Gosford Wine: September 2007 Archives

Greetings from Gosford Wine . . . I honestly feel cheated by that brief flush of amiable weather.  Demeter is a cruel and domineering mistress.  (This is not, of course, news to anyone.  I continue to reserve the right to state the obvious, if at least in an unconventional way.)

Though I wish it weren’t so, our . . .

Wine of the Week . . . again makes a perfect pair for temperatures in the mid 90s.  We celebrate the return of the Pierre Boniface Apremont from Savoie, France; $15.99/btl.  Made from the Jacquerre grape (check that one of the list), the Apremont is an even-tempered and almost voluptuously soft wine.  Eminently drinkable, the Apremont has been a genuine crowd-pleaser at Gosford in the past, and we expect it to be so again.  As cool and clean as the daintiest brook idling through the most quaint of dewkissed and beflowered dales, the Apremont will make the fairest company for all occasions.  If you can conjure, all-together, ripely sweet apples and pears and supple melons and white wild flowers and polished stones and sunshine sneaking past towering peaks of Alpine splendor, then you may just have the perfect associative analog to our delicious Apremont.  Get yours soon.

Tir Na N’og is back, though in fairly limited quantities.  Those who know the wine love the wine and this message is for them.  Please call or e-mail ahead to reserve your bottles and/or cases.

Our Wine Seminar tonight will cover some wines from southern France.  We’ll look at a couple of interesting whites, including the Apremont.  We’ll also have a look at a Pic Saint Loup, a Bandol Rouge, and perhaps a Chateauneuf-du-Pape. 

In a return to normalcy, please feel free to drop in anytime between six and eight tonight. 

All you’ll need is five dollars and some free time. 

Greetings from Gosford Wine . . . Could fall finally have fallen?

Our wine of the week is . . . the 2005 Don Rodolfo Malbec from Cafayate, Argentina; $11.99/btl, $9.99/btl-case.  The vineyards at Cafayate – at 5900 feet (!) - are the highest in the world, and this wine nicely reflects the class and balance we associate with altitude.  Elegant and beautiful, the Don Rodolfo bottling reminds us that Malbec is originally a Bordelaise variety.  I was immediately impressed by this wine, and I believe that you will be also.  This is the best $11.99 you’ll spend this week.  If the first bottle tickles your fancy, consider the $9.99 case price.  We’ll have a bottle open for Thursday’s co-op drop, so come on by and try it for yourself.

Greetings from Gosford Wine . . . we have a very special event coming up next

week: Roberto Stucchi, visiting from Tuscany, will be at Gosford on Wednesday night. 

Italophiles that we are, we couldn’t be more excited.  Roberto is the winemaker of the vaunted Chianti house of Badia a Coltibuono, which is one of the oldest and most venerable wineries in Tuscany.  The estate itself was founded in the 11^th century by Benedictine monks, who began in that century to cultivate vines on their lands.  The property was still under monastic ownership when Napoleon (during his brief stint of Tuscan power) secularized the holding in 1810.  The monastery and lands were sold in auction to Guido Prinetti, Roberto’s great-great-grandfather.  Roberto’s family has owned the winery for nearly two centuries, and they have a deep and abiding faith in tradition.  Roberto himself is an oenologist by training who has, in addition to his work at home, substantial experience in the wineland of California, as well.  We’ll be exploring six red wines from his portfolio, including a 1995 Chianti Classico Riserva.  We should all be able to learn a great deal from Roberto and his wines.

Demand for this event should be considerable, so we’ll ask just this once that you RSVP.  We’re going to have two groups: one starting just after six, and another starting just after seven.  We’ve space for twenty people in each group, and we expect it to fill up rather quickly.  Please respond soon, though it will never be too late to ask.  Only in the event of a vacancy will we be able to accept walk-ins.  I fear that some may be turned away, and for this I sincerely apologize.    

Pleasepleaseplease call or email ahead and reserve a space for yourself, for it should be a night to remember.  I’m looking forward to the event, and I hope that you are as well.

Greetings from Gosford Wine . . . I don’t want to speak prematurely – though I very well may be – but it seems that the heat has finally broken, and I couldn’t be happier.  It’s certainly not cool, not just yet, but I’m ready to pretend that it is.  From this state of denial regarding current weather conditions springs my choice for Gosford’s Wines of the Week (sic).  That’s right, I said . . .

Wines of the Week. . .(!) I couldn’t decide whether to acquiesce again to the heat and choose white, or celebrate our partial thermal liberation by choosing red . . . so I chose both.  I should add that the Silk Oak line of wines made it particularly easy to do so.  I tried the Viognier first, and was immediately impressed by its floral nose, its stone-fruit driven palate, and its refreshing finish, which shows just a touch of chalky earth.  I was further impressed by its very attractive price.  It normally sells for $10.99 - which is a steal, by the way – but we’ll give it away for $9.99 per bottle.  I had already decided to run this as a Wine of the Week when I tasted the Silk Oak Zinfandel, which was so pleasant and satisfying I couldn’t resist tacking it on, as well.  Like the Viognier, it normally sells for $10.99, but we’ll run it at $9.99 this week.  The Zin will please lovers of Spanish wine with its plump but not opulent texture and mineral-kissed finish.  It’s very tasty stuff.  Call or email ahead to let me know you’re coming.

Don’t forget our Wine Seminar this evening . . . whose theme will be “Off-Whites.”  We’ll be trying some of the more obscure white grapes this evening, including Chenin Blanc, Viognier, Gewürtztraminer, and Malvasia Bianca.  We’ll also experiment with a Provençal rosé, an Icewine from New Zealand, and a sweet Argentinian Torrontes.  Even if you prefer reds, I encourage you to come out and learn a little something new about the world of wine.  White lovers, rejoice!

As always, drop in anytime between six and eight on Wednesdays.  Bring bucks (five) and friends.    

Weekend’s Greetings from Gosford Wine . . . I hope that the weekend finds you well, and that you’ve all found your way to The National by now.  If you haven’t been, do check it out – 232 Hancock, right next to Ciné.  I had the Moorish pork tenderloin with tomato couscous and date mostarda last night . . . it was fantastic.  And the last time I had hummus that good I had just climbed off the camel I rode through the Wadi Rum in Jordan; no kidding.  The stalwart Ben Giacchino did a bang-up job on the winelist, as well.  There are tons of excellent values there, and you can’t miss in any price range.  In saying all of this I fail to mention that the space itself is really quite beautiful.  You’ll love it.  See the menu at www.thenationalrestaurant.com.

Introducing, the Tailgater (or Kickoff Case, as you prefer) . . . Nothing stokes the varsity buzz like a rowdy red or light white wine.  If beer and bourbon are weighing you down, give the Tailgater a try.  This case of six bottles of the robustly satisfying Vina Alarba Old Vine Grenache and six bottles of the oh-so refreshing Casal Garcia Vinho Verde is the ticket-holder’s dream.  Our normal price for this case of wine would be $109.66, after tax.  We’ll let it go this weekend for $99.99, tax included.  Supplies should run short on this item, so please call or e-mail ahead to reserve yours.