Welcome to our newest
feature! Picks & Nibbles is our
catchall, grab bag, random thoughts
column where we will offer brief comment
on wines, foods, restaurants -- whatever
-- that get our attention. Enjoy!
June
27 -- A late night steakhouse meal
after a baseball game featured a bottle
of . This is a Cabernet Sauvignon
blend out of Australia's Yarra Valley
region and one of the country's most
revered and pioneering winemakers, Dr.
Bailey Carrodus. (When I visited the
region a few years ago, there was much
whispering that we might actually get
to meet Dr. Carrodus, now in his nineties,
but alas it was not to be...)
Anyone who thinks that
Australia doesn't offer terroir simply
doesn't know much about Australian wine.
The Yarra
Valley is a great example of what
cool climate wines can do in Australia,
and Yarra Yering may be the ultimate
example of a Yarra Valley "first
growth."
When Dr. Carrodus created
the estate in 1969, he chose a north-facing
hillside, with cooling breezes, significant
variation between daytime and nighttime
temperatures, and deep, gravely soils
with excellent drainage. Careful canopy
management and unwavering dry-farming
(particularly fortunate now as Australia
faces water shortages) has created sturdy
vines, and keeping yields low ultimately
leads to beautiful concentration in
the wine.
Since 1997, winemaker
Mark Haisma carries on Dr. Carrodus'
vision, continuing to create cellar-worthy
wines with finesse and depth. ($75 suggested retail,
significantly more at a steakhouse...)
is mostly Cabernet Sauvignon, with Merlot,
Malbec, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot
making up the blend. It offers delicate
pencil shavings and mineral accents
to the elegant blackberry and currant
fruit, with smoke and pretty Bordeaux-like
balance and long finish. Delicious now
and over the next seven or eight years.
Locate
this wine online or in your area.
June
14 -- If you're looking for really
well-made Merlot that is balanced, elegant
and food-friendly, you won't be disappointed
with the ($35),
with its pretty, medium-bodied red cherry
fruit laced with sweet tobacco and light
spices. Long, complex, evolving finish.
Ready to drink now and over the next
three or four years. Locate
this wine online or in your area.
June 11 -- Not
too many California wine regions have
more buzz these days than the Santa
Lucia Highlands, along with the
prized Pinot Noirs coming out of the
area. It's giving the Russian River
Valley a real run for its money as the
best Pinot pedigree, with prices quickly
climbing into the over-$50 range and
sales booming.
We recently tasted the
($33) with
Director of Winemaking Scott Kelley.
It's very pretty, with elegant, silky
black fruit that picks up delicate spices
and toast through the lingering finish.
Ready to drink now and over the next
three or four years. Locate
this wine online or in your area.
June 8 -- Planning
to visit Tuscany this summer? Be sure
to drop into Cambio
d'Abito in Montepulciano! This
multi-goodies shop features artisan
creations including clothing and accessories
made entirely by hand, on the premises,
by the artist/owner. Baubles include
one of the prettiest rings we've seen
lately -- a swirling silver wire and
pearl concoction that manages to be
at once girly and modern. Via dell'Opio
nel Corso, 62, Montepulciano.
June 4 -- Half
the fun of writing about wine are the
surprises. Those moments when a wine
is so much better than you could have
hoped. (It happens the other way too,
when wines completely disappoint --
those moments are not as fun...)
Such was the case with
the ($10).
This is a lovely white from Bulgaria,
offering perfumed floral aromas that
introduce delicate but concentrated
flavors of lime blossom, white nectarine,
apricot and tropical melon. With a clean,
fruity finish. Ready to drink now. Locate
this wine online or in your area.
We paired it with some of the best roasted,
salted pistachios we've ever had (from
Santa Barbara, as it turns out) and
were in pre-dinner-nibbles heaven.
June 3 -- We were
looking at this
recipe for an idea of how to use
an aged Gouda in a brunch dish...
And since we didn't have our own stash
of duck eggs or truffles, we concocted
a dialed-down, but still delicious version.
Simply dress some baby salad greens
with salt, pepper and a bit of olive
oil. Top with a sunny-side up egg cooked
in butter. With a vegetable peeler,
shave a bit of aged Gouda (we used the
Winchester
Gouda from California) over the
top -- we ended up with about 6 long
shavings. Then add just a couple of
drops of really good quality truffle
oil. Grind a bit more black pepper over
the top and serve! Rich, flavorful,
easy. Some toasted brioche or other
bread would go along nicely. (As would
a glass of good Champagne!)
May
28 -- Poitou is the name of France's
most important goat-breeding region
-- located between Paris and Bordeaux
-- and is the home of a wide range of
goat's milk cheeses, of which Chabichou
du Poitou is probably the most acclaimed.
Little pyramids of Chabichou
begin appearing in markets in spring
and by summer, after just a few months,
are at their delicious best. (They do
also age well, becoming interestingly
hard and crumbly.)
Natural-rinded, with a
dreamy cream line just below the rind
and a dense, slightly chalky (in a good
way!) center, Chabichou offers a lovely
balance of acidity, saltiness, sweet
cream, and mild but complex flavors.
Plus, they're pretty, which is a nice
bonus.
We
celebrated our first Chabichou of the
season by pairing it with the
($17), a sleek South African Sauvignon
Blanc that offers zesty lime and crisp
herbal notes balanced against green
fig and melon fruit, with a fresh, elegant
finish. Ready to drink now. Locate
this wine online or in your area.
We added a litlte pitcher
of local honey and some oat crackers
for a delicious cheese course. Summer
ripe peaches would be a nice addition,
and the cheese matches equally well
with other Sauvignon Blancs (especially
Sancerre) and crisp Chablis. If you
cannot find Chabichou du Poitou in your
area, you can order it online from New
York's Artisanal
Premium Cheese.
May
21 -- Bennett Lane just continues
to impress, don't they? Great Cabs and
other wines, NASCAR success, even a
fun website.
The
($35) continues the winning streak with
an elegant blend of Cabernet Sauvignon
(64%), Merlot (25%) and Syrah that offers
layers of black cherry, blackberry,
blueberry, dusty cocoa, brown spices
and cedar that come together on a rich,
full-bodied finish. Delicious now and
over the next four or five years. Locate
this wine online or in your area.
May 18 -- Another
new brand from the good folks at Gallo
is Ghost Pines -- this time back on
their home turf of Sonoma County. Of
the three initial releases (Chardonnay,
Merlot & Cabernet Sauvignon), our
favorite is the ($23). It offers fresh,
concentrated blackberry and cherry fruit
laced with anise, orange rind, clove
and sweet, toasty oak -- all on a smooth,
ripe, full-bodied frame. Nice finish,
too. Ready to drink now. Locate
this wine online or in your area.
May
15 -- It had been one of those long
days that need/deserve/demand a treat
for dinner -- something that smoothes
out the rough edges of the day and makes
the evening a rewarding high point of
the exhausting effort. Our choice? The
($50). This vintage offers deep, sleek,
blackberry aromas and flavors that are
layered with licorice, smoke, blueberry
conserve, clove, cinnamon and toast,
and a long, concentrated finish. A blend
of Cabernet Sauvignon (76%), Merlot
(18%), Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot.
Ready to drink now and over the next
four or five years. Locate
this wine online or in your area.
May 12 -- Looking
for a cheap, tasty red wine for parties
or your friend who likes light, low
tannin reds? Check out the
($6). Made by BV, this wine offers entry
level but tasty strawberry and red cherry
fruit that stays juicy through the smooth,
light finish. (And it never gets cough
medicine syrupy, which is more than
we can say for lots of Merlots costing
several times as much!) Ready to drink
now. Locate
this wine online or in your area.
May 9 -- A lovely
patio moment called for a pretty white
wine, and the
($20) did the trick nicely. With aromatic,
silky nectarine, fig, spicy pear and
a subtle hit of citrus that mingle on
the lush, creamy finish. Ready to drink
now. Handfuls of smoked almonds made
a tasty go-with nibble. Locate
this wine online or in your area.
May
6 -- In a relatively short time,
has become
one of the favorites around here --
seems like everything they make is really
(really) good! Like the
($45). It is just lovely, with smoky,
sweet tobacco notes accenting opulent
blackberry fruit, and espresso bean
and fresh herbal notes emerging on the
long, delicious finish. Ready to drink
now and over the next four or five years.
Locate
this wine online or in your area.
May 2 -- Reaching
for an easy bottle of Italian red resulted
in the delightful Vigne Regali 2006
Dolcetto d'Acqui L'Ardì ($12).
What a nice surprise! Tangy, delicate
red berry and cherry fruit, with some
depth and sweet earth, and a bright
finish. A nice partner for a traditional
Italian pizza -- nothing fancy, just
some ham and cheese. Ready to drink
now. Locate
this wine online or in your area.
April 29 -- The
($60) is a great
choice for a romantic dinner for two.
It is absolutely lovely, with concentrated
blackberry and black cherry fruit on
a smooth frame, with sweet, smoky tobacco
notes, as well as licorice and dusty
chocolate. Long, fleshy, seductive finish.
Tempting now and should age nicely for
the next five or six years. Locate
this wine online or in your area.
April 26 -- With
so many cheese options crowding the
shelves these days (a good thing, to
be sure), sometimes it's nice to have
a few "go to" options. Sure
things that you know you like, that
you're pretty sure most people will
enjoy, and that are versatile enough
to work at just about any moment.
One of those cheeses for
us is Grafton
Village Cheese Company's Classic
Reserve Cheddar. This is the Vermont
dairy's signature cheddar -- aged for
two years and then sealed in black wax.
It's flavorful without being overwhelming,
with a texture that's more creamy than
crumbly, and it's affordable. It's delicious
on it's own, as a pre-dinner nibble
alongside some spiced nuts and a cold
rosé, white wine or beer, and
as part of any cheese course. It also
makes a damn good grilled cheese --
use sourdough bread, just a dab of onion
marmalade, and fry it up with butter
in an iron skillet. Delish.
April
25 -- Came across a "forgotten"
bottle of ($24 at release) the other
evening -- one of those bottles that
probably had been hanging around longer
than planned. (Oh, if only there was
a plan...) What a lovely surprise it
turned out to be! With plenty of pretty
fruit still present and bright. Smooth,
silky, with integrated spices that lingered
on the finish. Note to self: buy more
Rex Hill -- some for now and some for
later. Much later. Locate
this wine online or in your area.
April 24 -- The
sight of a deeply pink California rosé
usually makes me nervous -- it just
looks like a headache in a bottle --
sweet and flabby compared to the bone
dry, mineral-laced, sharp rosés
of Europe that I tend to love. So I
was oh so pleasantly surprised by the
($14). Offering crisp,
fresh, aromatic berry flavors that stay
on the dry side through the fruity finish,
it fit the bill perfectly one recent
warm evening on the patio. Ready to
drink now. Locate
this wine online or in your area.
April
23 -- Tasted a new wine from a new
winery -- the ($18). Loved
it! Dry and crisp and flavorful, with
clean, fresh flavors of complex citrus,
mineral and tropical melon. Stays focused
through the finish. Ready to drink now.
They say they're trying to make a Graves-style
Sauvignon Blanc -- and it shows! Locate
this wine online or in your area.
April 22 -- It's
been a good week for Italian reds around
here! In addition to the Montepulciano,
below, we also enjoyed every drop of
the ($15). A
heck of a deal, this Super Tuscan blend
of Sangiovese, Merlot and Cabernet Franc
offers smooth, vibrant blackberry flavors
from start to lush finish, with toast,
light spices and a subtle earthiness
that linger nicely. Ready to drink now
and over the next three or four years.
Locate
this wine online or in your area.
April
19 -- Hard to beat the price and
quality that we found in the
($13). With concentrated currant and
plum fruit laced with smoke, anise and
a touch of chocolate, it folds into
a medium-bodied, fruity, tasty finish.
So food friendly, it would probably
work with just about anything. We enjoyed
it with an antipasti platter featuring
an assortment of salami, olives, marinated
mushrooms and tomato-topped bruschetta.
Ready to drink now. Locate
this wine online or in your area.
April 16 -- VOICE,
the new restaurant in Houston's hip
Hotel
Icon debuted in the last couple
of weeks. The room is gorgeous -- all
light and sleek and comfortable. (The
website photos have not yet been updated,
by the way -- the red velvet goth-meets-finance
look is a thing of the past.)
Executive
Chef Michael Kramer is at the helm,
and although a couple of recent menu
samplings have had some ups and downs
as the opening kinks are worked out
-- there were enough ups to make us
think that more good things are in store
at VOICE.
The truffle parmesan
fries that come alongside the bar
menu sliders are worth ordering -- a
cone of crisp, addictive, tangy/salty
crunch that would work with whatever
you're drinking. They're actually better
than the sliders, which seemed too bready.
Also at the bar, the "tiny plate
of olives" is not at all tiny
-- an assortment of different types
of garlicky, herb-spiked olives that
were all good.
The mushroom soup "Cappuccino"
is heavenly, with a rich base of crimini
bisque topped with what the menu describes
as truffle foam, but seems entirely
more creamy than foam, and a dusting
of porcini powder. It's served in a
pretty white coffee cup (all the tableware
is lovely, by the way) and is a delicious,
aromatic study in contrasts between
earthy and rich, hot and creamy-cool.
Dreamy.
Desserts include a cold,
creamy peanut butter custard topped
with buttery hazelnut crunch and caramelized
bananas. It's comfort food taken
to fine dining standards -- the kind
of thing you kind of wish you could
balance on your chest and eat with a
big spoon while watching a great movie
in bed. Seriously.
The wine list is great
fun to explore, with some really interesting,
offbeat choices that make experimenting
easy. A $25 varietal Macabeo
from Spain's Catalunya region was delicious
-- concentrated fruit, vibrant acidity,
dry and refreshing, and very Spanish.
Oh, and do try the Scarlett
Jo cocktail -- a potent, but deceptively
easy to drink combination of Southern
Comfort, muddled fresh berries and a
splash of citrus.
The downs? Well, the "crispy"
blue crab cakes weren't, particularly.
Though the crunch of the topping of
a paper thin fennel salad saved the
day, and the flavor was good. The Southwest
chicken Cobb salad felt like a hotel
room service order, with less than perfect
avocado. And the bread needs work --
from the basket of dry rolls on the
tables, to the spongy toasts that ruined
an otherwise appealing warmed goat cheese
with black currants and Texas honey
from the bar menu.
But all in all, VOICE
deserves further exploration. And we
deserve another mushroom cappuccino!
Hotel Icon
220 Main Houston, Texas 77002
tel: 832.667.4470
April
11 -- If you're ever wondering what
all the "Super Tuscan" fuss
is about, track down a bottle of the
($35).
For a reasonable price -- particularly
compared to some of the Toscana (aka
Super Tuscans) wines out there, it is
a wonderful value. Offering full-bodied,
ripe, mouthwatering aromas and flavors
of cassis, black cherry, violet, roasted
coffee bean, toasty vanilla and a touch
of rich chocolate on the smooth, long
finish -- it is delish to the last drop.
Ready to drink now and over the next
four or five years. Locate
this wine online or in your area.
April 8 -- It was
carnivore night recently, with an intense
craving for red meat and red wine. A
bone-in ribeye did the trick (typically
does), and we popped the cork on the
($75) -- which,
frankly, typically does the trick as
well! This vintage is concentrated,
deeply colored and intense, with aromatic
red cherry and plum fruit that finds
a nice balance between tangy and smooth.
Long finish picks up rich coffee, cedar
and spices along the way. Very nice
now and over the next five-plus years.
Locate
this wine online or in your area.
April 5 -- Tasted
two very different, but equally delicious
wines from Buena
Vista Carneros. The ($25) is concentrated
and flavorful, offering intense blueberry
and black currant fruit laced with smoky
spices, licorice and a touch of sweet
earthy notes that all come together
on the fruity finish. Ready to drink
now and over the next three or four
years. Locate
this wine online or in your area.
The
($25)
is elegant and restrained, with light-
to medium-bodied red berry aromas and
flavors that pick up delicate accents
of mushroom and clove on the way to
a lingering finish. Not a California
fruit bomb Pinot, thankfully. Quite
food friendly. Ready to drink now and
over the next two or three years. Locate
this wine online or in your area.
April 2 -- Paso
Robles just keeps making strides in
the wine world, and the
($40) is quite a nice example! Supple
black cherry and plum fruit aromas and
flavors are laced with dusty cocoa,
a light touch of cedar and baking spices.
Nice length maintains richness. Ready
to drink now and over the next two or
three years. Locate
this wine online or in your area.
March 30 -- The
($20) offers pretty peach and citrus
notes that follow through on the medium-bodied
palate, along with fig and creamy pear.
Bright finish lingers nicely. Ready
to drink now. Locate
this wine online or in your area.
We liked it for Sunday brunch alongside
toasted bagels, smoked salmon, cream
cheese and snipped chives. Delish!
March
27 -- One of the best cheeses we've
had lately (and we eat a lot of cheese
around here!) had to be the Camembert
from Maine's Silvery
Moon Creamery. Cheesemaker and
co-owner Jennifer Betancourt has managed
to create a cheese that is subtly complex,
rich and impossibly creamy -- a fantastic
reminder of just how delicious Camembert
can be! Betancourt's cheesemaking career
began in her kitchen, and even though
she has "graduated" to a milk-bottling
plant on a dairy farm, she still hand-stirs
and forms all of the 400 or so pounds
of cheese she produces each week.
Silvery Moon's other offerings
(all cow's milk) include Rosemary's
Waltz, a feta-like cheese with a covering
of aromatic rosemary and juniper berries.
Tally Ho is a creamy, smooth, firm cheese
-- somewhere between Havarti and a mild
Cheddar, and is available "plain,"
or studded with peppercorns or dill.
(But honestly, it's the Camembert that
we dream about!)
March 24 -- For
my sister's birthday, we all enjoyed
a
($N/A). The fruit was still bright and
pretty, with plenty of the aged complexity
one would expect from a twenty-year-old
wine. Impressive! And a nice reminder
of just how good Grgich's wine can be.
Cheers!
March
23 -- We always look forward to
the new releases of Beringer's Knights
Valley wines -- there's a Cabernet,
a white Bordeaux blend and a red Bordeaux
blend. The two blends, particularly,
seem to always offer an interesting
balance between California and French
sensibilities, with ripe fruit on the
one hand, but some definite terroir-ish
depth on the other.
We recently tasted the
red blend -- the
($30) -- and were not disappointed.
With layers of rich black cherry and
chocolate balanced agains dried black
tea, smoke and toasted, nutty oak, it
lingers nicely through a restrained
but complex finish. A blend of Merlot
(74%), Cabernet Sauvignon (23%), Malbec
and Cabernet Franc. Ready to drink now
and over the next two or three years.
March
15 -- Gnarly Head is one of the
DFV brands,
and it's packaged to be a fun, inexpensive,
plunge-in kind of wine. The line includes
Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot,
but Zinfandel was the thing that apparently
launched the brand. The fruit is from
Lodi, which probably has soil that is
simply too rich and fertile to make
really great wines, but is known for
being a good source for ripe, value-priced
Zins that are easy to drink if not overly
complex. And actually, the
($12) is better than that. It offers
some surprising balance at this price
point, with concentrated wild blackberry
and black cherry flavors and aromas
laced with warm spices and a dash of
chocolate that lingers on the finish.
Ready to drink now. It was a tasty choice
alongside a barbecued chicken slathered
with smoky sauce! Locate
this wine online or in your area.
