I had the great pleasure of attending an exceptional wine dinner featuring older vintages (1986, 1997, 2000, 2003) of Bordeaux wines last weekend. The company was delightful, the venue memorable (Menton, Barbara Lynch’s latest venture), and the wine superb. Yes, I am happy to make such a blanket statement about the vin even though the group found there was some bottle variation among the wines on offer and there was some discussion of the merits of each selection. (More on the specific wines tasted in a later post….)

I realized in retrospect that “bottle variation” is a topic that isn’t really discussed in the mainstream. Folks might grab a bottle off the shelf – or buy a case of something they had a tremendously good experience with once – and discover the next bottle is “still good, but doesn’t taste quite the same”. This can happen for a number of reasons.

When dealing with smaller production wines meant to age like those I tasted Saturday, how the wine is handled and storage condition are critical to preserving a wine. Factors like exposure to heat and light and how well the cork holds up over time can significantly impact it. Back in the day when wineries conducted assemblage (the process of blending a wine) more organically, or when winemakers would siphon off certain amounts from each barrel and bottle each bottle individually, in/consistency bottle to bottle literally happened in the moment. But today and since roughly the 70s, stainless steel tanks allow winemakers to blend at once and then send the wine through a bottling line.  Among the more elite wineries with the funds/equipment et. al. necessary to create a consistent wine bottle to bottle and with a careful attention to detail regarding shipment, you can imagine things should be pretty dang consistent. True, you never know what happens behind the scenes as the wine is handled from importer, to distributor, to you. But still….

My take is that when all parts are created equal and particularly when we’re dealing with high-end stuff that has the best chance of any to be treated properly in transition from winery to table, bottle variation is the result of something I call “bottle personality”. Maybe I’m coining the phrase, maybe I’m not. But we in the trade largely agree that wines can show differently on any given day simply due to tides, atmospheric pressure change and the like. What’s not to say a wine can’t have an off day? It is an organic creature after all and, like us, can feel inclined to pout – or strut its stuff  – accordingly.

I’m not one for change in general, but I do find it absolutely fascinating in the case of wine. It’s one of the reasons I’m in this business: the experience is almost always unique, and therefore uniquely fulfilling.

What’s your experience with bottle variation?

Another wine I fell in love with all over again last summer was the Schoffit Chasselas, this time the 2008 vintage. Chasselas is a little known varietal grown from New Zealand to France, Switzerland, Germany and even due West as far as Portugal. Truth be told, I’ve only ever tasted Schoffit’s attempt, an example from Alsace, France to be precise. Finally back in stock after nearly a year, I hurried to bring home the latest vintage at the tail end of last summer. I remembered the previous vintage offering a large helping of mouthfilling fruit – pears and melon and bananas, oh my! It also had a distinct minerality to it, which endowed a cleansing lift that seemed to cut through the seeming “fat” of the ripe fruit flavors.

The 2008 vintage was even more exciting – more ripe and nuanced – so much so that I’ve been saving our discussion about it until we were fully in throws of October. Why? First, the aromas of  citrus blossoms, orange rind and even coriander lifted from the bowl of my glass as soon as I poured the Schoffit; rich, mouth-coating flavors of ripe banana and tangerine thrilled my tongue. These are smells and flavors I most often associate with the German wheat (weiss) beers I love so much. I find them enthralling for their texture and distinctness in the world. They give me a break from wine – but no less something to think about as I breathe in and then savor each sip. My second reason is that October brings more crisp fall days than hints of summer. The smell of leaves fills the air. I look forward to warming meals and fleshy, richer wines. The Schoffit Chasselas is precisely the kind of white I get super excited about.

So if you have a serious beer drinker in your life, or are one yourself, consider grabbing a bottle of this low-allocation, hard to find white, and dish up a plate of butternut or pumpkin squash risotto! You’ll be thanking your lucky stars you did.

Are you familiar with Chasselas? Which German wheat beer is your Oktoberfest pick?

It seems like summertime is also a time when you’re more likely to escape to the beach, or go camping. Or maybe you have the great opportunity to be the ‘destination location’ of your friends. Either way, it seems like your more likely to be going through a few bottles on a given night, rather than just the one – or more likely to be drinking more in general, night after night on your vacation, for example. So having a few delicious but affordable wines in your repertoire is kind of a necessity.

Note: Cheap wine does not necessarily mean BAD wine. On the contrary, savvy wine shop’s have a collection of wines they work even harder to find in the affordable price range. Because they won’t compromise quality for price.

This summer there were two wines, roses no less, that came with me on vacation pretty regularly. Both were late-comers to Ball Square Fine Wine’s rose collection. The first of the two, Les Trois Chenes, is a project of Chateau Moutete and is a crazy blend of Cinsault, Ugni blanc, Syrah, Merlot, Mourvèdre and even Rolle, for good measure. The result? A wine with surprising levity, authenticity (great minerality) and under-handed (in a good way) fruit. Possibly a perfect example of Provincial rose. For $8.99 especially, this was a no-brainer.

The second of the two is a curious wine from the Vinho Verde region of Portugal. No joke. And no surprise, it has a little bit of spritz. A regular cork screw will do it. But those little bubbles go a long way to delight your taste buds on a hot day. (I mean, come on, why else do people put tonic water or club soda in their cocktails? Subtle bubbles rock.) This wine, Adegas de Moncao Murhalas rose, is made from Porguese varietals Alvarelhao, Pedral, and Vinhao, the last of which is a fleshy red grape. Almost sweet red berries and watermelon flavors are lifted by brisk acidity and that little bit of spritz I keep going on about. It’s fruit-forward sweetness made it great with spicy foods, too – or as desert itself after a big meal.

Suffice to say: happiness! I’m drinking them still while supplies last.

Which under $9 bottles captured your enthusiasm last summer?

…..aaaannnnnddddd we’re back! With the official first day of fall under our belts this week, it’s time to begin chatting about wine again after some needed R & R. Of course, just because I haven’t been blogging about wine doesn’t mean I haven’t been tasting it – or drinking it while on vacation or hanging out with friends.  Curious to hear about a few highlights?

Today we’ll whet your whistle with the “Best in Show” evening – a pairing of Champagne and Lobster!

For my birthday I received a bottle of Guy Larmandier Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs champagne. What better pairing is there than lobster? Quite possibly… none. (And when you are vacating on an island in New England, fresh lobster isn’t so hard to find.) The wine was delicately, optimally frothed, with a lovely leesy texture. Some toast and a hint of almond and truffles on the nose led way to a giant helping of red apples, pears and lemon zest (all buoyed by it’s very dry nature) on the palate.  All of these well integrated elements came to bear even more marvelously as we dug in.

Why?

Well, lobster is a meaty, succulent and almost sweet, not too fishy, creature of the sea. The acidity in well-made champagne cuts through the fleshiness of the meat and the richness of the butter you may be predisposed to dress it in. What about the ever-present wedge of lemon you are also inclined to squeeze atop the lobster? Think of champagne as the other part of the whole, as layers of innate citrus flavors marry with the lobster you’ve just tasted. And then there is the texture. Richness lifted by citrus/acidity create a delectable, mouthwatering result.

A tough one to beat, indeed!

What was your summer’s wine or paring “Best in Show”?

With August but days away, we’ll be signing off for some needed R & R for a few weeks – perhaps with the occasional insight or newsflash to whet your whistle until we get back into the full swing of things after Labor Day.

But we can’t NOT go out with Wicked splash first! Head over to Wicked Local today to find out about two more “Blanc” varietals you won’t want to miss this summer!  Giddy-up!

Which Chenin Blanc is your summer fav?