Category Archives: Pacific Pointe Wine Tasting Club

Grenache Smackdown…10 Wines; 1 Winner!

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I didn’t realize it at the time, but we reached a minor milestone for the Pacific Pointe Wine Tasting Club (“PPWTC“) with meeting last week for Grenache Night.  It was our 10th meeting!

We blind tasted a group of 10 Grenaches.  We actually had 15 bottles of wine, but for the first time, we had more than one duplicate bottle.  There were 5 bottles of Sarah’s Vineyard Grenache.  From what I could gather – widely available at BevMo;-) Of the ten wines we tasted ,seven were from Spain.  The majority of Spanish Garnacha (Grenache) were from the Calatayud region in Aragón, where many believe the grape originated.  The balance were from California, all from the Central Coast.   There was a large group of 25 tasters who scored all the wines.

What I especially appreciate about our wine-tasting club is the diversity of experience.  There is a handful of what I would consider “serious” wine lovers, but the majority of the club members, core and otherwise, are more “casual” wine drinkers who like wine and I suspect drink it occasionally rather than daily.  But they want to learn more, and have a good time doing it! And that friends, is the beauty of our wine-tasting club!

The 10 wines we tasted were:

NV Don Quixote Almansa capitulo 8 (Spain-La Mancha)

NV Altovinum Calatayud Evodia (Spain-Calatayud)

2007 Bodegas San Alejandro Garnacha Catalayud Las Rocas Viñas Viejas (Spain-Calatayud)

2008 Artazuri Garnacha Navarra (Spain-Navarra )

2008 JC Cellars Ventana Grenache (California – Central Coast)

2008 Query Grenache (California – Central Coast)

2009 Bitch (Spain-Calatayud)

2009 Castillo de Monseran Garnacha Cariñena (Spain-Cariñena)

2009 Sarah’s Vineyard Grenache (California-Central Coast)

2009 Trader Joe’s Catalayud Old Vine Reserve Garnacha (Spain-Calatayud)

We  kicked off the evening with a Grenache Blanc, the white counterpart to the Grenache Noir (a.k.a. Garnacha/Grenache), the wine of the night.  Sparkling wines and whites are a great way to prepare the palate for tasting reds.

2009 Tablas Creek Grenache Blanc

Before we embarked upon the wine tasting we usually have a bite to eat -pot luck style.  We ask that folks bring dishes that will pair well with the wine being tasted, and provide them with a list of suggestions. We had some very nice dishes that paired well with Grenache including various BBQ (see pics below) and Grilled Pork, Beef Chow Fun, Chicken Pineapple Meatballs, and  Lentil Salad.

After that we got down to the business of tasting the wines.  And (drumroll please)…..and the winner, with an average score of 90pts was:

2008 JC Cellars Grenache Ventana

I find it interesting that, that’s the same score given to the JC Cellars Grenache Ventana by the iconic Robert Parker!  The JC Cellars Grenache retails for $35. For the first time in our short history, the most expensive wine was the winner!  There were two value wines that were hot of the heels of the winner with an average score of 89pts that I must mention.  In second place was the NV Altovinum Calatayud Evodia available at Whole Foods for about $8, and in third place was the 2009 Trader Joe’s Catalayud Old Vine Reserve Garnacha available for $10 at TJ’s. Either would be an inexpensive way to give Grenache a try!

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Rosé Smack Down – 10 Rosés; 1 Winner

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At the most recent Pacific Pointe Wine Tasting Club it was Dry Rosé Night.  It seems that Rosé is making a comeback, especially here in the US where the very mention of “pink” wines conjures up nightmares of sickly sweet White Zinfandels that seem more like soda than wine. No, these were dry Rosés – the kind that are so versatile with a variety of foods and are the ideal choice for when the weather turns warm, and you can’t make up you mind whether you want a white wine, or red wine.  Look to a chilled glass of refreshing food friendly Rosé!

We blind tasted a diverse group of Rosés from France, California and Italy (Spain was conspicuously missing). Not only were the Rosés from various countries, but they were from diverse locations within France, and California, along with being made from diverse grape varietals, including Grenache, Syrah, Cinsault, Pinot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Primitivo (labeled as Zinfandel to appeal to American consumers).  The wines were a wine array of colors from very light salmon to strawberry red.  The wines we tasted (along with information about the where the wines were from, the grapes used to make the wine, alcohol content, and price) were as follows:

2009 Chateau Rol Valentin Bordeaux Rose – France>Bordeaux; Blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet France; 13.5% abv – $7

2010 Domaine de la Fouquette – France>Provence; Blend of Grenache (60%), Cinsault (30%), and Rolle (5%); 12% abv$ – $17

2010 La Grenouile Rougante -California>Napa Valley; Blend of Zinfandel (61%), and Valdiguie (39%); 12.2% abv – $15

2010 Josefina Rose  – California>Central Coast>Paso Robles; Syrah; 12.7% abv – $5

2009 Bonterra Rose - California>North Coast>Mendocino Blend of Sangiovese, Zinfandel, Carignane and just a little Grenache (Double Gold Winner 2011 SF Chronicle Competition – Dry Rose <1% residual sugar); 13.4% abv – $16

2009 F&E Ogio Zinfandel Rose - Italy>Puglia. 100% Primitivo; 12.5% abv – $5

2010 Chateau Bas - France>Provence. Blend of Grenache, Cinsault and Syrah; 12.5% abv – $11

2009 - Toad Hollow Eye of the Toad - California>Sonoma County. Pinot Noir; 11% abv – $12

2008 Marquis de Goulaine Rosé D’Anjou La Roseraie – France>Loire Valley>Anjou-Saumur; 11% abv – $8

2009 Cellier du Rhone Rosé  – France>Provence; Grenache; 13.4% abv – $5

I made Brown rice paella for the tasting (Which I modified by substituting the same amount of fresh chorizo for dry-cured chorizo in Step #3, along with substituting about 1.5 lb of a seafood mix of shrimp, calamari, and scallops for the pound of shrimp the recipes calls for, and I also used home-made chicken broth rather than store-bought)

Brown Rice Paella with Chicken, Chorizo, Shrimp, Calamari, Scallops and Mussels

Along with the paella (which I’m pleased to report was a hit;-), we also enjoyed, spicy chicken wings, BBQ chicken wings, grilled chicken, fried calamari, home-made hummus, artichoke and jalapeno dip, fruit salad, and sundry cheese and crackers.  And as advertised, the dry Rosés paired nicely with the wide variety of food.

AND THE WINNER WAS…

The Winner...2010 Domaine de la Fouquette-Cuvee Rosee d'Aurore

It’s no surprise the winner was from Provence, France.  More than half the wine produced in Provence are Rosés. They do it well, and are world renown, along with Tavel, in the Southern Rhône for their dry Rosés.  What was a bit of a surprise is that the second, and third place wines were from California.

Dry Rosés are refreshing, food, and budget friendly…what’s not to like?

For more pictures of our wonderful evening of wine, foods, and fellowship with friends, old and new, click here (Photos courtesy of Gigi Yulo Redmond, and Jojo Ong)


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How To Start A Wine Tasting Club

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Wine tasting club-Bottles of wines concealed for blind tastingA year ago today, on the last Friday in January, we held the first meeting our neighborhood wine tasting club, the Pacific Point Wine Tasting Club (“PPWTC”).  It’s been a great year, that after a slow start, has exceeded our expectations. We’ve got a great nucleus of members, which is frequently supplemented by our friends and friends of our neighbors.  The meetings are educational, food-filled, and fun.  And on top of that we’ve made new friends and found opportunities to socialize outside of the wine tasting club meetings.  By all counts a successful wine tasting club!

I’ve been reflecting on our experiences, and want to share what I think makes our wine tasting club successful.  I must confess one of the first thoughts that come to mind is how we didn’t follow many of the notions set forth by wine tasting club authorities (see links below).  I’m not suggesting those notions are not well-founded.  They just didn’t ring true for our wine tasting club, primarily because they seemed too formal.  With that caveat in mind here goes!

  1. Pick a meeting time that will maximize attendance – We meet Friday nights at 7pm, which seems to be a great night and time to meet, because folks are so busy on the weekends these days (not to mention folks like the idea of decompressing on Friday night).  So if you’re considering a wine tasting club, when you canvass your friends/neighbors, try to get  sense of what time will work best for the majority of folks (including you, especially if you’re hosting). Don’t be discouraged if you start with a small group.  Only 5 people attended our first meeting, since then we’ve had at least 12, and as many as 22.
  2. Know your audience – I think it’s helpful to know your audience. In our case, we have a mixed group.  There are a few of us for whom drinking, and tasting wine is a lifestyle, but most of the members drink wine only occasionally, and tend to stick with the ubiquitous trio of Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Merlot.  With that in mind, we wanted to keep the meeting relaxed, fun, and educational, without having too many formalities such as a glass for each wine sampled, setting up multiple meetings in advance, or a rigid agenda for each meeting.  But you may want more formality if the collective group has more experience.  Knowing your audience will also help to determine which wines to explore.  If the group is mixed or relatively inexperienced start with one of the aforementioned Chard/Cab/Merlot triumvirate.
  3. Have food for the meeting – A huge part of the enjoyment of wine is enjoying it with food.  In fact, I think most people who have an interest in wine, but haven’t actively pursued that interest, are intimidated by not only wine, but also by wine and food pairing.  A great way to demystify wine and food pairings is to have a variety of food that pairs with the wine being tasted at the meeting. Having cheese that pairs with the wine is a great starter, but we go beyond a light snack.  With the PPWTC you could skip dinner, and just eat at the meeting. It’s a wonderful way for individuals to discover which food/wine pairings that suite their palate. We habitually share some food and conversation before we begin the blind tasting of wines.  There are many on-line resources for wine and food pairing ideas. Be resourceful and creative. For our club, it’s about communion through food and wine, not solely about the wine.
  4. A bit of education – This is where knowing your audience comes in handy.  If your audience has little or no experience, then a bit of education with their wine is a beautiful thing.  We “profile” the grape varietal we taste at our meetings.  Nothing fancy.  There’s plenty of information on the web about the characteristics of most grape varietals.  One of the primary resources I use is Professional Friends of Wine for grape profile information.  Wikipedia is also solid source of information.   Until recently, I used to handout the grape profile, but then I realized only the wine geeks (Er…that’d be me!) was really paying attention to the handout.  Whether your communicate the information via a handout, or verbally, I think it’s helpful to have some background on grape varietal, and provide information about  what aromas, and flavors to look for (For sample see; Pinot Profile).  A bit of trivia can be help keep the education interesting as well.  Keep it short – you don’t want to get between people and their wine tasting!
  5. Simple scoring – Use a simple scoring system. We use a modified version of a scoring sheet that may be downloaded from winecountrygetaways (There are two; we use the “Serious Blind Wine Tasting” version).

A few other things to remember/consider:

  • Make a spit bucket available, and have water on hand to cleanse the palate.
  • Depending on how many are in your core group, consider inviting friends of friends.
  • If you can, share the load – We alternate who hosts the meetings.
  • Limit wines tasted to 4-8, bottles.  If more than that brought for tasting, relax and drink the others after the scores are in!

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Pacific Pointe Wine Tasting Club Blind Tasting – Chianti

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It was our wine club’s first time tasting a wine produced solely outside the US.  We tasted a nice variety of Chiantis – three from Chianti Classico, reputed to be the best Chianti, and one each from Rufina, and Chianti (the grapes were sourced from various subzones within the Chianti DOCG).  There was also a variety of vintages. Additionally, there were three “Riserva” level wines, which were aged a minimum of 24 months.  All wines were between$10 – $20.

We tasted the following five wines:

  1. 2005  Incanto Chianti Classico Riserva – $10/100% Sangiovese /13% ABV
  2. 2006 Frescobaldi Nipozzano Rufina Chianti Riserva – $17/ Blend of Sangiovese, Malavasia, Canaiolo, Merlot, and Cab/ 13.5% ABV
  3. 2007 Banfi Chianti Classico Riserva – $17/Almost exclusively Sangiovese/13% ABV
  4. 2007  Ruffino Aziano Chianti Classico – $13; At least 80% Sangiovese plus Canaiolo, and Merlot/13% ABV
  5. 2008 Malenchini Chianti – $11/100% Sangiovese/14% ABV

Chianti Night Blind Tasting - The Wines

And the winner was…

2005 Malenchini Chianti (purchased at Whole Foods). Click here for Cellartracker reviews.

Malenchini Chianti - The Winner!

As always seems to be the case…”The last shall be first”.  While the winner wasn’t the least expensive (It was the second least expensive), it was the least in that it was neither produced in the most prestigious Chianti Classic0 DOCG, nor was it a “Riserva” aged for at least 24 months in oak barrels.  In fact, it wasn’t even aged in oak. It was aged in stainless steel!

So if you’re looking for a good Chianti, at a good price….try a bottle!

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