Grüner Veltliner with ham cheese fruit plate

 Grüner Veltliner casual sipping with ham cheese fruit plate

Relaxing decompress Friday night at home we prepared a simple plate of sliced ham, assorted cheese and fruits with paired wine. 

After an enjoyable lunch and delectable food and wine pairing at Queensyard at Hudson Yard in NYC, I went out and picked up the latest release of the WBTG selection - Gruner Veltliner. I wrote in more detail about Weingut Bründlmayer Grüner Veltliner in these pages at that time. 

Tonight was an earlier vintage of that label, we opened the 2019 which paired nicely with the smoked Gouda, Sharp cheddar, baked ham, crisp apples and pineapple,.

Grüner Veltliner Weingut Bründlmayer 'L&T' Kamptal, Austria 2019

This was a ideal food wine pairing accompaniment. From the producer Weingut Bründlmayer in the Lower Austrian Kamp Valley, estate vineyards' “ancient” vines, some older than 90 years of age, their most important varietal is Grüner Veltliner, the primary varietal grape in the Langenlois. 

Kamptal has very little vineyard area bordering the Danube River (unlike Wachau and Kremstal, whose vineyards run along it). The region takes its name from the river called Kamp, which traverses it north and south. Kamptal’s densely planted vineyards represent eight percent of Austria’s total, the loess and sand with some gravel and rocks, make it suitable for Grüner Veltliner, the predominant grape planted in half of the zone. 75% of the world’s Grüner Veltliner coming from Austria.

Grüner Veltliner wines cover a diverse range from pleasant “light and dry” (such as this one labeled "L+T").

Winemaker Notes - Appealing nose of apples, fresh citrus and mild flowery aromas, as well as rosewood, green peas and asparagus. Fresh and crisp with flavors of sappy fruits on the palate followed 

Light straw colored, light bodied, bright crisp tangy acidic notes of pear and green and yellow-apple with hints of citrus, lime and herbs with crisp acidity on a smooth finish. 

RM 90 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=3838485

https://www.bruendlmayer.at/en/

Benton Lane Estate Willamette Valley Pinot Noir for Easter Dinner

Benton Lane Estate Willamette Valley Pinot Noir 2011 for Easter Dinner

I write often here about wine marketing and branding. Benton Lane have done a masterful job establishing an identity with their unique creative postage stamp styled labels. The metaphor works in creating an identity for the brand as well as allowing for multiple varietal offerings via the multi-color selections, as well as for the classification of vintages. The metaphor also works well for premium labels with the 'First Class' designation for select labels.

The Benton Lane family of labels as shown in their 'stamp' collection:

Benton-Lane derives its name from its location straddling the border between Benton and Lane counties in North-western Oregon. Lane is one of two counties to extend from the Pacific coast to the Cascade Mountain range. The Benton-Lane Estate is known as Sunnymount Ranch, named such since is is sunnier than the surrounding area due to its proximity in the shadow of some of the highest peaks in the coastal range, which tend to catch the marine cloud layer that flows in from the Pacific Ocean, in what climatologists call the “rain shadow”. The sunny slopes allow for earlier ripening of grapes increasing the chances of a complete harvest before the fall rains set in.

Steve and Carol Girard founded Benton-Lane when they purchased the property in 1988 and began planting Pinot Noir in 1989. Today the property comprises 138 acres in twenty-two different vineyard blocks predominantly planted to Pinot Noir of 7 different clones suitably matched to each sections terroir.

Benton-Lane’s first vintage was in 1992 and they produced Pinot Noir exclusively until 2003, when they expanded into small quantities of Pinot Gris and Pinot Blanc.

Benton Lane offer the distinction of a high QPR - quality price ratio in a modest/moderate priced Pinot Noir, a rare find, as I often write in this blog. I first discovered Benton Lane in a fine dining restaurant and have been a fan since.

Today we opened Benton Lane Pinot Noir 2011 for our Easter baked ham dinner.

Dark garnet colored, medium bodied with predominant dusty rose and spicy black cherry, tones of rhubarb, strawberry and hints cranberry with tones of cassis and red licorice, with a smooth tangy modest tannin finish.

This was a perfect complement to our Easter dinner of baked ham with cherry compote, potatoes au-gratin, potato egg fritata with sweet and  jalapeno  peppers and scallions, and chocolate cheese blintzes with fresh berries, baked rolls and a fresh fruit plate.

RM 88 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1657893

http://www.benton-lane.com/

Herbert Triebaumer Ruster Ausbruch Burgenland Neusiedlersee-Hügelland Rust 1996/1997

This is a Chardonnay blend of Fürmint and Gelber Muskatellier (Furmint and Gold Muscatel grape varieties). Tonight this was tea colored, while it was likely straw or butter colored upon release, over time it darkened to butter color, then weak tea colored, eventually darkening to the dark orange rust color it possesses now. Allowed to continue to age, this will likely eventually darken to dark strong tea color, although I suspect it won't necessarily improve the flavor and suitability of the wine. Some classic dessert wines are built to last decades, I suspect this Ruster Ausbruch nearing twenty years is at or even past its peak drinking window. We still have a case of this wine, so watch this blog as we monitor this over the coming months and years.

The thick almost syrupy extracted sweet fruit has been offset by a smoky almond nut flavor. Rather than the highly desirable apricot or peach flavors, this tended to be more cirtus focused. This was also a nice complement to Baked Ham and the Chocolate Cheese Blintzes.

RM 88 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1455246