OMJ! The J Signature Tasting

I can’t believe it’s already been two months since my visit to the tasting room at J Vineyards & Winery in Healdsburg. With a chic, modern feel to it, the J Visitor Center is a great place to enjoy a tasty selection of wines, including red and white, both still and sparkling.

Although J produces some wines that are readily available in the marketplace (like the California Pinot Gris), the J “Signature” Tasting flight features wines that are sold exclusively at the winery.

The 2011 J Pinot Gris, Russian River Valley ($20/bottle) was a delicious wine to start with. Clean and crisp with flavors of melon, citrus, and spice, this is an ideal wine to sip on its own or with light apps.

I loved the 2011 J Chardonnay from Jewell Ranch, Russian River Valley ($45/bottle). Produced in the Burgundian style, this medium-bodied Chardonnay spends only 3 months in oak and has very subtle notes of vanilla and butterscotch. Sweet pear and mineral notes round out the palate nicely. This is a very elegant and balanced wine that would be amazing with shellfish, simple pasta dishes, and goat cheese.

The 2010 J Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley ($37/bottle) is equally as delicious as the Chardonnay. It offers bright cherry aromas and flavors of red fruit, vanilla, and white pepper. With a juicy and lush mouthfeel, it finishes smooth with a bit of spice. This would be an excellent complement to mushroom risotto, an aged cheddar, pork or duck.

And then—surprise!—we tasted a few sparkling wines. It seemed a little untraditional to try sparkling wines after the still wines, but it provided a refreshing change of pace. The J Cuvée 20, Russian River Valley NV ($28/bottle) was just as tasty as I remembered it with bright acidity, subtle lemon notes and a clean finish.

The 2005 J Vintage Brut, Russian River Valley is a beautiful sparkler ($45/bottle). I took a bottle of this to Thanksgiving dinner last week. A pale golden hue in the glass, this brut offers nuances of green apple, lemon, and Asian pear. The mid-palate offers richer flavors of hazelnut and brioche; the wine ends with refreshing citrus note. While a delightful aperitif on its own, this sparkling wine would go well with sushi or appetizers like an arugula salad with pears and goat cheese crumbles.

J Winery is one that I will definitely visit again. Next time, I’m making a reservation for the 3-course wine and food pairing in the Bubble Room!

Thanksgiving wines and "The One"

I love the holidays. More specifically, I love holiday dinners because they provide the perfect occasion to bust out some very special wines. Some very big special wines.

For Thanksgiving dinner last night at a friend’s house, I showed up with a magnum of 2002 Hartwell Merlot as well as (750 mL size) bottles of 2006 Merryvale Cabernet Sauvignon, 2008 Failla Pinot Noir, and 2005 J Brut (more on that wine next week!). We started with the biggest bottle on the table—a 3L that another guest brought.

As the cork was pulled from the Jeroboam (the equivalent of four 750 mL bottles) of 2007 Hartford Family Winery “Hailey’s Block” Russian River Valley Pinot Noir, I grabbed a glass. But not just any glass.

That’s when I was introduced to “The One.”

I thought it was a Burgundy glass until I inspected it more closely. It turned out to be Andrea Robinson’s design that she debuted a few years ago, a glass that she created to showcase all types of wine equally as well. She dubbed it “The One”, making the case that varietal-specific stemware is unnecessary.

The Hartford Pinot Noir was absolutely scrumptious—and The One wine glass showed it well. It offered mouthwatering aromas of bright cherry and sweet earth. The palate was rich, vibrant, and smooth with black cherry, vanilla, and pepper. The finish was long and clean with lingering notes of red fruit and spice. It paired particularly well with the semi-firm cheeses we nibbled on while waiting for the turkey to finish cooking.

When the 3L bottle was empty, we opened the 2002 Hartwell Stags Leap District Merlot. I was pleasantly surprised by this tasty wine; it was certainly in its prime. It packed a powerful punch with bold flavors of black plum, mixed berries, and cocoa. The black plum dominated the back-palate and the wine finished on a sweet, chocolatey note. Tannins were smooth but persistent, probably from the addition of a little Cabernet Sauvignon. This Merlot was a nice complement to the dark-meat turkey and although it was a very different wine from the Hartford Pinot Noir, it also showed very well from The One glass.

I have to admit that having one type of wine glass would make things easier--especially for entertaining purposes. Maybe I'll put The One wine glasses on my Christmas wish list...

This holiday season, I am thankful for friends and family, my readers, and my fellow wine lovers. I hope all of you had a terrific Thanksgiving dinner. What wines did you open? I’d love to hear what you paired with the turkey. Please post a comment below or on my Facebook page. Cheers!

2008 Hawk & Horse Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon

We all know that we shouldn’t judge a book by its cover or a wine by its label, but most of us do it anyway (myself included). I agree that it’s what is on the inside that counts, but pretty packaging is [pretty] important…

A few years ago, I read an article that compared the sales of wines with different types of label designs. I was shocked to see that wines with an animal on the label had higher sales volumes than wines without an animal on the label.

I observed the same results in my own experience while working at a collective tasting room (Napa Wine Company), where one of the most popular wines had a dog jumping through a hula hoop on the label (Hoopes Cabernet Sauvignon).

But I've never thought much about how my opinion of a wine is affected by the label until I received a bottle of Hawk and Horse Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon for review purposes two weeks ago. I knew instantly that I would it.

Did my intuition tell me I would like it because of the animal on the label? I don’t know, but my intuition was right!

The 2008 Hawk and Horse Vineyards Lake County Cabernet Sauvignon ($65/bottle) is a very enjoyable wine. Dark and concentrated in the glass, it offers a complex and alluring bouquet. With aromas of sour cherry, red currant, espresso, anise, pomegranate and violet, this is a wine you want to inhale deeply before each sip! I was pleased to find that the palate confirms the nose with the addition of sweet vanilla and a faint whisper of white pepper on the finish. The red fruit medley is balanced by supple tannins and a rich mouthfeel. It seems to have the weight and power to cellar for a few more years, but it’s so delicious right now—why wait?

Hawk and Horse Vineyards is a super-small winery in the Red Hills appellation of Lake County, California. In addition to the Cabernet Sauvignon (there were only 1,150 cases produced of the 2008 vintage!), they also make a small amount of a traditional late-bottled vintage port-style wine called Latigo. There are only 18 vineyards planted on their property, all of which are biodynamically and organically farmed. Husband and wife team, Mitch and Tracey Hawkins, run the vineyard and winery operations and they offer tastings and tours by appointment on the ranch.

The horse on the label is not just effective marketing. The property is a former equestrian facility and there are still many horses that roam the grassy pastures around the winery.

The Hawk and Horse wines will also be poured at the San Francisco Vintner’s Market on November 17-18^th. (P.S. Living Social is offering a deal on tickets right now!) I’ll be there, will you?

Wine of the Week: Stepping Stone Napa Cab

Now that the temperatures are cooling and the time has officially changed, it is definitely Cabernet Sauvignon season...

When I was asked last night what my favorite wine is, I prefaced my answer by saying that I drink all different kinds of wine—but it's true. What I most enjoy drinking is usually determined by my mood, what I'm eating, the time of day/year; thus my "favorite wine" is changes by the week. All that aside, I'm a Napa Cab kind of girl.

And I don't make any apologies for my wine preferences. I'm a California native who is very proud of the wines we make here. Yes, I like French wines, Argentine Malbec, and Spanish Rioja, but I will always support California producers first and foremost. 

Last week I tweeted about being accused of having a palate “tainted” by California wine. I found this comment both patronizing and condescending—and it really rubbed me the wrong way. Criticizing someone's wine palate is just as bad as saying you don't like their new hair cut or their butt looks fat in those jeans. If you don't have anything positive to say, don't say it all. (Which is why I only blog about wines that I like and recommend to my readers.)

On that note, I have nothing but positive things to say about the 2010 Stepping Stone by Cornerstone Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon ($35/bottle). It was definitely my favorite wine of the week!

This new release from Cornerstone Cellars is bursting with bright red fruit. Aromas of red currant, raspberry, and black cherry leap from the glass. It is deep red in color with good concentration. With the first sip, flavors of pomegranate, mocha, and mint leaf entertain the palate. Tannins are lush and well-integrated; the rich mouthfeel is balanced by good acidity. It’s a Cabernet Sauvignon that is approachable and lively, with a long lingering finish of blueberry, vanilla, and cocoa. Blended from four vineyard sites including Howell Mountain and Rutherford with a small percentage of Merlot from Oakville and Carneros districts.  

I shared this wine with a friend this past Thursday night; we enjoyed it with a lovely home-cooked meal of risotto with pancetta, roast chicken, and arugula. (Thanks again for cooking, Danielle!) Delicious dinner, dynamite wine!

Sample received for review purposes from the winery.