Newsletter

November, 2000

• Wines of the Month
• New Arrivals
• Past Tasting Updates
• Travel Update
• "Nouveau" Thanksgiving Wine Tips
• Archives

WINES OF THE MONTH

1999 Andrew Murray Enchante, $20.99-Seemingly, a couple California people have figured it out...NO MORE CHARDONNAY. This young fellow, wise beyond his years, knows that Rhone varietals are California's hope and potential salvation. Hey, it's a little bit warmer and drier in California than south of Dijon or west of Libourne. So, this is a pretty complex blend of Marsanne, Rousanne and Viognier. Give it a shot if you have futurist leanings or are just disgusted by it all.

1999 Pigeoulet, Vaucluse, Brunier, $12.99-A creation of the Bruniers of Vieux Telegraphe renown in Chateauneuf-du-Pape. This has loads of red fruit and backbone provided by the tannin. It has that ineffable aroma of what the confused French and confused American wine writers call "garrigue." Try it with turkey if you want to get out of the Pinot Noir/Beaujolais rut on Thanksgiving.

 

NEW ARRIVALS

v 1998 Mercurey 1er Cru, Clos des Combins, L. Menand, $19.99-Who said you can't find a good Burgundy for less than $20.00? This is silky and sleek. It's like a Prada skirt-seductive, not slutty like a Versace skirt. Oh, we'd take either, forget about the wine.

v 1997 Barrington Estate Chardonnay, Regularly $16.99/Sale $12.99-You'd never guess this to be Australian. It has too much acidity and not enough oak chips in a nylon bag. It's like a Granny Smith apple in a glass. Sounds trite, but it's a most agreeable food wine. Finding the food becomes the next problem.

v 1998 Rancho Zabaco Zinfandel $9.99-One of the hits of last year's Thanksgiving feeding frenzy. It's a simple, fruit-forward quaffer. It haughtily defies further description. Thank God.

v 1998 Wyndham Estate Shiraz, Bin 555, $9.99-A ripping nice value in an Australian Shiraz. Why? Because it actually looks, smells and tastes like Shiraz. Few, if any, sub $10 bottles of Shiraz can say the same.

v Jacques Selosses 1er Cru Champagne, Regularly $49.99/Sale $42.99-A rare bird, most of which is consumed at Alain Ducasse's three revered restaurants. Precise and elegant. Drink with the French starlet, Virginie Ledoyen, or the Waste Management guy next time he swings by for lunch.

v 1999 Veramonte Cabernet Sauvignon, $9.99/Sale $8.99-As you know, we've never been much for Chilean products. This has the complexity and personality that the other production line wines lack.

 

PAST TASTING UPDATES

Sauvignon Blanc and Goat Cheese Tasting

Though De Gaulle reportedly said that a country of 350 cheeses can't be ruled, some have argued that France does not really have 350 cheeses, just many of the same cheeses with different names. The French name them often after the village, like Colorado Springs' cheese, Manitou Springs' cheese, etc. Anyway, we had clearly different goat cheeses here, from soft to aged. Perhaps the Pico (Picodon, AOC) was the favorite cheese. At least, there was none left. The most interesting was the last aged cheese, the Queso de Vake, which we think comes from the Basque country of Spain because it has a "k" in its name, though lacking the requisite Basque "z."

The wines were equally diverse. The tricky ringer, 1998 Chateau d'Eperie Savennieres ($21.99), made from Chenin Blanc, was sublime. The 1999 Stonegate Sauvignon Blanc ($14.49/Sale $13.49) with a gasp of oak had everyone confused. But the 1999 Sancerre by Merlin et Cherrier ($17.99) satisfied all. Perhaps because it wasn't extreme in any direction. A 1998 Chatelain Pouilly-Fume ($19.99) thrilled the traditionalists.

Syrah/Shiraz Tasting
by Bob Elliot

The Syrah/Shiraz tasting held at the Craftwood Inn was also a big success. The tasting was done blind and in each of the three flights we tasted three wines: one from America, one from Australia and one from France. The thing I enjoyed most about this tasting (besides the wine) was the level of good-natured banter between guests. Thankfully we were not discussing politics. It became quite competitive as the tasting progressed with loud cheers emanating from the group of "winners" as the wines were unveiled. By the third flight the group was getting more proficient at detecting the often subtle differences in the wines from the different regions. A great time was had by all and the wines, as you can imagine, paired quite well with the rustic appetizers provided by the Craftwood. Speaking of good pairings, you might consider having a Syrah with your holiday dinners.

Here are a few of the favorites from the evening:

1997 Hogue Barrel Select, Syrah, $15.49-Washington State. A light syrah with good acidity and a delicate raspberry and clove spiciness. Try it with spicy Asian dishes or duck with a delicate orange sauce.

1997 Chateau de Lascaux, $ 14.99-A Blend of 70% Syrah and 30% Grenache from the Languedoc region in France. This wine had a definite earthiness when first poured-a quality that you love or hate. One gentleman was wise enough to leave a small amount in his glass. Going back to it after about 20 minutes transformed it into a smooth wine with a deep fruit character.

1998 Taltarni, Shiraz, $14.99-This was the best seller of the tasting. From the state of Victoria in Australia, this wine exhibits the blackberry and black pepper spice of a cooler climate Shiraz. Made in a French style in the new world, it was more difficult to pick out the country in our blind tasting…pretty tricky aren't we?

v 1997 Voss, Shiraz $24.99,\ Napa Valley-Owned by Australian Robert Hill, the wine is made in a new world style with a combination of Australian and California winemaking talents. The wine is bursting with aromas of blackberries, cherries and white pepper. This is a full bodied and rich wine that drinks well now but will gain even more complexity after 5-7 years of careful cellaring. Buy now, though, as only 700 cases were made.

 

TRAVEL UPDATE

By Jim Little

A fine time was had by all when Peggy and I recently escorted twenty wine aficionados to the Santa Barbara/Paso Robles area of California. This was the fourth wine trip we've hosted for the Colorado Springs Dance Theatre, as an extension of the wine festival that Coaltrain coordinates in the spring of each year. This time, our travels to California raised over $4,000 for the Dance Theatre. We think it's quite an accomplishment when you consider what a great time we all had.

The trip started out in Santa Inez with a winemaker dinner with Bob Lindquist of Qupe Wine Cellars. What an evening! Bob poured some great Rhone style wines from Qupe along with wines of Au Bon Climate. The highlight of the evening was the 1994 Bien Nacido Syrah from Qupe. It showed us all that Syrah from this region can age and mature beautifully.

The next day we traveled through the Santa Inez area touring different wineries, including Byron (where we had a great tour of the vineyards with Ken Brown who founded Byron fifteen years ago and is still the winemaker), Foxen (what a cool tasting room, housed in the ranch's original blacksmith shop by the side of the road) and Andrew Murray where we drove three miles up their private drive to enjoy a spectacular lunch on the patio. We found the wines of Andrew Murray Vineyards to be excellent, so good in fact, that we invited him to join Bob Lindquist (Qupe) and Randall Graham (Bonny Doon) at next year's wine festival to benefit the Dance Theatre. His Enchante, a blend of white Rhone varietals, is one of our Wines of the Month.

The final stop of the day had us at Fess Parker's winery. Quite wined out, a few of us finished off the afternoon enjoying their Chardonnays, Pinot Noirs, and their always delicious Syrahs.

Friday we traveled up to the Paso Robles area, enjoying wines along the way at the Laetitia Winery and having a fun lunch overlooking the Pacific Ocean in Morrow Bay. Wild Horse Vineyards hosted us for the afternoon and even put a few hearty souls to work in the winery (Peggy, in hip waders, stomping grapes was quite a site to behold).

Our final day was Saturday and what a day it was! We started out bright, and early at Bonnie Doon tasting a whole array of Randall Graham's wines. For those not familiar with Randall, suffice it to say that he is one of the most noted and eclectic wine makers in the world. The group fell in love with his wines, the stories behind the wines and the idea that Randall Graham will be one of the featured winemakers at this years wine festival. WOW!! The trip concluded with a fabulous dinner in the wine caves at Eberle Winery, hosted by Gary Eberle. At the end of this article, Peggy reviews some of our favorites, including Eberle's 1995 Reserve Cabernet which was outstanding. If any of you are interested in future trips with Coaltrain, please be sure and let us know.

Laetitia Estate Pinot Blanc 1998 $16.99-Pinot Blanc can often be rather non-descript but this one offers pretty pear and melon flavors with a smooth, lingering finish. Half of the blend went through malolactic fermentation and was aged in oak giving the final wine a rounder and slightly richer quality than most Pinot Blancs. Try this instead of your usual Chardonnay for a pleasant change of pace.

Wild Horse Malvasia Bianco 1999 $14.99-To our surprise, Wild Horse, which we generally only think of for Pinot Noir and Cabernet makes thirty different types of wine. This is one of their lesser-known white varietals, Malvasia Bianco, which is one of the oldest grape varietals in the world (the Greeks grew it and took vines to Italy). Anyway, we really like this wine. The bouquet is very aromatic, quite similar to gewürztraminer. It's crisp and dry with good acidity. We drank it with lime marinated Mahi Mahi and sautéed shrimp in garlic red wine sauce and it held up well to the spiciness. A great find!

Fess Parker Syrah 1998 $16.49-Consistently a great value! Blackberry and black cherry flavors with a bit of pepper and a little mint make this fruit driven wine very interesting as well. Davy Crockett would have loved it with a hunk of venison… or maybe bear.

Bonny Doon Le Cigare Volant 1998 $29.99-It's hard to select just one Bonny Doon Wine to feature since they are all so good…but don't worry, we will be featuring more in the next few months. Le Cigar Volant ("the flying cigar" Ask us and we'll tell you the story) is Bonny Doon's version of Chateauneuf-du-Pape. In a nutshell, it's great! Rich Syrah blend flavors but with an elegance rarely found in New World wines of this type. To quote the winemaker, Randall Graham, "Cigare has always been fruit-driven and usually has had the soft, plush textures ofthe upholstery one finds in a vintage Citroen. We have upped the tannic ante and given the wine a little more grip more Conjones, if you will. I think that in so doing, we have enhanced this Cigare's ability to age".

Eberle Reserve Cabernet 1995 $56.99-This was my favorite wine of the trip! A complex blend of black cherry, cassis flavors melded with earthiness and sweet tobacco notes. An outstanding Cabernet which is of course, extremely limited. The Reserve Cabernet is made only in exceptional vintages. The 1995 is one of only eight reserves declared since the winery's inception in 1979. While drinking remarkably well now, this wine's depth and complexity will continue to develop beautifully over the next ten years.

Touriga Nacional Wins Portugal's Winemakers, the World May be next

Nelas, Portugal-As Spain has its Tempranillo, Australia its Shiraz, California its Cabernet, Italy its Sangiovese and Nebbiolo, Portugal has seemingly hit on its lead red wine grape, Touriga Nacional. The bright successes of several bottlings, over the last few years, have inspired winemakers in every corner of the country to plant the grape and hope for similar successes to follow.

Portugal has been a country of many, non-dominant grapes. And most of the wines were, like Port, blends of these various grapes. But few of the table wine blends have been as successful as Port. They birthed simple, pleasant wines that could sell at low prices in supermarket wine stores throughout the world. But, as in neighboring Spain, winemakers wanting to make significant wines have appeared and started shaking things up. The vulgar, high production vines are being torn-out and experiments begun with refined varietals. Besides Touriga Nacional, some of these varietals have been Jaen, Trincadera, Tinta Roriz (Tempranillo), Alfrocheiro Preto, Tinto Cao and others. At times, there have been triumphs with all of these, but the most dazzling wines have been bred from Touriga Nacional.

"In ways, I believe, we have gone Touriga Nacional crazy," remarks Virgilio Loureiro, winemaker at Dao's Quinta dos Roques and Quinta das Maias, along with being a professor of enology at Lisbon's Instituto Superior de Agronomia. "People are planting the grape everywhere in the country, even in the Vinho Verde zone, where I doubt it will develop properly. We even had a winemaker from Priorato in Spain come and collect cuttings to plant there. I think he might be onto something."

Touriga Nacional is thought to be native of the Dao zone (coming from around the hamlet of Tourigo) and in the past was its major varietal. In his monumental book, "O Portugal Vinicola," published in 1900, Cincinnato da Costa wrote that "Tourigo" constituted 90 percent of the plantings in the Dao zone before phylloxera. In certain sub-regions, Touriga Nacional was exclusively the grape planted. In an area where many grapes were available, he concluded that there was a simple rationale for the dominance-Touriga Nacional had good productivity and high quality.

But, after phylloxera in the late 19th Century, this all changed. According to Virgilio Loureiro, "The reason for this was that the American vinestock most resistant in the Dao to phylloxera (Aromon x Rupestris n. 1) was not compatible with the grape. The production was significantly less and the grape berries significantly smaller. So Baga, a grape from neighboring Barraida, lesser suited to the Dao zone was brought in. This was to the detriment of Dao's wines and reputation. But, today due to modern vine-stocks and careful cloning, we can provide conditions salubrious for Touriga Nacional's return."

Touriga Nacional is one of four "quality grapes" in Port (the others are Tinta Roriz, Tinta Barroca and Touriga Francesa). This wasn't always the case. Interestingly, there is a letter from 1849 cited by the writer, Pinto Menezes, indicating that the grape was imported to the Duoro river valley to satisfy the British demand for richer, more powerful Ports. And now it is a principal grape for some of the Duoro's great table wines as well.

Most likely the real boost for Touriga Nacional came from the "Centro de Estudos Vitivinicolas do Dao in Nelas," directed by Cardoso de Vilhena. At this experimental center he produced a breakthrough wine in 1963 that is a legend in the world of Portuguese winemaking. Joao Paulo Martins, editor of the Portuguese wine magazine REVISTA DE VINHOS, described the wine in his recent book on the nation's wines as "big, violent, rude, but at the same time charming and captivating. In its youth, the wine was opaque and it had 15.2 percent alcohol." Martins believes it to be one of the greatest Portuguese wines of the 20th Century. People took note of that wine all over Portugal.

Today things have changed a bit. Producers shoot for approximately 13 percent alcohol. The British wine writer, Jancis Robinson, has praised the grape for its "superb quality" and has compared it to Cabernet Sauvignon which some might consider a compliment, others not. Whatever, the qualities of the wines are comparable. Touriga Nacional gives a dark colored wine with a bouquet of dark and red fruits, violets and pine needles. It can be tannic when young, but still enjoyable. It benefits from new oak barrel aging. And the best can last for 20 years with little difficulty.

Two of the first contemporary winemakers to investigate Touriga Nacional were Luis Pato, in the Bairrada zone, and Quinta de Carvalhais of the Dao. Both wineries operate with an experimental attitude. Carvalhais was purchased by Sogrape, Portugal's largest winemaker, in 1988 with the intention of making one of the most advanced winemaking centers in Europe and to produce the finest wines of the Dao zone. This has been accomplished by installing a state of the art winery and by conducting micro and mini-vinifications of single and blended grape varieties. Their 1996 Touriga Nacional is a wine of power and complexity that is among the best to yet to be made. Also one should look for the 1996 Dao Reserva. It is a blend of Touriga Nacional, Alfrocheiro Preto and Tinta Roriz. Utterly sublime, it offers more complexity than the pure Touriga Nacional.

Luis Pato is one of Barraida's masters of the Baga grape. But he experiments with other grapes. He says, "Bordeaux is my favorite grape and I try to make wines in their image." So he likes the Cabernet Sauvignon-like qualities that Touriga Nacional adds to his wine. One of his many bottlings that you might try is the blended 1997 Quinta do Ribeirinho 1st Escolha, a blend with obvious Touriga, particularly in the nose. Can be drunk young.

But for me the current master of Touriga Nacional is the above Virgilio Loureiro. The last time we met and tasted he had been hired to consult at the loveliest estate in the Dao zone, Quinta da Insua, which specializes, oddly, with French varietals such as Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon. He had also just been engaged to begin a wine production project in the torrid conditions of northern Brazil! "It's my new, great challenge," he says with a laugh.

To date, Professor Loureiro's greatest Touriga Nacional successes have been at Quinta dos Roques in Dao. And the best of these is the 1996 vintage. It has received stratospheric rankings in wine periodicals in England, America and Portugal. It's very much an "in your face" wine. In youth it was dark and brooding. The nose took a day of air to arrive and the intense flavors need airing as well. What was there rivaled the best of Bordeaux, Burgundy or Barolo/Barbaresco. "I think this will have no problem aging 25 years,"Virgilio beamed, as we tasted a barrel sample a few years ago. My regret today is that I only bought a case when it was released.

Virgilio's 1997 release is quite different and gives winemakers and us wine drinkers some insights into the vinification parameters in which Touriga Nacional shows best. This wine, from a harvest that began the end of September, came in at 12.4 percent alcohol. "I thought we would have a wine open, delicate and not interesting," the winemaker grimaces. "But surprises came as it developed. Its color was better than hoped. In the nose there was rosemary that we hadn't noted in the previous big vintages. The body was not as robust as the 13 percent wines, so we decided on giving it less time in wood. We put it in the bottle early and its evolution has been remarkable. It has delicacy and enormous harmony. I have great expectations for the metamorphosis of this wine. I think it adds another dimension to Touriga Nacional."

I wonder? I don't find the 12.4 percent, 1997 bottling even comparable in quality to the 1996. It lacks the color, complexity, blazing intensity of its older sibling. Of the 30 odd bottlings of Touriga Nacional I've tasted, the best have all been above 13 percent alcohol.

Touriga Nacionals from Dao, Douro, Estremadura and Alentjo have, when well made, an elegance, a robustness and equilibration that are rare in the world of wine. Besides being a vital grape in Port, Touriga Nacional has, like Pinot Noir, also been used to make sparkling wine with very promising results. It will be particularly interesting to see what the grape does in Spain's Priorat zone. Virgilio predicts that it will produce a great wine with an opulent body and exuberant aromas. Then he says, "Touriga Nacional will no longer be a Portuguese phenomenon, but an international one."

Though I might question the ideal alcohol level for Touriga Nacional, I think Professor Loureiro is exactly right about the grapes potential international spread and stardom. In coming years, when these wines hit the market, it may be an earth-shaking event.

We have a couple bottles of the 1997 Roques Touriga Nacional ($19.99) scattered around the store. Try one and you'll see what the excitement is all about.

"Nouveau" Thanksgiving Wine Tips

Tired of Beaujolais and Pinot Noir with turkey? Sure, we love those wines, but why not shake it up a bit? How about wines that can wrestle with zesty stuffing, cranberries and sweet potatoes? Some wines can make Thanksgiving a little different and more memorable. Our wines of the month-Andrew Murray Enchante white and Pigeoulet red can do just this. And we have some other tips too...

1999 Monchof Estate Riesling, $10.49-Lively, fruity, and refreshing Riesling.

1998 Eola Hills Chardonnay, $11.99-A bump of oak, with creamy "malolactic" flavors. Doesn't taste oaky, yet doesn't taste thin.

1999 Morgon, Vieilles Vignes, Burgaud, $14.99-Fleshy, palate coating Gamay. It can handle a turkey from any angle.

1998 School Block Cabernet/Shiraz/Merlot, $17.99-An Aussie blend for those who want a little power with their bird. It would be interesting with smoked or deep-fried turkeys, which we had last year.

1997 Rosenblum Zinfandel, Alegria Vineyard, $30.99-Well, if you want to go all out, this is it. The concentration of flavors can't be described. Hit of the Dance Theatre Wine Festival in March, it has developed wondrously.

For Those Feeding a Cast of Thousands . . .

NV Bridgeview Blue Moon Riesling, $7.99-Crisp, touch of sugar with the acid to balance it. A crowd pleaser.

1998 So Zin, Zinfandel, from Schuetz Oles, $10.99-Medium bodied, fairly complex, not superficial red wine. Tastes like "Zin." Good turkey enhancer.

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COALTRAIN
Wine & Spirits
330 W. Uintah
Colorado Springs, CO 80905
719-475-9700