Tag: food and wine


Jun
2017

Domaine Sainte Croix Cuvee Montures 2015 Rosé

categories: Booze, Wine

About the Wine: As I mentioned in my brief Languedob-Roussillon synopsis, some French wines prefer to stay mysterious. Or, maybe it’s that they decide to maintain and Old World etiquette, not boasting the exact grape varieties, winemaking methods, and percentages of each varietal used. It does seem to be a “New World” fascination, telling a wine’s story on the back of the bottle, swaying drinkers’ opinions by the choice of words used. Why not, instead, taste the wine and figure it out yourself.

Such is the case with this Domaine Sainte Croix Cuvee Montures 2015 Rosé. I can tell you very little except what I saw, smelled, and tasted. I’ve drawn the conclusion that it is a purposeful rosé created in classic Rhône-style. But, read my notes — or better yet taste it for yourself — and tell me what you think.

12.5% ABV

(more…)


Jun
2017

Hugues Beauvignac Picpoul de Pinet 2015

categories: Booze, Wine

Personally, I first learned about Picpoul from winemaker (and kindred spirit) Randall Grahm of Bonny Doon Vineyards. He told me that Picpoul literally translates “lip stinger” — and let’s just say that as a lover of lemons, limes, and all sour candies (remember Shockers?), I was immediately taken aback by the power and intensity of the light and lively wine this Santa Cruz winemaker had to offer. So I was more than delighted to dive right into a bottle from varietal’s namesake region, Picpoul-Pinet.

(more…)


Jun
2017

te Pa Oke 2015 Sauvignon Blanc

categories: Booze, Wine

The Wairu Valley, another sub-region of New Zealand’s Marlborough wine country, is one the MacDonald family knows well, as their own little island of te Pa sits along the Wiaru Bar — where the Wairau River meets the sea. It’s a place the family has inhabited, land the family has cultivated, for the past 800 years.

Here, the land closest to the water is predominantly gravely riverbed soils, and the climate benefits from quite a bit of rainfall. Inland vineyards tend to be drier, and still cooler, and the soil quite stony, resulting in early-ripening grapes in some sites. The sub-region is known to produce fruit-forward wines. Of course that all depends on the vineyard and the vintner. te Pa Oke Sauvignon Blanc certainly takes a different approach.

(more…)


Jun
2017

te Pa 2015 Pinot Noir

categories: Booze, Wine

The Maori have an expression for Marlborough: “Kei puta te Wairau,” or “The place with the hole in the cloud.” Indeed, it is one of the most sunny and warm-climates regions in New Zealand and, by no consequence, the country’s largest wine producing region with just about 5,000 acres planted to vines.

The larger Marlborough region is divided into three major sub-regions, and it is the Awatere Valley region, south of the Wairau Valley where te Pa has extended their vineyard property. This sub-region spans inland from the ocean and includes elevated areas as it reaches toward the Kaikoura mountain-scape. Here, with its cooler, drier climate and somewhat rocky terrain, the vines incur a lot of vigor, producing Pinot Noir with a noted strength of character. te Pa 2015 Pinot Noir is a beautiful expression of this New Zealand terroir.

(more…)