I love Pinot Noir.  It is a stunning wine, however the popularity of Pinot Noir has made it so everyone loves it.  I sometimes do not want to be a part of “everyone” so I have some secret ‘sort of like Pinot but cooler cause not everyone knows about them’ wines.  These are the varietals I try to steer my guests, my friends or even strangers in the wine store towards when they might be looking to try something different but still stay in their comfortable Pinot zone.

Gamay gets the top spot for me, but don’t be fooled because the label will say Beaujolais.  I prefer a Beaujolais Cru.  A Cru is a vineyard or group of vineyards that has been recognized for its quality.  These wines are light bodied with fruity cherries and raspberries on the palate.  It is a great choice to pair with Thanksgiving dinner.  Don’t worry if your local wine store only has a Beaujolais Nouveau or a Beaujolais Villages.  Just try one and you will see what I mean.

There are so many incredible wines from Italy.  I adore almost every one.  Pinot Noir, also known as Pinot Nero, is grown in Italy.  I find they are a bit heavier than I like my Pinot to be. From the Piedmont region in north-west Italy comes Barbera.  Dark cherry, plum, blackberry, violet and nutmeg are some of the notes you will notice.  Barbera is low in tannins, has bright acidity and  can be enjoyed young.  A fun fact about Barbera…..in Italy there are actually a few slightly sparkling Barberas.  I have never come across one since they usually aren’t exported so if anyone goes to Italy, please bring me back a bottle!

Cheers!

J Mac

 

I did not grow up in a household that drank fancy wine.  I grew up in a household that drank jug or boxed wine.  No exaggeration.  My mom used to drink Chablis from a box.  My first memory of wine is my mothers friend pulling into the driveway in her dark blue VW Rabbit with a jug of Ernest & Julio Gallo chardonnay.

Once I started going out to bars I drank beer or mixed drinks.  I did not start out drinking white zinfandel or Riesling .  Wine didn’t enter my life until I was 23, a Northerner brand new to a charming Southern town, and her first grown up restaurant job.  Meaning, it was a very expensive, white tablecloth, fancy schmancy joint.  I think the general manager hired me because he honestly felt bad for me.

I knew nothing about fine dining, did not know what half (ok, more than 1/2) the words on the menu were and the wine list terrified me.  I left my first shift, drove home to my first grown up apartment and burst into tears.  I was terrified to go back.  I did go back and while the whole staff was nice to me, one person saw my lack of knowledge and insecurities and decided to help.  For the purpose of this persons privacy, I will call him S.P.

By my second week, S.P. had taken me under his wing and was going to teach this little duck how to not make a fool of herself.  By week three I was drinking Pommery Brut Rose champagne.  I then graduated to Babcock chardonnay.  And then, finally my first red wine, Tommasi Amarone.  S.P. taught me to adore Pinot Noir.  How to respect winemakers and the people who sell wine.  I have never looked back.  I jumped in with both feet.  Because I had a teacher who would accept nothing less.  I am lucky enough to have found the person who really wanted to share his knowledge and was genuinely interested in my learning. Who wasn’t the intimidating wine snob we all hate.

Once I left that delightful Southern town, I started to learn more and more.  And then for a little while I refused to learn more because I figured out that wine is one of those subjects that you can never learn everything about.  I got scared and did not want to look like an idiot.  Wine professionals can be intimidating.  I got over that fear once I figured out that no one knows everything and sometimes we all look like idiots, especially if there is enough wine involved.  I just keep learning, keep taking tests, keep reading and tasting.

So, thanks, S.P.  You are an amazing teacher and a treasured friend.  I hope someday that a little duck will need me and I can help them the same way you helped me.

Cheers!

J Mac

I feel as though Chardonnay gets most of the white wine attention.  For deeply personal, and embarrassing reasons (that my mother actually told me not to write about), Chardonnay and I do not share the same space….usually.  There are ethereal Chardonnays, unfortunately they aren’t usually in my budget.

There are varietals that are similar to Chardonnay. They might not be as readily available as Chardonnay but when I find them, they are ordered or bought almost without hesitation. I have found that these wines share quite a few characteristics with the Reigning Queen of white wine, without the personal humiliation of having to actually drink Chardonnay myself.

Viognier, traditionally grown in the Northern Rhone Valley of France, but also the US and Australia, is the first example.  It is textural and aromatic.  On the nose it can have lots of herbacious notes: chamomile, thyme and lavender.  Viognier tastes like white flowers mixed with tropical fruits. Both Viognier and Chardonnay share the same creamy mouth feel and tropical fruits.

Also from the Northern Rhone Valley, Marsanne and Roussane.  The two are traditionally blended.  Think almonds, slightly spiced pear and white peaches.  All with a voluminous mouth feel.  A yummy choice.

I saved my absolutely favorite of this group for last…….Fiano di Avellino.  It is grown in Campania, Italy, as well as in Sicily.  I fell in love with Fiano di Avellino years ago when a wine director named Cindy taught me how to sell it to a guest who says they love Chardonnay.  It is dry, fruity and nutty.  No really, toasted hazelnuts and almonds.  Fiano is a glorious golden color.  With a lively acidity and the aroma of honey, flowers and pears, what’s not to love? Fiano di Avellino was also my first ‘Holy Cow Italian Wine Corks Are Different’ wine.  They tend to be a bit longer so I might have made a complete fool of myself trying to open a bottle that I had just suggested to two lovely ladies.   Thankfully they were very kind to me so I wasn’t scarred for life, as I was with the above not to be discussed Chardonnay experience.

Cheers!

J Mac

I am going to put a disclaimer on this one, my Fella hates Napa Valley Wine Coolers.  Clearly, he is wrong.  I love him dearly despite his poor taste in weird beverages.

My parents gifted me this recipe.  I know, I know, most parents pass on meatball secrets or holiday cookie recipes.  We have those too but this one is infinitely more fun!

The legend goes that in the 1970’s when you went to a bar in California and ordered a wine cooler, you got this concoction.  Bartles & James had not yet bottled their wine/malt beverage yet so bartenders made this up.  I use this when someone has lovingly brought a bottle of wine to my home and it isn’t one I enjoy.  Or it is hot and I would like something refreshing.  Or I have just had an excruciating evening at work.  Or I am having a summer gathering and kind of want to show my wine loving friends how fun wine can be when not taken remotely seriously.  I have had Certified Sommeliers literally raving about Napa Valley Wine Coolers.  I may, or may not, have seen a grown woman near tears after a particularly grueling shift, brighten at the mere mention of a Napa Valley Wine Cooler.

So, here it is.  Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it.

Napa Valley Wine Cooler Recipe:

Solo cup (I guess a glass works just as well but somehow a Solo cup makes it taste better)

Ice (I prefer crushed)

Red wine (any varietal)

2 lime wedges

2 lemon wedges

Ginger Ale

Put ice in cup, fill half way with red wine, top with ginger ale, squeeze lemon and lime.  garnish with a straw.

That’s it.  And it is wonderful!!!!

Cheers!

J Mac

 

I am not friends with pinot grigio.  Not because I drank too much at a wedding once but because what I have found, especially by the glass, is mundane.  It lacks imagination. I want a varietal with crisp acidity and a lovely personality. For example, one of my favorites, Picpoul, a Southern Rhone (France) varietal, tastes like a more mature pinot grigio. Picpoul has bright acidity, minerality, an upbeat freshness, citrus, and apricots on the palate.  It is a delightful summer wine.

I do understand that a very large part of the population for some reason enjoys  it….or just orders it because they are afraid to ask questions.  When I experience someone say “Oh, I will just have a glass of pinot grigio” I want to literally scream.  JUST READ THE WINE BY THE GLASS LIST AND SEE WHAT ELSE MIGHT BE OUT THERE!!!!!  (That is my inner sommelier scream)

Wine professionals spend hours, days, weeks and even months designing a wine list. They meet with suppliers, smell wine, drink wine, spit wine, have purple teeth by the time “normal” people are stopping by for happy hour.  They deal with pricing and then once they decide on a wine to offer by the glass, they start to pray that the winery or the state actually has enough to supply a wine by the glass program.  I believe a lot of other wine professionals feel the same way I do about pinot grigio, they are just far too polite to say so on a public forum.

So the next time you are going to just order the same glass of wine you always order, think of that purple toothed wine person who sweat blood to design a list with something for everyone.  And just read it.. Maybe you will find a glass of picpoul or gruner veltliner (Austrian wine that tastes like sauvignon blanc and reisling had a baby).

Cheers!

J Mac