Valentine's Day Thoughts

In 1998 I visited France for the first time, in the company of my wonderful wife-to-be. We explored Paris, Burgundy, the Rhone and Provence. Not bad for a 2-week visit. Between Burgundy and the Rhone we took an impulsive side trip to the Jura, nestled against the western tip of Switzerland.

There we found fabulously stinky cheeses and impossibly obscure (but delicious!) wines, from the ethereal Poulsards and Trousseaus to the tangy Savagnins and Vins de paille. We also found a spectacular campground, set among lakes underneath towering mountains.

Source: http://www.vacances-camping-jura-location.com/photos/photo-article-1285665301-1285748464.jpg

We found no grocery store, nor any other purveyor of food save for the one-Michelin-star restaurant at the campground itself (yes, that's how they do it in France. This is not KOA). Lacking appropriate attire to enter the restaurant, we sheepishly approached the kitchen door and explained our plight. "One hour" the shadowy figure behind the screen declared, "and 20 francs."

An hour later we were clutching a perfectly roast chicken and an abundance of frites. We returned to our campsite for the feast. We lacked silverware and napkins, but we did have a bottle of 1985 Burgundy we had found in a grocery store in Chablis for a song. '85 was a great vintage, but would a simple AOC Bourgogne hold up for 13 years? Yes, dear readers. Yes.

That meal, wonderful roast chicken, perfectly crisp french fries, and a simple but well aged Burgundy, enjoyed in the beautiful outdoors with my true love, is the most happily remembered meal of my life.

It's the day before Valentine's and, like many of you, we have yet to firm up our plans for tomorrow. As we consider our options, we'll look for inspiration in the memories of our time in the Jura. Enjoy your day!

Note: Inspiration for this post came from http://elsbethcooksanddrinks.wordpress.com/ Thank you, Elsbeth!

Feeling the love!

Our dear friend, Elsbeth, has blogged about us. Thank you, Elsbeth! While she awaits the release of our rose (coming soon!), she--and you, dear reader--should take comfort in the fact that we still have plenty of 2010 Bea's Knees Grenache available.

Hey, Maury! VdN, flor and more

We like to believe that winemakers are a naturally curious, inquisitive bunch. To that end, we have an experiment going that delights and amazes us. We are working on an admittedly bizarre dessert wine, inspired by the wines of Maury, in Southwest France. These wines are made from Grenache (mostly), but the fermentation is stopped by the addition of brandy (as is the case with Port) to leave some unfermented sugar in the wine. Then they are left outside in small glass containers, experiencing wild swings in temperature, and a great deal of ultraviolet exposure, along with some oxygen.

We decided to try this a bit late, when all of our Grenache had long since finished fermentation. So we combined fermented Grenache, unfermented Syrah juice, and grape alcohol to achieve about 20% alcohol (as in Maury). Two minuscule gallon jugs now sit exposed to the elements, as they will for at least a couple of years.

The odd thing is that one of the jugs has developed a flor, or yeast film (most commonly seen in Sherry). How are these yeasts able to survive such high alcohol, not to mention near-freezing temperatures? We'd like to know. Perhaps we'll manage to take a sample for analysis, to see what's in there.

Sadly, this is not a commercial-scale project, though of course we'll be "analyzing" the wine when it is finished. Inform of us of your analytical bona fides if you would like to help, when the time comes.

Pictures will follow.

Bottling the 2010 wines

We bottled our 2010 wines yesterday. What a joy to see them in bottle at last. We have 43 cases of the 2010 Moon & Sun Syrah, from Yountville's organically farmed Massa Ranch (Napa Valley), and 69 cases of the 2010 Bea's Knees Grenache, from the sustainably farmed Hunters Oaks vineyard in the Clements Hills AVA of Lodi. We also have a bit of a surprise and a new project we'll describe below.

Emptying the bottles onto the line

Applying the label to the first box off the line

The pallet begins to fill.

Ever more full

Still they come....

The wine in all its glory. 112 full cases, with some empty boxes on top.

No time to describe the exciting new project now. Stay tuned....

2010 Wines Release Announcement

We are pleased to announce the release of our second vintage of wines, from 2010. 

All wines are $10/bottle, and we have a Syrah and a Grenache for you this year. Here are the new wines:

• PWR 2010 Bea's Knees – Grenache from Hunters Oaks vineyard in the Clements Hills region of Lodi. This vineyard is farmed sustainably in accordance with the Lodi Rules, “California’s first 3rd party-certified sustainable winegrowing program.” This Grenache is a bright, cherry red, beautifully floral, and tastes of strawberries with a hint of spice. It would be as delightful slightly chilled on a hot summer day as it would be alongside a rich meal. Thanksgiving, for instance, would be the perfect time to enjoy this wine, but so would any other Thursday. 

Inspecting the Grenache on the vine

The Grenache at the winery

• PWR 2010 Moon & Sun – Our second Syrah from the CCOF Organic Massa Ranch in Yountville, Napa Valley. We adore this vineyard, and the Vineyard manager, Patrick Ridder, is a great farmer, a joy to work with and a great supporter of the Revolution. This is a rich and bold wine, and very recognizably Syrah with its signature blueberry, bacon fat and pepper notes. If you enjoyed the 2009, don't let this vintage passed you by. If you are new to this wine, get it while you can! 

Syrah at Massa Ranch

Send us an email to order your wine: pwr [at] att [dot] net. Wine will be available to pick up as early as late September. We will ship beginning in October as soon as the weather cooperates, unless you prefer us to wait. Shipping costs vary from day to day but we can provide an estimate if you wish.

ONE MORE THING!

Who wants a t-shirt? You? Wonderful! Let us know your size and how many you would like. We will charge what the manufacturer charges us. That will vary based on the quantity ordered, but will be less than $20.

 

We would love to hear from you—questions, comments, criticisms or praise. Drop us a line!

With Revolutionary Fervor,

Your Fearless Leader, Matt, and Truth Commissioner, Marcy

www.facebook.com/PWRWines

pwr [at] att [dot] net

Forlorn Hope Wines

What were we thinking? We weren't. Should've brought the camera. Should've taken notes. Shoulda shoulda shoulda.

Matthew Rorick of Forlorn Hope Wines just hosted us and allowed us to taste the wines he will soon bottle. Readers, they are astonishing.

Matthew's wines are Rare Creatures. That is, he produces wines from varieties not seen everyday. When was the last time you had a Verdelho? Okay, how about Alvarelhao? Really? Then what about St-Laurent? We thought so.

Matthew's not using these grapes because they are obscure but because he believes they can make wonderful wines. And in his hands, they certainly do.

Matthew is passionate about his winemaking, and we really mean it. His eyes are bright and he is lively and animated as he talks about his wines. He is full of ideas for the next vintage and always trying to learn more from past vintages with each taste. He follows some admirable rules--no added water or acid, for instance (not to mention insisting upon printing the true alcohol level on his labels*)--but is always willing to experiment. We got to taste a 2010 Gewurztraminer fermented to dryness on its skins (this is extremely unusual). It was proudly, truly and beautifully Gewurz, but it had extra layers of complexity and interest thanks to the maceration on the skins.

We also got to try a Charbono that was done 100% whole cluster. It had the pure, rich dark fruit of Charbono supported by a firm foundation of tannin from the stems.

Prices for his wines are beyond reasonable. Please seek them out and support Matthew's project. And next time I'll bring a camera.

*TTB rules allow as much as 1.5% error in either direction. And that's just what's allowed.

Another video!

The last movie was such a hit (see post below) that we could not help ourselves. Here's our latest video post:

We hope you like it. Comments and suggestions are most certainly welcome!

PWR's first movie

This was fun to do. We hope it's fun to watch. Your feedback is most humbly solicited and most greatly appreciated. Thanks!



facebook.com/PWRWines

Update

Your Fearless Leader and the Minister of Truth met yesterday to review the 2010 PWR Wines in barrel. We are pleased to report that they are delicious!

This September we will bottle 2 barrels, or about 50 cases, of 2010 PWR Syrah, from the CCOF Organic Massa Ranch in Yountville (Napa Valley), and 3 barrels, or about 75 cases, of 2010 PWR Bea's Knees, a Grenache from the Lodi Rules Sustainably farmed Hallecky Vineyard in the Clements Hills region of Lodi. The wines will be released shortly thereafter. We can't wait to get them to you.

Meanwhile, we would like to remind you that you'll find much more activity on our Facebook-hosted website. Check in early and often! Please let us know what you think. We welcome your comments and questions.

Karma--more innovative packaging

The latest in our ongoing series on innovative wine packaging is Karma California Brut. We discovered it on a Virgin America flight and given the cool bottle and our naive belief that Virgin would have wine worth drinking  we ordered it up.

Well, at least the bottle was cool. Not much really innovative--it's still glass, and it has a screwcap--but it sure is not traditional sparkling wine packaging. We appreciate that much, at least. Read on if you care to learn more about the wine.

The wine was close to bland, and that is probably good. It does have a slight sweetness (so why call it Brut?) that builds over time, annoyingly. Our overall rating: better than Sofia. Which is not saying much.

The website is surprisingly cool, aside from the autoplay, horrible music. What is up with that?

Odds and Ends

Item: Organic? Biodynamic? Sustainable? What do these terms mean and what's the best way to farm? The answer, of course, is outrageously complex. Slate did a fine job tackling the question, given the size of the piece. They gave sustainable farming short shrift, however, as we point out in the comments. The big knock on "sustainable" is that it is ill-defined. True, but that's not as big a problem as it seems. Bigger, we feel, is that the threshold for calling yourself sustainable under the certification systems is pretty low. If you'd like to learn more about sustainable grape growing, take a look at the Lodi Rules program, and the California Sustainable Winegrowing Alliance.

For the record, PWR Syrah comes from the CCOF Organic Massa Ranch, in Yountville, Napa Valley, while our 2010 Grenache comes from the Hunters Oak Vineyard, farmed sustainably in accordance with the Lodi Rules.

Item: Our quest to discover new ways to package wine continues. Today we learned about Indulge Wine in pouches, which is basically bag-in-box without the box. 2 wines are available in 1.5L pouches (equivalent to 2 standard wine bottles). Retail price is $20 each for 2009 Sauvignon Blanc (North Coast) and 2009 Pinot Noir (Central Coast). Available only in California at present. We hope to find the wines soon to report on their quality.

We also learned about Boisset's new twist on bag-in-box....bag-in-barrel. We're not sure we see the point, as the barrel will take up more space than a box and counteract some of the environmental benefits of BiB (less packaging, lighter weight), but as this article states, it would make a good conversation piece. And Boisset points out that the barrel is re-fillable, so it would only be transported once.

Item: We can't resist sharing this picture with you. We are so proud. We held back a tiny amount of the 2009 Bea's Knees and bottled it in January in magnums. Here they are.

Free Tickets--Dark & Delicious--Petite Sirah tasting Februrary 18

We have a pair of tickets to give away to the Dark & Delicious tasting in Alameda on Friday, February 18, 2011, from 6-9pm at the Rock Wall Wine Company.

Dark & Delicious is sponsored by PS I Love You, the Petite Sirah advocacy group. We are huge fans of Petite Sirah--we even make it for a living. If you don't know the delicious, rich, full-throttle wines redolent of chocolate and blackberry, or would like to get to know them better, this is the event for you. 48 wineries are slated to pour, representing the regions where PS does best--Napa Valley, Mendocino, Sonoma's Dry Creek Valley, Paso Robles, and the Sierra Foothills to name a few--and including some of our favorite producers, such as Robert Biale Vineyard, Foppiano, Artezin, Ballentine, and Bogle.

There will also be a ton of food. The full list is here, and includes Napa's Fume Bistro.

So how do you get free tickets? First step, ask. And why don't you also tell us a little about why you would like to attend the event. Promises to report back on the event will be viewed favorably.

You may enter in a publicly-viewable comment here on the blog, or privately via email: pwr [at] att [dot] net. Please do so by this Friday, January 28. We'll sift through the mountains of entries and choose a winner subjectively but fairly, to be announced no later than Monday, January 31.

Many thanks to PS I Love You for the tickets. We look forward to hearing from you.

FLASQ Wines in Aluminum Bottles

We are pleased to take a break from reporting on PWR's Progress to tell you about a new discovery, FLASQ wines in aluminum cans bottles. We love alternatives to glass bottles for ever-so-many reasons, and we thrill to learn of any new wines so packaged. Some such products reviewed in the past have disappointed, while we have raved about others.

To repeat ourselves, the glass bottle with cork stopper was a great idea 400 years ago, but we can surely do better. There is nothing inherently wrong with any of the alternatives we know of--aluminum cans/bottles, bag-in-box, tetrapak, screwcaps--except that none of these technologies so far seems up to long term wine storage. But most wine is consumed within hours of purchase, and most wine intended for aging will be put in a glass bottle, anyway.

Quality is the key. Sadly, most wine buyers are afraid. Afraid of buying the "wrong" wine, or of buying a wine that will make them look foolish. If such a consumer musters up the courage to buy a wine that is not even in a glass bottle, that courage must be rewarded with good tasting wine. So how about the FLASQ wines?

FLASQ's inaugural release consists of a 2009 Chardonnay (Monterey County) and a 2009 Merlot (San Luis Obispo County). FLASQ kindly provided a sample of each, and we are happy to report that we like both wines. The Merlot has a great, fruity nose and is quite pretty to behold. It is a light wine, showing little tannin or oak. This easy-drinking character allows the wine to go well with many foods, and it will not be too heavy to consume on its own. We enjoyed the wine at home with homemade chicken shawarma, a dish that would have clashed with a heavier wine.

The Chardonnay, too, is in a lighter style, with intense and compelling tropical fruit aromas. The wine suggests pineapple and pears and has a subtle creaminess that keeps it from being too tart. This wine, too, will work with a wide range of food. We happily paired it with a dish of soba noodles with asparagus and pine nuts topped with a fried egg. Yum! Our brave consumer will not be disappointed in either wine.

The package is great, too. The image above shows the Merlot bottle sandwiched between a 375mL wine bottle (same volume as the FLASQ) and a 12-ounce beer bottle (just a little less volume). The FLASQ is easy to grip, very lightweight (not to mention shatterproof), and that wide mouth is terrific. This product is all about portability, right? And surely there are places you will end up where a glass is either unwelcome or forgotten. Yep, we tried the wine straight from the FLASQ and it was just fine. We were tickled to see that the FLASQ fact sheet boasts about this trait.

The manufacturers also claim that the bottle chills much more rapidly than glass. We did not test this but it is quite easy to believe given the thinness and conductivity of aluminum versus glass.

FLASQ warns that the wines should be consumed within 6 months of purchase. That's not a problem for these wines, which were not meant for aging, but we would love to see a new wine container that will allow the wine to age.

At present, the FLASQ wines are available in only 20 states, although they hope to find distribution in all 50. If you live in AL, AR, AZ, CT, FL, GA, IL, IN, LA, MA, MI, MS, NC, RI, SC, TN, TX or VA, take a look here to find your distributor if you don't yet see the wine in stores.

The wines will be available for $5.99-$7.99 per 375mL bottle (the pricing is ultimately up to the distributor and retailer; hence the range). That is the equivalent of $12-$16 per bottle (750mL). Given that a 1L TetraPak of Bandit wine, holding more than 2.5 times as much wine as the FLASQ bottle, is on sale at our local grocery store for $6, this might be a problem for FLASQ, despite the fact that, based on our tastings,  FLASQ wines are far more enjoyable than Bandit's.

We wish FLASQ success and recommend the wines, especially for taking places where a glass bottle would be awkward. We look forward to more offerings and to California distribution.

2010 PWR Grenache

The 2010 harvest for the People's Wine Revolution commenced today with 1 ton of beautiful Grenache from Bokisch Vineyards in Lodi. Here's a video showing PWR's Truth Commissioner and Unindicted Co-Conspirator, Marcy Webb, at the destemmer. There are pictures of today's activity, including work by our expert Quality Control Technician, Beatrix, on our Facebook page.

We are very excited about the quality of the fruit, and can't wait to present the wine next year.

PWR Wines Ordering Information

Ruling class wines at working class prices!

PWR Wines inaugural release ordering information.

To order wines, please send the following information via email or regular mail:

• Your shipping address* and phone number
• How many bottles of the 2009 PWR Syrah you would like, at $10 each
• How many bottles of the 2009 PWR Bea's Knees blend you would like, at $10 each Sorry! The 2009 PWR Bea's Knees is SOLD OUT!

We will calculate sales tax (8.75% in Napa) and any shipping charges, and reply with your total, at which point you can send us a check to complete your order.

Our email address is pwr [at] att [dot] net, and our mailing address is

PWR Wines

1311 Pine Street

Calistoga, CA 94515

*Please note that due to outmoded laws and restrictions we can ship only to the following states, and then only if you have visited the winery! If your state is not on this list, please contact us to see if we can find a way to get wine to you.

The "good" states are

Alaska

Arizona

California

Washington, DC

Delaware

Georgia

Kansas

Minnesota

Oklahoma

Rhode Island

South Dakota

There are a number of other states to which we can legally ship after jumping through hoops, filling out massive paperwork, and paying licensing and other fees. So do contact us if your state is not listed above. Perhaps we can work it out.

Hyping another winery--Bokisch Vineyards

Of course we are here to promote PWR Wines, but it is in keeping with our purpose to let you know about great wine buys out there.

We have long been fans of Bokisch Vineyards. Markus Bokisch has planted a number of spanish varieties in the Lodi area, where they thrive in the heat. We are glad that he champions these varieties, and we also think he does a great job farming and making wine from them. Bokisch adheres to the Lodi Rules for sustainable winegrowing, which have become the template for the rest of the state.

Two of our favorites, the 2007 Garnacha and 2006 Graciano, are now on sale for $100/mixed case (6 of each). Shipping is free in California.

The Garnacha will be a bit of a sneak preview for PWR Wines fans. PWR Wines is buying 1 ton of Bokisch Vineyards garnacha this year. We will make the wine this fall and expect to release it next summer.

So check it out, enjoy, and let us know what you think!

Ruling class wines at working class prices!

In 1999 husband and wife team Matt Reid and Marcy Webb conceived The People's Wine Revolution as a way to bring great wines to all at reasonable prices. 10 years on the dream has become reality, and PWR Wines is an actual bonded winery. Since turning pro in 2003, Matt has made the wine at Seavey Vineyard, and produced the custom crushed wines at Failla. He is now the winemaker at Quixote Winery in Napa's Stags Leap District. Marcy's experience includes Napa Wine Company, Franciscan, and Chalk Hill.

Making the PWR wines is a labor of love. In 2009 Matt traded his hard work in the vineyard for old vine Zinfandel and Petite Sirah grapes from St. Helena. The struggling vines offered a meager crop, so Marcy scrambled to secure Syrah from the CCOF organic Massa Ranch in Yountville.

PWR's inaugural release consists of two wines:

The 2009 PWR “Bea's Knees” Napa Valley Red Wine is a blend of 40% Massa Ranch Syrah with 40% Zinfandel and 20% Petite Sirah from La Buona Stella Vineyard in St. Helena. 1 barrel (22 cases) was produced.

The 2009 PWR Syrah Massa Ranch Yountville Napa Valley is 100% Syrah (Estrella clone) from the CCOF Organic Massa Ranch. The Syrah was fermented with a good proportion of whole, undestemmed clusters for added spice, texture and complexity. The wine was pressed at dryness and aged in neutral barrels. 2 barrels (46 cases) were produced.

The PWR wines retail for $10. Please see ordering information below.

The wines were bottled in July 2010, and are now ready for your enjoyment. We hope you love drinking them as much as we loved making them. Please let us know what you think! You can reach us at pwr [at] att [dot] net, or visit our Facebook page at facebook.com/PWRWines. You can also follow us on Twitter @pwrwines.

Thank you for taking part in the Revolution!

PWR Wines inaugural release ordering information.

To order wines, please send the following information via email or regular mail:

• Your shipping address* and phone number
• How many bottles of the 2009 PWR Syrah you would like, at $10 each
• How many bottles of the 2009 PWR Bea's Knees blend you would like, at $10 each

We will calculate sales tax (8.75% in Napa) and any shipping charges, and reply with your total, at which point you can send us a check to complete your order.

Our email address is pwr [at] att [dot] net, and our mailing address is

PWR Wines

1311 Pine Street

Calistoga, CA 94515

*Please note that due to outmoded laws and restrictions we can ship only to the following states, and then only if you have visited the winery! If your state is not on this list, please contact us to see if we can find a way to get wine to you.

The "good" states are

Alaska

Arizona

California

Washington, DC

Delaware

Georgia

Kansas

Minnesota

Oklahoma

Rhode Island

South Dakota

There are a number of other states to which we can legally ship after jumping through hoops, filling out massive paperwork, and paying licensing and other fees. So do contact us if your state is not listed above. Perhaps we can work it out.

Bottled at last!

As many of you have already heard, the 2009 PWR wines are now safely in the bottle and ready to enjoy.

Here's Marcy, holding a bottle of each of the wines: our 2009 Syrah, Massa Ranch, Yountville, Napa Valley; and our 2009 Bea's Knees, a blend consisting of 40% Massa Ranch Syrah along with 40% Zinfandel and 20% Petite Sirah, both from La Buona Stella Vineyard in St Helena (Napa Valley).

Over the weekend we threw the Syrah into a tasting of some heavy hitters over the weekend, with Guigal Hermitage, Jamet Cote-Rotie, Acacia Kick Ranch and Pax Alder Springs Vyd, among others. The PWR proudly held its own, and its evolution throughout the tasting promised a long and interesting life ahead for it. We'll report on the Bea's Knees soon.

Stay tuned for information on the release!

PWR Hits the Big Time!

The lovely Quixote Winery, which pays most of our bills, was featured in Sunday's San Francisco Chronicle. We were happily surprised to see that PWR Wines got a mention in the piece. Surely the first of many!

Why good California wine is so darn expensive

We read a piece on the Tablas Creek blog* today that is too good not to share. The piece explains in thorough detail why Tablas Creek elected not to buy a potential vineyard site to expand production of their $25/bottle Cotes de Tablas line. The short answer is that the land was too expensive. In getting to that conclusion Jason Haas delineates financing costs, farming costs, winemaking costs, and the cost of just about everything that goes into that bottle of wine. It's difficult to see how anyone could produce a good wine from a coastal vineyard for less than $25.

Haas allows "that as long as winemakers can find older vineyards of less-fashionable varietals, we'll see growth" in the $10-$20 range, but scavenging thus is hardly sustainable. Such scavenging is pretty much PWR's business plan, and given our size and the economic malaise in the wine industry, we expect to have no trouble sourcing good grapes over the next few years, but we certainly won't be planting a vineyard any time soon.

What's the solution? We are not sure there is one. As Haas eloquently states, there are too many demands on land suitable for planting coastal vineyards to expect land prices to fall significantly. The California coast simply is not suited to produce great wines at low prices, at least not on a large scale.

The solution may lie inward, however. California's Great Central Valley, which runs from Redding in the north to Bakersfield in the south, produces much of the nation's produce and is no stranger to the grapevine. Most of the viticulture is focused in the Souther San Joaquin Valley--roughly from Fresno to the South--where the winegrapes planted among the Thompson seedless raisin grapes are hardly renowned for their quality.

The Southern San Joaquin (SSJ) is hot and nearly water-less, with sandy and somewhat saline soils. This is no region for Chardonnay or Cabernet, let alone Pinot Noir (although acres of each variety are planted there, with disastrous results). But we believe the region could be just fine for varieties suited to such a climate. Varieties from regions such as Greece (Xinomavro, anyone?), Sicily (Nero D'Avola) or Spain (Garnacha/Grenache), for instance.

Housing pressures are great even in the SSJ, but land is still much cheaper than in coastal regions. It's also less expensive to farm. Now we just need to find a grower willing to take the plunge!**

* The Tablas Creek blog is well worth reading for many reasons. Today's piece illustrates the best of them--Jason Haas is open and honest in his discussions. The blog does not read like PR fluff. We love Tablas Creek wines. While not exactly inexpensive, they represent excellent quality at their prices, and are easily the match of wines costing many times as much.

** One reason growers are reluctant to plant varieties that may be better suited to their climate is the perception that consumers won't buy a wine that does not bear a familiar varietal name on it. Given the difficulties *everyone* is facing selling Syrah these days, the growers are probably correct. But would you rather have an eye-poppingly good Mavrodaphne or a dreary, flabby raisin-y Cabernet? Good. Now go tell 100 of your friends.

We have a Winner!

In a recent post, we asked for help naming the 2009 PWR blend of Syrah (40%), Zinfandel (40%) and Petite Sirah (20%), that we will bottle in July.

We got a lot of great suggestions, and we thank everyone who shared with us. After careful consideration, we have decided to go with the name Bea's Knees, in honor of our daughter, who it just so happens turns one on Saturday.

Mike Trotta, who makes the delicious wines at Elyse Winery, made the winning suggestion. Lucky for him, we can legally give him a bottle of the wine he named. Lucky for us, too, because if we had to go with the "legal alternative" we promised to any winner from a state closed to wine shipping, we would have been stumped. What's the equivalent of a bottle of delicious, lovingly made wine?

Again, the wine will be bottled in July, along with our 2009 Syrah from Massa Ranch in Napa Valley's Yountville AVA. We'll make the wines available to you shortly thereafter. We cannot wait to share what we have made.

Wine and Food pairing -- what's the big deal?

Ask anyone in the wine industry, whatever their role, what question they are most often asked and the answer will be some variation of "What food goes with this wine?"

If a wine's back label says anything at all (beyond some gibberish about the glorious winery owner or the wonderful vineyard site) it will recommend food pairings.

Look at any winery's twitter stream and every other tweet will mention food and wine pairing.

We have two questions:

1. Are you, dear reader, interested in this sort of knowledge?
2. Why?

We don't mean to be snide. Rather, we feel that food and wine pairing is both incredibly subjective and relatively unimportant. There are a few no-brainers: most any steak will go well with most any red wine; most any crisp white will go well with shellfish, and some rich and fat whites will go well with some shellfish, Chardonnay and oysters, for instance.

But even those basics are disputed by some, and rightly so. What works for us may not work for you.

Or at least not as well. Because there are very few combinations that are disastrous to either wine or food. Artichokes are famous for making wine taste metallic, and peanut butter can make wine taste funny, too.

On the other hand there are very few combinations that make wine and food transcend themselves to become some magically wonderful taste sensation unlike any you have ever before experienced.

Which, come to think of it, is probably what people are asking for when they ask the question. But don't you think we'd tell you if we knew? And the answer probably isn't, "This wine pairs well with chicken, fish, roast meats, game and pizza," as you'll likely see on that back label.

In fact, the answer probably is not a particular pairing in the first place. Probably what makes some combinations so heavenly--and it does happen, dear reader. If not for you yet, we hope very much that it does soon--what makes some combinations so heavenly, we repeat, is the company.

The Jura (not where we were, though). Thanks, Modzzak.

Our most cherished wine memory involves a bottle of 1985 Burgundy (the cheap low-end stuff; we probably paid about $8) drunk in 1998 at a campsite in the Jura. We ate it with roast chicken and french fries we got from the servants' entrance of the nearby restaurant (for which we were impossibly underdressed), which was the only restaurant or grocery open on that lovely Sunday afternoon.

Chicken, but you knew that: http://www.flickr.com/photos/galant/ / CC BY 2.0

We were in the middle of a wonderful journey together and were entranced by the high mountain meadows and the Jura's stunning peaks. By our humble tent amidst all the splendor, the wine, chicken and fries were transporting--not that we wanted to go anywhere. It seemed all was abloom and a radiant glow suffused everything--the food, the wine, us.

Nope, that wasn't the bottle. Thanks, Wine Label Readers.

Does that mean that chicken and fries is the perfect combination for cheap burgundy? Maybe.... But it's at least as likely that the best way to enjoy a cheap burgundy is to walk around a mountain lake before enjoying dinner in the late summer light with your beloved. Yeah, that seems the more likely pairing.

What do you think? We'd love to hear your tales of food/wine bliss. We'd also love to know why you ask that question, if you do, and what sort of answer satisfies.

Results are in-- the 2009 PWR lineup will be a Syrah and a Red Blend THAT NEEDS A NAME!

If only we had our camera, you'd see a picture of endless half-filled, deeply stained glasses, graduated cylinders, and sample bottles.

Yes, we have done our due dilligence, testing, tasting, and retasting every combination of the three barrels of PWR wines to make sure we bring you only the best. In the end, we carted off the 3 final blend candidates to the Rutherford Grill, where we met friends with wonderful palates for lunch. They confirmed our decisions.

The 2009 PWR Wines lineup will consist of a Syrah from Yountville's Massa Ranch and a red blend that is 40% Syrah (Massa Ranch) with 40% Zinfandel and 20% Petite Sirah from La Buona Stella Vineyard in St Helena.

In an effort to keep our production costs low, so we could keep our wine prices low, we traded labor for the grapes from the St Helena vineyard. The vineyard work was strenuous but fun. Alas, the vineyard did not yield enough grapes to fill a single barrel. Fortunately, we were able to find the wonderful Massa Ranch Syrah at the last minute and at a very reasonable price.

We will be bottling these wines in July, and they'll be available for sale shortly thereafter. Only 50 cases of the Syrah, and 25 of the blend.

But, hey! We need a name for the blend! Do you have any ideas? Send them our way, through a comment or via pwr [at] att [dot] net . If we choose your name, we'll send you a bottle (where legal. If not legal where you are, we'll do our best to send you something as exciting).

Not our lab. This picture comes from Vince Huang's photostream.  But you get the idea.

The PWR plan to take over the world

In the January 18, 2010 issue of The New Yorker, Malcom Gladwell writes about the character traits that make enrepreneurs succecssful. We admit to being momentarily taken aback, as we fit almost none of the criteria.

Successful entrepreneurs

• write a business plan.  We have not written a formal business plan, though we do have a mission statement. Does that count?
• take over an existing business, rather than starting from scratch. Last time we checked, no revolutionary wineries were for sale. Or were we supposed to swashbuckle our way in? Oh, wait. There aren't any (other) revolutionary wineries.
• sell to other businesses, rather than consumers. But we want you, the PEOPLE, to have our wine, not other businesses.

Gladwell goes on to say that failed entrepreneurs

• underemphasize marketing. Well, we have TOP people working on our labels, and we've chatted up marketers at parties in an effort to get free marketing advice.
• don't understand the importance of financial controls. Guilty as charged. What is a financial control, anyway?
• Try to compete on price. Well, yes! That's what we're all about. Bringing to market great wine at a great price.

Gladwell concludes that taking these risks "reflect[s] a lack of preparation or foresight." As you can see, neither is lacking on our count. We are surely making mistakes, but not for lack of trying.

But perhaps we are on the wrong track entirely. Because Gladwell is talking about successful, or not, entrepreneurs. And we are not trying to become wine moguls or anything of the sort. Our mission is clear and succinct and does not include our personal enrichment.

Doubtless we have fretted in vain.

Nor should you fret. The wine is resting happily in barrel. We shall see whether it will be ready for bottling in late spring, in which case it should be available by mid-summer. If not, it will be available when it is ready. And we'll be sure to let you know.

Until then, we thank you for your patience, and wish you happy, and not ruinously expensive, drinking.

[Signed]
The People's Wine Revolution

Wines for the People is Dead! Long Live Wines for the People!

We have enjoyed ourselves immensely, but it is time to end the Wines for the People blog as we know it. We set out to share our love of wine with our readers, as well as some of our knowledge to help you enjoy wine more, and have fewer disappointing glasses, without having to spend a lot of money. We hope we have succeeded.

When this blog returns--and it will--its new focus will be the wines we are producing as The People's Wine Revolution. PWR Wines is all about delivering top-quality wine at reasonable prices. No surprise there. We do hope you will return to see the new incarnation.

In the meantime, the older posts will remain, and we do hope you'll explore and catch up on any that you may have missed. All the posts are indexed by category here. With New Year's Eve fast approaching you may want to review the video lesson on opening sparkling wines with a sword (or butter knife), found here.

We remain at your service to answer any wine-related (or not) questions you have. Please comment on the site or contact us directly via email: pwr [at] att [dot] net

Cheers,
The People's Wine Revolution

Ritual Pinot Noir

The 2008 Ritual Pinot Noir from Chile's Casablanca Valley is delicious and represents a great value at $18 (or less).

We have been greatly impressed by the outstanding wines coming out of Chile of late. The success of the Chono Riesling (discussed here), for example, shows that Chile can excel with cool-climate varieties. This wine, our first Chilean Pinot, is confirmation. The wine is definitely new world in style, but it is distinct from any Pinot Noir from California or Oregon. It is medium-bodied, with an elegant tannic structure. The fruit is pretty, with notes of Bing cherries, but what stands out is the attractive peppery, spicy note on the finish.

The wine is produced by Veramonte, who were also involved with the excellent Argentine Cruz Andina Malbec we discussed earlier. Veramonte is a solid Chilean producer and we have long enjoyed their Sauvignon Blanc in particular.

We loved the Ritual Pinot Noir and will be back for more. We shall also continue to seek out Chilean Pinot Noir.

Wine Guerilla Zinfandels

Here at Wines for the People we view wine and the wine industry with the eyes of revolutionaries. Imagine our delight to discover the Wine Guerrilla and the wonderful Zinfandels produced under that label.

What motivates the Wine Guerrilla?

 "Wine Guerrilla is a hero to those who seek wines of unabashed uniqueness and character. Wherever proud zinfandel grapes are oppressed and the taste buds of consumers are in peril, Wine Guerrilla is there."

We could not have said it better ourselves.

At our request, Wine Guerrilla provided two of their 2007 Zins, and a yet-to-be-released 2008 Zinfandel. We loved them all.

We never seem to get enough Zinfandel, let alone the good stuff from Dry Creek. When we do get it, it disappears quickly. Why? Because it is so delicious. Zinfandel is an amazing grape that can appear in any number of styles while still retaining its "Zin-ness". Zin can be restrained, believe it or not, and it can be overblown, super- to overripe, and even sweet. Zinfandel can also reflect its origins as well as any other variety, including Pinot noir. We find it does so best when it is somewhat less than overripe.

The 2007 Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel, $22, was everything we look for in Dry Creek Zin. It is delicious and well balanced, and it tastes like it comes from Dry Creek, with wonderful red berry flavors and sufficient acidity to match the alcohol and tannin. If you are not familiar with Zinfandel from Sonoma's Dry Creek Valley, this wine is a great introduction.

We also enjoyed the 2007 Goat Trek Vineyard Block 6 Zinfandel, $25, which is also from Dry Creek Valley, though not the valley floor. As the back label explains:
"It would take you a 45 minute drive up a dirt road to a 1250-foot elevation to reach the grapes of Goat Trek Vineyard. So we decided to bring them to you instead. You can thank us after your first glass"

This wine is incredible. The same flavor profile as the Dry Creek Valley Zin described above, but turned up a notch. Brilliant, zingy raspberry fruit that tasted almost candied (though not sweet). And still perfectly balanced. Some of this wine survived to day 2, when we found it deliciously savoury and sapid. It made us want to close our eyes and meditate on deliciousness.

The third wine may have been our favorite. This was a 2008 Zinfandel from the Russian River Valley. Wine Guerrilla will release it in January in a lineup of eight 2008 Zins at ZAP, an annual Zinfandel showcase/tasting event in San Francisco.

The Russian River Valley abuts Dry Creek Valley, but it is generally cooler than its neighbor. There is plenty of Zinfandel planted in the RRV, but it is perhaps better known as Pinot Noir country. We typically find that Zinfandels from Dry Creek are more to our liking than those from Russian River, but this wine confounded our expectations. As a 2008 wine, it is still very young, but it did not take long for it to loosen up and begin revealing its layers of flavors. It continued to grow more beautiful with each glass. With a little more time in the bottle and perhaps a good decanting, this wine will sing.

The wine does represent its origins. We find that Russian River Valley Pinots often have a cola/sassafrass character. In Pinot we find that somewhat off-putting, but this Zinfandel has it as well, and it works.

We look forward to returning to these wines and to further exploration of the Wine Guerrilla's creations.

Two More Treats from Bonny Doon

When you see a great painting or play, or read a great book, the images and ideas can swirl around in your head for weeks. How much you talk about a movie after seeing it is a good gauge of how good the movie was.

About a week ago we finished reading Been Doon So Long, a new book ($35) by Bonny Doon's founder and President-for-Life Randall Grahm. Later we enjoyed the Bonny Doon 2005 Le Cigare Volant ($30). Both book and wine have been very much in mind ever since.

Autumn tableau of Tri-Pour beaker used as decanter and sadly empty bottle of Le Cigare Volant

The wine was amazing. We heeded Mr. Grahm's strongly emphasized advice to decant the wine, and we reiterate that advice to you if you try this wine. In fact we recommend either a double or triple decanting (i.e., bottle to decanter, decanter back to bottle, bottle back to decanter), or letting the wine sit for at least an hour after decanting before taking a sip. As a friendly reminder, your decanter need be nothing fancy--an empty wine bottle will do if you have one on hand. We used a plastic tri-pour beaker, which cost about $1.

A fancy decanter, for contrast. Image by Geoff Parsons used under the Creative Commons 2.0 license.

Here's why you should decant and wait. Our first sips revealed the wine to be pleasant, with silky tannins--a simple if tasty wine. About an hour after decanting, however, the wine was something else entirely. The wine was still "quiet," in the sense of not being overly extracted or tasting like a fruit compote, but it was also intense and lively on the palate, with multitudinous delicate flavors dancing on the palate. This is the sort of complexity we love in wine, really what wine is all about. Alas, by the time we reached this stage, most of the bottle was gone. Decant and wait, and you can start at the exciting part.

As you will see below, Grahm is redefining the mission of Bonny Doon. In an Apologia accompanying the wine, Grahm writes, "[Le Cigare Volant] has become the truest lens of my current winemaking ideas, aspirations and obsessions, a reflection, of where I am going as a winemaker and where the company itself is headed." In that light, this wine promises a very bright future for Bonny Doon Vineyard.

At $30 the 2005 Le Cigare Volant is at the high end of wines we recommend on this site, but this wine is worthy of a splurge, and would make a great present for any wine lover you know. Just remember to decant!

Been Doon So Long would also make a great gift for anyone who enjoys wine and has at least some appreciation of word play. Puns and such are not our favorite amusements, but Grahm is extremely gifted with his word play and never once did we groan. His writing is also full of allusions and references, some to the wine industry and its players but most to literary works.

The book is called a "Vinthology," so we assumed that it would be a collection of pieces from the always amusing Bonny Doon newsletter. It is that, but it is also much more. How many collections of newsletter pieces can be said to have a narrative arc? This book, despite being divided into sections by type of writing (in "Ficciones," for example, we find "Don Quijones, the Man for Garnacha or A Confederacy of Doonces," while "Poesy Galore" features "The Love Song of J. Alfred Rootstock" and "Da Vino Commedia: The Vinferno"), decidedly has a narrative arc.

The plot begins with Grahm at the helm of a large wine corporation that seems to have little in common with his original and still held winemaking ideals. He lampoons the wine industry, which can always use a good poke (if not kick) in the ribs, but he also probes his conscience. Throughout the book and especially toward the end, Grahm grows ever more philosophical as he tries both to understand and to explain his enological yearnings. A couple of these entries are appropriately called "meditations." These resonated with us, who also consider ourselves to be philosophical winemakers, and we will return to them whenever we begin to doubt or need inspiration.

As the book ends--and this is really no spoiler--Grahm has dramatically altered the course of Bonny Doon in the hope of returning to his original vision. The wines Grahm sent with the book, the Cigare Volante (supra) and the Albariño reviewed earlier, show us that Grahm is very much on track. Mr. Grahm may protest that he still has far to go to produce the wines he has always wanted to produce. We will eagerly watch and taste his progress.

Holiday samplers

Both North Berkeley Wines and Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant are offering heavily discounted sampler packs for the holidays. The North Berkeley samplers are priced at $99, $199, $299--each for a 12-bottle case--and, yipes, $599 for a six-bottle pack. The prices reflect a discount approaching 50%. The Kermit Lynch samplers range from $72 to $228 for 6 bottles, as well as a $144 full case offering.

For your convenience, we'll list the included wines below. Many have been discussed elsewhere on this blog. Full details are of course available from the respective vendors. Happy hunting.

North Berkeley Sampler Packs
Celebration Sampler--12 bottles, $99

• 2006 Chono Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve Maipo Valley
• 2006 Alto Sol Syrah / Carménère Elqui Valley
• 2006 Roaring Rock Springs “Big Rock Red”
• 2007 Alto Sol Chardonnay Elqui Valley
• 2007 Perticaia Umbria Rosso
• 2007 Mattes Sabran Corbières “Dionysos” Rouge
• 2007 Domaine Sauvète Touraine “Oneiros” (Organic) Blanc
• 2004 Villa Carafa Aglianico “Sannio”
• 2006 Villa Ritina Sangiovese de Toscana
• 2006 Domaine Dragon Côtes de Provence “Cuvée St. Michel” Rouge
• 2006 Domaine Michel Magnien Pinot Noir
• 2005 Domaine Philippe Livera Côtes de Nuits-Villages Vieilles Vignes

Grand Tour Sampler--12 bottles, $199

• 2007 Domaine Roger Lassarat Mâcon-Vergisson “La Roche”
• 2008 Quintale Falanghina Campi Flegrei
• 2007 Domaine Barraud Pouilly-Fuissé “Alliance V.”
• 2008 Clava Chardonnay Casablanca Valley
• 2006 Domaine Oratoire St. Martin Côtes du Rhone-Villages Cairanne “Haut Coustias”
• 2004 Vestini Campagnano Pallagrello Nero
• 2005 Georges Viornery Côte de Brouilly Vieilles Vignes Cuvée Unique
• 2006 Ronchi Dolcetto d’Alba “Rosario”
• 2006 Chateau Haut-Maurac Medoc Cru Bourgeois
• 2007 Gérard Raphet Chambolle-Musigny “Les Bussières”
• 2007 Quintay Pinot Noir Casablanca Valley
• 2007 Frédéric Magnien Fixin “Crais de Chêne” 

Connoisseur Sampler--12 bottles, $299

• 2007 Domaine Bouard-Bonnefoy Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru “Dent de Chien”
• 2007 Domaine Barraud Pouilly-Fuissé “La Verchère” Vieilles Vignes
• 2006 Guffens Vin de Pays du Vaucluse Blanc “Bien Entendu”
• 2007 Domaine Philippe Delarche Le Corton Grand Cru Vieilles Vignes Reserve
• 2007 Frédéric Magnien Gevrey-Chambertin “Echezeaux”
• 2006 Domaine Dubois Beaune 1er Cru “Bressandes” Cuvée Unique
• 2004 Domaine Saffirio Barolo
• 2004 Novaia Valpolicella Classico Superiore “I Cantoni”
• 2004 Perticaia Sagrantino di Montefalco
• 2006 Le Clos du Caillou Côtes du Rhône “Quartz”
• 2006 Domaine la Bouïssiere Gigondas
• 2005 Ronchi Barbaresco 

Jacques Six-Pack Sampler--6 bottles, $599

• 1996 Domaine André Beaufort Ambonnay Brut Grand Cru
• 2007 Domaine Boyer-Martenot Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru “Cailleret”
• 2007 Domaine Pierre Gaillard Côte Rôtie “La Brosse”
• 2005 Podere Forte “Guardiavigna” IGT
• 2007 Gérard Raphet Clos de la Roche Grand Cru Cuvée Unique
• 2007 Frédéric Magnien Bonnes Mares Grand Cru 

Kermit Lynch Sampler Packs
Holiday Sampler--12 bottles, $144

• 2007 Alsace Blanc • Kuentz-Bas
• 2008 Bordeaux Blanc • Château Ducasse
• 2007 Bourgogne Blanc “Chardonnay” • La Soeur Cadette
• 2007 Vin de Pays d’Oc Rouge • Château Fontanès
• 2007 Corbières Rouge • Domaine de Fontsainte
• 2008 Coteaux du Languedoc “Lou Maset” Domaine d’Aupilhac
• 2007 Vouvray Sec • Didier Champalou
• 2007Coteaux du Languedoc “Mourvèdre” Château La Roque
• 2007 Chinon “Beaumont” • Catherine & Pierre Breton
• 2006 Bandinello • Villa di Geggiano
• 2008 Tavel Rosé • Château de Trinquevedel
• 2006 Montagne-Saint-Émilion • Château Tour Bayard  

Italian Gift Box--6 bottles, $72

• 2007 Dolcetto “I’Pari” • Guido Porro
• 2006 Chianti Classico • Villa di Geggiano
• 2008 Pinot Grigio • La Viarte
• NV Prosecco di Conegliano Brut • Sommariva
• 2008 Bianco di Custoza • Corte Gardoni
• 2006 Barbera del Monferrato “Rosso Pietro” Cantine Valpane 

Domaine Joguet Sampler--6 bottles, $190

• 2005 Chinon “Clos du Chêne Vert”
• 2005 Chinon “Clos de la Dioterie”
• 2005 Chinon “Les Varennes du Grand Clos” Franc de Pied
• 2006 Chinon “Clos du Chêne Vert”
• 2006 Chinon “Clos de la Dioterie”
• 2006 Chinon “Les Varennes du Grand Clos” Franc de Pied

Collector's Sampler--6 bottles, $228

• 2006 Savigny-Les-Beaune “Serpentières” 1er Cru Pierre Guillemot
• 2006 Saint-Véran “Les Pommards” • Robert-Denogent
• 2005 Vin de Pays de l’Hérault Rouge • Grange des Pères
• 2006 Condrieu • Domaine Faury
• 2006 Côte Rôtie • Patrick Jasmin
• 2003 Barolo “Vigna Santa Caterina” • Guido Porro

Please let us know if you hear of other retailers with similar holiday offerings.

Falling Star Boxed Wines

Image from Stardusts and Sequins used under the Creative Commons license.

 

In our on-going quest to discover good wine in a box (see here, here and here), we were excited to hear about Falling Star boxed wines from Argentina. As we remember the press release, the producers claimed that Falling Star would rapidly become the biggest-selling wine in a box because the quality of the wine was so high.

In time samples came our way, and.... well, we can say that we finished the 2009 Cuyo Chardonnay ($20/3L). We found nothing remarkable about the wine, but it did not take up much space in the fridge, and it was often handy to have a drinkable white at the ready with no deliberation about what bottle to open, let alone chill. So high marks for convenience, at least.

We were disappointed by the 2008 Cuyo Malbec ($20/3L). Malbec is Argentina's signature grape, so we expected much more from this wine, and the box remains nearly untouched.

Our hopes remain for the 3L bag-in-box category. As soon as someone actually does package a high-quality wine this way, the market will be theirs. But so far the promises to do so have gone unfulfilled.

Rosa D'Oro Vineyards

Rosa D'Oro Vineyards specializes in Italian varieties in Lake County, California. Their unusual lineup of wines and their reasonable prices made us curious to try the wines. The winery was kind enough to send us some, and we were quite pleased.

A Lake County Vineyard in the Spring. Courtesy of an anonymous Wikipedia contributor who has donated the image to the public domain.

 

The Muscat Canelli (dry!), $16, is as dry as advertised. This is an unusual sort of wine to find from California. Most California Muscats that are not overtly styled as dessert wines are at least off-dry. That is a real shame as the grape can really shine when made into a dry wine. The aromatics entice--and lead the taster to expect a sweet, floral and fruity wine--and the dryness on the palate is a refreshing surprise. Our archetype for this style is Alsatian Muscats, which are usually made from a different though related grape, Muscat Ottonel. Mendocino County's Navarro Vineyards produces a dry Muscat that is a dead ringer for the Alsatian style.

The Rosa D'Oro dry Muscat is something else again. The aromatics are relatively tame for a Muscat, but the wine is explosively delicious on the palate, with an almost honey-like texture. We enjoyed this before, during and after a dinner of Ma Po Tofu, a spicy dish typically served with beer. The wine worked as aperitif, accompaniment and digestif, and maintained its delicious character throughout.

We also enjoyed the Rosa D'Oro Dolcetto, $18. This is another variety not widely grown in the US. This wine is a true Dolcetto but we found it more approachable than many Italian versions, which can be hard--overly tannic and acidic. But the wine was not overripe, which would make it too fat or soft. The tannins are just right, giving the wine a grippy mouthfeel, and are sufficient to see the wine through several years' aging. The wine tastes almost sweet at first, with notes of blueberry and blackberry, and the finish is quite pleasant.

We are eager to try the winery's other offerings, especially the Aglianico and the Refosco. These varieties are even less widely grown in the US than Dolcetto, and we look forward to seeing what Rosa D'Oro can do with them.

Lake County itself is something of an enigma viticulturally. These wines demonstrate its great potential, and we may just have to take an investigative field trip to learn more.