Rhonni Boss-Moffit the Executive Director of the Arizona Wine Grower’s Association took me on a tour of the wine tasting event held at the Tempe Festival of the arts. She talked about each vineyard, winery and what the Arizona Wine Grower’s Association is all about.
Check out the Arizona Wine Grower’s Association website HERE
The Arizona Wine Grower’s Association put on a wine tasting at the Tempe Festival of the arts this year featuring 12 Arizona vineyards. I was fortunate
Tempe Festival of the Arts, Mill Avenue
enough to be taken on a tour by the Executive Director of the AWGA, Rhonni Boss-Moffit. Rhonni also publishes Arizona Vines and Wines, a magazine about Arizona Wine Country. I arrived at 10am before the wine tasting officially opened to try and get some wine maker interviews, and it’s a good thing I did because by 11am there was already a lot of people there, and by 1pm the event was crammed with eager and adventurous wine drinkers! Right next to the wine tasting area was a stage with live Jazz music by Renee Patrick and Margo Reed. 
It was a beautiful warm spring day and a perfect setting for sampling the wines from the emerging Arizona Wine Industry. Arizona now has 39 licensed and permitted wine producers, which is significantly more than there were just a few years ago.
Here is part 2 of a 3 part series on Loring Wine Company. In this segment Brian Loring talks about the Loring Wine Company’s style. How much fruit, how big and bold, what they are meant to pair with, and how much oak the wines get. He also talks about Garys’ Vineyard. Yes that’s apostrophe S, not a misprint, and he explains why.
The blend: 50% Grenache, 30% Syrah, 20% Carignan
Alcohol: 13%
Price: $15-$20 as sampled $9.97 at Costco on markdown
Ratings: 91 points Wine Spectator, Tom Stevenson’s Wine Report rated it the “Number one value in Languedoc”
The Nose: Intense Thyme, Graphite, Minerality
The Palate: More Thyme, Minerality, Meat. After a few hours in the decanter the tannins and fruit started to shine through. Tart spicy blackberry fruit, astringent mouth puckering tannins. After 5 hours in the decanter the tannins have died down considerably, elegant smooth and not overly fruity, still a powerful wine.
The Finish: Smooth, balanced, becoming more and more delicious with more time in the decanter
Posted in French Wine, Languedoc, Wine Review, Wines under $20
Tagged French Wine, Languedoc wine, mas des dames 2007, phoenix, Scottsdale, wine blog, Wine Review
I recently sat down with Brian Loring of Loring Wine Company. Sandy from a previous episode (Greg Grazianno interview) helped conduct the interview. I have broken this interview down into three parts here is the first part:
In the first video Brian talks about why he chose to make Pinot Noir, and about how Loring Wine Company got started.
If you are in the Phoenix metro area on Thursday March 25th, 2010 you won’t want to miss #WA Merlot at Az Wine Company on North Scottsdale Rd. If you would like more information on this specific event please email Tim (weeklywinejournal at Gmail dot com)
#WA Merlot is twitter speak for “Washington Merlot” All across North America and around the world people are going to be tasting various Washington State Merlot’s and then posting their comments on twitter using the hashtag #WAMerlot to track the conversation.
AZ Wine company has a FANTASTIC DEAL for everyone:
$5 glasses of wine!
FEATURED WINES:
BASEL CELLARS 2005
CANOE RIDGE 2004
SEVEN HILLS 2007
REININGER 2003
MERCER 2007
ALL FOR ONLY $5 A GLASS! THESE WINES ARE ALL $20 TO $25 A BOTTLE RETAIL, SO THAT REALLY IS AN INCREDIBLE DEAL.
For more help using twitter and more info on #WAmerlot watch this helpful video put together by Josh Wade at Drinknectar.com
AZ WINE COMPANY: 2515 NORTH SCOTTSDALE RD (South of Thomas on east side of street) or call 480 423 9305
I recently met Robert (Bob) Lindquist at a wine tasting event at AZ Wine Company in Scottsdale Arizona. I found out that he was one of the first people in the United States to concentrate on the Rhone varietals. Earning him a place in wikipedia as one of the “Rhone Rangers”
And there’s big news about a Qupe Tasting Room…
Where from? Russian River Valley – Sonoma, CA
How much? $40
Alcohol: 15.2%
Production: 650 Cases
This next wine I’m reviewing is rather special. Wine Spectator recently put out a segment reviewing a few of these Carlisle wines – rating this particular Zinfandel 96 points, and a Syrah of theirs 98 points. Yeah…wow. Put it this way, this is the highest rating Wine Spectator has ever given a Zinfandel. Back in early February on numerous online forums, people were already speculating this bottle’s potential to be the next wine of the year on the annual top 100 list. Now I consider that more than jumping the gun a bit being just over a month into 2010 at that point – though I can certainly see how one could make the argument considering this wine’s rating, price, and desirability. It has absolutely everything going for it, except for one factor…its production (only 650 cases made).
Now I never expected to find this bottle at any retailer. I figured I’d have to track it down through an online distributor, or pick it up through an auction site. I hear Carlisle distributes very little, and with a rating like that, and only 650 cases made – I was convinced that what little bit could have been shipped out to any retailer in Arizona would be long gone by now. Fortunately, I was wrong. I made a trip into AZ Wine Company in Scottsdale for my very first time this week. I have to say, I was impressed. I saw several wines that I couldn’t find anywhere else. After walking through several aisles, and eyeing numerous bottles, I spotted the Carlisle Zin. At first I thought there was no way, this had to be another one of their Zinfandels, and not the recent 96 pointer. But after a moment on my iPhone, I quickly realized this was in fact it. Some how there were 3 bottles sitting right in front of me…and of course I purchased every last one of them.
I know I know, I keep going on and on about being fortunate enough to actually find a few bottles of this wine. Let’s get on to the review already right? Well here we go. In the glass this wine is a very deep magenta color with a ruby rim. The nose displays a beautiful floral bouquet with black raspberries, cherries, and a complex mineral element. Simply sensational nose, it really draws you into the glass. I took my first taste after just 30 minutes in the decanter and was shocked. For how apparently young this wine is right now, it was extremely accessible in such a short period of time. This wine will benefit from another 2 to 5 years in the bottle minimum.
This wine is a stunner. It’s powerful, but completely well-balanced. Like a well made, finely-tuned sports car – it’s running at 150 mph, yet incredibly smooth and controlled. Amazing concentrated dark semi-jammy fruit with ample acidity. White pepper sings across your palate in perfect balance with the ripe cherries and raspberries. The finish is long with beautiful fleshy tannins. It leaves your mouth coated with flavor.
After an hour or two, the soft jammy berries are in perfect harmony. Simply put, this Zinfandel may very well be amongst the pinnacle of its varietal. Certainly the best that I have ever tasted, and it’s only going to get better with time. 97-98 points is where I score this wine. This is what a Zin is all about, you’d be hard pressed to improve on this.
Ryan O’Connor
I recently was introduced to The Chef’s Loft by my friend “The Sassy Sommelier” Lizbeth Congiusti. She also introduced me to Chef’s Loft principal Michael Murray. What is Chef’s Loft? Take a look at the video and see! In the beginning of this video I show you how to find the Chef’s Loft
Part two:
Posted in Food, Places to drink wine, Recipes, social media, Wine Education, Wine Event, Wine Personality
Tagged Chef's Loft, culinary film studio, culinary studio, how to find chef's loft, phoenix, Scottsdale, Scottsdale culinary, Scottsdale waterfront, things to do on the scottdale art walk, what is chef's loft, wine blog
In this visit I took a closer look at the Washington Wines section and also AZ Wine Company’s “reserve” section
Tim
Alcohol: 13.5%
Lang & Reed 2007 Cabernet Franc
Price: $22 online, $15-$20 retail. In Arizona it’s available at AZ Wine Company
100% Cabernet Franc
The nose: Pretty floral notes, sweet almost marshmallow like… it’s true! Smell a freshly opened bag of marshmallows sometime…
The Palate: Slightly creamy texture, bright acidity, not a heavy long lasting acidity. It’s more of a youthful acidity. The fruit is a sweet and sour cherry. Sweet like a ripe dark cherry but quickly transitions into a tart unripe fruit center. Like you are eating the center of the fruit. Chewy Wooly tannins which make your mouth pucker up a bit, squeaky teeth tannins I like to say.
The Finish: Pleasant and light little touch of herbs.
Conclusion: For the price ($15-$20) it is a very decent Cabernet Franc. I’m not blown away to the point of buying several cases of it, but I think I will buy several more bottles and lay them down to see how it ages of the next year or two. I paired this wine with a nice big New York Steak, and a twice baked potato with loads of melted extra sharp Tillamook cheddar on top. And finished with a big piece of chocolate brownie cheesecake. The wine went great with all three. And speaking of a nice big steak why not check out my super awesome steak recipe here
Tim
Kendall Jackson Stature 2003
Kendall jackson Stature, 2003
80% Cabernet Sauvignon
10% Cabernet Franc
5% Merlot
5% Petit Verdot
14.6% alcohol
Oakville, Napa Valley
$95
395 cases made
I know what some of you are probably thinking – Kendall Jackson produces a $100 bottle of wine?! Yes they do, and it’s perennially rated and regarded very highly (the current 2004 release is priced at $120, and this 2003 vintage scored between 94 and 98 points by numerous sources). I found it hard to believe myself when I first wandered into KJ’s tasting room in Healdsburg, CA a few years back. The guy behind the counter comped us a reserve tasting, and eventually gave us a pour of this red bordeaux blend. We were all impressed, it was great. I just had to pick up a bottle of this very limitedly produced wine.
Well, here I am nearly two years later ready to see how this wine held up, and if it would wow me again. The wine is deep red, nearly purple in the glass with a crimson rim. I popped this bottle open just 20 minutes before heading out to make a dinner reservation and decided to get an early taste of what was to come. The nose revealed classic Napa dark fruit dominated by cherries, floral notes, and a little coco. The wine was clearly very tight at first, and offered up complex flavors of cherries, mocha, and spice.
After 4 hours in the decanter, the wine was still opening up. Despite a 2003 vintage, this wine is drinking like a baby right now. Without question it could benefit from another 5 to 10 years in the bottle. The nose had not altered much, but the flavors were really starting to reveal themselves now. Gobs of cherries intermingled with mocha/chocolate. Some nice plum fruit was now apparent with a touch of spice. This is a very complex wine with well-balanced tannins and a quite dry, lingering finish. Clearly a bottle you want to open up with a big steak.
Overall, a superb wine. I can see why it was rated so high, and much enjoyed when tasted on both occasions. My only complaint would be the overly dry finish. It was more a finish that one would expect out of a Merlot forward blend – not Cabernet. I would also prefer another 2 years of age minimum before opening this particular bottle, but that is hardly the wine’s fault. This wine is a 94 pointer to me. For its incredible complexity and well-balanced tannins, the finish just isn’t there to justify a 95 plus point “classic” rating.
Ryan O’Connor
Posted in Cabernet Sauvignon, Meritage, Wine Review, Wines over $20
A few nights ago I was cooking up a nice Saturday night meal and I thought I’d take a few pictures and email them to my friends and then bask in the glory of their admiration at what an awesome cook I am…
Here is how the thread went:
My Dinner 6:36pm
Yum!
and my friend Kevin responded:
CRAZY! MY DINNER IS VERY SIMILAR! 7:05pm
Thanks to Kevin the beer connoisseur!!!
Price: $8.99 at various Costco’s Scroll to the bottom of the page for more info on where to find it
Cameron Hughes Wine Lot 137
Alcohol: 14.9%
I attended an all Cameron Hughes Wine tasting and this was one of my favorites among the 5 or 6 that were served. I tasted this wine after tasting a couple of Chardonnay and a Merlot based Meritage, just to put this in perspective. The nose was pleasant, nothing unpleasant, nothing particularly amazing. I picked up on maybe a bit of ripe dark fruit and very mild spice. The color was quite pretty, a luminescent ruby color, kinda sexy!
The palate is where this wine began to impress. Rich and ripe, blackberries. A good solid wine, the 14.9% alcohol surprised me, no heat from that, and the price of $9 bucks? What?
So I went down to Costco and bought 6 bottles and gave the wine a closer inspection.
Upon closer inspection…
Pretty delicious and remarkably easy to drink, quite versatile. I had it with baked salmon one night and concoction of re-fried beans and rice, ground beef, Cholula sauce and Monterey jack cheese the next. I was lazy and mixed all the left overs together and washed it down with the wine from the night before.
The wine held up nicely and actually mixed quite nicely with the spicy food.
I picked up on a little more of the earthiness during my bottle testing.
Conclusion: Although not extremely complex, this would definitely suffice as a daily drinker, and it’s far superior to any of the under $10 Shiraz/Syrah that I’ve tried. If you like the Kunde Estate Syrah, you’ll like this too.
Tim
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I recently dropped by AZ Wine Company and visited with Kelly, the manager. He took me on a tour of the store, as well as pointed out a few of the exclusive wines. These are wines that are not sold anywhere else outside of the vineyard. The great thing about AZ Wine company on Scottsdale road in sunny Scottsdale Arizona, is there is the Atlas restaurant right next door. There is a doorway between the two places. You can buy your wine and go next door to the restaurant, or if you attending a wine tasting you can have the food brought into the wine store. What a great combination!
Weekly Wine Journal
