EverythingWINE

Everything Wine was buzzing with activity on December 12, the day my cohort, Ivana, and I arrived for the Washington tasting. With so much wine and so little time to buy, shoppers kept the staff on their toes. Fortunately, Amorita Bastaja from Calibrium International was behind the bar, pouring wine and exuding calm.

Washington State produces an array of wildly divergent wines, from brawny cabernets to delicate rieslings, mostly from the mighty Columbia Valley. It’s also the number two wine producer, behind California, which makes me sad that I don’t know enough about these wines.

Amorita raved about Washington. "Some girls from Everything Wine and I went to Washington State in August, and what impressed me most was how daring this relatively young industry is to be working with varietals like Nebbiolo, Sangiovese and Malbec. I think Washington can make wines that are comparable to heavyweights like Italy and Argentina."

She started us off with the Washington Hills 2007 Gewürtzraminer from the Columbia Valley. This is a tropical fruit bomb of a wine with sweet aromas of lychee, pineapple and mango to keep your nose busy for hours. On the plush mouth, the tropical fruit is ripe and spicy, and there’s decent acidity for a gewürtz. Off dry, but clean finishing, it’s the thing for spicy Asian, Indian or Mexican food.

The Magnificent Wine Company has some of the most recognizable labels on store shelves. Their House Red is a blend of cab sauv, merlot, syrah, sangiovese, cab franc and malbec, and is always a crowd pleaser. The 2006 vintage has big fleshy red and black fruit with smoky spiciness and a warm, woody finish. Well balanced and smooth, and a lot going on.

Steak House Red is 100% cabernet sauvignon from vineyards on the east side of the Cascades. It’s an elegant, restrained wine with good acidity that deserves a rare filet mignon. Black cherry and violets on the nose, and warm red and orange fruit on the smooth, medium-bodied palate make it a natural food wine. Something to keep around the house.

If you are reading this on Christmas Day, bless your heart. You must be a serious wine lover to be online, reading about what to drink next on this, the most festive day of the year. But, as much as I appreciate your visit, if you have someone in the other room, hankering for your attention, please go to them now. After all, it’s only wine, and you can’t hug your kids with empty bottles.

Cheers!

 
So, you’re sitting there in front of a ravaged dinner table of turkey bone piles and gravy trails, and as the teapot boils, someone mentions dessert. Pumpkin pie, chocolate torte, bread pudding. But, with the pinot and syrah gone, what’s there to drink next?

After Dinner
Cabernet sauvignon is widely considered too big for traditional holiday dishes, but there’s something about cabernet at the very end of the meal, after drinking from lightest to darkest wines, that just feels right. Katnook 2006 Founders Block Cabernet from Coonawarra, Australia is an elegant choice. It’s a pretty wine with ripe black and blue fruit, and notes of violet, pine needle and eucalyptus. Firm structure and enough acidity to sip solo. It’s a good segue way to dessert, and if there’s a cheese platter, it’s a friend indeed.

Dessert Wine
The 7 Deadly Zins is a lusty wine that is dessert in a glass. Ripe, jammy fruit punches you in the face while 14.5% alcohol soothes the impact. Its massive body is plush and pillowy, and the blue and purple fruit connects with any dessert that has equally strong body and flavours. Chocolate has got to be one of the Deadly Zins. Number 2, behind alcohol, I expect. But zinful or not, consuming chocolate with this stuff is like heaven.

Gift Red
I think the kinds of wines most people are happiest to receive are good fruity reds they can drink with dinner. Unless I know my friend has a taste for the peculiar, I shoot for blends. Stone Paddock 2007 Scarlet from Hawkes Bay, New Zealand is the kind of wine I would be happy to give – as well as get. It’s luminous blend of merlot, cab, cab franc, and malbec. The Raspberry, blackberry and plum fruit is bright and candied, with a whiff of violet and tobacco – perhaps from the cab franc. Notes of forest floor lead to a long spicy finish. If that’s not impressive enough, tell the giftee it won a gold medal at this year’s San Francisco Wine Competition. Aw, you shouldn’t have.

Party Red
I was blown away by the Lammershoek 2005 Aprilskloof Red-Red Wine, Swartland, South Africa, which may or may not be inspired by the UB40 song of the same name. Check out the components: pinotage , zinfandel, cab sauvignon, merlot, grenaché, shiraz, viognier, carignan. It’s like varietal free association, but it works. Really smooth on the palate, generous red, black and purple fruit, and some earth, briar and spice. Great with barbeque, chocolate or just sipping.

Your Happy Holiday Case is now complete. Have a juicy and delicious holiday!

Baby, it’s cold outside. Freezing temperatures drive our desire to consume rich, warming red wines, particularly at the holiday feast. So, now that we’ve covered the whites, this part of our Happy Holiday Case highlights reds for dinner.

Without a doubt, the undisputed king of holiday dining is pinot noir. It is the ultimate crossover wine, able to pair with everything from fish to steak. Pinot noir - with its warm, earthy strawberry, cherry, mushroom and spice notes – complements and flatters the flavours of turkey, gravy, potatoes and stuffing. And its velvety structure, full of palate-cleansing acid, makes food go down like butter.

Pinot noir comes from all parts of the world – France, USA, Chile, Argentina and New Zealand – and is a standout in British Columbia.

One of my favourite, affordably priced BC pinots is from See Ya Later Ranch. Their 2007 has a nose of smoky red fruit with the earthy woodiness of a walk in a forest. The palate is lusciously soft, but with good acidity, and tastes like a warm cherry pie topped with chocolate sauce. The spicy finish is long on the black cherries and very, very satisfying.

It was when my daughter brought home a Tuscan wine from Italy and opened it for Christmas that I realized how well sangiovese pairs with traditional dishes. The Bivio 2006 Chianti has a savory, candied fruit quality that adds a lilting quality to rich flavours. Zesty cherry, raspberry and spice dance on a medium-bodied palate, and lively acidity leads to a lip-smacking finish that is juicy, but clean.

For a more robust experience with your turkey dinner, try Syrah. A nice spicy, fleshy, earthy syrah or shiraz will increase the depth quotient like no other wine.

Line Shack 2007 Syrah from the Central Coast of California is one such wine. It has a meaty, caramelish, warm black cherry nose that screams Winter Equinox. Ripe and chocolaty black cherries and berries dominate a well-oaked palate of soft tannins, that has notes of mulling spices. It’ll make your yams taste like pumpkin pie.

Next week, I’ll suggest four wines to round out after dinner part of the Happy Holiday Case: Cabernet Sauvignon, a Dessert Wine, a Party Red and a Gift bottle.

Have suggestions of your own? Please offer them here, as there are endless possibilities to play with.

With all the holiday parties coming up, one can never have too much wine. The Emily Post Institute advises bringing gifts to cocktail parties, dinners, brunches and overnighters, and in each of these situations, wine is considered appropriate. The best thing to do is build yourself a Happy Holiday Case – and soon.

My Happy Holiday Case contains twelve wines for every occasion. The first of this three part series is about the whites, starting with bubbly.

Whether it’s real Champagne or just sparkling wine, cava, cremant, spumante or prosecco, nothing is cheerier than a nose full of bubbles. That’s why I suggest at least two bottles.

The lovely salmon color of the Australian Bird in Hand Sparkling Pinot Noir practically screams festivity. Its bright cherry/strawberry aromas and flavours are spectacularly delivered on a frothy mouth of fine bubbles. With anything fruity - cranberry sauce, Jell-O molds, or ambrosia salads – it tastes like a walk through Candyland.

The Luis Pato Bruto from Portugal is an Espumante made from the obscure Maria Gomez grape. With a generous mousse, it has a toasty nose of zesty citrus, followed by attractive flavours of white stone fruit, apples, biscuit and a hint of mineral. Perfect for mashed potatoes, latkes or even sushi.

Sauvignon Blanc
Turkey may rule, but seafood is everywhere at holiday events, making a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc essential. Oracle of the Wind 2008 is a grassy, citric Sauvignon Blanc from the West Cape of South Africa. It has ample acidity to cut through any butter sauce and leaves the palate refreshed and clean with lip smacking juiciness.

Gewürtztraminer
This is one kind of wine that pairs magically with the spices of traditional Christmas dishes. Tinhorn Creek’s 2008 Gewürtztraminer has what it takes to stand up to all the yams and pumpkin pie you can throw down with it. Its exotic tropical flavours and aromas meld perfectly with anything sweet with maple syrup and brown sugar. 

Chardonnay
No matter the style, Chardonnay belongs on every holiday table. I found that the Blue Mountain 2007 Chardonnay, with its toasty coconut and steely granny smith apple notes, really brings out the rasiny sweetness of the yams. It has a whiff of oak, but also a very elegant structure that is amazingly food friendly. I could drink a case of it and still be on my feet.

Next week, December 11th, look for suggestions on Dinner Reds: a Pinot Noir, Tuscan Red and Syrah

On December 18th, I’ll suggest after Dinner Reds: Cabernet Sauvignon, a Dessert Wine, a Party Red and a Gift bottle.

With them, you will have twelve wines to get you through the holidays. Cheers!