The UnCorker

Hey Importers! Where’s Our Cruzat Larraine?

Few seem to be aware that Argentina has a terrific specialist in sparkling wines – Bodega Cruzat.  Think southern-hemi Schramsburg.  Carefully made, ambitious and captivating sparklers – clearly made for the world stage and intended to provide a high-quality, high-value alternative to the wines of Champagne. Good restaurants in Buenos Aires pour this stuff almost to a turn.  American expat living in Chile, Liz Caskey, blogged her recent visit to the winery here, which reminded us that we love this stuff too… and it remains our favorite-wine-we-had-all-over-Argentina-but-can’t-seem-to-get-at-home wine.   (As opposed to lugged-home-5,000 miles-only-to-find-it-widely-available-and-cheaper-here-wines.)  It’s time to raise the general level of chatter about just where the heck is this stuff in the Northern parts of the world?   A well-funded, modern producer, nice slick labels and fancy Flash winery website, decently large production runs, a romantic story and paternalistic “man of terroir” at the helm…. what’s the deal?

Continue reading Hey Importers! Where’s Our Cruzat Larraine?…

Weird Wine of the Week- 1999 Movia Puro Rose

This one is chock full of weirdness- is it Italian? Slovenian? The bottle says Collio(a D.O.C. in Friuli Venezia Guilia) though half of Movia’s vineyards are in the Brda province of Slovenia. This part of Europe has a mix of tradition and cultures that rival anywhere else in Europe, but it also has an energy unleashed after decades of centralized communist rule. Slovenia was, after all, part of Communist Yugoslavia, and Movia was one of the few privately owned estates in the whole country.

Movia produces a whole range of cool, funky wines biodynamically, but nothing as weird as the Puro. What, you might ask, the geographic weirdness aside, qualifies this as WWOW- we at The UnCorker can’t think of another bottle of bubbly that hits the market without being disgorged- but the Puro Rose is, and man, that’s weird- strange, unusual, and very difficult. You see the secondary fermentation in the bottle(see glossary- methode champenoise) is started by adding unfermented must from the new harvest along with some indigenous yeast. And why not disgorge at the winery, for instance as every producer of Champagne does? It seems the respectable thing to do, right? At Movia they believe disgorging robs the wine of flavor, and the Puro Rose sure has a bunch of that, and also claim that because it isn’t disgorged, its capacity to age is endless. We at The UnCorker have had some damn fine sparklers we didn’t have to disgorge ourselves, and as for the aging, well, only time will tell. We did like the novelty- one must store the bottle upside down for a day or two, then open it under water; a mass of goo is disgorged, the wine best decanted.

100% pinot nero(noir) spends 4 years in French oak barrique, and a furthur 32 months in bottle before release, it has a pale salmon color and scents of apples, apple cider and raspberries with some grapefruit on the palate- a little toast and yeast but not as much as we would have thought, some savory notes as well; cinnamon and a hint of nutmeg- a fine persistent bead helps give this a long pleasant finish- all pinot but unlike any brut rose we’ve ever had- less then 2000 bottles produced, well worth the search.

2004 Erpacrife- The Best Nebbiolo Sparkler Ever?

From Piemonte comes this 100% Nebbiolo sparkler, made in the metodo classico by 4 young guys that met in Oenology school- the name is derived from the first sylables of their first names, making this a fair candidate for worst named best wine as well. Bright watermelon pink/ruby, it is dry as a bone and has a beautiful nose of roses, violets and candied dry fruit. It also has structure aplenty, loads of tannin followed by a long graceful finish. If you’re looking for a memorable sparkler for the new year, this your wine-

Skip the Champagne This New Years! Try These Alternative Sparklers…

In case you hadn’t heard, the price of French wines, always on the rise is going to be shooting into the stratosphere. Champagne is already at historically high prices due to huge demand from new markets and a successful re-branding effort by the industry (no longer just for special occasions, just drink it up like any still wine). That already too expensive glass of Vueve Clicquot you’ve been enjoying is going to cost $30 at your local wine bar.

With that in mind, its high time to take another look at American sparklers- and why not, its been a tough year for a lot of us, the times feel ugly, we have to work all the time, the rest of the world hates us, our currency is virtually worthless abroad- but we have something to be proud of- hope is in the air, and a burgeoning American wine industry is producing loads of quality sparkling wines at good prices. So this New Year’s Eve, remember- Buy American, Drink American!

Now, without ado, here’s some to consider.

Schramsberg Blanc de Blancs
This is a methode champenoise*,100% chardonnay grapes sourced from Napa, Sonoma, and the North Coast and man is it good stuff. Nice citrusy smell, grapefruit and key lime, crisp, mildly yeasty, clean-as-can be flavors, some green apple in the mix. This energetic sparkler hits all the right notes as Blanc de Blancs and has an added measure of complexity by way of its toasty, yeasty finish, with great lasting little bubbles. Schramsberg makes them all, Blanc de Noir, Rose, brut, Demi-Sec, all method champenoise, so keep an eye out.

Gruet Brut NV/ Gruet Rose NV
New Mexico! These friggin wines are from New Mexico! And they’re good- real good.
Both produced in the methode champenoise, Gruet makes the whole line, Blanc de Blancs, Blanc de Noir, Demi-Sec, Brut, Roses, just like Schramsberg, but keeps it on the real budget minded side.

The Brut NV has pleasant apple and citrus aromas with creamy flavors that end on a spicy note; This Brut offers a crisp, full-bodied sparkling wine. The Brut spent some time on its lees, giving it a nice doughy mouth feel. Brilliant with ultra fine bubbles.  The Rose NV has It has a lovely, bright floral bouquet with hints of strawberry, raspberry, and cherry. On the palate, it is rich and fruity in a dry, brut style. The flavor of berries continues on the palate, revealing more strawberry, raspberry, cherry. This sparkler is loads of fun and very festive.

Chateau Frank
New York’s Finger Lakes region has a rich viticultural history, and since 1962 Dr. Frank has been a big part of it. Taking advantage of a climate similar to Germany’s Pfalz and Mosel regions, Dr. Frank makes wines from cool climate grapes- Pinot Noir, Pinot Muenier, Chardonnay, and Riesling. Still wines are the bulk of production, but the sparklers take pride of place. A Cremant is made from Riesling, but it is the Blanc de Blancs, and the Blanc de Noirs that can be compared to fine Champagne; the Blanc de Blancs 2002 has complexity and delicate flavors, this wine exemplifies the traditional Blanc de Blancs style. A crisp acidity accompanied by complex aromas of yeast, citrus, lemon, ginger, floral and hazelnut makes this medium-bodied sparkler very pleasant. Extended lees aging gives it earthy and toasty notes with a tropical finish.

The Blanc de Noirs 2002 is a rich and complex sparkling wine with great structure and length. With aromas of pear, apple, peach, vanilla and hazelnut that combine with the toasty yeast character, persistent foam and tiny bubbles, this style creates a full-bodied sparkling wine which makes for a perfect accompaniment to a fine meal.

Argyle Blanc de Blancs
Argyle is at the fore of fine Burgundian varietals in Oregon’s Willamette Valley, so it makes sense that they would take that Pinot Noir, and that Chardonnay, and make fine sparklers in the traditional method- the 2000 Blanc de Blancs, a single vineyard cuvee, is elegant, creamy and refined, balancing delicate citrus and pear flavors against a judicious level of toasted brioche and a fleck of white pepper as the finish lingers gently.

* For this and other terms needing explanation, please, see the glossary.