The Singleton 12yr

Since Highland Park 18 might be a tad on the expensive side, I thought is might be a good idea to talk about a single malt that is on the other end of the price spectrum. Whenever somebody comes in who wants to start learning to like single malt scotches (and it does take a great deal of practice) I start them with The Singleton. It is a ludicrously smooth and rich single malt with just enough smoke and peat to let you know you are drinking scotch, but not enough to scare away the novice. A perfect every day single malt for the serious drinker and at under 40 bucks ($38) the most inexpensive 12yr old I've ever found.

Highland Park 18yr

In 2005 F. Paul Pacult reviewed Highland Park 18 for "The Spirit Journal". In the review he referred to it as, "the best spirit in the world". Not the best single malt, or the best scotch, or even the best whisky, but the best spirit. As you might guess the folks at Highland Park (Scotland's northernmost distillery) were quite pleased with this review and they began slinging that quote around everywhere they possibly could. Even (in a display of great chutzpah)on the box the whisky comes in. You would expect that such a display of arrogance would create a significant of a backlash. And it would, if it weren't for the fact it just might be.....you know.....the best spirit in the world. This scotch is phenomenal and unlike most single malts is accessible to non-scotch drinkers--something that is unheard of in the world of scotch.

Highland Park 18 is rich, smooth and full-flavored with perfectly (and I mean perfectly)balanced flavors of toffee, honey, peat, and a long sweet smoky finish. It is a perfect single malt scotch. It is also $124 which is not cheap. But even if it cost five times as much (and I am serious about this) it would be a fantastic price to value ratio. Buy it, buy it, buy it.

Is The NYT Insane?

Duvel isn't even in the top ten?

Why I Deserve The Name "The Wine Wizard"

It happens about once every two weeks. A woman in her thirties or forties comes in because she is planning a very nice dinner party. And by nice, I mean very nice. She is making Beef Wellington, or something else which is just as extraordinarily difficult and expensive to prepare. She wants help picking wine to go with her extravagant meal, which I of course provide. And then it happens, she hesitates for just a moment and says, "We have a guest who only drinks....." and she can't finish.

So, I finish for her, "White zinfandel?"

Her head droops in frustration and shame, "Yes" she whispers.

"Your Mother-in-law." --Her head pops back up and her eyes get very wide.

"How did you know?" she says, amazed.

I am "The Wine Wizard".

'04 R. Merlo Zinfandel

This is my my favorite red zinfandel. For those who are concerned; red zinfandel has nothing, I repeat, NOTHING to do with white zinfandel. Do you understand? NOTHING!.....Well, nothing other than the fact that it is the exact same grape. Other than that, it's a completely different and unbelievably flavorful grown up wine.

R. Merlo is from Trinity County CA, which is so far north that it is practically Oregon. This is a very odd place for a California winery, but apparently the warm days and cold nights are similar enough to Napa & Sonoma that the grapes are superb.

There are two big flavor components to a good red zin--jam (mostly strawberry jam) balanced out by black pepper spice. And R. Merlo? Jam? Times ten. Black pepper? Also times ten. It's heavy with a creamy mouth feel and is all-around wonderful. Open it and let it breath for a couple of hours before drinking. $19.99.

Oh, it's unfiltered, so you'll find red flakes at the bottom of the bottle. That's normal.

A Tale of Two Wines

It was the best of wines, it was the blurst* of wines.....Alright, never mind. That opening is too stupid even for me. But I do want to talk about two very different wines. Pinot Noirs to be precise.

I've mentioned before the two different styles of Pinot Noir. These two wines really typify those two different styles, Les Jamelles has that light fruity "cherry soda" style, while Les Tours has that intense mineral style. Both of them are $9.99 so if one were of a mind to, one could buy both to compare and contrast and have a fun little wine tasting for under $20 (admittedly only $.02 under $20 and that's only before taxes but I still think my point is valid).

Les Jamelles Pinot Noir-- is from France but the style is pure Californian. Immediately accessible, lush, fruity, with a lot of residual sugar. if you like red wine at all you will like this wine--you might not be excited by it (for some wine drinkers accessibility can be boring)--but you will like it.

Les Tours Pinot Noir-- is not only from France, it tastes like it's from France, Burgundy in fact. But since it's not from Burgundy instead of 50 bucks it's 10. Lots of mineral supported by floral, wild strawberry and rhubard. Those of you who are only used to new world wines (which are far more fruit-forward than old world wines) might think I'm crazy to say that this wine is great. But it is great--it's designed to go with food. For instance, Beef Bourgogne (duh), or even just a really rich and very salty French Onion Soup.

Now here is where it gets weird. These wines are totally different from each other. Well, sorta. Not only are both of these wines from the same country (France) and the sames region (Languedoc) and the same grape (Pinot Noir), they are from the same vineyards. Seriously, these two wineries get their juice from the same growers. The only difference is the wine makers. And that's why tasting these two wines together is so interesting. The most important variable in wine is not country, region, or even varietal, but may be, who the wine maker is.

*Bonus unnecessary Simpson's reference. "You stupid monkey!"

The Wind Kept Me Awake Last Night

Well, not the wind so much as the six-year-old. She kept waking me up every 20 minutes to ask, "What was that sound?" In her defense, it did sound like monsters trying to get into the house.

'05 Jaume Mesquida Negre

Finally, finally, the distributer shows up with a case of Jaume Mesqueda Negre, we have been out for weeks.

Jaume Mesquida was my first big personal wine discovery I found it at a Spanish wine tasting where--unusually for me--I was trying to take copious notes. My tasting notes for this wine was "WOW". Evocative, if not copious. The first time I recommended it to somebody who actually bought it, he sent his wife back the next day with instructions to buy eight more.

Jaume Mesqeda is the product of of a brother and sister team from Mallorca. Even though the silhouette looks exactly like Robert Mondavi or maybe Alfred Hitchcock, it is in fact their father--Jaume Mesquida. Now, since we first brought it inevery time I talk about this wine I mispronounce his first name a different way, is it Ywahm? Is it Ywahmay? I had no idea until one of our customers who is actually from Barcelona (I'm sure she is telling the truth because she pronounced it Barthalona) declared with great confidence that it is Djow-may a version I would not have hit on in a thousand years.

What neat about this wine is that, beside the fact that is from the island of Mallorca it is made from a native Mallorcan grape that you have never had before--the callet. It's a deep, rich, very very austere with silky tannins but still a little more fruit forward than most Spanish wine. But what's really interesting bout this wine is that you have never tasted fruit flavors in wine like this before because you have never had this grape before. Run out and buy this wine. Unfortunately the exchange has not been kind to us and the price has moved up from $17 to $23--but that's okay, because even if they charged $80 it would still be a fantastic value.

Oh, since nobody has heard of this wine before and it's not completely clear from the review I thought I should mention, the wine---it's red.

Well, At Least It Wasn't White Zinfandel

"Lost The Battle To Chardonnay" writes to Dear Abby:

The other day I asked my husband a question and told him to be honest. If given a choice between giving up wine or giving up sex with me, which would he choose?

You guessed it. He said, “Giving up sex with you.”

It Puts The Price For Cognac Tesseron In Perspective

Louis XIII Black Pearl $99,999.99

And before you ask, no, I've never tried it. Presumably, it's pretty good.

Cognac Tesseron

Oh, woe is me. I was intending to do posts on some wines we've finally gotten back in after long hiatus( Les Jamelles, Maipe, etc., etc.,). But, no. I had to be interrupted by people from Cognac Tesseron who without an appointment or any warning just dropped by and wanted me to taste their line-up of cognacs. And what is Cognac Tesseron, you ask? Well it's just the best damn Cognac in the history of the universe that's all. The Tesseron family has been making cognac since 1905 mostly selling to big cognac houses like Hennessy. About 8 years ago the Tesserons realized that they had a collection of the oldest and rarest cognacs in the world and somebody had the bright idea to bottle it and release it under their own label. And what an idea that was.

Tesseron only makes XO (extra old) cognacs. Their different blends are given different lot numbers that denote the average vintage in the blend. So for instance, Lot 90 is made from cognacs from 1990 on average, Lot 76 from 1976, well, you get the idea. The signature style is incredably smooth with lots of toasty vanilla notes and well balanced fruit flavors. AWESOME.

Lot 90--Sweet with creme brule and that lovely toasty wood and a long fruity finish. $50

Lot 76--Deeper, richer, nuttier, lots of vanilla again with the long finish. $89

Lot 65--A different style from the others, very spicy with cedar flavor, the alcohol is little hot on the tongue, but in a good way. $135

Lot 53--Incredibly intense and complex, a wonderful cacophony of vanilla, nut, and fruit flavors. $178

Lot 29--Wow. Smooth, smooth, smooth. Dried fruit flavors, chocolate mixed with vanilla and nuts. Wow. Parker rated this cognac a perfect 100 out of 100. Wow. $350. Wow.

Hi Dana

I went over my parents house to drop of the four year old this morning and found a plastic bag in the driveway. Inside was "The Baltimore Sun" printed on actual paper--if you can imagine such a thing--and on the the front page (it's like an analog "home page") was a big picture of one my favorite Catonsville based author/professor/archeologist/forensic anthropologist, Dana Kollmann. She's going to Haiti help identify the remains of US citizens. I knew she was going but when I was over her house (her husband Bob and I took our respective kids sledding on Catonsville's traditional sledding hill all day Sunday) she never once mentioned any forthcoming article. Naturally, in a profile that's referencing such a horrible task the article can only hint at her supremely quirky and irrepressible sense of humor. I recommend you read her book, "Never Suck A Dead Man's Hand: Curious Adventures of a CSI" . Seriously were I a Hollywood producer I would definitely option it for a cable series. Do you hear me, Hollywood?

By the way the "Hi Dana" title is a bit misleading--neither she nor Bob know I'm blogging yet.

"Do You Really Think This Is The First Time It's Been Warm?"

It happens about three times a week. Some one comes in for beer, a twelve pack, a case, a thirty pack, whatever. They hesitate for just a moment and say, "We're not going to drink it right away...do you have it warm?" The running joke in the industry is that the correct response to that question is, "Do you really think this is the first time it's been warm?" You see, beer is delivered in trucks. Trucks from the brewery to the train/plane/ship, from the train/plane/ship, to the warehouse, from the warehouse to the store, in trucks. Non-climate-controlled trucks. Trucks that get hot in the summer. Trucks that get cold in the winter. And when the trucks get hot or cold so does the beer.

In the 21rst century, beer, and the bottle and cans it comes in, are designed to withstand this kind of abuse. And if beer can deal with trucks it can certainly deal with being in somebody's basement for a few days. The only problem is coming up with a way to gently break this to the customer. If the customer is a woman, it's really not that difficult I just say,"oh, if you are going to drink it in the next month or two it won't make any difference."

and they just buy the cold beer.

But, men. Ah, men. Men will take any challenge to their knowledge of beer as a direct challenge to their masculinity. I have yet to figure out how to let them know they are wrong without the conversation ending...um...awkwardly. Someday I will, but that day has not yet arrived.

Cameron Hughes Lot 119 Meritage

Meritage is a stupid marketing word that is used denote a Bordeaux-style blend from California (merit + heritage = meritage, see what I mean?--stupid). But the wine can be fabulous, and Lot 119 is fabulous. It's a traditional blend of Cab, Merlot, and Malbec. Now, even though the blend is traditionally French the flavors are very much New World. It's more fruit forward than a real Bordeaux would be with an upfront smoky raspberry dominating that trails into a great lingering mineral/chocolate/tobacco finish. This is a $50 Meritage for 18 bucks.

One word of caution, unless you are used to $50 Meritage's from California the flavors might be to severe for your palate at first but this is great way to begin to learn about a style of wine that many in the US have never experienced. Remember, wine is an acquired taste, good wine doubly so.*

*It didn't take me too long to quote myself, now did it?

Superstar Vintners and Wines Under $20

Slate, which has surprisingly frequent really good articles about wine, asks why Superstar west coast wine makers don't sell wines for under $20. The short answer turns out to be, that good vineyards in California are expensive and a lot of these guys are already very wealthy anyway so they don't have to. It's good article but the premise is a tad off. It's not that these superstars don't make wine that sells for under $20, it's that these superstars don't make wine that sells for under $20 under their own label.

During our current economic unpleasantness the demand for pricey wines is low. But to lower prices would be a loss of status that the wineries simply won't tolerate. So, what happens when supply outstrips supply and prices don't compensate? Surplus. In other words; a lot of these high-end wineries are sitting on a lot of high-end wine that they can't sell for high-end prices. And then in walks Cameron Hughes.

Hughes is what is called (at least in France) a negociant, he uses his connections to buy leftover wine from these superstars and the bottles it under his own label. Most negociants buy wine on the open market to make their proprietary blends vintage after vintage, But where Hughes is different is when he buys wine from a particular winery he gives it a special lot number and it's on label. So the wine in bottle is the exact same famous wine that is being sold somewhere else for $50 to $100. Now, you may ask, what wineries does he buy from? Well, I'll tell you---I don't know. It's a secret, but the wine is great.

"Wine Is An Acquired Taste. Good Wine, Doubly So."

Just a word of warning, I like that line from a previous post so much that I am going to quote myself relentlessly and build more than one post around it.

Bonus points to anyone who can figure out what surreal uber-nerd line my quote is referencing.

Your Government Wants You Dead

Here is an interesting little story of the Federal Government's attempt to poison it's citizens who dared to drink alcohol during Prohibition.

'09 Alberti 154, Malbec

Next up comes Michael, from Constantine Wine distributors, Gus Kalaris' company--Ellicott City's own wine genius (What? You've never heard of Gus? Oh, we are definitely going to have talk about him later.) Michael brings 5 real good wines but the stand out is Alberti 154, Malbec. Now first you might ask, as I did, what-the-Sam-Hill does "Alberti 154" mean? It turns out, it's the address in Mendoza, Argentina of the winery of the family owned company Bodega Elvira Calle. Now the Calle's (or whatever the family's name is) seem to have some OCD issues since they have taken the idea that pumping the wine from fermentation tank to barrel does some sort of violence to the wine to heart. The wine is never pumped it is only allowed to flow with gravity, a time consuming an expensive way to make wine. But what ever they are doing, it is working, because the wine is fabulous. It's big and chewy with a lot of extra earthiness which gives it an almost old world charm. At $14.99 this wine is definitely going into our underrated gems section.

Jefferson's Reserve Very Small Batch Bourbon

They're not kidding about the the whole very small batch thing. Supposedly each batch is only 8 to 12 barrels, which in the world of whiskey is minuscule. This bourbon is very smooth--almost too smooth for those of us who prefer our whiskey to be like a punch in the face. But it is quite complex with flowery vanilla notes and round bourbon sweetness with a very clean finish. For around $55 it's pretty good deal. Drink it neat.

It's 9 AM Somewhere

Monday mornings I wake up before seven and begin fixing breakfast for my two daughters. The six year old usually gets toast and egg inzuparre style (basically you dip the toast in the yolk) plus some fried tofu and a side of fruit, the four year old has simpler tastes and is satisfied with a couple scrambled eggs and turkey bacon (a word of advice for anyone who might cook for her--do NOT forget the bacon). My Mother comes by around 8 and helps them finish getting dressed which gives me 10 or 15 minutes to get myself ready. By 8:30 everyone is dressed with brushed teeth and hair and we are out the door, I get the six year old to school and the four year old to my ex (she has them Mondays and Tuesdays). By 9 I am in the store and ready to begin.

Now this whole time, whatever I am doing with my right hand in my left is a cup of coffee, a beverage that I consume until my hair starts to stand on end and I am in danger of hallucinating that I am covered in ants. But I need the caffeine because what I do Monday Mornings is taste. Mostly wine, but also whatever it is that the reps bring in to try and get us to carry. This sounds like a lot of fun, and it is, for few months until they start bringing things like tequila at 9 AM. That can get a little rough. This morning we start with bourbon.

"Don't You Find the Name "The Wine Wizard" a Little Silly?"

Why, yes. Yes I do. But I work at the "The Enchanted Forest Wine and Spirits" and I'm sure as heck not going to be "The Wine Elf".

My Review of Select 55 by Budweiser

Technically, it is beer.

"When Are High Wine Prices Justified?"

Over at the Freakonomics blog Robin Goldstein responds to criticism from some guy I've never heard of, and manages to touch off a minor blogstorm of an intensity that is usually reserved on the internet for arguments as to to whether Batman could beat Spiderman in a fight. In fact I fully expect Godwin's Law to be invoked at any moment. In this case, naturally, it is all about wine.

Along with Alexis Hershkowitsch, Goldstein wrote a book called "The Wine Trials of 2010" that are about a series of blind tastings which in Goldstein's words shows that, "...most everyday wine drinkers (not wine professionals) don't prefer more expensive wines to the cheaper wines in blind tastings." Well. Speaking as a very low level fairly unsophisticated but still technically professional wine professional, all I can say is ...NO KIDDING. These inexpensive mass-market wines are designed to appeal to everyday wine drinkers and they do a very good job of it. The reason I don't drink these wines is not because they are bad......they're not bad, in fact they're pretty good. The reason I don't drink them is because the are boring.

Let me illustrate this with a completely unrelated art form and a not so unrelated business...radio. The way highly over paid executive radio weasels decide what songs get airplay is by doing telephone surveys where they play snippets of songs that they ask people to rate from 1 to 10. Now if you were the naive sort you would guess that songs that get the most 10's would also get the most airplay and you would be wrong. the problem with songs that get the most 10's is they also get the most 1's. Interesting music creates strong reactions, both positive and negative. For very person who says, "Wow, I've never heard anything like that. It's brilliant!" There is one person who says, "Wow, I've never heard anything like that. It's stupid!" and then they turn the station. Which as you might guess is bad for ratings. It turns out people can agree on 5's. Nobody turns the station because the music is...okay.

That is what these big wine companies are doing. They are trying to create wines that don't offend anyone. They want to make wines that taste just like the wines you've had a hundred times before and didn't dislike.

Wine is an acquired taste. Good wine, doubly so.

'07 Red X

It's Friday, so here at the Enchanted Forest we've opened up a bottle of wine for our customers to taste (and hopefully buy). We've settled on Red X. Despite the fact that it's name sounds like a comicbook supervillain (in fact I'm pretty sure "Red X" is a comicbook supervillain) the X winery was started about 10 years ago by a bunch of painfully stylish wine nerds (really, the packaging for the wine is beautiful) who thought they could do better than a lot of older California wineries aaannndd they might be right. Their Red X is a rich red (duh) blend of Syrah and Cabernet that brings forth great structure that can support barrel ageing and the lovely toasty vanilla notes with just enough Zinfandel to bring this wonderful strawberry jam flavor that dances all around the palate. It's a real open-up-pour-drink-and-then-enjoy-your-afternoon type of wine. At $12.99 (10% off today because we are doing a tasting) it's a steal.

"French execs convicted for selling fake wine to US"

They got the stiffest possible penalty French law can met out...a suspended sentence.

'07 "H3" Horse Heaven Hills Cabernet Sauvignon

H3 is back. It's been unavailable for an entire year, at least in Maryland. So what happened? Well, the huge mega-corporation Costco wanted to buy out the entire last vintage direct from the winery to use as a loss-leader and since H3 is owned by the big but not-so-mega -corporation Columbia Crest (wisely, the name "Columbia Crest" is quite un-intrusive on the bottle, of course for some reason so is "Horse Heaven Hills") which is run by short sighted accountants, they went for it. What that means is, if you live in a state where retailers like Costco can't sell alcohol, well...No wine for you! Which is a shame, because this is a really nice wine. I mean really nice, it's just a great California Cabernet. Which is odd, since it's from Washington State.

But that only makes it better. Because, instead of having to pay anywhere from 30 to 100 bucks (seriously) for an accessible fruit forward Cali Cab with rich fruit and gentle tannins, you get a Washington State version for $13.99. It should be available pretty much everywhere in the U.S. so run out and grab it.

"What's the Best Way to Preserve Leftover Wine?"

Leftover wine?

'05 R. Merlo Trinity County Pinot Noir

Now we're talkin'. Susanne is one of my favorite wine Reps. and my favorite German national because, besides being a fun wine nerd to talk to, when she comes by with wines to taste (and to get me to buy and then scramble to sell) they are always good and one or two are always spectacular ( though sadly many are a tad pricey). Today she did not disappoint, she brought in a wine from a winery I love--R. Merlo from Trinity County CA (their unfiltered red Zinfandel is one of my favorite wines ever). We tasted their Pinot Noir which she declared to be an "ahwsum vine" and quite inexpensive for a California Pinot (around $15).

Now California Pinot Noirs are known for having a distinctive style, a style that is derided by the French and some Oregonians as the "cherry soda style". This...is...(kinda)...unfair. Okay, granted, some California Pinot Noirs are painfully light and fruity with all the tannins and minerality of grape juice. But if you have a wine-maker who knows what they are doing, you can get just enough structure to support the lovely fruit bomb of the this easy drinking varietal. And somebody at R. Merlo knows what they are doing. This wine has muted the fruit flavors of cherry and plumb (yes there is some cherry soda to the flavor but cherry soda tastes good, so there)to bring out the earthy structure. They also age it in oak for a year so there a some really fun spice and nut notes. Oddly, it has the heaviest mouth feel of any Pinot Noir I have ever tasted which unlike the negligible viscosity of most Pinot's it's almost a jammy experience which seems to be trademark of R. Merlo. All-in-all, just a lovely wine.

I bought a case and I look forward to selling it. Though I'm begining to think Susanne comes here because she knows I'm a sucker.

Again With The Flaviam

Just a note about the Flaviam; it's one of those wines that you can open and then drink the next day and it only becomes more subtle and interesting. You can't do it with all wines but you can with most of the good reds.

A Chicago School of Economics Wine Review

Since a twenty dollar bottle of wine costs twice as much as a ten dollar bottle of wine the twenty dollar bottle of wine is twice as good--the efficiency of the markets prove it.

For an Objectivist wine review simply add that people who don't believe you are cretins and leaches and then threaten to "Go Galt". Of course you have to do it in an eight page screed.

'05 Flaviam Crianza Beirzo

Let's start with an interesting and different red wine from a small producer in Spain and by small I mean basically it's just a guy with a vineyard. The story I got from the distributor Rep. was that he flew into NY without any appointments looking for an distribution deal--as you can imagine this not the way it is done. So anyway he goes in and they are in the process of kicking him out of the office when he mentions that Robert Parker rated his wine 90 out of 100 points (apparently he was unaware that this was kinda a big deal). They bought his entire production on the spot. OK, you can never trust stories a rep. tells you--still it's a fantastically interesting wine at a bizarrely cheap price ($9.99). First of all it's a varietal you have never had before--Mencia, which has been traditional Spanish grape that has been used to make light table wines but apparently some Spaniards have figured out how to make something much richer. Red wines are designed to have the fruit flavors balance out the tannins (that astringent feeling on your tongue that sucks the moisture out of your mouth), now, Flaviam does have fruit flavors but what's balancing out the out the (light) tannins is wildflower flavors. A flavor profile that I personally have never found anywhere else, one reviewer called it "haunting" it's so different in fact that I warn people not to make up their minds on the first glass--it takes some getting used to, but it is worth it.

By the way, for those of you who were wondering: Flaviam, is the name of the wine--Crianza, means it was aged in oak barrels for a year--and, Beirzo is the place in Spain where it's from.

And Away We Go.

I've decide to keep better track of the wines I've been tasting. And since I started working at Enchanted Forest Wines and Spirits in Ellicott City, MD I've been tasting a lot of wines. And whereas one the main points of tasting all that wine is to sell said wine I figured it didn't make any sense to keep all that info to myself. After all there must be almost half-a-dozen people on the planet over the next year or so who might find what I say kind-of-not-totally-uninteresting. With that kind of demand from the public who am I to deny them?