Wine Passion

Copyright © 2012 by John B. Burns.

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ISBN: 978-1-4759-5466-1 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4759-5467-8 (ebk)

iUniverse rev. date: 10/05/2012

Contents

Introduction

Reading this Book

SECTION I: Bits about Wine

Chapter 1: In The Beginning

Chapter 2: Higher Education

Chapter 3: Gift From The Gods

Chapter 4: The Fickle Wine Scoring Game

Chapter 5: Touring And Tasting Through Wineries

Chapter 6: Mastering Restaurant Wine Lists

Chapter 7: Thwack! The joyous sound: a cork makes exiting the bottle.

Chapter 8: The Art (or Science) of Wine and Food Pairing

Chapter 9: wine and cheese pairings

Chapter 10: Aging Wine

Chapter 11: An Open and Shut Case

Chapter 12: Wine and Health

Chapter 13: Tiny Bubbles: Champagne and Sparkling Wine

Chapter 14: The World Beyond Grapes

Chapter 15: Friendship And Wine

SECTION II: Tour Du Wine

Introduction

PART A: World Wide Winners

Chapter 1: Way Back When

Chapter 2: France: Burgundy

Chapter 3: French Beaujolsis—Joyous Juice

Chapter 4: Viva Italia

Chapter 5: Et Tu, Barolo? Italian Barolo

Chapter 6: Italian Chianti

Chapter 7: Cavit Winery An Italian winner at a fair price

Chapter 8: Spain

Chapter 9: Frederick Wildman & Sons

Chapter 10: Down Under Dandies

Chapter 11: Argentina Assets

Chapter 12: Malbec

Chapter 12: International Roses

PART B: California

Chapter 1: The Taste Heard Around the World

Chapter 2: The Wild West

Chapter 3: California Dreamin’

Chapter 4: California Cool: Tasting Six Chardonnays

Chapter 5: Stony Hill: Chardonnay with a Legacy

Chapter 6: California Zinfandel

Chapter 7: Cline Cellars—California

Chapter 8: From Academic To Alchemist/Legend

Chapter 9: Rosenblum Cellars

Chapter 10: Seghesio Zinfandel: A Solid Winner

Chapter 11: Munificent Merlots

Chapter 12: Beringer Winery

Chapter 13: Clos du Bois winery continues to deliver quality

Chapter 14: The Man, The Myth,

Marvelous Mondavis

Chapter 15: Michael David Winery delivers

Chapter 16: My Bonny Lies Over The Ocean

Chapter 17: Franciscan Estate

Chapter 18: Bitten by a Moscato

Chapter 19: Simi: Old but Vibrant

Chapter 20: Estancia Winery gently churns out consistent beauties

Chapter 21: Viognier

PART C: More Domestic Beauties

Chapter 1: Oregon Pinot Noirs: France’s Sisters

Chapter 2: Oregon Pinot Gris

Chapter 3: Marvelous Montinore: Oregon Pinot Noir

Chapter 4: Owen Roe’s winning wines from Oregon and Washington

Chapter 5: Washington State Wines

Chapter 5: Hogue Heaven: Washington State

Chapter 6: Washington’s Red Diamond Winery: is a New Classic

Chapter 7: CSM Plays A Grand Tune

Chapter 8: From Fellow Wisconsin Friends

Chapter 9: New York’s Dr. Konstantin Frank

Chapter 10: Domestic Gewurztraminers

Conclusion

Introduction

Unlike the tomes that many other writers distress over as they crank out, this book is the product of unmitigated joy. For over fifty years, my experience with wine has blossomed from blushing naively into a far more experienced comfort at my knowledge level. Yet, I still naively feel like I’m no where as experienced as I’d like to be, or as others judge me. On a practically daily basis, I encounter more wines that both mystify and humble me—vibrant testimonies to how much I have yet to learn about this God-given gift called wine.

There is absolutely nothing like this mellow, loose feeling of deep satisfaction and contentment that emanates from an enjoyed and appreciated glass or two of wine. It is a wondrous and marvelous lubricant to enjoying life’s blessings and friendships. So, in that sense, this book is dedicated to all of you, dear readers. May your lives continue to blossom as you joyfully explore and appreciate wine, as I have. How lucky I have been, indeed!

Cheers to you, and may your life be filled with silky liquid appreciation.

This book is dedicated to all wine fans, and in particular to Bill Randall. Additionally, my heartfelt thanks extend to my ever-helpful son, Patrick. Naturally, I’d like to thank Bill Abraham for his ongoing support.

Cheers, all!!!

Reading this Book

The first section of this book is a general history and introduction to wine. The second section of this book delves into regions and wineries all through my personal tasting notes. I have included wine prices which can nonetheless vary by retailer or market. Tasting scores in this section are on an A-F scale, not on any more onerous haughty system. Bear in mind that wine is a subjective and personal experience. It should not be dictated by any outsider. So please take my scoring as a hopefully helpful guide. In the end, the real score is yours and not mine.

SECTION I

Bits about Wine

Chapter 1

In The Beginning

 . . . THE BIRTH AND BLOSSOMING OF NAPA

AND THE CALIFORNIA WINE INDUSTRY

A man will be eloquent, if you give him a good wine,

Ralph Waldo Emerson.

My sister, Cindy, cousin Rusty from Santa Rosa and I were dancing around on the tanned and dry grassy hill behind Uncle Charlie’s ranch house. It was a pristine setting with sparklingly dry and clear air—practically idyllic—and I treasured every one of our family visits out here to visit my retired Navy sailor uncle with his barrel chest, trunk-thick arms and deep, gravelly voice. His Irish family background, combined with his extensive travels, made him a consummate and spellbinding story teller for all of us.

Run—bull—run!, Rusty yelled. In retrospect, it sounded like a Civil War clarion call, but this was the real enchilada, accompanied by a startlingly behemouth-like apparition with mean eyes, sagging head and snorting, flared nostrils. Not ones to dally, we took off down the hill towards Charlie’s fence and safety, wondering if he had a spare bazooka handy. My arms wildly windmilled as my legs, practically stumbling in panic, propelled me down the hill and away from the beast. At the bottom, I practically high-hurdled over the fence, closely followed by a huffing and overly panicked Cindy (So much for chivalry, Big Bro). Safe!

Whadja have to wear a red shirt for?, panted Rusty.

My Mom likes red, I offered lamely.

After restoring my wild heat beat, we took a quick swim sans beast, then readied for a barbequed dinner.

To me, there was nothing like the Napa Valley with its graceful hills and flat, fertile floor. Our family gatherings were warmly wonderful—the stuff of future memories. One day, Aunt Lilly encountered a rattlesnake sunning on the concrete apron around the pool—a typical sight in the area. Thrown into an uncontrollable rage, she grabbed the nearest broom, then systematically beat the little beast to death, screaming all the while. Mesmerized, I watched in practically panicked admiration as I witnessed this elemental pitting of human venting over the cold-blooded animal world. The thing never had a chance.

That night over dinner, Uncle Charlie loudly bemoaned the fact that his precious Napa Valley was changing. They’re tearing out those beautiful prune orchards and planting grape vines!, he groaned. Not until many years later did I fully grasp what he was saying.

Our country experienced a virtual explosion of new wineries in the 60’s and 70’s and I had the opportunity to experience many of them from their formative years. On one sunny late winter day, I called Fred McCrea at Stony Hill Vineyard and respectfully (timidly?) asked if I could visit his operation. In his inimitably gentle way, he invited me after giving me directions on where to turn near the Old Bale Mill in St. Helena. During the steep drive up the scruffy hill laden with dry vegetation, my mood bordered on the potential discovery of a treasure, which was realized when I came to an opening at the top of the mountain, which revealed a neat house surrounded by acres of dormant vines (during the growing season, their backdrop was lushly alluring). McCrea was waiting for me and with an arm around my shoulder, guided me through a copse of vines to his rather modest looking winery building. It was there that he proffered his thief (a barrel-sampling glass siphon) and doled out my first exposure to this Napa nectar. When I reacted in wide-eyed amazement, he sagely nodded and happily hummed. Mission accomplished. Years later, I bought a case of his Chardonnay, and when I called back shortly thereafter to request another one, his response was, Son-Stony Hill Chardonnay cannot be drunk as early as you’re doing it. It’s got to be aged for five to 10 years! I subsequently and humbly followed Fred’s advice and learned a life-long lesson—the acid and balance of his Chardonnay was so superb that it did indeed reward patience. Many years after that, I took some Stony Hill to Burgundy as samples for many of the better winemakers. To a person, they were literally blown away by this upstart New World wine. On another visit to the winery, I arrived just after a foreigner left. Beguiled by the winery, he whipped out his check book and said, How much? Eleanor McCrea replied that it would never be for sale.

- As I normally drove up and down Highway 29 north of Napa, I was practically assaulted by the panoply of tasting rooms for wineries—tempting all. Back then, they didn’t charge for samples (today, many do, I believe). Every winter, the Heitz tasting room, often staffed by Joe, offered simple sips of their hedonistic latest Martha’s Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon. I distinctly remember trying Joe Heitz’s fabulous 1966, his first released, then winced when I felt I couldn’t help but fork over my dearly hoarded $9 to snag a bottle. Two decades later, I popped it with friends, and it was a positively brilliant revelation.

- The list goes on. Milwaukeean Fred Holzknecht ran a top-notch wine marketing firm in San Francisco and opened the doors of many a winery to me, setting up my continuing education