Yes, I know.. This is not about the Wine Bloggers’ Conference, but rather something that happened to me yesterday. I opened the door to the store to take some recycling to the bin and there practically beneath my feet was this baby. I have never seen a baby bunny so close up and personal. Frankly, for a while I thought that this baby had made its way to my doorstep to croak. I couldn’t even see it breathing.

Eventually, it got used to me hovering near the door enough to move around a bit.

Here is my footage… just because it is cute.

And no. This baby was not offered a complementary tasting.

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I might be temporarily abstaining from wine on school nights (due to lent) but that doesn’t mean that I can’t continue to talk about the wines that I have already tasted.    This wine, like the Passion Has Red Lips, also falls into the Tip O’Neil Corollary territory and I was lucky enough to get to taste it when the rep came into the store.

The Chono wines are  associated with a wine I discussed a while ago… say, in the Fall of 2008, the Palin Syrah, which are both distributed by GeoWines.  I always like Chilean Carménère because it reminds me of my wine history. Carménère is the lost grape of Bordeaux where it was used to enhance the flavors of the other noble grapes of the region, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Petite Verdot and Merlot.  After Phylloxera destroyed most of the vineyards in the region, it was believed that Carménère was all but wiped out.  In 1994, an oenologist discovered that a variety of Merlot in Chile that tended to ripen faster was in fact the long, lost grape.  They were interplanted with Merlot which they resemble and accounted for a  large percentage of the grapes produced.  It turns out that Chilean winemaking owed more to France than Spain as one might have expected.

I have also learned that there were so many Carménère grapes produced that they were often used in the production of Pisco and Aguardiente.

The Carménère is produced in the Maipo River Valley of Chile which is in the heart of the most productive vineyards in the country and relatively close to Santiago. The grapes are picked in the second week of May are macerated in stainless steel and then partially aged in oak.  My first sip gave me a smokey taste of dark fruit. The second sip after a few minutes allowed the wine to open up and become smoother and fuller with more of an emphasis on black cherries and less on the smoke.  Clearly, a wine to let breathe a moment or two.

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I don’t think it is news to anyone that I love wine. Ok. Stop laughing already. I SAID it wouldn’t be news. And as much as I love local wine, I love trying wine from all over the world. Is this inconsistent with my locapour ways? Not at all… I refer to it as the Tip O’Neil Corollary, when speaking of politics, Speaker O’Neil once famously pointed out that “All politics are local”. And I believe that the same holds true with wine. It is local to somebody.

when I got a chance to try some wine from the “local” vineyards of the Clare Valley of Australia, I naturally jumped at the chance.

The wine is produced by Some Young Punks. Already, you know that I was enjoying this. Their name alone, indicates to me that while they love their wine, they don’t take themselves too seriously. The wine was the 2007 Passion Has Red Lips which was a Cabernet Sauvignon/Shiraz blend. I thought it was earthy, almost leathery. 1500 cases were produced. The artwork was taken from an old pulp fiction novel, Sin On Wheels.

I am hoping to find more of it soon.

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Some place deep inside of each of us, there is a child who is dying to get out and enjoy the holidays with the abandon that we did as kids. At Christmas time, or Hanukah for Rory (Mozel Tov!) we are celebrate traditions that make it easy for us to forget that we still aren’t 12. (though, frankly I would prefer to regress to six, thankyouverymuch) Remember when you thought that the sky was the limit? You could ask for a pony and all the ice cream in the world and were disappointed that you didn’t get it (You were going to give your Daddy all the rum raisin, so you weren’t being selfish)? How long did it take you to lower the expectations on your dreams? Maybe a year, two tops?

This year, I want to re-invigorate my Christmas flight of fancy. I want to dream big again . And I am using the holiday season as a way to exercise this kind of dreaming.

When I grow up I want to be a professional VinoVerver. I want Marguerite and I to be able to devote our time to traveling around the country and visiting wineries. Heck, I would like to visit wineries WITH Marguerite. I would like Marguerite and I to road trip and attend the Wine Blogger’s Conference in Walla Walla, Washington this year too. So here, it goes. My letter to Santa

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November is New Jersey Wine Month, and the local wineries are capping off the month with the Holiday Wine Trail Weekend!  Friday, Saturday, Sunday of Thanksgiving weekend (November 27-29), local wineries across the state will be offering tastings, tours, and in many cases special events.  Many of the wineries offer gift baskets and gift certificates so you could also get a lot of your holiday shopping done at the same time.    Who knows?  Maybe it’ll be the start of a new “Win(e)ding Road” holiday tradition…

Personally, I’m liking the idea of winery gift certificates; knock out most of my holiday shopping in one fell swoop!

Holiday Wine Trail Weekend Participating Wineries include:

Alba Vineyard, Milford, NJ     **VINO VERVE VISITED**

Bellview Winery. Landisville, NJ

Brook Hollow Winery, Columbia, NJ

Cape May Winery, Cape May, NJ

Cava Winery & Vineyard, Columbia, NJ

Cream Ridge Winery, Cream Ridge, NJ

Hawk Haven Vineyard and Winery, Rio Grande, New Jersey

Hopewell Valley Vineyards, Pennington Vineyards

Laurita Winery,  New Egypt, NJ

Natali Vineyards, Cape May Courthouse, NJ

Plagido’s Winery, Hammonton, NJ

Sharrott Winery, Blue Anchor, NJ

Swansea Vineyards, Shiloh, NJ

Ventimiglia Vineyards, Wantage, NJ       **VINO VERVE VISITED**

Villa Milagro Vineyards, Finesville, NJ   **VINO VERVE VISITED**

Westfall Winery, Montague, NJ

The wineries listed are within a day trip from New York or Philadelphia.  Check out the Garden State Wine Growers’ Association website for wine trail “cluster” suggestions – mini-trails of 4-5 wineries.

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So far it has been a full day of wine. And it isn’t over yet.

After we finished our panel discussion at we head back to Bus #7 and head out to our next destination Quintessa Winery for the Grand Tasting. I have to admit that after all that Cabernet my tastebuds were a little worn out. So I decided to concentrate less on “tasting” and more on enjoying a glass or two of wine.

As we were walking up to the roof of the cave, I noticed that the facility had (in part) a green roof, specifically a roof top garden. As someone who worked on encouraging roof gardens and other forms of green roofing (please don’t get me started, it ends up being a long a boring conversation about the merits of various roofing products and colors… boring for you at least). When we reached the roof we were greated with a nice cool glass of Sauvignon Blanc (I noticed a pattern here. I Sauvignon Blanc the new Chardonnay?). Naturally I was compelled to take a look at the garden. You would have noticed me. All alone over at the far edge taking pictures of meadow grass. You would have come over, perhaps to see what I was looking at and you probably wouldn’t have noticed anything. But I was happy. And then I took a look at the other side and looked at the buses lined up ready to take us later to dinner too.

Eventually I headed down into the cave which was cool and dark and lovely after sweating all afternoon. In fact, I am ashamed to say that I was remarkably damp, but quite sober which means that I was burning through any alcohol that I had ingested. Helpful really, as I had more events to attend. The cave contained the winery operations and was almost surreally dark and stainless steel at the first level. In fact, it looked a lot like something out of Blade Runner, without Harrison Ford or any violence, which for me really works out better (the violence part that is… not the Harrison Ford part).

I descended from the mod level to where the rest of the conference folks were. This level was still very stainless steel in some parts but very wooden in others. I walked down into the show part of the barrel storage where it was even cooler. The centerpiece of this room was almost like a church. Dark, quiet and lit by candles, it inspired awed in all of us that stopped there. I learned from the Wine Bard, Karen Gurney that all of the barrel heads are marked with a series of codes that indicate the location of the forest the oak was harvested from and the amount of toasting on the inside and on the head of the barrel. On the way back, I saw a new type of “barrel” (for lack of a better word). It was steel and concrete and shaped like an egg. If the upper part of the caves was like Blade Runner, this storage unit was definitely out of 2001: A Space Odyssey.

But soon enough I joined the huddled masses, yearning to drink wine. I found that I couldn’t really drag myself to taste more than white wine. So I tried the Chardonnay at the Frank Family Vineyards where they were pouring their wine through a decanting system that looked like the Verso Vino system except that the shape of the receptacle was teardrop.  I haven’t been able to find anything similar on the internet (which is surprising because I usually can find what I mean to).  Next I tried a Schramsberg Brut.  It was lovely and bubbly and soothed my soul.  At this point, I needed to go sit down for a bit.  Since there were no chairs I sat on the ground against the wall that formed the cave and enjoyed the late afternoon sun.

Soon, it was time to depart again.  As I made my way back to Bus #7, I wondered what we would encounter next.

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I love rose wines. I think that isn’t a surprise if you have been reading my posts at all… So I was pleased when I attended the Bottlenotes tasting, Around the World in 80 Sips. There were lots of opportunities to taste roses.

Interestingly there was a table just full of the little beauties. And they were from Italy.

The first was the 2008 Tesori Lagrein from the Alto Adige region. I thought it was lovely wine crisp with the taste of cherries and almond. The color was less pink and more pale ruby. Unfortunately the table was so crowded that I didn’t get a picture. I looked up the varietal which I was unfamiliar with and found that it is a traditional grape for the Alto Adige and the southern part of the Tyrol (think Geppetto from Pinocchio).

The next was the 2008 Borgo di Colloredo Montepulciano. This wine is named for Gironia which is the location of a battle between the Romans and Sannites who were the native people of the region where it was produced, Biferno Molise. This wine is a blend of Montepulciano and Aglianico (which was originally introduced from Greece). The wine was crisp with the taste of strawberries on the nose and tongue.

Finally, we tasted the nonvintage Azienda Agricola La Tordera Rosato Spumante “Cuvee di Gabry”. The color was a pale salmon and tasted of raspberries and pink grapefruit with a sweet finish. The wine is made of 70% Merlot and 30% Incrocio Manzoni which is a blend of black moscato and Raboso Piave.

After all that pink wine you would think that I would be ready to try something different… but it is summer and I do like the color pink! So you never know.

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A scant 10 minutes down the road from Mystic sits the 58-acre Stonington Vineyards.  Established in 1987, the winery was constructed a few years later, “incorporating the latest in winemaking technology and the traditional methods of barrel fermentation.”

Turning into the long gravel driveway, we were struck by the charm of the setting.  The winery buildings face a large lawn surrounded by the vineyeards and lush green fields.  A large patio area extends out from the left side of the main building and leads to slightly raised deck with great views of the vineyards and plenty of seating for guests who want to enjoy the beautiful weather and views.

Inside, the Tasting Room was one of the best organized I’ve seen to date.  The entrance leads into a small room which houses the gift shop.  On your left, you’ll find a queue of people picking up glasses and paying for their tastings and purchases.  From there you proceed through an archway into the main Tasting Room, which is a large open space with an L-shaped bar dominating the back right corner.  A few tables and chairs line the outer walls, and on the day we stopped by, there was an exhibit of watercolors done by a local artist lining the walls. 

The bar can accomodate 15 people comfortably, and the staff manages the crowds extremely well.  We arrived just after the daily 2:00 tour had concluded so there were quite a few people already at the bar.  After we got our glasses, we were encouraged to take a seat or browse the artwork, but otherwise stay back from the bar until the current group had concluded their tasting.  Once the group finished, the staff tactfully, but firmly, discouraged them from lingering to “chat,” wiped down the bar and invited those of us waiting to step up.  We filled up the available space around the bar quickly, and once we started newcomers were invited to sit and relax until we finished and they would start the next tasting.  

The two-room setup and the rhythm and flow of the the tasting organization reduced the bottlenecks and jockeying for position you often find at other wineries that manage sales directly at the bar.  It was a sharp contrast to the more chaotic setting we found at Jonathan Edwards, and a really good way to do it – if you have the room.

Stonington currently produces six wines, all of which are available for tasting.  They organize the wines into two flights: Flight One, all whites, is $5 per person; Flight Two, one white, one rosé, and one red, is $8 per person, or you can taste all six wines for $10 per person.  If you purchase a case of wine, you’ll become a member of their Cellar Society, which entitles you to extra discounts on future cases and all future tastings will be free.

Not surprisingly, we opted for the full tasting for $10, which began with the 2006 Sheer Chardonnay…

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As we rinsed our glasses and cleared our palates, Kylie, our host for the afternoon, began pouring the reds.  First up…

2007 Estate Connecticut Cabernet Franc  The only estate wine currently available, the Cabernet Franc is a nice, medium-bodied red which is eminently drinkable now, or can be aged an additional 3-5 years.  Barrel-aged for one year, the wine has soft notes of blackberry and cherry in the nose.  There’s a lovely soft mouth-feel, with notes of both cherry and blackberry, slight minerality and a soft finish.

2006 Napa Valley Zinfandel  A definite favorite among our group – medium-bodied with strong notes of berry, there are notes of pepper and spice in both the nose and in the mouth, which give this wine an interesting complexity.  Light notes of dark cherry in the mouth provide just a hint of sweetness before ending on a slightly spicy note.  Very interesting wine, and one of my favorites of the afternoon.

2006 Sierra Hills Zinfandel An equally strong wine, it was interesting to pair the two Zinfandels back-to-back.  There are definite notes of clove on the nose, and a while the Sierra Hills was not as fruity as the Napa Valley Zin, it was still smooth, rich and complex.   This would be a great wine for pairing with grilled steak and peppers.

2006 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon A full-bodied wine, with a strong, earthy nose.  Very spicy, with light notes of chocolate in the mouth.  While I found I preferred the Zinfandels and the Syrahs, I did note this as a wine I would definitely come back for.

2005 Napa Valley Syrah Hands-down my absolute favorite of the afternoon, and one of my favorites along the Connecticut Wine Trail to date.  Barrel-aged for 2 years, this is a deep, rich, full-bodied wine that has lovely notes of dark cherry and blackberry in the nose and mouth.  There are light notes of smoke and leather as well, which give the wine added depth.  This would be a great wine for pairing with hearty Fall or early Spring dishes, and the tasting notes indicate that this “stands up well to dishes with strong flavors such as lamb or duck.”  While definitely drinkable now, this wine can age an additional 8-10 years, and it is definitely worth the investment to cellar a few bottles.

2006 Napa Valley Petite Sirah  Grown in the Calistoga region of Napa, this is a dark, rich wine with lovely notes of plum and spice.  Deep, dark, dense color in the glass, the nose is rich and complex with notes of plum and a hint of chocolate.  In the mouth, the wine has an earthiness and minerality which is smoothed out by the notes of plum and dark chocolate.   A lovely wine, but my favorite remains the Napa Valley Syrah.

All in all, a lovely afternoon, and I’ll definitely be returning to Jonathan Edwards, on my own as well as with friends and out-of-town guests.  However, next time, I’ll probably try to time my arrival so as not to coincide with the end of the tour!

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Jonathan Edwards’ Full Tasting menu features “all currently available varieties,” which right now include two whites and six reds.  All of the wines are terrific, and I strongly recommend purchasing the full tasting over the Sampler, which, while only $5, limits you to only four wines. 

The tasting begins with the

2007 Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc  Light and crisp, this is very much a summer wine.  The nose has soft notes of citrus and peach, and the wine is crisp and fruity in the mouth.  Both the citrus and peach notes are light, with the citrus being slightly more predominant. The peach provided a hint of sweetness that balanced the wine nicely.  The tasting notes indicate this is a “versatile wine especially enjoyable with goat cheese or fish.”   The reaction among our group was mixed; Jeff liked it, but Christy and I found it a bit too light for our taste.

2007 Napa Valley Chardonnay  This wine was a definite favorite among our group.  Still crisp and refreshing, this is a fuller-bodied white which I found more interesting and complex than the Sauvignon Blanc.  The nose had definite notes of citrus, particularly grapefruit, and some light floral touches.  In the mouth, the wine is smooth and buttery with light notes of lemon and a soft finish.  This would be excellent paired with grilled chicken or fish and fresh spring vegetables.

Jonathan Edwards also produces an Estate Connecticut Gewurztraminer and a Estate Connecticut Chardonnay, both of which are currently sold out and not available for tasting.  However, the winery is selling future orders; visit their website for more information.

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