Wednesday, 9 March 2011
Defining "Difference" in Wine Media
As a follow up my last post on wine media and writing, I want to draw attention to some very different types of wine media. POINTS MEDIA?The Wine Blue Book If you look at the right side of this blog,...
Stags\\\' Leap Santa Barbara Shafer Shafer Firebreak Sinskey
Event Report: Urban Grape Quintessa Wine Dinner at The Capital Grille
Wine retailer The Urban Grape recently teamed up with The Capital Grille in Chestnut Hill, MA to kick off a series of winemaker dinners in 2011. The first, this past Thursday January 27th, featured wines from Quintessa and winemaker Charles Thomas.Quintessa is owned by Augustin Huneeus whose Huneeus Vintners controls a growing stable of wine brands. Quintessa is a top-flight Bordeaux blend from Napa Valley that retails for around $135. Faust is a more approachable Napa Cab that sells for around $50. Illumination is a $45 Napa Sauvignon Blanc.
Beyond these Napa wines, Huneeus Vintners has added a number of prominent brands to their portfolio. In California these include Flowers and Orin Swift (who makes the bold QPR-favorite The Prisoner). In Chile there's Veramonte and Ritual. Quite a list of wines.
My affinity for The Capital Grill is well-documented at this point. Here's a review I wrote last year about their Master Wine Tasting Event in June. I'm a huge fan of their style of service, the quality of food across the entire menu, and the way their wine selections focus on guiding us to delicious wines in categories that expand our wine knowledge.
If you're familiar with The Capital Grille's Chestnut Hill location, the dinner occurred in the private room in the back-left of the restaurant. The event was absolutely sold out and the room was filled to capacity. In talking to the people seated around me, there was a mix of big-time Capital Grille fans and Urban Grape clients as well. Everyone was excited to try the wines.
As the first course was served (a Winter Salad of Mesclun Greens and Endive Tossed with a Grapefruit Vinaigrette, Clementine, Poached Pear and Postachio) winemaker Charles Thomas greeted us, told us about the history of the Quintessa, and introduced the first wine: The 2009 Illumination Sauvignon Blanc.
Charles has been winemaker at Quintessa since 2007. His past experience includes Robert Mondavi Winery, Domaine Chandon, Cardinale and Rudd as well as being involved with the inception and creation of Opus One.
Augustin Huneeus's experience in the wine business started with Concha y Toro in Chile. Then a small winery, he built it up before coming to the US in the 1970s. He worked with a variety of brands then built up Franciscan in the 1980s. His efforts are now focused on Quintessa and related brands in his portfolio.
The second course featured Alaskan Yukon Gold Salmon Caviar and American Sturgeon Caviar paired with the 2008 Ritual Pinot Noir.
Like other Chilean Pinot Noirs I've tried it was a bold wine featuring spicy notes. I thought it was racy, if a little rough and tannic compared to what I see in Pinot Noirs produced in other regions. A little rough and tumble. Paul Hobbs was a consulting winemaker on this one. Around $38 - I'd rate it 87 points.
Charles described how the Faust came into being. They felt they could produce a great wine from the grapes they were selling to other wineries that weren't making their way into the flagship Quintessa wine. Faust provides an affordable taste of what they do, but stylistically it's a very different wine than Quintessa.
Faust is classic Napa Cab with big dark fruit up front and palate-flooding flavor. I found the back end of the palate a little limited and the finish a touch short. Still, it's a crowd pleaser. I'd rate it 89 points - about $50.
Then, it was time for the big show. The one we'd all been waiting for: The 2007 Quintessa. Before trying the wine, I asked Charles which other wines Quintessa is stylistically similar to. He paused a moment - perhaps thinking about how to position the wine compared to other elite wines, perhaps thinking about whether he wanted to pre-dispose our perception of the wine in a certain way before we tried it. He said some compare it to Opus One, Robert Mondavi Reserve, and Phelps Insignia.
After trying the wine, I thought Opus One was the most relevant comparison. It's definitely a new world spin on a Bordeaux blend - and a very good one. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, and Carmenere come together to form a wine that is slightly closed aromatically at this point (as you'd expect - the wine is very young) with tar, red fruit and just a hint of mocha. The wine distinguished itself with it's laser-beam of intense flavors on the palate, through the back end, and with a very long finish. I hear the thing you're looking for when assessing wines like this in their youth is length of finish so this bodes very well for this wine's future. I'd rate it 92 points - around $135.
Dessert was a Coconut Creme Brulee with a Sandeman 10 Year Old Tawny Port. Loved the creme brulee - one of my favorite desserts at The Capital Grille, but I'm not much of a Port guy.
Noteable:
- The group seated next to me was a fun bunch. They said they come to the Capital Grille at least once a week and always sit with our lead server for the night David Bresner. His approach typifies the Capital Grille experience - refined yet comfortable and down to earth.
- The groups said when they went to The Capital Grille's Las Vegas location the restaurant was aware of their dining preferences from their past dining at Massachusetts Capital Grille locations - they didn't even have to tell them how like liked their steaks prepared. I asked them how often they mis-cook their steaks: "Almost never." I thought this was particularly impressive given that one of them likes their steaks well done and the other likes them rare.
- They also recommended Carmaleno's Pushcart in Saugus - duly noted.
I'm always impressed with how well The Capital Grille serves a meal, especially to a large group like this. The Urban Grape's style pairs well here and they're not kidding when they say space is limited for these events. If you want to attend future events be sure to get your reservation in early.
The next dinner in the series is Thursday, March 3, 2011 featuring wines from Vias Imports - red wines from Piedmont: Barbaresco and Barolo! More info on The Urban Grape's Event's page.
I attended as a guest of The Urban Grape.
Check 'em out:
Loire: 2008, 2009, 2010 and more!
The Loire has such diverse wines–red, white, pink, sparkling, sweet–that there’s enough to keep a wine enthusiast’s attention for a long time. Add to that a refreshing level of acidity in the wines and there’s a lot to interest a foodie too since the wines pair so well with food. And of course they offer [...]
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Preview: 20th Annual Boston Wine Expo
The first couple of times I went to the Expo I thought I'd map out a list of specific wines I wanted to taste. Although I identified a few favorites and was able to taste them, that game plan went out the window about as fast as a strategy on Top Chef. That is to say the strategy didn't last very long. I had a game plan and after hitting a couple of them I went into survival mode and sought out tables with short lines and headed out when the crowds got too dense.
A few strategies that play well in any event like this:
- Plan your dinner reservations ahead of time (here's an option nearby the Expo)
- Arrive with a full stomach
- Spit as many wines as you can bear
- Spend time talking to winemakers
- Take time out for one of the free Celebrity Chef demos (schedule here)
- Nominate a designated driver, take mass transit, or hire a ride home
One thing I liked about The Wine Riot was their mobile application that lets you rate wines via your cell phone and see what wines are popular with other attendees. Great news on this front: The Boston Wine Expo is leveraging the same exact technology from the company that puts on Wine Riot. When you're at the event (or prior so you can register via your full-sized keyboard) point your browser to: m.secondglass.com
One thing I didn't like about past Expos is the lack of substantial food. After a while you were scavenging around trying to make a meal out of chocolate bar fragments and gourmet cheese samples. Good news: Looks like they've improved that dramatically! Here's a list of restaurants that will be dishing out free samples.
If you've got tickets to the Grand Cru Lounge, be sure to check out The Original and Authentic Wine Tasting Cookie. You've heard of wine tasting crackers but have you heard of wine tasting cookies? The cookies provide a delicious way to cleanse the palate between wines you're tasting. The Wellesley-based company is launching at the Expo and sampling their cookies in the Grand Cru lounge. I'll be doing a full story on them next week but for now, especially if you're a retailer and would like to carry them in your store, check 'em out:
Looking forward to seeing you there. I'm planning to attend during media hours tomorrow morning and at the Grand Cru Lounge Sunday afternoon.
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