Mark Nothaft on Wine and Spirits

It’s that time of year again when we make our annual pilgrimage to SoCal for a little cool down. My friends over at the Santa Barbara Country Vintners’ Association sent me the following information about their 27th annual festival, which this year will be held from 1-4 p.m. at River Park in Lompoc. Wine tasting, live music and silent auction is just part of the fun. Make a hotel reservation and make a weekend of it…

Santa Barbara County is one of the most unique regions in California for growing winegrapes.  The transverse west-to-east valleys create microclimates that allow vintners to grow a vast diversity of wine grape varietals, depending upon whether those particular grapes require the cool climate of the nearby Pacific Ocean or the hot days and cold nights of the eastern vineyards.  Here, there is a wine created for everyone’s taste and palate! 

To celebrate this incredible diversity and the arrival of the 2009 vintage, the 100+ members of the Santa Barbara County Vintners’ Association are once again hosting an annual rite of spring – the Santa Barbara County Vintners’ Festival!  From A to Z, the Vintners’ will present and pour their vast array of wines; Albarino, Barbera, Chardonnay, Dornfelder….Merlot, Nebbiolo, Pinot Noir….Sauvignon Blanc, Tempranillo, Viognier…Zinfandel…and all those in between. Joining the vintners will be over two dozen local chefs, who will delight the crowd with wine country cuisine featuring the local and seasonal dishes of the region. 

Live bands create a celebratory atmosphere, and wine related exhibitions and a Silent Auction will benefit local charities and round out the day.

The 27^th Annual Vintners’ Festival will be held on April 18th, from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. at River Park in Lompoc. In addition to the Festival itself, member wineries are planning open houses, winemaker dinners and special tastings throughout the weekend, and a “Vintners’ Visa” passport to 12 participating wineries is also being offered through the Association.  For complete details and tickets, visit the Santa Barbara County Vintners’ Association website at www.SBCountyWines.com, or call the Association office at (805) 688-0881.

Rosé season is back – yes! When spring training returns and the sweet smell of orange blossoms wafts over the East Valley, it’s time to pull out the pink stuff. And one of my favorites of all time is now hitting the shelves: Francis Ford Coppola’s Sofia Rosé. Made from a blend of syrah and grenache the 2008 release has a deep pink hue and an enticing perfume of crushed raspberries and rose petals. It’s dry and delicious and works with a wide variety of foods. Grill a piece of salmon, pour a glass and dinner is done. $17.

I remember at the height of the wine frenzy just a few years ago, that Ravenswood Shiraz was commanding upwards of $14 for a bottle. We couldn’t get enough of its spice and juicy fruit, which fueled a surge in interest in Shiraz-Syrah. Well, like our property values and stock portfolio, the price of this coveted bottle has dropped about 40 percent to just 10 bucks. When you see it, snap it up. In fact, the whole Ravenswood Vintner’s Blend line is now priced at $10, including its mouth-watering chardonnay, solid cab blend and enjoyable merlot.

Screw caps, schmoo caps. I’ve heard all the complaints about those newfangled screw-top closures. I have news for you – they are clearly superior to corks. They’re air-tight, leak-proof and you don’t run the risk of bits of cork falling into your beloved chardonnay during removal. Yet the stigma still exists. Well, here’s one that will put a cork in all that whining: Matua Valley, the affordable line from New Zealand that is only produced with screw caps. The sauvignon blanc is supremely clean, crisp and fruity with nice citrus and tropical fruit notes. $13. The pinot noir also is a pleasant surprise, chock full of ripe berry and toasty oak. $14. To all you screw cap complainers out there: Put a cork in it and sip these.

For all you martini lovers who think you need to spend a lot of money for the best vodka, I’ve got a tip for you: Boru. It’s a relatively new product for the U.S. and the only vodka made in Ireland. It’s five-times distilled (just like the country’s legendary whiskeys) and is supremely smooth and easy to drink. But here’s the kicker: A 750 ml bottle costs less than $10. I picked up two and put them in the freezer. Chill it down and serve it up with olives, or a splash of Cointreau and lemon twist, and happy hour has arrived.

Romance is in the air, and wine and spirit deals abound. You don’t need the sagging economy to dampen the mood. I scanned through the grocery fliers yesterday and found some great deals. At Albertson’s, Sutter Home and Beringer White Zinfandel are both on sale for $5.99. The underrated Sutter Home variety even comes in the 1.5 liter format – you’ll have some leftover. Grab a couple lobster tails that are also on sale at Albertson’s and she’ll be even more impressed. If white zin isn’t glamorous enough, check out bottles of Veuve Clicquot or Moet & Chandon champagne or BV Tapestry (a California cab blend) at Safeway for $39.98 each. This represents savings of up to $24 on these prestige bottles. Shake up the evening and whip together a couple top-shelf martinis with the deal at Bashas’. Grey Goose and Belvedere are both $26.99, both good prices. Finally, Fry’s Food Stores has some killer deals on wines in all price ranges, plus, they’re raising the case discount (6 or more bottles) to 25 percent. Here’s a toast to all you lovebirds!

Everyone loves a back story, and when I came across the new Festival 34 line of wines from California I had to pause and learn more. In 1933, President Franklin D. Roosevelt repealed Prohibition and the illegal sale and consumption of alcohol. The wine industry in California celebrated the next year, dubbed “Festival ’34,” and savored the first legal vintage in 13 years. The spirit of that historic turning point lives on in three celebrated varieties from the state’s Central Coast: Chardonnay, merlot and cabernet sauvignon. The labels have a throw-back feel, but the wine is pure modern know-how. The cab is bold and spicy, and the chard is packed with rich pear and apple flavors. Here’s a toast to history! Each costs $13.

Super Bowl parties abound this year, obviously. The town is going Cards crazy! We’re going to the neighbor’s house with the giant screen for a potluck get-together. I usually pitch in with the cocktails and make some large-format drinks for everyone. Here are a couple recipes I’m considering. Avoid overtime and make these the night before.

SUPER BOWL SANGRIA
1 bottle rose wine
1/2 cup orange flavored vodka
1 cup orange juice
1 orange, diced
1 lime, diced
10 strawberries
1/4 cup simple syrup
Preparation: Add fruit to bottom of glass pitcher and muddle (mash with wooden spoon). Add simple syrup, juice and vodka and stir. Stir in wine. Serve on the rocks in a wine glass.
 
HALFTIME REFRESHER
1 bottle sparkling apple cider
1 1/2 cups citrus-flavored vodka
1/4 to 1/2 cup green Chartreuse (herbal liquor) depending on taste
2 sprigs of mint
1/4 cup simple syrup
Preparation: Add mint to bottom of pitcher and muddle. Add simple syrup, vodka, liqueur and stir. Stir in cider. Serve on the rocks in a double old-fashioned glass.

It seems like retailers everywhere are shoring up wine exclusives, a la Trader Joe’s and its now-famous Two Buck Chuck line from Charles Shaw. Well I just came across one that you’ll want to check out at Fresh & Easy stores: Calloway Crossing. The company’s Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon-Shiraz blend are two well-made wines from Australia that cost a mere $4.99 each. Like a lot of wines from Down Under, they work well with our fruit-centric palates and are warm, fresh and delicious. Grab one of each and one of those grill packs with the chicken, burgers and sausages and invite the neighbors over.

Also, Skyy Spirits has achieved yet another victory, the seductive X-Rated Fusion Liqueur. OK, so it’s marketed to women with its frosted bottle and pink hue, but there is some serious booze going on inside. It’s made with a blend of premium French vodka, blood oranges, mangos and passion fruit. It’s just 17 percent alcohol, so it’s suitable to chill and sip on its own or on the rocks, but you can also mix it with other liqueurs or plain vodka and cranberry juice. Sexy stuff, indeed.

Hello friends of From the Cellar! Sorry it took awhile to post an item on the Tribune’s new blog site, but I took a little time off during the holidays. It doesn’t mean there wasn’t good wine and spirits sipped during that time. In fact, with all the family coming and going during the holidays, it seemed we returned to some of our familiar habits, which included lots of Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon. And for cocktail sipping, simple savory scotch flowed freely. In our house, that usually means Dewar’s brand on the rocks and a splash of water. The characteristic peatiness and warmth was like an old friend you haven’t seen in awhile.

Dinners and dinner parties took on a familiar feel as well. We sipped California Chards in the $12 to $20 range (think Kendall-Jackson, Sebastiani, Greg Norman and Chateau St. Jean) before dinner, and moved to burlier reds, Cabs mostly, during dinner. Those seemed to come from all over the map – California, Australia, France, even South America. A couple notables included Rosemount’s Show Reserve Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon 2006 from Australia and Graffigna’s Grand Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon from Argentina. Both priced at about $20, but showed even better and added a special tone to our meals.

OK, enough about me. Tell everyone about your drinking adventures this past holiday season and any special bottles you’ve come across.