Do You Need Some New Wine Ideas? Don't Listen to Us!

We've been at this blog for a year now and I just realized something: No one is going to buy a $25-$30 bottle of wine because we said we liked it. So, what should you do if you don't love the wine you've been buying and you're reluctant to buy wine you haven't tried? Go to a tasting! Wine shops have them all the time and they are totally a popular affair--as in, suitable to the majority, no reason, whatsoever, to be intimidated. In fact, chances are very high that the blow-hard tasting patron spouting off about lack of balance and such sort actually doesn't know anything about wine beyond what he's read in an old copy of Wine Consumer at the barber shop. As long as you refrain from asking if they mixed cherries into the wine in order to make it smell like cherry--I have heard variations of that question on two different occasions--you'll be good!

Other than that, all you need to taste like a pro is to have your swirl, sniff, sip down. Go early to avoid the crowds. Get there 10 minutes before the tasting is scheduled to start even. Definitely avoid wearing perfume and avoid standing next to people wearing perfume. Many wine shops will provide patrons with a real glass, but some may use plastic cups, so bring your own glass to be on the safe side. You want to actually be able to taste the wine so you can decide if you might want to take a few bottles home (mouthwash cups aren't conducive to tasting).

Finally, stay focused. It can be difficult amidst the din of a big tasting, and distractions take away from your ability to taste the wine. While part of the point is to taste new wines you haven't been exposed to, it can be a good strategy to zero in on a subset of the full offering that you think you might be most likely to buy.

For the most part, wine shops hold tastings for free as a way to get people interested in the wines they carry. Usually a representative for the wine distributor or importer is pouring a selection from the portfolio that they sell to the wine shop. Typically most of the wines on tap at a free tasting sell between $9-$15 a bottle and never exceed $50 (that would get too expensive to pour for a free tasting). The wine shop will generally offer a discount on the wines at the tasting as well, so it can be a great opportunity to stock up on some exciting new wines.

Some of our favorite local shops with tastings are:

Salem Wine Imports, Salem, MA
Ourglass, Saugus, MA
The Vineyard, North Andover, MA
Leary's, Newburyport, MA

A really complete list of local New England wine related events is available on A Passionate Foodie. Richard may soon have news of another new tasting venue in Massachusetts, but we'll wait for that story to break on his blog...

New Wine Shop, Adonna Imports and New Friends Tasting Italian Wines

There is a new wine shop in Salem, Massachusetts that our Passionate Foodie friend from the North Shore turned us on to. On the fifth of February, Eric of the Salem Wine Imports hosted an Italian wine tasting featuring seven of the wines from Adonna Imports. We even got to meet fellow North Shore Blogger Richard, ring leader of The North Shore Winers.

This was our first visit to the new wine shop located on 32 Church Street in Salem, Massachusetts. The store is beautifully set up with a stunning offering of wines. Eric felt that Salem was right for a niche wine shop. There are lots of packies in the area, but having a wine shop where patrons can come in on a Tuesday night, have a tasting, socialize and procure some mighty fine wines is what Eric wanted. Salem Wine Imports has a great selection of Italian, French, Californian, Spanish wines as well as a wonderful selection of wines from Oregon and Washington.

If you are looking for the unusual, the unknown, the hard-to-find; but most importantly high-quality wines at a good price, scamper on over, that’s exactly what you will find. Now, I’m a bit hard boiled when it comes to value. I saw some very good wines for the less than $20.00. How unusual? How about a Swiss Gamay? When was the last time you saw one of those? I'm not a Gamay fan, but this one had me taking another look. He also has wines in the $50.00 price point and above for those special occasions.

The Tasting
Eric invited Eileen Wright of Adonna Imports to present a flight of six Italian wines from the Adonna portfolio.

Conte Vistarino 2004 Pinot Nero
Conte Visterino also from Lombardy has a long history of working with Pinot Nero dating back to the 1800's. The vineyards are located on The Count's vast Estate (mid 1500's) in the Oltrepo Pavese on the banks of the Po river. The winery is now run by his daughter Ottavia. Her objectives remain the same as her ancestors; create elegant, authentic wines that express their terroir. The Conte Vistario 2004 Pinot Nero is a lightly smoky, tannic little extra acid that one would expect from the region.

La Piane 2004 La Maggiorina
Le Piane is located in the Boca region of Italy in the lower Alps of the Piedmont.
The La Maggiorina is a Colline Novarsi DOC, district of Novara. The wine has a mixture of Croatina, Uva Rara, Vespolina and Nebbiolo. The name of the wine comes from the traditional Maggiorina system, where four vines are arranged in the four cardinal points, forming a cup. This is a newer DOC (1994) that also has a white wine made exclusively of Erbaluce grapes. The Maggiorina is a pleasant drinking wine with fruity and spicy aromas. The alcohol level is at 12% which I find to be typical of the Piedmont region. The wine maker Christoph Kunzli bought the property in 1988 from Antonio Cerri one of the last local wine growers of this almost forgotten region. The label states “dry red wine” which leads me to believe that it is the Rosso which would be Nebbiolo 30% min, Uva Rara max 40%, Vaspolina and/or Crotina max 30%. Yup, we brought one of these puppies home.

Martilde 2006 Bianco IGT "Gelo"
Italic Riesling grapes producing a still dry white wine with a simple profile is what's under the cork. The low yield and the advanced age of the vineyard guarantee the right level of ripeness (with grapes tinged with gold), resulting in a good structure and very mild acidity, which make it pleasantly full. Color a warm bright yellow, ample and compound nose, faintly citrusy. You can have it for the whole meal, with starters, first courses, or main courses of fish, poultry or white meats. (I’m thinking lobster.) On the label, is their male sheepdog "Gelo" in one of his favorite postures.

Martilde 2005 BonardaMartilde 2005 Bonarda is made entirely from Croatina grapes. A genuine, straightforward wine, ruby colored and with a simple clean nose, pleasantly reminding of small red fruit. This wine is not barrel fermented and will do well for enjoying now up to three years. It pairs well with soups, roasted meats, vegetables and light grillades.

Solatione 2004 Chianti Classico
Solatione is located in the heart of Chianti Classico region. The winery gets its name from the great exposition of the sun. The Vineyard is thirteen hectares, family owned and operated since 1972. Until 1991 the wine was sold to other vintners but in 1992 Fabio and Francesca (brother and sister) decided to bottle their own wines. The Chianti Classico is aged in Slovenic oak barrels for 12/16 months. This wine was definitely very delicious, well structured and firm tannins and very Sangiovese. Other Chianti Classico lovers were ooooing and aw-ing over this one. Taster B was also pleased with this offering with the only disappointment that it was sold out by the time we were ready to leave. (This is the one that got away!)

Redondel 2005 Teroldego
This winery is located in the Trentino owned and operated by a young winemaker Paolo Zanini He has a long family history in his vineyards. The vineyards are full of naturally maintained older vines with low yields and a small production. The wine comes from the Mezzolombardo in the Rotaliano plain.

A little about Adonna Imports
The company was started 3 years ago by Jeannie Rogers and Eileen Wright. Jeannie also owns Il Capriccio restaurant in Waltham, Massachusetts. Their portfolio consists of small winemakers who work well in the vineyards as well as the winery. Most of their producers are either 100% organic or working towards that goal. Jeannie has known most of the producers they work with for over 20 years. Jeannie also travels back to Italy frequently to source new winemakers. (I want that job!) Their portfolio 95% Italian but they do work with a few Austrian and one California winemaker.

Talking with Eileen, she tells us that they are having great success filling a niche market, catering to smaller wine shops and restaurants. The wines the get are from small producers and many (including some of the wines we tasted) are exclusive Adonna imports. Working with small lot producers and quality wines gives them the feeling of personal customer service and allows them to work closely with their clients.

Because their producers are small, many of their selections come in by the tens of cases, which is much too small of a quantity to be of interest to the large chain discount houses. Eileen tells us that she enjoys her work and particularly likes the idea of promoting the smaller, high quality producers.

As someone looking from the outside in, I get excited when I do business with folks like Eileen and Eric. Personalized service, quality products and I walk away with a feeling that we made some great friendships.

I also want to shout out to the Passionate Foodie for turning us to this. As a reward for getting through this posting, here is a tip. Eric is planning on having tastings most Tuesday nights. Check out his blog for details. The tip??? Salem Wine Imports encourages you bring your favorite tasting glass!

Italian Wine Tasting at The Vineyard

The Vineyard is a wine and cheese shop located north west of Boston, MA. On January 27th, The Vineyard held a tasting of 22 Italian wines presented by Bob McVickers representing the Boston Wine Company, Elizabeth Tamasino representing The Vineyard and Gary Burrell representing Rolivia, Inc.

We’ve attended a few store tasting before. They generally give a small pour into a thimble sized plastic glass which is impossible to evaluate color or aroma. When we arrived after the 50 minute drive through light blowing snow, we were greeted outside the door in the 30 degree weather by Bill Dwyer, the store proprietor. Much to our relief, he had a table set up outside with 50 small, what I consider to be the Italian restaurant burgundy glasses, chilled by the New England weather to a nice temperature for evaluating the white wines.

The Vineyard was named "New England's Best Wine Store" by WHDH-TV (Channel 7) and "Best of North Shore" in the wine/spirits category by Northshore Magazine.

Bill welcomed us to the shop, made us feel at home and invited us in. The wine shop was small, but very well stocked. We found many of the familiar wines from major appellations, Old and New World. There were three tables set up with flights from all regions of Italy.

For us, this wine store offers a different variety than we have seen in the area. One of our finds was a David Coffaro Escuro Californa Red Wine blend which caught our eye because of Dr. Deb’s posting. We will be reviewing this in the future.

Taking tasting notes was a little difficult due to the number of people and lack of horizontal space. But we did get the highlights of the wines we tasted. Water, cheese and bread sticks were available to keep the palate cleansed.

The wines we will be reviewing in the future will be the Falesco 2006 Sangiovese (Umbria), the Santa Cristina Sangiovese (Toscana) with its tobacco, rose, coffee, cherry and silky tannins. Poggio Alle Sughere 2003 Morellino di Scansanso (Toscana) and the Villa Fulvia 2002 Amarone della Valpolicella (Veneto) with its cherry, leather, elderberry, smoky vanilla and cedar notes.

Another wine we felt was quite delicious was La Pieve 2002 Bolero (Piemonte) which had fragrant pine, cherry-blackberry characters.

We are grateful for Mr. Dwyer for putting on this fun and educational event. If you live in the striking distance of North Andover, get onto the emailing list. On Saturday, February 9th, there will be another tasting featuring 52 wines.


Table 1: Bob McVickers, Boston Wine
1. Tramin 2006 Pinot Grigio (Trentino-Alto Adige) $14.99
2. Zenato 2006 Lugano (San Benedetto Lugana) $14.99
3. Falesco 2006 Sangiovese (Umbria) $13.99
4. Taurino 2003 Salice Salentino Reserva (Apulia) $11.99
5. Morgante Nero D'Avola 2005 (Sicily) $14.99
6. Corte Giara 2004 Ripasso (Veneto) $19.99
7. Maculan Dinderello (Veneto) $23.99

Table 2: Elizabeth Tomasino, The Vineyard
1. Val D'Oca NV Prosecco Il Blu (Veneto) $14.99
2. La Caplana Gavi (Piemonte) $12.99
3. Tormaresca 2006 Chardonnay (Puglia) $11.99
4. Santa Cristina Sangiovese (Toscana) $11.99
5. Cantina Zacagnini Montepulciano D'Abruzzo (Abruzzi) $17.99
6. Poggio Alle Sughere 2003 Morellino di Scansanso (Toscana) $16.99
7. Tormaresca 2006 "Neprica" (Puglia) $11.99
8. La Caplana Dolcetto D'Ovada (Piemonte) $12.99

Table 3: Gary Burrell, Rolivia Inc.
1. Villa Cornaro "Select" 2006 Pinot Grigio (Veneto) $13.99
2. Sensi 2006 Montepulciano D'Abruzzo (Abruzzo) $10.99
3. Sensi 2003 Chianti Classico Reserva (Chianti) $17.99
4. La Pieve 2002 Barolo (Piemonte) $37.99
5. Sensi "Testardo" 2004 Sangiovese/Cabernet (Toscana) $24.99
6. Villa Fulvia 2002 Amarone della Valpolicella (Veneto) $29.99
7. Petrone Limoncello (Please Save this your for last taste) $19.99

Getting the Most from your Tasting Trip

We’ve compiled some etiquette points to help you get the most pleasurable experience from you tasting trip. Note that none of these prohibit having fun, getting excited or falling in love. So have a good time, learn lots and go discover that one truly outstanding wine that you have dreamed about. It is out there.

Scents don’t make sense
A huge, big no-no is wearing scent to a wine tasting room. This includes perfumes, after-shave, cologne, scented body lotions, etc. Smell is such an important aspect of wine tasting, and it is courteous to not interfere with other tasters’ (and your) ability to smell the wine.

Adding tobacco notes to your notes
Don't smoke anywhere near the tasting room. Smell is important and no one wants to smell smoky wine aromas. Additionally, smoking before or during a wine tasting will affect your taste of the wines.

Altoids, "Curiously Strong"

Mints and gums before a wine tasting will alter your tasting notes.

Sometimes it hurts…
The tasting table or bar will have a “dump bucket” for unfinished wine. It is acceptable to not finish a glass of wine. (I know, sometimes it hurts. But we all understand.)

Spit like the pros spit
If you have the opportunity to spit, it’s okay. That is what the professional tasters do.

No thanks
It is perfectly okay to pass up wines in a flight if you do not want to taste the full flight.

It's the law.
Tasting rooms will not serve patrons that are obviously intoxicated.

You're not eating soup at your Aunt Martha’s house. Slurp, it's okay.
Wine tasters are making that sound to draw air into their mouth and aerate the wine to enhance the taste. Slurping is acceptable.

Shhhh…
Don’t announce what your thoughts of the wines are before everyone has tasted the wine. Allow everyone time to taste the wine and contemplate its flavors.

Seconds?
Don’t ask for a second taste of a particular wine, unless you have indicated that you intend to purchase the bottle of wine.

I can’t hear myself drink
Don’t be too loud and rowdy when with a group of friends. This ruins the atmosphere of the winery/tasting room, and disrupts others’ concentration when they are processing the wine experience.

Discretion is the better part of valor
Refrain from saying any negative comments about the wine, please keep them to yourself, especially if you are tasting wine at a winery. Keep in mind that every wine has its own style. On this trip, I tasted a very expensive, very well respected wine that I actually paid a $15.00 fee to try a flight of two wines to try. I was thinking, “I wished I called for my stunt palate.” This wine was on our short-list because it got a lot of respect from some important opinion leaders. I didn’t like it. No one but Taster A will know my thoughts. Deep in my heart, I know that the wine was technically correct, well balanced, very young, and meant to be aged for a decade.

Thanks, but no thanks
Don’t feel guilty if you do not purchase a bottle of wine. Buy only the wine you like, and do not feel obligated to purchase wine just because you visited a tasting room, especially if you paid a tasting fee. If you spend a good deal of time with the staff, ask a lot of questions, have been given great service, a purchase may be indicated.

Sharing
When a fee is charged, it is usually okay for two people to share one glass and pay only one tasting fee. We have even be asked if we wanted two tastings or if we were sharing by our pourer.

Goodie basket
Pack some food! There are plenty of places to picnic. Slowing down the day not only keeps your head on straight, but gives your palate a chance to chill out. You’re in wine country, enjoy yourself! Treat yourself to time outside.

Slowing down
Most tasting room do’s and don’ts warn about drinking too much wine. On my first tasting trips, I found that I would get a buzz although I only consumed two to three ounces of wine. Then it came to me, breathing in the alcohol vapors were going “straight to my head”. Slowing down the process and taking notes like we have done on this trip has really made a difference.

The Fear of Flying
Flying wine home? Check the www.tsa.gov website for the latest rules regarding alcohol. Many wineries have special gorilla proof wine boxes for check-in baggage and there are some great wine carriers available on-line and at wine accessory stores. At the time of this posting, you can carry on a corkscrew.

Can’t ship there from here
Many wineries have “clubs” and will send wines to you home. Some states will not allow shipments. Our state is one of them. Ask the associate. DO NOT try to bypass the laws of your land. You shipper will be in deep doo-doo and you may lose your wine if you try to sneak a bottle or five into a box and bring it to the post office and you get busted.

Did that a pinot blanc go blank?
Taking notes is a good thing to do! This slows down the process, gives you a chance to remember that very special Pinot Noir and why you thought it was so great. It is really validating when you compare notes and come up with the same perceptions. Then when you buy a bottle or ten and drink that wine five years from now, you can see how it has changed. (Okay, you know that I am not a buy now, enjoy much later kind of guy, but you get the idea!)

No Wimpy Wines

Arriving in Sonoma

Upon our arrival in Sonoma, California, we were anxious to get started on our tasting journey. A quick stop in the center of town is where you will find a square with lots of shops, eateries and tasting rooms. We needed to get our bearings, so a walk around the square was in order. We need maps!

Pick up a free copy of Wine Country This Week, from the Information Center. You'll get an idea of what is going on in the California wine scene and get some great ideas on where to go and what to do. You can pick up a copy of the Sonoma wine guide, it does have a map, but if you try to use it, your navigator will be arguing with your driver. Plus, if the winery did not purchase advertising, it may not have a dot on the map. (This may be my perception.)

So what should you do? Go to Sonoma Wine Hardware (map) on Broadway. Inside you will find a glossy map of Sonoma and Napa. On the back it has just about every winery listed and their tasting hours with addresses. The inn that we stayed at had a map published by Sonoma County. Between these two maps, you will be able to get around the Sonoma and Napa wine regions.



Our First Tasting, Ravenswood Winery
As I mentioned, we were anxious to get in our first tasting. But it was getting on towards 4:00 by the time we arrived. Since we had our "free map" from the info center, we didn't pick up a copy of the map from Sonoma Wine Hardware. It was then that we were hopelessly looking for our first target. We did find an easy target, Ravenswood Winery (map).

We chose Ravenswood because we know that we can purchase their wines in our region. They have two flights, the regular production wines and the "Vineyard Designate Wines". The latter will cost you $15.00 however it will give you an opportunity to try some wines that you may not be able to access in your locations. Many are sold exclusively through their wine club or at the winery. (We got to keep the glasses.)

Ravenswood Winery's slogan is "No Wimpy Wines". Their wines are big, bold and distinctive. We also were able to compare the wines from the Alexander Vally, Russian River, Sonoma Valley and Pickberry Vineyard. This is really fun because terrior does matter in quality wines.

The Tasting Room is well appointed with good acoustics. I prefer tasting rooms that you can have a pleasant conversation with the server or with my friends. If I cannot hear myself think, I have a hard time figuring out what is happening with the wine.

The staff was wonderful. They answered questions, told us about the vineyards, about the history, and generally were having a great time. They let us take notes, take time to appreciate their product and were very helpful. They enjoyed teaching us about their products. It was a fun atmosphere where we could be students learning to taste. And they appreciate working with people that are truly willing to learn.

Here are my tasting notes from just one wine from the flight.

Big River Zinfandel
Ravenswood
Zinfandel 100%
Growing Area: Alexander Valley

Vintage: 2005
Price: $32.00 Retail $25.60 Club
Color: Ruby Red
Intensity: Dark
Aromas and Flavors: Jammy spicy cedar, raisin black pepper, choke cherry, elderberry, dandelion, strawberry, mint
Body: Full
Finish: Moderate
Tannin: Suede to leather

Summary: Just what you would expect from a well crafted Zinfandel. The wine evolved in the glass, on the palate and offered new perception surprises, one after another. I spent a good 10 minutes with my one ounce pour. Walked around the shop, talked with our server and just let the wine evolve. The Alexander Valley is a premier growing region for bright, complex Zinfandel grapes. Yeah, we brought a bottle home with us.

Tasting Room Tips

Taking notes is a good thing. The tasting room folks know you will be visiting other rooms and really appreciate it when you make an effort to remember their wines. Our Ravenswood server recounted to us a visitor he recently had return from a year ago. The visitor asked, "Can you help us remember what wine we bought from you last year?" The server asked helpfully, "What can you tell me about what you bought?" "Oh", replied the visitor, "It was a red wine." "Well, that is about 80% of what we sell. What else can you tell me, was it a Cab, a Zin?" "Oh, I don't know, it had a white label with three black birds in a circle." Great, they just narrowed it down from 80% to 79% of the wines ever sold by Ravenswood!

Ravenswood was a wonderful tasting experience. A fun tasting room with some nice wine accessories and a great staff. Ravenswood has some great big wines. We are grateful that we can get them locally in our area.