’t miss it; and if you live in the area and don’t know about Buckley’s—shame on you.

And, I hope that plug makes up for the unauthorized use of their glassware.

WBW Goes to WA

The word is out on Wine Blogging Wednesday #34.

Catie at Through the Walla Walla Grape Vine is hosting this one, and the theme is Washington State cabernet sauvignon. I’m really excited about the theme, because Washington is such an interesting area for grape growing and winemaking.

I’ll be looking for something really interesting and unique, and I also plan on learning more about Washington’s AVAs.

The lowdown on WBW # 34 is right here.

Don’t miss it—all the cool kids will be there.

Shopping: The Sequel

I thought you might be interested in the results of some weekend shopping.

No sooner had I finished my last post then I walked back into World Market to pick another bottle of the Aussie shiraz-viognier that I mentioned in my previous post. Two racks full of wines marked down 50% met me at the front of the store.

I took a quick look and found an empty wine box.

The wine that brought me back is Zonte’s Footstep Shiraz-Viognier Langhorne Creek 2003 ($7.49). It’s the vinous equivalent of red velvet cake, a fruit-forward, over-the-top, luscious, whore of a wine. I love it.

Here are the other wines I bought with their post-discount prices:

Paringa Shiraz ‘Individual Vineyard’ South Australia 2003 ($5.49)

Fairview Viognier Coastal Region South Africa 2006 ($6.99)

Scharffenberger Brut Mendocino County NV ($8.99)

Omaka Springs Estate Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough 2004 ($7.49)

Dr. Thanisch Riesling Classic Q.B.A. 2005 ($8.99)

Kim Crawford Unoaked Chardonnay Marlborough 2005 ($7.99)

Mak ‘Snowy River’ Red Coonawarra 2001 ($7.99)

Joseph Drouhin St. Veran 2005 ($6.99)

Li Veli Passamante Salento 2003 ($5.99)

Matanzas Creek Sauvignon Blanc Sonoma County 2005 ($9.49)

Roederer Estate L’Ermitage Anderson Valley 1999 ($18.49)

Not a bad case of wine for about $100. Some of these wines I’m familiar with: Paringa, Joseph Drouhin and Kim Crawford. Others are new to me: Omaka Springs, Dr. Thanish and Mak.

The L’Ermitage alone made the trip worthwhile. I can’t wait to open that one. You will no doubt hear more about these as I taste them.

And seriously, Joseph Drouhin St. Veran for $6.99? Somebody pinch me.

Back to the Midi

I was looking through some old posts (the ones that don’t make me cringe), and noticed a couple wines from the Languedoc that I’ve written about previously.

With Wine Blogging Wednesday #33 just behind us, I thought it would be worthwhile to revisit them. These two wines represent what I believe this region does best—produces unique, delicious and very affordable wines. I've included blurbs from the original posts, along with links if you want to read the entire posts.


Hugues Beaulieu Picpoul de Pinet Cotes du Languedoc 2005

“We enjoyed a bottle of Hugues Beaulieu Picpoul de Pinet Cotes du Languedoc 2005 with the shrimp and grits. Picpoul blanc is grown within sight of the local oyster beds, so it’s a natural match with seafood. It’s light, clean and fresh with tones of lemon and grapefruit. It’s also nicely dry and slightly flinty.

I’ve read about picpoul blanc, but this is the first time I had tried it. Picpoul de Pinet is one the named Crus of Languedoc. This was another great find in French wines. You can find it at Total Wine & More for $7.99.”

The entire post is here.


Château de Pennautier A.O.C. Cabardès 2004

“My other French discovery was of an A.O.C. that I was totally ignorant of—Cabardès.

‘The western-most vineyard of the Languedoc-Roussillon and the eastern-most of the south-west, the dry stony soil and growing environment are ideal for low yield, top quality wine production. Cabardès is the only Languedoc A.O.C. to blend in equal proportions Bordeaux grape varieties (Cabernet and Merlot) with those of the Rhone (Syrah and Grenache).’

Never heard of it.

My education in French wines hit a plateau some years back and I haven’t been aggressive about moving it to a higher level. The other day I ran across something in a wine store that looked interesting, so I gave it a try. It was Château de Pennautier A.O.C. Cabardès 2004.

The combination of Rhone and Bordeaux varietals makes for an interesting mix. The Pennautier is dark and silky with great black fruit, soft tannins, spice and a long, caressing finish. For $11, it was a smashing find, and I’ll bet it can be had for less elsewhere.

The blend on this wine is 10% cabernet franc, 25% cabernet sauvignon, 20% merlot, 15% cot (also known as malbec) and 30% syrah. With such an interesting mix of grapes to blend with, I am very excited about trying more wines from this region.”

The entire post is here.


They both have become favorites at my house. Vive le difference indeed.