• Syrah
• Grenache
• Carignan
• Cinsault
• All unfined and unfiltered

Color:

Very bright ruby with a purple rim.

Nose:

Spice blackberry and vanilla.

Palate:

Dry, fairly tannic and very youthful.  Decent acidity but just barely.  Pretty chewy fruits of blackberry, plum skin, raisins and herbs.  A touch of heat on the finish.  I was a big fan of the 2006 but I think the ’07 could use some laying down time to let those big fruit notes integrate with the tannin and oak.  It’s a little clumsy right now.  I will look forward to it in another year.

The Som Rating: 7/10 Scarlett Johansson Heads

• Cesanese
• Sangiovese
• Merlot

Nose:

Pretty aromas of Cranberry, Cherry and spiced vanilla.

Palette:

Almost full bodied, round well integrated tannin and above average acidity.  Big hits of vanilla and wood spice on the attack quickly followed by luscious, silky red fruits, smoke and bright cherry coke on the long, smooth finish.

Synposis:

For $13, this is pretty cool stuff.  You may be able to find older vintages in close-out mode like I did with this 2002 (an average vintage at best)…but if not, expect to pay slightly more.  But no matter what, buy some and enjoy it now or hold it for a few years.  This 2002 still had lots of life and was drinking wonderfully.

Food Pairings:

Steaks, roasted meats, grilled chicken and root vegetables…Great wine works with lots of stuff.

The Som Rating: 8/10 Scarlett Johansson Heads

Wow!   Bacon fat right away, vanilla, violets, blackberry, and even though this is only 13.5% alcohol, I get a touch of heat.

Palette:

This is a full bodied wine with good acidity and plush, round tannins.  Up front I get a lot of bittersweet chocolate and vanilla with the fruit evident but kind of buried.  Imagine too many “Nilla” wafers on top of too much chocolate topping on top of a red grape and blackberry medley.  That is this wine to a T.

Synopsis:

What does all that say to me?  Lets break it down.   Structurally the wine is well balanced.  All the vanilla and chocolate speak to the oak barrels (probably American oak) that the wine was aged in.  There is fruit underneath those flavors.  As the oak flavors begin to integrate with the fruit over the next year or so I think this could become something considerably more.  Very drinkable now but by mid 2010-2013 this should mature into something more smokey and leathery with a nice line of cherry fruit throughout.

Rating this wine is tough.   Right now I’m tempted to give it 6/10, but I can almost guarantee you that in 4 years I would freak out over this wine.  So lets split the difference.

The Som Rating: 8/10 Scarlett Johansson Heads

Show Note from the Producer:

Please don’t freak out…it was a toy gun.   I’m just glad he didn’t bring his lightsaber.

Featured in today’s show:

• 2007 Chateau Beauchene Côtes du Rhône Viognier (~$16)
• 2003 Taurino Salice Salentino Riserva (~$13)
• 2007 Hey Mambo Sultry Red (~$10)

Recommended food pairings from The Som:

As I mentioned in the show, I really enjoy Viogniers with soup…especially cream based soups.  They tend to be fuller in body, full flavor, decent acidity, and higher alcohol levels (not to mention a gorgeous floral nose).  Why?  Full body to stand up to the heavier soup, good acidity to cut through the heaviness of the cream, and full flavor so it does not get lost in the layers of flavor a good soup should have.  Here is a Potato-Bean soup I would gladly enjoy with this Côtes du Rhône Viognier.  A moderately oaked Chardonnay would work nicely too.

Recipe for Potato-Bean Soup:

• 2 medium carrots, shredded
• ½ cup sliced celery
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 Tablespoon margarine or butter
• 4 cups low sodium chicken broth
• 3 cups cubed, peeled potatoes
• 2 Tablespoons snipped fresh dill 2 teaspoons dried dillweed
• 1 15oz can cannelinni beans or Great Northern beans, rinsed and drained
• ½ cup sour cream or plain non-fat yogurt
• 1 Tablespoon flour
• Pepper and salt

In a large saucepan cook and stir carrots, celery and garlic in hot margarine or butter over medium heat for 4 minutes or till tender.  Carefully stir in Chicken broth, potatoes and dill.  Bring to boiling.  Reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 20 to 25 minutes or till potatoes are tender.  With the back of a spoon lightly mash about half of the potatoes in the broth.  Stir the beans into the potato mixture.

In a small mixing bowl stir together the sour cream or yogurt, flour, pinch of pepper and if desired, salt; stir into potato mixture.  Cook and stir until thick and bubbly.  Cook and stir for 1 minute more.

Makes 4-6 servings.

Type/Region:

Cabernet Franc from the Loire Valley in France.

Nose:

Milk chocolate, blueberry, and leather on the nose.

Palate:

Almost full bodied with a very pretty start of chalk, red fruit, bright acidity, and…as it moves through your mouth… an underlying topicality to the fruit.  I almost want to say chocolate covered banana.  Firm tannin throughout but the fruit and acidity keep them from dominating.  This is really well balanced.  Long, juicy tootsie roll finish.

Synopsis:

This is a really fun wine.  There is much to discover in it as it opens up, and I believe it would be pretty food friendly.  It seems to me that the maturity of the wine is rolling along pretty well, and as it’s a 2006, I don’t foresee this lasting forever.  Drink now through early 2011.

The Som Rating: 7/10 Scarlett Johansson Heads

Nose:

Sweet ripe berries and a little cola and coffee.

Palate:

Full bodied with bright, fresh acidity.  Really crisp cherry cola notes with a little chocolate, strawberries and cherry wrapped up in a subtle vanilla robe.  LONG cherry menthol finish.

Very delicate and refined, in fact, it almost wishes it were a Pinot Noir.  A lot of layers here and much to contemplate.  I may have found a new favorite.

The Som Rating: 8/10 Scarlett Johansson Heads

Nice Fruit with a bit of gaminess on the nose.  I wanna say blackberries and leather.  Touch of chocolate underneath.

Palate:

Tannins are very much in play here, but they’re not distracting.  In fact, they are nicely balanced with better than average acidity.  This is a slightly less than full bodied wine that is wrapped in dark berry flavors with a gentle kiss of oak.  There’s just a touch of dark chocolate on the long, dry finish.

Great wine for the price range ($11-$13 depending on where you shop). Peirano Estates produces very good value driven wines.  Buy a case and watch those tannins round out and integrate beautifully into the fruit over the next two years.

The Som Rating: 7/10 Scarlett Johansson Heads

Peirano Estate "Six Clones" Merlot

Thanksgiving Dinner Wines

With the holiday upon us, we thought it prudent to suggest a couple good wines to pair with your feast!

Quick Show Note:

We were testing some new microphones. They really helped with the sound issues we were having, but they were highly sensitive and picking up sounds we normally wouldn’t wish to share (gulping and such). They were also picking up on some interference as well, so sorry for any static you may pick up on in the show audio. We’ll be working on perfecting our sound in the coming shows.

Featured in today’s show:

• 2007 Casillero del Diablo Reserve Gewurztraminer from Chile
• La Madone Gamay sur Vulcan from Cotes du Forez in France (sorry…couldn’t find a website for them)
• 2007 Ventisquero Pinot Noir from the Casablanca Valley in Chile

Recommended food pairings:

Thanksgiving is not the time for subtlety in wine. There is zero subtlety in a Thanksgiving dinner and the wine needs to mirror that. Thanksgiving is one of the few times you need to think about what is on the plate as a whole. There are too many flavors and too many styles to match a dish to one specific item. A “wine that goes with turkey” does not cut it.

• One of the first food and wine pairing rules is match the “weight “of the food with the wine beverage of your choice. It’s like drinking a glass of water with beef stew, or drinking a Porto with your Chef’s Salad…neither of which is very appealing.
• Thanksgiving dinner has a tendency to be on the salty side. High tannin wines (Cabernet, Syrah, Tannat, high end Petite Sirah, Nebbiolo,) can make saltier food and the wine taste bitter. Stick to fruity, full flavored, low tannin red wines like a Gamay (Beaujolais), a California Pinot Noir, or maybe a lower alcohol (13-14.5%) Zinfandel or Dolcetto. For whites, think about a full bodied, slightly sweet grape like a Gewürztraminer or Riesling, especially from the Alsace region of France, or a moderately oaked California Chardonnay.

What am I going to serve with MY Thanksgiving dinner, you ask?

• Chateau Valmer Vouvray: a full bodied, slightly sweet Chenin Blanc from the Loire region of France
• Firestone Santa Rita Valley Pinot Noir from Santa Barbara (nummy)

Here’s some great tips and techniques for preparing your bird.

Happy Thanksgiving!

The Som

Featured in Today’s Show:

• 2006 Chateau Malbat Bordeaux from south Gironde, France

Geeky Wine Tip:

This whole show is full of tips. It’s a basic introduction on how to fully experience a wine though your senses of sight, smell, and taste.