Schug Pinot Noir, Carneros, Sonoma Coast, California

www.SchugWinery.com

www.CrushImports.com (merchants in Western Canada)

If you don't know who Walter Schug is, then you my friend need to learn one more name today. Herr Schug is, to me and many others, a veritable pantheon in the wine industry, in American wine, and in the nonsensical world of Pinot Noir.

Walter Schug was born with his feet stained red from the grapes... at least, that's what he told me at the 2013 Vancouver International Wine Festival (http://vanwinefest.ca). You see, Walter's Dad was also in the wine industry and used to take young Walter, when he was very, very young - to the vineyards and into the cellar. Walter told me, with his infectious grin, that they were some of his absolute fondest memories. And Walter has lead quite a life~!

How do I begin to tell the story of this man? Do I start with "Insignia"; the inaugural, iconic Bordeaux-styled blend that set the bar - - - and set it higher then most have been able to reach since? Do I start with Syrah?? Walter was the first winemaker to work with it in the USA. Do I start with late-harvest techniques? Once again - trailblazer. Perhaps you're expecting me to start to tell Walter's story by saying that this year marks his 60th vintage as a winemaker.

You would be wrong.

Of all of the things that there are to respect and admire about Walter Schug, perhaps the greatest- (asides from his steadfast devotion to his childhood grape varietal Pinot Noir which was quite out of fashion during the 80's)- yes the greatest characteristic I admire is his commitment to family. Walter has built everything that we see; built reputation, collaborated to create a community,  crafted a winery from a modest 2,000 cases/year to over 30,000 cases - for family.

Daughter, daughters' twin, son, daughter-in-law... all working in the family business. I come from a big family and I know that families don't always see eye-to-eye, and yet all three children work in the winery. How can this be?

Well just as I said in my last article, I believe in Reaganomics; I believe in trickle-down-theory. Someone at the top in this company (not saying who) must have laid down a foundation of respect, acceptance and even - love. Love? "You must be thinking ardor or passion" I hear you thinking. But, you would be wrong. For I mean love.

Walter crossed from Germany to California in 1961, and he came with his wife Gertrud. His blushing-bride also had a wine-maker as a father and so she knew the lifestyle she was getting herself into... crossing the ocean to the (then) unknown wilderness of central California. There were less then 50 wineries in the entire state at the time. Now there are over 450 in Sonoma County and 700 in Napa Valley. Gertrud came for love.

And it is an Old-Fashioned kind-of-love that lets a husband and wife work together as well as live together. Gertrud became Chief Financial Officer for Schug Wines in 1980 and remained in that onerous position until she passed away in 2007. She and her husband were willing slaves to the promise that they were building something for their children (and now grand-children).

I was reminded of my mentor/inspiration James Conaway (New York Times best-selling author @ http://cjonwine.blogspot.ca/) when I read about Walter and Gertrud packing their 3 kids into the car and moving to the rural community (at the time) of St Helena, Napa Valley in 1966... The Judgement of Paris was still a decade away, Chateau Montelena and Stag's Leap Wines? Kids just learning to walk... and this was where Walter wanted to bring his kids. This was where he wanted to build their future.

And why? Yes, for love. But also, in Walter's words

“It was the great potential I saw here, and the opportunity to be part of its development, that convinced me to come to California.”

Bravo my friend. Your wines speak for themselves;

2009 Carneros Pinot Noir

92+ Points
$30 USD, winery club price $24 USD

• visual:   clear; medium ruby core with slightly bricking wide and light ruby/cherry rim
• nose:   clean; medium+ to fully intense and youthful bouquet of red cherries and raspberries, cherry blossoms, wild herbs such as thyme/sage/savory, a little forest aroma (French call this sous-bois), dark tea notes and a hint of menthol/eucalyptus
• palate:   clean; dry, medium+ crisp red currant acid, medium+ chewy tannin, medium- body, medium+ alcohol (14% ABV), medium+ intense youthful flavors that are much in-line with the aromas; a bright red burst of young berry flavors is carried by waves of savory herbs, dense wood tones and a strong presence of dark tea minerality. Before today I have never paired tea with mineral, but in this instance the two flavors are nigh congruent and to me deserve to be spoken of as a pair. Excellent balance and structure, medium+ length
• conclusion: to be enjoyed now. This is a (in my opinion) an excellent expression of Carneros and is just hitting its prime; enjoy 2013-2018
• FOOD PAIRING:   the presence of wild herbs and sous-bois in the wine really make me want to pair this with Pork; slow roast bacon wrapped pork loin with maple-mustard glaze, sweet potato pave, fresh English peas... the pork is a natural for Pinot Noir, the sweet of the maple balances slightly hot alcohol, the mustard cuts through it, the sweet potato enhances natural fruit flavors and the bright green notes of the peas play counter-part to the savory/herbaceous qualities

2010 Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir

93+ Points 
$24 USD, winery-club price $19.20 USD

• visual:   clear; light ruby core fading quickly to lighter ruby/cherry rim, no bricking
• nose:   clean; fully intense youthful spicy savory herb bouquet; every herb under the sun~! Thyme, rosemary, Italian parsley, sage, savory... a kaleidoscope mixed with musky wood tones like sandalwood, the minerality is a delicate thread of spun steel that threads throughout
• palate:   clean; dry, full red currant acid, medium grippy tannin, medium- body, medium alcohol (13.5%), medium+ to fully intense youthful flavors perfectly in-line with the aromas; the quick burst of red berry tones quickly gives way to a rich abundance of savory herbs and musky wood tones... the minerality which seemed delicate in the nose shows it's full force here and is finessed as much as it is puissant. Excellent balance and Stunning structure, medium+ to long length
• conclusion:   still a babe; drink now once through the aerator or a 30-minute decant. Enjoy 2015-2020++
• FOOD PAIRING:   be big, be bold, because this wine most certainly is as well~! Consider an authentic lamb/venison Poblano mole over Manitoba wild rice pilaf, Chiliwack corn succotash, steamed collard greens (Swiss Chard)... you  might never have thought of Pinot Noir and chocolate (and neither did I for a long time), but in some instances.... Magic!!!

Schug Carneros vineyards

Wine is more then passion, it is more then devotion, it is even more then love. Wine is also business.

And Walter Schug knows that as well, if not better, then anyone. Walter took years - literally years - to discover the place that was going to be best for him to work with the grapes that his father had introduced  him to when he was a child in Germany. Pinot Noir; the heart-break grape. It is his passion, even if it was Chardonnay that paid the bills for many of those first years of the winery.

Walter knew he had found the place at last when he came to the Carneros appellation, just south of the town of Sonoma. It's a place where the fog is replaced at midday by summertime winds that come rushing through  the Petaluma Gap. It's this wind-stress that causes the skin of the grapes to thicken, particularly the higher Pinot Noir plantings, a characteristic that adds pepper and spice nuances to the wine. Perhaps it also toughens the skins of its inhabitants, allowing them to work side by side with family which must be a stress all of it's own... yes, the wind comes and does this all so that you and I get to taste this World-Class wine for pennies, and the Schug family gets to keep building a future. Together.

As always, I welcome your comments here or on Twitter @ AStudentofWine

CINCIN~!!!    SLAINTE~!!!     CHEERS~!!!

Cedar Creek "Platinum Reserve" Pinot Noir, Okanagan Valley VQA

Everything worthwhile in life is a gamble. Everything worth that gamble, worth that risk, is worth working for and work you must if you want to reap the rewards.

   The sentiment is encapsulated by Cedar Creek winery and it's proprietor, Senator Ross Fitzpatrick. The senator bought the winery in 1986; a time in BC winemaking when the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was threatening to swallow the infant wine industry in the Okanagan.



View at Greta Ranch, part of Cedar Creek Winery



   True enough, grapes had been planted in the Okanagan Valley (VQA) since the late 1800's in some cases, but the industry was modest to say the least, and quality was... sporadic. The senator was born and raised in the Okanagan, though his work had taken him far from home. I imagine that it was during those travels that he developed an appreciation for the magic that the grape can carry with it. It was a belief in that magic that brought him back to the place he was raised, and an incurable desire to create the same magic at home.

   Since then, Cedar Creek winery has replanted hybrid vines with vitus vinifera, turned a basement cellar into "state-of-the-art" facilities, and brought many awards to their shelves including twice being named Canada's Winery of the Year. It is the adherence to quality with the "temperance of patience and perseverance" which has lead them down the road of success.

   How do I know that Cedar Creek is living it's words and not just mouthing pleasant platitudes? As of 2010 they are separately fermenting separate blocks of Pinot Noir! Perhaps that isn't a revolutionary tactic, but it is most certainly a mark of dedication and shows that Cedar Creek's winemaker Darryl Brooker is willing to put in the extra time and effort to achieve superior results. But did the work pay off?

Cedar Creek "Platinum Reserve" 2007 Pinot Noir

Okanagan Valley VQA, British Columbia, Canada

http://www.cedarcreek.bc.ca/

13.9% ABV, $38 CAD    ** EXCELLENT VALUE **

http://tagliquorstores.com/fox-reach/

SOIL       clay, loam and some sandy soil

AGED        17 months in 100% French oak

• visual:   clean; moderate ruby/garnet core with substantial cherry-brick rim
• nose:    clean; moderately intense and developed bouquet of red and black cherries, black raspberries, black currant (cassis), old worn leather, light Christmas spices at the end such as nutmeg and clove, soft layers of dried flowers
• palate:    clean; dry, moderate+ (red currant) acids, moderate+ (slightly grippy) tannins, moderate alcohol, light body, moderately intense and developed flavors mimicking the nose; red and black raspberry and cherry, old worn leather, light vanilla nuances, dried flowers, black irises and roses, an almost buckwheat honey quality. Excellent balance and structure, long finish on the palate
• conclusion:   Stunning wine and well worth the money. I'm not used to BC Pinot Noir that keeps for 5 years or longer, and this wine will cellar well until 2013 I have no doubt... excellent concentration of flavor still, crisp acids and lively tannin structure
• PAIRINGS:   Firstly do yourself a favor and please decant a minimum of one hour. At first I wanted just a simple turkey dinner with this, then found myself moving to smoked pork loin as it opened up. After an hour there was so much development on the palate that I wanted - was craving -a classic Steak Tartare; the beef plays off the tannins, the acids play off the fat. Roast some elephant garlic (softer, more subtle) to rub into the crostini you use and that too will invigorate the Pinot Noir

    Senator Ross Fitzpatrick and his son Gordon have a mantra for Cedar Creek Winery:

Respect the land, honour tradition, pursue perfection.

   Apparently, they have succeeded.



Senator Ross Fitzpatrick and son Gordon



As always, I look forward to any questions or comments.

CINCIN~!!!     SLAINTE~!!!     CHEERS~!!!

Robert Hall Syrah, Paso Robles, California

Robert Hall

No one could ever accuse Robert Hall of being anything less then incredibly business savvy. This is something to be desired when entering the sometimes overly artistic arena of wine-making!

   Winemaking is a business, and, an artistic one. I think from what I've read, that it is this point that Robert Hall understands full well... a diverse man, he has pursued an array of business ventures in his long life until, in the 1970's, he found himself in the Rhone valley in France.



Rhone Valley winery



   The Rhone valley has its' own magic, none can deny that. Robert however knew of a similar type of magic found in his own beloved USA, and returned to California with a new image of what he wanted to invest his time in. It didn't happen overnight, but in the early 1990's Robert and his wife had decided that Paso Robles in the county of San Luis Obispo, California, was going to be the place for them to live that dream. 1995 saw them purchase and build the "Home Ranch" and the two have entrenched themselves in the local community and the wine community ever since.

   As I said previously, winemaking is a business, and for some a profitable one. In 2010 Robert Hall was awarded the much desired Golden State Winery of the Year award, winning out over 600 other wineries from California. His wines have won accolades throughout the state, the country and abroad. Robert is doing what so many would like to do; he's pursuing his dream with a ruthless enthusiasm that is nothing less then inspirational.

2006 Robert Hall Syrah

Paso Robles, San Luis Obispo County, California, USA

http://www.roberthallwinery.com/

14.1% ABV, $19 USD, $35 CAD   **VERY GOOD TO EXCELLENT VALUE**

• visual:   clean; deep plum garnet core with brick-dark cherry rim
• nose:   clean; moderate+ intense and developed aromas of blackberries, dark floral, black cherries, black currants, old worn leather, mild pencil shavings
• palate:   clean; dry, moderate+ (young raspberry) acids, mild (soft silty) tannins, moderate ABV, moderate- body, moderately intense developed flavors; mimicking the nose well with a hint of dark cocoa. Good balance, very good to excellent structure, very good finish.
• conclusion:   wine is drinking well now with a minimum one hour decant. Drink 2011 to mid 2012, but certainly is starting to lose some of it's concentration
• PAIRINGS:   high acids call for fat! I would love a smoked pork loin wrapped in bacon and oven roast - smoked to play off the dark floral and dark berry, pork because it's only moderate concentration of flavors, bacon fat balances the acids. Also consider pate or just a really good Ploughman's Lunch of meat, cheese, egg, and branston pickle!

   The Paso Robles appellation is a dream: stony soil that drains well, hot days and cool evening breezes coming in off the Pacific Ocean. Grapes here develop amazing concentration and reflect the nature of the land they come from. Robert Hall has done well with pursuing his dream, and finding the technical talent to make that dream a welcome reality.



view from "Home Ranch"



As always, comments and questions are more then welcome.

CINCIN~!!!     SLAINTE~!!!     CHEERS~!!!

a Gamay Noir by another other name...

would still smell of over-ripe tomatoes?

So Gamay Noir is the varietal and Beaujolais is the place (and the wine from that appellation of France). I still have a tough time deciphering between New World Gamay, Old World Beaujolais and Grenache/Garnacha, but, I'm getting there. Along the way I am having a lovely time getting to know some beautiful wines.

In Beaujolais (the appellation) there is a vineyard on the side of an ancient volcano. The volcano is, of course, worn down to a snub little hill, but the soil remains volcanic in nature. All sorts of wonderful and exotic things can happen to wine when it has the happy circumstance of being grown in a place like this.

WINE A

clear visual;

• pale garnet centre
• slight strawberry/brick rim indicating little age
• moderate legs indicating alcohol around 11-12% (12.5% actual)

clean nose; moderate+ intense notes of

• rich terroir - a minerality I can't explain readily
• creamy lush baie rouges, especially ripe strawberries and perhaps black raspberries
• floral notes of iris (I second guessed myself on this) and the winemaker says "peonies"

clean palate; 0 dryness, full- acid, moderate++ tannin, moderate intense flavors of

• those red berries again
• terroir that I originally called "gravelly" but later upon reading about the winery discovered was tasting the volcanic soil
• oak upon oak - the winemaker says only 6 months, but with such a moderate bodied wine and thin skinned grape - 6 months is heavy oaking (IMHO)

moderate body, moderate+ alcohol (I found it a bit hot for only 12.5%) and a very good structure

Big acids are balanced by big tannins, but... but I still think these tannins are interfering with the fruit being able to show themselves to their best. I would wait at least 6 months to a year before trying this vintage again. I found it excellent with out antipasto platter, and could imaine it in a year or 3 with a smoked pork shoulder on an aged cheddar dauphinoise.

2007 Cote de Brouilly (Beaujolais)

(from Chateau Thivin - Les Sept Vignes - Odenas, France)

** wonderful buy @ $20