Spanish Monster

The grape is Monastrell, in France the same grape is Mourvedre. In the hands of Juan Gil of Jumilla in Spain it is a monster red wine. Spend $19.99 on a bottle of a big juicy rich red wine that is equally at home with a steak on the grill, roast of lamb or a big hunk of sharp cheese like a Manchego from Spain. You will get more than your money's worth. The wine is so big of flavor you might not finish it the first night, don't worry, the wine holds up well for finishing with leftovers on the second night. Fruity, rich and a nice smokiness to the wine is probably at its best with the hunk of meat off the grill, but it is complex and enjoyable to sip on its own. Just dont forget to share.

Pacifist and Delicious

For those of you old enough to remember DMZs in Vietnam and Korea, the De Morgenzon farm in South Africa has come out with two wines that are huge values. The labels, attractively made and with the letters DMZ in big BIG print are hard to miss. Both types retail for $14.99 a bottle.

The red is made from Syrah, labelled Shiraz, legal name, but the style of the wine is more French than Aussie. Linger over the glass as aromas of coriander, cinnamon, blueberry, vanilla, and back to more brown spices waft out of the glass in no particular order. The wine is not a heavyweight, but rather an elegant middleweight that will compliment the fall dinner palate perfectly. I had it with a braised lamb shank.

As fantastic as the red is the Chardonnay is even better. The use of ageing the wine in a blend of Alliers and Nevers oak barrels, the classic Burgundy style, the wine is a dead ringer for high quality Meursault but at only a third of the price. Fruit flavors and aromas in concert with balancing oak flavors can only remind you of classic French White Burgundy. Live on the East Coast? This is the wine for that special lobster dinner. I had it with an herbed pork dish.

Peaches and Cream, Herb or Anise?

If you picked Peaches and Anise, you win! There is a white grape from the Valdeorras region of northwest Spain called Godello. Wines from this grape have a remarkable peaches and anise aroma and flavor. As the wine sits in your glass, or you have patience and let it breath a half hour or more, the peachy sensation fades as the anisey herby (half credit if you picked Peaches and Herb) comes out more. It has a richer mouthfeel than a Pinot Grigio, but not as heavy as California Chardonnay. Most of the ones we have bought are un-oaked. Unfortunately, many of our suppliers have not brought in many cases and we have already cleaned out a couple of them.
In stock as this goes to web is one called Castille de Papas. It has an unforgettable bright orange label and retails for $14.99 a bottle. Very peachy when first opened, it almost seems to be a bit sweet, but it isn't. And it has great lasting flavor as an opened but resealed bottle tasted even better the second and third nights. Now this does not go to full flavored licorice, but it is noticeable. As such, it is fantastic with fish dishes. Now where is my Peaches and Herb 8 track?

Wrong Again

I am frequently asked, "Bob, I want a Chardonnay that is oaky but not buttery and not expensive, what have you got?" I fumblishly reply that it doesn't exist, oak aging lends to butteryness. Well, guess who proved me wrong?

If you said a South African winery, you are correct. Jardin 2008 Chardonnay at $14.99 a bottle surprised the bleep out of me with its rich complex oak flavor in harmony with great acidity, minerality and all-around yummy flavors. I can see this wine being the lobster clambake wine for the summer of 2009, if the sun would ever come out this year in New England.

For you international folks, the Jardin label exists for the United States. In South Africa, the Jordan family owns the property, makes the wines and has no relation to the Jordan family of California, hence the name difference. The rest of the world sees the wine as Jordan Chardonnay of South Africa.

And a real clambake has chowdah, made with milk. State law in Massachusetts.

Name Dropping

I had dinner the other night with Brewer Raats. One of the larger than life itself wine characters in the trade, he prides himself in Chenin Blanc and Cabernet Franc. Heck, he owns an Irish pub in South African college town, how cool is that?

He told a story about a night of wine tasting with fellow South African winemakers where each winemaker had to bring "the wine that changed you" or something to that effect. He brought Chateau Cheval Blanc, one of the seven great Bordeauxs, along with Mouton, Lafite et al. Cheval Blanc has lots of Cabernet Franc in its blend and his desire was to create a wine in the style of Cheval Blanc.

Zip forward to last weeks dinner in Boston and he brought his Raats Family 2001 Cabernet Franc and a 1998 Chat. Cheval Blanc. His is $30 a bottle, the Cheval Blanc is conservatively worth about $300. The only difference I could detect was that the Cheval Blanc had a little sweeter fruit flavor. Presently at the store we offer the yummy 2006 Raats Cabernet Franc at $29.99 a bottle and will add the 2007 at the same price. Drinkable and cellarable for less than $30 is ridiculous. That night we had them with Wild Boar and Mushroom over Pasta. Great match.

And if you want to really splurge, he is in partnership in a wine called MR de Compostella. Around $100 a bottle, and you can only imagine what a wonderful age-worthy wine this is.

Alternatives to Chardonnay

and Pinot Grigio. The two most popular white wine grapes in the USA are Pinot Grigio and Chardonnay. When I started in the business 2 score ago Chenin Blanc was the most popular grape variety. I remember my first trip to California and visiting the tiny J. Lohr winery in a former fire station in San Jose, if my memory is not failing me, and being told they were discontinuing my most favorite wine, Chenin Blanc.

Today, the best bang for the buck white wine is Chenin Blanc. Lighter than Chardonnay, richer than Pinot Grigio, it can be made in a variety of styles to the whim of the winemaker and vineyard manager.

South Africa produces the best Chenin Blanc values in the world today. Our most popular white wine in the store for the last few years has been the Ken Forrester Petit Chenin Blanc at $9.99 a bottle. However, I just set up a display in the store of 3 different and delicious Chenin Blancs, each for $14.99 a bottle. You get to pick your favorite.

First, the "Unwooded" Chenin Blanc from Raats Family is a crisp refreshing minerally essence of peach dry white wine. Lovely bank of the Charles River cheese and cracker wine for a warm spring-summer day.

Second, the lightly wooded Ken Forrester Chenin Blanc. This touch of oak adds a component of vanilla to the wine. You could also take this to the Charles but the picnic basket with chicken and salads in addition to the cheese would be a better match.

Third, the moderately wooded Graham Beck Gamekeeper's Reserve Chenin Blanc is oaked more like a California Chardonnay. This richer wine is yummy with the rainy day picnic with the chicken right out of the oven.

Finally, if you want the outrageous Chenin Blanc, you are more than welcome to plunk down $59.99 a bottle for the FMC. Save this bottle for a great white meat meal for a very special occasion. First time I tried it, I thought it was over-oaked. But it passed the empty glass test. You know, when you try a variety of wines, the glass that keeps being emptied most often is the best wine.

Peanut Butter and Jelly

I love the classic matches, bacon and eggs, peanut butter and jelly and Champagne and caviar, even though I hate caviar, but I get how it works. I am nominating pork and Rioja as the new classic match.

This past Easter my sister-in-law regaled the family with a ham and a pork loin on the bone. Among her guests were a couple visiting her parents from Barcelona, Spain. Since I was in charge of bringing the wine, I opted for a variety of red wines including a few from Spain. The fruitier reds were a nice match with the ham, always go for fruit with ham to counterbalance the sweetish glaze, but the Rioja and the pork created oohs and aahs from myself and the guests. Everyone got it!

The simple Rioja, Vina Hermina $12.99 at the store, was enhanced by the pork and the pork brought out the best in the wine. Synergy! It seemed like the pork smoothed out the edges in the wine and brought out the best flavors. The wine in concert with the pork seemed to make the meat juicier and more flavorful. Gah, just re-read what I just wrote and this is one instance where 1000 words are not worth one taste.

Next time you are roasting or grilling pork, whether ribs, chops or loins, serve any red Rioja and taste what I am attempting to write about. Caveat, it doesn't work with barbeque sauce.