Sometimes its difficult to get things out as soon as they happen, no matter how much technology I try to surround myself with. Its pretty much just a factor of spinning a lot of plates and trying to not drop any. Last Tuesday I had the pleasure of spending time at Lido, quite possibly the best restaurant on the central coast, where every Tuesday Chef Evan Treadwell invites a different winery to present their wines, and the chef has his staff create some fantastic hors d’oeuvres. Lido is at Dolphin Bay, a luxury resort in Pismo Beach and a winner of a 2007 Wine Spectator Restaurant Award.

The winery that was presenting was Riverbench from Santa Maria, CA and after tasting a series of four different wines, its obvious that they have taken advantage of the unique micro-climates that the Santa Maria Valley provides. I happen to live about 15 minutes north and reap the benefits of the cool ocean breezes, the fog layers, and the moderately warm temperatures that has made the Central Coast an exceptional grape growing region. Now, mind you that as I am tasting the wines, it wasn’t until I was speaking with Riverbench’s brand manager Laura that she mentioned that the winemaker was Chuck “Mr. Chardonnay” Ortman, of Meridian lore. He has an amazing history of great wines and used to source grapes from RIverbench before coming to make their wines in 2006. (Here is an interview with Chuck in the March 2008 issue of Wines & Vines)

The wines we were tasting were the 2007 Bedrock Chardonnay, the 2006 Estate Chardonnay, the 2006 Reserve Chardonnay, and my favorite one of the afternoon, the 2006 Estate Pinot. I also understand that they have a wonderful 2006 Reserve Pinot but I will need to head to the winery for that.

The 2006 Pinot was everything I hoped for after tasting thru the very excellent Chardonnays. Chef Treadwell was serving up some gourmet pizzettas such as spinach and shrimp, a pancetta style bacon, tomatoes and I believe Fontina, and a tasty apple sausage. By the time I was poured the Pinot my taste buds were calling out for red and delicious. The full fruit aromas, noticeable and vibrant with a beautiful burgundy hue was punctuated by the extreme panorama from the outside tables of Lido. Sitting literally on the cliffs of the coast line, it would have been difficult to not be pleased by both the wine and view.

Now, I am by no means a cork dork, but I have been working on my tasting memory and right away I was surprised at the berries that sort of jumped out of this wine, both in aroma and in taste, delicate but not “jammy” if you know what I mean. Pinot is ever the seductive mistress of wines in my book, with the teasing perfumes, the tastes lingering on the tongue, and the feeling of wanting just a bit more when gone. Light, and balanced, this Pinot Noir is very drinkable, and when I get my hands on a few bottles I bet it will go well with a grilled lamb burger and asparagus. The tasting notes even recommended serving it with a spicy Thai risotto and calamari, which sounds great as well.

Go buy it. Seriously. Its a perfect Pinot to bring in the change of the seasons, and the change of the weather, especially if you are local to the central coast. Our hot days are gone, the fog is lingering a little longer in the morning, and the grill is begging for just a bit more attention. Its also a perfect way to see what Chuck is spending his time on now. And after being named “Mr. Chardonnay”, you know he is bringing all his tricks to this winery, his own touch to the Pinots.

If you like Chocolate, and we already know you like wine, Riverbench is having a Chocolate and Wine pairing on Saturday, September 6th from 5-7pm. I would see you there but I will be in the north county doing the color commentary at Cops and Robbers - where the ladies of the Central Coast Roller Derby take on The Sac City Rollers. If you happen to come to the Paso Event Center for the derby bout, please look me up over at the KZOZ tent.

So I don’t know anything about this wine, but I ran across an article about the person that recently redesigned the labels for Zull, an Austrian wine. Obviously striking a balance between youthful and modern, it looks as though this label change supports what the winery is calling their “Gentle Introductions” series of wines.

Erwin Bauer is the designer, and more of his work can be seen here. Do you have a favorite wine label? Your comments are appreciated.

As you watch the trailer to the upcoming Woody Allen movie “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” you tend to notice a few things, well at least I did and here is my list.

One - Scarlett Johansson
Two - Rebecca Hall
Three - Wine glasses. Lots and lots of wine glasses. Which to me continues to validate my affection for wine, beautiful women and Woody Allen.

“We will eat well. We will drink wine. We will make love”

Sounds like my life was being written into the script, until the WE in question was points one and two from above and Javier Bardem, handsome in that rogue-ishly Spanish sort of way, but well, not my cup of tea.

Noticeable in the trailer was the tactics employed by one Juan Antonio, that rouge-ish Spanish fellow. When Scarlett agrees to go to his room, she says he still has to seduce her. Cut to him opening the door with a glass of wine, Rioja most likely, in his hand. Note its just one glass. Then cut to SJ on the bed with what I can only presume is the same glass of wine. Hence, the axiom, that wine and an open collared shirt are two vital ingredients in the seduction game.

The movie is slated for release August 15th.

Every year, up in Paso Robles, the Mid-State Fair brings us great bands (we happened to catch Steely Dan), not so great food (deep fried twinkies) and a line up of wine that bring out the best and the not so best that the four participating counties have to offer. And as Space is infinite, and Time is fleeting, I only list the winners here, we will be reaching out to the prize winning wineries to taste, and talk about this years barrels of the best. In all there were 11 double gold medals, and a whopping 51 gold medals in a field of over 600 wines.

I have provided links to wineries so you can read more about each, and bring some of your hard earned cash down to my town, and support the local / regional wine industry. We thank you for you continued support.

Super Awards went to:
* Best White Wine, Eberle 2007 Viognier, Paso Robles Mill Road
* Best Red Wine Halter Ranch 2005 Syrah, Paso Robles Estate
* Best Dessert Wine 2005 Robert Hall Vintage Port, Paso Robles

while the Best of Class was handed out to:
* 2007 Huber Chardonnay, unoaked, Santa Rita Hills
* 2007 Vina Robles Sauvignon Blanc, Paso Robles
* 2006 Castoro Cellars Pinot Grigio, Paso Robles
* 2006 Claiborne & Churchill Dry Gewurztraminer, Central Coast
* 2007 Harmony Cellars White Riesling, Monterey County
* 2007 Ventana Vineyards Dry Rosato, Arroyo Seco
* 2005 Halter Ranch Cabernet Sauvignon, Paso Robles
* 2005 Niner Wine Estates Merlot, Paso Robles
* 2005 Per Bacco Cellars Pinot Noir, Dronysus, Arroyo Grande Valley
* 2005 Penman Springs Petite Sirah, Paso Robles
* 2006 Sculpterra Winery Statuesque, Paso Robles
* 2006 Eberle Barbera, Paso Robles
* 2006 Kenneth Volk Vineyards Mourvedre, Lime Kiln Valley
* 2006 Ancient Peaks Zinfandel, Paso Robles
* 2006 Alapay Late Harvest Moscato, Paso Robles

BTW - If you are a winery and would like to have us review your wines, tour your grounds, or just stand on the porch and watch the sink into the ocean, drop us an email: christopher at drinksomewine dot com.

A highlight of the weekend, and trust me there were many highlights, was opening a bottle of Laetitia Pinot. Now I don’t know about you but I loves my Pinot. I wasn’t a huge fan until my friend and client Keli Vice really introduced me to some amazing bottles of Pinot Noir when I worked as a strategist with Beam Wine Estates (formerly Allied Domecq). Keli was the head of the online marketing group. Think cork dork, and really cute.

Anyway, she helped with my wine vocabulary, and even made sure I attended a few courses, both food and wine over at The Culinary Institute of America at Greystone and from that I found my appreciation and respect for the subtleties of Pinot Noir.

So I open this bottle of the 2006 Laetitia Pinot and right away I get a sniff of the exceptional bouquet, which some people call “nose”. Red and black fruits punctuated by raspberries are what register right from the top, and while I really just want to tip this bottle into the glass and hoist away, I relax, and settle back to enjoy a little bit of heaven. This Central Coast wine is an exceptional example of why my backyard continues to hold its own against the better known wine regions of California.

You can pretty much pull out the wine book and look for all the cool phrases. Well balanced. Round. Subtly quiet yet aggressively complex. Hints of jam and acid. Completely accessible while remaining reserved and sophisticated. And of course all of this is very true. But in a phrase I would say this wine is a joy to drink!

As the night got older, and the wine opened up, notes of black tea, or maybe cinnamon, but definitely a nice spice overlay crept though the wine. I would use this Pinot as a great example of what is meant when you call a wine layered. Its characteristics tend to mature as it breathes, and becomes very full and round near the end of the bottle. It is without a doubt a wonderful find at the market, and can many times be purchased on sale.

If you so inclined, and are in the Central Coast, drop me a line and we can go tour the vineyards. You may also want to review their wineclub offerings online if you don’t have a chance to visit. You won’t be disappointed in any of their wines, many of which end up on the wine lists of our better local restaurants.

Wine Blogging Wednesday! I remember when I made the logo that is currently in use for the monthly topical wine tasting event. The logomark was an obvious riff off of the one used here, with two wine stains indicating, well, more than one person drinking some wine. And from the look of things there were over 40 plus wine drinkers swirling and sniffing and spitting and drinking for the past WBW.

Over at Lenndevours, the next installment of WBW is not only #48, but the 4 year anniversary of what I actually believe was the first successful wine social network, no matter how informal or how loosely ran. And the best part was that it was created without a platform, a VC play, a “path to revenue” It was a bunch of wine bloggers and a great idea. So my congratulations to everyone that has participated over the years to make this thing pretty fuckin’ cool.

Ok, so the topic of #48 is “back to your roots” Now this ins’t a discussion on terroir, or hair color, or even ancestry. It a suggestion to go back to that first wine you drank. And not the stuff you shoulder-tapped out of the mini mart on the corner where your Uncle bought his smokes. We aren’t talking the “fortified wine varietal” here. No Boone’s Farm Strawberry Hill, although that is probably what accounted for one of my earliest hangovers, and another reason I tend to avoid Modesto, from whence the liquid evil is brewed. We are talking REAL wine, like in the kind with a cork and maybe even some history behind it. And with this in mind, I bring you the Chianti!

Who hasn’t drank from the mouth of the wickerman, at a beach party, or a spaghetti dinner back in our misspent youth and thought “EYE-Talian wine is very good?” I remember collecting the finished bottles and pluggin the neck with those cheap dime store candles to get that “Creature Features” drippy wax action going. Sharp to the taste, easy on the wallet, the wicker basket chianti was always a staple in my early forays into buying wine for Crazy Sauce spaghetti nights in school. It wasn’t until much later in my life that I realized that Chianti came in a “regular” wine bottle and could cost more than I made that day washing dishes at the local diner. And then of course it took a flesh eating psychologist to catapult the Chianti into the lexicon of often repeated phrases from pop movies, and made me wonder “what the fuck is a father bean?” It must be noted however that in the book of the same, Dr. Lecter says “I ate his liver with some fava beans and a big Amarone”. Guess the pedestrian American film market just couldn’t wrap their heads around pairing a big-bodied, dry Italian wine with a census taker.

So, for WBW #48 I plan on revisiting the old wicker bottle, and then a bottle of an Amarone for bonus points, and see if indeed, it would have made the movie any better. Links to WBW #48 will be posted on the internets August 13th over at Lenn’s blog.

I am big fan of Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations. Tonight (10pm EST) is another episode where he travels to Columbia and I will guess that the magic ingredient won’t be powered, but groundup. And I am talking about Chorizo! He is also writing a blog. I am always fascinated by his show because he has transformed the classic “cooking show” into a cultural influencer, opening my eyes to food that i would never have thought existed. Its the culinary version of Wild Kingdom.

If you saw last week’s episode I am certain that you have a greater respect for him that before as a man. Sure he is cool in that late-night all-night rock and roll celebrity-chef style, you know, the kind that roll off the line at 3:30 am in the Big Apple, grab a cab to some hole in the wall that serves insane food at 4 am, tosses back a shot of bourbon to clear the fire orders in his head and then pops a bottle of 2005 Chateau de Beaucastel Chateauneuf-du-Pape because its a great red wine to pair with anything and because he just spent 18 hours on the line and really doesn’t want to make any decisions. That kind of guy. Reminds me of myself really, as a younger man, when I was living in NYC in the 80’s, waiting tables and tending bar at such storied locations as il Tres Merle, Flutie’s. Private Eyes, or Paladium.

Anyway, on the first episode of the season Tony was visibly moved by the story he became part of during his journey into Laos. Now I am no pussy by any means, and just because I can swirl a wine glass with the big boys doesnt prohibit me from shedding a tear or two in compassion for the people I saw on the show. Go get it here from iTunes.Buy the whole season pass while you are at it.

Hats off to Bourdain and crew for another great season of television. Go buy Kitchen Confidential Updated Ed: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly (P.S.) or Anthony Bourdain’s Les Halles Cookbook: Strategies, Recipes, and Techniques of Classic Bistro Cooking and support the blog. Wine isnt cheap ya know.

Congratulations to Gary Vaynerchuk on his 500th episode of wine library tv. For those of you who dont know of Gary, he has been delivering the thunder about new wines and a new vocabulary thru his podcasts that appear 5 days a week, sometime between 4:00 and 6:00 EST.

What I find interesting about Gary is his use of social media to promote his message and his personal brand, and I will discuss that more later at Relevantly Speaking, but he has defiantly taken the medium and the message by storm. He is active on Twitter and he is all over mainstream media. Some people are put off by his loud, in-your-face style of broadcast, but it seems like the increasingly large number of fans have acknowledged that this might just be the wake up call that the often-times snooty and snobby wine industry needed. I for one hope to be able to do an interview with him here at DrinkSomeWine, with the assistance of my mentor Scott Parent, who produces the ever so famous podcast AmericanCliche.

For his 500th episode, Gary did a live audience show at CrushPad in San Fransisco and talks about a 2003 Araco Crianza Rioja, a 2001 Bodegas Primicia Rioja Reserva Rioja as well as a 2006 Lucien Crochet Sancerre Le Chene Sancerre Blanc.

If you are still reading this, I would highly recommend buying Gary’s Book - Gary Vaynerchuk’s 101 Wines: Guaranteed to Inspire, Delight, and Bring Thunder to Your World. ANd yes, buy it from here so I get a sniffy sniff of the sale from Amazon.

Last night I opened a bottle I have been waiting to try for a while. The 2005 Titus Napa Valley Merlot has been screaming at me to pop the cork and get down to business. And this wine is all business folks. Powerful, with a big jammy red fruit and herbs, this wine will be enjoyed by Cab drinkers as well. With the addition of Malbec and Cabernet Franc, this wine has some great structure and will stand up to very strong meats. I would have loved to have thought ahead and grilled some buffalo burgers, with a nice slice of red onion.

I would defiantly look for Titus at your fav shop, or maybe over at wine.com. I am also adding them to my list of wine clubs to join. They have three types of clubs, ranging from $80 - $500 a pop.

Titus Valley is located in Napa Valley just north of St. Helena on the oh so famous Silverado Trail.

There are always two things in my kitchen, wine and cheese. My friend Mahala used to have a cheese drawer in her fridge that rivaled our local deli, and taking her lead I began to explore the breadth of what has now become on of my favorite food groups. So as I was spinning back up the blog after a two, yes two, year hiatus I came across a rather simple guide to wine and cheese pairing.

And with words like mouthfeel, stinky and funky, you would almost expect this to be written by SATC’s Samantha.