Education

Holiday Tasting Guide

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As we are in the thick of the holiday season, many of you may be thinking about what wine you’ll serve for your special holiday meals, so I wanted to provide you with some suggestions to help you on the wine-pairing side. One of the fun things about wine is that everyone’s palate is different. But that also makes it more challenging as a host! I recommend having a couple different options available.

You typically can’t go wrong starting with a sparkling wine or Champagne. Handing a guest a glass of bubbly gets the celebration off to a great start and sets the tone for a festive occasion! If you choose, you can continue with sparkling wine throughout the meal. The bubbles and acidity balance out the rich flavors of a meal without overpowering them. If you are going to pair with a meal, I recommend a sparkling wine made with Pinot Noir (as many of the best champagnes are) or a Rose’ because it has more structure to stand up to a holiday dinner than an Blanc de Blanc made with only Chardonnay.

If you’d like to serve a white wine with your meal, I recommend a fuller-bodied wine – a Chardonnay. Why? Because that is style of white wine that will stand up to some of the richer flavors of a holiday meal. If you’re adventurous, you could try a dry Riesling or an Albarino.

On the red side, the best choice will depend on what you are serving. If you are serving something on the lighter side such as poultry or pork, choose a lighter wine. One of the common turkey-pairing recommendations is a French Nouveau (young) Beaujolais – a bright, fruity option. However, I prefer something which balances the fruit with a bit more interest and substance. I think the perfect choice is a Pinot Noir with some nice earthiness which should blend well with savory sides like stuffing, and turkey gravy. Some people don’t realize that there is a broad spectrum of Pinot Noirs, from light to full-bodied. If you’re not a Pinot Noir fan, you could also choose a Zinfandel, but I think an even better choice is a Rhone-style wine. A Grenache, which is a lighter Rhone varietal, would be a great choice, but it’s harder to find a good one. For those who prefer a full-bodied red, I recommend a Rhone blend, like a GSM (Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre). Something heavier will often overpower the subtle flavor of poultry or pork, but the blend with Grenache (with the Syrah) softens it. The gold standard in Rhone blends is a Chateauneuf du Pape from the French Rhone region, but there are also some excellent options from the Santa Barbara or Paso Robles area.

If you are serving a heavier meat, such as roast beef, steak, or any type of beef, choose a full-bodied wine. Again, a GSM is a great universal choice. A Syrah can be a great option for grilled meat and can also pair with beef. Of course, a Cabernet Sauvignon or Bordeaux blend is a classic choice for beef.

We have some excellent choices for your holiday celebrations:

• Classic Sta. Rita Hills Pinot Noir from Clos Pepe, Storm, Lafond and Ground Truth
• Smooth, rich Cabernet Sauvignon from Grassini, Storm, and J. Wilkes
• Beautifully balanced Chardonnay from Clos Pepe

And more! Contact us at mary@revisitmarketing.com to find your perfect pairing!

In the end, there is no bad decision, as long as you and your guests enjoy it! Isn’t that one of the great things about wine? Whatever wine you choose, it will bring that special touch to your meal which melds all of the wonderful flavors and personalities of the holiday!

Brick Barn Blog: Cellar Time!

Brick Barn is one of the newer wineries to the area, situated just west of Buellton.  We had tasted their wines a number of months ago and enjoyed their whites, which included a delicious Albarino.  At the time, we met their General Manager who reached out to us to come back and meet/taste with their new winemaker, Adrian Bolshoi.  Adrian is originally from Maldova and learned old world winemaking traditions from his grandfather, producing small lots of homemade wine each year. After earning his Bachelor's Degree in Enology, Adrian accepted an internship in the US and landed in the heart of Santa Barbara wine country just in time for the 2011 harvest.  He is now in the process of obtaining US Citizenship! 

He was an excellent host – very passionate about the wines he is making, and a lot of fun!  We tasted through a number of their wines, but Adrian’s wines are still in “development” in the cellar, so he took us back to do some tank/barrel tasting.  It is so interesting to taste wines before they have been completed.  His Syrah has amazing potential once it sees some oak and some time.  When tasting these young wines, you have the chance to get a “sneak peak” at what these wines will be like when released.  The winemaker will talk you through his thought process on making the wines, and you have the chance to ask questions.  For example, when you look at many of these wines, they appear cloudy.  We learned about the process of “cold-settling” - using very cold temperatures in the tanks to remove some of the biomaterial in the wine.  We also learned that there are tons of various yeasts you can choose from to get the fermentation process going!

We really enjoyed our time at Brick Barn yesterday and look forward to seeing the final product of Adrian’s wines sometime next year.  You may see them in a Club shipment!

2019 Fall Shipment - Rare Opportunity

Greetings members and subscribers! We hope that you have had a wonderful summer and enjoyed some delicious wines! We’ve been hard at work figuring out our Fall shipment and have some amazing selections for you. We’re working on some great info for you, including a “Locals’ Guide to Wine-Tasting in the Santa Ynez Valley” which you will all receive when it is complete. If there is any other wine-related topic you’re interested in, let us know – we are here as a resource for you!


Reminders – If you would like to buy a particular wine varietal from us outside of our club shipments, let us know and we’ll see if we can source a great wine at a value for you!


Grassini Family Sauvignon Blanc

• Owner: Grassini Family, Winemaker: Bradley Long
• Happy Canyon AVA
Grassini Family 2015 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon
• Owner: Grassini Family, Winemaker: Bradley Long
• Happy Canyon AVA
Lumen Wines 2015 Pinot Noir – Santa Barbara County
• Owners: Lane Tanner/Will Henry; Winemaker: Lane Tanner
• Sierra Madre Vineyard (61%), Santa Maria Valley (39%)


We are honored that two renown families in Santa Barbara have partnered with us to bring you fabulous wines for the Fall Season. The first is the Grassini Family – and it is a true family business. The Grassini Vineyard and Winery is one of the most beautiful settings in the County, with acres of vineyards, a pond and a world-class wine facility. Although they are probably best known for their Happy Canyon Sauvignon Blanc, they generously offered to share their Reserve SB with Revisit Wine Club members. Happy Canyon is an up-and-coming AVA for Cab – it is one of the few places that gets hot enough to ripen Cabernet grapes – and the Grassinis were one of the first to realize the potential. Bradley Long, winemaker, came to Grassini after spending time at Nickel & Nickel and Fantesca in Napa Valley.


• Winemaker Notes: The Grassini 2016 Reserve Sauvignon Blanc matured for in a combination of new and neutral French Oak. The bright acid helps showcase flavors of pineapple and stone fruit, which are varietally "Sauvignon Blanc," while the barrel aging adds complexities of caramel and toasted coconut. The finish is soft and round, yet clean and refreshing, inviting another sip. While the oak influence is subtler in this 2016 Reserve Sauvignon Blanc than in previous vintages, the signature notes of crème brûlée will still shine through. 406 cases produced.


• Estate Cabernet Sauvignon Winemaker Notes: Bold, balanced and refined, this wine opens with aromas of dark fruit, cinnamon, and green tea, followed by a touch of smoke and espresso. Notes of blackberry and black currant greet the palate, along with a hint of cocoa. Flavors of rich dark chocolate, caramel, and vanilla are prominent in the smooth, lingering finish. 690 cases produced. 93 Points, Antonio Galloni, Vinous.

We also have the great pleasure of meeting and working with Lane Tanner, aka the “Czarina” of Santa Barbara County Pinot Noir. Lane started making wine in SBC in and has worked with a number of wineries before focusing on her own label, Lumen Wines. She co-owns the label with Will Henry, who is also well know in the wine business with his restaurant “Pico” in Los Alamos, and his wine business, “Henry Wine Group”. Lane specializes in handcrafted Pinot Noir and carefully selects her grapes from the best certified sustainably-farmed and biodynamic vineyards in the area, using the minimal amount of sulfites possible. They also pick their grapes earlier in the harvest season, resulting in wine that is livelier on the palate, deeper in complexity, and lower in alcohol. We have so enjoyed getting to know Lane and her husband Riki (winemaker, Labyrinth Wines). Note: 1% of Lumen Wine sales are donated to environmental causes.


Winemaker Tasting Notes: Wonderfully vibrant and energetic, with penetrating raspberry and rose petal on the nose, followed by undulating flavors of strawberry, thyme and sandalwood on the palate – all wrapped in a firm yet velvety texture. Long, vibrant finish with lingering fruit and minerality, accented by cardamom and anise notes. Well-matched with any wild game, salmon or bird dish, with power enough to cut through any hot curry or Szechuan fare. 1300 cases produced.


Cheers!
Mike and Mary


BOTTLING WINE AT CARIVINTAS – BLENDING WINE WITH PHILANTHROPY

Good friends Lynn and Tony Golden recently invited us to help out with bottling Carivintas wines (www.carivintas.com).  Mike was on a fishing trip but I took them up on their offer, always interested in learning more about the process.  Since it was a relatively small number of bottles, it was all done manually with a small bottler/pump instead of with the bottling truck that we’ve usually seen.  We developed an assembly line and got to work.  I mostly prepped the bottles by injecting nitrogen into them to eliminate some of the oxygen before they went on the bottling machine.  Key to the process was having a good DJ to keep the team going.   Tony has a great selection and we settled on some old 90’s hip-hop tunes which worked well with some wine sampling along the way.  There is no better way to understand a process than to do it yourself!  And it is always educational to speak with experienced winemakers like Fleet Hamilton.

In the crowded world of wine, it’s important to have something that makes you unique.  In addition to making good wine, Fleet and Diane Hamilton decided they would incorporate their love of dogs.  A portion of all the wines they sell goes to support charities that support animals, such as Best Friends Animal Society, Return to Freedom, and many other animal shelters and support groups around the country. Their creative wine labels also feature dogs and other animals, and their tasting room in Solvang is of course, dog (and kid) friendly.  They also have many interesting varieties – we bottled Sangiovese, Merlot, 3 different Pinot Noir vintages, and a Rose’ of Tempranillo. We recently stopped in for a tasting with Beth who always does a fantastic job taking care of you.  Fleet is always experimenting with his creations and they currently have a really interesting herbal vermouth that is fantastic with some flavored sparkling water.  If you visit on a Wednesday afternoon, you can attend the popular Solvang Farmers’ Market.  If you stop by, you may taste or buy one of the bottles we filled!