Grilled beefsteak dinner with summer vegetables and fine wines
Enroute back from our Bloomington getaway weekend (Anniversary dinner at Truffles Bloomington), we stopped by Dr Dan’s in Northwest Indiana for a wonderful grilled beefsteak dinner. He prepared a delicious vegetable medley of squash, onions, peppers, artfully crafted roasted potatoes with a subtle hint of curry, and fresh picked Indiana sweet corn, which was as good as any I have ever tasted.
We enjoyed a medley of fine wines before and with dinner.
Before dinner he served a special limited release label we tasted at his recent private wine producer tasting event - Joe Phelps Ovation Sparkling Wine.
Joe Phelps Ovation Sparkling Wine 2019
Dan acquired this special limited release ultra-premium sparkling wine through the Phelps Wine Club. This wine was included in our producer private tasting at Dan’s earlier last month wherein wine ambassadors from Joe Phelps winery visited and curated a wine portfolio tasting - featured in these pages in this blogpost - Joseph Phelps Private Tasting.
This Methode Champonaise (traditional production method) white wine is a blend of 79% Chardonnay and 21% Pinot Noir. It is 100% estate sourced from the Phelps Pastorale vineyard in the Sonoma Coast AVA in western Sonoma County. It was bottle aged fifty-eight months ‘en tirage’, meaning it was aged in the bottle in contact with spent yeast cells after secondary fermentation which us what creates the bubbles to become a sparkling wine. This aging method rests the bottle horizontally in cool cellars as the yeast cells slowly break down. The results is adds rich, creamy textures and complex aromas like brioche, toast, and nuts to the white wine.
Winemaker’s harvest notes - “The 2019 harvest began one to two weeks later than usual, shaped by heavy February rains particularly in the Sonoma Coast and Russian River areas. A wet spring with precipitation during flowering resulted in lower crop yields, while the cool growing season provided an extended ripening period that allowed grapes to develop full flavors with naturally fresh acidity and superb balance. The overall Chardonnay fruit quality was exceptional, and since sparkling wine grapes are harvested early in the season, our Chardonnay blocks offered pristine fruit for production.’
“The 2019 Sonoma Coast Ovation Sparkling Wine opens with vibrant aromas of Meyer lemon, ripe pear, apricot and freshly baked brioche, complemented by delicate notes of white flowers. On the palate, this wine displays elegant textural complexity with silky layers of golden apple, nectarine, lemon curd and toasted almond, finished with a subtle mineral edge. The 2019 showcases bright, refreshing acidity and excellent structure, with the potential to develop further complexity and depth through extended bottle aging.”
I brought from our home cellar a premium Sonoma County Chardonnay from the same area.
Wayfarer Sonoma Coast Chardonnay 2019
Wayfarer is the project of legendary Napa Valley wine producer Jayson Pahlmeyer, and his daughter Cleo Pahlmeyer.Jayson Pahlmeyer crafted his first wine in 1986. Working with viticulture professors at the University of Bordeaux, Jayson obtained and planted French vine cuttings in Napa Valley in 1981. Working with another legendary winemaker, Helen Turley, they produced the award winning Pahlmeyer Proprietary Red.
Helen Turley discovered the Wayfarer Sonoma Coast estate for sale in 1998, which she shared with Jayson who sensed it had the essential elements to produce world-class Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Jayson acquired the property and recruited renowned vineyard developer David Abreu to plant Wayfarer, which he completed in 2002. For several years, Wayfarer Pinot Noir and Chardonnay were blended with fruit from Russian River vineyards and bottled under the Pahlmeyer branding.
In 2012, Jayson's daughter Cleo Pahlmeyer, who had been working by his side since 2008, founded Wayfarer and released the first Wayfarer estate wines in 2014.
In 2017, Cleo was appointed President of Pahlmeyer wines. She led the sale of Pahlmeyer Winery in 2019 to focus entirely on Wayfarer, which she heads and manages to this day.
Wayfarer Winemaker is Todd Kohn who grew up in Northern California and graduated from UC Davis with a degree in Viticulture and Enology, He worked at Napa sparkling white wine producer Schramsberg, then gained further experience in the vineyard, lab and cellar, gaining knowledge of winegrowing and winemaking working at several premiere Napa Valley wine producers including Opus One. He then worked at Moorooduc Estate on the Mornington Peninsula region of Australia, where he gained insight into growing and crafting world class Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
The Wayfarer vineyard spans 30 undulating acres on a remote reach of the Sonoma Coast. This distant landscape tucked in between redwoods gets the Pacific fog which cools the grapes at night extending the growing season, ideal for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
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| Producer photo of Wayfarer Vineyard |
“Winemakers vintage and production notes, “We hand-picked each block and delivered firm, cool clusters to the winery before sunrise. After gentle pressing, the wine settled for 24 hours, followed by a carefully monitored racking to French oak barrels, 63% new. Native yeasts slowly guided alcoholic fermentation, with careful batonnage until malolactic fermentation was complete. The wine aged in barrel for 15 months, and was bottled unfined and unfiltered.’
“2019 began with several months of heavy rainfall. Total rainfall for the year was 78 inches, second only to record-setting rainfall in 2017. With a warm April, shoot growth advanced quickly, and energy was plentiful in the soil after heavy rainfall in May. Flowering was also a week later than normal, but aligned wonderfully with a change in the weather, as rain clouds gave way to beautiful sunshine in June. The summer of 2019 was full of sunshine, yet temperatures were moderate to cool. The average high temperature through July and August was 81oF, perfect for gradually ripening the Chardonnay. By the time veraison began on August 4th, the vines were tracking only three days later than normal. 40 days later, we picked our first Chardonnay on September 13th, and concluded harvest on October 5th.”
Winemaker’s Tasting Notes, “Aromas of star jasmine, white peach, lemon zest and meringue emerge from the glass, along with roasted almond, coconut and baking spice. Graceful and subtle in its richness, this wine has plenty to offer. The dense palate is beautifully balanced with fresh acidity and salinity. An elegant chalky texture lingers on the finish, indicating great aging potential.’
“2019 began with several months of heavy rainfall. Total rainfall for the year was 78 inches, second only to record-setting rainfall in 2017. With a warm April, shoot growth advanced quickly, and energy was plentiful in the soil after heavy rainfall in May. Flowering was also a week later than normal, but aligned wonderfully with a change in the weather, as rain clouds gave way to beautiful sunshine in June. The summer of 2019 was full of sunshine, yet temperatures were moderate to cool. The average high temperature through July and August was 81oF, perfect for gradually ripening the Chardonnay. By the time veraison began on August 4th, the vines were tracking only three days later than normal. 40 days later, we picked our first Chardonnay on September 13th, and concluded harvest on October 5th.”
Winemaker’s Tasting Notes, “Aromas of star jasmine, white peach, lemon zest and meringue emerge from the glass, along with roasted almond, coconut and baking spice. Graceful and subtle in its richness, this wine has plenty to offer. The dense palate is beautifully balanced with fresh acidity and salinity. An elegant chalky texture lingers on the finish, indicating great aging potential.’
This release was awarded 97 points by Jeb Dunnuck, 95 points by Erin Brooks of Wine Advocate, and 93 points by Antonio Galloni, Vinous and Kim Markus of Wine Spectator.
Dunnuck wrote, “This is just about as good as it gets in 2019 with regards to Chardonnay.”
Golden straw colored, full bodied, Burgundian styled with smooth polished, layered but perfectly balanced, creamy notes of peach, honeycomb, nutty almond and touches of citrus, green apple, flint and chalky minerality, with pleasant integrated acidity on the very long finish.
RM 95 points.
For the dinner course Dan offered a selection of different ultra-premium labels from his cellar collection including Shoup Cabernet Sauvignon 2019, Chateau Palmer Margaux 2015 and this California Cab 2008. As part of proper cellar inventory management, I selected the oldest vintage, the California Cabernet, which was likely at the apex of its drinking window, and not likely to improve from further aging, vs the other’s that have a decade or decades of life yet, and likley to mature and improve further.
Stag’s Leap Cellars “SLV” Cabernet Sauvignon 2008
We tasted the recent release of this label at the producer’s dinner recently featured in this blogpost Italian Village Wine Dinner.This Italian Village “Crown Jewel of Napa - Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars” Wine Dinner hosted at Italian Village, Chicago celebrated the classic legacy of historic Italian and now American wine producer Marchesi Antinori, and their acquisition of legendary American Napa Valley producer, Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars.
We were joined by fellow Pour Boy, Lyle and Terry, along with Dan and Linda,.
This is from the legendary “S.L.V”. Vineyard, also known as Stag’s Leap Vineyard, the winery’s first vineyard, planted in 1970. The vineyard is home to 35 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon and 1.5 acres of Cabernet Franc, and is composed of predominantly volcanic soils with healthy drainage.
This vineyard achieved global fame when the 1973 S.L.V. Cabernet Sauvignon triumphed over Bordeaux’s First- and Second-Growth Chateaux in the famous 1976 Judgment of Paris blind tasting. This historic Stags Leap District vineyard continues to produce wines with complex black fruit and berry character, spicy intensity and excellent structure. Wines from S.L.V. are craft to be enjoyed upon release, but also promise long life and an exceptional ability to age.
Producer’s notes, “The majority of the 1970s-era vines have aged past their grape-producing prime and have been gradually replanted, perpetuating the life of this historic vineyard. Yes, the notable vineyard, S.L.V. Block 4, planted in 1972, still sourced grapes for this blend. This block on the eastern side of S.L.V. is composed of rugged volcanic soils gives this wine its structure and notes of minerality along with concentrated dark fruit fl avors and ripe, elegant tannins. Vines in alluvial soils in the western part of the vineyard add accent notes of vibrant fruit fl avors and heady aromatics.”
Each lot was vinified and aged separately in small French oak barrels for 24 months.
Producer’s vintage notes - “The 2008 growing season was like a scary movie with a happy ending. A hard frost in April and a heat spike in May during bloom greatly reduced vineyard yields. Another heat spike in the first week of September caused concern, yet a reprieve of a cool, calm harvest the rest of the way. Although yields were lower than normal due to poor bloom and set, the concentration and flavor development in the grapes was outstanding, resulting in a beautiful wines despite the challenges.”
Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate wrote, “It is one of the better and more complete of the 2008s“
Winemaker Notes, “The 2008 S.L.V. is the 35th vintage since the 1973 S.L.V. won the Paris Tasting in 1976. This rich and generous Cabernet Sauvignon opens with crushed blackberry and ripe plum aromas, accented by notes of anise, fennel and cedar. Full-bodied and supple, the wine flows smoothly across the palate. The wine's texture is reminiscent of enjoying a dark chocolate covered caramel with sea salt. Dark fruit and spice linger on the finish.”
This release was rated 95 points by Wine Enthusiast and 90 points by Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Garnet colored, medium full bodied, elegant and refined ripe blackberry, dark plum and black cherry fruits with notes of cassis, new oak, smoke and tar turning to sweet tannins on the finish.
Garnet colored, medium full bodied, elegant and refined ripe blackberry, dark plum and black cherry fruits with notes of cassis, new oak, smoke and tar turning to sweet tannins on the finish.
RM 92 points.
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