WWHBD December 10, 2014

Welcome to the next installment of WWHBD. As in previous posts, since we are true believers of “Drink what you like and everyone tastes differently”, rather than including our tasting notes I have included basic information about each of the wines. If you are interested in reading what we thought about each wine you can follow us on Delectable.  We can be found @Dracaenawines.

We chose this wine for a special celebration.  It was my birthday and all I wanted was to see the Mockingjay.  I am a huge dystopian fan, and The Hunger Games is one of my favorite.  We started the evening at Spuntino Wine & Tapas and then went to the movie.  The pizza had mozzerella, fingling potatoes, bacon, carmelized onions and rosemary and paired nicely with the Cabernet Franc from Chinon AOC. According to the US labeling requirement on the back, Francois-Xavier Barc has partnered with wine makeers who share his philosophy and passion for wine to create Complices de Loire.  Pleasure and quality are the main focus, stringent parcel selection, sustainable winemaking, precise vinifications to highlight Loire Valley appellations.  In the Loire Valley, Timonerie is used as a synonym for Castle. Grown on clay and gravel, this 100% Cabernet Franc from Chinon, is fruity, soft and exudes aromas of red berries. A great match with grilled meats.

We felt obligated to return to our roots after leaving the country, so we went right back to Sonoma County with a Trione 2011 Primitivo. We honestly would never waste this wine cooking but apparently they recommend it for cooking.  You can find a recipe for braised ribs at  http://trionewinery.com/archive/tag/primitivo/.

For #WineWednesday we chose the 2011 Old Vine Zinfandel from Bogle Vineyards.  According to the back label, the vines for this wine were planted by European immigrants in the early 1900’s. They are head-trained to produce a rich and concentrated smaller crop.  When I opened the bottle, the cork had a quote on it by George Herbert.  “Old vines and old friends are good provisions.” Although I had no clue who he was, I do like his quote.

This week has been a long one.  Mostly because I, of course, needed to watch the Miami Dolphins BEAT the NY Jets on Monday night.  Going to bed at 11:30 and needing time to relax from that horrible game led to a very rough week.  So on Friday we (I) needed a good wine and Mike chose the 2006 En Chamberlin Syrah from WallaWalla.  I thought I’d share how we were lucky enough to get on their mailing list. Mike and I were young oenophiles back then, we went to Walla Walla and decided we’d would stop by Cayuse.  At this point, we had no idea who they were, heck, no one knew who they were.  When we got there, the door was locked, but we saw someone inside.  Being the Jersey Girl I am, I knocked. Some guy opened the door. (yeah, some guy,  it was Christophe)  When he opened the door, he greeted us with a smile and welcomed us. However, he welcomed us as two other people.  Immediately I had the devil on one shoulder telling me to say yes, we were those people and the angel on the other side, begging me to be honest.  The angel won out. Christophe welcomed us in anyway, telling us the other people must not be coming.  He gave us a private tasting and while we were on about our fourth wine, a knock came at the door. (Thank you little angel for winning- yes it was the people who Christophe was expecting)  We fell in love with the wine, but Christophe explained he only sold through futures.  We had never had this situation before, but we really did love this wine. So we signed up (and paid.)  When we returned home, sometime before we got our first shipment, Cayuse got high 90’s ratings in multiple publications.  Now if you want Cayuse, you are on a very long wait list. Talk about being in the right place at the right time. (and a kudos to karma for telling the truth)

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This Saturday we were longing for our second home of Paso Robles.  So we decided to open this Aequorea 2012 Viognier. This wine is made by Aaron Jackson and he is part of Paso Underground. Aaron is an avid ocean fan, as we walked into the Underground, I fell loved the name.  Being the biologist person that I am, I immediately recognized the name as the Genus name for jellyfish. Look at his label, it’s an ocean for us biology nerds, that is as close to 2 + 2 = 4 as it gets. It immediately caught my eye, enough for me to go to the tasting area, but once I tasted, I was hooked. We also purchased his Petite Sirah, but under his other label of Aaron Wines.  If you are in Paso Robles, check out Paso Underground and be sure to stop by.

Hope you had some great wines this past two weeks. We would love to hear what your favorite was.
~Slainte!