Il Bruciato Super Tuscan, Torbreck Barossa Shiraz with Gia Mia Naperville Pasta, Pizza

Il Bruciato Super Tuscan, Torbreck Barossa Shiraz with Gia Mia Naperville Pasta and Pizza 

As summer wanes, we dined Monday outside with neighbors Richard and Adessa, on the deck/patio at picturesque Gia Mia in Naperville. Their Naperville location is sited in the old historic library amidst the bustle of downtown city centre. 

They have also in recent years opened several other similarly situated downtown locations in the Chicagoland western suburbs of Wheaton, Geneva, St. Charles and Downers Grove.

Their formula for success is ‘chef-driven, farm-to-fork food concepts, … Neapolitan style wood-fired pizzas, creative small plates, fresh pasta, antipasto, and hand-made mozzarella’. This is based on the vision, experience and drive of Chef Brian Goewey, who has been involved in or partially responsible for the opening of over 50 restaurants, ranging from quick-serve style to high-end 5-star restaurants.

We’ve become big fans of Gia Mia, and several of their pasta dishes including their Linguini, Risotto and their meatballs with polenta.  

Tonight we ordered these favorite signature dishes:

“The Bruno” (meatlover’s) Pizza - meatballs, pepperoni, Italian sausage, tomato sauce, mozzarella and basil with spicy Soppresatto Sausage, (I usually have them hold back the spicy sausage which I find overwhelming to the wine accompaniment),

Linguini Carbonara with bacon, garlic, black pepper, Parmesan cream, pecorino and egg yolk,

Arancini Mozzarella, Creamy Risotto with fontina, tomato sauce, garlic and basil,  

Rigatoni, and their Meatballs with Polenta

From their wine list we ordered this Super Tuscan from mega brand producer Antinori. 

This is from the broad Antinori portfolio of estates, Guado al Tasso, located in the small but prestigious Bolgheri DOC, on the coast of upper Maremma, about one hundred kilometers southwest from Florence. 

This relatively young appellation, DOC Bolgheri was established in 1995.

The huge Antinori Guado al Tasso estate covers 2500 acres of which 790 acres are planted with vines, set in the rolling hillsides known as the "Bolgheri Amphitheatre" due to its particular shape. The vineyards are planted to Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Vermentino. 

The proximity to and effects of the nearby sea provide a mild climate with constant breezes that mitigate summer heat and alleviate harsh winter weather, maintaining a clear sky and a high level of sunlight exposure. The remainder of the estate is covered with wheat fields, sunflowers and olive groves.

Il Bruciato was created in the year 2002 during one of the most difficult vintages at Guado al Tasso in order to present the unique terroir of Bolgheri and give it a greater visibility and recognition. The first blend to be used was that of Guado al Tasso only to see, in the years which followed, a modification of the varietal composition and the identification of a series of vineyard plots intended to be used exclusively for this wine. 

Il Bruciato Guado Al Tasso Antinori 2022

In the fashion of what has become known as ‘Super Tuscans’, wines sourced in the Italian Tuscany region, but crafted from French Bordeaux and Rhône varietals. 

Il Bruciato is the ‘second’ label of the estate, first introduced in 2002 as a lower cost every day drinking label to the flagship premium Guado Al Tasso Super Tuscan blend, a more affordable interpretation of  and introduction to Bolgheri’s unique terroir made from carefully selected Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah grapes from Guado al Tasso’s vineyards with their geological composition of the soil is diversified giving the wine structure and complexity. 

Generally, this label provides high QPR - quality price ratio, available for a fraction of the price of the ultra-premium flagship and has gained a broad following to have for every day sipping with pasta, bold cheeses and meat dishes. The bold fruit flavors of the Syrah, Cab Franc and Petit Verdot added to the blend make this a crowd pleaser for wine lovers at all levels. 

The 2022 Il Bruciato is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, blended with Merlot, Syrah and a small percentage of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot: the blend was reintroduced into barriques where it was left to age before bottling. 

Producer’s tasting notes - “Il Bruciato 2022 is intensely ruby red in color. Dominant aromas on the nose include small ripe red fruit accompanied by notes of sweet spices and light hints of mint and tobacco. The palate has excellent structure, is remarkably mouth filling with a pleasant fruity aftertaste that makes it pleasantly easy to drink and closes with a lingering finish.

This release was rated 93 Points by Audrey Frick of JedDunnuck.com, James Suckling (JS93), and Wine Advocate (WA93), and 92 Points by Wine Enthusiast.

Bright ruby colored with opaque purple hues, full bodied, rich, dense concentrated ripe black and blue fruits with notes of blackberry liqueur, black olives, licorice, leather and hints of espresso and herbs with gripping but approachable tannins, supple texture and fresh acidity through the long finish.

RM 91 points. 

Then several days later, with friend Pat R, after a day trip to the Indiana Dunes National Seashore, we had the same dinner entrees, carry out, at home on our deck. 

For a wine accompaniment with the pizza and pastas, we opened another big bold expressive red for the girls while I had the remains of the Bordeaux Blend from the previous evening. 

Torbreck "Woodcutter's" Barossa Valley South Australia Shiraz 2021

This is another big full throttle, powerful big red wine, that offers high QPR for ideal accompaniment to zesty pasta and pizza. 

The producer’s website speaks of this wine on the content of their Gaelic heritage - “You’d imagine a high country Scottish woodcutter might like a satisfying red at the days end – something rich, warming, full bodied and affordable.’

“Torbreck is the name of a forest near Inverness, Scotland. You’ll find more than a passing nod to the Celts in our wine naming conventions including this tribute to the foresters of this rugged high country.’

“This wine reflects the up and coming Shiraz vineyards of the Barossa, rather than the battle hardened old vines that make up the core of our other cuvées.” This is the producer’s polite way of saying this is a lower  cost affordable alternative crafted from younger vines, versus the mature old vines in the premium labels of the brand. 

Hence, the producer website continues, “But like all Torbreck wines, Woodcutter’s Shiraz receives the very best viticultural and winemaking treatment. Fruit is sourced from hand-harvested and hand-tended, low-yielding vines, then open fermented and gently basket pressed before ageing on fine lees for 12 months in large format seasoned barrels and foudres.”

Although this wine is constantly praised for its succulence and richness, there is also a complexity and texture which is rarely found at this price.

This label is 100% Shiraz sourced from the sub-region vineyards in Marananga, Greenock, Seppeltsfield, Gomersal, Moppa, Lyndoch and Ebenezer in the south central Australia Barossa Valley. 

Winemaker’s note about this vinetage and release: “The 2021 summer growing season was mild, with even and cool daily temperatures throughout. Enhanced by good rains provided during the winter and spring of 2020, our vineyards grew wonderful canopies and developed well-formed grape bunches. As a result of this long flavour development cycle in the vineyard, 2021’s signature is wines of high aromatic lift with densely coloured tints and exceptional balance. Lifted red, black and blue fruits of red cherry, raspberry coulis, blueberry conserve and wild blackberry and blackcurrant. There is a spicy edge showing cardamom, star anise and Chinese five spice. Soft caressing tannins and voluptuous mouthfeel from plump Shiraz berries gives this wine a posture that belies its pedigree.”

Winemaker’s tasting notes: “This wine is crimson with subtle red plum undertones. Upon the first smell, the nose is a complex bouquet of dark plum and ripe blackberries, interwoven with the rich, dark essence of cassis and cherries. This fruity ensemble is accented with a hint of spice and star anise. On the palate, the wine reveals a medium to full body that masterfully balances intensity and elegance. The soft tannins contribute to a smooth and textural mouthfeel.”

25,000 cases were produced with 400 cases imported.

Wine James Suckling pundit loves this wine and gave it a whopping 96 points. Wine Spectator gave it a more down to earth 91 points. 

After tasting the more complex but subdued Bordeaux Blend, I switched to a glass of this big red and was overwhelmed by its big bold, almost obtuse vibrancy. 

Dark garnet inky purple colored, full bodied, dense concentrated vibrant expressive ripe blackberry and raspberry fruits notes of black tea, anise, bittersweet chocolate, green pepper, herbs sage and rosemary, 

RM 91 points. 

https://torbreck.com/products/woodcutters-shiraz

https://www.antinori.it/en/

https://www.giamiapizzabar.com/

Neyers Sage Canyon Red Rhône Blend Wine 2020

Neyers Sage Canyon Red Rhône Blend Wine 2020 

With grilled beefsteak sandwiches with avocado, roasted potatoes and caprese balsamic salad we opened this Rhône style California red blend. We just picked up several bottles and were eager to try it. 

In 1970, Bruce Neyer’s deployment in the Army brought him and his wife Barbara to San Francisco during which time they developed a keen interest in wine. Upon discharge from the Army in 1972 Bruce landed a job at Mayacamas Winery in the Napa Valley where he spent two years as assistant winemaker to Bob Travers. While there he studied enology at the University of California, Davis. 

In 1974, Bruce and Barbara moved to the Nahe region in Germany where Bruce worked as an apprentice winemaker, returning to the US in March 1975. At that time, he was hired by Joseph Phelps in his new winery that bears his name, where he worked for 17 years, leaving as GM in 1992.

During that time, In 1982, Barbara and Bruce started Neyers Vineyards and in 1984 bought a 35-acre parcel in Conn Valley and began to develop it for vineyards with the idea of starting their own winery. 

In the fall of 1999, they purchased a 30-acre parcel in the Sage Canyon area of Napa Valley, a few miles east of Rutherford on Highway 128, near Lake Hennessey. There they built a winery with ‘state of the art’ wine production facilities. 

In 2004, they hired Tadeo Borchardt as winemaker. Tadeo’s winemaking experience was learned in the vineyard and the winery through on-the-job training.

Working for Restaurateur Roger Roessler, who was building a wine label in Santa Rosa with Copain winemaker Wells Guthrie, Borchardt was sent to the Russian River Valley to help with the harvest. What was intended to be seasonal work turned into a full-time position as Guthrie’s assistant. Borchardt later traveled to New Zealand to experience harvest in the southern hemisphere at Craggy Range, before returning to California to join Neyers Vineyards in 2004.

After leaving Phelps, Bruce became national sales manager for Berkeley-based importer Kermit Lynch until his retirement in 2017, where he grew the business many times over during his years there. Working closely with 100+ French wine producers, he was exposed to and learned winemaking, farming practices and production techniques.

During this time, they continued to develop their own estate Cabernet and Merlot growing production to 15,000 cases annually.

During his time with Kermit Lynch, Bruce became particularly interested in the wines from the southern Rhône. On the urging of Daniel Brunier of Châteauneuf du Pape producer Domaine Vieux Telegraphe, who he calls ‘one of my favorite producers from the area,’ he sought out to develop this blend similar in style to the great wines of that region. 

Reader’s of these pages know we’re big fans of Daniel Bruner and his wines and feature our visits to Domaine Vieux Telegraphe here. 

Neyers and Borchardt spent the next several years seeking out sources of the red varieties traditionally grown in the south of France and honing the techniques used to craft such wines. They also traveled together through the wine regions of France, where they met multi-generational winemakers who grew up among the vineyards, learning by doing. The instinctual approach of Old World winemakers in Burgundy and the Rhône Valley left an indelible impression on Borchardt. The wines he crafts for Neyers are heavily influenced by the philosophical approach of French winemakers.

Neyers Sage Canyon California Red Wine 2020

In the southern Rhône style, this is a blend of Rhône varietals Carignan, Mourvèdre, Grenache, Cinsault, and Syrah.

The 2020 is mainly old vine Carignan Evangelho & Jessie’s Grove vinyards with smaller amounts of Grenache, Mourvèdre, and a dash of Syrah for completeness. The added fruit is sourced from vineyards in Monterey County, San Luis Obispo County, Lodi, and the Sierra Foothills to the unique blend. This broadened the wine’s complexity and added ‘further elements of rusticity and elegance’.

The grapes for this wine are all hand-harvested, meticulously sorted during a visual inspection, then crushed by foot rather than by machine, using traditional French ‘pigeage’. 

The wine spent 18 months aging in neutral French oak barrels.

Winemaker notes - Look for a broad aroma of wild fruits and exotic spices accompanied by attractive flavors of berries and ginger. 

Dark garnet colored, medium full bodied, this had bright vibrant expressive juicy ripe black and red berry fruits accented by notes of spice and cedar with a tangy acidic finish. 

This was good with the steak but would be better suited with pizza, tangy bbq or pasta. 

RM 89 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=4438724

https://www.neyersvineyards.com/

Bedrock Heritage Sonoma County Red with Gia Mia Pizzas

Bedrock Heritage Sonoma County Red Blend with Gia Mia Pizzas

Monday night is pizza night with special pricing at Gia Mia Restaurant in Naperville with their Southern Italian Neapolitan wood fired pizza, so we ordered individual personal pizzas. To pair with the pizza I pulled from the cellar a hearty robust fruit filled Big Red Blend ‘pizza wine’. 

My personal favorite GiaMia pizza is The Bruno - tomato sauce, basil, mozzarella, Italian sausage and meatballs, pepperoni and spicy soppressato (which I usually exclude) (shown right), and Linda’s is their Margarita - tomato sauce, mozzarella, basil, EVOO and parmesan with sea salt.  She typically enhances her’s with additional garden fresh basil and cheeses.

For a ‘pizza wine’ we opened a robust American Zinfandel based red blend. I recently picked up the latest release of this label at Binny’s Beverage Depot, our wine superstore, which served to replace this vintage of the label from a decade ago. As part of cellar inventory management, we opened the oldest vintage in our collection.

Bedrock Wine Company "Bedrock Vineyard - Heritage Wine" Sonoma Valley Red Blend 2013 

This is from Morgan Twain Peterson, son of Joel Peterson of Ravenswood Vineyards, a well known accomplished producer known for Zinfandel wines. 

Morgan grew up working harvests at the family Ravenswood winery before moving to Australia in 2005 where he worked Hardy’s facility of Tintara and with Drew Noon at Noon Wine Cellars. He then moved to Bordeaux for a time at Chateau Lynch Bages. 

Returning home, Morgan founded Bedrock Wine Co. in 2007, on the outskirts of  Sonoma, sourcing fruit from his family’s Bedrock Vineyard and Teldeschi Ranch, following in subsequent years with several other vineyards.

His Bedrock wines have been featured in the New York Times, L.A. Times, Wall Street Journal, and Washington Post. The wines have made Wine Spectator’s Top 100 List four times placing as high as number 9 and have received a score of 90 points or higher from them over a hundred times. 

In 2014, Morgan, alongside friend Tegan Passalacqua, was named the San Francisco Chronicle Co-Winemaker of the Year by Jon Bonné. 

In 2017, Morgan became a Master of Wine, making him one of a handful of winemakers in the United States to gain the heralded certification. 

In 2020, Bedrock was named Winery of the Year by Antonio Galloni.

Morgan produces a portfolio of interesting unique wines crafted from old vine sites throughout California. 

The range of wines incorporate extremely old vine fruit, and, in some cases, virtually unknown grapes, such as Aubun, Teredalgo, Trousseau Noir, Le Noir, Mission, Trousseau Gris, Grand Noir and Abouriou, as well as Zinfandel, Syrah, Petite Sirah, Grenache, Carignan, Alicante Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Tempranillo. 

Many of these sites are heritage terroirs from the ancient past which, until Peterson's arrival, were largely ignored or were co-mingled into some innocuous industrial blend, hence the “Heritage” label in their branding. 

The vineyards were often planted in a "field blend" of which Zinfandel comprises a large portion, but sometimes not as much as the 75% required to label the wine for the varietal. Morgan typically choses to include all 22 varietals into his estate field blend, often taking the extra effort to specifically identify all 22 cultivars selected from the historic 120-year-old Bedrock vineyard. 

On the other hand, Ravenswood notable Zinfandel labels, such as the select bottling from their Old Hill vineyard, have to be picked with great care to select 75% Zinfandel grapes for the bottlings that will be varietal designated labels. 

The 2013 Bedrock Heritage comes from the Peterson family’s estate old vines that were planted as far back as between 1888 and 1895. Amazingly, there are over 22 different varieties of grapes interplanted across their vineyards.

It is labeled a ‘field blend’, containing just about every variety out there, sourced from Bedrock estate vineyards, since it only contains 55% Zinfandel, then 30% Carignane, with the remaining 15% composed of the other 20 varietals. 

Vinous says “The 2013 Bedrock Heritage Wine is one of the most intriguing wines in the range. This is by far the most polished and refined wine I have tasted from the Bedrock Vineyard, where the wines have often been much riper and bigger.“

Somehow, the winemaker manages to avoid the disjointed cacophony of flavors from such a complex and diverse blend, producing a wine that is balanced and approachable for pleasant drinking. 

Zinfandel is known to be America’s varietal grape that is uniquely American. Its big full round robust profile is ideally suited for hearty bbq or pizza so I like to keep a collection of such wines for occasions such as this. 

There were just nine barrels or 750 cases of this wine produced. 

This release was awarded 93-95 points by Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate, 94 points by Vinous, 93 points from Jeb Dunnuck, and 91 points from Wine Spectator.

Dark ruby/purple colored, full bodied, complex, firmly structured, broad, intense and expansive with dense blackberry, plum and black raspberries, accented by herbs, pepper and notes of smoke, cedar, and tobacco with firm tannins on the finish. 

RM 90 points.  

https://www.cellartracker.com/w?1891673

https://www.bedrockwineco.com/

Long Shadows Chester Kidder with Filet of Beef

Long Shadows Chester Kidder with Filet of Beef

Intimate Saturday night dinner at home, we grilled filets of beef and served with wedge salad, fresh toasted bread, baked potatoes and mixed vegetables.

Seeking a Goldilocks wine - not too old, not too young, and a perfect accompaniment to grilled beefsteak, I pulled from the cellar a Bordeaux varietal blend from Long Shadows Vintners Collection.

As is so often the case, this is a replay of an earlier similarly situated tasting, hence I’ll replay it here. 

Long Shadows Chester Kidder with Beef Tenderloin

Long Shadows Chester Kidder with Beef Tenderloin

For a beef tenderloin dinner, I pulled from the cellar this premium Washington State Cabernet as an accompaniment. 

This is from Long Shadows collection which I I have featured often in these pages, Long Shadows Cellars feature world class winemakers and Columbia Valley fruit. Long Shadows was the creation of Allan Shoup, leader of Chateau St Michelle from 1983 to 2000. There he introduced Washington State grapes to winemakers from around the world in collaboration to produce quality wines. 

After retirement from Chateau St Michelle he founded Long Shadows to produce world class ultra-premium wines in Washington with fruit sourced from there. He built a state of the art winery in Walla Walla and recruited a team of legendary producers to craft signature wines from the best vineyards' fruit from the Washington Columbia Valley. Three years into the new venture Long Shadows was awarded the Winery of the Year by Food and Wine Magazine. 

Shoup recruited a top winemaker with expertise and a track record producing best in class wine in each category or type of wine based on varietal grape. Marketed under the Vintners Collection, each of the Long Shadows labels in a testament to the legend of the winemaker for each label based on each varietal.

Since the beginning, Long Shadows' Director of Winemaking and Viticulture Gilles Nicault, has overseen the operations of the winery and worked closely with the vintners to bring each winemaker’s vision to completion. Internationally renowned winemakers Randy Dunn (Feather Cabernet Sauvignon); John Duval (Sequel Syrah); Philippe Melka (Pirouette Red Wine); and Michel Rolland (Pedestal Merlot) are active partners in their respective wines. Gilles now crafts Poet’s Leap Riesling and Saggi, a Sangiovese/Cabernet Sauvignon blend, in styles that remain true to their original winemakers, Armin Diel and Giovanni Folonari respectively. Gilles crafts Chester-Kidder, a Cabernet Sauvignon/Syrah blend, independently.

Gilles works closely with the state’s top growers to execute a diverse winemaking protocol at Long Shadows’ state-of-the-art facility in Walla Walla to produce wines of exceptional quality, true to the Columbia Valley’s terroir. 

Nilles Nicault has served as director of winemaking and viticulture since Long Shadows inception in 2003. As resident winemaker overseeing daily operations at Long Shadows' state-of-the-art winery in Walla Walla, Gilles works with a group of celebrated vintners from around the globe. It is his job to ensure that each winemaker's vision is realized in the vineyard and the cellar.

While many winemakers would find this proposition a daunting task, French-born Nicault describes the position as his "dream job." Those who know Gilles best say it is his insatiable curiosity and desire to learn something new every day as well as his winemaking skills that make him uniquely qualified for the position. In addition to executing daily operations at the winery, Gilles is the winemaker for Long Shadows' acclaimed Chester-Kidder, a Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah blend that carries his signature.

Gilles grew up in southern France and graduated from the University of Avignon with a degree in Viticulture and Enology. He honed his craft in the fabled hillside vineyards and wineries of Cotes Du Rhone, Provence and Champagne. On 1994, already a vintner of rising fame in his homeland, Gilles traveled to Washington State to expand his winemaking skills.

Impressed by Washtington State's vineyards and the opportunity to be part of a growing wine community, he stayed in the Columbia Valley, working for Staton Hills and Hogue Cellars before joining Woodward Canyon in 1996, where he stayed until moving to Long Shadows in June 2003. Sharing Woodward Canyon's passion for world-class wine, Gilles soon found Woodward Canyon's founder Rick Small was his ideal mentor and biggest champion. In 1999, Woodward Canyon named Gilles head of enology and production.

Gilles is married to winemaker Marie-Eve Gilla of Forgeron Cellars, also an acclaimed winemaker. The couple wilves in Walla Walla with their two children.

Allen Shoup named this wine in honor of his mother, Elizabeth Chester, and his grandmother, Maggie Kidder. He selected Long Shadows' Director of Winemaking and Viticulture, Gilles Nicault, to craft this New World blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and other classic Bordeaux varieties.

Chester-Kidder is one of six distinct red wines from Long Shadows Vintners - a collection of ultra-premium wines, each built on the unique expertise of some of the world’s most knowledgeable winemakers to showcase the quality and caliber of Washington State’s Columbia Valley. 

Long Shadows "Chester-Kidder" Columbia Valley Red Blend 2015

The 2015 Vintage of Chester-Kidder is a red varietal blend composed of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Syrah and 15% Petit Verdot, sourced from the Columbia Valley Appellation. It is styled to capture the complexity of the growing region, the Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah grapes from Candy Mountain give the wine its firm structure and wonderful intensity. Walla Walla Valley vineyards contribute Cabernet that adds depth and rich textures.  Petit Verdot sourced from Sagemoor Vineyards provides layers of ripe, fresh flavors and refined tannins. This release is aged for an average of 30 months in tight-grained French oak which allows the fruit to fully integrate prior to bottling.

We wrote about this wine earlier this year in this blogpost - Long Shadows Chester Kidder. 

The 2015 CHESTER-KIDDER was awarded 94 points by Jeb Dunnuck, 93 points by Wine Advocate and 92 points by Vinous.

This was bright garnet/ruby colored, medium to full bodied with a complex rich round core blackberry, black raspberry and red currant fruits with notes of licorice, savory spices, dark mocha chocolate and hints of graphite and earth, ending with a long and complex finish with gripping tannins.

RM 92 points.  

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2914665

https://longshadows.com/ 

https://twitter.com/LongShadowsWine 

 

Hill Family "Like a Hawk" Red Blend

 Hill Family “Like A Hawk” Napa Valley Red Wine

We joined son Alec for dinner and to watch our Alma mater Indiana University Hoosiers play Big Ten rival Purdue in NCAA basketball. Alec and Vivianna served a delicious dinner of pasta in a vodka cream sauce and for a wine accompaniment with dinner we trolled Alec’s wine cellar and pulled this hearty Big Red wine for the occasion. 

Alec and Vivianna discovered Hill Family Winery and Vineyards during their honeymoon in Napa Valley and since then have acquired this limited release wine as part of his allocation shipments as a member of the Hill Family wine club.

The Hill Family own 120 acres of vineyards with a focus on Atlas Peak, Carneros and Oak Knoll. They are 100% family-farmed, family-owned and family-operated – growing fruit for Napa wineries as well as their own wines.

 Hill Family Vineyards "Like A Hawk" Napa Valley Red Wine 2020

This limited release special label bottling is a variously from year to year a unique blend of Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon with some Malbec, Viognier and Petit Verdot. It is typically sourced from Hill Family estate vineyards Baker Vineyard in Atlas Peak and Clarke Vineyard in American Canyon.

The rear label notes that this wine is a tribute to the fifth generation of the Hill Family. This is named for the winemaker's son Landon who is featured on the label. While strolling through the vineyards together, he posed the young toddler up on a fence post. He stood up erect and said, "look, I am like a hawk!", hence the name.

Winemaker notes -  In 2020, with all the challenges we had during harvest, we needed to persist in using our best scientific attitude and tools to make our wines. After 16 months, we were able to blend our best lots and make the 2020 “Like a Hawk.” It is a big, elegant, energetic wine, with its well-known color and density, and it is always great to see Landon on the label representing the next generation of Hill family farmers! The 2020 Like a Hawk has bold aromas of black cherry, cassis, vanilla, mocha and a hint of raspberry jam. The palate is big and intense, certainly no pushover – the tannins are present, but they are rich with dark chocolate and cassis."

"With the catastrophic fires of 2020 the wine world has been holding its collective breath to see what will come from this vintage in the Napa Valley. Fortunately scientific advances in dealing with the fruit from that year have been up to the challenge, and we were able to blend our best lots to make 402 cases of a big, elegant, and beautiful Like A Hawk."

The 2020 release was 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 49% Syrah and 1% Viognier.

Dark ruby colored, medium full bodied, dense concentrated round forward blackberry and black cherry fruits accented by spice, cassis and hints of dark mocha chocolate with full round tannins on the lingering finish. 

RM 91 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=4428912

https://hillfamilyestate.com/2020-like-a-hawk-release/

Steak Night, Fresh Catch and Wine Specials at Wine Bar Destin

Steak Night, Fresh Catch and Wine Specials at Wine Bar Destin

The Wine Bar - Destin 

Visiting our favorite getaway, Destiny Cove vacation rental in Destin Florida, we dined at The Wine Bar restaurant in Destin. 

We first discovered the Wine Bar in the Sandestin Grand Boulevard shopping center. It's adjacent to and affiliated with the Wine World wine shop that has an amazing and impressive selection of 100 point and first growth producer wines. We then learned they have four locations including this one, the Wine Bar in Destin nearby.

The Wine Bar Destin location is located at the Shoppes of Paradise Key (on Commons Drive across from the Destin Commons Center). In addition to the restaurant, they have the adjacent wine shop that also includes a cheese shop - a trifecta, all in the one location, just up the street from our neighborhood!  

The dining room offers casual fine dining in a rustic and quaint setting, intimate and slightly dark, with an adjacent bar and a private wine room for special dinners and private groups.

The Wine Bar restaurant offers a core selection soups, salads and small plates, with chicken, steaks and fresh seafood. They tout an award winning wine list, and and extensive selection of artisan cheeses! 

The wine list offers a broad selection of WBTG - Wines By The Glass; five Sparkling Wines, three Rose's, nine "Fresh and Bright Whites", and nine "Round Rich and Ripe White Wines". For red wine selections they offer seven :Soft and Fruity Reds", twelve "Big and Bold Reds:. 

And, for 'Happy Hour', from 11:00 AM to 7:00 PM daily, they offer a 12 oz. carafe of WBTG selections for the price of a large glass, 8 oz.  They also offer a wine flight of Luxury Whites and one of Luxury Reds.

We ordered from the wine list a carafe specials the premium Brunello Montalcino of which they were out, so, we opted for a Barolo, a Napa Valley Red Blend, and a Santa Lucia Highlands Chardonnay.

As starters we ordered the cesar salad and the Beet Caprese Salad - heirloom tomatoes, roasted red beets, extra virgin olive oil, fresh basil, balsamic glaze (shown below).

For entrees, Linda ordered the Manchego Crusted Grouper, the Daily Fresh Catch Special with carolina gold rice, field peas, wild mushrooms, lardons, jalapeno and citrus beurre blanc.

Saturday night is Steak Special night so I ordered the Saturday Night Filet of Beef special, prepared Pittsburgh style, charred on the outside, medium hot pink center on the inside.

With the steak we ordered two carafe special red wines, a Red Blend and a Barolo, our second choice since the published Brunello di Montalcino was not available.

Aril Sonoma County Kick Ranch Red Blend 2017

This is from Aril Wines, founded in 2008 by Harmon and Joanne Brown to produce a small amount of premium, hand-crafted wines based on their Pritchard Hill Estate Vineyard in Napa Valley. They retained renowned winemaker and viticulturist Ehren Jordan (Failla/Turley) as winemaker and vineyard consultant in 2014. He employed a simple philosophy of procuring optimal grapes and respecting them in the winery applying a minimalist approach to showcase place, balance, and elegance.

In 2018, the Jay family purchased the brand to continue the legacy and production. 

Aril produce four labels of Bordeaux varietals including this unique blend which includes Rhone varietal Syrah, all sourced from the Kick Ranch Vineyard that sits high atop Spring Mountain which separates Napa Valley to the east and Sonoma Valley to the west. 

Sitting on the western facing slope of the mountain in what is known as the Fountaingrove District in Sonoma County, it has vistas all they way to the Petaluma Gap to the west, which provides cool nights and foggy mornings. The producer site describes the vineyard rows planted to capture maximum sun exposure.

The Fountaingrove District is a sleeper of an appellation within Sonoma County, the 17th AVA, latest and most recent to receive American Viticultural Area (AVA) status in March 2015. 

The District takes its name from an historic area of northeastern Santa Rosa, the Fountaingrove District that was inspired by the legacy of California's original "cult winery." Of the 38,000-acres in the appellation 500 acres are planted to vineyards from five wine producers.

 

The Fountaingrove District sits in the middle of the Mayacamas Mountain range that separates Napa Valley to the east from Sonoma Valley to the west. It is bounded to the north by Sonoma County's Knights Valley AVA, Sonoma Valley to the south, Chalk Hill to the northwest, and Russian River Valley to the west.

This label is a unique blend of Syrah, Cabernet and Petit Verdot. It was aged in 33% new French Oak barrels for eighteen months. This was the six vintage release of this label. Only 275 cases were produced.

This was dark ruby colored, medium full bodied, concentrated full round red and black fruits with notes of dusty rose, leather and spice with hints of anise.

https://www.cellartracker.com/m/wines/4847352

https://www.arilwines.com/


Azienda Agricola Icollirossi Barolo Monforte d'Alba Nebbiolo 2018

Icollirossi Barolo is a DOCG designated wine from the Piedmont region in Northern Italy.

One of the world's great red wines, Barolo is also one of the most distinctive, primarily due to the DOCG rules regulating the grape, how it is produced and the unique terroir of the region in which it grows. Wines from the Barolo DOCG must be 100% Nebbiolo. Barolo wines are noted for their ability to age and need to be aged for at least 38 months after the harvest before release, of which at least 18 months must be in wood.

Located in North West Italy, the Piedmont Wine Region has the largest area in terms of DOC and DOCG wines. Meaning “foot of the mountain,” due to its proximity to the Alps, Piedmont wines including Barolo, Barberesco, Gattinara, Ghemme and Gavi all benefit from the slopes and terrain characteristic of the region. 

Barolo production codes stipulate that vineyards must be located on hillsides, however a recent revision of the production code released in 2010 goes further to specifically exclude valley floors, humid and flat areas, areas without sufficient sunlight, and areas with full-on northern exposures.

Nebbiolo is the dominant grape variety for reds and produces wines with tannic and acidic qualities that can also have fairly high alcohol content. This distinctive combination profile makes distinguished and cellar-worthy wines of Barolo and Barberesco some of the most sought-after. 

This Barolo is from the commune of Monforte d'Alba, one of several  DOCG (Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita) communes in the northern Italian region of Piedmont.

Winemaker notes - "Bold and complex, I Colli Rossi Cru Monforte Barolo 2018 delivers rich flavors of dark fruits, spices, and earthiness. Powerful tannins and a long finish. Pair with lamb, beef, and game."

Bright Ruby colored, medium full bodied, layered flavors of blackberry and cherry with notes of earth, anise, tobacco and hints of cedar and clove spice with polished tannins on an expressive lingering finish.

RM 89

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=4381237

Mer Soleil Santa Lucia Highlands Chardonnay 2022

This is an entry level label from the legendary Wagner Family wine portfolio, most known for their flagship Caymus brand. Mer Soleil is led by second generation Owner and Winemaker Charlie Wagner. It is sourced from vineyards in the Santa Lucia Highlands AVA near the coast in Monterey County.

This wine is named for the sea and sun in recognition of the distinctive place where it is sourced. The Santa Lucia Highlands, 40 minutes south from Monterey in North Central coastal California are known for morning fog, bright sunshine and gusting winds and an extended growing season. Grapes stay on the vine longer, leading to the development of intense aromas and flavors. 

Producer's notes - "A lively flaxen gold, this wine features a harmonious nose that previews the playful balance to come on the palate. Scents of brown spice, toasted almonds, custard and light oak mingle with Meyer lemon zest, honeysuckle and a hint of apricot. Entry is round, as this wine's fruit and natural acidity build on each other, with echoes of brown spice, citrus and apricot enveloped in a creamy texture. A vibrant finish of lemon/lime showcases the distinctly bright acidity produced from the Monterey coast, leaving an enticing freshness that prepares the palate for another sip."

Aromas of baked croissant, apricot, lemon/lime and honeysuckle. Round and creamy on the palate with notes of lemon squares and fresh natural acidity. Creamy yet fresh, the wine is balanced by lively acidity and bright citrus.

A widely distributed, moderately priced, easy drinking Chardonnay.

RM 88 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=4851990

https://www.thewinebarfl.com/the-wine-bar-destin

Gordon Ramsey's Kitchen Naperville

Gordon Ramsey's Kitchen Naperville 

Son Ryan and D-in-law Michelle treated us to dinner at Gordon Ramsey's RK Kitchen in downtown Naperville (IL). This was our first visit to the trendy restaurant that opened in our hometown last summer to much fanfare. 

Readers of these pages know I write often about dinesites and our food and wine restaurant experience. But, up until now I've not had a metricized qualitative or quantitative rating or review system against which to evaluate and compare such restaurants. Based on tonight's, and recent experiences, I felt such a evaluation method with criteria was required and after much thought devised a system to try. 

Using my new system, I evaluated tonight's dining experience. I then went back and retrospectively scored a half dozen recent restaurant experiences as a basis of comparison, evaluating the evaluation system, so to speak. 

Here are my criteria for evaluating a restaurant dining experience, and the associated weight applied to each:

Food - 35 - Selection, quality, creativity or ingenuity, presentation, course pairing, wine pairing

Wine - 35 - Breadth and depth of selection, range of options at various price points, suitability and applicable pairing with the dinner courses

Ambiance - 10| - atmosphere, vibe, comfort, stylishness, general aura

Service - 10 - delivery, attentiveness, professionalism, attitude, overall experience

Value - 10 - value for quality, service, atmosphere, experience

Wow Factor - Lastly, what I simply call the WOW Factor - additional scoring, weighting based on special consideration or  extra credit factors that contribute to the overall experience such that they warrant attention - food and wine pairing - site architecture, location, historical significance, specials ... other ... potential for +10 points

So, here we go, for tonight's experience - 

Food  - 31 - Food was superb in creativity, ingenuity, preparation, quality - downgraded the rating for the only thing lacking, bread or depth of selection choices - only the limited menu choice detracting from score.

Wine - 31 - Same as food, the minimalist winelist offered various options for each course, at multiple price points, but lacking depth and breadth of multiple choices for minimal options for effective wine pairing with each course.

Ambiance - 8 of 10 - chic, stylish, artful, warm, lively and vibrant but a bit noisy and boisterous for optimal comfort. 

 

Service - 9 of 10 - Starting with the host station, going the extra meal to seat us promptly, attending to checking our coats, superb food service, adequate wine service. 

Value - 5 - Expensive, especially taking into account the ala carte sides, and the somewhat limited number of options or alternatives. 

WOW Factor - 8 points extra credit for the up-beat, stylish, quality fixtures, furnishings, layout, design, artfully designed and implemented for a positive experience. 

Total - 92 points.

Our dinner - 

We started with a Wedge Salad which they conveniently served almost family style like a chopped salad making it easy and convenient to share around the table.

Wedge Salad- iceberg, blue cheese, glazed bacon, roasted tomatoes, pickled red onion, chives.

With the salad course we had from the WBTG offerings two sparkling wines - 

Cremant d'Alsace Brut Rose'

Lanson Brut NV Champagne 

For our main source entree selections, we had to try the house specialty, Ramsey's signature dish, the Beef Wellington.

Beef Wellingto, potato purée, glazed baby root vegetables, red wine demi, served medium rare.

RK offers a Daily Special so in the spirit of trying out the gourmet chef's selections, Linda ordered the daily special - Lobster Pot Pie -butter-poached lobster, lobster bisque filling served aside for preparation at the table by the diner, pouring into the puff pastry.

We ordered two side dishes, Potato Puree with sour cream and chives, and the Roasted Heirloom Carrots with harissa yogurt, za’atar, brown butter, marcona almonds and mint.

For dessert we ordered the Sticky Toffee Pudding -warm date cake, sweet cream ice cream and english toffee sauce.

Our wine accompaniment pairing with the dinner was a robust full bodied Red Blend. 

Ridge Lytton Springs Red Blend 2021

Once again, as happens often, we drank this same wine, from our cellar, about this same time, two years ago, almost to the day for another dinner tastings - Ridge Vineyards "Lytton Springs" Dry Creek ValleyZinfandel 2014. At that time, I wrote about the producer and wine in these pages, Ridge Vineyards  and Lytton Springs.  

We always keep a selection of big robust fruit forward wines for pizza and barbecue - Zinfandels, Syrahs and Petite Syrah varietals to name a few. We typically hold a half dozen different labels from the various offerings of Ridge Vineyards.

Ridge Vineyards are a legendary producer of a broad portfolio of wines with an extensive line-up of Zinfandels, all from single vineyard designated label sites. 

Ridge has a rich history dating back to 1885 when Osea Perrone, a doctor and prominent member of San Francisco's Italian community, bought 180 acres near the top of Monte Bello Ridge in the Santa Cruz Mountains. There, he planted vineyards and constructed a winery of redwood and native limestone in time to produce the first vintage of Monte Bello in 1892. The historic building remains to this day serving as the Ridge production facility.

Ridge have been producing Lytton Spring vineyard wines since 1972 with 100 plus-year-old Zinfandel vines interplanted with Petite Sirah, Carignane, a small amount of Mataro (Mourvèdre), and Genache. The site has produced the quintessential example of Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel. 

The Lytton Springs site lies just north of the town of Healdsburg, just west of Highway 101 in the Dry Creek Valley. The topography consists of a benchland and gently rolling hills. The climate provides foggy mornings turning to warm, sunny afternoons and breezy late evenings. Soils are varied with a predominance of gravelly clay, which aids in moisture retention, ensuring that the grapes ripen slowly. The Lytton Springs terrior with weathered, agronomically poor soils in the benchland have proven to be an ideal site for Zinfandel vines to produce classic Zinfandel varietal wines.

The Lytton Springs vineyards were part of land once owned by Captain William Litton, who during the last half of the nineteenth century developed the springs and built a hotel just east of the vineyard for San Franciscans who arrived by train to “take the waters.” 

According to the producer's website, Long after the death of Captain Litton, controversy continued in regards to the change from “i” to “y”, as the accepted spelling of the Litton property. According to the text of Once Upon a Time by Julius Myron Alexander, the spelling was changed “because it was proper”. Then, in a 1969 Press Democrat article, Healdsburg City Clerk and local historian, Edwin Langhart, offered a different opinion, “It appears the name was changed in error by a draftsman or some other official, and it has stayed ‘Lytton’ ever since:’ Whatever the reason, records show that by 1896, most official documents had adopted the ‘Lytton’ spelling.

Ridge Vineyards dates back to 1959 when three scientists from Stanford University's Research Institute (SRI) and their families formed a partnership and bought a property owned by Dr. Short up on Monte Bello Ridge high atop the Santa Cruz Mountains. One of them, David Bennion, made a half barrel of cabernet from the ten year old vines. The partners re-bonded the winery and named it Ridge Vineyards in 1962. That year they produced their first Monte Bello vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon.

Ridge produced its first Zinfandel in 1964 from 19th century vines on the Pichetti Ranch near the base of the Monte Bello Ridge. Ridge produced it's first Sonoma County Geyserville Zinfandel in 1966, from vines planted in 1882. By 1968, production had increased to just under three thousand cases per year.

Paul Draper joined the partnership as winemaker in 1969. He was a Stanford graduate in philosophy, and a practical winemaker, not an enologist. His knowledge of fine wines and traditional methods complemented the straightforward “hands off” approach pioneered at Ridge. He had recently returned from setting up a winery in Chile’s coast range. He oversaw the restoration of the old Perrone winery and vineyards acquired the previous year. 

He first saw the Lytton Springs vineyard in 1972 and, based on its age with 80 years old vines, purchased grapes and produced Ridge’s first Lytton Springs bottling that year. In 1991, on the 20th anniversary of their first vintage, Ridge purchased the Lytton Springs winery and the old vines surrounding it, making it a true estate vineyard.

Paul Draper went on to become a legend with Ridge Vineyards. The Ridge brand grew to a broad portfolio of more than four dozen single vineyard designated label wines from more than two dozen different vineyards. They operate two wineries and hospitality sites, Lytton Springs in Healdsburg up in north Sonoma County and Monte Bello high in the Santz Cruz Mountains above Silicon Valley. 

Paul Draper retired in 2016 at age 80, after 47 years as winemaker. Ridge continued on expanding with additional vineyard site purchases include the purchase that year of Whitton Ranch, a 36-acre parcel in the heart of Geyserville.

Ridge Vineyards "Lytton Springs" Dry Creek Valley Red Blend 2021

This is a single vineyard designated label, sourced from the Lytton Springs vineyard in Northern Soboma County. The vineyard lies just north of Healdsburg on the benchland where the gently rolling hills separate Dry Creek from Alexander Valley. 

Lytton Springs is named after Captain William H. Litton and two naturally occurring springs that were located on the original property. Litton worked as a ship’s pilot in the San Francisco Bay in the mid nineteenth century before acquiring the large tract of land in 1860. The property straddled the Dry Creek and Alexander Valleys that extended from the southernmost boundaries of Geyserville to the northern limits of the fledgling town of Healdsburg, with the Russian River serving as its eastern boundary. The property was originally part of the Rancho Sotoyome land grant of the 1840’s. By 1867, Captain Litton was considered the fourth largest property owner in Sonoma County. 

In 1872, the San Francisco and Northern Pacific Railroad linked Healdsburg and points north with the Bay area. In an attempt to attract tourists, Captain Litton and three partners built a resort hotel on the site in 1875, known as “Litton Springs” for the popular soda springs that were located half a mile uphill from the original hotel site. The naturally carbonated seltzer, or sweetwater, springs were considered to have medicinal value for their mineral properties. The springs still exist today and their presence was one of the primary reasons that underground caves were never built underneath the winery.

Captain Litton sold the 2700 acre property, including the hotel in 1878. Over the next couple of decades, the resort property was bought and sold and subdivided into smaller parcels by various owners. 

 According to the producer's website, “It appears the name was changed in error by a draftsman or some other official, and it has stayed ‘Lytton’ ever since:’ Whatever the reason, records show that by 1896, most official documents had adopted the ‘Lytton’ spelling.

 The vineyards were first established on the property in 1901 with the hillside vineyard blocks on the eastern portion of Lytton Springs, followed by vineyard blocks on the flats in 1910. To this day, Lytton Springs is home to those 100-plus-year-old Zinfandel vines interplanted with Petite Sirah, Carignane, a small amount of Mataro (Mourvèdre), and Grenache.

 The site is ideal for Zinfandel with foggy mornings, warm, sunny afternoons and breezy late evenings. The agronomically poor soils are gravelly clay which holds moisture ensuring that the grapes ripen slowly. 

This label was first produced in 1972.

I write regularly in these pages about the pairing of wine with food. This wine was too bold and rich for the Beef Wellington, which would've been better suited with a more balanced and finely integrated Red Blend. 

This vintage release is a red blend of 72% Zinfandel, 15% Petite Sirah, 9% Carignane, 2% Alicante Bouschet, 1% Cinsaut and 1% Counoise.

This label release was awarded 95+ Points by Antonio Galloni of Vinous, 94 Points by Zinfandel Chronicles and 94 Wilfred Wong of Wine.com, and 93 Points by Owen Bargreen, OwenBargreen.com.

Winemaker Notes

"Rich blackberry and plum on the nose with notes of aniseed. Full-bodied with dark bramble fruit and well-coated tannins on the palate. The long finish reveals layers of black licorice and dried sage.'

"Lytton Springs has become synonymous with classic Dry Creek zinfandel. It shows potent, ripe boysenberry and blackberry, but also a pronounced rusticity and earthiness often attributed to its blending varietals; petite sirah and carignane. Acid and tannin are firm, yet not overwhelming; in youth, at least, fruit predominates. This balanced, powerful wine becomes more nuanced with age, and it often holds for more than a decade."

Dark ruby colored, medium full bodied, a cacophony of bright, vibrant expressive, full round ripe red and black brambly fruit flavors accented by sweet spices, clove and cinnamon, full tannins on the finish. May be better with some age to further integrate.

RM  92 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=4578675 

https://www.ridgewine.com/product/2021-lytton-springs/

https://www.ridgewine.com/

https://www.gordonramsayrestaurants.com/en/us/ramsays-kitchen/menus/naperville

https://twitter.com/GRamsaysKitchen

@RidgeVineyards