I’ll Drink to That!

I just got back from a whirlwind 24 hour trip to Paso Robles, and I thought I would let you know about some of the interesting people I met there and what they are up to in their wonderful wine country town.

First off, Spring has sprung. The vineyards are awakening from their winter slumber and bud break has occurred. The blue lupine and the yellow wild mustard intermingle,  painting the green rolling hillsides with spectacular color. The apple trees show off with their delicate pink flowers.

Your next glass of Sangiovese?

Apple blossoms at Laraneta

This last week the Paso Robles Chamber of Commerce put on their Business Expo, Mission Possible, bringing together many of the local businesses to showcase their services and meet the residents of the city.

I was very happy to finally meet longtime Facebook friend, Dina Mande of Juice Marketing, a company specializing in website, print and video for wineries.  She has recently designed the beautiful new website for Mojo Cellars, a Westside winery owned by Sleepy Guitar Johnson, Denis Degher.

Sleepy Guitar Johnson, Denis Degher of Mojo Wines, performs regularly at Vinoteca Wine Bar in downtown Paso Robles

We walked around the event for about 2 hours, while tasting some wine from Sylvester Winery,  Eberle Winery and Sculpterra Winery and Sculpture Garden. We met the folks from The Paso Robles Inn, La Bellasera Hotel & Suites, Hunter Ranch Golf Course, Taylor Party Rentals and tasted some goodies from the famous Chef Andre of Dining with Andre catering company. I especially enjoyed having a look at some of the wonderful and creative items produced by Marv Kohlman of California Barrel Crafts. He makes furniture, bottle racks and murals all out of recycled wine barrels!

Having walked the entire expo, we were quite hungry and decided a visit to Good Ol’ Burger was in order. For years we have been coming to this place after hours spent tasting the big red wines of Paso. That’s when we are seriously craving meat and this place is conveniently located on 24th Street right off the 101 and at the crossroads between the East and Westside winery areas. They moved into shiny new digs a couple of years ago from their original, shall we say, more “rustic” location, but the food remained the same. Great burgers and the best onion rings, period! Don’t forget the ranch dressing on the side. Just give it up and splurge. Although, for lunch we usually split a cheeseburger and a small order of rings. Plenty, trust me, especially if you’re planning on dinner in town in the evening.

Friends enjoying post wine tasting repast at Good Ol'Burger

Clearly, no longer hungry, it was time to head to town to Vinoteca Wine Bar where we were going to meet up with the popular Matt and Annie of Hoot ‘n Annie’s Blog fame. Vinoteca, located right across the street from the park and within walking distance of many of Paso’s finest restaurants, is the place to stop by after dinner to enjoy a glass of wine and mingle with the locals. Its cozy atmosphere  creates the perfect ambiance for an evening of meeting up with friends, old and new.

Friends at Vinoteca Wine Bar

Friday nights they feature live music, (see Denis above),  and on  Winemaker Wednesday,  one of the local wineries pours flights of their featured wines and can be paired with savory tapas. On the night we were there our friends Melinda and Joe Laraneta of Laraneta Vineyards were pouring their wines and the place was buzzing with activity. We totally enjoyed meeting Matt and Annie, chatting with them about wine, food and their Paso Robles lifestyle. We met many others who call Paso home including Daniel and Corrine Appelbaum, proprietors of Safe Haven Wine Services. These two have figured out the solutions to many of the shipping issues for the wineries themselves and for the consumer, not only increasing cost effectiveness of shipping and storage, but making it “greener” as well. If you’re planning a touring and tasting vacation in the Paso Robles area, give these people a call to find out how easy they can make it to ship your treasures home for you. Cyndee Smolik provides vital services of another nature to the wineries with her Uncorked Compliance Wine Industry Consultants company. She helps them stay on top of all the governmental compliance issues - no small task. It was also fun to meet Ashley Rae Fischer and her mother Becky Zelinsky of First Crush Winemaking Experience. First Crush offers wine lovers the opportunity to try their hand at crafting their own wine through a variety of interactive, wine-related learning experiences. We talked about the possibility of bringing their blending seminar to I’ll Drink to That’s members in the near future as a special event. Sounds like fun!

The next morning we had some errands to run in town so we first stopped at Vic’s Restaurant for a hearty breakfast. Delicious omelets, tender hash browns and tall buttery biscuits were just we needed to get us through the drive ahead of us. Then off to Safe Haven to drop off wine shipping inserts that I had been saving to recycle. Next, the mandatory stop at Cider Creek Bakery to restock on F.R.O.G jam. Fig,raspberry, orange and ginger marmalade, really, a pantry staple in our house. Great all by itself on toast, it is also so good mixed into dressings and marinades, for sauces, on top of a baked brie, and mixed into mashed sweet potatoes, with a little bourbon. We  come up with new ways to use it all the time.

We had only time for one tasting, so we stopped at Kiame Wine Cellars, whose tasting room is in the downtown area. I wanted to pick up a couple bottles of their White Kuvee, Proprietary White Blend, which is a favorite of mine. A delicious blend of 60% Roussanne and 40% Viognier from the Westside Derby Vineyard, this wine has scents of honeysuckle and lemongrass and a minerality component that makes this wine a great change-up from the heavy, oaky Chardonnays. We also picked up a bottle of their 06 R’Own Style Blend, comprised of 50% Syrah, 40% Grenache, 8% Zinfandel and 2% Viognier. Give this one some air to allow the bright strawberry and rhubarb flavors to unfold, finishing with cinnamon spice.

Finally it was time to head home from our short trip, but happy to have met many more of the great people from this wonderful wine making area. See you soon, Paso Robles…..

Just south of Paso Robles in an area known as the Templeton Gap, there is located a small family run winery - Laraneta Winery. They don’t have a tasting room, yet, and are not open to public tastings, so you would drive right by the property on Templeton Road going to and returning from the many other wineries in the area.  But if you’re lucky enough to have received an invitation to visit or are in need of lodging, at the end of the Liquid Amber tree lined driveway lies Honey Oak House and B & B where Melinda and Joseph Laraneta warmly welcome their B & B guests to old fashioned hospitality and, of course, a glass of their wine.

Liquid Amber lines the drive

Joe and Melinda Laraneta

My husband and I were lucky enough to be on the receiving end of all that hospitality when, on one beautiful Paso Robles day last Autumn, they invited us to taste their line-up of award winning wines.  I had tasted a few earlier in the year at a tasting in the LA area, and was anxious to spend some time with the Laraneta’s learning about them and their wine making adventures. As we entered the drive, we noticed the olive orchard situated opposite the vineyard. They also have a line of hand-crafted olive oils, which we tasted that afternoon as well. The Laraneta’s and their dog Peaches greeted us and brought us in to meet some friends and we spent the next hour tasting and chatting. The Laraneta’s enthusiasm and passion turned into an invitation to take a golf cart tour of their estate which we eagerly accepted.

Owl box

Who knew chestnuts come from a crazy looking pod?

View of the Laraneta estate from the front veranda

We learned about planting, harvesting, owl boxes, protection from cold and wind and birds, and even what chestnuts look like just off the tree.  We saw the different kinds of olives and Joe proudly explained about the many varieties of shrubs, trees, flowers and roses he had lovingly planted about his property.We left, glad to have made new friends in the Laranetas and making the commitment to “stay in touch”.

As luck would have it, Melinda and Joe were planning a visit to family and were going to be in the LA area for just two days in March. We asked them if they would like to come to our home and share some of their wines with a few of our close friends who really appreciated wine and those whose passion it is to create it. They said yes, and a week later we were hosting them and a small group of eager tasters.

We greeted each guest with a glass of Segura Viudas Cava to set a festive mood for the evening. Being a strong believer in food and wine bringing out the best in each other, I decided to create a tasting menu pairing an appetizer or dish with each of the 6 wines they would be pouring. They also brought four different olive oils which I put out for tasting with bread dippers.

After all the introductions were made Melinda poured their first wine. Cameo is made from  Vernaccia, a white wine grape from the San Gimignano area of Tuscany. It is  crisp, clean and a bit lemony with a buttery mouthfeel and a slight vanilla finish.  The guests were offered  rich, creamy Clam Fondue on sourdough toast. They happily noshed while Melinda elaborated further on the background of the grape and how they came to plant it.

Next up was their Vera Sano Rose, which is an unusual blend of  80% Vernaccia and 20% Sangiovese. One taste of this delightful wine had us all thinking “salmon”. So luckily I had made  salmon salad with Dill nestled in Endive leaves with a drizzle of the Laraneta’s Lemon Olive Oil.

Their Merlot, which they call Sa Va, is actually the wine that  attracted my attention to Laraneta in the first place. Dark and full bodied, this 100% Merlot is layered with black cherry, roasted coffee, sage and red currant. For this wine, I made a Merlot Risotto, then shaped it into bite size cakes, pan fried them and topped them with a dollop of aioli made with Laraneta Rosemary Olive Oil. What a beautiful color these tasty morsels were!

Red wine risotto cakes with Rosemary Aioli

Next in the line-up was the Sangiovese, and of course I thought, pasta! So a quick pour, some education on Italian wine, and everyone grabbed a plate of  Baked Rigatoni with Sausage and Mushrooms served with some good crusty rosemary/olive oil bread.

With everyone well fed and feeling good, we moved into the “decadent” portion of the evening, and the last two pairings. First, the cheese course served with Laraneta’s Cabernet Sauvignon. This elegant cab, enhanced with Merlot and Sangiovese, was extra yummy paired with Cambezola and an aged Gouda. We all had great fun determining our opinions of which cheese was more delicious with the wine, and of course we had to keep trying them just to make sure. It was a task happily taken on with much gusto.

Wine, bread, pasta, cheese - only one thing was still needed. Yes, chocolate! And lucky for us the Laraneta’s had brought with them their ‘05 -No. 5. This is also a blend with the predominant grape being Merlot at 75%, supported by 10% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Sangiovese.  This velvety wine boasts characteristics of dried cherry, plum and toasted hazelnuts with aromas of cocoa, blackberry and sweet spices. All that was needed here to compliment this delicious wine was an assortment of chocolate truffles, and I was happy to oblige.

The tasting line-up

So…if you plan on visiting the Paso Robles area for a special event or festival, or just need a weekend away, consider Honey Oak House and Laraneta Winery - good wine, good friends, good times!

I’ll Drink to That!

To quote Sid Goldstein, author of “The Wine Lover’s Cookbook”, “Pinot Noir is, in a word, a wonder. It is a mysterious and seductive wine that echoes the smell of the earth from which it comes.”

Sometimes referred to as the “heartbreak grape”,  it is difficult to grow, and demands great attention both in the vineyard as well as the winery. It is the coveted grape of Burgundy, and currently widely planted in Oregon and California. Although I enjoy a bottle of Pinot every so often, I don’t drink a lot of it. Pinot Days, held here in Los Angeles for the first time last weekend, was a real eye opener for me, introducing my palate to many different styles of Pinot ranging from dry and austere to fat and juicy. I was happy to meet and learn from producers from many prime pinot growing areas including Washington, Oregon, New Zealand and California.

My Pinot adventure started with an impromptu winemakers dinner held at Upstairs 2, the restaurant that is, you guessed it, upstairs over the Wine House wine shop. I had received an e-mail from Lisa and Steve Rigisich, the producers of Pinot Days, informing us that they and several of the winemakers in town for the festival were going to put on a small winemakers dinner a few days before the festival and limited reservations would be taken on a first come, first serve basis. Well the dinner sold out in half an hour - we were among the 80 or so lucky ones that secured a reservation.

Each table was set for 8 with a “winemakers chair” at the head of the table - winemakers would be rotating to a different table with each course so we would have the opportunity to speak with a number of them before the night was through.

Our first course was a salad of Arugula, Frisee and Belgian Endive with Duck Confit and a Pinot Noir Lingonberry Dressing. With that we were poured 2007 Inman Family Russian River Valley. Owner, winemaker and all around lovely lady, Kathleen Inman, also shared with us her 2006 Olivet Grange Vineyards Pinot Noir. Both were my favorite style - dry, earthy, elegant and well balanced with bright natural acidity. The second estate wine served with this course was the  Suacci Carciere Wines -  Suacci Vineyard - 2007.

The second course was a wonderful dish of Wild Mushroom Crusted Halibut with a red wine sauce. Mushrooms are so delicious paired with Pinot Noir and the first of two wines served with this course was the Lachini Vineyards Cuvee Giselle - 2007, Chehalem Mountains, Washington. Ron Lachini explained to us the intricacies of  bio-dynamic farming techniques and the reasons he and his wife chose to go that route. Oddly enough his wine had a very strong grassy aroma. Both his and the Willamette Valley Vineyards, Tualatin Estate 07 paired nicely with the fish.

Next up was Grilled Free Range Veal Chops with Herbs du Provence and Veal Demi-Glace.  The first wine poured was a Fess Parker Winery - Ashleys Pinot, Santa Rita Hills 07. This was one of the biggest pinots I have ever had, having even Syrah like qualities.  I figured this one would pair nicely with the chops, but obviously it did not behave like a Syrah and it flattened with the food.  A better choice was the 07 C. Donatiello Winery - Maddie’s Vineyard. Still a bigger and bolder style of Pinot than I normally choose, it held it’s own with the grilled meat and potatoes.

The dessert course was two cheeses served with fig bread and candied walnuts. Ana Keller of Keller Estate joined us at our table for this course and shared with us her family’s history in the wine industry. I enjoyed her 07 “El Coro” , a fleshy wine redolent of cherry, plum and currant flavors mingled with spice and tobacco. Also enjoyed with this course Perception Wines Russian River Valley 07.

This would have been a nice enough event by itself, but it was just a prelude for so much more Pinot yet to come.

Trade tasting gets under way

The festival was held at Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, a venue I had visited once before for the Make-a-Wish annual winetasting fund raiser. It’s big and roomy offering plenty of elbow space for thirsty tasters. So much Pinot, so little time as there were over 75 wineries represented and the walk around trade tasting was a mere 2 hours. A quick perusal of the offerings and off we went. A couple of  producers had Chardonnay or Pinot Gris tucked away under their tables and I was glad I had a bottle of SanTasti palate cleansing beverage with me - yes you really can go back and forth from red to white with optimum enjoyment and appreciation. Highlights for me included:

Carr Vineyards & Winery: 07 Pinot Noir, Three Vineyards, Sta. Rita Hills and 07 Turner Vineyard, Sta. Rita Hills

Clouds Rest Vineyards: Tried and enjoyed 4 vintages from Sonoma: 02,03,04,05

Bouchaine Vineyards: 2006 Carneros

Demetria Estate: 2006 Cuvee Sandra, Sta Rita Hills

Kindred Wines: 2007 Pinot Noir Amber Ridge Vineyard, Russian River Valley

Papapietro-Perry: 2007 Russian River Valley

Kindred Wines,member of SFWA

Besides tasting some very interesting wines and meeting the creative men and women behind those wines, it was nice to catch up with friends. Eve Bushman of Eve’s 101 and Denise Lowe, the “goddess of vino”, were on hand for a photo op.

Denise Lowe, Xochitl Maiman and Eve Bushman catch up at Pinot Days in Los Angeles

At 1:00 sharp Los Angeles Pinot fans, and there are thousands of them, converged on the festival, not letting the approaching storm keep them from the task at hand. I left with a new appreciation for this intriguing grape, respect for the fortitude of those who make the wine and a strong craving for a steak. However, one of my favorite recipes to go with Pinot Noir is this one shared by Chef Douglas Keane of Cyrus in Healdsburg, CA. Kathleen Inman likes this one too.

Truffled Red Wine Risotto with Parmesan Broth

I’LL DRINK TO THAT !

Traditionally, Champagne, or sparkling wines as they are called from anywhere outside France, seem to be relegated to “special occasions” and celebrations. Case in point, last Thursday night I made farfalle with salmon, asparagus, Gorgonzola and walnuts in a light cream sauce. After some thought, I decided on serving the dish with a Prosecco, sparkling wine from Italy. Both my husband and my daughter upon seeing the flutes arrive at the table, wanted to know, “what’s the occasion?” Simply put,  I just thought this was the right choice. It is after all, just wine, but with “frizante”. And besides, isn’t every day a celebration of something?

So with that in mind, the tasting at this month’s “I’ll Drink to That“, networking for wine enthusiasts event featured four sparkling wines from different countries. We started with a Prosecco, (Prosecco being the grape varietal), from Borgo Magredo in the Friuli region of Italy. Light straw-yellow in color, this sparkler offers a delicate balance of acidity and fruit, with hints of green apples on the palate.  Proseccos are generally modestly priced making them affordable for anytime drinking, this one retailing for about $18.00.  Paired with Pecorino Ginepro, a sheeps milk cheese from Italy, we were off to a good start.

In Spain, sparkling wines are called Cava, and that was next on the line-up. Aria, made by  the French methode champenoise , is from the Segura Viudas Estate in Torrelavit, in Spain’s Alt Penedes region and is styled after the popular Segura Viudas’ top-of-the-line cava, Reserva Heredad. (Yes, that’s the one with the cool pewter coaster attached to the base of the bottle). Aria is a blend of the Macabeo, Parellada and Xarel-lo grapes.  Together they produce a wine with a honeyed aroma with flavors of fresh pineapple, almonds, honey and pears.  Tapas anyone?

Next up was a Brut Rose from Marquis de la Tour located in the Loire Valley of France.  Some of the attendees thought this wine was a bit too “sweet” with it’s long red fruit finish. I thought it was a wonderful wine that could easily be enjoyed with a summer lunch or a light dessert maybe with a bit of milk chocolate. The bright salmon pink color of this wine adds to it’s festiveness.

The last of the sparkling wines was a wonderful offering from Laetitia Vineyards located in southern San Luis Obispo County. This Brut is made from Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Blanc, and is creamy with an abundance of very tiny bubbles and notes of warm bread and ripe apricots. Paired with a creamy Friesian sheep’s milk cheese from Rapidan, Virginia, it was just delicious!

Just for fun, the evening’s tasting ended with a dessert wine from Martin & Weyrich of Paso Robles, California. Their Moscato Allegro is made from Muscat Canelli in the style of northern Italy’s muscat, and is even bottled in the traditional, long and sleek “Renna Punto” bottle used only for the finest Moscato d’Asti.  The wine is fresh and spicy, with exotic floral and fruit aromas of orange blossoms, honeyed apricots and peaches. We were served a stilton with this wine and the pairing was perfect. Dessert in a bottle.

So whatever the un-occasion may be, don’t forget to consider a sparkling wine to add fun and festivity. Try Champagne or sparkling wine with smoky or salty foods such as lox and eggs for brunch. As an aperitif, it sets the mood for a celebration. Try some with Asian food - great contrast between the bold, often salty flavors of the food and the brisk acidity of the wine. Always serve Champagne and sparkling wines well chilled and in flutes to best appreciate all those tiny bubbles.

I’ll Drink to That!

Someone asked me the other day if Petite Sirah was considered a Rhone varietal.  I suppose when thinking about the top red Rhone varietals, we tend to remember most  Syrah, Mourvedre, Grenache, the three members of the very popular GSM blend. But there are many other red Rhones grapes - many of them vital components of the coveted wines of Cateauneuf-du-Pape. That list would include Carignan, Cinsault, Counoise, Muscardin, Picpoul Noir, Terret Noir and Vaccarese. And  yes, Petite Sirah. Petite Sirah, also known in France as Durif,  is a cross between two grapes, Syrah and Peloursin, developed in France in 1880 by Dr. Francois Durif.

Petite Sirah for Four Vines Heretic

Petite Sirah, by itself, produces a massive,dark, inky wine, full in the mouth, peppery and spicy.  When blended with other varietals it adds depth of color, body and big fruit flavors.

A big Petite Sirah with a juicy grilled steak is a pairing that’s hard to beat. But it would also be great with slow braised meats in hearty sauces.

One of my very favorite Petites is Four Vines Heretic made from old vine Petite Sirah with big, rich layers of black fruit and spice. Another producer whose wine I am anxious to try very soon is Aaron Wines - they make just Petite Sirah from Paso Robles fruit.

So while the weather is still chilly, think big and enjoy a bottle of Petite Sirah with some hearty winter comfort food, start a roaring fire and hunker down to enjoy one of the awards shows or the premier of “24″. (Yeah!)

I’ll Drink to That!