Author Archives: Maurice

1. Prime Cru Presents: Winemakers of San Diego County Forum

   January 20, 2014 4:11 pm Leave a Comment

   >>>>BOTH EVENTS ARE SOLD OUT<<<<

   

   Winemakers of San Diego County will be joining me in a forum where we will ask the probing question, “are there any good wines being produced in San Diego County?”  It seems as though we might hear about Virginia wine or Texas wine before we hear about wine from San Diego.  I think that is interesting since San Diego sits between two world-famous growing regions, Santa Barbara and The Guadalupe Valley.  San Diego County has been producing wines since the 1850’s.  That’s longer than places like Napa and Sonoma.  But why has it not received the wine world’s attention?

   If you have ever gone on a wine tasting tour through Temecula (Riverside County) you might have come across wines such as Almond Sparkling wine and Zinfandel port.  It seems that most of the wineries in this area sell more sweet wines than dry wines.  Temecula has built a tourist destination which has paid off for them very nicely. Why is that?  Is it the people want sweet wines?  Is it that the region is not able to produce dry wines of quality?  What differs them from San Diego wineries?   Will we ever get the wine world to take us seriously?

   This February I will be hosting two wine seminars to hopefully answer these questions.  I have invited top winemakers of San Diego County for a round table forum where we will ask probing questions and taste through the region’s wines.  Joining us is one of the newer winemakers of the region, Chris Broomell of Vesper Vineyards.  Chris is pushing the limits in San Diego and experimenting with off beat varieties including Carignan, Grenache Blanc and Pinot Noir from Rancho Santa Fé.  Also joining us are ex-fire chief turned winemaker Jeff Bowman of The Screaming Chief and Mick Dragoo of Belle Marie Winery in Escondido. Jeff is the new guy on the scene and his winemaker, Mick has several decades of experience in San Diego.  Finally, Justin Mund of Orfilia Vineyards, the largest San Diego County winery will also share his insight.  Justin was the winemaker at Laetitia Vineyards in the Arroyo Grande.  Find out what brought him to San Diego and where the future lies for him and other winemakers of San Diego County.

   I hope that you can make our first wine round table.  We will hold it twice, once in San Diego at Island Prime Restaurant and another time in North County at Vintana in Escondido.  To make reservations call the restaurant you’d like to attend or follow this link and buy your ticket online.

   Saturday, February 22nd San Diego, CA:  Island Prime Restaurant 880 Harbor Island Drive 92101
   

   >>>SORRY BUT THIS EVENT IS SOLD OUT<<<<

    

   Wednesday, February 26th Escondido, CA: Vintana Restaurant 1205 Auto Park Way Escondido 92029
   

   >>>SORRY BUT THIS EVENT IS SOLD OUT<<<<

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2. Italy Bound Arrivederci

   January 11, 2014 4:57 am Leave a Comment

   Italy bound, I am in route to Italy, so what better than to re-visit some of my older posts. The posts that started it all…The Wine-Phabet: “A” is for Aglianico and “N” is for Nebbiolo.  Can you believe I have never been to Italy?  It is the “wine country” and I have never set foot there.  My step-father who just passed away this past holiday was Italian.  Actually Italian-American.  His father and mother came to the USA as an Italian immigrants. His father worked in the insurance business in San Diego for fishing boats. His mother was a pianist and loved Italian operas.  I heard many stories about Italy.  I tasted many wines from Italy.  As an Art major, I studied many pieces of Italian art.  I have been through Holland, France, Spain, the Americas, Asia and Australia; but never Italy!  Finally!  I am Italy bound!

   Below are two of my favorite posts in reference to Italy.  The Wine-Phabet started with Italy. I still remember the comments from my staff when I first posted it.  It was refreshing to hear that they had actually read it.  When I started the Wine-Phabet it got a sense of direction of where I wanted this blog to go.  At first people told me I should write about all the wines I get to taste, but that felt like work to me.  I wanted to have fun, I wanted to make fun.  The Wine-Phabet allowed me to teach, joke around and strike people’s nerves.  I always love striking nerves in the discussion section of my wine groups on Linkedin.  Some people take wine way too seriously.  The Aglianico post was fun in that I got to personify grapes and wines.  It eventually led to love letters to grapes, Dr. Seuss of wine and interviews with dead celebrities.

   The second post comes at the wrong time.  I never watched the fight and I don’t think I can watch Anderson Silva go out like that.  The letter “N” was de voted to Nebbiolo, the king of grapes and I compared it to Anderson Silva from the UFC, who at the time was the king of the ring.  Since he broke his leg in two, that reign came to end.  I still regard him as the king.  I just hope that nothing ever happens to Nebbiolo.  This trip I will be in Tuscany and Piedmont, so I won’t be tasting Aglianico, but I am looking forward to drinking a lot of Nebbiolo!

   I am sure that when I return I’ll have some other Italian wine bit to write.  But now I got to go and catch my flight.  “Gate 25 is boarding for Milan”.  Ooohh, I just got a chill.  Ci vediamo più tardi.

    

   

   Oh Campania! Italy’s finest region of the south is home to the Aglianico grape.  One might want to address him as Signore Aglianico, because it is best to approach him with age. His wines are not for the weary at heart.  Signore Aglianico is rustic, grippy and masculine!  He is thick skinned and if not nurtured properly, he can be a miss-behaved outright bully.  Signore Aglianico as a young boy might come across as a problem child, but put him in “time out”  in a bottle and watch him mellow out.  He tastes of black fruit, tobacco leaf, black tea and comes with a  double spine backbone.  Approach him with care, let him chill before you engage and his ill tempered youthfulness gives way to beautiful floral aromas.

   

   Nebbiolo is the champ of all middleweight grapes in Italy!  This is a bold statement and I bet the Brunello producers in Tuscany would disagree.  But put them against each other in a death match and there is no doubt that a Barolo would outlast, out muscle and be ready to take on another grape at the end of the blood bath.  A great analogy would be like putting Anderson Silva, the UFC middleweight title holder (Nebbiolo) and Michael Bisbing (Sangiovese) in the Octagon.  Sangiovese’s mouth would stop running when Nebbiolo’s technique and experience outclassed his opponent.

   Nebbiolo’s home is Piedmont, one of the larger wine growing regions of Italy.  It is located in the Northwestern part of Italy.  If you were putting on the boot (map of Italy), Piedmont is located right around where you would tie the bow to your laces.  Nebbiolo’s most admired wines are those of Barolo and Barbaresco.  The greatest influence in this region are the wines of Burgundy.  They are made with, only one variety and made to last.

   The greatest misconception of Nebbiolo is that it is a big, full-bodied wine.  The only thing big about Nebbiolo is its tannins.  Other than that it is light in color and expresses more herbal and earth notes than fruit.  Like Anderson Silva, you would think that to be the champ in the  185lb division, you would have to be muscular, strong and somewhat of a bruiser.  But Anderson is wiry, quick and smart.

   What makes Nebbiolo the champ?  His wines are elegant yet they have structure due to the tannic backbone.  The aromas are of potpourri and herbs such as fennel and star anise.  The flavors are of leather and tobacco.  The wines come across as dark but they are not BIG!  These are wines of intensity without the alcohol, and are long lasting.  These are the characteristics of a true Champ!  There will always be someone else to come by and take his title, but for now Nebbiolo will rule the red grape division of Italy.

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3. Top Wines of 2013 That Were Down Right Cool.

   December 31, 2013 11:00 am 3 Comments

   

   Can I really write about the top wines of 2013 in a single post?  I don’t think so.  There are too many wines which deserve recognition.  The problem is that I can’t remember them all.  Ha! You may ask, “if you can’t remember them, were they really the top wines of 2013?”   I guess the answer would be no.  However, I have to account for memory loss.  The wines might have been exceptional, but due to my genetics and college years, I may have forgotten some gems.  I can write a post about the wine that were down right cool in 2013.  Luckily, when I taste wines I take pretty good notes.  Looking back through my journals, I present to you my list of wines that were down right cool.  This is a better title anyways.

   The Top Wines of 2013 that were down right cool in no particular order.  (Listed the way they popped into my mind…right now.)

    

   

   

   1)  Vesper Vineyards Pinot Noir “El Nido Vineyard” Rancho Santa Fe San Diego, What?  A wine from San Diego?  What?! A Pinot Noir from San Diego!?  Yep.  How can a wine such as this not stand out?  Chris Broomell of Vesper Vineyards makes a Pinot Noir from a small vineyard in the back of someone’s home.  The vines, planted on sandstone and influenced by the cool fog from the Pacific Ocean, are true to Pinot’s typicity.  The wine is unfiltered and racked directly into bottle.  I think Chris only made 1 barrel, it was good!  Wines such as these are unforgettable.  You may also want to check out their Carignan and Carignan field blends.

   

   

   2)  Sadie Family Treinspoor Tinta Barroca South Africa. Yeah, I’m a wine geek.  This wine is made with a Portuguese variety, Tinta Barocca, grown in the schist soils of South Africa by a naturalist, Eben Sadie.  The wine is light bodied, has high acid and emits interesting aromas of spices and mineral.  I remember driving the wine key into the wax seal, pulling out the cork and pouring it for my wife and friends.  At first the wine was, eh, okay.  However, as it sat in the glass and oxygen began to perk up the wine, the wine became wonderful.  Super complex yet light and elegant.  It reminded me of great Burgundy from a great year.

    

   

   3)  Rancho de Philo Rancho Cucamonga Triple Cream Sherry.  I tasted this during the Sommelier Challenge Wine Competition.  This was the shocker that caused buzz among all the judges.  I tasted it at the end of the competition when we were voting for the best wine.  After tasting over 100 wines, the cream sherry really hit the spot.  It had oxidized caramel and nutty flavors with a complimentary sweetness and long finish.  Give me it with pecan pie,  a cigar or just the sherry on its own, and I will be completely satisfied.

   

   

   4)  Sandhi Chardonnay “Rita’s Crown” Santa Rita Hills.   I always tell people, I am not much of a Chardonnay drinker, however; every one of my year-end lists always featured a Chardonnay.  Go figure, typical Sagittarius, so wishy-washy.  I came across this wine at the in Pursuit of Balance tasting where winemaker, Raj Parr shared his Chardonnay with the trade in a Chardonnay seminar.  It was the one Chardonnay that stood out from the rest.  Every winemaker there was talking about terroir and balance, but this wine walked the talk.  If we could cut Burgundy out of France and transport it here in California, this is what the wines would taste like.  Rich, yet linear with great acidity.

   

   

   5)  Bracey Vineyards Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon 2006.  I also tell people, I don’t drink Cabernet Sauvignon.  Well here I am talking about Napa Cab as one of my more memorable wines of 2013.  I really like this story because I stumbled upon the wines blindly.  Literally, blind.  I first learned about Bracey while judging at the San Diego International Wine Competition where we awarded it the best wine of the show.  Since then, I have built a good relationship with winemaker, Robert Bracey.  On his last visit to San Diego we tasted through his wines.  All were very good, but the 2006 Howell Mountain really stood out.  The wine has the power of Napa, the backbone of the mountains and as it has aged it’s just drinking very nicely.  These wines are hard to find.  I am sure if you contact Robert, he will set you up. Well worth the search.

   

   

   6)  Raventos Reserva de la Finca 2007 was one of the top bubbly wines of 2013.  These guys were the original Cava producers and today believe that their estate produces wines that deserve to stand out from Cava.  No longer will you see Cava on the label, but a place of origin, Sant Sandurni d’ Anoia.  All I can say is that there was so much complexity in this sparkling wine that I can still savor the honied, floral oxidative bubbles.  Oh my god, I just wet myself again.  And at $40 a bottle it blows Veuve out of the water.

   

   

   7)  Jermann Pinot Nero “Red Angel on the Moonlight” Italy 2009.  I just love these wines.  There is nothing like northern Italian wine. They really understand wine!  Jermann strives to show the grape and how it relates to the place it came from.  While many wine makers take what they can get and then try to make repairs in the winery, the Northern Italians treat it as raising a child of their very own.  I know that as a parent, I would rather raise a child that I had control over in its infancy than raising someone else’s kid.  The Pinot Noir has a spiced cherry and blackberry aroma with flavors of rhubarb.  But what I really like about it is that I can taste iron and minerals.  This is how wine should be.

   

   

   8)  Marichal Tannat Canelones Uruguay 2011.  This wine reminds me of my trip to Brazil a few years ago.  I am impressed with what is coming out of the region.  I have tried several Tannats from Uruguay and I have never been impressed.  What I learned about Brazilian Tannat was that they were best when left un-oaked.  The Marichal Tannat is also unoaked.   I got flavors of licorice, raisins, figs and boysenberries.  MMM, MMM…sounds like a nice winter cookie.  I am not telling people to go out and drink Uruguay Tannat, because most do not taste like this.  But what I am saying is go and try Marichal’s Tannat because this is the potential of Tannat and hopefully we’ll see more like this in the future.

   

   

   9)  Kuleto “India Ink” Napa 2010.  Good old Bob Foley has gone and done it again.  He has purchased another winery, this time an under estimated property of Napa, Kuleto.  What I am really digging are their red blends.  The are not the fruity-tuttie red blends others are producing.  These wines are deep, dark and intense.  They also make a wine called “Native Son” which is Cabernet, Sangiovese and Zinfandel.  Although it too is good, I prefer the India Ink.  India Ink is a blend of Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon.  It has aromas of purple flowers, coconut and red berries.  This wine stood out so much that I put it on the core wine list for the Cohn Restaurant Group.
   

   

   10)  RdV Vineyards “Lost Mountain” Cabernet Sauvignon & Merlot Virginia.  Yes, Virginia in the United States.  If you haven’t caught on already, I like wines from strange places.  Well to most Virginians, wines from Virginia are not strange.  But to the rest of the world, “duh, What!”  It was not very strange for me for two reasons.  One being that while I was on a bus travelling through Washington State’s wine regions, there was a fellow sommelier who could not stop talking about Virginia wines, Andrew Stover.  Secondly, when you judge wine competitions you are bound to come across several wines from Virginia.  But what we do not come across are wines such as the RdV “Lost Mountian”, delicious and mind-blowing.  The wines are made by Eric Boissenot , who trained at Chateau Latour.  What brings a man of such stature to Virginia?  The soil!  The granite hills of Virginia were calling him to bring Bordeaux to Virginia.  When I tasted the wines I was literally dumbfounded to hear that they were not from Napa.  I presume these wines would have pleased Thomas Jefferson, a devout lover of Bordeaux & Virginia.  I think of these wines being similar to what Opus was like back in the day when it was first produced.  If you ever stumble upon this little secret, buy it, buy a lot of it!

    

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4. Dr. Seuss of Wine: How Grgich Saved Christmas

   December 23, 2013 8:20 am Leave a Comment

   

   Dr. Seuss was the one of the most influential writers of our times.  Everyone grew up learning the English language through the rhymes of Dr. Seuss.  It was the way I learned to eat a sound breakfast, green eggs and ham.   I searched for a long time deep in abandoned libraries and found these lost works of Dr. Seuss.  Interestingly enough, the collection focused on wine!  Imagine that, Dr. Seuss was a Oenophile.  Here is his classic Christmas tale of how Grgich saved Christmas.  Thanks to Dr. Seuss we now know how wine came to be served at Christmas time.

   ________________________________________________________________________________________

   HOW GRGICH SAVED CHRISTMAS

   Every dude

   Down in Dude-ville

   Liked beer a whole lot…

    

   But the Grgich,

   A Croatian north of Dude-ville

   Did NOT!

    

   The Grgich drank wine! Especially at Christmas time!

   Now, no one knows why.  Not even Mr. Grime.

   It could be that he liked the oak which he used.

   It could be, perhaps, his friend Cameron Hughes.

   A man who drank wine in the fall

   Or maybe beer made him bloated and dull.

    

   But,

   Whatever the reason,

   The oak or Cameron Hughes,

   He stood there on Christmas eve, hating the dudes.

   Glaring from the cellar with his mustache in the way

   Wondering “why can’t they drink, Chardonnay”?

   He knew that every Dude in Dude-ville down below

   Was cooking fish, steaks and hanging mistletoe.

    

   “And they’re gonna drink stouts!” he snarled with a sneer.

   “Tomorrow is Christmas! And all they drink is beer!”

   Then he growled, he bit his lip and started crying,

   “So much beer on Christmas, this is unnerving!”

   For, tomorrow, he knew…

    

   …All the dudas and duders

   Would wake up bright and early and fill their growlers!

   And then! Oh the burps! Oh, the Burps! Burps! Burps! Burps!

   That’s one thing he hated! The BURPS! BURPS! BURPS! BURPS!

    

   Then the Dudes, young and old, would sit down and drink.

   And they’d drink! And they’d Drink!

   And they’d DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK!

   They would start with Belgium wheat, and within a blink

   Be on to porter and throwing up in the sink!

    

   And THEN

   They’d do something he liked least of all!

   Every dude in dude-ville, the tall and the small,

   Would look at the time, and drink in a hurry

   Santa was near, but they started slurring!

    

   They’d slur! And they’d slur!

   AND they’d SLUR! SLUR! SLUR! SLUR!

   And the more Grgich thought of the dudes still slurring

   The more Grgich thought, “I must stop beer from pouring!

   “Why did I come from Croatia to the Dude’s land now?

   I MUST stop these dudes from drinking!

   …But how?”

    

   Then he got an idea!

   A great idea!

   GRGICH

   GOT A STRAIGHT, GREAT IDEA!

    

   “I know just what to do!” Grgich laughed in his throat.

   And he made a quick Santa Claus hat and a coat.

   And he chuckled, and clucked. “What a great Croatian trick!

   “With this coat and this hat, I’ll look just like Saint Nick!”

    

   “All I need is the right wine…”

   Grgich searched around.

   But since his wine was in oak, there was none to be found.

   Did that stop the old Grgich…?

   No! Grgich simply said

   “If the wine is in oak, I’ll bottle it instead!”

   So he siphoned some red right through the neck!

   Pushed in the cork! and screamed, “CHECK!”

    

   THEN

   He loaded some whites

   and Roses for tonight

   On a toboggan he rode

   With the wine cinched up tight.

    

   It was a quarter past dawn…

   all the Dudes, still in bed

   All the dudes, still a snooze

   When he packed up his sled,

   Packed it with Pint glasses! The kegs! The Pilsners!

   The hops! And the barley! The wheat! The growlers!

    

   Three thousand feet up! Up Spring Mountain summit,

   He rode to the tip top and dumped it!

   “Doo-Doo to the Dudes!” There’s no more beer drinking.

   “Christmas is here, They’ll only be wine sipping.

   “They’re just waking up! I know just what they’ll do!

   “Their mouths will hang open a minute or two

   “All the Dudes down in Dude-ville will cry Boo-Hoo!”

    

   “That’s my plan,” grinned Grgich,

   “It’s going my way!”

   “When they cry, I’ll pour out my Chardonnay!

   He heard a sound increasing down below

   It started in low. Then it started to grow…

    

   The sound was very sad!

   Why, the Dudes must be crying!

   For it was so!

   They were all whining!

    

   He started down the hill.

   With his wine along his side.

   Gave them a shake!

   And held them up with pride!

    

   Every Dude in Dude-ville, the tall and the small,

   Gazed at Grgich dumbfounded and all!

   Their beer was gone, but wine was coming!

   It came!

   Somehow or other, it continued running!

    

   Grgich pulled the corks and began to pour,

   First one glass, then her glass, then his glass, and then four

   It came with color! White, red and gold!

   It came with tannins, it was very bold!

   The Dudes puzzled three hours, till their puzzler was soar.

   This wine was something they hadn’t had before!

   “Maybe Christmas is not for beer to pour

   Maybe Christmas…perhaps…needs wine a bit more!”

    

   And what happened then…?

   Well…in Dude-ville they say

   That Grgich’s great wine

   Came to save the day!

   The minute that beer was taken out of sight

   The Dudes found the drink that would last them through the night!

   Grgich brought more wine! They had stopped burping!

   And they…

   …They themselves…!

   Refrained from puking!

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5. The Bachelor’s Wine Dinner

   December 18, 2013 4:03 pm Leave a Comment

   I don’t know how many of you watch the Bachelor on ABC.  I don’t get it, but it seems to be the thing among the ladies.  Of course I don’t get wind of anything until it becomes wine related.  So here I am, promoting the Bachelor on Maurice’s Cru.  Well, maybe not so much promoting the Bachelor, but promoting the wines that the Bachelor, Benjamin Flajnik makes.

   Tomorrow night, Thursday December 19th, the Prado at Balboa Park will have an Envolve wine dinner.  Envolve is a project by Michael Benziger and his childhood friend, Benjamin Flajnik.  In staying true to Benziger’s philosophy all the wines are either organically farmed or biodynamic.   This means the wines go with food.  This is perfect, being that the Prado at Balboa Park has award-winning chef, Jonathan Hale behind the line.  The menu Jonathan has created for this dinner is well thought out to match the theme and styles of the wines.  Come on! Rabbit loin and Pinot Noir!

   Now who is this dinner really for?  Is it for the ladies looking to snatch up an eligible bachelor?  Is it for foodies looking for a great experience?  Maybe it’s for the person who just wants to go out for dinner tomorrow night.  Whomever it is for, it will be a  great experience.  If interested in attending please contact restaurant@pradobalboa.com for reservations.  Last I heard there were a few seats still available.

   

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