We figure there’s no time like springtime to select wines that may tend to hibernate otherwise without a little special attention, simply because they are lesser known. So this April we’re keeping things both familiar (staying closer to home with domestic wine picks) and more… interesting! Our red wine choices don’t exactly roll off the tongue, but with such powerful juice in the bottle, we know that’s about to change. Enjoy learning about these noteworthy April Wicked Wines on Wicked Local today!

Are you familiar with any of these more off-the-beaten path picks?

Chardonnay gets a bad rep. Some people seem to find it too mundane. Others complain about the over-oaked Chards that used to dominate the domestic market. You know things are really bad when somewhere along the way a “group” called the ABC’s came into being (Anything BUT Chardonnay). But such hate is not just unbecoming, it’s also unnecessary. Pop over to Wicked Local today to get a fresh take on this highly “controversial” varietal!

Are you a Chard lover – or hater?

And…. we’re back!

What better way to come back from the holidays than to find out this month’s Wicked Wine picks? I figure it’s worth celebrating the end of 2009 with some truly wonderful selections you can snuggle up to on the coldest nights of the winter. Pop on over to Wicked Local to see what I have up my sleeve!

Does your New Years resolution have anything to do with wine? If so, what have you decided to pursue in 2010?

Yes, there are the ABC wine drinkers of America – “Anything But Chardonnay”. And their club was probably worth forming back in the day given the prolific amount of lackluster Chard on the market, practically flowing with splinters from over-oaking. Before I “officially” became part of the wine world (professionally) I may have even been an “unofficial” member….

What I learned quickly is there is a lot of juice on the market. Some of it is good. Some is ok. Some of it is just plain undrinkable. And, of course, everything in between and beyond! It is not right to discriminate against a grape – or even a style – entirely. You have to be on the lookout for the exception to the rule, the producer who is going above and beyond to let the grape’s natural fruit flavors emerge, or the terroir shine through. We’ve said it time and again: wine making is both an art and a science.

Hamilton Russell Vineyards is the diamond in the rough. Arguably they have a few advantages working for them. They are a South African winery – one of the Southern most in fact, located on the Cape of Good Hope in the Hemel-en-Aarde Valley appellation. South Africa also has it’s own unique terroir – vineyard site to vineyard site, of course, but also in broader terms than, say California. South Africa’s location and aspect on the globe, let alone its unique soil types, maritime influence and the like, will bring to bear additional nuance to a wine you might otherwise think you’ve “tried”. The Russell family is savvy, too, focusing their efforts exclusively on producing exceptional Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.

I had no extraordinary cause to pop the cork on the 2007 Hamilton Russell Chardonnay (which retails for about $26) other than the end to a gorgeous weekend, and the start of a tremendously delicious meal. I served up a plate of grilled pineapple and veggies – summer squash, zucchini, plumb tomatoes, vidalia onions, and snow peas – dressed in a touch of garlic and a soy/honey marinade.  I threw in a helping of grilled shrimp, seasoned with a touch of red pepper and Old Bay spice.

Enter the Hamilton Russell Chard, a gorgeous wine that happily continues to change and evolve at first sip, with food, and again after you’ve finished your plate.  As you continue to retaste it, various components tackle your tastebuds. The flavors? Imagine a bowl of apricots, a ring of freshly cut pineapple, and juicy, ripe pear slices all squeezed with lemon juice and then tossed with a great helping of taught minerality. Its backbone of minerality is most intriguing, almost forcing you to question whether you had in fact opened the Chard. But then its satisfyingly rich texture brings you back home again – you know all too well Chard is more of a sultry, curvy broad, like Joan from Mad Men. And this wine is absolutely that.

Most memorably, the Hamilton Russell was an absolutely stunning complement to my meal. It proved to be The Perfect Pairing, as the wine and the food both showed even BETTER when partnered up.  We all strive for such an experience; yet it is a rare treat when a wine and a dish don’t just go well together, but each gets better in the company of the other.

This one really is one to behold – and one that’s so dynamic even my description leaves room for you to add your own insights. This wine is that good – and that good at defying “the odds”.

What wine made you a believer in the “exceptions to the rule” caveat?

This just in:  if you like Toasted Head Chardonnay, take note! R.H. Phillips is closing up shop. The product is being moved to Robert Mondavi’s Woodbridge enterprise. I’m sorry to hear about the closure not because I enjoy Toasted Head, but because it is closing to improve “efficiency”. Granted, this is no doubt a wise business move. But if you’ve ever read about the French winemakers scrambling to make ends meet just to produce their wines because they feel so passionately about creating something wonderful, it is more tragic. Not that I’m comparing the small French winemaker/viticulturist to a larger than life U.S. corporate entity that churns out wine like water. Rather, to me wine at its best is artisanal. I simply wish Big Business had nothing to do with it. That said, and knowing that’s how it is in some cases, I’m bummed the local community will suffer.

Meanwhile, on the heels of my Leftover Bubbly article, it turns out Zork is set to launch a special closure for sparkling wines – one where you open the bottle and can reseal it with the same closure thereafter. Studies indicate the wine will keep it’s mojo for several days after being opened. I’ll believe it when I see it – though if anyone can do it, it’ll be Zork.

But the grand prize on wine journalism this week goes to (drum roll, please…) Decanter, for Richard Woodard’s article about scientists’ efforts in South Africa to pinpoint the reason these wines have a general reputation for smelling (and tasting) of burnt rubber.  I’m chuckling because research to date has been “inconclusive” and – get this – they “have not yet estabilished scientifically…whether it is unique to South Africa”. Having just completed the March-May trade tasting season (which included several fairly large South African portfolios), I’m pretty confident stating here this characteristic is ABSOLUTELY unique to South Africa.

And so my question heading into the Memorial Day weekend is….

Why does it feel like New World wine regions in particular are constantly trying to use technology or science to “prove” some characteristic about their wine? Does anyone else feel this way? Can’t it just be what it is?