The James Geneva features wine friendly menu and fine wines

The James Restaurant Geneva (IL) features wine friendly menu and fine wine selection

Saturday afternoon lunch - a beautiful picture perfect Midwestern autumn day - we drove out to Geneva on the Fox River and dined at The James Restaurant, recently reopened under new ownership, formerly Fiore's which we've visited and featured previously in these pages.  

The James new restaurant and cocktail lounge, features a broad menu offering steaks from prime purveyor Allen Brothers, seafood and other assorted entrees and small plates ... and a Wine Spectator Award winning winelist, opened in May at 317 S. Third St., Geneva, the former location of Fiora’s, which closed in January.

The James is the creation of Geneva residents Chris and Gretchen Hupke who are leasing the space. Along with Gretchen's brother, Todd McWethy, they also own and operate McWethy’s Tavern at the Mistwood Golf Course in Romeoville, and McWethy’s Sports Bar in Bolingbrook. The James is partly named for their late father, James (Jim) McWethy, and partly too, for James Herrington, Geneva’s first settler, namesake to the nearby (James) Herrington Inn & Spa which we have also featured in these pages. 

The James occupies the quaint historic building on trendy bustling Third Street, Geneva, with a collection of stylishly decorated multi-colored dining rooms, the brightly lit sun-porch overlooking the patio outdoor seating area, a classic vintage library bar with pressed- tin-ceiling and marble top tables, and the wine cellar dining room on the lower level which is an operating wine cellar and has seating for up to 20 for wine themed special dinners. 

We were able to secure a table on the sun-drenched sun porch room, whose floor-to-ceiling glass walls overlook the 140-seat outdoor patio. 

The James' imaginative varied menu features creations from chef Steven Blackburn who previously headed up a sushi bar in West Hollywood. The meat menu selections offer beef sourced from premier purveyor Allen Brothers in Chicago, from an eight-ounce bavette and filet mignon to a hearty 24-ounce porterhouse, classic chicken Vesuvio, pork schnitzel, and a 16-ounce pork chop. The entree and small plate selections offer seafood selections such as grilled swordfish, Japanese style salmon sashimi, and shrimp shakshuka.

We ordered a medley from the small plates menu, the Lobster Agnolotti, the Coffee Charred Steak along with the Lobster Bisque and Apple and Pear Salad. 

Apple and Pear Salad - green apple, red pear, candied pecans, mixed greens with bleu cheese vinaigrette
Crab Bisque with Chive
Lobster Agnolotti - lobster tail, saffron cream sauce, brown butter
Coffee Charred Steak - Allen Brothers, Chicago skewered Prime beef, plum BBQ sauce, pea shoot

Everything was wonderful - the bisque was especially delectable and the Charred Steak skewers with the plum BBQ sauce was spectacular, and a wonderful pairing with the red wine (s) (despite having note of spice heat, which normally I would degrade for offsetting the pallet and discrimination for the wine).

A draw for us was the James' imaginative and carefully selected wine list with 90 wines by the bottle, wines by the glass, and a collection of half bottles. Their wine list won a Wine Spectator Award of Excellence for 2023.

For our wine accompaniment to our lunch we ordered a half bottle of the Vieux Telegraph Chateauneuf-du-Pape. We know this producer and wine well having visited the Chateau and Estate on a couple occasions.  

Our visit to the Vieux Télégraphe estate and meeting owner/winemaker Daniel Brunier (left) was a highlight of our Rhone Valley Wine Experience in 2019.

Notably, while the wine list features Domaine du Vieux 'Telegraph' Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Rhone (their quotation emphasis, not mine). They actually served Domaine du Vieux Telegraph, 'Telegramme', Chateauneuf-du-Pape. This is their 'second' wine, sourced from younger vines and is generally about half the price of the flagship grand cru. 

We brought this to our server's attention and eventually to the proprietor/owner Chris Hupke (below). Upon researching this further, he realized that while they ordered the flagship Vieux Telegraph label, they actually received from the distributor the Telegramme label, which they were subsequently serving. They hadn't caught this difference until I brought it to their attention.

This sparked an extensive in-depth friendly and convival conversation with Chris about our shared interests and experiences in fine wines, culminating in a cellar tour and visit to the wine room downstairs. 

Our lively discussion about wine finds and preferences and restaurant wine lists covered our shared love of Howell Mountain Cabernet's and lead to Bordeaux varietal selections from Washington State.

In recompense for the winelist switch/snafu and shortcoming in our red wine selection, Chris brought out a glass of a Washington State Red Mountain Cabernet from Walls Vineyard and Winery.

Our original selection:

Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe Châteauneuf-du-Pape Télégramme 2018 

Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe 'Telegramme', Chateauneuf-du-Pape Rhone 2018

As stated, we visited Vieux Télégraphe during our trip to Châteauneuf-du-Pape in the Southern Rhone River Valley back in 1998 and again in 2019. We hold Vieux Télégraphe wines dating back three decades to the early 1980's. 

Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe has been run by the Brunier family for five generations dating back to 1891. The estate’s vineyards average 60 years of age on the Plateau of La Crau, a site known for growing Châteauneuf-du-Pape grape varietals.

The estate is named for the telegraph towers that sat on the site dating back to the early visual signal towers that were invented and deployed as far back as 1792. Lines of relay towers were built within line-of-sight of each other at distances of 5–20 miles. Tower operators would watch adjacent towers through a spyglass for signals produced by mechanical shutter arms and would pass the message on to the next tower. These early systems were faster and less expensive than horse drawn riders. These lines were a precursor of the electrical telegraph which would replace them half a century later.

The estate wines are known for their distinctive terroir signature of predominant minerality from filtering through the thick layer of large pebbles left behind when the Alpine glaciers melted, long before the Rhône Valley formed.

Winemaker (s): Frédéric & Daniel Brunier 

The blend for this release is 80% Grenache, 10% Syrah, 6% Mourvèdre and 4% Cinsault. 

Winemaker's Tasting Notes: Châteauneuf-du-Pape seriously dominated by Grenache, which confers very singular suppleness and roundness. Best savored young.

This is the second wine of Vieux Telegraphe. Mainly Grenache with Syrah, Mourvedre and Cinsault from mostly young vines but it does include grapes from 45 year old vines at Château La Roquette.

This release was awarded 92-93 points by James Suckling and 90-92 points by Wine Advocate.

Dark Ruby colored, medium-full bodied, classic brambly red and black raspberry and plum fruits with notes of gariggue, floral and spice from the Grenache, with hints of pepper on the moderate long, rich, ripe tannin finish.

RM 91 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=3480040

http://www.vieux-telegraphe.fr/en/

Wall Vineyards 'Curiositas' Red Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon 2018

Chris served us a glass of this big full bodied, fruit forward, flavorful Cabernet. We happen to know this brand and label and have a case of other vintages in our cellar collection.

Ironically, or notably, we also knew this producer and label well, having visited the winery in Walla Walla during our Walla Walla Wine Experience back in 2018, where we discovered this label and acquired a case of it from the 2015 vintage. 

Our visit the winery was one of the highlights of that appellation visit. It was great fun to share, and educate our host about this label, the brand and its background and history of the producer, the estate and the vineyards.

Walls Curiositas Red Mountain Cabernet

Walls Winery Curiositas Columbia Valley Red Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon 2018

With Mike Martin, Owner Walls Vineyards

We discovered and acquired this wine during our visit to the producer during our recent Walla Walla Wine Experience. It was our favorite of the portfolio of wines tasted with Mike Martin, owner/producer Walls Vineyards and Winery.

This is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon from the Red Mountain AVA in central Washington.

As I wrote in an earlier blogpost almost four years ago to the day, this was my favorite of the flight that we tasted at the winery. Of course I tend to favor Bordeaux varietals and found this especially appealing.

The fruit for this is sourced from the Obelisco Vineyard on the higher slopes of the Red Mountain AVA. The vines get increased exposure to the sun and are planted in higher density to further stress the grapes. The result is a wine of great complexity but one that is elegant and lush, yet subtle with tones the winemaker describes as possessing 'freshness that evokes a Margaux-styled fragrant' Cabernet'.

From our Walls Winery producer visit report when we tasted and acquired the 2015 vintage release.

The Walls Curiositas Red Mountain Cabernet 2015

2015 Curiositas is an elegant, complex and lush, yet subtle, wine. Its tone of freshness evokes a Margaux-styled fragrant Cabernet Sauvignon.

Sourced from the Obelisco Vineyard, high in the Red Mountain AVA where the vines get full exposure to all the elements.

“It is beautifully situated, with more vines doing less work, and planted with higher density,” says winemaker Ali. “It lends itself to complexity so how could we not take advantage of that?”

Chris served us the 2018 release of this label. It was bigger, more vibrant and expressive than the 2015 vintage we hold in our cellar that we are accustomed to.

Bright purple garnet colored, it was medium-full bodied with a firm gripping backbone structure with glycerine legs clinging to the glass, the polished elegant tannins were smooth and silky that it made for enticing casual sipping - bright red and black fruits accented by bright expressive notes of menthol, spice and creme de cassis, with notes of tobacco leaf and subtle vanilla and oak. 

 

Jeb Dunnuck gave this 97 points and like Robert Parker's Wine Advocate talks about this label's 'well-integrated tannins, solid grip, coupled with a swath of fresh acidity that delivers muscular structure' but then talks about it being 'light footed through the long finish'.

RM 93 points.

Jeb Dunnuck, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate gave this  “Editor’s Choice" and rated it "Extraordinary (95-100 pts.) "

331 Cases were produced.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=3873099

https://www.thewallsvineyards.com/

 

We enjoyed The James so much we've already signed up for their upcoming winemaker producer dinner next week.  

https://thejamesgeneva.com/

@PassionatePour1

James Photo of the Bar

Language of Yes En Passerillage Rancho Real Grenache

The Language of Yes En Passerillage Santa Maria Valley Rancho Real Grenache 2020 

We recently picked up two  oddly named "Language of Yes" red wines based on Rhône varietals, a Syrah and this Grenache, grown in the Rancho Réal Vineyard in the California Central Coast Santa Maria Valley.

This is a postlude to the recent posting where I wrote in detail about Randall Grahm's project and his Language of Yes En Passerillage Rancho Real Santa Maria Valley Syrah.

I detailed in that post how Randall Grahm gained notoriety with Bonny Doon Vineyard, where he had a long history of innovation and grew some popular brands - Big House, Cardinal Zin and Pacific Rim, to become the 28th largest winery in the United States. He was perhaps the first to truly popularize Rhône grapes in California, he realized he could have success creating distinctive and original wines working with Rhône varieties in the Central Coast of California.

In this project, winemaker Randall Grahm applies old world techniques, such as the practice of passerillage, or post-harvest drying of the grapes before crushing. In the cool Rancho Réal Vineyard, they place the grapes on paper raisin trees in the shade of the vine itself. This practice allows for a slight dehydration and concentration of the grapes, and, as significantly, a maturation of the stems of the bunches. The result is the stems are an excellent source of tannin, supporting the overall structure of the wine. The inclusion of the whole clusters allows for a slow release of grape sugar into the fermenting must, improving the fermentation, thus creating a slower and controlled process. "Clean", less stressed fermentation complements the process in what is called "reductive élevage," central to the style of The Language of Yes.

We tried the Syrah and found it interesting but not highly inspiring. Normally, we favor Syrah over Grenache from the popular Rhône varietals, but in this case, the Grenache won out over the Syrah. 

The Language of Yes En Passerillage Santa Maria Valley Rancho Real Vineyard Grenache 2020

This was more elegant, structured and complex than its sister wine, the companion Syrah from the same source and produced in the same method, that we tasted the other night. 

Contrary to widely held beliefs, Grenache is a grape capable of elegance and complexity that can be held for for many years. This release is a testament to the art of the possible for the varietal often overshadowed by the popular Syrah. 

Indeed, Grenache is one of the big three most popular and designated grapes required to be in the blend and comprise at least 70% of the legendary Chateauneuf-du-Pape Rhone blends, along with Syrah and Mourvedre. The trio is often blended together to form what is popularly known and marketed as a "G-S-M", Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre. This release is 100% Grenache.

This release was awarded 94 points by Robert Parker's Wine Advocate and James Suckling, and 93 points by Wine Enthusiast, 17.5+/20 points by Jancis Robinson.

Winemaker's Notes for this release: "The simultaneous release adopted the extremely non-standard practice of air-drying the grapes post-harvest. Our first vintage from the Rancho Réal vineyard is an experiment in phenolic extraction and a realization of our intent to not slavishly replicate the wines of Southern France, but rather to seek to find and amplify the unique characteristics of our climats and terroirs in the Central Coast of California."

Opaque pale ruby colored with slight browning, medium bodied,rather elegant and nicely balanced, bright tangy layers of strawberry, raspberry and notes of rhubarb, dusty rose, clove, spice and sandalwood with bright acidity and moderate tannins on the lingering finish. 

RM 91 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=4134795

https://www.languageofyeswine.com/

https://twitter.com/RandallGrahm

Language of Yes En Passerillage Rancho Real Santa Maria Valley Syrah

The Language of Yes En Passerillage Rancho Real Santa Maria Valley Syrah 

Linda took a friend out to lunch and brought me a take out entree of polenta and veal meatballs from Gia Mia in Naperville. I paired it with this just discovered, interesting Rhône varietal blend. This odd named wine is from legendary winemaker Randall Grahm and Joe C. Gallo, founder of Maze Row Wine Merchant, who owns the vineyards. They work together in a collaboration to leverage Randall's pioneering work pursuing his obsession with terroir-driven wines, uncommon varietals, and the Central Coast of California.

We traveled through the through the Santa Maria Valley and the Foxen Canyon wine trail and Santa Ynez Valley during our Santa Barbara County Wine Experience in May of this year. lead us to Zaca Mesa Winery and Vineyards. I wrote about it as part of my posting on our Zaca Mesa Winery and Vineyards Visit, and several others.

Randall Grahm gained notoriety with Bonny Doon Vineyard, where he had a long history of innovation and grew some popular brands - Big House, Cardinal Zin and Pacific Rim, to become the 28th largest winery in the United States. He was perhaps the first to truly popularize Rhône grapes in California,

He learned that in a warm, Mediterranean climate, it was blended wines that were most successful. In 1986 Bonny Doon Vineyard released the inaugural vintage (1984) of Le Cigare Volant, an homage to Châteauneuf-du-Pape, which continues as the winery’s flagship/starship brand.

Randall Grahm realized he could have success creating distinctive and original wines working with Rhône varieties in the Central Coast of California. This project is from the Santa Maria Valley which is one of the coolest sites in California where Syrah can be successfully grown, which enjoys perhaps the longest growing season, two important factors contributing to the development of the peppery aroma in wine in the Rhône varietal. 

The name “The Language of Yes” is derived from 'La Langue d'Oc', the term that medieval folk of southern France and adjacent environs , a precursor of modern Provençal, used to describe who they were by how they spoke (differentiating themselves from “La langue d’oil” spoken by their northern neighbors.

Following the established tradition reminiscent of the wines of St. Joseph and Côte-Rôtie, notable wine appellations in the Northern Rhone, he co-ferments Viognier with Syrah grape varietals. This is said to enhance the aromatic potential, the alcohol (not so necessary in California), color stability and structure of the wine. The Viognier adds a unique floral note to the otherwise peppery Syrah. 

The Language of Yes project is not intended to try to replicate the wines of Southern France, but rather to find and amplify the unique characteristics of the climate and terroir of the California Central Coast, inspired from the old world historic equivalents.

 

Homage to Southern Rhone Provencal region,
map from the Language of Yes website

We recently picked up two Language of Yes red wines based on Rhone varietals, a Grenache and this Syrah, grown in the Rancho Réal Vineyard in the Santa Maria Valley. 

In this project, winemaker Randall Grahm applies old world techniques, such as the practice of passerillage, or post-harvest drying of the grapes before crushing. In the cool Rancho Réal Vineyard, they place the grapes on paper raisin trees in the shade of the vine itself. This practice allows for a slight dehydration and concentration of the grapes, and, as significantly, a maturation of the stems of the bunches. The result is the stems are an excellent source of tannin, supporting the overall structure of the wine. The inclusion of the whole clusters allows for a slow release of grape sugar into the fermenting must, improving the fermentation, thus creating a slower and controlled process. "Clean", less stressed fermentation complements the process in what is called "reductive élevage," central to the style of The Language of Yes.

The Language of Yes En Passerillage "Rancho Real Vineyard" Santa Maria Valley Syrah 2020 

This is a blend of 86% Syrah and 14% Viognier raised in five-year-old barriques. 

It was awarded 94 points by Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, and 93 points by James Suckling, Vinous and by Wine Enthusiast. 

Grapes for the 2020 Syrah En Passerillage were air-dried for three days, co-fermented with 20% Viognier and made with 50% whole clusters.

Winemaker's notes: "The Language of Yes seeks to preserve the old ways, revealing the utmost respect for the integrity of the sites form which they derive. The raising of the wine is done with the lightest possible hand, allowing the natural exuberance of the vines, the grapes, the wine and the winemaker to joyously emerge, unmistakably pronouncing The Language of Yes. The result is a reflection of Provence in these wines - a distinctive balsamique resinous quality resembling the local underbrush, the garrigue - lavender, rosemary and sage, and pine forest.'

"The wine is marked with lively acidity, notes of black pepper, black olive, violets, licorice and white flowers. On the palate, slightly angular immediately upon opening but softening considerably with time."

Definitely reflecting old world style as opposed to the new world, fuller fruit forward style we prefer. 

Opaque ruby purple color, medium bodied, aromatics of blackcurrant, pomegranate and subtle blueberry, notes of white pepper, a hint of dried meat and olive, smoke, exotic spices, floral and garrigue, with dusty-textured tannins and bursts of juicy acidity on the long finish.

RM 91 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=4134796

https://www.languageofyeswine.com/

https://twitter.com/RandallGrahm

 

Trio of Clarendon Hills labels - Astralis, Bakers Gully and Romas

Clarendon Hills Baker's Gully Shiraz 2003

After drinking the Clarendon Hills Astralis at the gala Pour Boys tomahawk ribeye wine dinner last weekend, for midweek meatloaf dinner I pull from the cellar another Clarendon Hills label, this aged single vineyard syrah-shiraz, Baker's Gully Syrah. At seventeen years, this bottle is past its prime and its time to drink while it is still within its drinking window. This is the final bottle of several that I obtained more than a dozen years ago. On my last tasting note of this label, three years ago, I wrote it was past its drinking window and starting to show its age. Ideally, I wouldn't finished consuming the remaining bottles rather than waiting three years to consume this final bottle as it has diminished linearly over that time. 

Clarendon Hills winery was founded in 1990 by Roman Bratasiuk in Clarendon, a town 40 kilometres (25 mi) south of Adelaide, part of the McLaren Vale Wine Region in South Australia. Bratasiuk, a viticulturalist as much as a winemaker, selected Clarendon as a base because of the significant number of old vine vineyards that were planted there, vineyards of 50 to 90 years.

The township of Clarendon was established in 1880 by European migrants, who brought with them pre-clonal, original French vine cuttings that they planted and propagated across the surrounding hilltops. Clarendon is home to hugely varied terrain with sandy, clay based soils in the lower elevated regions and contrasted with shattered shale and ironstone rich, quartz ridden soils in the highest areas. It is ideal growing conditions for traditional French Rhone varietals - Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre as well as Bordeaux varietals Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon.  Clarendon Hills vineyards sources lie within the Clarendon, Blewitt Springs and Kangarilla districts. Using single vineyard designated fruits, Clarendon Hills seeks to express terroir driven varietal expression in its wines. 

Today, there are many single vineyard wines in Australia, but when Roman started in 1990, he was a pioneer in this approach. In the early 1990s, Roman started becoming known for his Grenache, but today he has an extensive portfolio of premium and ultra premium quality wines across 19 single vineyard cuvee labels. 

With the release of the 1994 vintage. Roman hired his first employee and rebranded his $30 Clarendon Hills Shiraz as 1994 Clarendon Hills Astralis. It was the first bottle in Australia to be priced at $100. It sold out and became his signature flagship label which remains to this day.  

Robert Parker has written that  "Clarendon Hills is one of the worlds elite wine estates".  In 1996,   Parker tasted the 1994 Astralis and wrote in his newsletter, Wine Advocate issue 110: "This is the hottest wine in Australian wine circles, as it came out ahead of two great vintages of Henschke and Penfolds’ Grange in a recent tasting. If readers can believe it, it is a bigger denser, more concentrated wine than the Grange," and in issue 108 (1996) he named Roman wine producer of the year. Thereafter, Astralis became a cult wine.

 

Two vintages of Astralis (1996 and 1994) were recently included within the 'Greatest 1000 Wines of all time 1727-2006" as a result of 15 international MW's collaborating with Scandinavian publisher FINE. 

 

Clarendon Hills was awarded New World Winery of the Year in 2006 by Wine Enthusiast. To date, Astralis is either the highest or equivocally scored as the best Australian Shiraz/Syrah based wine every year according to US publications Wine Spectator and Wine Advocate.

 

Today, Clarendon Hills produces broad portfolio of nineteen labels; eight Syrah, six Grenache, three Cabernet Sauvignon and one Merlot and Mourvedre wine. Roman exclusively produces single vineyard wines, all single vineyard, single varietal wines, produced from low yielding, dry grown old vines which are hand pruned, hand picked. All wines are aged in high quality French oak barriques.  

Clarendon Hills Baker's Gully Shiraz 2003

This Baker's Gully label was produced to be an entry level wine targeted at the restaurant trade which found the Clarendon Hills Old Vines range too pricey for some wine lists. This also provided an introduction to Clarendon Hills wines to a broader customer base.  

 

The Bakers Gully vineyard from which this label is sourced, is located approximately 1 km from the winery. Bratasiuk has been looking at this site for a few years, which consists of 10 year old dry grown Shiraz. The cropping levels are at the higher end of the quality status at 3 ½ tonnes per acre. Roman believes that over a period of 2-5 years the yields will be reduced to 2-2 ½ tonnes per acre. The soil profile is similar to those of another popular well known vineyard/label, Liandra, with sandy and clay soils which are typical of Blewitt Springs. The wine is aged in 15% new oak consisting of a mixture French Allier and Nevers.

Over the years we've had and still hold several labels from this producer including the flagship, premium Astralis that we consumed last weekend at our gala Pour Boys dinner. My actual favorite label from this producer, and perhaps most memorable drinking experiences is their Piggott Range Syrah. My experience is that those labels were always vastly exceeding this label. Lastly, we hold and recently tasted their Romas Grenache varietal label. It was underwhelming to the extent that I did not publish a review at that time. I'll wrap that up at the bottom of this post.

At this writing, the Baker's Gully still holds its dark inky garnet color and full bodied concentrated fruits, but a slight earthy leathery funk has set in with notes of a slight burnt note that was described a decade ago but a fellow cellartracker reviewer, offset by a raisin tones and a bit of a cognac alcohol heat tone. Satisfactory sipping as it nears end of life. 

RM 86 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=161636

Clarendon Hills Romas Clarendon Grenache 2007

Last week I opened this Clarendon Hills Romas Vineyard Grenache. This is Clarendon Hill's top Grenache, sourced from the Romas Vineyard, which sits in the tenderloin/best part of the more famous Blewitt Springs Vineyard.

The vineyard was planted in 1920 with the 'Romas Grenache' in the steepest, most elevated section. What makes this site special is its elevation of almost 1000 ft and its proximity to the ocean, which sits only a few miles away.  The hillside site in some places reaches above a +40˚ slope gradient where the old vines struggle to survive on a steep rock hill face with yields a microscopic 1.2 ton to the acre.The elevation and slope combined with the proximity to the ocean results in a cooler-climate site and not prone to producing the ‘jammy’, ‘porty’ styles of Aussie Grenache so popular from the broader area, rather, this wine is more like wines from the north side of Chateauneuf-du-Pape. 

This was dark garnet colored, medium bodied with strong nose of cherry liqueur, ultra ripe raisiny berry and strawberry fruits are accented with an offsetting medicinal glycerin and high alcohol tone, with notes of oak, clove and mineral.

RM 84 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=933956

https://clarendonhills.com.au/

 

Thanksgiving Feast Features Rhone Wine Flight

Thanksgiving Feast Features Rhone Varietal Blend Wine Flight

Twenty members of immediate family and dear friends gathered for our Thanksgiving feast. . For the occasion we selected a flight of Rhone varietal wines from our cellar and from son Ryan's.

We started with a aged vintage birth year selection celebrating son Alec and partner Viv joining us from NYC, a classic Chateauneuf-du-Pape.

Following the protocol of wine tasting, we moved from lighter wines to larger more complex wines. We progressed to more recent vintage Rhone Blend selections from our recent trip to Washington State Walla Walla and Red Mountain AVA, and then moved to a Rhone varietal Blend from Paso Robles.


Domaine de Beaurenard (Paul Coulon et Fils) Châteauneuf-du-Pape Boisrenard 1990

We discovered and acquired this label during our trip to Châteauneuf-du-Pape back in 1998.

Nearing thirty years of age, this is nearing the end of its drinking window but still suitable for such an occasion. This is beginning to lose clarity and taking on an slight opaque tone and the garnet color taking on a sight brownish hue. We still hold three bottles from this case acquired decades ago representing son Alec's birth year, holding them for family occasions.

Consistent with earlier tasting notes, this was medium to full bodied with slight earthiness and leather fronting layers of herbs, black and green pepper that accompany the slightly subdued black cherry and black berry fruits with a hint of spice, moderate lingering tannins.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=30341


https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2017/12/chateau-boisrenard-and-bbq-beef-brisket.html

Progressing in weight and complexity, this GSM Blend (Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre) in the Châteauneuf-du-Pape style is from Washington State Red Mountain AVA. We visited the producer Force Majeure during our recent Walla Walla Wine Experience 2018.

Force Majeure Collaboration Series VI Ciel du Cheval Vineyard 2011

We acquired a collection of Force Majeure wines including this vintage after meeting and hosting Force Majeure winemaker Todd Alexander and marketing, distribution and branding exec Carrie Alexander during their Chicago visit last year.  


Bright vibrant, garnet/purple in color full bodied, concentrated complex Blackberry fruits predominate with tangy red berries, tones of pepper and tar, earth and meat, hints of expresso, anise and smoke accented by nicely integrated smooth lingering dusty tannins. Another CT'er rightly noted this 'benefitted with time and warmer than cellar temps'.

RM 92 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/notes.asp?iWine=1788937

The Collaboration Series has ended as Todd has taken over general management and winemaking duties and his handiwork is now coming on line; this historic label was made by James Mantone of Syncline Winery. This is a blend 47% Mourvedre, 42% Syrah and 11% Grenache.

We just received our current release of Force Majeure 'GSM' blend, Parata, that we tasted and acquired during our recent Force Majeure Vineyards and new winery facility site visit and tasting, and were eager to open it and compare but didn't get that far in our consumption. We will look forward to a comparison tasting in the future as we hold several bottles of each.

https://forcemajeurevineyards.com/

We continued in our flight to a bigger, heavier, more concentrated Rhone varietal blend from Paso Robles L'Aventura that Ryan brought from his cellar.

L'Aventure Côte-à-Côte Estate Paso Robles 2011

Ryan brought this Rhone Red bruiser vintage 2011 providing a mini-horizontal tasting aside the Force Majeure.

Another GSM blend, very similar in style and taste but bigger and more concentrated with a whopping 15.8% alcohol content. Amazingly approachable considering the high alcohol content.

This is the handiwork of legendary winemaker Stephan Asseo who has been making wine since 1982. After graduating from L'Ecole Oenologique de Macon, in Burgundy, France, he started his wine career when he established Domaine de Courteillac in Bordeaux, then later purchased Chateau Fleur Cardinal and Chateau Robin in the Cotes de Castillion, Bordeaux. Over the next 15 years he honed his winemaking skills there.

In 1996 he embarked on a year long global search of the world's great wine regions for a great terroir when he "fell in love" with the unique terroir of Paso Robles in Central California in the rolling hills  of the Santa Lucia Mountain Range. There, Stephan began his adventure, "L'Aventure".
 
Bright garnet colored, full bodied, rich, concentrated, firmly structured, complex but nicely balanced and integrated forward fruits of ripe blackberry and red berry fruits accented by menthol, bacon fat, tones of black olive, anise and herbs with firm but well behaved silky tannins on the long finish.

RM 93 points.

This is a blend of 40% Syrah, 38% Mourvedre and 22% Grenache, similar to above but more Syrah and less Grenache.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1578540

http://www.aventurewine.com/

Later after dinner, watching a movie, we opened this big Syrah Blend from Washington State that we discovered and acquired during our Seattle Culinary and Woodinville (Washington) Wine Tour 2018. 

Long Shadows Wineries Sequel Syrah 2015

As chronicled in my recent blogpost on the Long Shadows Vintner's Collection, this is part of the portfolio of premium wines produced by legendary winemakers from around the world who are masters for their artwork with specific varietal wines.  

This Sequel Syrah is crafted by legendary Syrah winemaker John Duval, known for the leading Syrah label from Australia, Penfold's Grange. We hold a OWC (original wood case) of the 1990 Penfold's Grange, commemorating Alec's birth year. That label was Wine Spectator's Wine of the Year for the year 1993. 

Dark inky purple colored, rich, thick concentrated ripe black berry and black raspberry fruits, black pepper, smoked meat, notes of vanilla and caramel. 

RM 93 points.  

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2777751

https://www.longshadows.com/

This could likely improve with some further aging as it could benefit from some time to settle and should improve with a couple more years to achieve more balance and harmony as it reaches the apex of its drinking window, which clearly will be another decade or more. With our deep cellar, we'd normally hold a bottle like this for a while before consuming but we tried it now since it is available still at Binny's, our local wine super store so we can go get some more to replace this bottle and stock up some more, (even though we're in the highest level of the Long Shadows wine club and will be receiving some in our shipment allocation; but that will be the next 2016 vintage and we'll want to hold the '15, as it is birthyear of two grandkids, Reid and Jessie.). 

Finally, late in the evening we opened this TBA dessert wine. Viv just returned from an extended trip across Europe that include visits to Budapest and Prague in the Danube River Valley. There they visited several wineries. So, I pulled this Kracher dessert wine from the Burgenland wine region in Eastern Austria which I visited back in the early 2000's.

Alois Kracher Chardonnay TrockenBeeren Auslese (TBA) #7 Nouvelle Vague 2001



We hold more than a dozen labels of Kracher wines from this era. Its fun to watch quality dessert wines mature and change color over time, from straw color, to butter, then weak tea, and progressing darker and darker over time. Note this color of tea at seventeen years of age.

At their most desirable (to my taste preference) these wines are rich, thick, unctuous, and voluptuous with apricot marmalade, mango, toffee/brown sugar, and caramel notes. This may have been there at some point and perhaps passed that stage of its aging profile. If so, then it is time to drink although it will no doubt continue to age gracefully for several more years. But the rich, sweet apricot fruits nectar was gone and has turned more to a smokey charcoal layer over the fruits which were more subdued. Delightful never-the-less.

RM 91 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=19086

Walls Winery Visit During Walla Walla Wine Experience

The Walls Winery Visit During Walla Walla Wine Experience

One of the highlights of our Walla Walla Wine Experience 2018 was a visit to The Walls Winery, and meeting former tech exec, Founder and CEO, Mike Martin.

The "Walls”, is an imaginative tribute to the Walla Walla regional name and the historic legacy of the Washington State Penitentiary there, also known as 'Concrete Mama', which looms on the outskirts of town, just down the road from some of vineyard sources for their wines.

"Like you, our wines are different."

Legend has it that in the 1880's, the young town of Walla Walla chose to site a prison, rather than a University, within its city limits. While to some this may have seemed an odd decision, to the locals of the time it was more about pride.


The Walls pays tribute to the notorious landmark that has been a cornerstone of the community dating back to 1886. Life behind the “Walls” was memorialized in the book “Concrete Mama”, nickname for the prison, published back in 1981, a compendium of photographs and stories showing the uniqueness of the place including the preponderance of motorcycles behind the gates. The classic book is being republished in an upcoming re-release.

The Walls memorialize the book and stories with a flagship wine,  'Concrete Mama', a big firm Syrah in a large oversized heavy bottle with etched label of an image of Wall's character Stanley Groovey peering over the wall.

The Walls is also a testament as a metaphor for life and the role wine plays in our existence. The owner cites: "You can’t drive into Walla Walla -- to drink wine, play golf, spend time with friends and family -- and not think about life behind those walls. This contradiction is also a personal one as walls have become metaphors in all of our lives --  we put up walls to protect our hearts, we toil within the walls of work constraints, we build walls to defend what’s important to us.

"Nevertheless, as we build walls we’re also always looking for ways we can tear them down. Wine is the river that can overflow, subvert and topple these walls. It is a powerful force in bringing people together and building true community, capturing and preserving memories of time, places and people."

Mike Martin has fun with The Walls branding and marketing. He has created a whimsical cartoonish character Stanley Groovey who adorns the building front, the tasting room, and many of the labels. We laughed at the imagery of a 'Where's Waldo' theme where the character pops up in the vineyards or him appearing dressed in red on Christmas promotions of holiday labels.

The Walls portfolio includes a broad selection of red and white wines with creative and curious names including: Curiositas, The Ramparts, Gaspard, and Stanley Groovy (from Red Mountain); Concrete Mama, and Wonderful Nightmare from the Rocks District of Milton Freewater, and Cheys, Lip Stinger, Martin’s Gold, Cruel Summer from Yakima Valley AVA, and La Lutte and McAndrew from Columbia Gorg.

The Walls source grape from the usual suspects of prime appellations' sites with distinctive terroir in the state. They are developing their own 18-acre Estate vineyard in perhaps the most distinctive place or terroir, the Rocks District of Milton Freewater, the country’s newest AVA. Wine Spectator calls this AVA “perhaps America’s most distinctive example of terroir."

The unique riverbed of cobblestones and pebbles is as much as two hundred feet deep, formed 12,000 years ago from massive floods that swept through the region caused by ruptures in the ice dam that held Montana's glacial Lake Missoula. The Rocks District is a 12-square mile alluvial fan of 3,770 acres. 

The Walls also sources grapes from Red Mountain, Yakima Valley and the Columbia River Gorge AVA's.

Yakima Valley was Washington’s first official federally-recognized AVA located along the banks of the Yakima River. The Yakima Valley AVA also has sub appellations of Red Mountain, Rattlesnake Hills and Snipes Mountain.  There are more than 150 wineries with more than 17,000 vineyard acres planted. The Yakima Valley AVA is the largest sub-appellation of the Columbia Valley AVA both in total size and wine-grape acreage.

The Red Mountain AVA is Washington's smallest is typically the warmest growing region in Washington, with daytime averages of 90 degrees and lows dropping below 50. These fluctuations in temperatures promote sugar accumulation with the day’s heat while cool nights promote balanced acidity. Red varietals are dominate in the AVA’s where the sweltering slopes are well-known for Rhone varietals on the upper slopes and Bordeaux varietals on the lower blocks near the valley floor.

The Columbia River Gorge AVA straddles the Columbia River for a stretch of about 15 miles, including 280 square miles in the Cascade foothills above the Columbia River Gorge, near Hood River, Oregon. The Columbia River Gorge is a unique geological site where the mighty Columbia River flows approximately 80 miles from one side of the Cascade Mountain Range to the other. It is the only such passage through any major mountain range in the Western Hemisphere.

The climate and terrain of the wine producing appellation are similar to the French wine regions of Burgundy and the northern Rhone Valley. The cool western end of the Gorge produces Pinot Noir and Chardonnay; further east provides Pinot Gris and warmer-weather red grapes such as Syrah, Zinfandel, Cabernets and Barberas as well as white Rieslings, Gewürztraminers and Viogniers.

Wines tasted:

The Walls McAndrew White Salmon Vineyard Columbia Gorge Chardonnay 2016

This wine is a tribute to 'Doc' William McAndrew, Seattle Surgeon who first planted grapes on Underwood Mountain in the Columbia Gorge in 1972.

This is 100% Chardonnay, sourced from cuttings from Doc’s original plants and is made in a crisp, fresh style using the finest concrete tanks imported from Burgundy. Walls offer it both in his memory and with his “if you can dream it, do it” spirit.

The Walls The Ramparts Red Rhone Blend 2015 - A Southern Rhone Chateauneuf-du-Pape style blend of Grenache (52%), Mouvedre (32%), Counnoise (13%), and Syrah (3%). This is a tribute to the walled city of Avignon, just south of the Chateaunuef-du-Pape appellation, Les Ramparts d'Avignon were built by Medievel Popes to ward off mercenaries.

This wine began as an experiment with this vintage. Walls took what is sometimes called a GSM blend but blended in an otherwise higher percentage of Mourvedre and added another Southern Rhone CDP varietal Counoise resulting in further layers of complexity. They confined it - protecting it - within the cool walls of a concrete tank for three months, producing a favorite wine with dark fruit and wet stone balanced by a light body with bright hints of fresh plum and lilac. The 2015 Ramparts earned a gold medal in the 2018 Great Northwest Invitational Wine Competition.

The Walls Gaspard Red Mountain Syrah 2015 - Winemaker Ali writes: "A Legend has it that in 1224 a Knight named Gaspard, wounded and weary from the battles of the Albigensian Crusade, was given permission by the Queen of France to recover atop a granite peak in the storied Hermitage. Through with bloodshed, Gaspard became a hermit but was soon joined by others seeking similar refuge. Together, they began to tend the area’s mythical vines. “It’s crazy to think that almost 800 years ago, a hermit on a hill walled himself off from the world and in doing so, inspired this wine.”

The Walls Curiositas Red Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon 2015 - This was my absolute favorite of the flight. Of course I tend to favor Bordeaux varietals  but I found this especially appealing.

The fruit for this was sourced from the Obelisco Vineyard on the higher slopes of the Red Mountain AVA. The vines get increased exposure to the sun and are planted in higher density to further stress the grapes. The result is a wine of great complexity but one that is elegant and lush, yet subtle with tones the winemaker describes as possessing 'freshness that evokes a Margaux-styled fragrant' Cabernet' I grabbed a case of this and am eager to try it home and share with my wine buddies and friends with grilled steak. 

The Walls Stanley Groovey Red Mountain Red Wine 2015 -  This is a complex unique blend of 55% Touriga Nacional, 21% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13.5% Souzao, 9% Tinta Cao, 1.5% Tempranillo. While I would not call this the 'signature' wine of The Walls, it is their namesake wine, named for their signature branded character.

They whimsically write about this wine:

"You may not have heard of Stanley Groovy, and that’s OK. We’ll tell you he’s a strange -- but delightful -- guy, much more complex than he lets on, despite his “regular guy” exterior. Inside, he’s groovy -- just like the wine in this bottle. Trying to describe this wine is like trying to describe the inside of the fine artist’s mind; you may say you “get it” but really, no one gets it. And this is why what’s in this bottle will remain in generalities - simple on the outside, complex and groovy on the inside.'

The complexity and uniqueness of the wine is indicated by the diverse varied blend of varietal grapes from Portugal accenting Cabernet Sauvignon, the principle grape of Bordeaux.  

The Walls continue, in describing this wine: "Stanley Groovy isn’t afraid to stray from the crowd — he's different and he knows it, just like the wine in this bottle. Cabernet Sauvignon lends depth and complexity while intense Portuguese varietals bring a whole lot of groovy. The result? A wine that celebrates the beauty of being “different” — something Stanley is proud to lend his name to.'

The Walls 'Concrete Mama' Walla Walla Valley Syrah 2015 - This is a blend of 91% Syrah from the Stoney Vine Vineyard and 9% Grenache from the River Rock Vineyard from the Walla Walla AVA.

This is the second vintage of this label, named for the State Penitentiary near the winery on the outskirts of town, bearing the same nickname as this wine, 'Concrete Mama'.

The Walls draws the comparison between the two:

"In the 1880's Walla Walla chose to site a prison, rather than a University, within its city limits.
While to some this may have seemed an odd decision, to the locals of the time it was more about pride.'

"Walla Wallans were not ones to shy away from hard work; in fact, the harder the work the greater the sense of community pride. “Concrete Mama” still sits sentinel above our little town. Life is hard inside her walls, but for those who make it out, a new beginning beckons. This wine bears her nickname because nature’s struggle of transforming these Rocks District grapes into fine wine took place within similar walls of concrete, with loads of hard work and great community pride. Concrete Mama leaves these Walls full of promise. All you have to do is give it a chance on “the outside”.'
This is dark inky purple plum and ruby colored, big, bold and concentrated dense rich ripe black currant and black raspberry fruits accented by layers of olive tapenade, tobacco and pepper.

RM 94 points.

https://www.thewallsvineyards.com/

Rotie Cellars Walla Walla Rhone Style Blend Wines

Rotie Cellars Walla Walla Rhone Style Blend Wines

One of the highlights of our Walla Walla Washington Wine Experience 2018 was a visit to Rotie Cellars and discovering their Rhône Style red blend wines. Their mission is to craft traditional Rhône Blends with Washington State fruit. In the words of Sean Boyd owner, winemaker, "this means lower alcohol, less ripe, less oak, balanced, finesse driven, mouth coating wines".

We were hosted at their Walla Walla tasting room in the city centre by Madde Richards (right), head of hospitality and sales who keeps busy overseeing the myriad of details in creating a brand, building distribution and running the marketing operations. Note the Rocks District 'soil' in the picture behind us, and below.

Maddie hails from Dallas and spent time in Chicago before returning West where she enjoys horseback riding and camping with her husband, daughter and their pair of large dogs.

Like many of the Washington State producers, due to the remoteness of the Central Washington and Walla Walla regions, Rotie have a tasting room in Seattle. They also have a tasting room in downtown Walla Walla which is coming of its own as a major wine producing area and is becoming a tourist destination accordingly.

In the Walla Walla AVA, in the southeastern corner of the state, the number of wine producers has grown to over 150 and the total vineyard acreage has grown from 800 acres in 1999, to 1,300 in 2011 and nearly 3,000 in 2017. 

We knew going in that Washington State was producing some world class wines sourced from local fruit in both Rhône and Bordeaux varietals and styles. Rotie epitomizes classic Rhône wines in the styles of both the northern and southern Rhône wine regions. 

The Rhône is one of the major rivers of Europe flowing from the Swiss Alps to Geneva, then forming the border between Switzerland and France, running west to Lyon in the center of France, then flowing south through Avignon in the Southern Rhone wine region, emptying into the Mediterranean west of Marseille. 

The northern Rhône river valley experiences a mid-European climate with harsh winters but warm summers. The southern Rhône region has a more Mediterranean climate with milder winters and hot summers. A geologic feature of the region is the large pebble gravelly soil which absorb the heat of the sun during the day and serves to keep the vines warm at night.

Rocky soil at Chateau Beaucastel in Chateauneuf du Pape

Before this trip, I did not realize or appreciate how similar the area is to the classic wine appellations of the Rhône. The terroir soil composition in the Rocks District of Milton Freewater, the newest appellation in Washington State that straddles both sides of the Washington Oregon border, is amazingly like that in the Southern Rhône appellation of Chateauneuf du Pape (right).

The name Rotie conjures images of the Northern Rhone wine district Côte-Rôtie where the vineyards are comprised of the steep slopes facing the river with rocky soils that form stone walls.

Rotie sources grapes from the well known prime appellations' sites with distinctive terroir across the state. Starting with the 2015 vintage, their Northern Blend is 100% Rocks District fruit from their 18 acre Estate vineyards - with 7.5 acres coming on line in Grenache, another 7.5 in Syrah, and a half acre in Viognier. The Rocks District of Milton Freewater is the country’s newest AVA. Wine Spectator calls the AVA “perhaps America’s most distinctive example of terroir." 

Rotie are building a winery with a tasting room at the Rock's District estate location. The unique riverbed of cobblestones and pebbles is as much as two hundred feet deep, formed 12,000 to 15,000 years ago from massive floods that swept through the region caused by ruptures in the ice dam that held Montana's glacial Lake Missoula. The Rocks District is a 12-square mile alluvial fan of 3,770 acres. 

Rotie Cellars is the vision, handiwork and artcraft of owner winemaker Sean Boyd. He started his career in oil and gas exploration utilizing his degree in geology. He pursued his passion for wine working from the bottom up learning the craft and business first at Waters Winery in 2004, and eventually stepping out on his own in 2007.

Sean's academic studies and early work in geology prepared him well to produce authentic wines using natural techniques and methods to reflect the terroir or sense of place that results from the vineyard sites where the grapes are grown. He believes great wine happens mostly in the vineyard, and that his main job is to stay out of nature’s way. The result is Rotie wines that reflect the style that Sean loves to drink — French-style Rhône blends. 

The wines:

The Spring and Summer Releases ....

Rotie Cellars Rose' 2016

This is 100% Mourvedre from the Painted Hills Wine District

Rotie Cellars Southern Rhone White 2017 

This is a blend of 65% Viognier, 18% Rousanne and 17% Marsanne. 800 cases are produced. 

This is straw colored and light medium bodied, it opens with pineapple accented by citrus fruits turning to hints of apricot and honeysuckle and finishing with notes of peach with a nice bright crisp acid finish. This has received 93 points by Wine Advocate. 

Rotie Cellars Southern Rhone Blend 2016

This is a blend of 70% Grenache, 20% Mourvedre and 10% Syrah. Fruit for this is sourced from Alder Ridge. 

Garnet colored with medium body, it resembles the highlights of a Southern Rhone from Gigondas or Vacqueyras (lesser appellations to the better known Chateauneuf-du-Pape - known for Grenache based wines) with accents of white pepper on the black currant, black berry and raspberry fruits.

The 2015 of the label was awarded 94 points by Wine Advocate.

Rotie Cellars Northern Rhone Blend 2016

This is a blend of 95% Syrah and 5% Viognier.

Sourced from 100% Estate fruit from Rotie's Rocks District estate vineyard. This is a big full bodied fruit forward wine with structure by nicely polished aromatic dark fruits accented by notes of olive tapenade and bacon fat  

This 2015 label was awarded 95 points by Wine Advocate. 

The Fall release wines ...

Rotie Cellars 'Little G' Grenache 2016

This is a Grenache sourced from the Mary Hill Winery Rock Quarry land in the Columbia Gorge in western Oregon. 

This is smooth and polished - a Grenache wine discovery for folks not familiar with the varietal. Garnet colored medium bodied with bright vibrant raspberry and currant fruits accented by tobacco leaf and black tea notes.

Rotie Cellars  Hommage Red Blend 2015

 

Like the Southern Rhone Blend, this is a blend of select fruit - 70% Grenache, 20% Mourvedre and 10% Syrah.

This is dark inky blackish garnet colored, full bodied,  structured but nicely balanced black berry accented by blue fruits with tones of anise and dark mocha chocolate. 

Rotie Cellars DRE 2016

This is 100% Mourvedre. I've never experienced or appreciated what Mourvedre is capable of or how it contributes to the blend in the CDP (Chateauneuf du Papes). This is remarkable and a case study in this varietal. What a discovery! Is this to CDP what Petit Verdot is to Bordeaux?

Dark, full bodied, structured and muscular with black berry and boysenbarry fruits on layers of tobacco, spice box and white pepper on a long lingering tongue coating finish. 

Several of these wines are allocated and available or preferenced to Club Members. In Chicago, we've sourced these wines from Vin Chicago. With limited production and increasing notoriety for Washington State, Walla Walla, and the Rocks District - get on the bandwagon and the Club to source these wines while they are available. And acquire and store these for future enjoyment, and before the prices escalate as they become more well known and more in demand.

NOTE that Rotie are offering LIFETIME price protection on allocated Club wines at the price in effect when joining, and $25 flat rate shipping in the 48 States, as well as complimentary tastings. 

We look forward to further explorations in Rotie wines. Watch for them, and pick them up while you can.


https://www.rotiecellars.com/