Feb

28

If you, like us, tend to prefer dry white wines over sweet ones, the Chateau Ste Michelle Dr. Loosen Eroica 2005 may surprise you.  This off-dry, German style Riesling makes a seriously positive impression thanks to its exceptional balance of a touch of sugar, a slightly bigger body than usual for the varietal, and bright, but consistent, acidity throughout.  It was particularly the latter quality of the wine that effectively neutralized any issue we might have had with sweetness.

As for the aromas and flavors, we picked up green apple that was slightly muted by peach, minerals, and a twist of lime.  In fact, English hard cider came to mind. 

Overall, we found this wine to be of a very high quality, a factor that, by itself, made it difficult not to enjoy.  And the best part: you can buy a bottle at Costco, where there were many, many others (albeit, the 2006’s) in stock.    

Feb

27

Here are events we think are worth checking out this week:

Feb

26

Bonarda, an Argentine grape, accounts for more acreage than Malbec in Argentina.  Despite this, I’d guess that most people in the U.S. probably haven’t heard of it.  In fact, I have to admit that I am speaking from experience: up until I came into possession of this bottle by gift a few weeks ago, I hadn’t heard of it either.

The Sur de los Andes Bonarda 2006 is an interesting wine.  It’s priced right for every day drinking and has a combination of flavors and aromas that strikes me as unusual: blackberry, pomegranate, the sweet tobaccoey smell of a cigar box and, at the back end, even iced tea.  The mouthfeel is even stranger: it has a light to medium body with some serious acidity.

Honestly, I wasn’t sure what to expect when I took my first sip — but now, it’s definitely on my radar for the future. 

If you’re looking for something to (figuratively speaking) spice things up a bit, this is definitely your wine.

Feb

25

In our post of last Monday, we reviewed Iron Horse Vineyards in the Russian River Valley, one of our favorite wineries in Northern California.  Combine the below itinerary with a visit to Iron Horse or any of the other RRV wineries, and you’re guaranteed a postcard perfect wine country visit.

1.  Wine Tasting: Begin in the early afternoon by visiting a couple of area wineries.  We recommend Iron Horse Vineyards and Porter Creek Vineyards, which are both low-key, but high quality, operations.  Note, however, that there are many other wineries within the RRV and in the nearby Dry Creek and Alexander Valleys.  E-mail us if you need more recommendations.     

2.  Accommodations:  After wine tasting, head over to Raccoon Cottage (click the link to get to Raccoon Cottage’s web site to see pictures), a tiny bed and breakfast located amongst the apple and pear orchards of Sebastopol.  We first learned of Raccoon Cottage from a travel guidebook, and although we had only the guidebook’s recommendation to go on — at the time the cottage had no Web site – we decided to take a chance and stay for the night.  Luckily for us, our stay was a smashing success. 

The cottage consists of three rooms that, with their cozy, dark wood interiors and country-style furnishings, feel more like a family retreat than a bed and breakfast.  These rooms include a bedroom with a skylight, a living room with both a day bed and a cushy chair, and a full bathroom.  Outside of the front door is a small deck with two Adirondack chairs and a view of the luscious yard, which contains a variety of fruit trees and a small creek.  It’s the perfect setting for enjoying a book and a glass of wine.  Adjacent to the cottage, but a few yards away, is the house of the delightful innkeeper, Jeannette.

Truthfully, we were initially dubious of the idea of staying overnight on the property of a (then) stranger, but any dubiousness we had vanished after our first night’s stay, during which our newborn cried frantically throughout the early a.m. hours.  At breakfast, when we apologized to Jeannette for the noise, she assured us that she hadn’t heard a peep.  We took this response as solid reassurance that privacy there runs both ways (i.e., in favor of both the guest and host), and I think it makes a good illustration of how the experience of boarding at the Raccoon Cottage is almost akin to having your own countryside retreat. 

Best of all aspects of Raccoon Cottage are (1) the price ($130, inclusive of breakfast), and (2) the absence of a minimum-stay requirement.  The latter, especially, is a godsend for people that live in the Bay Area and don’t feel like fighting the Route 101 traffic on a Friday evening after work.  As you can probably tell, Raccoon Cottage is truly a hidden gem.

3.  Dinner:  After dropping your bags at Raccoon Cottage, head over to the grand metropolis of Graton (which consists of one block!) for dinner.  For as small as it is, Graton makes a disproportionately large culinary footprint.  There are four or five restaurants, all of which are supposedly fantastic, but our favorite is Willow Wood Market and Cafe.  The inside oozes charming wine country style, but better yet, there’s outdoor seating in the rear garden.  With a wine list containing only regional wines, and seasonally-inspired food to die for even by San Francisco or New York standards, this place is ideal for a memorable but casual evening out with your significant other.  

4.  Morning Coffee:  After finishing breakfast at Raccoon Cottage, it’s time for a kick of caffeine from Hardcore Espresso.  Hardcore is the type of establishment that can only exist in a warm weather climate like California’s: it’s essentially an open-air, wooden shack covered with sheet metal and sitting in the middle of a gravel parking lot.  Never-mind its minimalist appearance: Hardcore’s coffee is phenomenal, and its sun-filled, laid back and eccentric atmosphere is exemplary of the Northern California experience.

Feb

21

Weekend Wine

February 21, 2008 | Leave a Comment

Every once in a while we open a bottle for which we had high hopes that ends up disappointing – fortunately, it’s rare, but it happens.  Last night, the poor performer was intended to be the subject of today’s Weekend Wine posting: a Viognier from California’s Lodi (the link is to Wikipedia) region.  The wine in question lacked structure because it was too short on acidity, and it had what we felt were unappetizing aromas and flavors consisting of a mixture of lemon custard and pineapple.  As we’d never recommend a wine we wouldn’t want to drink ourselves, we are going to move on to the next bottle this weekend and will look forward to reporting back next week.

Have a great weekend! 

Feb

20

Here are some activities that we recommend for this weekend and beyond:

Feb

19

Recently, I was looking for a reasonably priced Merlot in the ten to fifteen dollar range, when I came upon the Château la Colline Côté Ouest 2004.  Aside from being a superb value at $13.50 and another perfect companion on a chilly winter’s day, the Côté Ouest’s blend of 70% Merlot and 30% Cabernet Sauvignon is made all the more enjoyable if you take a few minutes to read the background of the winemaker, Charles Martin.  Click here (the link is to Charles Neal Selections’ web site) for the story of how he got into the wine business — it is also sure to lift up your spirits if the late February weather has got you down.    

The Côté Ouest originates from the Bergerac region of France, which is located due east of Bordeaux but shares similar geology.  The body is in the medium range, and the balance is superb — as is often true of Merlot, there’s not that much in the way of acidity, but the smooth tannins more than make up for that.  I picked up cherry, charred wood and marzipan on the nose, with the same aromas carrying through as flavors in the mouth, and I found the finish to be quite savory. 

Unusual as Mr. Martin’s story may be, his winemaking skills appear to be top notch if the Côté Ouest is any indication. 

Feb

18

ironhorsetastingroom1.jpgIn recognition of Presidents’ Day, we thought it timely to talk about Iron Horse Vineyards, whose wines have been served by every presidential administration in the White House since 1985, the year when then-President Ronald Reagan brought its sparkling wines to his historic summit meeting with Mikhail Gorbachev in Reykjavik, Iceland.  But while this winery’s connections to Washington, D.C. distinguish it from other California wineries, there’s a lot more to Iron Horse than just politics.

Iron Horse is located in the Green Valley sub-appellation of the Russian River Valley, or the RRV, which is trendy on the California wine scene due to the high quality Pinot Noir being produced there.  Aside from the Pinot, what’s great about the RRV is that when you’re there you get the sense that you’re catching a glimpse of old, genuine California wine country, the way it used to be before Napa went mainstream.  The best part?  The RRV still seems like a secret.

Iron Horse exemplifies the typical RRV winery.  For example, the tasting room is outdoors, and it is located at the end of a long, dirt driveway studded with palm trees.  The tasting room consists of a bar made from barrels lined up in a row and topped with wooden planks, and when you’re sampling wines there, all you need to do is just turn around to enjoy spectacular views of the surrounding rolling hills.  Finally, if you don’t want to finish your glass but you don’t see a bucket, fear not: just dump it onto the gravel at your feet.     

This is California wine tasting without pretension and, in our view, wine country at its best.

www.IronHorseVineyards.com
9786 Ross Station Road
Sebastopol, California 95472
(707) 887-1507

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