Chicago Foodies

2005 Domaine Zind Humbrecht Gewurztraminer Herrenweg de Turckheim

Can you remember the name of this wine?  Branding generally is not common with French and German wines in particular, which is not entirely a bad thing.  The modern wine world is full of gimmicks and ways to try to get you to remember their brand.  On the flip side, try to remember this one when you are in the aisle of your wine shop.  Zind Humbrect, like a lot of Alsatian producers, tends to produce a variety of styles under nearly identical labels or "cuvees".  One of them was a real charmer: in their 2005 Herrenweg de Turckheim we tasted rose petals, peaches, and green apples as well as a concentrated stony, gravelly quality.

2005 Domaine Zind Humbrecht Gewurztraminer Herrenweg de Turckheim
Binny's Beverage Depot stores

2004 Spatlese – Reichsgraf von Kesselstatt

I am beginning to find that German, Alsatian (French), and Austrian wines are among my favorite whites:  From bone-dry Austrian Gruner Veltliners to sweeter German rieslings, I find that the overall practicality with food and, for German wines in particular, generally low alcohol percentages, make a bottle of wine with dinner for two a practical option.   (Sorry, wine pumps don't always keep wine well even when stored air-tight.  They may, at best, prolong the life of a wine for a week.)   

Sunday Wine Tastings: Lush Wine and Spirits

For a while a friend of mine has tried to pursuade me to visit Lush Wine and Spirits.   Tucked away in Roscoe Village, it is a bit out of the way for me geographically so I never stumbled upon an opportunity to check it out.  Finally we met up for a free Sunday wine tasting. 

House of Glunz: Old World Wines in Old Town

I guess for many reasons, there are no wine shops left in the Gold Coast.  You can pick a few bottles at the Goddess and Grocer, and there's Treasure Island supermarket, but that's it.  Gold Coast's lack of wine shops bring me to Old Town where House of Glunz is located on Wells just North of Division.  In terms of aesthetics, it's my favorite shop.  The shelves are old wood, there are empty bottles going back generations, with old barrels of sherry and family heirlooms, and the dusty, worn feel reminds me of some of the older European wine shops.  Paintings of grapes and stained glass make it a cathedral of wine shops.

2001 J Russian River Valley Vintage Brut

For Valentine's Day I decided to open a bottle that had been hanging out in the house a couple years, none other than from J Winery in the Russian River Valley appellation of Sonoma County.  I don't drink a lot of champagne and defer to others with much more expertise on the topic, but J seems to exhibit a lot of the Champagne characteristics.  It has a sort of yeasty mustiness that I quite enjoy in French champagne, and it has characteristics of green apples and a hint of lime.   I bought it direct from the winery but found a Non-Vintage (NV) at Sam's for $31.99--I cannot comment on the non-vintage but the 2001 is superb if you can find it in Chicago.  The 1999 wine is for $42.50 on their website (www.jwine.com)

Txomin Etxaniz: Txakoli from the Basque country

Don't ask me how to pronounce the wine producer, but I can tell you that the varietal is Txakoli (or I've heard txakolina), and it is pronounced "chocoli", like chocolate.  For $16.99 it's an unusual variety in that it is a lightly sparkling off-dry whitewith hints of green apples and a minerality to it.

Chateau Margene: An Incredible California Cab

I do not drink enough California Cabernet Sauvignon to be comfortable to have a conversation or even pick one out of a wine list.  That can be happily deferred to someone who actually knows what they're doing.  There is one Cab that I tried at a private wine tasting in Milwaukee nearly four years ago and continues to be a favorite:  Chateau Margene.  At the time I tasted the 1999 and fell in love.  Unfortunately it cannot be bought directly in Chicago, so I split a case with two relatives about three years ago.

Cru Wine Bar: A second look

It has been almost a  year ago since I had reviewed Cru Wine Bar.  I love wine bars, and the fact that it is in the Gold Coast makes it an instant plus, especially since it is near one of our condo's.  With my wife's coupon in hand we decided to taste a couple dishes.

The first server nearly scared us off.   When my wife asked about what type of crab was in the crab and artichoke gratin, she barked "it's crab."  Her series of short answers almost caused us to walk out.  No hard feelings, of course, just that we made a bad decision.  Luckily she didn't serve us, and another person came, and she was more pleasant to deal with.

Great Spanish Bargain: Hoya de Cadenas

Every time I feel like I've exhausted wines from Spain, I find a new wine from an undiscovered region, and usually for under $15 to boot.  Spain has so many Denominación de Origen regions (72 according to Wikipedia) that I'd have to quit my day job to be an expert, and while I love Spanish wine I'm not prepared to subject the rest of my life to poverty, not to mention ruin my tounge in those rich Spanish tannins.

Louis Jadot – Good $20 Burgundy

The more wine I drink, the more I go toward more subtle European styles.  This especially holds true for Spanish and Portugese wines, and to a lesser degree, Italian.  With France, I especially struggle when it comes to red wine.  I like Cotes du Rhone, and even Beaujolais, but struggle when it comes to Burgundy (that's regional French Pinot Noir).  Finding a good Burgundy is like betting a number on roulette--hopefully that 1 in 38 chance will come my way and I will win the jackpot. 

There is one wine, albeit widely available, that fails to disappoint:  Louis Jadot.  Though I wouldn't call it spectacular, and it definitely isn't cheap it's a nice balance of earthy French winemaking and Pinot Noir greatness.   This is one exception where I tend to favor a New World style – I don't know, even $70-a-bottle wines have failed to stimulate me, but Louis Jadot is dependable and risk free.

Louis Jadot Bourgogne (Blend) 2005
Most major wine retailers, Whole Foods
Around $20

De Lozar - Ribera Del Duero | Genestiere Chante Cigale

One of the things I do honestly enjoy doing is asking for help at Sam's Wine and Spirits – especially at their Marcey Street location. I was initally looking for a specific syrah and when I found out it was long gone got into one of those conversations you have with a bookseller or a collector who shares a common interest. To put it mildly it was a more engaging process to find a couple of choice wines than the one I typically have buying shoes, athletic or dress.

I took him up on two specifically. The first was in lieu of a $20 Chateauneuf du Pap. The other was kind of a leap of faith based on a tempranillo conversation.

López de Heredia: One of the Ultimate Riojas

Sunday I walked into Sam's and got a little carried away...for good reason.  Buying López de Heredia Viña Tondonia..it's about as old school as it gets for Spanish Rioja.  The Reserva is sold after six years in oak and six more in bottle.   And get this.. the Gran Reserva is aged even more, so the 1987 was released after close to 20 years after harvest!  Spanish DOC regulations require Gran Reservas be aged two years in oak and three in bottle, but like the remaining traditional producers Lopez de Heredia far exceeds these standards.

Quinto dos Roques

From the Dao region of Portugal, this wine is great with both food and on its own.  I love a mix of old-fashioned European wine know-how and quality without gimmicky labels and so-called “modern” styles with new oak. With just the right amount of oak (i.e., very little),  Quinto dos Roques has cherry, plum, and chocolate notes, and it was a good pairing with a tomato sauce and gnocchi dish.

 

Best of all it’s $11.99 at Sam’s.

Carignan from the South of France

This isn’t exactly a common varietal of wine to taste. It's hard to find. Despite the French name origins of the grape are credited to Spain. There it is called Cariñena, and it is usually mixed with Grenache (or Garnacha in Spanish), a more common grape here in the U. S.

So, since I love to check out obscure varietals, the $6.99 special at Whole Foods jumped out at me. It was a vin de pays from Biziers in the Languedoc region of France. For those of you unfamiliar with Languedoc it was the source of the “Wine Lake”, where wine producers were dumping their product rather than selling it.

 

One fact not quite well known in the U.S. is that the Languedoc-Roussillon region produces more wine than any other region in France—more than Burgundy, Bordeaux, the Rhone Valley, or Champagne. 

Decanter Magazine: Honesty Trumps Hype

I admit I read Wine Spectator on the odd occasion and get sucked into their top 50 lists, especially with certain varietals and regions being foreign to me. Maybe I just don’t get it but it seems to be all about the marketing at the end of the day. 

Unfortunately, and I hate to admit I’ve done this myself in the past, people pick the wine based on the rating. When you don’t have enough information to make a decision you find yourself relying upon other sources. Unfortunately Wine Spectator ratings seem to somehow correlate with prices.

Unusual Bordeaux: 2003 Les Roches de Ferrand

Bordeaux reds usually scare me off.  The good ones are far too expensive--I've never put down money for a bottle, much less a case of Latour, Lafite, or Mouton-Roschild.  I did sample some courtesy of a business school classmate, but that was over a decade ago, and never appreciated the free offers of wine at the time, because back then I mostly drank beer. 

A Good Cheap Red (and it's not Yellow Tail)

Hats off to Whole Foods for their occasional wine specials, and one thing I've noticed is their focus on the Iberian peninsula.  One recent special is the Castano Monastrell '06.  On sale for $7.99, it is from the Yecla region of Spain.  The what region? Exactly. 

Drink of the Week... Drysack Medium Sherry

Wow. Like the Madras wasn't girly enough. If there's any consolation it's that I'm watching hockey while drinking my sherry. To make it even better it's the Flyer's game. Looking to see which Flyer will get fined and suspended for another illegal hit. In short, it's a far-cry from the Niles Crane sherry-drinking-type thing.

Portugese Reds

I was listening to an excellent '60s and '70s Brazilian band called Os Mutantes, and since Brazilians speak Portugese (and also because Portugese wines are cheap) I somehow started thinking of Portugese reds.   As Spanish reds are becoming more well-known, and of course, higher in value, it was time to head west to their neighbor.

Willamette Valley Wineries

California's wine country is on the list but I'm making my way south. I've been to several good wineries in Washington state and have just enjoyed a busy day in Willamette valley's Dundee County drinking some awesome Pinots. To be honest I'm fairly sick of them but appreciate Oregon's ability to produce them.

You would think that you would have to have a plan when you decide to spend a day winery-hopping. The county's blue info signs make things pretty easy. Not only that but where a late start might kill a day hiking, most places don't open until 11am so you're pretty safe.

I would suggest drinking responsibly so spit some out or get a designated driver. We made it to Lange, Torii Mor, Archery Summit, Argyle, Duck Pond, Sokol Blosser, Erath and Anne Amie. Considering we covered 8 wineries in 4 hours without planning a thing you can come to the simple conclusion that not only are the wines in the area great but it's really easy to get to them all spur of the moment. 

Fino Sherry: Underappreciated Treasure

Many of us have had sherry before...perhaps a super-sweet cream sherry or a super-sour dry sherry, perhaps as a result of the bottle being open too long.  Fino sherry is the driest--drier than most wine..period.   Within Madrid fino sherry is nearly ubiquitous in restaurants and cervezerias, and what a wonderful apertif.   And the clean, crisp, dry taste. 

The wines used to produce sherry are predominantly made from the palomino grape and are enveloped by a special type of yeast called flor that comes from barrell-aging in the port down of Jerez on the southern coast.  This is after the wine is fortified with brandy from the same grape varietals.    The taste is very complex, a result of the flor and the mixtures of aged wines from different vintages.

Spanish Whites and Rosés

Lately I've taken great pleasure in the bargains surrounding Spanish wine.  For a couple years I've enjoyed the rave responses I've received by taking a bottle of Rioja to a party.  Names like Marco Real, Marques de Cacares, and Monticello Gran Reserva have proven to be dependable successes.  However, it's only been in maybe the past year or so that I've gotten into Spanish whites and rosés, and when going to the supermarket I know I can get a bargain rosé for between $7 and $10.    For those of you not in the know, most European rosés are dry, not sweet, and served cold tend to be refreshing, not the sugary sweet Turning Leaf or Gallo that you see on Walgreen's drugstore shelves.

Que Syrah: Wine Tastings

I’ve heard a lot of people rave about Sam’s and the selection there. I’ve yet to go there and I believe most everything I hear. If you know exactly what you want, down to the label, then okay, I get it. For me, I prefer the small wine shop with a limited selection. I find the wine tends to be more carefully selected, which is nice if you know the type of wine you want to buy but not necessarily the label and prefer expert advice without having to hunt it down.

 

We tasted wines from the Italian region of Piedmont for $35. Wine tastings tend to vary a lot in price and quality, but for this one not only did I not feel like I paid a lot but I also felt like this was outstanding value for the money. The people who ran the course were laid back and chatted with just about all the participants, but equally of importance was that they did not cheat on their wine. It was also nice that the participants were very into wine, many of them were in fact familiar with the region, asked very specific questions about decanting the more fragile varieties, and didn’t say things like “I like the whites better” or “This isn’t sweet enough.”  Well, this wasn't Wine 101.

Cru: Food at a Wine Bar

A coupon for one free entree for the price of another is too good to resist, and it's for our local favorite wine bar, so of course we had to use it.  Cru is a River North wine bar not really known for their food.   The atmosphere is cozy, like a living room, but it seems they went a little overboard on the Tuscan look. Most of the people inside were not eating, so we felt like we were taking a bit of a chance.   Fortunately we weren't disappointed...

Champage 2007

Champagne, at least to me, is the easiest of wines to grasp. I glaze over when I start to think of all the different reds and whites. Sparklers are easy to keep track of - especially restricting yourself to a single region. Here are a few choices for all tomorrow's parties.

First and foremost get a larger bottle before 2 or more bottles. Champagne in magnums or larger drink better. They sometimes even cost the same and that big-ass bottle is no joke.

Under $20 - It's fairly common to find and always worth the money, Joseph Perrier's yellow label is the $20 yardstick that you can measure against. They're priced just higher this year so if you're getting a couple, I'd combine it with the Bernard Massard or the Albrecht Lebrun. Those are both in the $15 range but they're not from the region. Trader Joe's has a Jean Maire that's $18.99 but I didn't enjoy it.

$20-$30 - Drappier has several different labels so ask your purveyor. They're all very good. I'm not a big fan of the Brice bottles. Mumm's Cordon Rouge is a solid bet and often available at the grocery store!

$30-$40 - Cliquot is the most drunk Champagne in the states. If you're looking to get some recognition this may be the best bet. Bollinger is not to be confused with Beringer. It's my favorite. Palliard's brut is great and very toasty. You get a few options for Rosés and Demi's at this price range but the Billecart Rosé is over $40 and their Brut is one of the best bottles you can find.

Champagne at Binny's

If I had more money I'd have a Champagne problem My friends tell me of the actor who played J.R. on Dallas and his Champagne problems. I think they're making fun of the fact that I actually really do love Champagne. I love the taste of a bottle of Bollinger - from the first glass to the last. It's a great wine that you can actually appreciate as you drink the whole bottle.

It's not New Year's that has me excited and thinking about bubbly. It's the Binny's Champagne tasting tomorrow night. If it's anything like I remember it I'm in for a real treat. A few years back the mob, and it IS a mob (it sells out every year), was congregating around the Cristals and the Doms leaving me a B-line for the Henri Giraud but that might have been at the Sam's tasting. But Giraud is my favorite Champagne of them all. Better than the R.D. Bollingers, better than any Salon or Krug.

X/O Chicago

After a really neat small theatre production called Baker & Huff performed in a bar (8pm at the Town Hall Pub 3340 N. Halsted running through April 8th- $10 well spent - Box Office 773-345-0726). We headed north on Halsted to X/O (3441 N. Halsted) hoping for a good bite. I'll admit 11:30pm rolls around and Taco Bell gets more and more appealing.

X/O has an abbreviated menu after 11pm. In the interest of keeping it simple we ordered two dishes and following up beers at the pub, we were sticking with water. The place is pretty trendy and the crowd was dressed for Saturday night in Boys Town.

We were seated right away and our waiter was very helpful making suggestions. We ordered the braised oxtail and the scallops. They arrived and were pretty and very tasty.

You'd think with a name like Cru....

I was at Cru once before for a glass of wine late one afternoon while waiting for someone or something... it was a while ago. It was good. They had a variety and the place was comfortable even while empty. I was still expecting a nice wine bar that fit with the surroundings and had the chops to sport the name Cru.

This time the place was crowded and we sat off of our large group of about 12 and ordered flights of Riesling and a cheese plate. The Riesling decision came after my wife arrived in time to stop an order for a half bottle of Proseco that on seeing I immediately regretted ordering. It was that bowling pin shaped bottle with the yellow P that, while I've had it and it's good, I know I could get at virtually any wine store in the state. I looked at the Riesling list and said sure... Washington state Rieslings would be a light and fruity simple solution for a pre-dinner quaff (HA - pre-dinner quaff!! Shoot me now!).

Spice World: Asian Spice

I’m sure a studious foodie out there could author an entire treatise on the near-infinite spice combinations in Asian cuisine.  Today, let’s pull our Asian spice example from Thailand.  Picture a mouth-watering platter of chicken satay with spicy peanut sauce. How on earth could any wine handle soy sauce, peanut sauce, spicy red peppers, garlic, and onions? 

Spice World: Mex/SW Spice

Do you crave spicy food?  Is one of the joys in your life getting all misty-eyed over a spicy plate of curry? When most of us hear the words ‘spicy food,’ we think of throat-burning, perspiration-inducing spice.  Yet there’s more to spicy cuisine than watering eyes and flaming mouths.  Consider the following spice categories:  Savory spice, Mexican/Southwestern spice, Asian spice, and sweet spice.  How on earth does one select wine for such spices?  It can be tricky.  Read on, and I’ll do my best to help.

Just Be Simple Again

“An increasing indifference and a decrease in usage means that we are gradually forgetting how to use our senses…city life cuts us off from the profusion of tastes and smells that occur in nature. Our instinctive curiosity about them is lost, and with it the potential to have our memories and feelings stirred. The natural consequence of untrained and little used senses is a limiting of opportunity and a loss of sensitivity as the range of tastes and smells that one finds acceptable is gradually narrowed down.” -Emile Peynaud.

Next to our tattered and faded old white farm house my family rented from a gentleman named Pete Fish, my mother and father planted several acres of crops in the rich soil that is so common in central Illinois. This nitrogen rich earth was black as night and riddled with earth worms, as well as the occasional iodine bottle and arrowhead. This was central Illinois in the nineteen seventies and money was scant; my father being the son of a farmer did what he knew best to feed his family, he planted crops.

Shed Your Yellow Tail

     Here in the frugal Midwest, we love a bargain almost as much as we love steak, potatoes, monster trucks, and Sandra Bullock movies. Nothing speaks to the frugal diner more than the words “bring your own bottle”. You can see ears perk up as soon as the words are mentioned and you breathe a sigh of relief, contemplating which color Yellow Tail you will bring. Will it be teal, the classic yellow, or the purple flavor?

Got $3?

All must sing the praise of Charles Shaw. $3 and you get a choice of Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot, Cabernet, Shiraz and Nouveau... (cook with the nouveau).

It's a blend of excess wine from a variety of Califonia vinyards that they bottle and blow out the door for $2 bucks in CA. CV is that a good bet is to snag a bottle from Trader Joe's and pop it in the car. If you like it grab some more. A friend remarked that it can be quite a find but very inconsistent. Due to the blending you are kind of playing roulette and he then suggested the afformentioned strategy.