Domaine Collin Cremant de Limoux, a bubbly that won’t break the bank
So, I’m alive and well and the family ditto and I’m grateful for that, but, tbh, it’s been a while since I felt, you know, actually stoked. Like I think the last time I felt that little electric stab in the ribs that I interpret as “heart leaping for joy,” was round about July when the Instacart shopper guy texted “good TP in stock.”*
So, the other day when I finished a big project, a week ahead of deadline, too, I decided to administer a bit of course correction. No, I didn’t feel like breaking out the Champagne, didn’t even feel particularly joyous, but gosh darn it, it was a milestone and It Would Be Marked.
So I reached for a bottle of something that is just the ticket when you want to celebrate without making a huge song and dance about it, Cremant de Limoux.
Cremant refers to French sparkling wine that is made in the same manner as Champagne but is not from that specific (and rather expensive) region. Limoux is in Southern France, nestled next to the Pyrenees and is famous for a type of bubbly called Blanquette de Limoux, made by monks at St. Hilaire Abbey in the 16th century. The story in Limoux is that Dom Perignon (the Champagne guy) visited and picked up a few ideas. Probs not true? But fun.
Blanquette de Limoux is made primarily from the local Mauzac grape and has a distinctive, apple cider-y tang. But in the ‘90s, producers started making the more modern Cremant, which includes international varieties such as Chardonnay. It’s a lovely, crisp and dry expression of sparkling wine and it’s a bargain to boot. Here’s a story I wrote about the region.
I discovered my most recent Limoux gem at my local wine shop here in Berkeley—Domaine Collin, founded by Philippe Collin in the 1980s, The Domaine Collin cuvée tradition is $15 and it is classic, balanced and smooth. It’s made from Chardonnay and Chenin Blanc with a bit of Pinot Noir thrown in and it tastes light and fresh with notes of green (but not sour) apple and tangy, juicy lemon.
Just the thing for celebrating a job well done—or at least done—without feeling self-conscious about it.
*Reader, we did, indeed buy that TP and after the absolutely dire 2-ply nightmare we’d resorted to in the Great Panic it was pure heaven. A positive Taittinger of toilet tissue.
The clink of glasses and buzz of conversation blend into the pulsing rhythm of “La Bamba” as the wine tasting in the Robledo Family Winery’s big, wooden barn swings into its second hour. The band is good, the beat near-irresistible, and some of the tasters don’t resist, shimmying gently as they make the rounds of tables featuring wines from the Napa Valley and Sonoma County.
It’s a typical harvest festival, the kind of celebration you see all over wine country as the growing season winds up to its inevitable climax. Except this event isn’t just about the 2016 grape harvest. It’s also the annual get-together of the Napa Sonoma Mexican American Vintners.
Click here to read more of this story, posted on the Nomacorc blog.
These are the three things everyone knows about Chianti: it’s an Italian red, it comes in cute straw-covered bottles that double as candleholders, and, at least according to one movie villain, it pairs well with fava beans and a certain type of organ meat.
We can’t speak to that last assertion, but the first two aren’t as true as you might think. Here’s what is true about the famous, and delicious, wines made under the Tuscan sun.
Click here to read this article, published by Vivino.
The winter sun is shining brightly for the finals of the Napa County Pruning Contest, the annual rite that pits the valley’s best vineyard workers against each other in a contest of skill and speed.
Eyes narrowed, lips fixed in firm lines, the finalists work their way down the rows with mathematical precision, snipping the overgrown vines at just the right spot and tearing away the dead canes in one fluid movement.
They’re the best-of-the-best, the workers who’ve been chosen to represent their wineries and management companies, and they’re ready to fight hard for cash prizes, championship buckles and, not least important, bragging rights.
Women in the Vineyards
This year, for the third year in a row, some of the workers out to prove who’s the best person at the job are women.
Click here to read the rest of this story, published on the Nomacorc blog.
The last time I saw Peter Mondavi he had just turned 100 and was getting over a physical setback that had him walking with a cane. I couldn’t help noticing that it was rather a festive affair — a pretty pink with a riotous floral pattern.
It didn’t seem quite in keeping with the pioneering winemaker’s classic style and when the interview was over and it was just me and Mondavi’s son, Peter Jr., I couldn’t resist cracking, “Nice cane!”
“Oh, that was Mom’s,” Peter Jr. said with a smile. Why buy a new one, his dad figured, when there was a perfectly good cane sitting at home.
It was a minor detail but an illuminating one. The Napa Valley he helped create might grow ever more glitzy, but Mondavi hung on to his old-school values and down-to-earth approach to life.
News that Mondavi had died at his home in St. Helena, Calif., on Feb. 20, got me thinking about the handful of times I met the Napa Valley legend, and what a deep impact those few meetings had. Continue reading “Peter Mondavi, an appreciation”
Today is Nouveau Beaujolais day, aka the third Thursday in November, when wine producers in the French region release their newly fermented wines, an old harvesting tradition turned successful marketing gimmick.
Which tends to bring two reactions from the serious wine world:
2. Earnest blog posts on how you really shouldn’t be drinking this super-young, super-fruity wine but should be concentrating on the region’s conventionally aged (and admittedly fine) “cru” wines.
To which I can only say, Lighten up!
The reason people like nouveau Beaujolais is because it’s fun. And if there’s one area of the beverage world that could use a little more fun it’s wine. There was a time when producers would go all out with schemes to get to market first for the 12:01 a.m. release time. This started with races from Beaujolais to Paris and extended to other parts of the world. Things are a bit calmer now with wines shipped in advance, but there’s still a bit of a holiday feel about buying and cracking open a nouveau Beaujolais.
And of course yes, there are great cru wines from this region, some of my faves are from the Fleurie region,
This year’s celebrations included 50 winemakers driving around Paris in vintage Citroen’s stopping at landmarks like the Eiffel Tower. Nothing is quite as it was in Paris following the tragic attacks last weekend, but organizers decided to go ahead, incorporating memorials to the dead in their ceremony. Here’s a good story from Quartz about the way Beaujolais day looks in Paris this year.
The big producer is Georges Dubouef, which has sent a zingy, fruity product to market this year, priced at around $10.Classic purply red color with aromas of banana and cherry cola (when we say fruity, we’re not kidding) and a taste of tart cherries with a bit more banana on the end.
I won’t lie to you. While I like bananas and cherry cola as much as the next person, this is not a wine to be sipped solo. But, happily, it gets along with food just fine and in fact is a rather good pairing for Thanksgiving; the tartness cuts through some of the heavy sweetness of the traditional dishes and really helps that dry turkey breast go down.
DuBeouef sent cute little scarves out with its samples this year. So having a beret handy from Child One’s job at that Gallic institution, Paris Baguette, and having a willing model at hand in Mr. Ho I present this picture which I think perfectly sums up the festive spirit of nouveau Beaujolais.
Here is Mr. Ho’s tasting note, btw: Not bad. I quite like it. Did they send it to you for free?
Read the shocking stories about the shocking levels of (alleged) arsenic in cheap wine?
See the above little missive on Twitter asking you to be part of a class-action lawsuit re those same claims?
Ok, now take a deep breath and calm down. I’m not saying wine is good for you — you are aware that it contains significant levels of alcohol, a known poison, right? — but the arsenic allegations appear to be over-hyped to say the least.
Wine writer W. Blake Gray, has a masterful takedown of the claims over at winesearcher.com, noting that the guy waving the red flag (by which I mean filing the class action suit) sells, wait for it, toxin screening services. He also points out that while the U.S. does not monitor wine for arsenic levels, Canada does and has been routinely testing California wines with no startling results.
Oh and about the fact that the alarm is being raised about cheap wines, which did cause even me to blanch a bit, being quite fond of the $9.99 bottle — Blake notes that the companies that make those wines tend to be the biggest companies, i.e. the folks with the biggest pockets.
Did you hear about the two Canadian winemakers who got into a fist fight on a Canadian radio show?
The vinous violence occurred on CBC show This is That during an interview of Phoenix Carter of the Fox Trail winery in the Okanagan valley and Daniel Semple from the Lion Estate winery in the Niagara region.
The two started out testy and within minutes descended into outright insults. “Why don’t you tell them what the award was,” Semple challenged after Carter introduced a pinot as “award-winning.” “It was from New Hampshire,” Semple said disdainfully, adding, “what does New Hampshire know about wine?” Carter was no less truculent. “Disgusting!’ he exclaimed after sampling Semple’s prized ice wine.
The interview ended in a jumble of thumps and groans.
I know what you’re thinking. Really? Would two winemakers do this? Two Canadian winemakers?
Of course not!
There’s no Fox Trail winery in the Okanagan valley and no Lion Estate in Niagara. Also, and this is probably the key point, This is That is a satirical show and a rather funny one at that.
A few wine folks seemed to think it could happen, though, sending around the link early this morning as part of news round ups.
I understand. I want to believe, too.
Here’s the link — it’s worth a listen, they’ve really got the slightly stuffy world of wine expertise down.
Remember the blog post on HuffPo alleging that Trader Joe’s Charles Shaw wines, better known as Two Buck Chuck because of their initial price of $1.99, contains animal blood among other hideous things?
It’s gone.
The link now takes you to this editor’s note:
This blog post contained un-sourced claims about Two Buck Chuck and its proprietor, Bronco Wines. It has been removed from the site in accordance with our blogger terms.
“Unsourced claims?” That is one way of putting it. The post was basically a three-year-old rant from a Quora forum that took hits at Bronco and the Central Valley (a hard-working region which is the backbone of the U.S. wine industry so lay off). The piece ended up on the HuffPost Taste blog as a sponsored post, aka native advertising. Except that there was no “sponsored post” notice and only a Quora tag to tip you off that this wasn’t a straight op-ed.
The piece caused some breast-beating in the wine and media worlds including fromme.
Here are Bronco CEO Fred Franzia’s thoughts, as delivered to CNBC.
Wondering where that was shot? I had a feeling I recognized that faux wood paneling so I checked and, yep, Fred was in his palatial Central Valley offices, to wit a single-, not double-, wide trailer. Because that is how he rolls.
The lesson: Don’t believe everything you read on the Internets.
Unless I wrote it, of course. That you can take to the bank.
This photo has nothing to do with this story but I could not resist. It’s the glass of sherry traditionally left out for friendly mice at the Gonzalez-Byass winery in Jerez, Spain.
If you’re plugged into the wine world, you may have read or heard of an op-ed that popped up on the HuffPost Taste blog this week called “So, That’s Why Trader Joe’s Wine is so Cheap!” The piece, which has since been taken down*, was written by someone identified as a “Wine Shop Manager, Wine Buyer” and discussed Charles Shaw wines, which are made by Fred Franzia’s Bronco Wine Co., sold exclusively at the Trader Joe’s chain and were originally priced at $1.99, hence the nickname.
The essay included a lot of spicy stuff, but probably the most exciting was that Two Buck includes the blood of virgins rodents, insects and other wildlife that didn’t scurry when the scurrying was good.
I quote:
And third, these aren’t hand-picked vineyards…they are all machine harvested. And that means these large tractors with huge claws go down the rows of vineyards grabbing the grapes and depositing them in its huge receptacle. And it not only grabs ripe grapes, but unripe and down right rotten ones as well and throws them all together. Add to that leaves, stems and any rodents, birds, or insects that may have made those vines their home – they all get thrown into the bin as well. And guess what? You think there’s going to be any sorting when that truck arrives at the winery (or should I say processing facility)? Nope. Everything, and I do mean everything (including all those unripe grapes, rotten grapes, leaves, stems, birds, rodents, and insects) gets tossed into the crusher and transferred to large tanks to ferment. So think about all the animal blood and parts that may have made their way into your wine next time you crack open that bottle of Two Buck Chuck! Hardly even seems worth the $2 does it?
As one commenter who wrote in defense of mechanical harvesting put it, “You make it sound like they’re making Two Buck Duck.”
As of Thursday afternoon, the post had been shared more than 40,000 times on Facebook. Forty. Thousand. Times. It had 175K likes.
Since the piece has generated so much interest, I asked Bronco if they had a response and got this statement.
The Two Buck Chuck attack was blogged three years ago as a comment from a prejudiced wine shop owner on the Quora web site. It contained falsehoods and incorrect winemaking information, and didn’t get much notice until The Huffington Post picked it up last week and then soon after retracted the item. In one case it says that California allows added sugar; in another it says that mechanical harvesters pick up animals! Several other blogs have now covered the item, including renown writer Steve Heimoff. But in today’s social media environment false statements and angry opinions are left unedited, so there have been some additional pickups. The author has since apologized and retracted his story too. Most people know that the reputations of Trader Joe’s, the Bronco Wine Company and Charles Shaw wines demonstrate only good faith with their customers. The production process of Charles Shaw wines, known as Two Buck Chuck, is a completely state-of-the-art, top-rate process with extreme quality control in place every step of the way from the vineyard to the case of wine.
I know what you’re thinking. What’s your take, Michelle?
Glad you asked.
1.This is not a blog post on HuffPo. It’s a sponsored post from Quora and is in fact an answer to someone’s question that was posted three years ago on that social network. This is an example of native advertising (which sounds a lot like what we used to call advertorials back in the olden days), a concept that was eviscerated by John Oliver recently. Although, if people aren’t willing to pay for news and advertisers aren’t willing to advertise I’m not quire sure what folks are expecting to happen next. Magical news beans, maybe?
2. This is not how mechanical harvesting works. A few years back I did a story on mechanical harvesting and one of the places I visited was Bronco. I rode along with Franzia behind the machines. There are different types but none uses claws. A common type has long, tube-like “fingers” that shake the vines. The machines I saw dropped the grape clusters directly into a destemmer onboard and then deposited the grapes into a gondola riding alongside the harvester. I saw no mice. Once you get the settings right, mechanical harvesters pick extremely clean these days and unless you are drinking a bottle of pricey boutique wine chances are the grapes in your glass were mechanically harvested. (And maybe even if you are!)
3. People need to chill about bugs. There is a term in wine harvesting known as MOG, which stands for Material Other than Grapes, which stands for the aforementioned stems, rodents, etc. I called the people who run California’s Winegrape Inspection Program (I know! Can you believe how much effort I’m putting into this post?) and they inspect regularly for MOG, taking samples and coming up with a representative percentage. There’s no legal maximum but vintners set their own limits in their contracts with growers. Meanwhile, MOG is deducted from the weight before purchase so it’s in the grower’s best interest to keep the pick clean. So, no, you’re not drinking Chateau Cockroach, but, yes, the world is full of living organisms that infiltrate your person one way or another. Did you know an 18 ounce jar of peanut butter can legally contain about four rodent hairs? Now you do.
4. Is there a “wrong” way to make wine? As far as Two Buck Chuck goes, if you like it, drink it. If you don’t, skip it. At around $2.50 in California now you have to at least try it if only to say that you did. If you’re a wine lover it’s worth noting that Franzia’s goal, and he’s pretty successful at it, is to get as many people as possible drinking wine with dinner. In terms of making wine the “right” or “wrong” way, you may be interested to know this is the subject of hot debate right now. At issue: Should wine be tweaked with the many legal interventions available like oak chips (saves barrel costs) and grape juice concentrate (for flavor, sweetness)? Or should it be made with minimal intervention for a more authentic, unique product? (The Quora answer alleged Bronco goes so far as to add sugar, which is illegal in California.) There’s also contention over what “natural” really means and whether getting too “natural” = “kind of funky.” Who’s right? I’ll say it again: Drink what you like. I do find the lack of transparency in the wine industry troubling. I wish winemakers generally felt more free to openly admit their work. After all, a chef doesn’t pretend the souffle just threw itself together in the oven. (And good luck getting one to shrug off all credit and declare, “Great omelets are made in the hen house.”) But ultimately, there are two things that really matter when it comes to wine. Do you like it? Does it fit your budget? Cheers!
So there you have it.
If you’ll excuse me, I’m now going to pour myself a large gin and tonic.
*This post was edited 8-11-14 to update with piece taken down and add new Bronco statement.
The winter sun is shining brightly for the finals of the 
The last time I saw Peter Mondavi he had just turned 100 and was getting over a physical setback that had him walking with a cane. I couldn’t help noticing that it was rather a festive affair — a pretty pink with a riotous floral pattern.
