Hug Cellars 2005 Bassetti Vineyard Rena Block Syrah - A Perfect Syrah?
September 19, 2008 by vegasrenie · 3 Comments
How close to a perfect Syrah can you get?
It is inky and viscous, coating the glass with a ruby-purple hue. It has a beautiful, conversation-stopping nose, with blackberry, pepper, black cherry, black ripe plums, and coffee, with the palate adding a bit of smoke and just a touch of earth in that striking mixture. Tannins are smooth and food friendly, and the finish goes on and on. Because of its young age, it is still very fruit forward, so I won’t be opening up my other bottles for quite a while. Maybe.
I had this in mid-2007 and “liked” it, but I wasn’t blown away by it. Boy, how time can change what happens in a wine bottle! Hug Cellars only made about 200 cases of this, so if you have an opportunity, don’t pass it up! A little pricey by Paso Robles standards (about $40-something), I don’t think you’ll find a better Syrah anywhere.
This Syrah was fabulous with Rod’s marvelous pot roast (don’t laugh) dinner.
Sphere: Related ContentAAAV Event - Wine with Soul
July 28, 2008 by vegasrenie · Leave a Comment
AAAV Logo
People, like grapes, come in all colors. And like grapes, can sometimes be surprising with their personalities, characteristics, and the way that other people perceive them. I wasn’t surprised that people weren’t aware that there are several African-American winemakers in California.
I was surprised at the rich history of these winemakers in the United States. I was also surprised to learn that with the thousands of wineries scattered across the US, less than a dozen are owned by African Americans.
It was quite the event. The tasting was hosted by Brenda Knight, the promoter and marketer for the Association of African-American Vintners (AAAV), and she made sure that it was a lively interchange of information and fun. She knows the winemakers personally, and has been involved with the organization since February of this year.
The beautiful Caylix Jazz Club located at 4760 W. Sahara at Decatur was the setting for the event. The venue was ideal, with a large, lovely gathering room that was spacious enough for all of the people who attended. There was a great cross-section of wine-knowledgeable folks - those who wanted to learn about the winemakers, those who wanted to learn about wine, and those who wanted to learn everything!
Sphere: Related ContentDon’t Call it RED Zinfandel
July 6, 2008 by vegasrenie · 1 Comment
It’s Zinfandel . Just Zinfandel. It is not “Red” Zinfandel.
Why does this bother me? Because I have a love/hate relationship with White Zinfandel , and the confusion that has arisen since its creation. Let me explain.
Zinfandel was on the ropes. In the 70s, winemakers were considering ripping out the unprofitable Zinfandel vines and replacing them with something that had a better monetary return. Like Cabernet, for instance. A winemaker’s attempt to make a Rosé resulted in a “stuck fermentation ,” a fermentation in which the yeast dies off earlier than it should. He tasted the wine two weeks after this problem occurred and decided that this pink sweet stuff should be sold.
It was an instant hit. The Great Unwashed loved it immediately (and yes, I was a card-carrying, chest-thumping member of the Great Unwashed at one time) and White Zinfandel became a household word as well as accounting for more sales of a single varietal than any other. The Great Unwashed has no taste.
So what does this have to do with anything?
Sphere: Related ContentAmpelos Winery at Cordon Bleu Las Vegas
April 23, 2008 by vegasrenie · 1 Comment
Wow. What an evening!
What *I thought* would be a regular evening of tasting on a Tuesday night turned into something much better. Not only was there a class in winemaking, but there were special treats afterwards.
Rebecca and Peter Work are the owners of Ampelos winery. It had been a dream of theirs and when they had the opportunity to acquire a piece of land in the beautiful Santa Rita Hills of California, they jumped at the opportunity.
On this night, Tuesday, April 15, they brought a few of their wines, their knowledge of the history of the grapes and of their wines, and enthralled the Cordon Bleu students and the members of the American Wine Society who attended the class.
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