Wine Each Week – 2015 Neyen

Most of Chile’s best reds are actually a blend of Carménère and Cabernet Sauvignon. This far south of the equator, these two grapes seemed destined for each other. For the 2015 vintage the blend is 55% Cabernet, the rest Carménère, from over 100 year old vines farmed with organic practices. The result is a velvety wine with mild black cherry, blueberry, blackberry and sweet vanilla-oak, caramel. Whereas the oak is noticeable (14 months barrel aging), it nevertheless does not pull focus from the fruit, nor the mild tannic structure or acidity. This wine is also appealing because if you love Cabernet, but don’t want a massive California-style slap in the face Cabernet, the Carménère here mitigates the Cabernet quite well, restraining it and providing a very pleasurable drinking experience.

ORIGIN: Apalta, Chile

ALCOHOL: 14%

PRICE: $59.99 (750ML)

SCORE: 92 POINTS

NEYENWINE

Wine Each Week – 2017 Veramonte Pinot Noir

I love being surprised by a wine. This Veramonte was on a bottom shelf of my samples cabinet, tucked in between pricey Napa wines. This is what truly excites me – finding a wine that delivers on quality and taste and is under 11 bucks. The 2017 is all lively raspberry, black cherry, blueberry, pepper spice, vanilla, sweet charred wood, and vibrant acidity. It spent just eight months of aging in neutral oak barrels so the oak influence is quite minimal. To be sure it is less nuanced than more expensive Pinot Noirs however this allows any wine lover to get their hands on an excellent quality wine, and for those from whom I hear all the time, “I can’t find a Pinot I like that I can afford,” their query has been answered.

ORIGIN: Casablanca Valley, Chile

ALCOHOL: 14%

PRICE: $10.99/ 750ML

SCORE: 92 POINTS

Veramonte

Wine Each Week - 2016 Marques Casa Concha Cabernet Sauvignon

Good Cabernet Sauvignon need not be expensive Cabernet Sauvignon. This is why the Chilean region is gaining so much popularity; you can still find immense quality at reasonable prices. Case in point, the Marques Casa Concha delivers both. There are notes of blackberry, blueberry, soft notes of black cherry and elderberry, hints of vanilla and a deft acidity which is exactly what you want with a food wine. It’s comprised of predominantly Cabernet Sauvignon with 5% Syrah and 4% Cabernet Franc blended in. The grapes were harvested in April of 2016 and after fermentation it was aged in French oak barrels for 16 months. Solid winemaking, a solid wine, this delivers exceptional quality.

ORIGIN: Maipo Valley, Chile

ALCOHOL: 13.5%

PRICE: $24.99/ 750ML

SCORE: 91 POINTS

Marques Casa Concha

Flipping You The Bird: Improper Wines For Thanksgiving

There is this weirdly compulsive thing these days to pair wine with your food, as if searching for and experiencing the “perfect pairing” is tantamount to Indian Jones discovering the Covenant of the Ark. Yes, I admit I’ve written about that too (uh, the pairings, not the Ark), and certainly wine and food are crucially important – not to mention I’ve reviewed restaurants professionally for a decade. The point being…drink whatever the hell you want with whatever the hell you want to eat. No more elusive pairings and “ideal” wine for turkey day. Having said that…I would like to see these wines on your table.

2014 IL Tascante

Soft and quiet, this is not a loud wine; it’s understated and you’ve probably never had this grape before – Nerello Mascalase. Grown on volcanic soils on the north-east slope of the volcano Mt. Etna in Sicily, there is an earthiness, a mineral note, a chalkiness with this wine. There is muted raspberry, cranberry, and rhubarb with back notes of Bing cherry. Though aged in Slovenian oak barrels for 18 months, you hardly notice any oak at all, more a testament of the lithe but structured fruit. And it is this subtleness that makes this wine so compelling. Well, that and the fact the family has been doing the wine thing for two centuries. ($50)

2015 Sonoma-Loeb Pinot Noir Dutton Ranch

Out of the Russian River Valley the good folks at Sonoma-Loeb turn out a lot of great wine and this Pinot, from a well-established vineyard is part of a great lineage. All Pinot all the time this make-up of clones 667, 777 and 115 was fermented using native yeast and aged for just 11 months in French oak. 11 months is correct because you don’t want this beautiful fruit to get lost in some kind of cedar box. Black cherry, red currant, candied cranberry, star anise, cola and soft baking spices round out this rich, but pure iteration of Pinot. Great acidity and mild tannins make this work with damn near whatever you put on the table, or, better yet, get some cheese and have at it. ($40)

2016 Ritual Chardonnay

Chardonnay, again, really? Yes, really. This bright crisp Chardonnay from Chile is expressive, young, and fresh with a tanginess and food-worthy acidity. You’ll easily pick up on the lemon curd, kiwi, gooseberry, lime kefir, and green apple notes, and more subtly the hazelnut, mango and quince. The fruit hails from the Casablanca Valley, just 18 miles from the coast, and is whole cluster fermented in concrete eggs (which helps immensely with viscosity) and then gets a wee bit of oak time, so you’re left with a robust white wine that plays well with others. ($21.99)

2016 Steele Viognier

Viognier, the odd named grape most people mispronounce, is one of those, cool-if-it’s-done-right wines. And Jed Steele does it right. All the way from Lake County, this offers lychee, honeysuckle, Meyer lemon, lime curd and sugared almond. A beautiful viscosity and silkiness makes the floral components of this wine that much more provocative. It’s fermented in stainless steel so it retains a bright buoyancy but is not too heavy and flowery. A mere four month of oak time allows this wine to achieve a balance of fruit, acidity and wood. ($19)

The Best of 2013

As a wine and spirits writer for a variety of publications like The Hollywood Reporter, The Tasting Panel, IntoWine.com, Draft, Fine Wine & Liquor (China) and others, I taste through a lot of booze in a given year. 2013 was a good year, but not a great year, for new discoveries. I’ve listed the top 5 wines and the top 5 spirits I rated this year. If you get the chance, I suggest you put them on your dance card. And for 2014, don't be afraid to try something new...and let me know about it!

2013’s Top 5 Wines

Croft 2011 Vintage Port (91)

2011 was a declared Vintage year and this Port shows why. Viscous and rich with hefty black cherry, slightly smoky wood, dusty cinnamon, suburb tannins and proper acidic undertones – this is why people drink port – not to get a sugar rush, but to bask in the rich, opulent, smooth wine which is just so damn fun to drink. $120

Halter Ranch 2010 Ancestor (91)

Coming from Paso Robles on California’s Central Coast the Ancestor has great notes of cedar, blackberry, dark cherry, cinnamon and raspberry, a lush, rich wine which always calls for a 2nd bottle. It is seamless with its tannins, use of oak, pop of fruit and its smooth finish. $50

LaZarre 2012 Vin Gris (90)

Rose needs more love and for this little jewel there's a nice little acidity perfect for food with flavors of cranberry pomegranate and to a lesser degree, strawberry. It has an almost earthy, smoky quality to it and it’s lean and clean. $18

Vina Ventisquero/Grey 2011 Carménère (90)

From Chile comes this outstanding example of this unknown grape. This happy little number has a boatload of rustic zesty black cherry, rich red and black fruit, spicy pepper, and a slight acidity. $23.99

Robert Hall 2010 Merlot (90)

Paso Robles is Cabernet country, but Merlot is best expressed by Don Brady and his devotion to this grape. I’ve tasted though various years of his Merlots and they always work. Earthy, rustic, clean and soft tannins. $18

2013’s Top 5 Spirits

Herradura Reposado Tequila (90)

This reposado really intrigued me with its smooth caramel and resin flavors, sweet oak and a stealth citrus back note. Clean and viscous, there's a slight burn and a beautiful butterscotch aroma. $40

Stone Barn Brandyworks Coffee Liqueur (89)

Available only in Oregon, sadly, this this is a blend of coffee from El Salvador and Yemen. They infuse a house-distilled Pinot Noir brandy and pear/apple spirit with fresh roasted coffee. Toss in some Madagascar vanilla, cinnamon and invert the sugar to make the liqueur and, voila! $27

Bully Boy White Whiskey (89)

USDA certified organic white whiskey therefore it’s clear and lacking the caramel and wood flavors. There’s a smooth viscosity to this, a little burn but the liquor is rounded inside the mouth. This is clean, with near mint overtones, and it presents a cooler vibe not hot and alcoholic, medium bodied and subtle. $28

Hornitos Lime Shot (89)

Using blue agave, lime and salt this is cool, clean, minty, and yes, limey, and way too easy to drink. It's certainly drinkable on its own though it works better as a mixer. $18

Astral Tequila (88)

This tequila is produced from nothing but organic blue agave (I’m always a fan of organic if the end result is a better product). It has a cool clean nose of resin and eucalyptus and a spicy mint-ish vibe which grips the mouth. $34.99

50 Shades of Grey

Carménère. What you might ask? Carménère, the grape, the wine. There’s a cool little bottle available for you to try. Originally from the Medoc region of France, Carménère was always blended into other wines, and, like the classic middle child who craves attention, Carménère needs some time in the spotlight. And ta-da, its time is now here! One wine writer whom I have never heard of referred to Carménère as “the Alec Baldwin of forgotten grapes.” I have no idea what that means, but in some existential way it makes sense. Made by winemaker Felipe Tosso from Vina Ventisquero in Chile (you know, the country in South America?) this happy little number has a boatload of zesty black cherry, rich red and black fruit, spicy pepper, and a slight bitterness, frankly a lot of shades to this wine. Aged for 18 months in French Oak to soften the flavor and give some structure, yes, there is a slight vegetal element waaaaay in the back which normally I abhor (under ripe fruit and all) but weirdly it doesn’t detract from this wine. Carménère has softer tannins than Cabernet, but also a solid acidity which works so much better with food than a lot of heavily manipulated, or redundant Jolly Rancher-fruity Cab. It’s actually closer to Merlot, but with a rustic, edgy quality that makes this version actually fun to drink. Yeah, fun – as in Alec Baldwin fun. So try something new and find this baby. There are quite a few wines under the Grey label, but this is the only one I have tried, and it’s a beauty. It's imported by San Francisco Wine Exchange into the U.S. market.  VINA VENTISQUERO
ORIGIN: Maipo Valley, Chile (Block 5 from the Trinidad Vineyard)

PRICE: $23.99 / 750/ml

ALCOHOL: 13.5%

BOOZEHOUNDZ SCORE:  90 POINTS