Pigs and Pinot weekend is one of my favorite events of the year and continues to provide wonderful opportunities to taste old favorites and discover new ones. At this year’s Taste of Pigs and Pinot on Friday, March 17th—always held at the Dry Creek Kitchen in Healdsburg—the weekend kicked off with a bang. I focused on tasting producers I was unfamiliar with, before then parading around to taste my old favorites. Seeking out producers I was unfamiliar with was very fruitful indeed, as I unknowingly tasted the wine that would later be revealed as the Pinot Cup Winner—the TR Elliot 2014 Bootlegger’s Hill Pinot Noir from Russian River Valley. This elegant wine is filled with earthy, cranberry and pomegranate fruit, wrapped up in a medium body with delightful complexity. Another elegant Pinot that stood out was the Vaughn Duffy 2014 Suacci Vineyard Pinot Noir from the Sonoma Coast. This is a bright and extremely effervescent Pinot with almost crunchy-like red fruit, lively and full of finesse, with spices on the finish. Tasting like it has some whole cluster fermentation thrown into the mix, this unique wine really made an impact on my palate that night. I also rather enjoyed the Kings Mountain Vineyards’ 2012 Bacchus Pinot Noir from the Santa Cruz Mountains. I immediately liked this wine not only because it stood apart in style from the local Sonoma appellation wines, but also because it has tremendous amount of complexity. It is a bolder style, to be certain, but done in a very elegant fashion. Baking spices and earthy notes combine to provide an initial savory layer, with undertones of white pepper and a hint of vanilla over black cherry. The layers of this wine keep unfolding, revealing beautiful complexity and seduction in its silky-smooth style. As for the cuisine at Taste of Pigs and Pinot, I was smitten with the Quail BLT from Chef Ryan Francher of Barndiva. Toasted brioche, tomato marmalade, sunny side up quail egg, chervil and rapini flowers made for the tastiest single bite of the night. A heavenly combination of textures and flavors, I loved the way the crunchy brioche contrasted the warm, oozing egg yolk, and the tomato marmalade added that touch of acid and sweetness to bring all the flavors together.
Alongside Chef Scott Romano, Chef Charlie Palmer of Dry Creek Kitchen never disappoints at his Taste of Pigs and Pinot event and the Niman Ranch Pork French Dip with herb-roasted cipollini relish, Cowgirl Creamery St. Pat cheese and Sausalito Springs watercress on a yeast roll dipped in au jus was a deliciously hearty offering. Cher Perry Hoffman of Shed offered up the most colorful and artfully prepared dishes of the night: the Confit of Niman Pork Cheek with sauerkraut powder, wild mustard and bread crumbs. This confit was wonderful, packed with succulent texture and those floral wild mustard flavors popped on the palate. Bringing together world-class Pinot Noir and fine cuisine from mostly local restaurants, Pigs and Pinot is definitely a decadent weekend of wine and food, and the best part is that it’s all for a very important cause. A portion of the proceeds from event ticket sales and the silent auction are donated from the annual event to Share Our Strength's No Kid Hungry Campaign and a wide array of North Bay charities. This year along, This year, Pigs and Pinot weekend surpassed $1,000,000 in total funds raised over the last twelve years! Cheers to the Chef Charlie Palmer and his team at Dry Creek Kitchen for hosting such a fabulous annual event and providing such a fun way to give back to the local community.
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When it comes to terroir expression, Etude Winery takes it global with their Appellation Series collection of Pinot Noir. Comprised of six bottles, the Appellation Series showcases different appellations across California, Oregon and New Zealand. And with the small variation of 12-13 months barrel aging, as well as new French oak ranging between 25-33% for each bottling, the winemaking techniques are both minimal and nearly the same across all six wines—making the terroir characteristics both easy to detect and easy to distinguish from one bottle to the next.
2014 Grace Benoist Ranch Pinot Noir | Carneros, California Coming from the diverse appellation of Carneros with 13 different soil types, varying elevation and sun exposure, the Grace Boist Ranch Pinot is well balanced and full of charm. Aromas of fresh and tangy fruit abound, cranberry and orange zest, with a dash of incense spice. This Pinot is bright on the palate, too, with refreshing acidity and structure, blueberry notes leading into cranberry, cedar and a hint of barrel spice. 2014 Ellenbach Vineyard Pinot Noir | Sonoma Coast, California The Ellenbach Vineyard sits above the fog line on California’s cold Sonoma Coast, just two miles from the rocky shore of the Pacific Ocean. Because the vineyard sits above the fog line, you can taste that sun exposure in the glass. There’s an abundance of rich red cherry and spices, while those cold nights and Pacific breeze maintain the wine’s acidity, creating a very robust but balanced Pinot. 2014 North Canyon Vineyard | Santa Maria Valley, California In California’s Santa Barbara County, the North Canyon Vineyard finds its home in the east-to-west-facing Santa Maria Valley appellation. Cool Pacific breezes and fog sweep through the region, offering up Pinots with strong acidic structure and lots of freshness. This North Canyon Pinot Noir is dark and spice-filled on the nose with black cherry, chocolate-covered blueberries and clove scents. The palate is mouth-filling and very structured, with juicy blackberry fruit and lingering acidity. It’s a balanced wine and you can tell it will improve with cellar time. 2014 Fiddlestix Vineyard Pinot Noir | Sta. Rita Hills, California Another Santa Barbara County appellation, the Sta. Rita Hills is about ten miles from the Pacific Ocean and sees steady mid-70s temperatures. This region is one of the coolest wine-growing climates in California and offers up Pinots with more savory characteristics than their warmer climate counterparts. The aromas are rather Burgundian with hints of black tea, rose petals and forest floor; there’s also a brininess to it that hearkens to the oceanic influence. A denser mouthfeel with more tannin structure, the Fiddlestix Vineyard Pinot shows vanilla-laced flavors of cherry and spice. Give this another year in bottle for the tannins to soften and the oak to find its synergy with the fruit. 2014 Yamhill Vista Vineyard Pinot Noir | Yamhill-Carlton District, Oregon A sub-appellation of the well-known Willamette Valley, Yamhill-Carlton District boasts hillsides with a wide range of elevation between 200-1,00 feet, but the Yamhill Vista Vineyard is perfectly situated in the middle at 600 feet. Outside of the rain shadow, the site sees plenty of sunshine and that shows in the fruitiness of the wine’s aromatics. Full of plum and cherry, these fresh fruit aromas are juxtaposed against savory scents of tea and purple flowers. On the palate, this soft-textured wine brings forward cherry and cranberry in full force. 2014 Bannockburn Pinot Noir | Central Otago, New Zealand Reaching halfway across the world, the Central Otago Bannockburn site in New Zealand completes the Appellation Series collection. The site is a bit warmer and drier than other parts of the appellation, and its continental climate offers a strong diurnal temperature range, making the perfect conditions for grapes to ripen slowly. There are aromas of black cherry and dark berries on the nose, while the the schist gravel soils bring about a beautiful texture and earthiness to the palate. Rich and full, there is a plumpness to the Bannockburn Pinot, with notes of spiced plums, blueberry and crushed rocks. In recent months, I’ve tasted a lot of single-vineyard bottlings of Russian River Valley Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. So when the La Follette North Coast Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from the 2014 vintage landed in my lap, I was curious to see how these larger, more all-encompassing appellated bottles would stack up to the specificity of single-vineyard counterparts. The North Coast appellation encompasses a lot of territory across both Sonoma and Mendocino counties, so the range from which to source grapes is pretty far-reaching. Within the North Coast appellation, there are quite a few sub-appellations—including some of Sonoma County’s well-known appellations for growing these Burgundian varietals, like Russian River Valley and the soon-to-be Petaluma Gap (appellation approval currently pending). And while there is no doubt that the grapes sourced from North Coast are of high quality, they present a style that is more an amalgamation of climates and terroir, rather than zoning in on one specific climate and terroir like a single-vineyard wine does. If you know anything about La Follette, then you know these wines are in excellent hands with Associate Winemaker Simone Sequiera. A traditionalist at heart with former experience in Burgundy, her wines always call upon a Burgundian style, and the estate adheres to a meticulous approach in the vineyard and a minimalist approach in the cellar. Sequiera is a winemaker who believes that the wines are made in the vineyard, so even with these more affordable North Coast bottlings, you can bet you are going to get a well-crafted bottle of wine. The 2014 North Coast Chardonnay from La Follette is definitely made in a Burgundian style. This is not a buttery California Chardonnay—it seems that a some point, this clichéd phrase may no longer be relevant—but rather a crisp and refreshing Chardonnay that expresses itself clearly in the glass, unmasked by winemaking techniques. The grapes are harvested from Mendocino County and old vines on the Sonoma Coast. Aromatically, there are fresh notes of underripe honeydew melon, lemon curd, a touch of fresh-baked bread and a smoky characteristic. The grapes are fermented in both tank and barrel, bringing a nice balance of texture to the palate with its crisp edges and smooth mouthfeel. Those same notes of underripe honeydew melon are found in the mouth, with meyer lemon and white nectarine flavors. This is a very juicy and fresh Chardonnay with poignant acidity balanced by a gentle roundness at mid-palate. A significant portion of the grapes for the 2014 North Coast Pinot Noir come from the Petaluma Gap area of the Sonoma Coast AVA. Petaluma Gap is primed to be the newest appellation in Sonoma County and their application to the TTB has been underway for almost a couple years now. The ruling should be given soon, but despite the bureaucracy, there is no denying that Petaluma Gap has already made a name for itself in the industry with their Burgundian varietal wines. The area is prone to wind and fog that rolls in from Petaluma through a ‘gap’ in the terrain—hence the name. Keeping that in mind when tasting the 2014 North Coast Pinot Noir, it seems to elicit that very cool, windswept terroir. There is good acid on the palate, a very light body, and tart fruit abounds. The nose is a bit reticent at first, but then brings spiced red cherry, bright strawberry and an almost stemmy aroma—it’s possible Sequiera used some stem-inclusion when fermenting the grapes for this wine, as is often the case when making wine in a Burgundian style. In the mouth, the light body and simple profile allows the malolactic fermentation to show through just a bit, alongside flavors of strawberry and baking spice. This wine is easy-drinking and would make an excellent match with foods like baked salmon and roasted pork tenderloin. Given that these two wines each retail for $22, I am impressed by the quality. It is difficult to find a good price to quality ratio when it comes to Pinot Noir these days, so it is nice to see affordable bottles like this coming from such an esteemed winemaker. These wines are great for everyday-drinking occasions. I recently took a trip to Italy, so when I came home, I was anxious to get to a sample of wine that had been sitting in my cellar for admittedly too long. The wine is Castello di Amorosa’s 2012 La Castellana, which is their Napa Valley version of an Italian Super Tuscan. The history of Super Tuscan wines began when Italian winemakers in Tuscany wanted to make wines using grape varieties that were both not indigenous to Italy and not allowed to be used under the DOC/DOCG appellation laws. Tuscany is the proud home of the indigenous Sangiovese grape variety, but with the birth of Super Tuscans came wines blending Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and other Bordeaux varieties. Super Tuscans are very different from traditional Tuscan wines, because the blending in of Bordeaux varieties can bring a more saturated color, more robust palate, additional texture, new flavors, a different tannin level and the ability for the wine to take more new oak. These wines tend to be hearty but balanced, and many of them are incredibly long-lived. The same can be said for Castello di Amorosa’s 2012 La Castellana, a wine that is both robust but balanced and showing signs of age-worthiness. Castello di Amorosa’s 2012 La Castellana from Napa Valley is comprised of 76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Sangiovese and 9% Merlot. This combination brings a sturdy tannin structure and dark fruit profile from the Cabernet Sauvignon, the brightness and acidity we all love from Sangiovese, and the softness in texture that defines Merlot. This is a blend that while still young, finds balance and is drinkable now, though you can tell that the wine has the stuffing to develop well in the cellar. This 2012 La Castellana opens with a fully body and soft, but grainy tannin structure that is quickly mellowed by the softness texture that Merlot brings to any well-balanced blend. Dark fruit is juxtaposed against the oak, but the latter is not overbearing. With that being said, time in the cellar with lessen that oak and allow the wine to relax a bit more. You can taste the heartiness of this wine; the weight in the mouth is noticeable and surrounds the luscious dark chocolate-covered blackberry flavors. Letting the wine breathe a bit, after about an hour in the glass, it showed a softer and juicier profile—much more relaxed—with blackberry and an almost earthy, eucalyptus-like quality. Carneros: Napa Valley's Cool-Climate Appellation Deep on the southernmost tip of Napa Valley, jutted up against the San Pablo Bay, the Carneros appellation is home to gently rolling vineyards that are planted with cool-climate-loving grape varieties. Here, the vines see plenty of morning and evening fog, though daytime brings boundless California sunshine and moderate heat. This makes the growing environment ideal for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, allowing for Pinot Noir to maintain its varietal characteristics without being overly-ripe and for Chardonnay to keep its fresh acidity. A Bit of History Of the many estates in Carneros, the Bouchaine Vineyards property has a history that dates back to the 1880s. The property was first owned by a man named Boon Fly (yes, you might recognize this name from the local Boon Fly Café—an homage to the region's history), and he grew both grapes and fruit trees. The property changed hands twice, to Italian winemaker Johnny Garetto in 1927 and then into the hands of Beringer in 1950 (who used the property for storage and blending), before today's owners—Gerret and Tatiana Copeland Copeland—purchased the property in 1981. Truth is, that seed for purchasing the estate had been planted well before 1981, when the Copelands visited the region and fell in love with the property. At that time, no vines had been planted and in 1993, the Copelands had their work cut out for them. Over the next few years, they would plant vineyards and renovate the neglected winery; in the years that followed, the Copelands purchased additional contiguous vineyards to build up their plot of land. From 2002-2015, the winemaking was led by Michael Richmond (founder of Acacia). Having recently retired, Napa native and longtime Carneros winemaker Chris Kajani now heads the winemaking and is General Manager of Bouchaine Vineyards. New Releases I recently had the opportunity to taste some new releases from Bouchaine. The 2015 Vin Gris of Pinot Noir is a perfect accompaniment for a warm day at the beach, with its brine-like aromas that seamlessly blend with scents of watermelon, lime zest and caramel on the nose. There is nice extraction here, with a vibrant cherry color glistening in the sunlight, and a nice dry palate. With no detectable residual sugar, this is a light and refreshing wine, perfectly delicious when chilled just enough to let the flavors shine on the palate. Watermelon, red apple, minerals and again that touch of brine graces the soft and silky palate; medium acidity brings balance to the wine's roundness. With a lively nose that is full of boysenberry and blackberry, the 2014 Estate Swan Clone Pinot Noir comes right out of the gates with fruit-forward aromatics. There are also savory, meaty aromas with dustings of orange rind and smoke. The palate brings a soft, silky texture and flavors of bright red fruit. I like the balance between strawberry and char-grilled notes, something earthy and soil-driven. This Pinot is low in acid and restrained in its fruitiness—a nicely balanced wine with smooth tannin, medium body and an oak restraint—aged in just 30% new French oak for 11 months—that brings an overall pleasant tasting experience. And because I am already thinking abut Thanksgiving, these small production bottlings—with the Vin Gris at 480 cases and the Estate Swan Clone Pinot Noir at only 293 cases—would make excellent with Thanksgiving dinner. |
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