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The Wine Connoisseur

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Pixabay photo

By Bob Lipinski

Bob Lipinski

Lodi, the largest and most important Central Valley AVA (American Viticultural Area) designated in 1986, is home to over 20 percent of California’s total wine grape production, with over 100,000 acres of vineyards. 

Located in the northern part of the San Joaquin Valley, just south of Sacramento, on the eastern edge of the Sacramento River Delta, Lodi is slightly cooler than much of the Central Valley because as temperatures rise, marine breezes are pulled from San Francisco Bay, creating a distinctly cooler climate than the rest of the valley. Lodi’s sub-AVAs are Alta Mesa, Borden Ranch, Clements Hills, Cosumnes River, Jahant, Mokelumne River, and Sloughhouse.

The city was originally called Mokelumne (Mokul is a corruption of the Miwok word for river, and umne means “people of”), and was established as a town in 1869 after a group of major landowners persuaded the Central Pacific Railroad to make it a stop between Stockton and Sacramento. The town of Mokelumne was often confused with the nearby communities of Mokelumne Hill and Mokelumne City, which often delayed mail and shipments of goods and supplies. For these reasons, the town’s name was changed to Lodi in 1874.

Lodi is home to both large brands, like Sutter Home and Robert Mondavi Woodbridge, and over 85 small boutique wineries, many of whom specialize in “old-vine” Zinfandel production. In addition, many leading California wineries buy Lodi grapes, including E. & J. Gallo, Constellation, Fetzer Vineyards, Delicato, Napa Ridge, Ravenswood, and Beringer, among others.

Lodi is considered the “Zinfandel Capital of the World,” producing over 30 percent of California’s premium Zinfandel. Many of the city’s most distinctive Zinfandel wines come from about 2,000 acres of Pre-Prohibition, “old vines,” some dating back to the 1880s. These vines are naturally low-yielding due to age, but consistently produce high-quality grapes. Besides Zinfandel, major grapes grown include Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Merlot, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris, Syrah, Petite Sirah, and over a hundred other varieties.

Some recommended wineries to try Zinfandel from are:

Berghold Vineyards

Borra Vineyards

Gnarly Head Wines

Harmony Wynelands

Harney Lane Winery and Vineyards

Ironstone Vineyards

Jeremy Wine Company

Klinker Brick Winery

Lange Twins Family Winery

Macchia Wines

McCay Cellars

Mettler Family Vineyards

Michael David Winery

Oak Farm Vineyards

St. Amant Winery

Van Ruiten Family Vineyards

“What is the best California wine?” Now it is impossible to answer that question as phrased. The range of wines is wide and the list of different types and their makers is long. (Lindley Bynum, Davis Bynum Winery Inc.)

Bob Lipinski is the author of 10 books, including “101: Everything You Need To Know About Whiskey” and “Italian Wine & Cheese Made Simple” (available on Amazon.com). He consults and conducts training seminars on Wine, Spirits, and Food and is available for speaking engagements. He can be reached at www.boblipinski.com OR [email protected]

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Cognac. Pixabay photo

By Bob Lipinski

Bob Lipinski

Cognac is a brandy distilled from the fermented juice of grapes in the province of Charente and is also the name of a region in the southwest of France, north of Bordeaux and southwest of Paris. The re­gion’s stony, chalk-rich soil (because of ancient oyster beds), its climate, the specific grape varieties grown there, and the methods used in distilling, blending, and aging the brandy, gives cognac its unique flavor.

Cognac AOC area of production was first defined in 1909 and then finalized in 1938. The six defined grape-growing areas are Grande Champagne, Petite Champagne, Borderies, Fins Bois, Bons Bois, and Bois Ordinaires (Bois à Terroirs).

The following grape varieties are used to produce cognac: Ugni Blanc, Colombard, Folle Blanche, Montils, and Sémillon, with lesser amounts of Folignan. The grapes are harvested quite early, ensuring a wine with a low alcohol content and a very high acid level.

The wine must be double distilled in a copper pot still called an alembic Charentais. After the cognac has been distilled, it is put into barrels that are made of oak from the Limousin or Tronçais forests. The oak has a considerable influence on the bouquet and taste of the cognac. When cognac is put in the barrel, it is about 70 percent alcohol and is clear in color. During the aging process, the oak from the barrels imparts taste, color, and odor to the final product, turning the clear spirit into a mellow, golden drink. The older a cognac becomes, the smoother its flavor and the subtler its aroma.

Most cognacs are blends that combine brandies from varying sections and vintages into a final product. In the town of Cognac, there are barrels of cognac that have been aging for a hundred years or more.

Label designations as of 2018

• VS/ Three-Star (***): aged a minimum of 2 years

• Supérieur: aged a minimum of 3 years

• VSOP/ Réserve/ Vieux: aged a minimum of 4 years

• Vieille Réserve/ Réserve Rare: aged a minimum of 5 years

• Napoléon / Très Vieille Réserve: aged a minimum of 6 years

• XO/ Hors d’Âge/ Extra/ Ancestral: aged a minimum of 10 years

 • XXO: aged a minimum of 14 years

Enjoying Cognac

Although most people prefer not to mix cognac, young­er (VS, or three-star) cognac makes delightful highballs when mixed with soda water, leaving the palate more receptive to wines. Cognac and freshly squeezed orange juice make an enjoy­able cocktail. After dinner, cognac is the perfect companion for coffee.

Bob Lipinski is the author of 10 books, including “101: Everything You Need To Know About Whiskey” and “Italian Wine & Cheese Made Simple” (available on Amazon.com). He consults and conducts training seminars on Wine, Spirits, and Food and is available for speaking engagements. He can be reached at www.boblipinski.com OR [email protected].

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METRO photo

By Bob Lipinski

Bob Lipinski

Recently I was invited to a friend’s house for dinner and as we enjoyed a few appetizers, he served a bottle of a 1998 Australian Chardonnay from a winery I’ve never heard of. The wine was dark yellow and when tasted, it was well past its point of drinkability.

According to my friend, the wine was stored in his temperature-controlled cellar for over 10 years. He was dismayed to learn that some wines need aging, but the vast majority are best drunk when released for sale by the winery.

I explained that there is no precise answer when a wine will be at its peak because wines age at difference paces. The vintage, growing conditions, winemaking and barrel or stainless-steel aging, also plays a part in wine’s ability to age. The aging curve of wine depends on the location and conditions where the wine will be stored. Also, personal taste plays a significant role in the enjoyment of wine. As an example, many people enjoy champagne when first released with its youthful freshness, while others enjoy the more mature, bottle-aged versions.

Vintage charts and vintage reports, often touted by online sources, will provide you with a ballpark idea when the wine will be at its peak. They often say, “drink by this date or hold until that date.”

Wine’s longevity can be attributed to many factors, among them higher acidity, higher alcohol, carbonation, concentrated fruit, sugar (residual), and tannin, which is an antioxidant.

Not all wines are age-worthy, and in fact, most wines available for sale are not. Wines that benefit from years in the bottle (cellar) tend to be more expensive. I generally purchase several bottles of the same wine and after a few years, open one bottle and see if it’s approaching maturing. Then I decide (with some guesswork) when the next bottle should be opened.

Except for most Chardonnay, Riesling, and sweet wines, white wines should be consumed within three years after the vintage. Most red wines are best between four and seven years after the vintage. Red wines that can age much longer than seven years include Amarone della Valpolicella, Barbaresco, Barolo, Bordeaux, Brunello di Montalcino, Burgundy, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Chianti Classico Riserva.

My rule for aging wine is simple. I’d rather open a bottle of a young wine and say, “It tastes good now but will be better in ‘X’ years” rather than opening a bottle of wine aged for many years and say, “It was probably good several years ago, but now it’s over-the-hill!”

Bob Lipinski is the author of 10 books, including “101: Everything You Need To Know About Whiskey” and “Italian Wine & Cheese Made Simple” (available on Amazon.com). He consults and conducts training seminars on Wine, Spirits, and Food and is available for speaking engagements. He can be reached at www.boblipinski.com OR [email protected].

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A pint of beer. Pixabay photo

By Bob Lipinski

Bob Lipinski

Although there are dozens of styles of beer produced globally, the most commonly consumed are those labeled “lager” and “ale.” Within these two categories are many lesser-known styles, some hundreds of years old that are well worth searching out. Eight that I recommend are:

Altbier (Germany): “Alt” refers to the “old” style of brewing (i.e., using top-fermenting yeast) that was common before bottom-fermenting lager brewing became popular in the mid-eighteenth century. They are copper-colored ales with a high barley and hops content. The traditional style of beer found in brewpubs in Münster and the Altstadt (“old town”) section of Düsseldorf.

Gose (Germany): An old-style beer that originated in the Middle Ages in the town of Goslar on the Gose River in Lower Saxony (Sachsen). Gose is a highly carbonated, tart, and fruity wheat ale with a citrusy, tangy, and salty flavor, low in bitterness with hints of coriander.

Kölsch (Germany) Light gold-colored ale brewed since the Middle Ages, but the beer now known as Kölsch was developed in the late 1800s. It is dry with a very subtle tart fruit and hop character. Kölsch is an appellation protected by the Kölsch Konvention (1986) and is restricted to the 20 or so breweries in and around Cologne (Köln).

Lambic (Belgium): A family of spontaneously fermented ales generally brewed near Brussels. They are often aged up to three years in barrels. Some ingredients added during the brewing process are brown sugar, cranberries, peaches, raspberries, sour cher¬ries, and wheat. Most of the beers are winy, distinctively sour, and somewhat acidic, almost resembling vermouth rather than beer. Some examples of lambic beers are Faro, Framboise, Gueuze, and Kriek.

Gueuze (Belgium): A lambic-type ale made by mixing one, two, and three-year-old lambic beers. It is moderately sour, acidic, and highly effervescent with aromas of apple, rhubarb, and leather.

Kriek (Belgium): A lambic-type ale that has been further fermented by adding sour or bitter black cherries to produce a dry beer with an unusual cherry flavor. Some similarity to a kir royale.

Rauchbier (Germany): An amber to dark-colored lager beer, with a smoky, bacon-like aroma and flavor. It is brewed by adding malt that was dried over smoking beechwood, before being brewed, making it intensely smoky. It is brewed in the city of Bamberg, in Franken.

Saison (Belgium): Translates to season. A sharply refreshing, amber-colored, summer seasonal ale that is fruity, moderately bitter, and has a slightly sour taste. It is brewed in Wallonia, the French-speaking part of Belgium.

Bob Lipinski is the author of 10 books, including “101: Everything You Need To Know About Whiskey” and “Italian Wine & Cheese Made Simple” (available on Amazon.com). He consults and conducts training seminars on Wine, Spirits, and Food and is available for speaking engagements. He can be reached at www.boblipinski.com OR [email protected].

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Goat cheese. Pixabay photo

By Bob Lipinski

Bob Lipinski

Goat cheese, known as chèvre in French, is a classification of cheeses made worldwide from goat’s milk, which vary in style, appearance, and flavor. Goat’s milk cheese is made in a variety of shapes, such as cones, cylinders, disks, logs, ovals, pyramids, wheels, and “buttons.” By French law, cheese labeled as pur chèvre must be made entirely from goat’s milk. Cheeses made from a blend of goat and cow’s milk are labeled mi-chèvre.

Goat cheese costs more because of the relative scarcity of the milk: cows produce around six times as much milk as goats do. Hence, there is less cheese at higher prices.

Some goat cheeses are rolled in paprika or chili powder to give it a brick-red, colorful exterior. Others are wrapped in chestnut or grape leaves and dipped in brandy, marc, white wine, red wine, or olive oil. The outer chalk white surface is sometimes coated in ash, black pepper, or herbs.

Although the most common goat cheeses are soft and spreadable, others are semisoft, firm-textured, dry, and crumbly, and occasionally very hard, which can be grated. Some goat cheeses are smoked, while others are flavored with garlic, black pepper, curry powder, fennel, rosemary, and various herbs. Goat cheese varies in flavor from mild to acetic, tangy, sharp, nutty, grassy, earthy, barnyardy, or mushroomy.

Goat cheese. Pixaay photo

Some recommended goat cheeses to try are Alicante, Banon, Bouton-de-Culotte, Bûcheron, Cabécou, Camerano, Capricette, Chabichou, Chevrotin, Crottin de Chavignol, Garrotxa, Ibores, Lormes, Montrachet, Pélardon, Picodon, Pyramide, Sainte-Maure, Valençay, and Ziegenkäse.

There are many red, white, and rosé wines that pair well with goat cheese. Some red wines are Cabernet Franc, Gamay, Grenache, Pinot Noir, Syrah, and Zinfandel. Some white wines are Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc, Gewürztraminer, Grüner Veltliner, Muscadet, Riesling, and Sauvignon Blanc. I especially enjoy goat cheese with a brut or blanc de noirs champagne, brut Prosecco, tawny port, a dry rosé, or a chilled glass of a fino (dry) sherry.

Some suggested wines to try are…

2019 Stephane Aviron Moulin-à-Vent “Vieilles Vignes” Beaujolais, France. Cranberry-colored with an aroma and flavor of blueberry, raspberry, plums, spices, and licorice. Dry and medium-bodied, with hints of roses.

2018 Murphy-Goode Pinot Noir, California. Ruby colored with an aroma of spicy black cherry and flavors of cranberry, plum, and cola with hints of cinnamon, earth, mint, and tea leaves.

2019 Greywacke “Sauvignon Blanc,” Marlborough, New Zealand. Straw-colored with a fresh aroma of citrus and herbs. Dry and medium-bodied with flavors of chamomile, grapefruit, passion fruit, white pepper, and stone fruit.

Bob Lipinski is the author of 10 books, including “101: Everything You Need To Know About Whiskey” and “Italian Wine & Cheese Made Simple” (available on Amazon.com). He consults and conducts training seminars on Wine, Spirits, and Food and is available for speaking engagements. He can be reached at www.boblipinski.com OR [email protected]

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