VINOGRAPHY: a wine blog
Wine and food adventures in San Francisco and around the world
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1990 Trimbach "Cuvee Frederic Emile" Riesling, Alsace
I can remember a time when the word "Alsace" only brought to mind dim memories of my 5th grade class discussion on some valley that people were fighting about in one of those big wars. In those days I definitely couldn't spell Gewurztraminer, and I had only tried one or two of them. Perhaps you'd call me a late bloomer when it came to Alsatian wine, but bloom I eventually did, and now I'm a quiet, but fierce devotee of what I believe to be some of the most individualistic wines on the planet. Alsace has always been an... continue reading 
- Posted by: Alder on May 7, 2008 9:20 PM
- Filed under: Older Vintages , White Wine , Wine Reviews
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Does Napa's Best Cabernet Live in Oakville?: A Recent Tasting
While often referred to as a single "place" when it comes to wine, Napa is hardly a single monolithic growing region. Each of its 14 established AVAs (American Viticultural Areas) lays claim to a separate identity, characterized by geology, microclimate, and different histories of production. The Oakville AVA has one of the most storied of such histories. It is home to the famed To Kalon Vineyard, purchased by H.W. Crabb in 1868, shortly after the installation of a railroad stop made the tiny village of Oakville spring to life. In 1876 Crabb's neighbor John Benson bottled his inaugural vintage of... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on May 4, 2008 11:08 PM
- Filed under: Boutique Wines , Red Wine , Wine Reviews
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2005 Piña Napa Valley "D'Adamo Vineyard" Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa
If one were to speculate on the wine market as a savvy investor might in the small-cap stock market, the game would be the same: follow people you know with good track records. In the wine world, we'd also have to include a corollary about betting on great vineyard sites, but leaving aside the raw materials, it's clear that most good wines don't happen by accident. They're made by talented people. Finding talented people in Napa isn't hard at first. There are a lot of them, many of whom have big brand names. When they start working for a winery,... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on May 2, 2008 11:48 PM
- Filed under: Boutique Wines , Red Wine , Wine Reviews
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The Mountain Wines of Napa: Tasting Notes From Altitude
We live in a world of marketing, where everyone struggles to distinguish their product from the competition and where seduction is the name of the game. Winemakers and producers seemingly must participate in this cacophony of messages in order for their wines to attract the attention of consumers. This competition for eyeballs in the store (or online), and then share of wallet (or, one might say, share of cellar) leads to an awful lot of hype. Wine labels and web sites are now chock full of all sorts of claims and phrases, leaving consumers to sort out the honest descriptions... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on April 26, 2008 11:25 PM
- Filed under: Wine Activities , Wine Reviews
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2005 Domaine Albert Boxler Pinot Gris "Vieilles Vignes," Alsace
Like Jazz standards interpreted endlessly by masters and amateurs alike, grapes find infinite expression in the hands of winemakers around the world. These interpretations, filtered through the lens of a regions climate and geology, are often wildly different from place to place. Syrah from Paso Robles in California, the Barossa Valley in Australia, Cornas in France's Northern Rhone Valley, and Washington State's Colombia Gorge are so wildly different you might even question that they were the same grape in a blind tasting. Such variation serves to both delight and befuddle wine lovers at different turns, and can often prompt the... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on April 21, 2008 10:58 PM
- Filed under: Boutique Wines , White Wine , Wine Reviews
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2003 Pulenta Estate "Gran Corte VII" Red Wine, Mendoza, Argentina
Three years ago this week I was making my way around the top restaurants of Buenos Aires, ordering too much food, too much wine, and having a grand old time. I had come to Argentina, in addition to simply relax, to find out whether or not there was anything worth drinking made out of a grape called Malbec. The answer, of course, was a resounding "yes!" I managed to figure out why some serious wine lovers (and critics alike) had begun to quietly suggest that Argentinean Malbec was going to be the Next Big Thing. This wine was NOT one... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on April 16, 2008 11:09 PM
- Filed under: Boutique Wines , Red Wine , Wine Reviews
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Neal Family Vineyards, Napa: Current Releases
In some ways, if Mark Neal and his small winery, Neal Family Vineyards, didn't make fantastic wines, it would be cause for extreme concern. Neal has been working in the vineyards since the age of eight, and his family business, which was responsible for his early employment among the vines, has been managing many of Napa's finest vineyards for more than four decades. At this point, Jack Neal and Sons, which still carries the name of Mark's father, who passed away in 1994, is the single largest vineyard management company in Napa according to Neal. They manage well over 2000... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on April 10, 2008 10:11 PM
- Filed under: Boutique Wines , Red Wine , Wine Reviews
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2005 Domaine de Chateau Gaillard Saumur, Loire Valley, France
The Loire Valley is perhaps one of the most underrated and unexplored (by most Americans) wine producing regions in France. So often eclipsed by the bombast of Bordeaux, Burgundy, and the Rhone, if it is known at all, the Loire tends to be known for its famous Sauvignon Blanc from Sancerre. Yet the region, which is the largest white wine producing region in France, and the third largest winegrowing appellation (AOC) in the country, also produces many excellent red wines, chiefly from Cabernet Franc. The most dominating feature of the Loire Valley must be the river itself, France's longest and... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on April 2, 2008 9:20 PM
- Filed under: Boutique Wines , Red Wine , Wine Reviews , Wines under $20
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Obata Shuzo Manotsuru "Yososaku" Junmai Daiginjo, Niigata Prefecture
Sake brewing has a long and storied history in Japan, and because of the island nation's relative isolation, many breweries can trace their origins back several centuries. Such timelines make it possible to suggest with only the smallest hint of jest, that having only been founded in 1885, Obata Shuzo is a relatively new kid on the sake brewing block. Yososaku Obata opened his brewery in 1885 on an island off the western coast of Japan's Niigata prefecture. A vintage photograph of the founder shows him dressed in a western suit, with a handlebar mustache that most Italian's would... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on April 1, 2008 9:55 PM
- Filed under: Sake , Wine Reviews
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2004 Ridge Vineyards "Monte Bello" Cabernet Sauvignon, Santa Cruz Mountains
As Paul Draper was inducted into the Vintners Hall of Fame a couple of weeks ago in a ceremony at the Culinary Institute of America in St. Helena, his acceptance speech offered a simple exhortation to members of the wine industry in attendance: make great wines for yourself and for no one else. His suggestion that winemakers follow their own vision instead of chasing the critics or the appeal of the masses (though he did acknowledge that selling wine is important, too) was backed up by the quite confidence of a man who has been doing that for more than... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on March 27, 2008 11:58 PM
- Filed under: Red Wine , Wine Reviews
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The Best Grenache in California: Tasting Rhone Rangers 2008
Maybe I'm getting old, but I just didn't have the energy to taste 300 wines last weekend when the Rhone Rangers came to town. This is always one of my favorite tastings each year, as I deeply enjoy Rhone style wines in all their incarnations, from the crisp whites of Marsanne and Roussanne to the rich dark Syrahs, and everything in between. My usual approach consists of starting at one end of the hall and tasting through the wines like a bulldozer goes through a crowded square. This usually yields a great cross section of wines and lets me highlight... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on March 23, 2008 11:30 PM
- Filed under: Wine Activities , Wine Reviews
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Cooper-Garrod Vineyards, Santa Cruz Mountains: Current Releases
One of the greatest joys in my life remains the feeling I get when stumbling upon a small winery whose name rings no bells, but who produces excellent wines. I don't know why this is, exactly, but it has replaced the childish joy I used to experience as a young boy when finding a small crystal on a hike, or setting a new personal record for stone skipping on a pond. Little wineries with high quality wines are like buried treasure, I guess, but these days my goal is not to hoard but to share as widely as possible. Which... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on March 15, 2008 7:15 PM
- Filed under: Boutique Wines , Undiscovered Wines , Wine Reviews
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1974 Charles Krug "Vintage Selection - Lot F1" Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa
Do you want to know a little secret? I'm probably going to catch hell for telling you, especially from my friend Jack who served this wine to me, and who let me in on the secret in the first place. But he should know better than to tell a blogger anything. So here goes: Pre-1980 California Cabernets are some of the best buys in the wine world right now. Sure, some of them, especially pristine bottlings of reserve Beringer, BV, Heitz, or Stags' Leap wines are going for hundreds of dollars per bottle, but with a little effort you can... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on March 14, 2008 11:56 PM
- Filed under: Older Vintages , Red Wine , Wine Reviews
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Italy's Best Wines: Tasting the Tre Bicchieri Winners 2008
I pride myself on my broad tastes in wine. I like wine from everywhere, and don't believe I have a specific bias towards one region or another. However, each year, that claim is shaken a little bit as I emerge from what is one of the best wine tasting events held in San Francisco, The Gambero Rosso Tre Bicchieri tasting. For those unfamiliar with the Gambero Rosso, it is essentially an organization focused on the promotion and evaluation of Italian food and wine that each year publishes a guide by the same name. The Gambero Rosso is the Italian Wine... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on March 11, 2008 11:59 PM
- Filed under: Wine Reviews
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The World's Best Burgundy? Tasting La Paulee de San Francisco
It's not every day that I get to leave a wine tasting knowing that I've probably spit out a volume of wine that would cost more than the entire contents of my own personal cellar. OK, I'm probably being slightly hyperbolic, but I did spend last Saturday tasting wines that for the most part I will never be able to afford to own. The Grand Tasting at La Paulee de San Francisco offered an opportunity to taste approximately eighty top Burgundies from recent vintages alongside food samples from some of San Francisco's top restaurants, including Coi, A16, Boulevard, La Folie,... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on March 6, 2008 11:20 PM
- Filed under: Wine Activities , Wine Reviews
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Kapcsándy Family Winery, Napa: Current Releases
Napa has a way of turning modest dreams into major productions. Lou Kapcsándy and his wife Bobbie decided to retire to Napa mostly out of nostalgia for the picnics and wine tasting they used to do as a young married couple living in Sausalito. Forty years after the first of these romantic escapes, their retirement dream included only a little cottage with at most an acre or so of vines, so Lou could putter in the garage and make a barrel or two of wine from his backyard fruit. Three years after the family, including their son Louis, made the... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on March 4, 2008 7:54 PM
- Filed under: Boutique Wines , Red Wine , Wine Reviews
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The Best Cabernet in Napa: Tasting Premiere Napa Valley 2008
One of my favorite events each year involves the opportunity to sample some of the best wines that Napa produces in a given vintage. At Premiere Napa Valley, an auction that serves as the world's most expensive "bake sale" to support the efforts of the non-profit Napa Valley Vintners Association, journalists like me get a chance to sneak a taste of hundreds of unique wines that are purchased by the nation's top wine retailers at staggeringly high prices. This year, as every year, 200 member wineries each crafted a unique auction lot of wine that in most cases represents the... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on February 24, 2008 10:34 PM
- Filed under: Boutique Wines , Wine Activities , Wine Reviews
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2004 Swanson Merlot, Oakville, Napa
People travel all sorts of roads to get to Napa Valley. Napa is a refuge for those who can afford to pay for their dreams (with both time and money), and is therefore a place that many choose to reincarnate themselves as winemakers or winery owners after quite storied careers elsewhere. It is also a place that some families begin new legacies for their younger generations. The Swanson family comes to wine, rather uniquely, through what some might consider the antithesis of Napa's California cuisine: frozen TV dinners. Yes, Swanson Frozen TV Dinners. If that four word phrase doesn't ring... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on February 14, 2008 11:28 PM
- Filed under: Red Wine , Wine Reviews
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Spring Mountain Vineyard, Napa: Current Releases
Friends and acquaintances often ask for recommendations on where to go in Napa, and I always tailor my response to my understanding of how serious they seem about wine. The majority of such petitioners are just looking to have a bit of the "Napa experience" and so I send them to a mix of my favorite wineries on the valley floor that are easy to find, and that produce wines in various styles and price points. For those who are serious about wine, and want to spend the entire day tasting some of the best wine they can, I always... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on February 10, 2008 2:27 PM
- Filed under: Wine Reviews
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The Best Zinfandel in California: Tasting at ZAP 2008
I never cease to be amazed at the power of Zinfandel. At the last major Pinot Tasting in San Francisco, I thought to myself that maybe, just maybe, Pinot Noir had unseated Zinfandel as the most exciting grape for the Bay Area wine drinking public. But who was I kidding. I simply just didn't remember the extent of the reveling hordes that descend on San Francisco's Fort Mason Center for the event known as ZAP. When I emerged for a breath of fresh air from the trade and media portion of the tasting, the line to get in to the... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on February 5, 2008 9:49 PM
- Filed under: Red Wine , Wine Reviews
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2006 Orin Swift Cellars "The Prisoner" Red Wine, Napa
I wish I knew how many wineries in Napa started as "just a guy who decided he wanted to make wine one day." There must be dozens of them. Maybe hundreds. These numbers shouldn't be allowed to devalue the effort and vision it takes to create a successful winery, but sometimes I scratch my head in bemusement at the audacity of so many people who simply decide to throw their lives into the wine business. While we don't really hear about the ones that don't make it, there are enough of them that have become wildly successful that "the guy... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on January 31, 2008 11:19 PM
- Filed under: Red Wine , Wine Reviews
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Tablas Creek Vineyard, Paso Robles: Current Releases
It always comes as a surprise to some American wine lovers when they hear about French wineries deciding to open up shop on American soil. I think this surprise comes not only from the historical rivalry between California and France that came to head in the 1976 Paris Tasting, but also because America is used to being in the role of colonizer, rather than the colonized. I also think that most wine lovers have the impression that the all French think of America as the land of fake wines made on soil with no terroir. Unfortunately, it is pretty easy... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on January 27, 2008 10:07 PM
- Filed under: Wine Reviews
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WBW#41 Roundup Has Been Posted: Friuli White Wines
The white wines of northeastern Italy have never been on the radar for most Americans. Robert Parker's Wine Advocate only began covering this area in the past year, thanks to the addition of Italian critic Antonio Galloni to his staff. Yet this area produces some of the world's finest white wines. The best of these wines are made in very small quantities and are quite expensive and difficult to get ahold of here in the U.S. but as more importers seek out the nooks and crannies of the wine world, we are slowly beginning to see more wines from Friuli... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on January 25, 2008 10:13 PM
- Filed under: White Wine , Wine Activities , Wine Reviews
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Kikusui Funaguchi Ichiban Shibori Honzojo, Niigata Prefecture
I'll admit it right off the bat: I'm a serious sake snob. I don't mean that in the sense that I believe my taste in aake is superior to anyone else's, only that I'm extremely picky when it comes to sake. In particular, I tend to discriminate on the basis of the class of sake. I tend to prefer ginjo and daiginjo sakes, and most often the junmai versions of these. Ginjo and daiginjo are the two top classes of sake, as measured by the degree to which the rice kernels used to make them have been milled or polished... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on January 23, 2008 11:33 PM
- Filed under: Sake , Wine Reviews , Wines under $20
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2002 Vodopivec Vitovska, Friuli-Venezia Giulia IGT, Italy
In the far Northeastern corner of Italy there lies a countryside that is better defined by wine than by any geopolitical affiliation. The far eastern edge of the Friuli-Venezia Giulia winegrowing region has been a member of many countries and many empires, and by now its people are used to living in different countries every three or four decades, it seems. The one constant in this area of small picturesque valleys and numerous natural limestone caves (good for hiding from whoever your present occupiers are), has always been wine, and in particular, white wines, some of which I will unabashedly... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on January 16, 2008 9:41 PM
- Filed under: Boutique Wines , White Wine , Wine Reviews
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2002 Pietratorcia "Scheria" Rosso, Isola d'Ischia, Italy
The phrase "wine country" generally evokes a wide variety of mental images, largely derived from each person's individual experience in such landscapes. My mental image is most certainly the golden hills of Sonoma County from my summers spent as a child in Northern California, followed closely by the lush green hills of Tuscany in the springtime. I'd venture to say one of the least common pictures of wine country would be a tiny volcanic island, growing grapes within a stone's throw of the Mediterranean and interspersed with geysers and mud baths. Leaving aside the coincidence that Napa valley has its... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on January 14, 2008 11:10 PM
- Filed under: Boutique Wines , Red Wine , Wine Reviews
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Renaissance Vineyards, Sierra Foothills, CA: Current Releases
I don't think anything excites me quite as much as finding a small producer of wine that is off most people's radar and discovering that they are making tremendous wines. I'm always in a tricky position when I do this, because by virtue of publicizing great winemaking on a small scale, I make the wine harder to get for everyone, including myself. I do occasionally also get some e-mails from ticked off wine lovers bemoaning the fact that I've divulged one of their secret sources for great wine. But that's all occupational hazard for me, and doesn't outweigh the joy... continue reading
- Posted by: Alder on January 5, 2008 11:51 PM
- Filed under: Boutique Wines , Wine Reviews
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