End of summer neighborhood social boasts small plates and medley of assorted wines …
Summer officially ended in the afternoon.on Tuesday September 22. Visiting our Destin (FL) vacation home, we hosted a casual informal end-of-summer neighborhood social Monday evening.
In addition to the usual beer, spritzers and non-alcoholic beverages, I served a selection of wines - Champagne, Rose’, Whites and Reds.
NV Robert de Pampignac Brut Champagne
This bottle is from the Champagne house of Robert de Pampignac that dates back to 1869 in the heart of Champagne. The brand Robert de Pampignac is produced by the family owned G.H. Martel Group, that originated in the town of Epernay at the bottom of the region, and today operates out of a historic mansion in the town of Reims, the commercial Centre of Champagne at the north of the region on the Marne River.The G.H. Martel Group is one of the last family-owned Champagne businesses of its size, with roots in the region dating back to 1869. The original founding Champagne House of Henry-Léopold Tabourin was operated by Auguste Devaux who studied Champagne oenology and founded in 1894, Veuve A. Devaux champagne. With his son and their children, they developed the G.H. Martel & Cie brand. G. H. Martel was taken over by Ernest Émile Rapeneau and his family in 1979 after the the death of André Tabourin. Today, the fourth generation carry on the tradition of the company.
Gérard Bertrand Languedoc Hampton Water Rose’ Blend 2023
This whimsical Hampton Water Rosé is crafted by Bertrand as part of project of creator Jesse Bongiovi, son of global rock icon Jon Bon Jovi, who tapped renowned winemaker Bertrand to produce this label.
Jesse and his dad, Jon Bon Jovi, shared a vision to disrupt the wine category with a brand that is unlike all others. The father-son duo created the Hampton Water Wine brand concept, bringing on famed French winemaker, Gérard Bertrand. Launching in 2018 with Hampton Water Rosé, the brand quickly rose above the ranks to be more than just another celebrity brand.
Leveraging incredibly engaged social media presence of nearly 600,000 followers, Hampton Water gained popularity by taking a modern digital approach in an often-traditional category. The brand has achieved immense success through creating loyal brand advocates, surpassing their category, and delivering double-digit volume growth year over year.
This is a blend of classic Southern Rhône varietals - Grenache (60%), Mourvèdre (moo-VED-rah), (15%), Cinsault (sin-SOH)(15%), and Syrah (10%).
The Bon Jovi family business wine project earned four years of 90-point ratings from Wine Spectator, 91 points from Wine Enthusiast and Decanter, and was recognized as an Impact Hot Prospect brand two years in a row. This label release was rated 91 points by Decanter.
Like the Roses Rose’ we drank last month, with the bottle bottom formed in the shape of a rose petal, this packaging incorporated a sleek bottle design with a strawberry in the bottom, and a glass capsule (as opposed to a cork) that requires no bottle opener.
This was a big hit with our group tonight, served from a magnum.
Pink rose colored, light medium bodied, notes of red strawberry peach and fruits with accents of citrus, floral and minerality, and hints of its French oak barrel aging on a pleasant crisp long-lasting finish,https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=4981036
https://hamptonwaterwine.com/pages/rose
JC Wickens Swerwer Chenin Blanc 2018
JC (Jasper) Wickens Swerwer Swartland Chenin Blanc 2018
This South African Chenin Blanc was delightful for casual social sipping that was enjoyed immensely. It is from the Swartland appellation, 'Designation of origin' from the Western Cape, Coastal Region of South Africa.
This is produced by winemaker Jasper Wickens who was previously the assistant winemaker at Badenhorst Family Wines He has built up a following since his first releases in 2012 with his highly popular ‘Swartland’ wines.
I discovered and gained an appreciation for the long history of, and the broad selection of South African wines during my trip there in 2019.
Jasper Wickens started out working at Zevenwacht Wine Estate where he learned conventional wine making practices over a two year period. He went on to graduate from Stellenbosch University with a Bachelor's Degree in Viticulture and Oenology. Jasper spent some time in Napa Valley where he was exposed to cutting edge technology and state of the art equipment.
Returning to South Africa he wrote, “Adi Badenhorst brought me down to earth, really fast and hard. Coming to the Swartland changed everything I thought I knew about the wine world. Immediately I was working in the most primitive of ways, paying with blood and sweat, to learn that good wine doesn't come without getting your hands dirty. Tasting and developing a feel for the vineyards, the grapes and what they would become was much more important.”Suddenly, Jasper found himself in a completely different environment of old bush vines, natural whole bunch fermentations, low sulphur levels and a hands-off approach. This ‘Swartland norm’ was very far from the clinically sterile approach of the cellars he had worked in before. His time immersed in the ‘primitive’ ways passed quickly resulting in an almost ten year working relationship at AA Badenhorst Family Wines.
During his time at Badenhorst, he was allowed the freedom to travel and explore new cultures of winemaking. He spent time at the ancient, steep sloped slate vineyards of Priorat, Spain, working alongside Eben Sadie at Terroir-al-Limit, using traditional winemaking techniques, plowing with mules and practicing biodynamic farming for the first time. Crafting top wines from old vine Grenache and Carignan, Jasper returned to Priorat yearly between 2009 and 2011.
During the European harvests of 2011 and 2012 Jasper worked with Tom Lubbe at Matassa in Roussilon, France where he explored and experimented with completely naturally made wines farming organically or even bio-dynamically.
Moving with the seasons, working two harvest a year: a South African Swartland harvest followed by an European Priorat and Roussilon harvest, his ‘Swerwer’ project was born. “Swerwer” is a name which describes the lives of many young winemakers who chase the vintages across the globe traversing between the opposing seasons of the Northern and Southern hemispheres.
Waterval is one of the oldest farms in the area of Pardeberg dating back to the late 18th Century farming fruit orchards, vegetables and livestock. Over time and with the rise and formation of Swartland Co-op in the late 1940’s, attention turned to planting grapes.
The Paardeberg ('horse mountain') divides the Paarl and Swartland wine regions, on the Western Cape coastal region, north of Capetown. The climate has cold winters with an average rainfall of 400-600 mm and hot summer, typically very hot during the day, with cooler temperatures at night.
Paardeberg has some of the highest vineyards above sea level in the Swartland region rising to 700 m. Vines are planted on the slopes of the Paardeberg in relatively deep soil consisting of decomposed sandstone, granite and some clay, while glenrosa-scali-type soil is found on the lower northeastern slopes.
Waterval has been in the Schreiber family since 1947 managed by father and son team, Cyril and Barry. After graduating from Elsenburg, third generation Franziska joined her father Barry and gradually took the ‘reins’, combining old school with a fresh outlook and modern techniques.
In 2016 Jasper and Franziska Waterfal tied the knot and the proprietorship partnership was formed, Jasper as winemaker and Franziska as viticulturist, they set out to produce estate wines from vines dating back to the 1960s. The old cellar on Waterval farm was renovated and equipped with the help of Adi. The first grapes in 50 years were received in January 2019, the same year James Barry was born to be the 4th generation on Waterval.
JC (Jasper) Wickens Swerwer Swartland Chenin Blanc 2018
Winemaker note for this label in 2019, "A high quality, focused Chenin Blanc. An invite of white and yellow stone fruit and herbal notes to a leaner palate, softly textured with peach, citrus, quince and a slightly savoury touch. A zesty acid zip leaves flavours to evolve and broaden with a longer finish. It is a complex and well-balanced wine, to be enjoyed fresh with food, although it can benefit with ageing to become quite complex and special."
RM 89 points vs 88 points from earlier review.
https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=3401223
Stolpman Ballard Canyon, Santa Barbara County Rousanne 2019
Following the Languedoc Rose’ red blend of Southern Rhône varietals, I opened another Rhône varietal wine comprised of the Roussanne (roo-SAN) wine grape. I wrote about this wine in an earlier blogpost a year ago last week - Stolpman Roussanne Rhône Varietal w/ vodka cream pasta, excerpted here.
This unique Southern Rhône Rousanne varietal wine was a wonderful and fun discovery to share with the group and was well received and enjoyed.
This is from Ballard Canyon which sits in the greater Santa Ynez Valley AVA which covers a thirty mile east-west corridor, running east from the town of Lompoc to Los Olivos and Santa Ynez on the east. It covers 77,000 acres of winegrapes with more than 60 different wine varieties. The cooler western region is notable for Chardonnay and Pinot Noir Burgundian varietals, while the warmer, drier eastern region produces Rhône varietal wines (such as this).
Ballard Canyon, covers just 7,700 acres, or only 10% of the Santa Ynez Valley AVA, and has a unique north-south orientation of the canyon provides a unique weather pattern of wind, fog, and maritime influence, giving it its own sense of a specific place or with its soil and elevation, terroir.
While land to the west became increasingly devoted to Pinot Noir and Chardonnay with the publication of the STA Rita Hills AVA, Ballard Canyon vineyards focused on Rhône varietals and primarily Syrah.
Ballard Canyon, encompassing 7,800, is the second AVA in the Santa Ynez Valley along with Sta. Rita Hills. The region is an integral part of the diversity within the Central Coast and Santa Barbara County designations. After experimenting with many different varietals, the growers and producers of Ballard Canyon settled on Syrah as the best-suited varietal throughout Ballard Canyon. Over half of the AVA’s planted acreage is Syrah and an additional 30% of acres are planted to other Rhone varietals including Grenache, Viognier, and Roussanne.
Stolpman Santa Barbara County Ballard Canyon Estate Bottled Roussanne 2019
This unique California Rhône white is produced and marketing directly as an estate wine sourced from their own vineyard under their own branding. Grapes from the vineyard are also produced separately under branding of a personal project of winemaker Jeremy Weintraub, whose day job is since 2013 is overseeing Adelaida Cellars, a prominent estate in Paso Robles.
Jeremy’s winemaking education includes earning a Master’s in Viticulture & Enology from UC Davis, and, interning throughout the world’s best wine regions. Before his work with Adelaida, Jeremy was the winemaker at Seavey, a somewhat under-rated Cabernet producer in Napa Valley. Previously, Jeremy traveled the world, working harvests in Tuscany, Central Otago, Martinborough, and Long Island.
The Stolpman estate was established 20 years ago by Founding Partner, Tom Stolpman, when he discovered what we believe to be one of the greatest viticultural sites on earth, hidden in the hills of California’s Central Coast, on a rare Limestone outcropping & unobstructed from the Pacific Ocean wind, this unique land is naturally suited to grow Syrah and Roussanne grapes.
The Stolpman family say they are blessed to farm wine grapes from their Ballard Canyon estate due to what they cite are five distinguishing characteristics that set their vineyard apart, even from other Ballard Canyon sites:
“Tunnel of Love - Daily mistrals originate from the cold Arctic flow of Pacific Ocean pushing through our fully-exposed hillsides. The Mojave far to our east sucks up the cold air as its desert heat rises – the vacuum creates a perennial wind tunnel through Ballard Canyon rivaling the Northern Rhone in force and relentlessness. Our hearty vines continue to photosynthesize in the wind but the fluttering leaves don’t suck for water. Without dilution, flavor concentration intensifies. The wind also knocks down fungal pressure, giving the winery team pristinely clean fruit.’
“Nightly Chill - Unsheltered from the Pacific, as soon as night falls, temperatures drop an average of 40 degrees Fahrenheit during the growing season. Not only does the cold nightly rejuvenation help hold acidity through our long growing season, but we also nocturnally harvest to lock in the taut freshness from the crisp conditions. The diurnal shift pendulum swings vastly, with drops of up to 40 degrees between daytime and nighttime. Chilly temperatures at night allow the grapes to maintain the hard-earned acidity imparted by the limestone soils.’
“Rain - For better or worse, it seldom rains during the growing season. Combined with our dedication to dry farming - concentrated, undiluted grapes result. We only pray for healthy winter rains during dormancy so the vines wake up sensing enough moisture to get through the summer. The vines can be dry-farmed due to the clay, which during the dry summer season, results in vines that struggle to dig deep for the water table and produce concentrated fruit.”
Finally, “Tropical Tan - Located at 34.6 degrees latitude, our equatorial solar rays help to ripen the grapes through the long, cool growing season. The sunlight stays strong, seeing us through our Autumn harvest, good ‘ol California sunshine ripens the grapes to their “fullest potential” We rely on it to paint our Roussanne a “Rouss” shade of gold.”
Winemaker notes - “The 2019 Roussanne offers a nose of white peach, baked apple, and toasted spice mix. The mouth is medium-bodied with plenty of acid to keep the wine fresh and structured well through the finish.”
Jen Dunnuck awarded Jeremy’s label release 95 points, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate 94 points, and Wine Enthusiast 91 points.
We then moved to a flight of reds starting from this limited release unique label from a well known long time producer.
Wagner Red Schooner Transit 3 Red Wine NV
This red blend sourced from Australian is from the Wagner Family, makers of legendary Caymus Napa Cabernet and a broad portfolio of other Napa Valley wines.This is from the Wagner “Red Wine (s) of the World” program that imports red wines from Argentina and Australia.
CT’er Condrieu82 notes - “Deep dark color in the glass. Fruit-forward nose with blueberries and plums. Medium+ acidity and medium tannins, well-balanced with nice, bold dark fruits, dark chocolate notes - layered and dense to a good degree. Definitely a big, bold Australian red, with a medium ending that shows a touch of oak and herbal notes.
Madame de Beaucaillou Haut-Médoc 2018
I then opened a Left Bank Bordeaux red blend for comparison tasting and pairing with the beef, chocolates and cheeses.
This is the inaugural release of a special label from the house of Château Ducru Beaucaillou, one of our favorite producers that we know well. I wrote about the house of Borie and their long history back in 2021. As shown on the label, this release recognizes the long history and is a “Homage Madame Eugène-Borie” to the historic matriarch principle Madame Eugène-Borie of the historic Familie de Borie that have operated the estate since the 14th century and still reside in the Chateau to this day.
We visited the famous Château Ducru Beaucaillou during our Bordeaux St Julien wine experience in 2019 and tasted the 2018 release from the barrel. That vintage went on to receive 100 points from Wine Enthusiast and 99 points from just about everyone else.
When they released this new label for that vintage so we were compelled to pick some up.
As I have oft written in these pages, in top vintages, 'all boats rise with the tide', meaning great Chateaux will produce great wines even in their second and third labels, such that those labels often provide tremendous QPR - Quality Price Ratios, superb wines at a fraction of the price of the grand vin.
Wine critic Jeb Dunnuck wrote about the 2018 Bordeaux: "In short, 2018 is a thrilling vintage with no shortage of legendary wines and I cannot imagine anyone who purchases these wines will be disappointed...It’s possible to find attractive, well-made, even outstanding, wines that punch well above their price points."
With the 2018 vintage, Ducru Beaucaillou decided to honor it’s 300th birthday and its Chairman [chairwoman] of the Board, Mrs. Eugene Borie, for the past decade by creating a new cuvee from her family’s home vineyards. The cuvee is this one, the Madame de Beaucaillou, released in 2020.
This label wine is vinified in the cellars by the Ducru-Beaucaillou team, receiving the same care and attention: the technical winemaking process, selective blending, and careful ageing for 12 months in barrel (including 20% new oak).
Deep garnet-colored, medium bodied, bright expressive vibrant blackberries, blueberries and plum fruits, accented by graphite and a touch of clove, hints of coffee tobacco, cigar and cedar with a savoury round finish with firm structured backbone and sturdy, fine-grain cloying tongue coating tannins that are not for the feint of heart but will impress big Bordeaux enthusiasts.
This was delicious already and I can only imagine how this will be with three to five or more years of additional integration and aging.
RM 91 points. This was also awarded 91 points by James Suckling
https://www.cellartracker.com/barcode.asp?iWine=3893569
Upon tasting this, I quickly got on line and ordered the current release of this label, available through En primeur (futures purchase). Stay tuned as I'll dutifully report on that wine as I soon as obtain some and have the opportunity to try it.
Deep garnet-colored, medium bodied, bright expressive vibrant blackberries, blueberries and plum fruits, accented by graphite and a touch of clove, hints of coffee tobacco, cigar and cedar with a savoury round finish with firm structured backbone and sturdy, fine-grain cloying tongue coating tannins that are not for the feint of heart but will impress big Bordeaux enthusiasts.
I give this high QPR release 91 Points
Spring Valley Vineyards ‘Katherine Corkrum’ Walla Walla Cabernet Franc 2015
We joined their wine club and as members receive regular quarterly shipments of their wines. We amassed a collection of the complete portfolio of wines including this label. Our Cellartracker records show we have 95 bottles of 35 different Spring Valley wines in our collection.
Today, Spring Valley have 110 acres of vines planted, all in the relatively cool micro-climate of Walla Walla Valley in the southeast corner of Washington State.
We thought of him last week as his alma mater, University of Washington played in the NCAA national football championship, and next year join the Big Ten conference. I wrote about Dean playing on and being captain of that football team in my tribute blogpost.
The Derby's son Devin Corkrum Derby served as winemaker until his passing in 2004. Devin’s assistant and friend Serge Laville took over as winemaker and has been crafting wines since. Originally they focused on varietals from the Northern Rhone region in France, they expanded production to Bordeaux varietals including Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and this Cabernet Franc, and a Right Bank and a Left Bank style Bordeaux Blend.
I've written often in these pages about Spring Valley Vineyards portfolio of wines named for members paying homage to the family and ancestors dating back to the first generation founders at the turn of the last century. We have several vintage releases of their annual case that features six of these labels - each one commemorating a different family member. This Cabernet Franc is named in honor of founder Uriah Corkrum’s wife Katherine, a native of Wales who immigrated to Walla Walla Territory in 1897. She and Uriah had four sons, including Frederick Corkrum.
This is another family oriented producer with family oriented branding which we enjoy serving for family (and friends) occasions such as this.
Spring Valley Vineyards ‘Katherine Corkrum’ Walla Walla Cabernet Franc 2015
This wine commemorates Katherine Williams Corkrum, born and raised in Wales, then came to America and settled in Walla Walla Washington to eventually marry Uriah Corkrum. Together they raised a family with three sons that would follow for three generations developing the property.
This is 100% estate grown Cabernet Franc. The vines follow the north-south slope of the hills in vertical rows, an orientation that when combined with the declination of the slope, allows the vines to take optimal advantage of air drainage, sunshine, and the reflective nature of the surrounding wheat fields.
Winemaker's Tasting Notes - “This Cabernet Franc has plenty of herbal notes with abundant flavors of raspberry and cassis and a touch of spice.” - ~ Winemaker Serge Laville 100% Cabernet Franc, this was aged 18 months in 100% French Oak, 30% new
This was rated 91 points by Wine Advocate and Stephen Tanzer
RM 91 points.
