Kristen ran the Napa marathon yesterday, and qualified for Boston!!! We’re celebrating at our first stop of the day at Domaine Chandon for some morning bubbles. The reserve tasting starts off with a 100% Chardonnay which boasts a crisp finish. The second is 80% Pinot Noir 20% Chardonnay, it hits your palette  with a nice apple start and a robust finish. The final glass is a 2009 vintage brut from Yountville that’s 76% Pinot and 24% Chard. It’s just a bit more sweet than the second and has a little more of a fruit flavor. Overall, very happy with our reserve tasting selection.

On to Sequoia Grove!

Chronic Cellars Sofa King Bueno & Dead Nuts

Halloween is just over a week away! Whether you are throwing a party or attending one, you are probably planning to pick up some wine to serve or bring as a hostess gift! For this month, I want to highlight a Paso Robles winery called Chronic Cellars because it’s yummy, affordable and in the Halloween spirit! This wine is sure to get a laugh, enhance your décor, and be enjoyed by guests!

October is the perfect month to highlight Chronic Cellars because of the Dia de los Muertos inspired label artwork and clever names! Chronic Cellars aims to produce drinkable, approachable wine for a casual lifestyle and they clearly have fun while they are doing it!

Two of our favorite wines from Chronic Cellars are the Sofa King Bueno and Dead Nuts. We recently paired Dead Nuts with pulled pork sandwiches and mac & cheese. The combination was Sofa King Good!

2012 Sofa King Bueno

Here is the blend break down:

• 43% Syrah
• 32% Petite Sirah
• 11% Mourvedre
  8% Grenache
• 6% Tannat

Notes from the winemaker:

The Rhone King! We take the best of the best, carefully blend them together – and you get Sofa King Bueno. Dark Color, black and red fruits, big game, full tannin and savory flavors are a dream come true.

2012 Dead Nuts

Here is the blend break down:

• 63% Zinfandel
• 15% Tempranillo
• 14% Syrah
• 6% Petite Sirah
• 2% Tannat

Notes from the winemaker:

Zinfandel is California’s heritage grape. We love zin and love to blend with it even more. It has all the fruit that one could want and is always accepting to bring in some friends to play with. The added spice of Tempranillo compliments the white pepper of the zin. Then there’s the meat, smoke and leather of Syrah, which one can never go wrong with. Add in petite sirah and tannat with its big tannins, and it will always be a game winner.

Website:

http://www.chroniccellars.com

Where to buy:

I’ve found both of these wines at the following stores and price points:

• Costco in Scottsdale $18-20
• Phoenix Wine $19.50
• I have seen it at various AJ’s locations and specialty stores.

Pinot is for Breakfast

On one of our trips to Napa, Jason and I visited Caymus for a private tasting with his brother and my partner in Napa shenanigans, Sharon. We were thrilled to finally get a reservation at the infamous Caymus Vineyard’s, which was rumored to be one of the snobbiest wineries in Napa. We made sure to arrive on time, so we didn’t ruffle any feathers, and we sat front and center! We were feeling quite inquisitive, asking question after question during the tasting. At one point, I asked if Caymus made a Pinot Noir. The gentleman leading our tasting looked up at me and without any further explanation said, “Pinot is for Breakfast.” It was the ultimate wine snob comment and we LOVED IT! We quoted him all weekend! Now, anytime someone suggests a Pinot among the four of us, someone is guaranteed to say, “Pinot is for Breakfast.”

When I asked about Pinot Noir, I was referring to the red grape variety, most famed for producing wine in the Burgundy region of France, Oregon, and California. I came to later discover that Pinot Noir is the prominent grape used in Champagne and other sparkling whites. It also makes a delightful rosé. Pinot Noir is actually a genetically unstable grape that can mutate into a white grape, called Pinot Blanc.

That tricky little grape can swing both ways! Of course it’s a breakfast wine! Who hasn’t had a Champagne brunch or indulged in Sunday morning bottomless Mimosa special.

After 4 years of joking about having Pinot for breakfast, we finally decided to try it and invited some friends over for a Pinot Noir inspired breakfast! The menu consisted of bacon & spinach quiche, sausage links and a fresh fruit salad! We had a line-up of three wines to sample during breakfast, which included a sparkling, a rosé and a red listed below:

1. Louis Bouillot Blanc de Noirs

• Burgundy, France
• Dry Sparkling
• Cherry & Citrus Fruit on Nose & Mouth

2. Belle Glos Pinot Nior Blanc

• Sonoma, CA
• Strawberry & Tart Apple on Nose
• Citrus & Red Fruit on Palate

3. Artesa Pinot Nior

• Carneros, CA
• Soft Tannins
• Red Fruit and Rose Petals on Nose
• Raspberry & Cherry on Palate

So what was our conclusion you ask? We loved it! The sparkling was an obvious success, the rosé was the surprise hit of the meal and I personally enjoyed a little red to get the day going! I think that the red worked with the quiche and the sausage, but I would stick to a sparkling or rosé for breakfast foods that are on the sweeter side.

What are your breakfast plans for the weekend? Maybe you should consider skipping the orange juice in your Mimosa or trading in your Bloody Mary for a glass of Pinot this weekend. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

Kobalt 2011 Window Pane Red Blend

Kobalt is a small production winery in Napa Valley. My husband and I first discovered their 2011 Window Pane Red Blend over Valentine’s Day dinner at Cowboy Ciao in Scottsdale. For those who are familiar with Cowboy Ciao, you probably know they have an extensive wine list. Rather than trying to navigate it ourselves, we love to ask for help selecting something unique and unexpected off their menu. We fell in love with this delightful recommendation at first sip and have been stocking up ever since.

It seems that we are not the only ones stocking up! When we first discovered it we could only find it at AZ Wine Company in Scottsdale for $35. I have since seen it at Costco for $29 and at Fry’s, which we purchased 6 for $25 during their 30% off sale (save an additional 10% when you buy 6 bottles).

Here is the blend break down:

• 68% Cabernet Sauvignon
• 27% Petite Sirah
• 5% Carignane

Tasting Notes from the Winemaker:

The 2011 Window Pane oozes with very fragrant ripe black raspberry and blackberry jam aromas. It is juicy, full bodied and loaded with extracted fruit yet balanced and very suave. The aroma and flavor profile consists of: ripe black currant and blackberry with complex hints of dark chocolate, boysenberry, and plum with notes of cinnamon and hints of black cherry. The finish is accentuated by wisps of gentle oak and dry but moderate tannins that integrate with the dark fruit and linger nicely on the palate

http://kobaltwines.com

Where to Buy:

I have found this wine at the following stores at the following price points:

• AZ Wine Company $35
• Costco $29
• Fry’s which I purchased 6 for $25 during their 30% off sale (save an additional 10% when you buy 6 bottles).

Reconsider Riesling

The first bottle of wine I ever ordered was a bottle of Riesling on a Carnival Cruise, during my senior year of college spring break. I loved it so much, that I proceeded to split a bottle with my dear friend Marisa every night of our 5 night cruise. Many college students like to forget about what happens on spring break, but I couldn’t forget my new found love for wine. I took that home with me! After college, I slowly began to venture out into other white wines, then into red, and eventually I became the self-proclaimed wino that I am today. Riesling became a distant memory that I related to an immature palate. A “Starter Wine” if you will. My perception was likely perpetuated by the negative stereotype of Riesling in the US due to the number of butchered, overly sweet Rieslings that were exported to the US in the 80’s and 90’s giving the grape a bad name.

In reality, Riesling is a very sophisticated and elegant grape enjoyed by many of the wine world’s most advanced palates. In fact, many wine critics consider it to be finest white grape variety.

It’s a grape that is renowned for its high acidity, aging potential, complexity and ability to express “terroir” (expressing characteristics of the region or soil where it was grown). While Riesling is primarily known for producing sweet white wines, it can also be fermented to complete dryness. In fact, it was a dry Riesling from Germany that completely opened my eyes back up to Riesling. When I was in search of something white, crisp and refreshing, I started seeking out dry Rieslings as an alternative to my go-to Sauvignon Blanc.

Some of the most renowned Rieslings come from Germany and Alsace, France. Other major Riesling producing regions are Austria, Australia, California, New York, New Zealand & South Africa.

Typical Characteristics of Riesling are:

• High acidity & lower alcohol
• Can range in sweetness from completely dry, off dry, sweet to dessert wine
• On the nose and mouth: fruit such as citrus, apples, apricots and pineapple, floral & mineral notes are common. As some Rieslings age, particularly German Rieslings, notes of petrol or gasoline are common and a sign of great aging potential. If you can get past the aroma, these wines are still delightful on the palate.

I decided to put Riesling to the test and organized a tasting among 6 of my friends ranging from the big red wine fanatics, to white wine lovers.  I started by asking everyone their thoughts on Riesling:

• Everyone agreed that they thought of it as a sweet wine.
• Several of us reminisced about Riesling being our “starter wine.”
• Two people were fond of Riesling and the rest shared a similar sentiment that Riesling was too sweet for their palates.

I organized a sampling of three different Rieslings ranging from dry to off-dry. I purchased all three from Total Wine. Here is the line-up and the group’s feedback:

2010 Exception Riesling from Alsace, France

• Price $22.99
• Dry & full-bodied
• Floral and citrus notes
• Taster Feedback: Everyone was equally surprised to have a dry Riesling. I was challenged by two tasters that it was still sweet, so I had them taste the wine with their nose plugged. Some stereotypes are hard to overcome! Everyone related it to a familiar white wine that they enjoyed drinking, such as Sauvignon Blanc or Chardonnay.  All but one taster enjoyed the wine and would have it again.

2012 Dr. Heidemanns Riesling QbA from Mosel, Germany

• Price $10.99
• Off-dry & medium-bodied
• Apple & peach notes
• Taster Feedback: Tasters embraced a little sweetness with this off-dry fan favorite! All but 1 taster enjoyed this wine and wanted to know ideal food pairings to try it with. Total Wine recommends a spicy shrimp stir-fry!

2007 J.J Prum Riesling Kabinett from Mosel, Germany

• Price $30
• Off-dry & medium-bodied
• Floral, peach, lime, & slate notes
• Taster Feedback: This was perceived as the sweetest of my selections and embraced by my two tasters that were already fond of Riesling. This did have hints of gasoline-like aromas, which were not as well received by the group as the previous two.

Overall everyone agreed that they would give Riesling another try and even planned to seek it out again on their own. For those of you like me who abandoned Riesling for the bigger, bolder more mature red, maybe it’s time to go back to your roots! After all, what’s wrong with enjoying a wine that was so easy to love to begin with!

Next time you are in the mood to try something different, give Riesling another try and let me know your feedback. Some ideal pairing to try it with:

• Sweet and salty
• Sweet and spicy
• Pair with Thai or Asian food
• Seafood
• Try a sweet Riesling with dessert.