Simple Hedonisms

Archive for the ‘Pinot Noir’ Category

Thursday August 18th was #PinotSmackdown day, organized by Ed Thralls of Wine Tonite. As I did for Rick Bakas #Chardonnay day, I hosted a walk around tasting. Click here for Ed's overall summary and the impressions.

Unfortunately most of my 80 attendees didn't vote for #CA as most would have. (I didn't receive any OR, NZ, or French submissions.) Had they, California would have 'won' the Smackdown.

Tasting Pinot in The Greenhouse

Feedback and buzz from the #chardonnay tasting was three times the targeted table capacity so a pre-tasting was held by a panel of judges to narrow it down. I have been evangelizing walk around tastings need to evolve, so by design, this one was kept small and focused.

A few weeks prior a panel of 5 judges consisting of myself, 2 winemakers, and a wine enthusiast tasted through 30 wines bagged, labeled, and divided into regions so that we’d have representation from multiple regions. This sounds like fun, but its actually work, and time consuming way to spend a weekend evening, so many thanks for the help. It helped assure we had a great lineup of Pinot’s for the evening.

Event Logistics

The event was also a fundraiser for the YWCA, who assisted with my ABC license. Wineries paid a small table fee of wine or donation to pour. They were required to pour the wine that won, and were allowed to pour a second Pinot if desired, as long as it was currently for sale, no library wines or barrel samples.  The event is held in my greenhouse, adjacent to my new vineyard. Tables are setup – the atmosphere is cozy, and enthusiastic.

As an experiment, we had a food truck, Goodeatz, offer food. Unfortunately we fell a few hundred dollars short of goal they needed to be onsite, but those who stayed and ate (self included) raved about the food. They are not available for my planned Sept 23 #Grenache tasting, but I am looking into others.

The 80 attendees were given a 2 page spreadsheet with details on each wine, as well as a final voting sheet to pick their Top 3 choices of the evening. Armed with clipboard, glass, and spitcup, they went in to sample the 19 pinots being poured.

The night seemed an even bigger success than chardonnay day. While we didn’t have quite as many epiphany moments as we did the chardonnay bashers who came away with new perspective – attendees gushed about the quality of the vintners, not a single bad wine, and every winery member I spoke to was very pleased with the energy and enthusiasm.  Sounds like we got tight on parking later in the evening, something I will work on, as well as encourage car pooling.

Watch for #Grenache Day – Sept 23, Calling Producers

September 23^rd is Grenache day, as declared by the Grenache Symposium in France. This isn’t a great date for me as I am locked down for 4 days wine judging the Sonoma County Harvest Fair. But its Grenache, my fave varietal, what I am planting, and as a Rhone Ranger board member, it’s a moral imperative.  Last year I held a smaller tasting and a HUGE party afterwards complete with fire dancers. Not in this years budget, but sitting out just doesn’t seem an option. Contact me if you have a Grenache and/or Grenache based blend, and are interested.

The Results

As the spreadsheet shows, votes were tallied and added up. A #1 got 3 points, #2 2 points, and #3 1 point. Unfortunately a few people didn’t specify WHICH of the two wines a winery poured, so in those cases I had to

give half credit to each wine.

A bit surprisin

g. I am a personal fan of Phil Baxter’s wines, but for Baxter, to clearly win both 1^st and 2^nd place. Freestone Vineyard was right behind with third. 4^th place was a dogfight, with Sojourn, Deux Punx

, Joseph Swan, Bjornstaad, and Londer all within 1.5 points. Literally one vote could have changed these. This reflects the high quality of the evening, and difficulty the crowd had in choosing.

Congrats to all producers. There was a much higher spread of votes across all, and with Pinots ranging from $22-to $60+. Remember this was narrowed down from 30.

The full score sheet is here on Google Documents.

Overall & Regional Winners

The flurry of July wine travel continues!  The dust of Spain media tour barely behind me, 5 days in Virginia for the 2011 Wine Bloggers Conference and the company of wine writer giants like Jancis Robinson and Eric Asimov. A few days at home, I hosted my monthly wine networking mixer for 100+ Sonoma Wine-O's and now I'm off to Portland and the Willamette Valley in Oregon, for the world renowned International Pinot Noir Celebration, also known as IPNC. After a  few post IPNC days recovery athome, and off to Mendocino to judge and attend their 2011 Wine Competition and Farm to Table Dinner, Grand Tasting.

All Things Pinot

IPNC is an amazing 3 day event, and involves a healthy mix of passionate consumers from all over the country, as well as wine makers, writers, and Pinot-philes of all shapes and sizes.

Tastings, seminars, vineyard tours, dinners – it's a fun, heady, educational immersion in the world's sexiest varietal.

Thursday Pre-Events – 1975-2007 Vertical Tasting

Pre-IPNC events are occurring all over Portland and Willamette. So many in fact, that for the first time in many years I am skipping the Thursday Oregon Brewers Fest, hands down one of my favorite microbrew events in the country.

That Thursday afternoon Eyrie Vineyards is hosting an off the charts  1975-2007 South Block vertical tasting.

After that, I am headed to the Anne Amie 2nd annual Counter Culture event. This event is sold out again – not surprising after last years display of local food artisans, and great wines (not just Pinot) from all over the world.

If time permits, I'd love to drop in on Drink Northwest event at Red Ridge Farms, sponsored by NorthWest Wines to You.

Press & Speakers

The three day passes to IPNC sold out months ago. The media team was kept to a team of twelve. I am honored to attend with:

MEDIA GUESTS

• William Allen, Simple Hedonisms
• Alyssa Rapp, Bottlenotes
• Tim Atkin, MS (UK)
• Talia Baiocchi, Eater.com
• Antoinette Bruno, StarChefs.com
• Mary Burnham, Food & Wine (2012 Wine Guide)
• Katherine Cole, The Oregonian & MIX Magazine
• Christian DeBenedetti, Food & Wine
• Allison Jones, Portland Monthly
• Paul Gregutt, Wine Enthusiast & Seattle Times
• Mike Thelin, Cooking Channel
• Alder Yarrow, Vinography

The list of speakers is incredible, with heavy hitters like Eric Asimov  of the New York Times, and Allen Meadows.

• Joshua Wesson, J Wesson Wine & Food – Keynote Speaker, Wine & Cheese Seminar Moderator
  Eric Asimov, The New York Times – Grand Seminar Moderator
  Cole Danehower, Northwest Palate – Chef Panel Moderator
  Jordan Mackay, San Francisco Magazine – Sommelier Panel Moderator
  Allen Meadows, Burghound – Wine Ageing Seminar Moderator
  Laura Werlin, Cheese Educator & Author – Wine & Cheese Seminar Moderator

Friday – IPNC, Bright & Early

8:30 to 9:15 am – Opening Ceremonies – IPNC Keynote Speaker Joshua Wesson welcomes you to the Celebration and the Featured Winemakers are introduced.

1″ cellspacing=”0″ cellpadding=”0″>

9:15 am to 3 pm – Vineyard Tour and Winery Lunch (more info)
Travel through the vine-covered countryside to a nearby Willamette Valley winery where attendees will enjoy a guided stroll through the vineyard, learning about the distinct characteristics of the host site. Afterward, we put our sensory skills to the test in Name That Pinot, a team-oriented, blind tasting game where we join featured winemakers, top sommeliers, media guests and fellow attendees in identifying a selection of handpicked mystery Pinots. Following the blind tasting, enjoy an array of wines paired with a multi-course meal created by guest chefs.

(or)

9:30 am to 11:30 am – On-Campus Grand Seminar (more info)
Enjoy a tasting and comparison of ten Pinots with moderator Eric Asimov, wine critic for The New York Times, and five pioneer winemakers from three continents.

3:30 to 4:15 pm – Afternoon Chef Panel: Evolution of NW Farm-to-Table Cuisine
Join chef panelists and moderator Cole Danehower, Editor-in-Chief of Northwest Palate Magazine, for a two-part sessions dedicated to the past, present and future of the Northwest farm-to-table movement. Following a panel discussion, retire to the lawn where each chef will share special dishes from their kitchens

4:30 to 5:30 pm – Afternoon Sommelier Panel: Uncovering the Secrets of Sommeliers
Moderator Jordan Mackay and Sommelier Rajat Parr, co-authors of James Beard Award nominated Secrets of the Sommeliers: How to Think and Drink Like the World's Top Wine Professionals, will be joined onstage by iconic sommeliers Daniel Johnnes, Larry Stone and Kevin Zraly for an engaging discussion on the secrets of their trade and the role Pinot noir has played in their careers in wine.

3:30 to 5:30 pm – Afternoon Activities (more info) At 3:30 pm, all guests will be reunited on campus to enjoy a selection of activities.

5:30 to 7:30 pm – Alfresco Tasting (more info) The first of two grand tastings in which 35 winemakers pour their Featured Pinots.

7:30 to 11 pm – The Grand Dinner (more info) Guests experience the result of years of collaboration and tradition as four chef duos team-up to create a Burgundian-inspired meal using NW ingredients. Celebrate 25 years of the IPNC under a star-lit sky with magnums of Pinot noir.

Saturday & Sunday

The agenda continues Saturday & Sunday, with similar events on Saturday.

Sunday is the Sparkling Finale (more info) – Raise your glass in a festive toast as you bid farewell to the 25th Anniversary IPNC and look forward to the next 25 years! Savor our sumptuous buffet brunch prepared by guest chefs and paired with fine Champagne and sparkling wine, and the Passport to Pinot.

Unfortunately, being home so little in July, and more on the horizon, I have to miss the latter two days. (Including some off site media sake and Riesling tasting invites. )

A Pocket Version  of the Three Day Weekend – The Sunday Passport to Pinot

IPNC welcomes guests to a grand outdoor tasting of international Pinot noir from 70  Featured Wineries. To maximize personal interaction with each winemaker, the event is split into two sessions. Approximately 30 Featured Winemakers will pour for each session and break in the middle for winemaker introductions. Take advantage of this unique opportunity to meet some of the world's finest Pinot noir winemakers at Oregon's largest outdoor pinot tasting. Top-notch Northwest chefs will prepare divine dishes to accompany an unparalleled array of international Pinot noir.

The ticket price of $150 includes a tasting of 70 wines poured for you by the winemakers, food prepared by our guest chefs and a commemorative tasting glass.

Last I inquired, a handful of these were still available for sale. Double check here, before they are sold out!

The ticket price of $150 includes a tasting of 70 wines poured for you by the winemakers, food prepared by  guest chefs and a commemorative tasting glass.

Follow the Journey Live over Facebook & Twitter

Battery life and AT&T 3G permitting, I will broadcast tasting notes and picture on my Facebook Page  and Twitter.  You can also follow the Twitter hash tag summary #IPNC2011 of tweets by clicking here.

cheers!

On August 18th,  I am a co-host for Ed Thralls of Wine Tonite for the 2nd Annual #PinotSmackdown. Pinot’s from various regions will be compared and people will vote for their favorite region during this live tasting.

I will be replicating the very successful tasting I did for #Chardonnay day, last month, in my Greenhouse. What will this event be about, and like? You can read the details and summary here in:

Seeing California Chardonnay in a New Light: #Chardonnay Day Greenhouse Tasting, Attendees Top Picks.

Looking for A Certain Style of Pinot Noir

There are a variety of styles of Pinot Noir. Bold and Big; Burgundian. Lighter and more nuanced. I purchase, drink and review them all.

As I did with for Chardonnay, I will be seeking a certain profile of Pinot. There has been moderate wine press recently by Jon Bonne’, Jancis Robinson and others, discussing Pinot Noir starting to return to its more elegant form. Over the years Pinot has crept up in color and alcohol, over ripened and over extracted, chasing the New World Palate, and trying to lure less knowledgeable drinkers weened on Cabernet, who think there is something wrong with red wine that is light in color.

Requirements & Profile

I am looking for Pinot that is more reflective of the vintage, terroir, and is balanced, with good acidity, modest alcohol. If you are a Pinot producer that fits this, and would like to pour, or have sopayday cash loan