The Grape Crusader

Winery: Lioco

Bottling: 2008 Sonoma County Chardonnay

Region: California

Sub-Region: Sonoma

Estimated Retail Price: $20

Purchase Details: A good buddy of mine with whom I used to work with procured this bottle for me.  Based on the many conversations we had about wine, he felt strongly that I would really like Lioco’s wines, so he bought it for me from the company his wife works for.  Thanks Mark, Lioco can now count me as a lifetime fan.

Tasting Notes: On the nose, the Lioco chardonnay gave off very fresh floral and tropical notes.  In the mouth, I loved the play and intensity of the tropical fruit flavors with the creamy mouth feel along with the fresh finish from the underlying acidity.   Although utterly delicious on its own, I just know that if this chardonnay were drunk alongside food from India or Thailand, a wine and food pairing nirvana would be attained.
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The C. Donatiello Winery, which just celebrated its one year anniversary in March 2009, is a beautifully re-incarnated building occupying the land at 4035 Westside Rd. where the now-defunct Belvedere Winery used to reside.

We had the privilege of being given a quick, but personal tour of the new winery’s facilities by my fiancee’s old friend from high school in San Diego, Robert Conard.  Robert is the Hospitality Director at the winery, but today and probably on many other days, he wears many hats.  Today he was mainly the ambassador to the winery’s many local guests stopping by to soak up the sun and the complimentary live music on the estate’s beautifully manicured garden and lawn.

View of the gardens and the estate from the parking lot.

The winery is a partnership between the winery’s namesake Chris Donatiello and San Francisco investment banking legend Bill Hambrecht.  The winery’s focus is on the production of small-lot pinot noir and chardonnay sourced from premium vineyard sites in the Russian River Valley.  I can’t remember, but I think farming is done either organically, or in a very responsible and sustainable manner.  Most, if not all of the vineyards they source fruit from are owned by the winery.

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Some of my favorite white wines are dry, minerally-tinged zesty wines from Italy.  In my opinion, you can find many solid Italian white wines, outside of pinot grigio, in the $10 – $20 range.  Falanghina, vermentino, Orvieto and Arneis are just a few of the Italian varieties that I find can be very intriguing, fun and light-hearted, but serious at the same time.

This Toscana Bianco is a blend comprised of 50% vermentino, 30% malvasia and 20% chardonnay.  Its an off-beat blend that made for a unique and intriguing wine.

There was weight, minerality and a firm acid structure that allowed it to pair very well to our usual Mediterranean dinner fare.

The fruit component of the wine consisted mostly of barely ripe, almost green citrus fruit flavors.  I want to say that the flavors leaned more towards the rind of the fruit rather than the pulp and juice flavors.  Complementing the bitter citrus flavors however were a juxtaposition of lush tropical fruit that helped balance everything out.

This is another wine from a great import portfolio called Small Vineyards Imports, which is based in the Seattle, Washington area.  They carry some really good artisan crafted Italian wines in their portfolio.  I paid aprroximately $14 for this bottle of wine.

We normally like to go to our favorite Mediterranean restaurant because of its outdoor seating, lively ambience and liberal corkage policy (read none).  This particular evening though, we were too tired for fun, but were still hankering for some falafel fun madness.  Solution?  Order in and take out; done!

Our standard fare at The Olive Tree Cafe is a plate of briny, acidic, salti-licious Greek caviar, a falafel sandwich, baba ganoush and a house salad with seriously the best vinaigrette in the world.  Smokiness, herbiness and acidity are the  main characteristics of these dishes, hence a wine with a fair amount of acid is needed to balance all this madness out.

The 2007 Trenel Macon-Villages is just what the wine gods ordered.  This wine had everything you’d want and more from a solid white Macon.  Tingling minerality, searing acidity and green apple flavors.  For the bonus round, there was un-characteristic juiciness.  Juiciness is not a typical characteristic that I get from a Macon blanc, but this one had it, giving the wine a much more full and rounded mouthfeel.  This was perfect for our dinner that evening.  The wine and food together were making our palates very happy.

A little more expensive for a Macon-Villages Blanc ($18), but oh so worth it.  The wine is imported by the reclusive Robert Chadderdon, who has an excellent portfolio filled with the likes of producers like Quintarelli and Billecart-Salmon.  Obviously, this is one of his more affordable selections.

The restaurant's spring rolls were great tasting as well

Winery: Hedges Family Estate

Bottling: 2006 CMS White

Region: Washington

Sub-Region: Columbia Valley

Estimated Retail Price: $13

Purchase Details & Tasting Source: Purchased from Fujioka’s Wine Times retail store and consumed at our favorite Vietnamese restaurant, Bac Nam

Tasting Notes: As is always the case with wines from the Evergreen State, we rarely ever purchase them.  There’s no particular reason except our habitual nature to reach for Californian, French or Italian wines.  The Hedges Family Estate CMS White caught my attention because of the unfamiliar and somewhat medieval looking label.  Even more compelling was the blend of sauvignon blanc, chardonnay and rousanne from Washington state.  The price tag of twelve bucks was the final hook for me.

The wine had a nice golden looking color in the glass, no doubt brought about by the chardonnay.  The nose was very floral and aromatic.  In the mouth is where it got interesting.  Initially there was a lot of things going on at the same time.  There was quite an impact as far as weight and attack on the palate was concerned.  There was a lot of complexity very early in the process.  Usually for whites, I’d expect a big, fresh, fruit blast up front and mellower flavors as the wine opens up.  With this wine though, there were other things going on besides fruit.  You could taste the layers early on.  We were digging it.

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Winery: Hayman & Hill

Bottling: 2006 Russian River Chardonnay

Region: California

Sub-Region: Russian River Valley, Sonoma

Estimated Retail Price: $12 – $14

Purchase Details & Tasting Source: Leftover inventory from our now-defunct retail wine shop project.  Had with Thai food.

Tasting Notes: The problem I occasionally see with chardonnays in this price range is that they are over-oaked.  I hear that this heavy oaking is done in order to “cover up” mediocre or below par fruit.  What you end up getting is chardonnay tasting liquid.  I guess it makes sense for what it is, but I’ve never worked in a winery, so I can’t say for sure.  I just hear these kinds of comments on the street.

The 2006 Hayman & Hill Chardonnay seemed to have enough quality fruit that it didn’t need the full oak treatment.  Don’t get me wrong, there was oak, but there was enough fruit and acid to balance the wine out.  On the nose were aromas of pear and tropical fruit.  On the palate were melon, pear, pineapple and star fruit.  Rounding the wine out were a tinge of butter and a hint of spice from the oak.

I think the wine was at it’s peak.  We’ve had the wine several times in the past and I remember there being more energy and viscosity in the wine early.  This last drink though, told me that this bottle’s run was over.  I didn’t get the sense that more complexity or evolution of the wine was going to happen.  Still a solid wine at the price.

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With a label like that, it could easily blend into the Burg section of a wine shop don't you think?

Winery: Elizabeth Spencer Wines

Bottling: 2005 Sonoma Coast Chardonnay

Region: California

Sub-Region: Sonoma Coast

Estimated Retail Price: $35-$40

Purchase Details & Tasting Source: We found this screaming deal in the closeout bin for $20.99 at Fujioka’s Wine Times.  It was the only bottle there, so it must have been a loosey, goosey onesy twosey that didn’t have a place on the shelf.  We have wine at home to drink, but we were into a retail wine shopping adventure.  I was making a pork chop with a pear and dried cranberry compote, which I thought really screamed chardonnay, and we were out.

Tasting Notes: I get really excited when I taste a chardonnay that tastes like what happens when Burgundy and California collide.  Wet stone and stone fruit flavors are what I strongly associate with white Burgundies and this Elizabeth Spencer Chardonnay had a lot of that going on, of course with the California sunshine in the bottle as well.

On the nose I could smell a perfect combination of oak, lees stirring and tropical fruit and stone.  I won’t lie to you.  At some point in the night when I’m drinking a wine, I look at the technical notes to see if what I surmised about the wine making was correct.  Of course I try to guess as much as I can before looking.  It’s a great way to learn more about the technical side of what you’re drinking.  You should try it at home.

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Winery: Flowers Vineyard and Winery

Bottling: 2006 Flowers Sonoma Coast Chardonnay

Region: California

Sub-Region: Sonoma

Estimated Retail Price: Around $45

Purchase Details/Tasting Source: Wish I could remember how we got this bottle.  Had during dinner, see details below.

Tasting Notes: This was an interesting wine.  It bordered on being a little too light and airy in the weight department, that was a little underwhelmed.  After checking the specs department, I saw that they only lightly stirred the lees lightly for four months, rather than continuously for the entire time spent in barrel.  On the flip side, the airiness and the lightness also contributed a feminine quality to the wine that allowed you to pick up the subtle nuances.

The flavors were that of typical chardonnay pear, apple and spice.  There was just a shade of oak that helped frame the wine and a medium amount of acid.  Actually, as the night wore on, I started to like the wine more and appreciated it for its understated elegance.  The nose was very pretty and pleasant as well.

If you love Rombauer, Kongsgaard, Edna Valley Paragon Chardonnay or anything else with a little bit of wood and butter, you should probably steer clear of this chardonnay

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A pairing of lobster and chardonnay are something I always hear people say are a supreme and classic pairing.  It’s one of those food and wine pairings that I’ve always wanted to try, but never had a chance to actually do.  When New Years Eve rolls around we always make sure to end the year with a cholesterol bang.  Steak, lobster, cheese, foie gras pate, you name it.  I know, sounds gross, but you just gotta do it.  Being that lobster was on the menu, I made sure to come home with a chardonnay, especially one that could not only pair with the lobster, but also with all the other artery cloggers on the table.

The 2005 Ojai Chardonnay from Santa Barbara, California was my choice for the evening.  Ojai wines are big, brawney, but stylish wines.  This goes for everything from their sauvignon blanc to their syrahs and even to their pinot noir.  I’ve had on several occasions their single vineyard chardonnays from Bien Nacido and Clos Pepe and man, are they dramatic. (more…)

The 2007 Alma Rosa Chardonnay comes to us from the Santa Barbara County region of California.  Apparently the wine used to be crafted to resemble more of a Chablis style of chardonnay, which usually means no oak and a presence of searing acidity.  From what I understand, the wine now gets the combo oak and steel deal instead of an ala carte treatment of one or the other.  I never tried the earlier versions, but I’m liking the new style Richard Sanford has created.

The wine is first fermented in oak for a few weeks before being transferred to steel tanks for aging and then bottling.  Malolactic fermentation, the process that softens the acids in the wine, is not carried out.  The combination of oak treatment along with steel treatment leads to a wine that has slight hints of oak, refreshing acidity, tropical fruit flavors and hints of mineral.  All of this makes for a wine with interesting juxtapositions of flavor.  Juxta-what?  It tastes good.

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