Wine Beneath The Palms

Do wine critics have reason to live?

       Question of the week: Are wine ratings overrated?

        Do wine gurus like Robert Parker and magazines like Wine Spectator and Wine Enthusiast (and, I suppose, wine columnists like me) know what they/we are talking about?

        There's a growing debate about this around the world.

        Recently Siduri, a small winery that makes pinot noir in California and Washington, sent an e-mail to its customers complaining about wine critics' wildly varying descriptions of its wines. Of their 2006 Rosella's Vineyard Pinot Noir, right, it said, the Connoisseur's Guide to California Wine said "a classy and complete package and gave it 93 points, while Wine Spectator said "dried herb, cola and sassafras flavors, thin on the finish and gave it 85 points.

        "As a consumer," Siduri said, "how are you supposed to make sense of such wildly varying thoughts on our wines? Taste the wines and decide for yourself. Honestly (and obviously) there is no greater indicator of quality than your own palate."

       True dat.

       I've tasted wine in competitions around the country, often in five-person panels. And I can't tell you how often five veteran tasters will come with five utterly different options -- from gold medal to no medal at all.

       At an April wine conference in Spain, in an almost-Maoist burst of self-confession, the well-known British wine author Jancis Robinson urged wine critics to be more humble.

       "We must always remember that we are parasites on the business of winemaking. We must realize we only have one palate."

        On the other hand, I take comfort in a phrase I ran across in a another wine critic's blog: "We spit so you can sip."

       In my own column in The Herald, I use only two wine ratings: "Highly recommended" and "recommended." I can only point you to what I like, tell you how it tastes to me. I offer no 30-day guarantees.

       So the question is this: Do you get any value out of wine ratings and descriptions? Do wine critics have reason to live?

Best wine I've tasted lately

      Merryvale Vineyards, of St. Helena, Calif., always turns out dependable wines – rich, fruity, with no hard edges. Their 2006 Merryvale Pinot Noir, Carneros is even better than usual.

         The grapes come from the Stanly Ranch on the Napa side of Carneros, a good growing area cooled by fogs from San Pablo Bay. Vineyard workers sorted the grapes three times, in the vineyard, before de-stemming and again before crushing). T

           The wines were aged for eight months in French Oak.

            The result is a rich, full California-style pinot noir, with aromas and flavors of black cherries and bitter-sweet chocolate – smooth and creamy, with a long finish.

            The price is $35.

Wine: The manly drink

            Our discussion of whether real men drink wine continues to resonate.

            Wine seller Richard Shaffer e-mails the following: “I think being involved with the wine scene is a magnet for the ladies (my team imports boutique wine from Israel, and I'd much rather mention that start-up company of mine than the fact that I broker insurance, too!). With regards to white wine - anyone who thinks Sauvignon Blanc is only for ladies does not get out enough - that's my fave grape - it's versatile and takes on different personalities across the world wherever it grows. Love it - got a manly bite to it often, too.”

            Me: So in a few days wine goes from a drink for wimps to a chick magnet. It’s a miracle.

A Miami blog for lovers of Italian wine

               Oh, good – I found another South Florida wine blog. They seem to be few and far between.

               But if you like Italian wine, check out Miami Loves Italian Wine, a blog written by Julie Mushett, 29, left, of Miami, who sells wine for Vinifera Imports of Fort Lauderdale. A native of Anchorage, Alaska, where there’s only one sommelier in town, she likes to invite South Florida sommeliers -- Allegra Angelo of Michy’s, George Hock at Casa Tua and so on -- to wine tastings. Then she writes up the results.

“It’s just kind of my wine journal,” she says. “A way for me to keep track of the wines I’ve tried and the places I’ve been.”

If you read her descriptions, it’ll get you interested in something relatively new – Italy’s growing experiments with France’s syrah grape.

             And her musings on the 2003 Vino Nobile di Montepulciano will make you want some: “a nose of dark fruit, blackberries and vanilla; on the palate, medium body with loads of fruit and a finish of ripe, juicy plum with hints of smooth cream.”

Check her out.

Also, if you have a South Florida wine blog or know someone who does, please let me know so I can feature it here. Click on the “comments” icon below.

Best wines I've tasted lately

                                                                                                                                                          

    Couple of really nice new wines arriving in South Florida. The Jaboulet family, top producers in France’s Northern Rhône Valley for 200 years, have created two new nicely priced syrahs. They are the 2005 Crozes-Hermitage Rouge, left, a $28 wine with smooth body and flavors of black raspberries and cinnamon; and the 2005 Syrah Vin de Pays de la Drôme, a $15 wine with a lighter style and bright red raspberry flavors.

      Both come from very close to the Rhone’s fabled Hermitage appellation, so they have good neighbors.

       The Jaboulets have renovated an old winery with state-of-the-art equipment and new French oak barrels, so expect them to be a major player in the area.

       Try these at your next backyard barbecue.

In search of softer red wines

    Reader Bill Spicer e-mails:

     My wife and I have enjoyed white and blush wines (riesling, pinot grigio, white merlot) for the last few years and we are wanting to get more into red wines. It’s been tough to get into as we have had a few bad experiences with some red wines. I don't think we are ready for Cabs. Just too harsh for us. We have tried a couple of house reds at a few places and we have liked them but they are hard to find in a store and we are never sure what they are.  I think we have decided we like light to medium bodied red wine.

     My question is this: Is a Pinot Noir lighter than Merlot? Also is a Blend (Cab and Merlot) milder than a regular Merlot? I'm trying find red's in our taste area vs wasting many bottles of red wine down the drain.

Thanks,
Bill Spicer

Hi Bill,
     Thanks for the question. There are a lot of people in your shoes, drinking white and blush wines, trying to figure out how to move into reds. Here’s my subjective, informal list of commonly available light red wines you might try: gamay, the grape of Beaujolais wines, pinot noir (the grape of Burgundy wines), valpolicella, bardolino, barbera, cabernet franc, tempranillo (the grape of Chianti wines), inexpensive shiraz from Australia.

       The heaviest red wines (that you might want to avoid for a while) include nebbiolo (the grape in Barolo wines), cabernet sauvignon, many merlots, many malbecs.

     Blends: Merlot is often blended with cabernet sauvignon to soften it; but the result can still be pretty powerful. Australian shiraz is usually soft by itself, a lot heftier if cabernet sauvignon is blended into it.

     To see an alphabetical list of the red grapes of the world, click here. A lot of grapes, but most aren't available here.

     I have label pictures here of two soft reds in the $8-$9 range. There's a beaujolais by Georges Duboeuf and a shiraz by Rosemount. Try them and others like them and report back how you like them. A lot of readers can learn from your adventure.

     But remember: Take notes. It doesn't matter if you find a wine you like if you can't remember what it was.

    Cheers, Fred

Of men and wine

            Hey, check out the comments under the item below on whether real men drink wine. “Iamme” writes that wine helps him impress dates. “Chris” says real men don’t drink white wine.

            

             You gonna let him get away with that, white wine lovers?

Do real men drink wine?

            In the item below about Mark Fisher’s “Uncorked” wine blog in The Dayton Daily News, he raises a sensitive question: Is wine a “manly drink,” or is it a “girls’ ” beverage that should be avoided by the average macho dude in favor of something like beer. Mark and his followers found themselves pushing for wine’s masculine status by drinking it at tailgate parties for the Cleveland Browns.

            All the statistics say women buy more wine than men – in bars, restaurants, grocery stores. Interviews I’ve done of young men indicate that, while they’re comfortable drinking wine when they’re at a bar with their girlfriends, they revert to beer when they’re out with the guys.

            This may be why so many males don’t start drinking wine until their 40s and are more secure in their identity. In fact, try this on for an argument: It’s the same reason most men don’t go to the opera, symphony or ballet until their 40s. It takes time to achieve the maturity of intellect and soul to enjoy such refined, complex pleasures. Including wine, of course.

            Men, women, old and young, let me know what you think. Click on the “comments” icon below.

Las Olas Wine and Food Festival draws 2,000

 

   

      Nearly 2,000 hedonists walked up and down Las Olas Boulevard on Thursday evening sampling wines and spirits and tasting appetizers supplied by local restaurants at the Las Olas Wine and Food Festival. The annual event benefits the American Lung Asslciation of Florida – South Area.

      “I like this festival because it isn’t so crowded,” said Saul Larson, of Hollywood

.

     Here’s who’s in the photos, in order from the top:

     1. Wine rep pours a kir royale, Korbel sparkling wine and Raspberry Chambord liqueur, for Linda Ritchie of Lauderdale by the Sea.

     2. Jamie Kahns, left, and Carol Palacios, members of St. Petersburg American Lung Association, sip vodka and Sprite. “We’re here to learn about this festival to maybe start one in St. Petersburg or Sarasota,” Kahns said.

     3. Kennon Hetlage of Fort Lauderdale samples sushi, scallops wrapped in bacon.

     4. From left, Erika Pager, Laura Mogilewski and Cynthia Kounaris of Fort Lauderdale load up on ribs, cole slaw.

A Western Kentucky view of the mint julep

            People in my office tell me the real recipe for a Mint Julep, from the journalism class at Western Kentucky University, is this:

            * In a tall glass put a teaspoon of sugar, a jigger of water and several mint leaves. Muddle well.

           * In a separate glass, put a jigger of bourbon.

            * Throw away the first glass and drink the second.

             Go Big Red!