Not everything that sparkles in California is gold. Sometimes it's J!
With the holiday season approaching, I found myself in Healdsburg in the heart of Sonoma County a week ago speaking at a
technology growth and innovation conference. Meeting many cool and impressive techies and social media gurus was a lot of fun. That, plus a picture-perfect 80-degree weather in the middle of November put me in a groovy mood. So on the way back to Palo Alto, I felt like sparkling wine.
Sonoma county is relatively well known for a number of reputable sparkling wine producers, who make bubblies in the traditional Champagne method (i.e. second fermentation in the bottle). In my mind, with all due respect to all other methods of getting CO2 into a wine, the method of Champagne is the only way to go for any serious drinkin'! And while nothing touches Champagne itself (with the exception of perhaps Italy's Franciacorta and Trento DOC), our traditional method domestics from Napa, Sonoma and Mendocino counties, such as Roederer Estate, Domaine Chandon, Mumm, Domaine Carneros, Schramsberg and Gloria Ferrer, are not bad at all, and offer really delicious and cheaper alternatives, and a sense of patriotism.
One of the names that immediately popped in my head was
J. I'd enjoyed their bubblies in the past, as well as wonderful food & wine pairings at their Signature Bar and the Bubble Room. Located just 10 min down the road from Healdsburg, in Russian River Valley, J Vineyards are well known for good quality and very elegant bottles. Founded in 1986 by
Judy Jordan (thus "J") the daughter of Jordan Winery's founder Tom Jordan, they initially focused entirely on sparkling wine. While other California houses have expanded their sparkling production, J have actually been reducing theirs, as they've tried to assert themselves as a world-class expert in Pinot Noir. Let sparkling wine be more of a boutique item for J, let the French mega-brand-controlled estates churn out volume. Truth be told, sparkling wine is still a specialty item in America, drunk primarily on special occasions and holidays, thus the demand is relatively lower than in France where it's treated more as a versatile food wine - a notion I subscribe to wholeheartedly. On the other hand, America's love affair with Pinot Noir seems at all-time high, with Russian River Valley in Sonoma, Santa-Rita Hills in Central Coast, and Willamette Valley in Oregon carrying significant prestige in the eyes of the American (and even Asian) consumer. So why not try to elevate J's Pinot into the same elite ranks as Williams Selyem, Rochioli, and Gary Farrell?! -- all near-cult Pinot entities that made grand reputations on the soils of the Russian River Valley (or RRV), and in turn applied the strengths of their own brands to make "RRV" a brand name as well.
I tried the 2006 Nicole's Vineyard RRV Pinot Noir - and it was as good as any I've had from Sonoma County, wonderfully textured, with nothing sticking out. But for anyone who's read this blog for any duration of time, you'd know that being a huge Burgundy fan, I need that acid, earth, and veggie. None of that typical sweet balsamic (sensuous?) stuff that enchants millions (sorry, my friends), ever since
Sideways.
So I dropped by and met with J Vineyards PR Director George Rose, as well as their winemaker
George Bursick, who prior to J had been a founding member and winemaker for 22 years at
Ferrari-Carano winery.
Iron Chevsky and George Bursick, the winemaker at J Vineyards since 2006, holding a magnum of J Brut, in front of designer wall which represents the Russian River, the sparkles of the bubbles in J wines, and the soils of the Russian River Valley.We went through the lineup of their entry-level "Cuvée 20" NV Brut ($22), NV Rose ($30), 2002 Vintage Brut ($40), and 1999
Late Disgorged (after 9 years of cellaring) Vintage Brut ($65). All made from the locally grown classical Champagne varieties - Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier. In a word, wonderful wines, great acidity, but also nice roundness. The vintage bruts showed the anticipated yeastiness and brioche, and the '99 in particular hinted at nuttiness that I so enjoy in more mature sparklers. Their Cuvée 20 is the bestseller - they make about 23000 cases, and it flies. I was not surprised because for ~$17 (if you search on wine-searcher.com), it really tasted very good! It boggles my mind that if we can achieve such great acidity in the local sparkling wines, why can't we have some of that in those damn still whites and reds?! It's got to be
you - the sweet-toothed consumer!
During the tasting, I brought up a topic of disclosing disgorgement dates on labels. Most Champagne producers don't to it, but many wine lovers absolutely
want to know how old a non-vintage Champagne is. Some wine collectors, in fact, will not buy sparkling wine without knowing the vintages and percentages of the constituent wines in the blend and the disgorgement dates. At J, this question apparently had never come up, especially given they don't even put a label on their designer-shaped bottle. Traditionally, Champagne and other sparkling wine producers have a "house style" for each of their non-vintage cuvées that is supposed to be so consistent from year to year (via blending multiple vintages together) that the question of dates is not necessary. That's a theory that serious winos take with a grain of salt. Plus, as a consumer I want to know how old a non-vintage wine I am looking at is? Without any reference date, a cynic in me says - that's an unfair advantage to the retailer - if they have something that's been sitting there for years past its prime. The impression I got from J is that they envision their bubblies to be consumed relatively soon upon release, and if they wanted you to wait, they would hold on to those bottles, as they do with their vintage bruts.
Now I was in a positively good mood, and with J having awakened my taste buds, headed to a highly-Zagat-rated
Rosso Pizzeria & Wine Bar in Santa Rosa. Perhaps after a recent trip to the fantasic
Pizzeria Delfina in the city, my expectations for good pizza had gone up way too much. And Rosso utterly disappointed with both their pizzas and their wines.
About the only good thing there was the super fresh and large (it looked like it was on steroids!) arugula, which Rona and I devoured to suppress the rough flavors of the pizza and the alcoholic tasting, low-acid, Zin-like Sangiovese (2008 or 2009, Italy) that they were nice enough to swap for a lighter and fresher Nero D'Avola (tolerable, but far from enjoyable). Shocking - a Sicilian Nero D'Avola being lighter and fresher than Tuscan Sangio!
Ah, but the weather, with the help of the delicious arugula, and the fresh memories of J's bruts and the sharp folks at the
conference outweighed the momentary despair of the offended foodie, as Rona and I headed to our next stop to pick up the long-awaited shipment of 1996 Henriot Des Enchanteleurs - one of the greatest Champagnes of all.
In the morning the kitchen still smells like crabs. In a good, fresh, oceany way. The belly feels light, the mind satisfied. We spent the whole Friday exploring Half Moon Bay - visiting the Pillar Point Harbor where we bought 3 of the freshest, right out of the ocean, 2-lbs. dungeness crabs (only $3.50/lb!), ate catch-of-the-day fisherman's stew and fish-and-chips right on the ocean front, and strolled along the beaches and lawns on a crisp, sunny, picture-perfect day after Thanksgiving.
Amazingly, even serious winos don't seem to know Roero. Specifically Roero red wine, made from Nebbiolo, and in many vintages just as elegant, intense, and charming as Barolo and Barbaresco. A neighboring appellation (DOCG since 2004), Roero is better recognized for their white Arneis wine - the most famous white wine export of Piedmonte, which I love on its own right. But it's the red that I am happy for so many others to overlook, thus keeping prices down for those in the know. Here is a very good article on Roero from the Dehli Wine Club (of all places!). A quick excerpt is telling:
Vienna is the only capital in the world that has vineyards within its frontiers. The traditional wine from Vienna is the "Wiener Gemischte Satz" - a field blend of Austrian white grape varieties. This wine was only sold in the Viennese wine bistros until in 2003 Richard Zahel, the "father of Viennese Gemischte Satz" (according to his website) began marketing it more broadly. Today Zahel’s "Gemischter Satz" is offered in 4 different styles. The Premium Wine "Nussberg Grande Reserve" consists of 9 old Austrian varieties like Grüner Veltliner, Rotgipfler, Zierfandler, Traminer and others. In 2007, Zahel created Gemischter Satz Sekt, a Champagne style sparkling wine made à la Mèthode Traditionelle (traditional method of Champagne, i.e. second fermentation in the bottle) with grapes harvested and co-fermented from Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Chardonnay and Traminer from the famous Viennese Nussberg vineyards (shown in the Vienna wine map on the right). Fine bubbles, medium weight, nice balance between fruit and acid. This is the type of sparkling wine that can convince those who "don't get" Champagne to give sparkling another chance. Even after the fizz subsides, the remaining still wine tastes good!
The previous bottle I'd had was a white made from Rotgipfler grape - another obscure grape variety from Austria. Stadlmann Tagelsteiner Rotgipfler 2008 (13.5% alc) was a Gruner Veltliner-like white wine, with clear focus, clean, unoaked, expressive fruit flavors, and hint of white pepper. A versatile wine, like Zweigelt above, Rotgipfler goes exceptionally well with curry (particularly, vegetable, seafood, or chicken curry).
Sonoma county is relatively well known for a number of reputable sparkling wine producers, who make bubblies in the traditional Champagne method (i.e. second fermentation in the bottle). In my mind, with all due respect to all other methods of getting CO2 into a wine, the method of Champagne is the only way to go for any serious drinkin'! And while nothing touches Champagne itself (with the exception of perhaps Italy's Franciacorta and Trento DOC), our traditional method domestics from Napa, Sonoma and Mendocino counties, such as Roederer Estate, Domaine Chandon, Mumm, Domaine Carneros, Schramsberg and Gloria Ferrer, are not bad at all, and offer really delicious and cheaper alternatives, and a sense of patriotism.
About the only good thing there was the super fresh and large (it looked like it was on steroids!) arugula, which Rona and I devoured to suppress the rough flavors of the pizza and the alcoholic tasting, low-acid, Zin-like Sangiovese (2008 or 2009, Italy) that they were nice enough to swap for a lighter and fresher Nero D'Avola (tolerable, but far from enjoyable). Shocking - a Sicilian Nero D'Avola being lighter and fresher than Tuscan Sangio!
On Tuesday last week, I dropped in on the first (ever) session of the newly minted San Francisco Wine School. Their introductory course was France. I had previously announced the opening of the school on this blog (see here), but wanted to check for myself what it'd be like, before I really stuck my neck out and put the Iron Chevsky seal of approval on these guys.
The first class focused on Alsace, a region that is supposed to be the easiest to understand in France, because it has the fewest appellations and complications. Personally, I've always skirted Alsace without ever getting deep into it. An occasional masterpiece Riesling (Cuvée Ste. Catherine, $40-60, in particular) from Weinbach has kept Alsace alive for me, but otherwise it's been a bit of a food pairing puzzle. (Perhaps I should eat more sauerkraut?!) Maureen led the class with tons of extra-curricular knowledge and splashes of humor. David poured some interesting wines, which confirmed to me that taste-wise it is not an easy region to figure out, but that their Rieslings (I really enjoyed Albert Boxler Grand Cru Sommerberg 2004, $50-60) can indeed be very very good, and have a different (somehow more "grown-up" ?) aspect to them than German Rieslings. More alcohol than Germans? Drier? Something different and worth exploring. Personally, I stay away from the sweet and bubbly versions of anything Alsatian. The reds can get geeks excited, especially over a pastrami sandwich. The Pinot Noir we tried (Remy Gresser Brandhof, 2008) reminded me of a cross between Frappato (fruity, medium-bodied red from Sicily) and Beaujolais.
If you've never had white truffles, oh well... Splurge! Don't let the looks deceive you - it's one of those life's pleasures along with cod liver, duck fat, pork belly, foie gras, and sushi that must be experienced for the amazing umami that just makes you happy. Don't confuse white truffles with black truffles or chocolate truffles. White truffles are extremely rare and prized pretty much at the very top of the food chain, found in the woods of Piedmonte (Northern Italy) by specially trained dogs, and sold for thousands of $$ per kilo. They come each year around October/November, and they are devoured quickly, no matter the cost.
To be honest, I find myself more often inspired by simpler, homier efforts. Luckily, we see a trend of master chefs opening casual eateries with the same great quality as their flagship restaurants but with a different goal - to serve foods they want to eat themselves. These are comfort food classics often from their childhood, dishes that don't require scientific preparation or molecular gastronomy, but still feature the best seasonal, local produce they can find. Chefs' home cooking is what themselves and their loyal foodie fans reach for, exhausted by the stuffy air of their "high-end" restaurants that are certainly fabulous once in a while, but offer neither the value nor the joy of an expertly prepared fried chicken or braised beef short ribs with garlic mashed potatoes. Perhaps started by the iconic Thomas Keller of the French Laundry, when he dreamed up Ad Hoc in Yountville in 2006. Or by Craig Stoll, when he opened Pizzeria Delfina next to his famous Restaurant Delfina in San Francisco in 2006. Carried on by Bobby Stuckey (ex-French Laundry sommelier) of Boulder, Colorado, Frasca (one of the top Italian restaurants in the nation) opening a pizzeria and a cafe nearby, and Gary Danko's upcoming burger joint on Ghirardelli Square in the city, perhaps they are all just continuing what has always made good sense, but makes even better one during the current economic times when foodies still seek amazing food but without all the pomp and expense of the suit-and-tie establishments.
In the heart of Healdsburg, right there on the charming main plaza, tourist traps abound. The famous Oakville Grocery at the corner, full inside and out, is but a Whole-Foods-like shadow of its authentic self along highway 29 in Oakville that still draws me during visits to Napa Valley. But hidden behind yet another quaint-ish bookstore is a gem of a place called Bovolo, that is a foodie's delight. Founded by John Stewart and his wife Duskie Estes, famous for their high-end Cali-Italian Zazu restaurant in Santa Rosa, and perhaps even more so for her brief appearance in season 3 of the Food Network's The Next Iron Chef, Bovolo is Zazu's sister restaurant that adapts the Cali-Italian theme to a chill and unpretentious cafe that's no ordinary bookstore coffee shop. Opened in 2005, Bovolo's pork cheek sandwich was voted in the Top 5 Sandwiches in the Bay Area by San Francisco Magazine. I had to check for myself, and I was not disappointed. On the contrary, not only was this spectacular sandwich loaded with fall-apart-at-the-touch-of-a-fork pork cheek, roasted peppers and salsa verde on a grilled bun with a side of zesty olives, but Rona's simple looking salad of spinach with house-made black pig bacon cubes was extraordinary as well.
I ordered a glass of Argentinian Torrontes (Aymara, 2009) with my sandwich. It's an unusual pairing. The clerk recommended a Zin (what else in Sonoma county!), but on such a brilliantly warm and spotlessly sunny day, I politely declined. It felt like a white! The full bodied Torrontes tasted of jasmin and ripe lychees, and (unlike most of the local white wines, despite what their marketing department would have you believe) had excellent acidity. The fruitiness worked great with the pork, while the acidity refreshed the palate before the next succulent bite.
This Saturday, Nov 13, I will be keynoting at a unique conference, put together by Partners for Growth & Innovation in Healdsburg, Sonoma wine country. I will tell a story spanning from the early days in Soviet Union, to the founding of Ask Jeeves and to the executive position at one of the fastest-growing startups in the Valley - YouSendIt - and the role innovation, hard work and perseverance have played in that.
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