Monthly Archives: February 2011
Here’s a little treat for the wine enthusiast who also has a keen interest in science. Winemaking is, as we’ve pointed out before, both an art and a science, but so is the production of the goblets we use to drink our favorite varietals. Anybody who has seen a glass harp in action knows that every wineglass has a particular resonance, and that adding a certain amount of liquid to each glass will allow you to produce distinct notes. However, this resonance also gives each glass a unique weakness related to those tones—being exposed to a sound of the same pitch can cause the glass to bend, even shatter.
Below, a science exploration show takes the principles of resonance to show, in super slow-motion, the way that sound waves bend the very structure of a regular wine glass, and how these glasses shatter.
Now, it’s probably unlikely that you keep your sound system right next to your wine goblets, or that you have virtuoso opera singers practicing their high notes in your dining room…but just in case you find your wine glasses suddenly exploding, you’ll know what to start looking—or listening—for.
The omnipresent wine score has long intrigued me, and as such I’ve sought to understand why critics have given certain wines certain scores. I’ve had many mixed feelings about these numbers, so I needed to write this to get it off of my chest.
I still can’t get over Wine Spectator’s #1 wine of 2009: the Columbia Crest Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon. That decision made me lose faith in the scoring system entirely and it hasn’t been restored as of yet. However, despite my reservations about the reviewers and their reviews, I do believe that scores are a good thing. You just need to remember that a high score alone does not mean that you personally will love the wine.
Here’s an explanation of the 100-point scale that most reviewers use today. This is Wine Spectator’s score card, which will give you an idea of what the reviewers mean with their scores.
| Score |
Explanation |
| 95–100 |
Classic, a great wine. |
| 90–94 |
Outstanding, a wine of superior character and style. |
| 80–89 |
Good to very good, a wine with special qualities. |
| 70–79 |
Average, a drinkable wine that may have minor flaws. |
| 60–69 |
Below average, drinkable but not recommended. |
| 50–59 |
Poor, undrinkable, not recommended. |
If a wine receives a score of 88 points or higher, the winery will begin to claim bragging rights; below that score you won’t see it mentioned. In Chicago’s retail wine industry a wine that scored over 90 points was an easy sell. A high score makes a consumer feel warm and fuzzy—especially if the wine ends up costing less then $20—but it’s no guarantee that the consumer will actually enjoy the wine. A large segment of the wine-drinking population will get intimidated by a high-scoring beverage and won’t trust their own palate, deferring instead to what the critics think. I do feel that scores are a great tool, but I come across more and more of these 90 point wines and I just ask myself: “Who tasted this wine and scored it as Outstanding?”
I tasted a Carneros Chardonnay in Sonoma Square yesterday and the man pouring his wine was bragging about the 90-point score they received from The Wine Enthusiast. Always interested in tasting good wine (and curious about scores), I gave a swirl, a sniff…and a grimace. The nose was pure oak, vanilla, and butterscotch with just hints of banana, guava, and apple. The palate confirmed the nose, while adding softened margarine to the mix. Most of these tasting notes are a result of what the winemaker did to manipulate the wine; the varietal expression came second. When you encounter wines like this (whether you love oaked and buttered wines or not), the wine is very much out of balance. How could this be labeled a 90 pointer?
Because I do think that this type of rating is not the norm—although I am coming across it more frequently—I still love a good score. You should always defer to your own palate. Just because Tom Collichio likes his steak cooked rare (and so do I), it doesn’t mean that you’ll like it the same way. You should have faith in what you love in wine just as you have in your favorite foods, restaurants, clothing, etc. My advice to you is to put a wine’s region of origin into your memory bank. This can guide you to more wines you may like.
It’s also a good idea to keep track of descriptors: do you like or dislike spice (pepper, cinnamon, allspice, etc.)? Do you like wines that are jammy, or more subtle? Do you like earthy wines? Do you like red fruits, black fruits, oak, herbs or floral notes? All these adjectives can help you identify what you like or what you don’t like and help you narrow down what you will like again. I always jot down the names of wines in my phone with a couple of tasting notes and the region it hails from. This way, I can always access it at a restaurant or wherever I may be, and a good sommelier or retailer can take my notes and point me in the right direction.
My wine ratings are as follows for my customers. I wouldn’t sell anything I didn’t deem as good quality, so my ratings start at:
- Good
- Delicious
- Amazing
- Mood altering, life changing, transcendent, unforgettable (unfortunately, this typically costs the most)
Wine writer Maggie Bernat Smith contributes to the Strongbox blog each Friday.
The University of California at Davis has one of the foremost viticulture and enology departments in the country, and possibly the world. The faculty and graduate students, both committed scientists and wine enthusiasts, spend years analyzing the various chemistry that goes into the production and aging of wines, striving to advance or even perfect the ways that we craft and enjoy them. However, recent technology designed with wine in mind may also soon help make our airports more secure.
Nearly ten years ago, prompted by a graduate student’s newfound interest in wine, UC-Davis researchers, led by professor Matt Augustine, began developing a “wine scanner” using the principles found in a medical MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) machine. After years of fine-tuning, the scanner has been able to accurately determine whether a sealed wine bottle still contains potable wine or whether that wine has degraded into vinegar.
As all air travelers are aware, a 2006 attempt by terrorists to blow up commercial airliners using liquid explosives prompted the Department of Homeland Security to adopt strict regulations on the size of any carry-on liquid containers, including beverages and toiletries. Augustine and his team are currently working to adapt the wine scanner so that it might be able to detect other liquids. The ideal situation, of course, will be to finally remove these restrictions due to a foolproof system that instantly differentiates between dangerous chemicals and harmless shampoo or fruit juice.
Here’s a short news report on this still developing, but exciting story…
 Today is President’s Day, a holiday that specifically observes the birthdays of George Washington (February 22nd) and Abraham Lincoln (February 12th). However, for as great and important as these two men have been to our nation, to the American wine enthusiast no Commander-in-Chief may have been as intriguing as our third president, Thomas Jefferson.
A lifelong wine connoisseur, Jefferson was a man of the wine world at large, collecting bottles from all across Europe and sharing them with his friends, while extolling at length about wine’s superiority to other liquors. He was especially enthusiastic about finer French wines—which were probably only magnified by his six-year tenure as American envoy to the royal court of France. It was believed that, while President, the majority of his salary actually went towards the purchase of these fine French wines, which he preferred to buy personally and directly from the chateaus that produced them.
Jefferson did not merely appreciate wine, however. A scientist as well as a gifted politician and philosopher, Jefferson yearned to bring the vineyards of Europe to American soil. At his estate of Monticello, he dedicated two large patches of land to a years-long experiment in cultivating the vitis vinifera—the cornerstone of European grapevines. Unfortunately, a number of conditions in the American environment stymied his attempts to bring the European vine to America, although in 1985 the Thomas Jefferson Society finally succeeded in producing a grafted version on the grounds of Monticello. Not one to be discouraged, of course, Jefferson also experimented with growing New World vines such as the fox grape. Although Jefferson never made his own wine from his estate, his obvious love of wine was infectious, and as a highly influential and respected statesman, it’s very likely that his tastes sparked a trend in American society towards wine just as the country was still in its infancy.
Jefferson believed that wine was a necessity of life—it would be easy to assume that a glass of a fine Bordeaux immediately came to mind for him when he considered that famous phrase from the Declaration of Independence: “the pursuit of happiness.” Indeed, taxation on wine was something he considered distinctly un-American, as evidenced in the below quote:
“I think it is a great error to consider a heavy tax on wines as a tax on luxury. On the contrary, it is a tax on the health of our citizens.”
Even if you don’t celebrate President’s Day, if you decide to have a glass of wine, consider raising it to Jefferson…one of the nation’s true wine heroes.
Wine and cheese have shared a harmonious relationship for thousands of years, almost since the very invention of wine. They are soul mates, meant to be…you won’t find a 51% divorce rate here! Although wine and cheese understand how exactly they belong together, for us on the outside, looking in, the question of how to choose a certain cheese to pair with a certain wine can often make us dizzy.
As with food and wine pairing in general, there are rules, but rules are meant to be broken…everything has an exception. For instance, Cabernet Sauvignon traditionally pairs with Sharp Cheddar. However, this doesn’t mean that all Napa Valley Cabs or French Bordeaux taste the same from every producer and every vintage. At the same time, Brie will have many different possible tastes, depending on that particular Brie’s origins. Wine and cheese are living, changing products, which is why people all over the world are fascinated by these delicious partners.
But despite my “no rules” policy, there are general guidelines to use when you go shopping:
- White wines generally pair well with soft cheeses and stronger flavors
- Red wines pair best with hard cheeses and milder flavors
- Dessert wines match best with blue cheeses and pungent flavors
- Using these guidelines will help you get past the intimidation you might feel from wine and cheese pairing. You’ll also feel freer to experiment with different wines and cheeses. Both the wine and cheese together are supposed change each other’s tastes, thereby heightening both experiences. I recommend tasting the wine before the cheese, and then tasting them together so you can clearly notice the differences in both when they are paired.
To be even more specific:
- Sauvignon Blanc & Chenin Blanc: Try goat cheese (Chevre). The high acidity and mineral undertones of these wines from Loire Valley (and beyond) love the richness and earthiness of chevre.
- Chardonnay: Taste this with Brie, Camembert, Gouda, or Provolone. The full-bodied, rich Chardonnays work well with washed rind cow’s milk cheeses as well as many cow’s milk blue cheeses. The apple, pear, and citrus flavors of this grape usually meld with the acids found in goat’s milk cheeses as well.
- Champagne: In my opinion, champagne can pair with anything and everything! Its high acidity cuts through rich and creamy cheeses such as triple-cream Brie but also pairs perfectly with Edam and Gruyere.
- Pinot Noir: If you have a “stinky” wine then pair it with a stinky cheese! Pinot Noir from a region such as Burgundy is heavenly with Epoisses (pronounced ay-PWAHSS). Epoisses has a pungent flavor and washed rind, and comes as spoonable, silky paste. Spread onto a French baguette and enjoy!
- Merlot & Cabernet Sauvignon: These wines tend to favor cow’s milk cheeses. The high acids in goat cheese tend to clash with the tannins in these wines, making for an unmemorable experience. Try hard, aged cheeses such as Cheddar, Stilton, aged Gouda, Parmesan, or some milder blue cheeses.
- Port: Port with Stilton is one of my all-time favorite combinations. This sweet wine seems to cut through the creaminess and saltiness of the cheese and classifies this pairing as a rule-breaker in every sense of the word. For dessert wines, the more pungent cheese flavors pair best.
Cheese and wine should act as a symphony playing in unison—delicate cheeses go with lighter wines, strong cheeses with more powerful wines. Experimentation is key. Try multiple cheeses with multiple wines and see what you like best. Pastoral, in Chicago, is a wine and cheese shop with a good handle on pairings—they really understand both wine and cheese. They have a small but well-thought-out selection of wines and amazing off-the-beaten-path cheeses to choose from. Use the guidelines I mentioned above, and let them know which wines you are pairing—they can help make the best choices for you!
Wine writer Maggie Bernat Smith contributes to the Strongbox blog each Friday.
 Since winemaking is such a long-lived art form, it might be easy to cast it primarily as a wonder of nature—that grapes, in particular, are amazing on their own with but a little help from talented growers and viticulturists. However, wine enthusiasts today should be aware of those who have gone above and beyond the ability to tend a robust vineyard—somebody like the late Dr. Harold Olmo.
California wines, in particular, owe a great debt to Olmo, who first established a quarantine facility for the state. This facility allowed foreign vines to be imported and planted. By expanding the variety of vines available to California growers, the wine industry of the state was able to begin developing into the powerhouse it is today.
Olmo also created over 30 different varieties of grape, which are today known as Olmo grapes. The most famous of these include the Ruby Cabernet, Emerald Riesling, and Rubired varietals, as well as the Symphony grape, which took Olmo nearly 30 years to develop and is today the principal grape used in wines from Hawaii.
Viticulture remains a lively and exciting science, and there are surely new pioneers working on their own discoveries right now. Even if the details of that work doesn’t strike your interest, though, you can expect to enjoy the fruits—quite literally!—of their labors.
Since we gave some tips for Valentine’s Day last week, we thought we’d celebrate the (perhaps temporary) return to warmer weather here in Chicago with a look at the art and craft of vineyard management. Brad Sorenson of Silverado Farming Co demonstrates the basics of training a vine to grow – and ensuring it doesn’t grow too quickly.
But maybe there’s some hidden wisdom here for romance as well: who hasn’t felt their significant other needed a little “training” at one time or another? Or that their love life might occasionally benefit from a little “selective pruning”?
One of the great things about living in wine country—and actively exploring it—is having access to wines I would never have discovered outside of the region. Some wineries are simply too small to distribute their wines to the Midwest, or even outside of California. There are so many artisan producers out here that are off the beaten wine touring path; not only do they not have tasting rooms, some of them don’t even have a proper winery! What these winemakers do have is custom crush facilities, such as that used at the Napa Wine Company.
If you want to make your own wine and you don’t have millions of dollars to invest in a winery, then this is where you want to go. These custom crush facilities have often been the key to Napa’s most sought after cult wines, and have launched many celebrity winemakers. They provide everything you could need to make your own wine and distribute it: equipment, labeling, bottles, even a staff if necessary. The Napa Wine Company is located right on the main drag of Hwy 29 and has a tasting room where you can sample a wide variety of lesser-known and also well-known brands at one stop.
Speaking of lesser-known brands; I have recently had the privilege to discover some gems that have never made it to the Chicago market, but come highly recommended by people “in the know” out here in wine country. Relic Wines, created by husband-and-wife team Mike Hirby and Schatzi Throckmorton, started in 2001 with three barrels of Pinot Noir. Mike is the chief winemaker for Relic but also acts a consulting winemaker for highly regarded wineries such as Winter, Realm, Husic, and D.R. Stephens (whew, what a busy man)! Mike regularly receives high scores on not only Relic wines but for all of the other wines he makes as well.
If you don’t feel like shelling out $200 for Winter ultra-luxury Cabernet, Relic is such a great deal. Relic’s 2009 Ritual is a statement of pure decadence. It’s a blend of southern Rhone varietals, but I just think of it as “ginormity” at its finest. If you like huge red wines, then this is for you. It’s packed with big red fruits but combines the complexity of forest floor and red meat. It’s a very intense wine with tannins that are just crying out for a Kansas City bone-in ribeye. His Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir stays true to the Sonoma Coast style of dark fruits, with lots of spice and amazing acidity that is so nicely integrated that it just glides around your palate gracefully.
I was really impressed with all the wines in his portfolio that I tasted, and for the price this wine is hard to beat. Relic wines are wonderfully approachable now but also built to last and gain more complexity with age. You can easily buy from Relic’s website to get a taste of what the insiders—and now myself—love about their wines.
Wine writer Maggie Bernat Smith contributes to the Strongbox blog each Friday.
Tagged DR Stephens Estate Wines, Husic Vineyards, Mike Hirby, Napa Wine Company, Pinot Noir, Realm Cellars, Relic Wines, Schatzi Throckmorton, Sonoma Coast, Wine, Winter Wine
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For those wine lovers who enjoy taking tours of wine country, the Napa Valley Wine Train sounds like an experience not to be missed. This luxury restaurant offers not only gourmet dinners but also rare and hard-to-find wines for sampling, wrapped up in the classically romantic setting of an antique train. In addition to its normal operations, the venue also offers occasional “event” evenings, including that most tantalizing of thrills—the murder mystery on the moving train.
Considering their flair for the romantic, it’s natural that the Train would also produce this short video, which presents a couple of Valentine’s Day tips for all sorts of lovers.
Only a few days left! Don’t forget to include a bottle of wine in your plans for the evening!
 Although Strongbox is a company based in Chicago, we know that many of the city’s wine enthusiasts hail from other parts, including our northern neighbor of Wisconsin. And since we’re good sports, despite the traditional rivalries, we congratulate fans of the Green Bay Packers for yesterday’s Super Bowl victory.
In honor of our Packer-backing, cheese-headed friends, we’d like to draw your attention to the Frugal Oenophile’s Wine & Cheese Matching Chart — a handy reference tool that you can purchase for yourself or as a gift for your friends. Use the chart to explore new wines, new cheeses, and the perfect combinations of both!
Wine-loving Bears fans—remember, there’s always next year!
 This week’s exploration of Napa Valley wine country brings me to the Oakville sub-AVA (American Viticultural Area). This part of the Napa Valley is just north of Yountville on Highway 29 and continues north, ending at Rutherford. It stretches east to west from the Mayacamas Mountains to the west and the Vaca Mountains to the east. Its history is rich and dates back to the original, quality plantings done in the Napa Valley during the mid 1800’s. Wines from Oakville are some of the most expensive and sought-after wines from California. It’s home to such cult producers as Harlan, Bond, Screaming Eagle, Dalla Valle, and Opus One, just to name a few. Despite being in the wine industry myself, I never even get to taste most of these wines (the exception being Opus One) — they are so coveted and produced in such limited quantities that they immediately sell out to people on the wineries’ mailing lists and to high-end restaurants, but are rarely found elsewhere.
Oakville is particularly famous for its blissful relationship with Cabernet Sauvignon. Oakville is home to the world famous To Kalon vineyard, which is credited with some of the original plantings in Oakville and is now considered a “First Growth” site for exceptional grapes. To Kalon is owned by Andy Beckstoffer and Robert Mondavi, and if you were to purchase a To Kalon single vineyard wine, you should plan on shelling out about $250, depending on the producer. Oakville maintains the perfect climate for growing Cabernet Sauvignon: not too hot, not too cold, but just right. Oakville Cabernets perfectly express the ethereal qualities you hope to find in all Cabernet Sauvignon.
I have had the privilege of tasting the wines of Oakville, including Rudd Estate, Paul Hobbs, Swanson Vineyards, and others. I found their wines to be of the utmost ‘ginormity’. The structure of these Cabs is meant to last decades. I found hints of herbs, eucalyptus, layers of dark ripe fruit, and the subtle earthiness that makes them the “heavenly bodies” of the wine-loving world. If you can hold onto these wines for 10 years, then do it: the flavors will deepen, the tannins will soften and the pleasure will be all yours.
Wine writer Maggie Bernat Smith contributes to the Strongbox blog each Friday.
Tagged Andy Beckstoffer, Bond, Cabernet Sauvignon, Dalla Valle, Harlan, Maggie Bernat Smith, Napa Valley, Opus One, Paul Hobbs, Robert Mondavi, Rudd Estate, Screaming Eagle, Swanson Vineyards, To Kalon
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Since July of 2007, Washington DC-area wine enthusiast Alison Somerville has been maintaining the Wandering Blonde Wine-O blog, offering tips and recommendations of wines from across the globe. With a casual, personable tone that belies her sharp wine knowledge, Somerville is honest and fearless about her tastes and ideas. When DC was hit with a massive, city-shuttering blizzard last winter (similar to what Chicagoans are experiencing now), Somerville decided it was the perfect opportunity to hold a quick wine-tasting outdoors. Check her out here as she gives her assessment of a California Snapdragon:
Hope all of our readers are keeping safe and warm—and if they’re stranded indoors, that they have a bottle of wine to keep them company!
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