The Wine Curmudgeon

Wine of the week: Hess Select Sauvignon Blanc 2011

One of the things that makes the Wine Curmudgeon so cranky about California wine is that the state produces lots of cheap wine of decent quality and lots of expensive wine of decent quality. What it doesn’t do nearly enough is produce cheap wine of expensive wine quality. That’s why there are always so few California wines in the $10 Hall of Fame.

Which is why I was so happy to taste the Hess ($11, sample). Hess is a top-flight $20 and up producer, and always shows up on lists of wines to buy that deliver quality and value. And now they’re making a very impressive cheap sauvignon blanc.

This is a wine that that is balanced, crisp and fresh, and isn’t bothered by Hess’ policy of oaking even wines -- like this -- that usually don't need oak. In this, it’s all California, all the time, which means no dominating citrus like a New Zealand sauvignon blanc, but lots and lots grassiness – the smell of a new mown lawn. There’s even what seems to be lemongrass, for those who look for those kinds of descriptors.

Serve this chilled on its own or with grilled or boiled seafood. It’s a terrific Sunday afternoon porch sipping wine as the days get cooler, and would even be worth keeping around the house as the holidays approach.

Wine of the week: Chateau Saint-Florin 2011

What makes this French white blend interesting is that there doesn’t seem to be anything interesting about it. It doesn’t have a cute label, no one wrote glowing prose about it, and there isn’t a hip and with it QR code. It doesn’t come from an especially fashionable region of France and it’s almost impossible to find any reference to it on the Internet.

None of which matters in the least. The Saint Florin ($10, purchased) is a solid and sturdy white Bordeaux, a blend of semillon and sauvignon blanc from the Entre-Deux-Mers area within Bordeaux – a part of France where dozens of wines like this are still made that offer value and quality. Call it an honest wine from Jean-Marc and Catherine Jolivet, who are fourth-generation winemakers from Soussac in Bordeaux and own another small producer in Entre-Deux-Mers.

The Saint Florin is fresh and clean, with some grassiness, a little citrus and a sort of stony finish. Plus, it's just 12 1/2 percent alcohol, and all of this makes it a terrific food wine. I paired it with with shrimp and linguine, and I don’t know that the result would have been all that much better with a more pricey Sancerre or a sauvignon blanc from Napa.

 

Riesling -- the grape that doesn't get enough respect

You don't have to wait for summer to enjoy riesling; it's an all-weather wine.

Riesling is, perhaps, the most misunderstood of all the wine varietals. People who don't like sweet wine dismiss it because it can be sweet, while people who drink sweet wine are often confused by the various ways that riesling is made. Both of which are too bad, because riesling is a refreshing alternative to the white wine that we usually drink.

Most rieslings, even those that are dry, have some sweetness. But since it occurs naturally, and not as added sugar or high fructose corn syrup or a winemaking trick, it's not overwhelming and unpleasant.

In fact, in the best rieslings, the sweetness – even in the most sweet – is balanced by the fruitiness and acidity of the wine. There are some top-flight German rieslings that combine  a wonderful lemon freshness with low alcohol and sweetness; drinking them is about as much fun as wine gets (as my old pal Cody Upton, who shared a bottle with me on a 100-plus Dallas afternoon can attest).

The good news is that riesling is making significant progress in overcoming this resistance. Chateau Ste. Michelle, the giant Washington state producer, has scored financial success with its $10 grocery store riesling, which you can order in a strange restaurant and it will be OK. The Wine Curmudgeon has mostly been partial to Pacific Rim’s various rieslings, which can be a step up from Chateau Ste. Michelle and are almost as widely available.

In addition, the International Riesling Federation, a consortium of producers and like-minded sorts, has worked diligently to improve the way riesling is labeled. The group uses terms like dry and sweet, a huge improvement over the old German system, which uses terms like auslese and spatlese.

More about riesling, including a variety of wines to try, after the jump:

Mini-reviews 39: Schug, Anne Amie, Acrobat, Colores del Sol

Reviews of wines that don’t need their own post, but are worth noting for one reason or another. Look for it on the final Friday of each month. Today, wines to enjoy over the Labor Day weekend:

• Schug Chardonnay Sonoma Coast 2010 ($25, sample): Elegant chardonnay that is a huge bargain at this price. It retains California freshness and fruit while showing some of the length and breadth of a fine white Burgundy.

• Anne Amie Pinot Noir Cuvée A 2010 ($25, sample): Classic Oregon pinot (and always a favorite), with berry fruit and earthiness that balance each other, and a fine value at this price.

• Acrobat Pinot Noir Rose 2011 ($10, purchased): Nothing really wrong with this Oregon rose, but mildly disappointing if only because it’s not up to the quality of the Acrobat pinot gris. Tastes of red fruit with almost sauvignon blanc-like acidity.

• Colores Del Sol Malbec 2010 ($12, sample): At $8, this is a nicely done grocery store wine, featuring the typical blueberry cola aroma. But, unfortunately, it doesn’t cost $8.

Wine of the week: Yellow + Blue Torrontes 2011

Yellow + Blue makes some of the finest cheap wine in the world, and I’ve waxed poetic about almost every one of the company’s releases. The torrontes ($13 for a 1-liter box, purchased) is no exception.

So why does this review come with the availability caution? Because retailers still haven’t figured out a way to successfully sell wine, like Yellow + Blue, that comes in a 1-liter box. Most store shelves and racks are made to take standard-sized wine bottles, so anything that isn’t a standard-sized bottle gets stuffed in a corner. And if a product is stuffed in a corner, it won’t sell as well as a product that’s prominently displayed, regardless of quality. After all, when’s the last time you got on your hands and knees to look for wine?

Hence retailers are wary of carrying something that they know they’ll have trouble selling. Which means the Yellow + Blue wines are harder to find than they should be. Which is too bad, because they’re well worth the effort – hands and knees even, which is almost what I had to do for this one.

Torrontes is a white Argentine grape that has been made so badly for so long – sweet and sticky – that I’m surprised there’s still a market for it. The Yellow + Blue, though, shows just enough sweetness to be torrontes, but is in no way cloying. Look for peach fruit and even a tiny bit of lime zest as well as a very pleasant floral aroma and a peach pit finish.

Serve chilled as summer comes to an end, and pair it with the usual summer and spicy fare. Highly recommended, and a candidate for the 2013 $10 Hall of Fame (since 1 liter is about one-third more than a standard bottle, making the price about $10 a bottle).

Wine of the week: Brancott Sauvingon Blanc Reserve 2011

This was not the scheduled wine of the week, but since I’m still waiting, weeks later, for a distributor to call me back about a Gascon wine I want to do, I had to shift the schedule around.

I mention this not to damn the Brancott with faint praise, because it deserves better than that. Rather, it’s to note (again, sadly) how lazy distributors are and to point out that we shouldn’t force ourselves to stick to some sort of wine drinking schedule. Which even I find myself doing sometimes. Drink what you like, but be willing to try all sorts of things.

The Brancott ($10, purchased) is a mostly one-dimensional New Zealand sauvignon blanc, but that's not a bad thing for a grocery store wine at this price -- especially since so many others aren't even that. Right, Monkey Bay? There is grapefruit, and it does dominate, which is to be expected. But it’s not overdone, and there is also some ripe tropical fruit in the middle, just 12 1/2 percent alcohol, and a clean, fresh approach. All in all, a very pleasant surprise.

Drink this chilled on its own, or with grilled vegetables, small plate salads, and even something like hummus. And be glad that I was forced to take a different path.

Wine review: Jules Taylor Sauvignon Blanc 2011

The Wine Curmudgeon’s favorite New Zealand sauvignon blanc is Spy Valley; the catch is that it’s very difficult to find in Dallas. So when I had a chance to meet Jules Taylor, whose New Zealand winery gets high marks for quality and professionalism (“Plus, Jeff, she’s a great person"), I was excited. There’s nothing wrong with having two favorites.

I was not disappointed. Taylor is clever and passionate about her work. How do I know this? When someone can sound as excited as she did about her wines when talking to a wine writer after a long and hot day of visiting retailers and sitting in meetings, she must be passionate. (She is also a tequila aficionado, and was very excited to be in Dallas if only for that. Not many interesting tequilas for sale in New Zealand, apparently.)

The sauvignon blanc ($18, sample) is New Zealand sauvignon blanc the way it should be. There is more grassiness than citrus in the front (and lime instead of grapefruit); a soft, almost seductive tropical middle (passion fruit?); and a long, very subtle mineral finish. This is a complex wine, especially for the price, and not only well above the entry level wines on the market, but on par with many more expensive ones. Highly recommended.

Taylor also makes a late harvest sauvignon blanc dessert wine ($20 for a 375 ml bottle, sample), which I really shouldn’t mention. It’s not that it isn’’t very nicely done (lots of apricot, honeyed sweetness, and a bit of sauvignon blanc character). It’s that she makes very little of it, and even less gets imported to the U.S. If you can find it, buy it.