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[wine] [jellings@me.umn.edu: DUI in DC (fwd) (W-Post)]

by Jim L. Ellingson

Greetings, 10/15/05 Sat. 1 to 7 Fall Tasting at Sam's WINES Next week at OddFellows 2 or 3 Weeks. At Fugais. 300 East Hennepin. C, J ----- Forwarded message from "Jim L. Ellingson" <jellings(a)me.umn.edu> ----- Date: Thu, 13 Oct 2005 16:56:26 -0500 From: "Jim L. Ellingson" <jellings(a)me.umn.edu> To: Allbnstaff(a)brewingnews.com, "Jim L. Ellingson" <jellings(a)me.umn.edu> Subject: DUI in DC (fwd) (W-Post) User-Agent: Mutt/1.5.4i >From the Post. While you're there, you can check out Greg Kitsock's O'Fest Artictle. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/11/AR200510110… Critics Say District's DUI Policy Goes Too Far Jailing Drivers for 1 Drink Called Wasting Resources By Brigid Schulte Washington Post Staff Writer Thursday, October 13, 2005; B01 Officials with organizations that lobby for safe roads and tough drunken driving laws yesterday criticized the District's zero-tolerance policy toward drinking and driving, saying that they'd never heard of it and that limited police resources should be devoted to those more obviously drunk. Even D.C. Council member Carol Schwartz (R-At Large), who has sponsored legislation to lower the legal limit for drunken driving, said she was not aware that police officers are arresting drivers who have as little as .01 percent blood alcohol content -- less than from drinking a glass of wine or beer -- in their systems. Nor did she think that such a policy was a good idea. "I think that laws have to be reasonable," she said. "And I do believe that one glass of wine should certainly not an arrest make." Lon Anderson, public and governmental affairs director for the American Automobile Association's Mid-Atlantic Office, said he planned to work toward putting an end to the zero-tolerance arrests. "This zero tolerance is out of order, out of bounds and outrageous," said Anderson, who said he also had never heard of it. "This means that, Heaven forbid, I could go to a Nats or Redskins game and have a beer and a dog and my career would be over." The Washington Post reported yesterday that Debra Bolton, a 45-year-old energy attorney and mother of two who lives in Alexandria, was searched, handcuffed, fingerprinted and arrested after drinking a glass of wine with dinner in Georgetown last May. A breath test indicated her blood alcohol level was .03, comfortably below the .08 legal limit at which drivers are automatically presumed intoxicated. She sat in a jail cell for hours and later spent months fighting in D.C. Superior Court before the charge was dropped. A number of motorists yesterday said they have had similar experiences. One young computer programmer said he spent the night in a D.C. jail on a drunken driving charge even though the breath test registered his blood alcohol content as 0.0 percent. The zero-tolerance policy requires that police have a reason to pull the driver over in the first place -- for example, for poor driving, or in Bolton's case, for driving without headlights. In Maryland and Virginia, as in other states, drivers generally are presumed not to be intoxicated if they test below .05. In all three jurisdictions, .08 is the legal limit. Elizabeth Wingo, chief of the criminal section in the D.C. Attorney General's Office, said her office prosecutes cases regardless of blood alcohol level, as long as there is sufficient evidence of impairment. "We have zero tolerance for drunk driving. It doesn't matter what your blood alcohol level is," Wingo said. "If you blow .02 and officers can tell you're impaired, you'll be arrested for DUI." The law says people can be found guilty if they drink enough alcohol "to appreciably disturb or interfere with their normal mental or physical faculties." But D.C. Police Chief Charles H. Ramsey, in an interview yesterday with WTOP radio, said the department has no policy of getting tough on people who drive below the legal alcohol limit. "Officers bring discretion to everything they do," Ramsey said, "so there is no order from above saying that every minor infraction of the law must be upheld." Patrick O'Connor, president of Northern Virginia's Mothers Against Drunk Driving, said his group lobbied for years to get all 50 states and the District of Columbia to lower the legal limit for intoxication from .10 to .08. He said the only zero-tolerance law MADD has pushed is for young drivers under the legal drinking age of 21 -- which all 50 states and the District subsequently adopted. "MADD's position is that you should drink responsibly and if you feel you're impaired, you should not drive," he said. "It's not MADD's position that if you have a glass of wine you shouldn't get into a car." John Undeland, chairman of the Washington Regional Alcohol Program, with members as diverse as Anheuser-Busch and MADD, said his group's members agree that the greatest problems are drivers who are profoundly drunk and those who repeatedly drive drunk. "That's where resource-stretched law enforcement agencies need to focus their resources," he said. Neither the D.C. police nor Superior Court prosecutors keep detailed records of low-blood alcohol arrests as a result of the zero-tolerance policy. But records do show that several hundred drivers each year are arrested for driving with blood alcohol lower than .08 percent. This year, Annie Cefaratti, along with Debra Bolton, will be one of those statistics. One Tuesday night in August, she recalled, the 44-year-old real estate agent and Reston resident had a glass of wine with dinner at Sette Osteria, with a big bowl of pasta and espresso. Two hours later, as she drove home in her black Mercedes SUV, she quickly picked up her cell phone to answer her son's call. The District bans use of handheld phones while driving, and she was immediately pulled over, she said. An officer asked if she'd been drinking. When she said she'd had a glass of wine with dinner, he asked her to get out of the car and put her through a series of sobriety tests. A breath test measured her blood alcohol at .04. She was handcuffed and arrested. Her case was later dropped, she said, because the officer never filed the paperwork. Now, the District's Department of Motor Vehicles wants her to either get alcohol counseling or prove she doesn't need it. "I'm D.C.-born and -raised. My family goes back six generations here," she said. "And I'm never going to have another drink in D.C." D.C.'s zero-tolerance policy goes back about seven years. In 1998, at the same time Schwartz introduced an amendment to lower the blood alcohol limit for intoxication from .10 to .08 with much media attention, then-Council member Sandy Allen introduced a provision that lowered to .03 the level that a driver could be presumed impaired by alcohol. Both measures passed. Staff researcher Bobbye Pratt contributed to this report. � 2005 The Washington Post Company Single Glass of Wine Immerses D.C. Driver in Legal Battle By Brigid Schulte Washington Post Staff Writer Wednesday, October 12, 2005; A01 Debra Bolton had a glass of red wine with dinner. That's what she told the police officer who pulled her over. That's what the Intoxilyzer 5000 breath test indicated -- .03, comfortably below the legal limit. She had been pulled over in Georgetown about 12:30 a.m. for driving without headlights. She apologized and explained that the parking attendant must have turned off her vehicle's automatic-light feature. Bolton thought she might get a ticket. Instead, she was handcuffed, searched, arrested, put in a jail cell until 4:30 a.m. and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol. Bolton, 45, an energy lawyer and single mother of two who lives in Alexandria, had just run into a little-known piece of D.C. law: In the District, a driver can be arrested with as little as .01 blood-alcohol content. As D.C. police officer Dennis Fair, who arrested Bolton on May 15, put it in an interview recently: "If you get behind the wheel of a car with any measurable amount of alcohol, you will be dealt with in D.C. We have zero tolerance. . . . Anything above .01, we can arrest." Neither the police department nor the attorney general's office keeps detailed records of how many people with low blood alcohol levels are arrested. But last year, according to police records, 321 people were arrested for driving under the influence with blood alcohol levels below the legal limit of .08. In 2003, 409 people were arrested. Although low blood alcohol arrests have been made in other states in conjunction with dangerous driving, lawyers, prosecutors and advocates of drunken driving prevention said they knew of no place besides the District that had such a low threshold for routine DUI arrests. In Maryland and Virginia, as in other states, drivers generally are presumed not to be intoxicated if they test below .05. Nationwide, .08 is the legal limit -- meaning a driver is automatically presumed to be intoxicated. Fair acknowledged that many people aren't aware of the District's policy. "But it is our law," he said. "If you don't know about it, then you're a victim of your own ignorance." Bolton said she didn't know. But defense lawyers who practice in the District do. "Even one drink can get you in trouble in D.C.," said Thomas Key, a lawyer who successfully defended a client who had a blood alcohol level of .03. "They might not win a lot of these cases or prosecute them, but they're still arresting people." Not many people fight the charge, said Richard Lebowitz, another defense lawyer, because the District offers a "diversion program" of counseling for first-time offenders. "If diversion is offered and accepted, there's a guarantee that the charges will be dropped," Lebowitz said. "If you go to court and try to prove your innocence, it's a coin-flip. So most people choose diversion." Bolton didn't. She balked at the $400 fee and the 24 hours of class time required to attend the "social drinker" program. "I think it would have been fine if I'd done something wrong, but I didn't," she said. "I had a glass of wine with dinner." Instead, she hired a lawyer. In August, after Bolton made several fruitless appearances in D.C. Superior Court, prosecutors dropped the DUI charge. But then she had to battle the D.C. Department of Motor Vehicles, which warned that it would suspend her driving privileges at the end of this month unless she went through an alcohol prevention program. As Bolton remembers it, it was early morning May 15 and she had barely gone a few hundred yards before she was pulled over on K Street NW. The officer, Fair, asked her whether she realized the headlights on her Acura MDX sport-utility vehicle were off. "Oh, man, am I going to get a ticket for this?" she remembers saying to him jokingly. Then he asked her whether she'd had anything to drink. "Not really," she said. And when he asked her again, more firmly, she answered that she'd had a glass of wine with dinner at Cafe Milano. He asked her to recite the alphabet. In his report, Fair wrote that he had asked her to start at the letter D and stop at X. Bolton said she thought he had asked her to stop at S and tossed off the alphabet quickly and accurately to S. As a result, Fair noted in his report that she had "jumbled" it. Then he asked her to get out of the car. Fair asked her to walk a straight line and then stand on one foot to the count of 30. He looked into her eyes to check for jerkiness. Bolton, dressed in black silk pants and a pink shirt, took off her pink high heels to be more sure-footed. She said she thought she had aced the tests. "All that yoga really paid off," she thought. But in the police report, Fair wrote that she swayed as she walked and lost her balance -- which Bolton disputes. He told her she was under arrest. "Why?" Bolton remembers saying. "I passed all your little tests." On his report, Fair wrote that Bolton failed 10 indicators of sobriety. But James E. Klaunig, a toxicology expert at Indiana University's medical school who for 12 years oversaw the state's drunken driving testing, said that such a determination was scientifically improbable. "There's no way possible she failed a test from impairment with a .03" blood alcohol level, Klaunig said. "And reciting the alphabet is not an acceptable way of measuring impairment, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration." Fair, who said he does not comment on individual arrests, noted in his report that Bolton's attitude was "excited," "carefree" and "cocky." "I was sort of laughing," Bolton said. "I look back and wonder, was I cocky? Did I have an attitude? Well, yeah, because I was sober, so I thought it was all so ridiculous." Fair handcuffed her. Bolton said she was terrified. Until then, her only brush with the law had been a ticket for speeding in a 15-mph zone in 2002. At 1:08 a.m., at the 2nd Police District station, Fair asked Bolton to blow into the Intoxilyzer 5000. It read .03. "See?" she remembers saying. He had her breathe into the machine one minute later. Again, .03. "See?" But Fair told her D.C. law was on his side. On the department's Web site, D.C. police explain it this way: "Technically, according to the D.C. Code, the District of Columbia has a zero tolerance for driving under the influence. If a person 21 years of age or older has a blood alcohol concentration of .02 percent [to] .04 percent and extremely bad driving, this person can be placed under arrest for Driving Under the Influence of an alcoholic beverage." At low levels of alcohol, an arrest comes down to an officer's discretion, said D.C. police Inspector Patrick Burke, former head of the traffic division. Fair, he said, has 15 years of experience and averages more than 100 drunken driving arrests a year and is well qualified to make the call. In 1998, Fair arrested Marlene Cooke, wife of the late Washington Redskins owner Jack Kent Cooke, for drunken driving after she piloted her Land Rover through Dupont Circle without the headlights on. She refused a breath test but was later convicted. "I always say the safe bet, if you drive, is not to drink at all," Burke said. "But even looking from a D.C. tourism standpoint, we'd be killing ourselves if we were saying you can't go out and have a glass of wine with dinner. That'd be ridiculous. So we tell people, you have to know your limits." Bolton sat in a jail cell until 4:30 a.m. As she left, Fair told her he had given her a warning, not a ticket, for driving without headlights. She walked the few blocks to Wisconsin Avenue NW, caught a cab to her car on K Street and drove across the bridge to Virginia. There, she said, she pulled over and cried for 45 minutes. Since what she refers to as her "unfortunate incarceration," Bolton has spent hours in D.C. Superior Court and at the DMV and $2,000 so far fighting the DUI charge. Her refusal to submit to the 12-week alcohol counseling diversion program has sent her on a "surreal" odyssey. Twice, after hours of waiting, prosecutors told her that they had lost her file and that she would have to come back. On Aug. 22, after four court appearances, prosecutors dropped the charge. But she spent all of September battling the DMV to keep her driving privileges from being suspended for three months. Corey Buffo, the DMV's general counsel, explained that the agency drops its procedures only after a case goes to trial and is dismissed on its merits. "Our burden of proof is lower" than the Superior Court's, he said. "Not enough evidence for them may be enough evidence for us." Yesterday, the DMV decided not to suspend her privileges and issued her a warning instead. After so many months, Debra Bolton is just glad it's over. "It's lunacy," she said. "I'm all for limits on drinking and driving. Whatever the rules are, I will abide by them. I just didn't know these were the rules." These days, Bolton goes out to eat in Virginia. And she keeps a yellow sticky note on her steering wheel to remind her to make sure her headlights are on. � 2005 The Washington Post Company -- ------------------------------ * * Dr. James Lee Ellingson, Adjunct Professor jellings(a)me.umn.edu * * University of Minnesota, tel: 651/645-0753 fax 651 XXX XXXX * * Great Lakes Brewing News, 1569 Laurel Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104 * ----- End forwarded message ----- -- ------------------------------ * * Dr. James Lee Ellingson, Adjunct Professor jellings(a)me.umn.edu * * University of Minnesota, tel: 651/645-0753 fax 651 XXX XXXX * * Great Lakes Brewing News, 1569 Laurel Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104 *

20 years, 1 month

[wine] Terry Thiese, Bubbles, Scotch

by Jim L. Ellingson

Calendar 10/13/05 Red and Ready at Bobino 10/20/05 Current Release Fr. Whites and Zinfandel (not necessarily current release and probably not from France....) at Oddfellows 11/8/05 Tuesday Scotch Tasting at Mpls Town Hall (Cedar/Riverside/Washington on the W. Bank) w/ Martin Duffey 11/10/05 Thursday Terry Theise. 7 pm at Millenium 12/1/01 Thursday Big S Champagne tasting probably at Millenium ----- Forwarded message from jhegstrom(a)csom.umn.edu ----- Subject: Fw: November 8 - Scotch Tasting To: jellings(a)me.umn.edu, jellings(a)me.umn.edu X-Mailer: Lotus Notes Release 6.5.4 March 27, 2005 From: jhegstrom(a)csom.umn.edu Date: Wed, 12 Oct 2005 13:16:36 -0500 Jim This could also be posted to the group if you think there is an interest! J Terry Theise: November 10th. Bubbles Discount of $5. Regular price is $35 but with the discount it's $30. Millenium Hotel and I'm guessing the time is 7:00 p.m. Need to make phone reservation with credit card. Call Zack or Lynn. There WILL be a bubbles discount for the Champagne Tasting which is December 1st. Not sure on price and discount on that yet. No bubbles discount as of now. 10/12/05 - FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: WHO: Surdyk???s Presents Scotch Master Martin C. Duffy for an exclusive Scotch Tasting WHAT: Premier Scotch Tasting Event WHERE: Town Hall Brewery, 1430 Washington Avenue South, Minneapolis WHEN: Tuesday, November 8th, 7:00 p.m. COST: $20 in advance, $25 at the door ??? Call 612/379-3232 for reservations Join Martin C. Duffy, Master of Scotch, for this unique Scotch Tasting! Mr. Duffy has worked for Johnnie Walker & The Classic Malts for nearly 10 years, the last two as their Master of Scotch. His Celtic heritage, love of the culture, history, and the Celtic region in general, are what fuels his passion for scotch and his enjoyment in being a Master of Scotch for Johnnie Walker Whiskies, which are revered throughout the world by distillers and Scotch enthusiasts alike! There will be spectacular prize giveaways the night of the event, as well as beer specials from the Town Hall Brewery. Attendees will have a chance to win glassware and bottles of Johnnie Walker. One lucky winner will take home a bottle of the highly coveted Johnnie Walker Blue Label! Seating is limited, so make your reservation today! Tamara Schultz Event Coordinator - Surdyk's Liquor & Bistro 2GO Direct Line - 612/676-2287 www.surdyks.com ----- End forwarded message ----- -- ------------------------------ * * Dr. James Lee Ellingson, Adjunct Professor jellings(a)me.umn.edu * * University of Minnesota, tel: 651/645-0753 fax 651 XXX XXXX * * Great Lakes Brewing News, 1569 Laurel Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104 *

20 years, 1 month

[wine] BOBINO's This Week, NOT Oddfellows

by Betsy Kremser

Greetings, Just talked to Bob. He could not get us into Oddfellows tomorrow, Oct. 13, so he made a reservation at Bobino's. The theme will be *Red and Ready*. He made reservations for us at Oddfellows for next week, October 20, where the theme will be zins and new French whites, i.e., current vintage/currently available at stores. Betsy

20 years, 1 month

[wine] Re: Are we meeting this week? C-Pages

by Betsy Kremser

I believe we're meeting at Oddfellows and drinking new French white wines, and zins. Betsy >>> "Jim L. Ellingson" <jellings(a)me.umn.edu> 10/12/2005 11:53 AM >>> Are we meeting this week? Style? Venue? Cheers, Jim <snip>

20 years, 1 month

[wine] Are we meeting this week? C-Pages

by Jim L. Ellingson

Are we meeting this week? Style? Venue? Cheers, Jim 2005 Wine & Dine Guide: The World in a Bottle If 40 distributors each work with between 30 and 200 chateaus, bodegas, collectives, estates, wineries, or what have you--how many separate bottlings are available in Minnesota? BY DARA MOSKOWITZ ART BY LAURA TUNDEL The world is big. I'd say it's actually bigger here than it is other places. In Los Angeles, for instance, the world seems to be about the size of your nearest competitor's pool, or development deal, or cup size. In New York, the world seems to stretch from the Hamptons to the insides of the newspapers and back again. In Minnesota, though, there's something in the culture that just seems to make the world, be it Spain or Germany, Africa or Guatemala, New York or Tulsa, and, of course, Sweden--always Sweden--seem very close at hand. Is it the education? The airlines? The Lutheran legacy of doing your good works in the world, and not merely in your heart? The evidence is everywhere. I'll never forget the time I was sitting in a booth in the Dino's Gyros in Falcon Heights, thinking about grape leaves and lemon soup, and the woman in the next booth, fresh from the airport, was rapturously describing to her young daughter what it's like to be invited to the White House. Then there's the conversation I had with a wedding caterer about how you're unlikely to succeed in the near western suburbs unless you can provide a Kosher/Korean banquet. And I was tickled to note the recent news stories on Minneapolis' ultra-deluxe new water filtration plant, which will put us in the big leagues, water-wise, on par with Singapore and Kuwait. You know, Singapore and Kuwait. I don't think other cities think about Singapore and Kuwait, but we evidently do. We also think of Tarragona, the Friulian Plains, Maipo Valley, and the shores of the Gironde, all of which I have encountered in the wine aisles of our local wine shops this month. We just have an astonishing array of global wines in Minnesota. This comes from our 40-plus wine distributors and importers--an astonishing richness, as many major cities have as few as two or three. (We have so many, I think, because of our reasonable Midwestern real estate, which allows storage costs to be kept low, and because the diversity of wine shops in the area provide them with a variety of markets. Some states basically have one big distributor that places most of its wine in the one big discount chain, with one phone call.) Now, do the math: If 40 distributors each work with between 30 and 200 chateaus, bodegas, collectives, estates, wineries, or what have you--how many separate bottlings are available in Minnesota? Enough so that if you have a curiosity about the wine culture of a place, and you live here, you have an itch you can actually scratch. You can do it casually or you can do it intensively. This year, for Wine and Dine, we have decided to point out how you might do either. On the pages that follow, you'll find several articles examining the wines of a single country--all European, this year--and suggesting strategies for getting to know them. For starters, we've dissected several wine lists heavy on the bottlings of a single country. There are some phenomenally deep and focused specialty wine lists to be found in town: Minneapolis's Black Forest, for instance, has enough German offerings that if you visit it monthly for a year or two, you will be, de facto, an expert in German wines. The same can be said of the Italian lists at Broder's and Osteria I Nonni, the French list at Vincent, or the Greek wine list at It's Greek to Me, which displays a truly astonishing array of Hellenic bottlings. Did we forget your favorite? Sorry, we'll try to do better next year. We picked these for their depth, focus, and ease of use. There was some consternation in the office as to whether we should write about Solera's gobsmack of a Spanish list--haven't we covered this already? But not writing about it in the end seemed kind of like talking about giant gorillas and leaving out King Kong: The only way you're going to see this many Spanish wines anywhere else is get out your passport and start practicing your Catalan. Speaking of which, Spanish wines have been very much on the mind of Twin Citians this year. My mailbox runneth over with folks asking me to help them decode the cheap, thrilling world of Spanish reds. And so for the second component of this year's edition of Wine and Dine, I fell back on an idea I've used before: the wine party, or guided tasting. I really do think it's the most helpful way to write about wine, and I hope you'll agree. I guess I just never got over the idea that if you teach a man to fish, he'll eventually be able to work the wine sales himself, and amass a wine cellar he can drink from all winter long. So here we have it, Wine and Dine 2005: a big, wide, drinkable world, all for you. See Also in This Issue: Wine Party: Spanish Reds Skip the Forest, Focus on a Few of the Most Typical Trees, and You May Finally Feel Comfortable in the Fabulous Jungle of Spanish Red Wines Spanish Reds: The Rest of the Story Grapes you might meet Barbie's Revenge Bright Pink Spanish Rosado Is Something You Can Buy Without Thinking. In 2005, It's All Good. No, Seriously. Elsewhere in Europe Want to taste your way through another country? Local restaurants are a good first stop -- ------------------------------ * * Dr. James Lee Ellingson, Adjunct Professor jellings(a)me.umn.edu * * University of Minnesota, tel: 651/645-0753 fax 651 XXX XXXX * * Great Lakes Brewing News, 1569 Laurel Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104 *

20 years, 1 month

[wine] [jellings@me.umn.edu: Any Pinot at Muffuleta]

by Jim L. Ellingson

Have Fun. ----- Forwarded message from "Jim L. Ellingson" <jellings(a)me.umn.edu> ----- Date: Tue, 4 Oct 2005 18:42:15 -0500 From: "Jim L. Ellingson" <jellings(a)me.umn.edu> To: wine(a)thebarn.com Subject: [wine] Any Pinot at Muffuleta Greetings, Greats views, foods and wines at Lee and Melisa's last week. Thanks for hosting. This week, we've been invited to Muffuletta. 6:30 pm on Thursday the 6th. Muffuletta Cafe 2260 Como St. Paul, 55108 St. Anthony Park 651-644-9116 Style du jour is "Any Pinot". Pinot Blanc, Gris, Grigio. Heck, even pinot noir. Yes Warren/Ruth Betsy/guest Bob Guess: Lori Nicolai Karin Roger Janet Directions: Take Hwy 280 to Como, go east up the hill and then to the second light (Carter). Alt: Take Snelling to Como, West to Carter. Have fun. See you next week. Cheers, Jim THE CHRONICLE'S WINE SELECTIONS: Russian River Valley Pinot Noir - Thursday, September 22, 2005 Here are the panel picks from 50 Russian River Valley Pinot Noirs from 2002 and 2003 tasted for today. ________________________________________ 2003 Alderbrook Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $24 Body: Medium-full Dryness: Dry Comments: Ripe nose of black cherry, rosemary, pine and spice; juicy black cherry, black raspberry, vanilla, black pepper and anise flavors; tart cranberry finish; great balance; soft mouthfeel. ________________________________________ 2003 Bearboat Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $20 Body: Medium Dryness: Dry Comments: Excellent. Lean, elegant style. Nose of cherry, red raspberry, cranberry, cassis, dried leaf and toast; similar flavors plus hint of licorice; bright acidity; wonderful with food. ________________________________________ 2003 David Bruce Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $40 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Subtle nose of cherry, dried cranberry and pencil shavings; ripe black cherry, cassis, raspberry, citrus peel and white pepper flavors; slightly alcoholic; long finish. ________________________________________ 2003 De Loach Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $18 Body: Medium-full Dryness: Dry Comments: Mushroom, black cherry, toasted pine nuts, rose petal and leather aromas; ripe black cherry, blackberry, plum, tobacco and loam flavors; supple tannins; mouthwatering acidity. ________________________________________ 2002 Deerfield Ranch Cohn Vineyard RRV Pinot Noir Price: $48 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Smells of vanilla and wild blackberry with hint of toast; similar on palate, plus baking spice, truffle and dark chocolate; rich and seductive; polished tannins. ________________________________________ 2003 Dutton Goldfield Dutton Ranch RRV Pinot Noir Price: $35 Body: Medium-full Dryness: Dry Comments: Nose of blueberry, black cherry, raspberry and pine; cranberry, dried cherry, citrus, vanilla and toast flavors; round on palate; silky tannins; nice balance. ________________________________________ 2002 Forchini Proprietor's Reserve RRV Pinot Noir Price: $22 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Cherry, herb, pine, soy sauce and oak on nose; flavors of juicy black cherry, cassis, licorice and black pepper; cranberry on finish; young - needs time for tannins to soften. ________________________________________ 2003 Fritz Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $30 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Very good. Herb and rose on nose, though toast and earth dominate; mushroom, soy sauce, black cherry, black tea and tobacco flavors; excellent acidity; long, fresh raspberry finish. ________________________________________ 2003 Gary Farrell Russian River Selection RRV Pinot Noir Price: $34 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Aromas of Bing cherry, truffle and vanilla with juicy blackberry, black plum, raspberry and licorice flavors with hints of spice; round and deeply flavored; lush tannins. ________________________________________ 2003 Gary Farrell Rochioli Vineyard RRV Pinot Noir Price: $60 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Excellent. Aromas of toasted marshmallow, pie crust, cherry and mushroom; root beer, black cherry, tart plum and vanilla flavors; pert acidity; light coating tannins. Low production. ________________________________________ 2003 Harvest Moon Vineyards & Winery RRV Pinot Noir Price: $18 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Ripe black cherry nose with hint of baking spice; palate starts with ripe strawberry and cherry pie filling; soft in the mouth until a tannic close. Low production. ________________________________________ 2003 J Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $28 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Aromas of cherry pie, ripe blackberry, boysenberry, tea leaf, earth and baking spice; black cherry and vanilla flavors with touches of citrus and smoked meat; round tannins. ________________________________________ 2003 Lost Canyon Saralee's Vineyard RRV Pinot Noir Price: $38 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Very good. Beautiful nose of black plum, black cherry, raspberry and rose; similar flavors; supple tannins, full, luscious, great balance. Low production. ________________________________________ 2003 Lynmar Quail Hill Vineyard RRV Pinot Noir Price: $45 Body: Full Dryness: Dry-semidry Comments: Strawberry compote, cherry, tar and dust aromas; similar flavors with jammy black and red fruit and black pepper; round tannins; hot finish. ________________________________________ 2003 Merry Edwards Russian River Valley Olivet Lane Pinot Noir Price: $54 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Excellent. Pretty Bing cherry, leather and spice nose with a hint of mint; black cherry, cranberry, mushroom and cherry cola flavors; polished and elegant. Low production. ________________________________________ 2002 Russian Hill Estate Vineyards RRV Pinot Noir Price: $30 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Very good. Mushroom, earth, soy sauce, black cherry and currant nose; supple texture, plush tannins; ripe black plum, cola and spice flavors; mouthwatering acidity. Low production. ________________________________________ 2003 Russian Hill Tara Vineyard RRV Pinot Noir Price: $42 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Excellent. Truffle, toast, herb and wet earth aromas with herb notes; rich, ripe cassis, black cherry, raspberry, black tea and cinnamon flavors; silky tannins; great balance. Low production. ________________________________________ 2003 Williams Selyem Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $42 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Outstanding; the panel favorite. Exotic nose of blackberry, black cherry, herb and toast; boysenberry, raspberry, vanilla and licorice flavors; bright acidity; balanced. ________________________________________ 2003 Woodenhead Buena Tierra Vineyard RRV Pinot Noir Price: $46 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Very good. Rose, raspberry, pomegranate, blackberry, cassis, earth, mushroom, dried herb and white pepper aromas and flavors; tart acidity; Burgundian style. Low production. ________________________________________ Panelists: Lynne Bennett, staff writer/wine coordinator, The Chronicle; Linda Murphy, wine editor, The Chronicle; Rom Toulon, sommelier, Four Seasons Hotel, San Francisco; Oscar Val Verde, general manager, 2223 Restaurant & Bar, San Francisco. Wines listed are generally available but may not be in all stores. Start with local wine merchants, but also try larger stores and wineries. The Chronicle's Wine Selections: Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Here are the panel picks from 50 Russian River Valley Pinot Noirs from 2002 and 2003 tasted for today. ________________________________________ 2003 Alderbrook Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $24 Body: Medium-full Dryness: Dry Comments: Ripe nose of black cherry, rosemary, pine and spice; juicy black cherry, black raspberry, vanilla, black pepper and anise flavors; tart cranberry finish; great balance; soft mouthfeel. ________________________________________ 2003 Bearboat Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $20 Body: Medium Dryness: Dry Comments: Excellent. Lean, elegant style. Nose of cherry, red raspberry, cranberry, cassis, dried leaf and toast; similar flavors plus hint of licorice; bright acidity; wonderful with food. ________________________________________ 2003 David Bruce Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $40 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Subtle nose of cherry, dried cranberry and pencil shavings; ripe black cherry, cassis, raspberry, citrus peel and white pepper flavors; slightly alcoholic; long finish. ________________________________________ 2003 De Loach Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $18 Body: Medium-full Dryness: Dry Comments: Mushroom, black cherry, toasted pine nuts, rose petal and leather aromas; ripe black cherry, blackberry, plum, tobacco and loam flavors; supple tannins; mouthwatering acidity. ________________________________________ 2002 Deerfield Ranch Cohn Vineyard RRV Pinot Noir Price: $48 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Smells of vanilla and wild blackberry with hint of toast; similar on palate, plus baking spice, truffle and dark chocolate; rich and seductive; polished tannins. ________________________________________ 2003 Dutton Goldfield Dutton Ranch RRV Pinot Noir Price: $35 Body: Medium-full Dryness: Dry Comments: Nose of blueberry, black cherry, raspberry and pine; cranberry, dried cherry, citrus, vanilla and toast flavors; round on palate; silky tannins; nice balance. ________________________________________ 2002 Forchini Proprietor's Reserve RRV Pinot Noir Price: $22 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Cherry, herb, pine, soy sauce and oak on nose; flavors of juicy black cherry, cassis, licorice and black pepper; cranberry on finish; young - needs time for tannins to soften. ________________________________________ 2003 Fritz Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $30 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Very good. Herb and rose on nose, though toast and earth dominate; mushroom, soy sauce, black cherry, black tea and tobacco flavors; excellent acidity; long, fresh raspberry finish. ________________________________________ 2003 Gary Farrell Russian River Selection RRV Pinot Noir Price: $34 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Aromas of Bing cherry, truffle and vanilla with juicy blackberry, black plum, raspberry and licorice flavors with hints of spice; round and deeply flavored; lush tannins. ________________________________________ 2003 Gary Farrell Rochioli Vineyard RRV Pinot Noir Price: $60 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Excellent. Aromas of toasted marshmallow, pie crust, cherry and mushroom; root beer, black cherry, tart plum and vanilla flavors; pert acidity; light coating tannins. Low production. ________________________________________ 2003 Harvest Moon Vineyards & Winery RRV Pinot Noir Price: $18 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Ripe black cherry nose with hint of baking spice; palate starts with ripe strawberry and cherry pie filling; soft in the mouth until a tannic close. Low production. ________________________________________ 2003 J Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $28 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Aromas of cherry pie, ripe blackberry, boysenberry, tea leaf, earth and baking spice; black cherry and vanilla flavors with touches of citrus and smoked meat; round tannins. ________________________________________ 2003 Lost Canyon Saralee's Vineyard RRV Pinot Noir Price: $38 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Very good. Beautiful nose of black plum, black cherry, raspberry and rose; similar flavors; supple tannins, full, luscious, great balance. Low production. ________________________________________ 2003 Lynmar Quail Hill Vineyard RRV Pinot Noir Price: $45 Body: Full Dryness: Dry-semidry Comments: Strawberry compote, cherry, tar and dust aromas; similar flavors with jammy black and red fruit and black pepper; round tannins; hot finish. ________________________________________ 2003 Merry Edwards Russian River Valley Olivet Lane Pinot Noir Price: $54 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Excellent. Pretty Bing cherry, leather and spice nose with a hint of mint; black cherry, cranberry, mushroom and cherry cola flavors; polished and elegant. Low production. ________________________________________ 2002 Russian Hill Estate Vineyards RRV Pinot Noir Price: $30 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Very good. Mushroom, earth, soy sauce, black cherry and currant nose; supple texture, plush tannins; ripe black plum, cola and spice flavors; mouthwatering acidity. Low production. ________________________________________ 2003 Russian Hill Tara Vineyard RRV Pinot Noir Price: $42 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Excellent. Truffle, toast, herb and wet earth aromas with herb notes; rich, ripe cassis, black cherry, raspberry, black tea and cinnamon flavors; silky tannins; great balance. Low production. ________________________________________ 2003 Williams Selyem Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $42 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Outstanding; the panel favorite. Exotic nose of blackberry, black cherry, herb and toast; boysenberry, raspberry, vanilla and licorice flavors; bright acidity; balanced. ________________________________________ 2003 Woodenhead Buena Tierra Vineyard RRV Pinot Noir Price: $46 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Very good. Rose, raspberry, pomegranate, blackberry, cassis, earth, mushroom, dried herb and white pepper aromas and flavors; tart acidity; Burgundian style. Low production. ________________________________________ Panelists: Lynne Bennett, staff writer/wine coordinator, The Chronicle; Linda Murphy, wine editor, The Chronicle; Rom Toulon, sommelier, Four Seasons Hotel, San Francisco; Oscar Val Verde, general manager, 2223 Restaurant & Bar, San Francisco. Wines listed are generally available but may not be in all stores. Start with local wine merchants, but also try larger stores and wineries. -- ------------------------------ * * Dr. James Lee Ellingson, Adjunct Professor jellings(a)me.umn.edu * * University of Minnesota, tel: 651/645-0753 fax 651 XXX XXXX * * Great Lakes Brewing News, 1569 Laurel Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104 * ----- End forwarded message -----

20 years, 2 months

[wine] Any Pinot at Muffuleta

by Jim L. Ellingson

Greetings, Greats views, foods and wines at Lee and Melisa's last week. Thanks for hosting. This week, we've been invited to Muffuletta. 6:30 pm on Thursday the 6th. Muffuletta Cafe 2260 Como St. Paul, 55108 St. Anthony Park 651-644-9116 Style du jour is "Any Pinot". Pinot Blanc, Gris, Grigio. Heck, even pinot noir. Yes Warren/Ruth Russ Betsy Bob Guess: Lori Nicolai Karin Roger Bill Janet Directions: Take Hwy 280 to Como, go east up the hill and then to the second light (Carter). Alt: Take Snelling to Como, West to Carter. Have fun. See you next week. Cheers, Jim THE CHRONICLE'S WINE SELECTIONS: Russian River Valley Pinot Noir - Thursday, September 22, 2005 Here are the panel picks from 50 Russian River Valley Pinot Noirs from 2002 and 2003 tasted for today. ________________________________________ 2003 Alderbrook Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $24 Body: Medium-full Dryness: Dry Comments: Ripe nose of black cherry, rosemary, pine and spice; juicy black cherry, black raspberry, vanilla, black pepper and anise flavors; tart cranberry finish; great balance; soft mouthfeel. ________________________________________ 2003 Bearboat Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $20 Body: Medium Dryness: Dry Comments: Excellent. Lean, elegant style. Nose of cherry, red raspberry, cranberry, cassis, dried leaf and toast; similar flavors plus hint of licorice; bright acidity; wonderful with food. ________________________________________ 2003 David Bruce Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $40 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Subtle nose of cherry, dried cranberry and pencil shavings; ripe black cherry, cassis, raspberry, citrus peel and white pepper flavors; slightly alcoholic; long finish. ________________________________________ 2003 De Loach Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $18 Body: Medium-full Dryness: Dry Comments: Mushroom, black cherry, toasted pine nuts, rose petal and leather aromas; ripe black cherry, blackberry, plum, tobacco and loam flavors; supple tannins; mouthwatering acidity. ________________________________________ 2002 Deerfield Ranch Cohn Vineyard RRV Pinot Noir Price: $48 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Smells of vanilla and wild blackberry with hint of toast; similar on palate, plus baking spice, truffle and dark chocolate; rich and seductive; polished tannins. ________________________________________ 2003 Dutton Goldfield Dutton Ranch RRV Pinot Noir Price: $35 Body: Medium-full Dryness: Dry Comments: Nose of blueberry, black cherry, raspberry and pine; cranberry, dried cherry, citrus, vanilla and toast flavors; round on palate; silky tannins; nice balance. ________________________________________ 2002 Forchini Proprietor's Reserve RRV Pinot Noir Price: $22 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Cherry, herb, pine, soy sauce and oak on nose; flavors of juicy black cherry, cassis, licorice and black pepper; cranberry on finish; young - needs time for tannins to soften. ________________________________________ 2003 Fritz Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $30 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Very good. Herb and rose on nose, though toast and earth dominate; mushroom, soy sauce, black cherry, black tea and tobacco flavors; excellent acidity; long, fresh raspberry finish. ________________________________________ 2003 Gary Farrell Russian River Selection RRV Pinot Noir Price: $34 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Aromas of Bing cherry, truffle and vanilla with juicy blackberry, black plum, raspberry and licorice flavors with hints of spice; round and deeply flavored; lush tannins. ________________________________________ 2003 Gary Farrell Rochioli Vineyard RRV Pinot Noir Price: $60 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Excellent. Aromas of toasted marshmallow, pie crust, cherry and mushroom; root beer, black cherry, tart plum and vanilla flavors; pert acidity; light coating tannins. Low production. ________________________________________ 2003 Harvest Moon Vineyards & Winery RRV Pinot Noir Price: $18 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Ripe black cherry nose with hint of baking spice; palate starts with ripe strawberry and cherry pie filling; soft in the mouth until a tannic close. Low production. ________________________________________ 2003 J Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $28 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Aromas of cherry pie, ripe blackberry, boysenberry, tea leaf, earth and baking spice; black cherry and vanilla flavors with touches of citrus and smoked meat; round tannins. ________________________________________ 2003 Lost Canyon Saralee's Vineyard RRV Pinot Noir Price: $38 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Very good. Beautiful nose of black plum, black cherry, raspberry and rose; similar flavors; supple tannins, full, luscious, great balance. Low production. ________________________________________ 2003 Lynmar Quail Hill Vineyard RRV Pinot Noir Price: $45 Body: Full Dryness: Dry-semidry Comments: Strawberry compote, cherry, tar and dust aromas; similar flavors with jammy black and red fruit and black pepper; round tannins; hot finish. ________________________________________ 2003 Merry Edwards Russian River Valley Olivet Lane Pinot Noir Price: $54 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Excellent. Pretty Bing cherry, leather and spice nose with a hint of mint; black cherry, cranberry, mushroom and cherry cola flavors; polished and elegant. Low production. ________________________________________ 2002 Russian Hill Estate Vineyards RRV Pinot Noir Price: $30 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Very good. Mushroom, earth, soy sauce, black cherry and currant nose; supple texture, plush tannins; ripe black plum, cola and spice flavors; mouthwatering acidity. Low production. ________________________________________ 2003 Russian Hill Tara Vineyard RRV Pinot Noir Price: $42 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Excellent. Truffle, toast, herb and wet earth aromas with herb notes; rich, ripe cassis, black cherry, raspberry, black tea and cinnamon flavors; silky tannins; great balance. Low production. ________________________________________ 2003 Williams Selyem Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $42 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Outstanding; the panel favorite. Exotic nose of blackberry, black cherry, herb and toast; boysenberry, raspberry, vanilla and licorice flavors; bright acidity; balanced. ________________________________________ 2003 Woodenhead Buena Tierra Vineyard RRV Pinot Noir Price: $46 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Very good. Rose, raspberry, pomegranate, blackberry, cassis, earth, mushroom, dried herb and white pepper aromas and flavors; tart acidity; Burgundian style. Low production. ________________________________________ Panelists: Lynne Bennett, staff writer/wine coordinator, The Chronicle; Linda Murphy, wine editor, The Chronicle; Rom Toulon, sommelier, Four Seasons Hotel, San Francisco; Oscar Val Verde, general manager, 2223 Restaurant & Bar, San Francisco. Wines listed are generally available but may not be in all stores. Start with local wine merchants, but also try larger stores and wineries. The Chronicle's Wine Selections: Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Here are the panel picks from 50 Russian River Valley Pinot Noirs from 2002 and 2003 tasted for today. ________________________________________ 2003 Alderbrook Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $24 Body: Medium-full Dryness: Dry Comments: Ripe nose of black cherry, rosemary, pine and spice; juicy black cherry, black raspberry, vanilla, black pepper and anise flavors; tart cranberry finish; great balance; soft mouthfeel. ________________________________________ 2003 Bearboat Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $20 Body: Medium Dryness: Dry Comments: Excellent. Lean, elegant style. Nose of cherry, red raspberry, cranberry, cassis, dried leaf and toast; similar flavors plus hint of licorice; bright acidity; wonderful with food. ________________________________________ 2003 David Bruce Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $40 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Subtle nose of cherry, dried cranberry and pencil shavings; ripe black cherry, cassis, raspberry, citrus peel and white pepper flavors; slightly alcoholic; long finish. ________________________________________ 2003 De Loach Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $18 Body: Medium-full Dryness: Dry Comments: Mushroom, black cherry, toasted pine nuts, rose petal and leather aromas; ripe black cherry, blackberry, plum, tobacco and loam flavors; supple tannins; mouthwatering acidity. ________________________________________ 2002 Deerfield Ranch Cohn Vineyard RRV Pinot Noir Price: $48 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Smells of vanilla and wild blackberry with hint of toast; similar on palate, plus baking spice, truffle and dark chocolate; rich and seductive; polished tannins. ________________________________________ 2003 Dutton Goldfield Dutton Ranch RRV Pinot Noir Price: $35 Body: Medium-full Dryness: Dry Comments: Nose of blueberry, black cherry, raspberry and pine; cranberry, dried cherry, citrus, vanilla and toast flavors; round on palate; silky tannins; nice balance. ________________________________________ 2002 Forchini Proprietor's Reserve RRV Pinot Noir Price: $22 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Cherry, herb, pine, soy sauce and oak on nose; flavors of juicy black cherry, cassis, licorice and black pepper; cranberry on finish; young - needs time for tannins to soften. ________________________________________ 2003 Fritz Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $30 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Very good. Herb and rose on nose, though toast and earth dominate; mushroom, soy sauce, black cherry, black tea and tobacco flavors; excellent acidity; long, fresh raspberry finish. ________________________________________ 2003 Gary Farrell Russian River Selection RRV Pinot Noir Price: $34 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Aromas of Bing cherry, truffle and vanilla with juicy blackberry, black plum, raspberry and licorice flavors with hints of spice; round and deeply flavored; lush tannins. ________________________________________ 2003 Gary Farrell Rochioli Vineyard RRV Pinot Noir Price: $60 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Excellent. Aromas of toasted marshmallow, pie crust, cherry and mushroom; root beer, black cherry, tart plum and vanilla flavors; pert acidity; light coating tannins. Low production. ________________________________________ 2003 Harvest Moon Vineyards & Winery RRV Pinot Noir Price: $18 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Ripe black cherry nose with hint of baking spice; palate starts with ripe strawberry and cherry pie filling; soft in the mouth until a tannic close. Low production. ________________________________________ 2003 J Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $28 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Aromas of cherry pie, ripe blackberry, boysenberry, tea leaf, earth and baking spice; black cherry and vanilla flavors with touches of citrus and smoked meat; round tannins. ________________________________________ 2003 Lost Canyon Saralee's Vineyard RRV Pinot Noir Price: $38 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Very good. Beautiful nose of black plum, black cherry, raspberry and rose; similar flavors; supple tannins, full, luscious, great balance. Low production. ________________________________________ 2003 Lynmar Quail Hill Vineyard RRV Pinot Noir Price: $45 Body: Full Dryness: Dry-semidry Comments: Strawberry compote, cherry, tar and dust aromas; similar flavors with jammy black and red fruit and black pepper; round tannins; hot finish. ________________________________________ 2003 Merry Edwards Russian River Valley Olivet Lane Pinot Noir Price: $54 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Excellent. Pretty Bing cherry, leather and spice nose with a hint of mint; black cherry, cranberry, mushroom and cherry cola flavors; polished and elegant. Low production. ________________________________________ 2002 Russian Hill Estate Vineyards RRV Pinot Noir Price: $30 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Very good. Mushroom, earth, soy sauce, black cherry and currant nose; supple texture, plush tannins; ripe black plum, cola and spice flavors; mouthwatering acidity. Low production. ________________________________________ 2003 Russian Hill Tara Vineyard RRV Pinot Noir Price: $42 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Excellent. Truffle, toast, herb and wet earth aromas with herb notes; rich, ripe cassis, black cherry, raspberry, black tea and cinnamon flavors; silky tannins; great balance. Low production. ________________________________________ 2003 Williams Selyem Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Price: $42 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Outstanding; the panel favorite. Exotic nose of blackberry, black cherry, herb and toast; boysenberry, raspberry, vanilla and licorice flavors; bright acidity; balanced. ________________________________________ 2003 Woodenhead Buena Tierra Vineyard RRV Pinot Noir Price: $46 Body: Full Dryness: Dry Comments: Very good. Rose, raspberry, pomegranate, blackberry, cassis, earth, mushroom, dried herb and white pepper aromas and flavors; tart acidity; Burgundian style. Low production. ________________________________________ Panelists: Lynne Bennett, staff writer/wine coordinator, The Chronicle; Linda Murphy, wine editor, The Chronicle; Rom Toulon, sommelier, Four Seasons Hotel, San Francisco; Oscar Val Verde, general manager, 2223 Restaurant & Bar, San Francisco. Wines listed are generally available but may not be in all stores. Start with local wine merchants, but also try larger stores and wineries. -- ------------------------------ * * Dr. James Lee Ellingson, Adjunct Professor jellings(a)me.umn.edu * * University of Minnesota, tel: 651/645-0753 fax 651 XXX XXXX * * Great Lakes Brewing News, 1569 Laurel Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104 *

20 years, 2 months

[wine] Eclectic Grapes at Lee/Melisa

by Jim L. Ellingson

Here's an update and another obscure Italian varietal. I haven't heard from many so my list is a guess. Lee Short/Melissa Kocher 740 Mississippi River Boulevard South Apartment 21-D St. Paul, MN 55116 651-698-3022 Directions. I 94 to Snelling (S) to Ford Parkway (East) to River Rd (N) to 740. I 94 to Hwy 55 to 46th St. Left, across river, curl around onto East River Rd, N. to 740. 494 to Hwy 5 to Edgecombe/Fairview OR Cleveland OR East River Rd. Lots of other options. >>> "Jim L. Ellingson" <jellings(a)me.umn.edu> 09/27/2005 5:38:04 PM >>> Greetings, We have (and we had) a standing invitation to do eclectic grapes and food to match at Lee and Melisa's place. Thursday at 6:30 (Bob's calling Dave T to check on the status of the great Chinese adventure.) Many of you have been there. I'll plan on tracking down an address by Thursday. It's the highrise apt building just north of Ford Parkway on East River Road. Lee Short. 14th floor? Focus is on lesser known grapes and food to match. Please coordinate the food w/ Lee/Melisa blackcat(a)pro-ns.net Lee/Melisa Bob Cheese?? Betsy Dave Ruth Jim Breads (Honey Wheat, Whole Wheat, Potato) ----- Forwarded message from The 30 Second Wine Advisor <wine(a)wineloverspage.com> ----- Authentication-Results: smtp-relay.enet.umn.edu from=wine(a)wineloverspage.com; sender-id=neutral; spf=neutral Date: Wed, 31 Aug 2005 14:01:55 -0400 (EDT) To: jellings(a)me.umn.edu Subject: 30SecWineAdvisor: Campi Flegrei Falanghina From: The 30 Second Wine Advisor <wine(a)wineloverspage.com> X-Sender: <wine(a)wineloverspage.com> X-Greylist: IP, sender and recipient auto-whitelisted, not delayed by milter-greylist-1.6 (smtp-relay.enet.umn.edu [128.101.142.227]); Wed, 31 Aug 2005 13:02:03 -0500 (CDT) X-Spam-Score: 0 () X-Scanned-By: MIMEDefang 2.51 on 128.101.142.227 THE 30 SECOND WINE ADVISOR, Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2005 ________________________________________________________________________ TODAY'S SPONSOR: * CALIFORNIA WINE CLUB Prices "Falling" During the Club's Autumn Sale! http://www.cawineclub.com?Partner_ID=winelovers ________________________________________________________________________ IN THIS ISSUE * CAMPI FLEGREI FALANGHINA A new arrival prompts a revisit to this favorite Southern Italian white variety. * TERRA DI LAVORO 2003 "VILLA CARAFA" CAMPI FLEGREI FALANGHINA ($14) Full-bodied but crisply acidic, a fine example of this appealing grape from the Neapolitan Amalfi Coast. * ADMINISTRIVIA Change E-mail address, frequency, format or unsubscribe. ________________________________________________________________________ CAMPI FLEGREI FALANGHINA Here's a favorite Southern Italian grape from a region so obscure that a number of wine-merchant Websites appear to confuse the place name with the producer's name. Let's parse this pretty but somewhat confusing label that adorns a stellar white from the scenic Amalfi Coast, where the stony volcanic soil of Vesuvius and its neighbors tumbles down to the deep blue sea. Taking the attractive label from the top: * FALANGHINA is the grape variety, one that's steeped in history, dating back at least 2,000 years to the Roman Empire. As noted when we last examined Falanghina in the April 6, 2005 Wine Advisor, folks in the region declare that this was the grape used to make Falernum, one of the most highly regarded wines of the Caesars' times. Could be, although it's worth noting that fanciers of the excellent regional grapes Greco di Tufo and Fiano di Avellino make similar claims. * CAMPI FLEGREI is the region (a "D.O.C." appellation under Italian wine law, "Phlegraean Fields" in English), lying along a stretch of the Amalfi Coast that extends along the Gulf of Naples from the sprawling edge of the city westward. It's one of three regions in Campania where Falanghina is made, the others being Sonnio and the island Procida in the Gulf. * VILLA CARAFA is the producer, a family-run operation near the village of Caserta in Campania. * The vintage, 2003, and the bottler and shipper, Cantine TERRA DI LAVORO ("Land of Work," an ancient nickname for the region), are provided only on the back label, along with the importer, the alcoholic content (13 percent) and, in the U.S., the mandatory Surgeon General's warning. It's a lot of information for a bottle of wine, but worth learning. The white grapes of Southern Italy are only recently gaining international attention - Jancis Robinson's grape books give Falanghina the shortest of shrift, and Hugh Johnson's Pocket Wine Book doesn't even give it a separate listing. But they're coming on fast, and if you like rich, structured, food-friendly whites, you'll follow my lead in snapping up any Falanghina you see. ________________________________________________________________________ TALK ABOUT WINE ONLINE If you'd like to ask a question or comment on today's topic (or any other wine-related subject), you'll find a round-table online discussion in our interactive Wine Lovers' Discussion Group, where you're always welcome to join in the conversations about wine. http://www.myspeakerscorner.com/forum/index.phtml?fn=1&tid=65748&mid=565235 If you prefer to comment privately, feel free to send me E-mail at wine(a)wineloverspage.com. I'll respond personally to the extent that time and volume permit. ________________________________________________________________________ PRINT OUT TODAY'S ARTICLE Here's a simply formatted copy of today's Wine Advisor, designed to be printed out for your scrapbook or file or downloaded to your PDA or other wireless device. http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor1/print050831.html ________________________________________________________________________ TERRA DI LAVORO 2003 "VILLA CARAFA" CAMPI FLEGREI FALANGHINA ($14) This clear, straw-color wine shows pretty glints of gold. Its appetizing aroma and flavor profiles are typical Falanghina, floral white fruit with complex hints of almonds and wool, full body held up well by structural acidity, all over a "stony" minerality that - perhaps mostly by the power of suggestion - evokes the volcanic soil of the scenic Amalfi Coast. Well balanced and clean, there's a shot of snappy acidity in the long finish. U.S. importer: North Berkeley Imports, Berkeley, Calif. (July 15, 2005) FOOD MATCH: Fine with seafood or "white meats," it was brilliant with an Italian-style dish crafted to match: Veal flank steak pounded thin and rolled around an aromatic filling of mushrooms and rich Italian tuna. VALUE: More than justifies its price point in the middle teens. WHEN TO DRINK: Meant for immediate enjoyment, it's drinking beautifully now, but its richness and acidic balance hint that it wouldn't suffer from a few years of careful cellaring. PRONUNCIATION: Falanghina = "FA-lan-GHEE-nah," with a hard "g" as in "geek." WEB LINK: The importer has an article about Terra di Lavoro in its November 2004 newsletter, which is archived online: http://www.northberkeleyimports.com/new_offerings/nov2004W.htm#carafa FIND THIS WINE ONLINE: North Berkeley's wines are available at fine wine stores in many parts of the U.S. and through online sales where the law permits. For information click the "Contact Us" link on the importer's Website, http://www.northberkeleyimports.com/ You'll also find vendor listings for Villa Carafa Falanghina at Wine- Searcher.com: http://www.wine-searcher.com/find/Carafa%2bFalanghina/-/-/USD/A?referring_s… ________________________________________________________________________ SUBSCRIBE: * WineLoversPage.com RSS Feed (free) http://www.wineloverspage.com/rss/ * 30 Second Wine Advisor, daily or weekly (free) http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor/index.shtml * Wine Advisor FoodLetter, Thursdays (free) http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor/foodletter.shtml * Wine Advisor Premium Edition, alternate Tuesdays ($24/year) http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor/premium.phtml ARCHIVES: For all past editions: http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor1/thelist.shtml CONTACT US E-mail: wine(a)wineloverspage.com SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES: For information, E-mail wine(a)wineloverspage.com ________________________________________________________________________ ADMINISTRIVIA To subscribe or unsubscribe from The 30 Second Wine Advisor, change your E-mail address, switch from weekly to daily distribution, or for any other administrative matters, click to http://www.wineloverspage.com/admin.php?id=20970&cs=7d1109b668af1f87d36d12e… We welcome feedback, suggestions, and ideas for future columns. We do not use this list for any other purpose and will never give or sell your name or E-mail to anyone. All the wine-tasting reports posted here are consumer-oriented. In order to maintain objectivity and avoid conflicts of interest, I purchase all the wines I rate at my own expense in retail stores and accept no samples, gifts or other gratuities from the wine industry. Wednesday, August 31, 2005 Copyright 2005 by Robin Garr. All rights reserved. ----- End forwarded message ----- -- ------------------------------ * * Dr. James Lee Ellingson, Adjunct Professor jellings(a)me.umn.edu * * University of Minnesota, tel: 651/645-0753 fax 651 XXX XXXX * * Great Lakes Brewing News, 1569 Laurel Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104 *

20 years, 2 months

[wine] Re: Eclectic Grapes and Food to Match at Lee and Melisa's

by Betsy Kremser

Lee Short/Melissa Kocher 740 Mississippi River Boulevard South Apartment 21-D St. Paul, MN 55116 651-698-3022 >>> "Jim L. Ellingson" <jellings(a)me.umn.edu> 09/27/2005 5:38:04 PM >>> Greetings, We have (and we had) a standing invitation to do eclectic grapes and food to match at Lee and Melisa's place. Thursday at 6:30 (Bob's calling Dave T to check on the status of the great Chinese adventure.) Many of you have been there. I'll plan on tracking down an address by Thursday. It's the highrise apt building just north of Ford Parkway on East River Road. Lee Short. 14th floor? Focus is on lesser known grapes and food to match. Please coordinate the food w/ Lee/Melisa blackcat(a)pro-ns.net Lee/Melisa Bob Cheese?? Betsy Dave Ruth Jim Breads Cheers, Jim ----- Forwarded message from The 30 Second Wine Advisor <wine(a)wineloverspage.com> ----- Authentication-Results: smtp-relay.enet.umn.edu from=wine(a)wineloverspage.com; sender-id=neutral; spf=neutral Date: Mon, 19 Sep 2005 17:12:35 -0400 (EDT) To: jellings(a)me.umn.edu Subject: 30SecWineAdvisor: Offbeat grapes and wines - Ruché From: The 30 Second Wine Advisor <wine(a)wineloverspage.com> THE 30 SECOND WINE ADVISOR, Monday, Sept. 19, 2005 ________________________________________________________________________ TODAY'S SPONSORS * CHÂTEAU PALMER Harvest begins this week at Château Palmer. http://blog.chateau-palmer.com * CALIFORNIA WINE CLUB Biggest Sale Event of the Year is Going on Now! http://www.cawineclub.com?Partner_ID=winelovers ________________________________________________________________________ IN THIS ISSUE * WINE ADVISOR PREMIUM EDITION Subscribe now to receive tomorrow's annual high-end new releases tasting report. * OFFBEAT GRAPES AND WINES - RUCHÉ An unusual Italian red from Randall Grahm's "Il Circo" collection offers a rare taste of the Ruché grape. * BONNY DOON 2003 "IL CIRCO" RUCHÉ DI CASTAGNOLE MONFERRATO ($18.99) A blend of red fruit and outrageously spicy character signal this unusual Northern Italian variety. * CHÂTEAU PALMER Harvest begins this week at Château Palmer. * CALIFORNIA WINE CLUB Biggest Sale Event of the Year is Going on Now! * THIS WEEK ON WINELOVERSPAGE.COM Virtual visits to Zaca Mesa in Santa Barbara and Chateau de Malle in Sauternes, and a quick poll on how many countries are in your wine collection. * LAST WEEK'S WINE ADVISOR INDEX The Wine Advisor archives. * ADMINISTRIVIA Change E-mail address, frequency, format or unsubscribe. ________________________________________________________________________ WINE ADVISOR'S PREMIUM EDITION: HIGH-END NEW RELEASES REPORT A very special edition of the Wine Advisor Premium Edition will go out to subscribers tomorrow: My annual tasting report from a regional distributor's annual new-release tasting will deliver my comments on more than 40 top-end wines well above the Wine Advisor's usual spending territory, including such sought-after goodies as 2000 Grange, 2002 Clos de Tart, Flora Springs 2001 Trilogy, 2001 Chateau Beychevelle, Chateau de Beaucastel 2001 Chateaneuf-du-Pape, and many more. The Wine Advisor Premium Edition is my only fee-based publication. A subscription is just $24 for a full year of biweekly Premium E-mail bulletins, which focus on finding the best values among wines in more upscale price ranges. This modest charge, only $1 per issue and less than the price of a single bottle of high-end wine, will more than pay for itself in savings over the course of a year's quality-and-value recommendations ... and it's a great way to express your tangible support for everything we do here at WineLoversPage.com. To subscribe now, click http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor/premium.phtml Free sample: Read last year's high-end tasting. http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor1/premsample1.html ________________________________________________________________________ OFFBEAT GRAPES AND WINES - RUCHÉ Come join me on another our occasional excursions down the wine roads less taken, as we enjoy a quick look at Ruché ("Roo-kay"), an Italian red grape so obscure that it's only grown in a few small villages in the Castagnole Monferrato hills northeast of Asti in Piemonte. Long available only to tourists visiting the area, Ruché has started turning up occasionally in the world market, especially after Ruché di Castagnole Monferrato was legally designated a D.O.C. under Italian wine law a few years ago. It's such a rustic oddity, indeed, that the Italian Trade Commission's informative ItalianMade.com Website declares that almost nothing is known about the grape's history, which was never written down but exists only as an oral tradition. Even the name of the grape is under debate. I've read that it comes from a dialect word for "rock," but this may reflect confusion with the French Roche. ItalianMade.com speculates that the Piemontese name boasts of the vine's resistance to roncet, a local term for "a degenerative infection of viral origin to which the variety is more resistant than others cultivated in the district, particularly Barbera and Grignolino." Whatever it means, it makes a wine with a memorable aroma and flavor profile that offers a significant change of pace from the usual suspects. Put Ruché in your glass, and you certainly won't mistake it for Merlot. Pinot Noir, maybe. I've reported previously on an excellent example from the importer John Given, Cantine Sant'Agata "Na Vita" Ruché di Castagnole Monferrato. Today's tasting features an import from the colorfully labeled "Il Circo" line of unusual Italian varieties from Bonny Doon Vineyards. ________________________________________________________________________ TALK ABOUT WINE ONLINE If you'd like to ask a question or comment on today's topic (or any other wine-related subject), you'll find a round-table online discussion in our interactive Wine Lovers' Discussion Group, where you're always welcome to join in the conversations about wine. http://www.myspeakerscorner.com/forum/index.phtml?fn=1&tid=66471&mid=571808 If you prefer to comment privately, feel free to send me E-mail at wine(a)wineloverspage.com. I'll respond personally to the extent that time and volume permit. ________________________________________________________________________ PRINT OUT TODAY'S ARTICLE Here's a simply formatted copy of today's Wine Advisor, designed to be printed out for your scrapbook or file or downloaded to your PDA or other wireless device. http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor1/print050919.html ________________________________________________________________________ BONNY DOON 2003 "IL CIRCO" RUCHÉ DI CASTAGNOLE MONFERRATO ($18.99) This is a very dark purple wine with a bright reddish-violet edge. Luscious aromas offer a benchmark example of Ruché with a heady, rosy floral scent accented with warm brown spice. Rich and full in flavor, tart red fruit and spice, mouth-filling and plushy on first impression, but a firm core of acidity carries it into a clean, medium-long finish, with an unusual, intriguing hint of caraway seed and light tannic bitterness lingering. U.S. importer: Bonny Doon Vineyard, Santa Cruz, Calif. (July 16, 2005) FOOD MATCH: It went very well with a light summer dinner of spaghetti with salsa cruda, hot pasta tossed with chopped fresh garden tomatoes, sweet onions, diced fresh whole-milk mozzarella and basil. VALUE: I'd like to see it closer to the middle teens, but considering the strength of the Euro and the wine's artisanal status and flavor interest, it's certainly justifiable at this price, if only to add Ruché to your life list. WHEN TO DRINK: Ruché is a wine made to drink young and fresh, and it will lose flavor interest as its fruit fades with time. It should be safe to drink it through the next year or so, though. PRONUNCIATION: "Ruché" = "Roo-kay" "Il Circo" = "Eel CHEER-coe" "Castagnole Monferrato" = "Cahs-tahn-YO-lay Mawn-fehr-RAH-toe" WEB LINK: The Bonny Doon Website has a page about the 2003 Il Circo Ruché in its "Eurodoon" section, http://www.bonnydoonvineyard.com/wine/view/91 FIND THIS WINE ONLINE: Wine-Searcher.com shows limited vendors for Il Circo Ruché, but it should be available from the Bonny Doon Website or wherever Bonny Doon wines are sold in the U.S., Canada and Europe: http://www.wine-searcher.com/find/Circo%2bRuche/-/-/USD/A?referring_site=WLP ________________________________________________________________________ HARVEST BEGINS THIS WEEK AT CHÂTEAU PALMER Want to follow the harvest of 2005 with a close-up virtual visit to one of the great properties of Bordeaux? Château Palmer has launched its new blog-like journal, "The Daily Palmer," just in time to provide daily updates on the latest harvest information: http://blog.chateau-palmer.com What's more, Château Palmer's main site is now online with a complete redesign. The stylish new site is easier to read, and it has expanded its most popular features, assuring quick access to tasting notes, online reservations for Château visits, and information about finding Château Palmer and Alter Ego wines in auctions, restaurants and wine stores around the world. There's way too much to see in a single visit. Click now to start browsing: http://www.chateau-palmer.com ________________________________________________________________________ CALIFORNIA WINE CLUB: BIGGEST SALE EVENT OF THE YEAR IS GOING ON NOW! The Prices Falling Autumn Wine Sale, the California Wine Club's biggest Sale Event of the year, is now under way. Over 100 award-winning wines discounted at up to 58 percent. Premier Club wines are just $99/Case! International Selections and even the highly reviewed, rare wines in the upper level club, Signature Series, are also available at incredible savings. Stock your cellar today! 1-800-77-4443 or http://www.cawineclub.com?Partner_ID=winelovers ________________________________________________________________________ THIS WEEK ON WINELOVERSPAGE.COM Here are links to some of our recently published articles that I think you'll enjoy: * SCHAEFER ON WINE: Zaca Mesa pursues the elegant course Zaca Mesa Winery, one of the oldest wineries in Santa Barbara County, has been through some changes over the years. It served as a de facto Wine University to many former employees, now graduates, who are well known in the wine world. But in recent times there is a renewed focus on what Zaca Mesa does best. http://www.wineloverspage.com/schaefer/zacamesa.phtml * REPORTS FROM OUR READERS: A visit to Château de Malle For most wine lovers, "Sauternes" equals "Yquem." But of course the very traditional areas of Sauternes and Barsac includes other estates. While covering the giant VinExpo in Bordeaux this summer, WineLoversPage.com correspondent Evelyne Lejeune-Resnick, a Parisian wine lover, visited with Nancy de Bournazel, owner of the magnificent Château de Malle estate. http://www.wineloverspage.com/reports/malle.phtml * WINE LOVERS' DISCUSSION GROUP: How many countries are represented in your cellar? If you've been hesitant to participate in our online forum's interactive discussions, here's an exceptionally easy way to make your inaugural post: It only takes a moment to participate in this simple, poll-style discussion and compare the number of different countries represented in your wine collection (large or small, it doesn't matter) with those of other wine lovers around the world. Click this link and join the fun! http://www.myspeakerscorner.com/forum/index.phtml?fn=1&tid=66377&mid=571162 ________________________________________________________________________ LAST WEEK'S WINE ADVISOR INDEX The Wine Advisor's daily edition is usually distributed on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays (and, for those who subscribe, the FoodLetter on Thursdays). Here's the index to last week's columns: * Another angle on 2003 - Beaujolais (Sept. 16, 2005) http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor1/tswa050916.phtml * Trade tasting (Sept. 14, 2005) http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor1/tswa050914.phtml * Oak or noak? (Sept. 12, 2005) http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor1/tswa050912.phtml * Complete 30 Second Wine Advisor archive: http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor1/thelist.shtml * Wine Advisor FoodLetter: Butter (Sept. 15, 2005) http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor1/tsfl050915.phtml * Wine Advisor Foodletter archive: http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor1/foodlist.phtml ________________________________________________________________________ SUBSCRIBE: * WineLoversPage.com RSS Feed (free) http://www.wineloverspage.com/rss/ * 30 Second Wine Advisor, daily or weekly (free) http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor/index.shtml * Wine Advisor FoodLetter, Thursdays (free) http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor/foodletter.shtml * Wine Advisor Premium Edition, alternate Tuesdays ($24/year) http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor/premium.phtml ARCHIVES: For all past editions: http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor1/thelist.shtml CONTACT US E-mail: wine(a)wineloverspage.com SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES: For information, E-mail wine(a)wineloverspage.com ________________________________________________________________________ ADMINISTRIVIA To subscribe or unsubscribe from The 30 Second Wine Advisor, change your E-mail address, switch from weekly to daily distribution, or for any other administrative matters, click to http://www.wineloverspage.com/admin.php?id=20970&cs=7d1109b668af1f87d36d12e… We welcome feedback, suggestions, and ideas for future columns. We do not use this list for any other purpose and will never give or sell your name or E-mail to anyone. All the wine-tasting reports posted here are consumer-oriented. In order to maintain objectivity and avoid conflicts of interest, I purchase all the wines I rate at my own expense in retail stores and accept no samples, gifts or other gratuities from the wine industry. Monday, September 19, 2005 Copyright 2005 by Robin Garr. All rights reserved. ----- End forwarded message ----- -- ------------------------------ * * Dr. James Lee Ellingson, Adjunct Professor jellings(a)me.umn.edu * * University of Minnesota, tel: 651/645-0753 fax 651 XXX XXXX * * Great Lakes Brewing News, 1569 Laurel Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104 *

20 years, 2 months

[wine] Eclectic Grapes and Food to Match at Lee and Melisa's

by Jim L. Ellingson

Greetings, We have (and we had) a standing invitation to do eclectic grapes and food to match at Lee and Melisa's place. Thursday at 6:30 (Bob's calling Dave T to check on the status of the great Chinese adventure.) Many of you have been there. I'll plan on tracking down an address by Thursday. It's the highrise apt building just north of Ford Parkway on East River Road. Lee Short. 14th floor? Focus is on lesser known grapes and food to match. Please coordinate the food w/ Lee/Melisa blackcat(a)pro-ns.net Lee/Melisa Bob Cheese?? Betsy Dave Ruth Jim Breads Cheers, Jim ----- Forwarded message from The 30 Second Wine Advisor <wine(a)wineloverspage.com> ----- Authentication-Results: smtp-relay.enet.umn.edu from=wine(a)wineloverspage.com; sender-id=neutral; spf=neutral Date: Mon, 19 Sep 2005 17:12:35 -0400 (EDT) To: jellings(a)me.umn.edu Subject: 30SecWineAdvisor: Offbeat grapes and wines - Ruch� From: The 30 Second Wine Advisor <wine(a)wineloverspage.com> THE 30 SECOND WINE ADVISOR, Monday, Sept. 19, 2005 ________________________________________________________________________ TODAY'S SPONSORS * CH�TEAU PALMER Harvest begins this week at Ch�teau Palmer. http://blog.chateau-palmer.com * CALIFORNIA WINE CLUB Biggest Sale Event of the Year is Going on Now! http://www.cawineclub.com?Partner_ID=winelovers ________________________________________________________________________ IN THIS ISSUE * WINE ADVISOR PREMIUM EDITION Subscribe now to receive tomorrow's annual high-end new releases tasting report. * OFFBEAT GRAPES AND WINES - RUCH� An unusual Italian red from Randall Grahm's "Il Circo" collection offers a rare taste of the Ruch� grape. * BONNY DOON 2003 "IL CIRCO" RUCH� DI CASTAGNOLE MONFERRATO ($18.99) A blend of red fruit and outrageously spicy character signal this unusual Northern Italian variety. * CH�TEAU PALMER Harvest begins this week at Ch�teau Palmer. * CALIFORNIA WINE CLUB Biggest Sale Event of the Year is Going on Now! * THIS WEEK ON WINELOVERSPAGE.COM Virtual visits to Zaca Mesa in Santa Barbara and Chateau de Malle in Sauternes, and a quick poll on how many countries are in your wine collection. * LAST WEEK'S WINE ADVISOR INDEX The Wine Advisor archives. * ADMINISTRIVIA Change E-mail address, frequency, format or unsubscribe. ________________________________________________________________________ WINE ADVISOR'S PREMIUM EDITION: HIGH-END NEW RELEASES REPORT A very special edition of the Wine Advisor Premium Edition will go out to subscribers tomorrow: My annual tasting report from a regional distributor's annual new-release tasting will deliver my comments on more than 40 top-end wines well above the Wine Advisor's usual spending territory, including such sought-after goodies as 2000 Grange, 2002 Clos de Tart, Flora Springs 2001 Trilogy, 2001 Chateau Beychevelle, Chateau de Beaucastel 2001 Chateaneuf-du-Pape, and many more. The Wine Advisor Premium Edition is my only fee-based publication. A subscription is just $24 for a full year of biweekly Premium E-mail bulletins, which focus on finding the best values among wines in more upscale price ranges. This modest charge, only $1 per issue and less than the price of a single bottle of high-end wine, will more than pay for itself in savings over the course of a year's quality-and-value recommendations ... and it's a great way to express your tangible support for everything we do here at WineLoversPage.com. To subscribe now, click http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor/premium.phtml Free sample: Read last year's high-end tasting. http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor1/premsample1.html ________________________________________________________________________ OFFBEAT GRAPES AND WINES - RUCH� Come join me on another our occasional excursions down the wine roads less taken, as we enjoy a quick look at Ruch� ("Roo-kay"), an Italian red grape so obscure that it's only grown in a few small villages in the Castagnole Monferrato hills northeast of Asti in Piemonte. Long available only to tourists visiting the area, Ruch� has started turning up occasionally in the world market, especially after Ruch� di Castagnole Monferrato was legally designated a D.O.C. under Italian wine law a few years ago. It's such a rustic oddity, indeed, that the Italian Trade Commission's informative ItalianMade.com Website declares that almost nothing is known about the grape's history, which was never written down but exists only as an oral tradition. Even the name of the grape is under debate. I've read that it comes from a dialect word for "rock," but this may reflect confusion with the French Roche. ItalianMade.com speculates that the Piemontese name boasts of the vine's resistance to roncet, a local term for "a degenerative infection of viral origin to which the variety is more resistant than others cultivated in the district, particularly Barbera and Grignolino." Whatever it means, it makes a wine with a memorable aroma and flavor profile that offers a significant change of pace from the usual suspects. Put Ruch� in your glass, and you certainly won't mistake it for Merlot. Pinot Noir, maybe. I've reported previously on an excellent example from the importer John Given, Cantine Sant'Agata "Na Vita" Ruch� di Castagnole Monferrato. Today's tasting features an import from the colorfully labeled "Il Circo" line of unusual Italian varieties from Bonny Doon Vineyards. ________________________________________________________________________ TALK ABOUT WINE ONLINE If you'd like to ask a question or comment on today's topic (or any other wine-related subject), you'll find a round-table online discussion in our interactive Wine Lovers' Discussion Group, where you're always welcome to join in the conversations about wine. http://www.myspeakerscorner.com/forum/index.phtml?fn=1&tid=66471&mid=571808 If you prefer to comment privately, feel free to send me E-mail at wine(a)wineloverspage.com. I'll respond personally to the extent that time and volume permit. ________________________________________________________________________ PRINT OUT TODAY'S ARTICLE Here's a simply formatted copy of today's Wine Advisor, designed to be printed out for your scrapbook or file or downloaded to your PDA or other wireless device. http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor1/print050919.html ________________________________________________________________________ BONNY DOON 2003 "IL CIRCO" RUCH� DI CASTAGNOLE MONFERRATO ($18.99) This is a very dark purple wine with a bright reddish-violet edge. Luscious aromas offer a benchmark example of Ruch� with a heady, rosy floral scent accented with warm brown spice. Rich and full in flavor, tart red fruit and spice, mouth-filling and plushy on first impression, but a firm core of acidity carries it into a clean, medium-long finish, with an unusual, intriguing hint of caraway seed and light tannic bitterness lingering. U.S. importer: Bonny Doon Vineyard, Santa Cruz, Calif. (July 16, 2005) FOOD MATCH: It went very well with a light summer dinner of spaghetti with salsa cruda, hot pasta tossed with chopped fresh garden tomatoes, sweet onions, diced fresh whole-milk mozzarella and basil. VALUE: I'd like to see it closer to the middle teens, but considering the strength of the Euro and the wine's artisanal status and flavor interest, it's certainly justifiable at this price, if only to add Ruch� to your life list. WHEN TO DRINK: Ruch� is a wine made to drink young and fresh, and it will lose flavor interest as its fruit fades with time. It should be safe to drink it through the next year or so, though. PRONUNCIATION: "Ruch�" = "Roo-kay" "Il Circo" = "Eel CHEER-coe" "Castagnole Monferrato" = "Cahs-tahn-YO-lay Mawn-fehr-RAH-toe" WEB LINK: The Bonny Doon Website has a page about the 2003 Il Circo Ruch� in its "Eurodoon" section, http://www.bonnydoonvineyard.com/wine/view/91 FIND THIS WINE ONLINE: Wine-Searcher.com shows limited vendors for Il Circo Ruch�, but it should be available from the Bonny Doon Website or wherever Bonny Doon wines are sold in the U.S., Canada and Europe: http://www.wine-searcher.com/find/Circo%2bRuche/-/-/USD/A?referring_site=WLP ________________________________________________________________________ HARVEST BEGINS THIS WEEK AT CH�TEAU PALMER Want to follow the harvest of 2005 with a close-up virtual visit to one of the great properties of Bordeaux? Ch�teau Palmer has launched its new blog-like journal, "The Daily Palmer," just in time to provide daily updates on the latest harvest information: http://blog.chateau-palmer.com What's more, Ch�teau Palmer's main site is now online with a complete redesign. The stylish new site is easier to read, and it has expanded its most popular features, assuring quick access to tasting notes, online reservations for Ch�teau visits, and information about finding Ch�teau Palmer and Alter Ego wines in auctions, restaurants and wine stores around the world. There's way too much to see in a single visit. Click now to start browsing: http://www.chateau-palmer.com ________________________________________________________________________ CALIFORNIA WINE CLUB: BIGGEST SALE EVENT OF THE YEAR IS GOING ON NOW! The Prices Falling Autumn Wine Sale, the California Wine Club's biggest Sale Event of the year, is now under way. Over 100 award-winning wines discounted at up to 58 percent. Premier Club wines are just $99/Case! International Selections and even the highly reviewed, rare wines in the upper level club, Signature Series, are also available at incredible savings. Stock your cellar today! 1-800-77-4443 or http://www.cawineclub.com?Partner_ID=winelovers ________________________________________________________________________ THIS WEEK ON WINELOVERSPAGE.COM Here are links to some of our recently published articles that I think you'll enjoy: * SCHAEFER ON WINE: Zaca Mesa pursues the elegant course Zaca Mesa Winery, one of the oldest wineries in Santa Barbara County, has been through some changes over the years. It served as a de facto Wine University to many former employees, now graduates, who are well known in the wine world. But in recent times there is a renewed focus on what Zaca Mesa does best. http://www.wineloverspage.com/schaefer/zacamesa.phtml * REPORTS FROM OUR READERS: A visit to Ch�teau de Malle For most wine lovers, "Sauternes" equals "Yquem." But of course the very traditional areas of Sauternes and Barsac includes other estates. While covering the giant VinExpo in Bordeaux this summer, WineLoversPage.com correspondent Evelyne Lejeune-Resnick, a Parisian wine lover, visited with Nancy de Bournazel, owner of the magnificent Ch�teau de Malle estate. http://www.wineloverspage.com/reports/malle.phtml * WINE LOVERS' DISCUSSION GROUP: How many countries are represented in your cellar? If you've been hesitant to participate in our online forum's interactive discussions, here's an exceptionally easy way to make your inaugural post: It only takes a moment to participate in this simple, poll-style discussion and compare the number of different countries represented in your wine collection (large or small, it doesn't matter) with those of other wine lovers around the world. Click this link and join the fun! http://www.myspeakerscorner.com/forum/index.phtml?fn=1&tid=66377&mid=571162 ________________________________________________________________________ LAST WEEK'S WINE ADVISOR INDEX The Wine Advisor's daily edition is usually distributed on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays (and, for those who subscribe, the FoodLetter on Thursdays). Here's the index to last week's columns: * Another angle on 2003 - Beaujolais (Sept. 16, 2005) http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor1/tswa050916.phtml * Trade tasting (Sept. 14, 2005) http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor1/tswa050914.phtml * Oak or noak? (Sept. 12, 2005) http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor1/tswa050912.phtml * Complete 30 Second Wine Advisor archive: http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor1/thelist.shtml * Wine Advisor FoodLetter: Butter (Sept. 15, 2005) http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor1/tsfl050915.phtml * Wine Advisor Foodletter archive: http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor1/foodlist.phtml ________________________________________________________________________ SUBSCRIBE: * WineLoversPage.com RSS Feed (free) http://www.wineloverspage.com/rss/ * 30 Second Wine Advisor, daily or weekly (free) http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor/index.shtml * Wine Advisor FoodLetter, Thursdays (free) http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor/foodletter.shtml * Wine Advisor Premium Edition, alternate Tuesdays ($24/year) http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor/premium.phtml ARCHIVES: For all past editions: http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor1/thelist.shtml CONTACT US E-mail: wine(a)wineloverspage.com SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES: For information, E-mail wine(a)wineloverspage.com ________________________________________________________________________ ADMINISTRIVIA To subscribe or unsubscribe from The 30 Second Wine Advisor, change your E-mail address, switch from weekly to daily distribution, or for any other administrative matters, click to http://www.wineloverspage.com/admin.php?id=20970&cs=7d1109b668af1f87d36d12e… We welcome feedback, suggestions, and ideas for future columns. We do not use this list for any other purpose and will never give or sell your name or E-mail to anyone. All the wine-tasting reports posted here are consumer-oriented. In order to maintain objectivity and avoid conflicts of interest, I purchase all the wines I rate at my own expense in retail stores and accept no samples, gifts or other gratuities from the wine industry. Monday, September 19, 2005 Copyright 2005 by Robin Garr. All rights reserved. ----- End forwarded message ----- -- ------------------------------ * * Dr. James Lee Ellingson, Adjunct Professor jellings(a)me.umn.edu * * University of Minnesota, tel: 651/645-0753 fax 651 XXX XXXX * * Great Lakes Brewing News, 1569 Laurel Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104 *

20 years, 2 months

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