Wednesday, August 31, 2016

WINE OF THE WEEK: VILARNAU BRUT RESERVE DO CAVA OF SPAIN-$13

Story and photos by Dwight Casimere



The artistic avant- garde bottle gives an indication of what's inside; a racy, sophisticated sparkling wine with an adventurous spirit, that is produced in a state-of-the-art winery that is steeped in tradition. Vilarnau is a prestigious, finely crafted Spanish sparkling wine, or Cava, that is produced in the heart of Catalonia, in the capital of the Cava Denomination of Origin (DO) in the municipality of Saint Sadurni d' Anoia.

Vilarnau cava dates from 1949 and is made entirely from a blend of indigenous Spanish grapes, that give this cava its unique flavor and character-50% Macabeo, 35% Parellada and 15% Xarel.lo.  Although all of the grapes are white varietals, they each have a distinctive bold character. The grapes are fermented separately in stainless steel tanks under controlled temperatures in order to carefully preserve their full flavor and varietal expression, They are then blended and bottled and allowed to undergo secondary fermentation for 6 weeks in underground cellar caves, or cavas/ The wine is then aged for an additional 15 months before it is disgorged (the yeast 'cap' is removed from each bottle by hand) and the expedition liquor is added (a mixture of wine and sugar) to achieve the proper flavor level. The low sugar level and ratio of acid to sugar gives this sparkling wine a 'bine dry' character that makes it perfect with food.

This cava has all of the classic marks of a fine sparkling wine, but at a fraction of the cost. It has tiny, persistent bubbles that linger in the glass like a string of pearls. A vibrant yellow color with flecks of gold gives way to aromas of fresh green apples, and the hint of cinnamon spice from careful aging.

Now comes the fun part, the taste. Its like biting into a chilled Golden Delicious apple coated with candied Meyer lemon and tangerine zest. Take copious sips of it while scarfing down a dozen or so raw oysters, or cracking open a freshly steamed Maine lobster or a plate of seared Diver Scallops drenched with butter and lime juice or, one of my old standbys, Shrimp De Jonghe; a 50s-era Chicago steakhouse specialty composed of  giant shrimp butterflied with the shells on, then quickly put on the grill or baked with a healthy coating of lemon and garlic butter and finished with a sprinkling of Parmesan or Romano cheese. Now that's the way to properly celebrate the end of a terrific summer!

 Moutain ranges protect the grapes from the cold winds blowing down from the Pyrenees
 Sparkling wines stored in the ancient wine caves or 'Cavas' of Spain

Wednesday, August 17, 2016

WINE OF THE WEEK-ASTORIA "CARANTO" PINOT NOIR I.G.T.-$11

ASTORIA "CARANTO" PINOT NOIR ($11) A CROWD-PLEASER THAT WON'T BREAK THE BANK

Story and photos by Dwight Casimere

ASTORIA "CARANTO" PINOT NOIR ($11) A WARM WEATHER CROWD PLEASER



Hand harvesting of Pinot Noir grapes

These last precious days of summer are perfect for getting together with family and friends. Whether a pool-side soiree or a traditional outdoor grill party, wine is always the element that brings it all together. With the expense of getting the kids ready for school and that just-completed family vacation, there's  a limit on what the budget will allow. Here's a mouth-watering red from the Veneto in North Eastern Italy near Venice that delivers on food-friendly flavor, but won't cost an arm and a leg.

Astoria "Caranto" Pinot Noir IGT ($11) is the perfect match for everything you'll serve at your summer soiree. Light-bodied and food friendly, the wine is bursting with the flavors of summer; ripe red raspberry and strawberry. Summer barbecues were made for this wine, that pairs with just about everything. Served lightly chilled, the flavors seem to get even brighter. The wine is made from 100% Pinot Noir grapes, and is one of the finest representations of this notoriously finicky grape. Grown at high altitude, the grapes are hand-picked at harvest. The wine is carefully fermented under very cool temperatures to preserve the delicate fruit flavor. It is then cleared and stabilized and allowed to age a couple of months in the bottle, giving it a nice rounded flavor and added character. There's a lot of quality packed into this wine for the price. It has a nice, deep ruby color to start with. When you open the bottle, you're greeted with an intense, but pleasant aroma of bright red fruit. The flavor is everything you would expect from a quality pinot noir. It's straightforward without a lot of fuss. Savor the fruit flavors and the hint of rosemary and white pepper as you reach for that second helping of succulent barbecue ribs and you'll wish that summer days and nights could linger just a little longer.

 The Grand Canal in Venice
 A view of the Bridge of Sighs
 Two views of St. Marks Square

Tuesday, August 16, 2016

DONNAFUGATA SUR SUR AND SHERAZADE 2015 (BOTH $20) NEW AND SUMMER PERFECT

WINE(S) OF THE WEEK-DONNAFUGATA SURSUR AND SHERAZADE 2015 (BOTH $20)

STORY AND PHOTOS BY DWIGHT CASIMERE




PANTELLERIA, SICILY--The wines of Sicily are one of the great undiscovered regional varietals that represent wines with terrific flavor and tremendous value. They are bright, fruity and flavorful, so reminiscent of the beautiful sun-drenched countryside from which they come. Evidence the terrific new releases from Donnafugata, SurSur Grillo Sicilia and Sherazade Nero d'Avola Sicilia, both DOC 2015 and both costing $20. These wines are based on grapes that are native to Sicily, the white grape Grillo and, one and the most important red grape in Sicily, Nero d'Avola.   

SurSur is the white wine, which literally bursts with colorful flavors of summer. White peaches, pink grapefruit and pineapple flavors mingle with the lively aromas of wildflowers, fresh sage, rosemary and  oregano, recreate a summer garden in your mouth. I loved this wine with grilled white fish marinated in capers, garlic, olive oil and a bit of the wine, shrimp with fresh arugula and heirloom tomato salad, or a simple Cobb salad. 

Sherazade 2015 tells us why Nero d'Avola is the most important indigenous red grape in Sicily. Its intense ruby red color is a dead giveaway to what's inside the bottle; flavors of  ripe black cherries and blackberries abound with hints of vanilla, white pepper and a certain smoky aftertaste that makes it perfect for the afternoon barbecue. A nice reward at the end is a hint of spice; cinnamon and cardamom that make it a nice match for meats marinated in mediterranean spices, like butterflied lamb seared over hot coals and hickory or mesquite wood. Both wines can be served well chilled. Try mixing them with your favorite fruit liqueur, simple syrup, a sprig of mint and a splash of sparkling water or prosecco to create an innovative summer cocktail refresher.

 Donnafugata's Jose Rallo in the vineyards high above Marsala
 Below: Dwight Casimere at the Marsala vineyards
 The vineyards at Pantellaria


 Indigenous grapes at Donnafugata's vineyards

 Sunset over Pantelleria



Thursday, August 4, 2016

WINE(S)  OF THE WEEK NOBILO 2015 SAUVIGNON BLANC REGIONAL COLLECTION ($13)-NOBILO ICON 2015 SAUVIGNON BLANC($22)-PURE NEW ZEALAND

by Dwight Casimere



MARLBOROUGH, NEW ZEALAND--NOBILO PURE NEW ZEALAND wines of Marlborough make you forget everything you formerly knew about New Zealand wines. The wines were first put on the international wine map in the 1980s as a fruit forward mouthful of bright, zesty citrus fruit and pronounced minerals that offered a pure expression of New Zealand's clean green land.

Some wine aficionados, however, were turned off by the preponderance of "green" flavors and aromas of prairie grass and chalk. Enter Nobilo's master winemaker Dave Edmonds and the winery's subregion collection of vineyards  that offer an amazing variety of microclimates and terroir, from windswept plains to rolling, sun-basked hillsides that offer a full repertoire  of luscious, flavorful grapes that produce beautifully finished wines.

Nobilo 2015 Sauvignon Blanc Regional Collection ($13) and Nobilo Icon 2015 Sauvignon Blanc ($22) are this week's Wine of the Week selections because of their outstanding character and flavor and the exemplary artisan winemaking of Dave Edmonds and his team at Nobilo.

The wines are not only stand-alone favorites, but are perfect with a number of summertime favorites. They are best enjoyed al fresco on the patio, an outdoor cafe,  a romantic day or evening on the beach or in an elaborate picnic basket at an outdoor concert. Seafood salads, garnished with shrimp, lobster or scallops, seafood pastas, or a mouthwatering platter of sushi or sashimi are the other choices for a perfect wine and food pairing.

The aroma alone is enticing. Take the 2015 Sauvignon Blanc Regional Collection. The smell of fresh cut grass, so typical of summer and which everyone loves, is the first thing to greet you. Follow that up with aromas of fresh limes and tastes of succulent melons and hints of mild peppers and garden herbs, and its easy to understand why this wine just invites good summertime eating. Its perfect as an aperitif, served well chilled as a prelude to the meal, on through the meal as an able accompaniment and then, an applause-worthy finishing act.

For the adventurous, try using the wine as the main ingredient in a summertime cocktail. This writer used it as a substitute for rum in an otherwise traditional Mojito, with copious amounts of fresh lime juice muddled with sugar and shaken with two ounces of Nobilo Sauvignon Blanc and served in a glass rimmed with Turbinado sugar. Top it with a splash of sparkling water, or, for the bold and beautiful, a healthy dollop of Champagne, Prosecco or other sparkling wine for a delightful kick!

NOBILO ICON

Nobilo Icon 2015 Sauvignon Blanc ($22)  is the flagship of Nobilo wines. Established by the Nobilo family in 1943, after the family fled impending war in Croatia in the 1930s, the winery gave expression to a 300 year old winemaking tradition in a country that had no previous wine culture. After several years of struggle, which saw the family building their own winemaking tools, the first commercial vineyards were planted in 1943. By the 1970s, the family established themselves as successful winemakers, and transformed New Zealand's wine industry by shifting from hybrid grapes to the single varietals Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir. The rest, as they say, is winemaking history, with Nobilo continuing  to craft delicious wines with distinctive regional character.

Nobilo Icon is made predominantly from grapes from the renowned Castle Cliffs vineyard of Marlborough's Awatere Valley. Artisan winemaking accounts for its distinctive character. Hand harvested and  fermented in separate small tanks for a prolonged period under cool temperatures to preserve the bright, fruit character, the resulting wine has a complex array of sumptuous, mouthwatering flavors of citrus, wet stones and delicate white flowers. Flavors of lemon and white peaches combine with a juicy acidity and a bright minerality that gives the wine a long, lingering finish, which is unique to this white wine. This is an unusually sophisticated white wine that should be saved for that special meal or occasion. Consider that new seafood darling of the culinary realm,  pan-seared Branizino or Monkfish in garlic and olive oil,  sprinkled with rosemary or thyme, fresh capers and finished with a splash of the wine and a few gobs of softened butter to create a quick pan sauce. Pour over Orzo, jasmine rice or angel hair pasta and serve with a side of steamed or lightly grilled asparagus or grilled Romaine spears for a perfect meal on the patio or in the garden.

 Nobilo master winemaker Dave Edmonds
 The renowned castle Cliffs vineyards of Marlborough's Awatere Valley
 Shrimp and Loster Salads
 Below: Seafood pasta

 Assorted Sashimi trays







WINE(S)  OF THE WEEK NOBILO 2015 SAUVIGNON BLANC REGIONAL COLLECTION ($13)-NOBILO ICON 2015 SAUVIGNON BLANC($22)-PURE NEW ZEALAND



MARLBOROUGH, NEW ZEALAND--NOBILO PURE NEW ZEALAND wines of Marlborough make you forget everything you formerly knew about New Zealand wines. The wines were first put on the international wine map in the 1980s as a fruit forward mouthful of bright, zesty citrus and pronounced minerals that offered a pure expression of New Zealand's clean green land.

Some wine aficionados, however, were turned off by the preponderance of "green" flavors and aromas of prairie grass and chalk. Enter Nobilio's master winemaker Dave Edmonds and the winery's subregion collection of vineyards  that offer an amazing variety of microclimates and terroir, from windswept plains rolling sun-basked hillsides that offer a full repertoire of of luscious, flavorful grapes that produced beautifully finished wines.

Nobilio 2015 Sauvignon Blanc Regional Collection ($13) and Nobilio Icon 2015 Sauvignon Blanc ($22)are this week's Wine of the Week selections because of their outstanding character and flavor and the exemplary artisan winemaking of Dave Edmonds and his team at Nobilo.

The wines are not only stand-alone favorites, but are perfect with a number of summertime favorites, best enjoyed al fresco on the patio, an outdoor cafe of a romantic day or evening on the beach or in an elaborate picnic basket at an outdoor concert. Seafood salads, garnished with shrimp, lobster or scallops, seafood pastas, or a mouthwatering platter of sushi or sashimi are the other choices for a perfect wine and food pairing.

The aroma alone is enticing. Take the 2015 Sauvignon Blanc Regional Collection. The smell of fresh cut grass, so typical of summer and which everyone loves, is the first thing to greet you. Follow that up with aromas of fresh limes and tastes of succulent melons and hints of mild peppers and garden herbs, and its easy to understand why this wine just invites good summertime eating. Its perfect as an aperitif, served well chilled as a prelude to the meal, on through as an able accompaniment and an applause-worthy finishing act.

For the adventurous, try using the wine as the main ingredient for a summertime cocktail. This writer used it as a substitute for rum in an otherwise traditional Mojito, with copious amounts of fresh lime juice muddled with sugar and shaken with two ounces of Nobilo Savignon Blanc and served in a glass rimmed with Turbinado sugar. Top it with a splash of sparkling water, or, for the bold and beautiful, a healthy dollop of Champagne, Prosecco or other sparkling wine for a delightful kick!  

NOBILO ICON

Nobilo Icon 2015 Sauvignon Blanc ($22)  is the flagship of Nobilo wines. Established by the Nobilo family in 1943, after the family fled impending war in Croatia in the 1930s, the winery gave expression to a 300 year old winemaking tradition in a country that had no previous wine culture. After several years of struggle, which saw the family building their own winemaking tools, the first commercial vineyards were planted in 1943. By the 1970s, the family established themselves as successful winemakers, and transformed New Zealand's wine industry by shifting from hybrid grapes to single varietals; sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir. The rest, as they say, is winemaking history, with Nobilo continuing  to craft delicious iwnes with distinctive regional character.

Nobilo Icon is made predominantly from grapes from the renowned Castle Cliffs vineyard of Marlborough's Awatere Valley. Artisan winemaking accounts for its distinctive character. Hand harvested and  fermented in separate small tanks for a prolonged period under cool temperatures to preserve the bright, fruit character, the resulting wine has a complex array of sumtuous, mouthwatering flavors of citrus, wet stones and delicate white flowers. Flavors of lemon and white peaches combine with a juicy acidity and a bright minerality that gives it a long, lingering finish, which is unusual for a white wine. This is an unusually sophisticated white wine that should be saved for that special meal of pan-seared Branizino or Monkfish in garlic and olive oil, then sprinkled with rosemary or thyme, fresh capers and finished with a splash of the wine and a few gobs of softened butter to create a quick pan sauce. Pour over Orzo, jade rice or angel hair pasta and serve with a side of steamed or lightly grilled asparagus or Romaine spears for a perfect meal on the patio or in the garden.

 Nobilo master winemaker Dave Edmonds
 The renowned castle Cliffs vineyards of Marlborough's Awatere Valley
 Shrimp and Loster Salads
 Below: Seafood pasta

 Assorted Sashimi trays