Family, Friends, Wine, Hockey, Restaurants.... Michigan! (G's Tasting Series)

Happy Holidays!  I must admit that I am a little behind on writing, so here is a recent trip to Michigan and Michigan wine tasting to cover the Wednesday G's Tasting Series!  Enjoy.

I recently ventured to the mother land known as Michigan to taste more wine, see family, see friends, partake in the Big Chill, and to check out one of the boldest restaurants/wine bars I have seen in Michigan, let a lone West Michigan.

I arrived in Grand Rapids, escaping the giant snow storm hitting Minneapolis.  I got in pretty late so I just went back to my Dad's and went to bed.  I went to bed giddy, feeling like a kid going to bed on Christmas Eve.  I knew that Friday would be a day filled with wine and food!  We left for Reserve (Reserve, Grand Rapids) around 3 in the afternoon in order to get there before the after work rush and traffic.  It was a success.  The menu was unlike anything I have seen in Michigan.... ever.  Cheeses, smoked fish, cured meats, pork fat fries, just the craziest stuff you could possibly imagine.  Definitely for those who are culinary explorers and want something out of the box... so I hate using this word... but, well it's for the "Foodies."  I'm not going to get into my tyrad about Foodies, well maybe a little.  I believe everyone, yes everyone is a Foodie, even if you don't know it.  If you like food in any way, you are a Foodie, if you like to try new food, you are a Foodie, if you eat food, you are a Foodie... you get my drift.  Foodie, Foodie, Foodie, blah.

Back to Reserve, the place was very modern, sleek but cold.  When modern is over done, for whatever reason, it feels cold to me.  The food was amazing, we had a couple cheeses, some prosciutto.  We also place an order for the Smoked Fish Trio which consisted of Lake Superior White Fish, Lake Michigan Trout, Wild Alaskan Salmon and was served with Kohlrabi and German Butterball Potato Salad, two words, Smokey Deliciousness!!  I also had to have an order of the Pork Belly, which is hard to mess up..... it was rich, fatty, and yumyum.  Sooo good!  Just melted in my mouth.  The food was absolutely superb!

View from out table on balcony.

Of course since it was a wine bar/restaurant I ordered some wine.  Had the below in the picture, since I was out with family and just wanting to enjoy myself I didn't really take any tasting notes on the wine just sipped and sort of decided in my head what I thought of them.  I do remember that the star of this "Western Pinot" trio was the Vision Cellars out of Sonoma County, very interesting (Vision Cellars).

From left to right, Scherrer, Ghost Hills Cellars, and Vision Cellars, all Pinot

I was also impressed with their 100+ by glass wine options.  How is this possible you ask?  Well they have the largest Cruvinet (Cruvinet Link) Wine Bar System in Michigan and the first and largest I have seen in person.  It basically preserves a opened bottle of wine for much longer than just opening a bottle and putting one of those stoppers in it.  This allows the wine bar to offer slightly lowers prices (if it chooses to) and also offer a wider selection as the chance of the opening a wine and it not being drank is lower.

Cruvinet System

Overall, this place is a great place to out and adventure into wine and food in Grand Rapids, MI.  I will warn you that it is expensive for what you are getting as it is probably the only place in the state that is like it.  Well worth it in my opinion

After Reserve we headed back to my Dad's for some Michigan wine and dinner.  I selected three wines at a local wine shop and that were recommended to me by a friend that works at one of the wineries up in Northern Michigan.  I wanted to revisit Michigan wines after tasting my way through many of California's wineries over the last 4 or 5 months.

Since it is Wednesday, here are some brief tasting notes for G's Tasting Series.  I have high hopes for Michigan wines as I hope to one day maybe return to open a winery.  I hope that as the years go by the wine gets dialed in.  I havent really tasted any Michigan wine of superb qualitiy however I have had some that were interesting and show serious promise.  I am still in the infancy stages in tasting and also tasting Michigan wine so here we go!

2009 Chateau Chantal, Pinot Gris, Old Mission Peninsula
consumed Friday, Dec. 10, 2010, with family, Retail $21

A nice wine.  Aromas of freshly cut apples erupt out of the bottle.  The wine is crisp, acidic, a little tart.  It has a nice mouth feel and was very pleasant.  I could only see myself sitting on a deck in the summer relaxing with this wine.  Unfortunately as I tasted it I was starring out to the Michigan winter!
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2009 Chateau Chantal, Pinot Noir, Old Mission Peninsula
consumed Friday, Dec 10, 2010, with family, Retail $16

Another nice wine from this producer.  It has some out of a harsh nose open open but settled in after breathing some oxygen.  There really wasn't much going on in the bottle off the first sniff but want on to reveal some tart cherry and some what of an earthy aroma.  Also, apparent was what seemed to be a little smoke.  Overall, again, a pleasant wine from the region.
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The white wines from Northern Michigan seem to fair much better than the reds.  One thing is for sure, I will continue my quest to find amazing wines in Michgain.  I have found good wine but not that wine that just says, WOW!!!

Saturday was spent with family and friends in Ann Arbor to watch the "Big Chill" which was an outdoor hockey game played at U of M stadium between Michigan State and U of M.  It was great to be a part of it.  The game set the world record for attendance at an outdoor hockey game and it set the record for highest attendance at Michigan Stadium ever!!  A hockey game set the record for attendance (113,411, I think) at a football stadium, being a hockey player, I love it.

Have a great New Year!  Coming up on G's Tasting Series, will be the highly regarded first growth Bordeaux's!!!  As one of my friends told me, "A cork tease is someone who constantly talks about the wine he or she will open but never does."  I love that saying, but it's not me, I drink the stuff.  Look out for these two tasting notes!!!

2008 Erath, Pinot Noir (G's Tasting Series)

Bam, its hump day.. tasty time.

Ahhh, Oregon, supposedly the closest thing we have in the states to Burgundy, France.  I am fairly inexperienced in tasting Oregon wines so I revisited this Oregon Pinot that I tried back when I first really started to get into this wine thing.  I remember the first time I had it I was pretty impressed.

2008 Erath, Pinot Noir, Oregon
consumed Friday, Dec. 3, 2010, with friends, Retail $21

After much anticipation this wine really fell short from what I remembered it to be maybe 6 months prior.  It was thin, watery, and lacked any structure.  It had nice aromas of sweet cherry, damn earth, and a little pepper.  For the price point it was an okay wine, I'd like to taste some of the single vineyard designations to give the winery another shot.
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One thing I think I've mentioned before about purchasing Pinot Noir (Pinot Noir Memoir post) is that you really need to spend some money in order to get a good one.  Pinot Noir is difficult to grow and make wine from, its finicky, and needs to have the right terroir in order to make it an awesome wine.  A nice Pinot, in my opinion, is the best wine in the world.  If Pinot Noir is a Ferrari then Cabernet Sauvignon is a Ford F-150.

Happy Holidays!

2001 J. Rochioli, West Block (G's Tasting Series)

BamBam, Happy Wednesday ya'll!  Enjoy.  

Another heavy hitter from J. Rochioli, this West Block selection is probably their more known wine in the international community.  Once again, one of the best wines I have had.  My personal favorite is the East Block.

2001 J. Rochioli, West Block, Russian River Valley
consumed Friday, Nov. 26, 2010, with friends, Retail $120

Well first of all, I about had heart attack after cutting the foil off of the bottle.  I could see where a little wine had reached the top of the cork usually a sign the wine is corked.  Meaning oxygen has gotten into the wine prematurely and basically spoiled it.  As I dug into the cork with the wine opener, more problems arose, since the wine had made its way all the way to the top the cork and the fact that it was 9 years old, the cork screw was just shredding the cork, luckily we got enough of it in to where we could wiggle it out of the bottle.  The true test came with a little sniff of the wine....... my heart pounding....... expecting it to smell like wet socks (smell typical of a corked wine)....... I was delighted to smell a tight wine ready to open!!  Phewwwww!  Not only was it the wine that I was worried about but all during Thanksgiving I had been talking up this wine to my girlfriends family and was excited for them to try it so luckily it was good!

With older wines (and even high quality younger wines) you should really let the wine sit for at least an hour before enjoying.  Since I am impatient and trying to educate myself I jumped right in!  The aroma upon opening was subtle, and what to me felt like a Christmas present waiting to be opened.  Everything great about the wine was there, however, it was closed off waiting for something to kick in the door.

Meet oxygen, after about 30 minutes the wine really hit it's stride, I mean really.  It's interesting to taste the wine as it goes through this process.  The wine opened up with big bright red fruit, (Russian River Valley at it's finest) bing cherry, raspberry, a little licorice, the wine was pleasantly balanced, and the finish lingered forever.  This is why I have fallen in love with wine!
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2008 M. Chapoutier, Petite Ruche, Syrah (G's Tasting Series)

Today is hump day and with hump day comes a tasting note!  Enjoy!  

During the same visit to the local wine store when I purchased the Bernard Latour (see older post) I purchased this wine from M. Chapoutier.  A much larger producer with wines from many areas in the Rhone this wine is from a lesser know area, Crozes-Hermitage in the Northern Rhone region where the red wine is made from 100% Syrah.  In a very general sense the wines from the Crozes-Hermitage are lesser quality then the wines from Hermitage and Cote-Rotie.  Still a place where you can likely find hidden gems.... however, this M. Chapoutier is not one of them. 

2008 M. Chapoutier, Petite Ruche, Syrah, Crozes-Hermitage
consumed Saturday, Nov. 20, 2010 with love, Retail $28.00

The wine itself was okay and the price was not.  I enjoyed the Bernard Latour from the Southern Rhone much more and for $10 dollars less.  As I venture deeper and deeper into wine I'm really starting to get a little understanding on pricing.  I will elaborate here, these are my own opinions and what I think in this particular case.  M. Chapoutier produces wine from basically every appellation in the Rhone.  The different labels and wines are quite many.  For instance, a 2007 Chapoutier Ermitage le Meal Syrah (Hermitage) can fetch $170 dollar bottle depending on where you are buying it.  After some research I found that you can get the wine I had above (Petite Ruche) for around $18, in my opinion, more in the likeness of its apparent value.  I think the place I purchased this wine from took advantage of the name behind the bottle and marked it up quite nicely.  Do I feel ripped off?  Not really, I had been wanting to try a M. Chapoutier wine for some time after reading about the Rhone in my wine bible, I was able to find that wine at a local wine store and purchased it on impulse.  I came to the wine store not looking for anything in particular and then I saw the Chapoutier.  I paid for the luxury of buying that wine, that day, and consuming it that night versus purchasing it, and having it shipped.  Okay, what's the point?  Wine prices don't necessarily reflect the actually quality of that wine.  Wow, that was a little more long winded than expected.

The Tasting:
The wine had nice red fruit on the front, cherry, with a little plum, and a earthy aroma.  The finish was short and sweet with an odd after taste.  I couldn't pin point what the taste was, just bitterness. Overall, an okay wine not worth $28.  It will not deter me from trying another Chapoutier, however.
**

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving was spent in the frozen tundra known as Minnesota.  It was a balmy 1 to 5 degrees (high) out for most of the holiday weekend so I choose to stay inside and eat!  I brought some bottles of wine to share, all of what's left of the Rochioli wine I had shipped here to hold me over the winter.  I only have about 3 bottles left.  It's so sad!  What am I going to do with myself once it runs out!

Thanksgiving was great!  I had the opportunity to meet the rest of my girlfriend's family and enjoy some great German cooking.  What I really enjoyed was this alternate stuffing that was made primarily from sauerkraut.  I have never really known what sauerkraut actually was, I had never given it much thought.  I thought it was just what it was, some sort of vegetable grown in the garden.  I was wrong.  Sauerkraut is actually shredded cabbage that has been fermented.  I was enlightened!  On to this stuffing, the stuffing was made from, yes, sauerkraut, rye bread crumbs, carrots (I think), and bacon.  BACON!!!  This dish, as pointed out by by girlfriend's brother, went really well with the Rochioli pinot we were drinking.  I took a bit of the stuffing, took a healthy swig of the wine and.......I concurred!

As I sit right now, there is snow on the ground, we got about 5-7 inches this weekend!  And I think it's 15 degrees.  Even with the weather I am having a lot of fun out here in Minnesota. 

This week I am heading to Michigan to visit with family and try some more Michigan wine.  Also, I was able to get my hands on a 1999 Chateau Haut-Brion (Bordeaux First Growth, Graves, Bordeaux) and a 1999 Chateau Pavie (Top St.-Emillion, Bordeaux).  I am really excited about these two wines as I have never tasted a top Bordeaux (France).  Tasting notes will soon follow however I'm not sure when I will drink them..... the holidays seem like a good time!

One of many plates.

 Yes, as cold as it looks!!

     

2001 J. Rochioli, East Block (G's Tasting Series)

Hailing from the esteemed Russian River Valley in Sonoma County near the city of Healdsburg is this beautiful pinot noir.  The Russian River has some of the best conditions for growing pinot and chardonnay in the United States and the world.  This area and in particular Healdsburg, holds a special place in my heart as it is where I lived during harvest this year.  If you find yourself visiting wineries in Sonoma Country you have got to visit downtown Healdsburg, one of my favorite cities (well villages I guess, its not that big).  As one winemaker told me, "we are just a bunch of hillbillies making great wine."  That statement, for me, in it's purest form, is exactly what making wine and life is about around here.  It is not 'hillybilly' in a negative connotation but rather a way of living: laid back, caring, sustainable, fresh food, open, approachable, friendly, and romantic.  I have never felt at home in a city more than I have with Healdsburg and Sonoma County.  And on to the tasting.......

2001 J. Rochioli East Block, Russian River Valley 
consumed Friday Nov. 12, 2010, with friends, Retail $159.99

One of the top pinot noirs in California and the world.  In fact for the single vineyard selections (like this East Block) there is a 5-6 year wait to get on the buying list direct from the winery so to obtain these bottles you must go the retail route (typically boutique wine shops).  However, you can get their Estate (entry level) pinot noirs directly from the winery.  

This 9 year old wine was absolutely stunning.  By far the best wine I have ever had the pleasure of drinking.  It was bright fruit dancing on the tongue, black cherries, velvety, rich, smooth, refined, pretty, earthy, and had a long structured finish.  YUMMMMMMMMM!  Great drinking wine, ready now!
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