GrapeStone Concepts

Cameron Hughes Wines Live Up to Their Hype and Value

Many of my associated wine professionals have been raving about the quality and value of Cameron Hughes wines. So, I thought I would do some sampling on my own. I purchased the 2009 Lot 303 Stags Leap District, Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon and the 2009  Lot 271 Russian River Valley Pinot Noir.

The Cab had wonderful scents of blackberry and plum, and had a good minerality with overtones of dark chocolate. It had very fine tannins. For $34 where are you going to find this quality of wine? Not any other place in Stags Leap appellation. Perfect for that rib roast or grilled steaks.

The Pinot Noir has already won a Wine Enthusiast 90 Pts. It had fragrant fresh cherry and raspberry aromas. There are some good toasty spices noted. Where can you find this quality Pinot Noir from Sonoma's Russian River Valley? Here at Cameron Hughes. Fabuous paired with a pork roast or turkey for Christmas dinner.

Happy Holidays!

Calling All Wine and Soccer Fans: Wine and Snack Combinations for "Footie" Season

I was asked to put together a snack-friendly wine list for my editor at Tuscan Magazine. It's soccer/footie season in Italy. Italians have the same desire as we do in the States to find wine that is a complement to their snacks. Go Fiorentina!

 
 

Check out the Tuscan Magazine Blog at: Tuscan Magazine Blog

 

April 1: What No Fools Will Drink

I'ts April Fools Day. You don't want to be the fool caught drinking a poor value wine. The most commonly asked question I get is: Are there any good value wines out there? The answer is "yes", literally there are hundreds of them. Be discerning, do a little research, and you should be able to find some wonderful wines.

Here is my "No Fools" list of some great finds:

2009 Cameron Hughes Sauvignon Blank (Leyda Valley) $12

2008 Castle Rock Cabernet Sauvignon (Columbia Valley) $12

2009 Sand Rita Reserva Malbec (Colchagua Valley) $12

2009 Tangley Oaks Pinot Noir (Sonoma Coast) 15

2009 Simonsig Cabernet Sauvignon-Shiraz (Stellenbosch South Africa) $13

2007 Andezen Côtes du Rhône $11

2009 Spellbound Chardonnay (CA) $13

2007 Rolf Binder Retro SS Shiraz Cabernet (Barossa Valley) $15

2009 Josef Chromy Pepik Chardonnay (Tasmania) $20

2008 Fornese Terre di Chieti Sangiovese (Abruzzi Italy) $12

2007 Fess Parker Pinot Noir Ashley's Vineyard (Santa Rita Hills, CA) $50

For more great buys for No Fools:

Wine Enthusiast Best Buy Cheat Sheet, click here:

Best Buy Cheat Sheet - Wine Enthusiast

 

 

Premiere Napa Valley Wine Auction - A New Screaming Eagle is Born? - Scarecrow

I just returned from the Premiere Napa Valley Wine Auction and the Symposium for Professional Wine Writers. A new star has emerged from the Auction - Scarecrow  - by winemaker Celia Welch. A Japanese importer paid $125,000 for a 5 cases, or $2083 per bottle. Two years ago that same lot went for $80,000.

The Auction took place at the Culinary Institute of America, Napa Valley, where the crowd of 1,000 consisted of vintners, retailers, restaurateurs, distributors, brokers and media from across the country and around the world. The PNV Wine Auction began in 1997 as a "bake sale" by the Napa Vintners Association to preserve and protect the Napa Valley appellation and has evolved into a week-long event. The Symposium for Professional Wine Writers featured attendance from 85 of the most well-know editorial wine writers including Susan Kostrewza (Wine Enthusiast), Richard Bradley (Worth Magazine), Karen MacNeil (The Wine Bible), Lettie Teague (The Wall Street Journal).

Do we have a new wine star? A new Screaming Eagle? The buyer of the Scarecrow lot, Ichizo Nakagawa, owner of Tokyo-based Nakagawa Wine Company, receive a standing ovation from a record crowd. He said he was determined to buy the lot "no matter what",

"I'm amazed, I'm shocked," said Scarecrow owner Bret Lopez stepping outside to catch his breath. "We never dreamed we'd reach this stature and (winemaker) Celia Welsh is a genius, a humble genius who coaxes the sublime flavors from the old men," referring to the 66-year-old-vines that produce just a 1/2 ton per acre.

Here are some of the other statistics from Premiere Napa Valley courtesy of the Napa Vintners Association:

Premiere Napa Valley 2011 – By the Numbers

• Nearly $2.4 million in sales

• 23% y/y increase

• Topped record year 2008 ($2.2 million) by 5%

• Successful bidders: 68

• Cases purchased: 1530

• Average price per case: $1546 ($128/bottle)

• Rounding out the other top ten highest earning lots of the day: Schrader Cellars, Ovid, Levy and McClellan, Shafer Vineyards, Robert Mondavi Winery, Reynolds Family Winery, Duckhorn Vineyards, Silver Oak Cellars and Beringer Vineyards.

Have a Healthy Wine......for the Holidays: Excerpt from the Tuscan Magazine

During my month-long trip to Italy in October, I had the pleasure of meeting with Sarah Frasier, editor of the Tuscan Magazine. I join British, Canadian, Irish, German, and Italian writers as their sole American journalist. It's a privilege.

Sara and her husband, Richard are Brits who have relocated to Lucca, Toscana, Italy and are the authors of Tuscan Living: From the Yorkshire Moors to the Tuscan Hills. I have featured their book in my Amazon.com "I Recommend" section.

To get a glimpse of this wonderful English-speaking publication of Tuscany, go to:

http://tuscanlivingmagazine.com/\

My article appears on Page 40 of the Body and Soul section of the on-line version. " Have a Healthy Wine: Healthy Italian Wines, the Difference is Skin Deep". For a reprint of the article, write us at: maggie@grapestoneconcepts.com.

  

We're grateful for our nation and all its blessing this Thanksgivings. Have a Healthy Wine!

Page 40: the Tuscan magazine

 

It has long been realized that red wine brings to our bodies a group of organic chemicals that can serve as clot-inhibiting, bad cholesterol reducing, antioxidant-enriching properties. How do the wines of Italy stack up in delivering these benefits?

The latest studies on red wine have been truly amazing. The health effect of wine drunk in moderation are not just the anti-atherosclerotic (anti-plaque in vessels), antithrombotic (anti-clot formation), but also are the angiogenic (inhibit the production of blood vessels) properties against tumors. Many new therapeutic cancer-fighting drugs work on the premise that the prevention of growth of new blood vessels inhibits the growth of tumors. These tumors need new blood vessels to grow.

Red grapes, dark chocolate, blueberries, garlic, soy and tea are some of the ingredients that starve cancer while feeding our bodies.

 Dr. William Li, M.D., Medical Director and President of the Angiogenesis Foundation, Cambridge, MA, USA,  was recently covered by Wine Spectator Magazine  for his presentation at the TED Conference, a small non-profit where the world’s thinkers and doers gather for “Ideas Worth Spreading”, in February 2010. Dr. Li says,

“By examining the potential of antiangeogenics in food, we will find answers to cancer all around us…In our groceries, in our food, and in our glasses”.

Italy: Take the Wine Road through the Chocolate Valley

 

 

   

And go to Chocolate Atlas for the remainder of the Article: 

http://www.chocolateatlas.com/L2Europe/6BConover_Italy/Wine_Roads_and_Chocolate.html

 

Wine and Chocolate: A Healthy Pairing Fit for a Gala

I was asked in September to participate as a Certified Wine Professional to help promote  a wine and chocolate pairing on  Dallas’ KDAF TV 33 segment, “The RC Project”.  This pairing of chocolates from Steve Smith’s company, Nib Chocolates, and Waterbrook Winery, Columbia Valley, WA, will be served at the after-party of the AT&T Dallas Symphony gala, September 11. The Côtes du Coeur of the American Heart Association, of which I am a Society member, is providing the wine. This appearance made me contemplate the healthy pairing of wine and chocolate as part of our GrapeStone Concepts “point of view” on the benefits of drinking wine and eating healthy foods slowly.

(Roni Proctor,  Dallas’ KDAF Channel 33 The RC Project; Steve Smith, Nib Chocolates; Tricia Conover, C.W.P., GrapeStone Concepts, Candice Crawford, The RC Project)

It has long been realized that red wine brings to our bodies a group of organic chemicals that can serve as clot-inhibiting, bad cholesterol reducing, antioxidants. Recently, chocolates also have been known for their health-inducing and psychoactive properties. The Aztecs were the first to use a hot, steamy chocolate drink from the seeds of the cacao tree, species theobroma cacao ,“food of the gods”, for its restorative properties. The consumption of chocolate triggers the release of endorphins which contributes to that inner glow induced in susceptible chocoholics, according to the Directory of Chocolatiers. Chocolates have organic compounds of anandamide and theobromine which cause relaxation and happiness.

The latest studies on red wine have been truly amazing. The health effects of wine drunk in moderation are not just the anti-atherosclerotic (anti -plaque in vessels), antithrombotic (anti-clot formation), but also are the angiogenic properties (inhibit the production of blood vessels) against tumors. Many new therapeutic cancer-fighting drugs work on the premise that the prevention of growth of new blood vessels inhibits the growth of tumors. The tumors need new blood vessels to survive and spread. Resveratrol, a polyphenol found in the skin and seeds of red grapes, is one of the agents that can inhibit cancer-feeding blood vessels.

Red grapes, dark chocolate, blueberries, garlic, soy and tea are some of the ingredients that starve cancer while feeding our bodies.

Dr. William Li, M.D., Medical Director and President of the Angiogenesis Foundation was recently covered by Wine Spectator for his presentation at the TED Conference, a small non-profit where the world’s thinkers and doers gather for “Ideas Worth Spreading”, in February 2010. Dr. Li says,

“By examining the potential of antiangeogenics in food, we will find answers to cancer all around us…In our groceries, in our food, and in our glasses”.

So the pairing this week of fine Oaxacan Spice and Tahitian vanilla bean chocolates with Waterbrook Winery’s 2007 Mélange Noir, a blend of Cabernet sauvignon, Merlot, Sangiovese, Cabernet Franc grapes, is not only fit for the spectacular Dallas Symphony Gala, but will make us fit, too.

Wine, Health, and La Dolce Vita

I just returned from the Professional Wine Writers Symposium in Napa Valley, www.winewriterssymposium.org.  Our keynote speaker was the eloquent Frances Mayes, author of Under the Tuscan Sun, and her new book: Every Day in Tuscany, Seasons of an Italian Life.  I was encouraged by Frances and several well-know wine editors to really consider documenting the positive health effects of great wine with delicious, local food ingredients, and inspiring travel adventures….”una bella vita”.

Gary Walther, one of our distinguished lecturers and former editor of the luxury lifestyle magazine, ForbesLife, specifically discussed  the trend of pressure-strained folks to seek  a healthy, stress-reducing destination for their next escape.  These destination choices more and more include wine country travels.

One of the hottest books describing this trend comes from the successful author of Judgment of Paris, George Taber. (As you may recall, Judgment of Paris became the movie Bottle Shock. The book and the movie detail the famous 1976 blind wine tasting in Paris which pitted the best of the nascent Napa Valley wines against the top French wines. Napa surprisingly won. )  His new book, In Search of Bacchus -Wanderings in the Wonderful World of Wine Tourism, describes the immergence in all the world’s top wine countries of businesses and events aimed to pull travelers “ in search of La Dolce Vita “off the road.

And yes, Napa Valley is now the second most-visited tourist destination after Disneyland in California.

It is with this trend in mind that I focus  future articles on the  top destinations and purveyors of healthy lifestyles.

“WINE TO ME IS PASSION.  IT'S FAMILY AND FRIENDS. IT'S WARMTH OF HEART AND GENEROSITY OF SPIRIT. WINE IS ART. IT'S CULTURE. IT'S THE ESSENCE OF CIVILIZATION AND THE ART OF LIVING.”

----ROBERT MONDAVI,  Harvests of Joy

Top Wines of 2009: Trends Revealed!

A valid look at the 2009 Top Wines of the year should include a combination of the results from both  the Wine Spectator (WS) and Wine Enthusiast’s  (WE)” Top 100 Wines of the Year”. What are the trends? What are the top countries and producers? Is one of the publications more biased towards Italy? Is one of the publications more focused on Pinot noirs? Is the USA representation appropriate?

To make this analysis statistically more significant, the two lists are pooled, and some interesting facts are revealed.  What are the most inexpensive wines of the 2009 selected? What are the most expensive wines of 2009 selected? What are the emerging varietals and blends with significant “picks”?

About the Scores and Publications: Both highly respected publications have their own scoring rules to include the raw quality score, availability, price, and an “X” factor -excitement.  Needless to say, some of  the most scarce, expensive wines  may not be included as selections  even though their raw, judge’s score is very high.  Both publications’ headquarters are in New York, USA.

GrapeStone Concepts Conclusions:

Top Countries: It is not surprising to see the top countries selected are the USA, France, Italy, Spain and Australia.

Top Varietals: It is not a shock to see that the top varietals selected are Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Sangiovese (including Chianti) blends, and Shiraz and Syrah. But a surprising number of selections are blends  of the Châteauneuf-du-Pape style of GSM’s (Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre, +others) from both old and new world growing regions. And, the number of non-Chianti reds of Italy are quite high. The number of both new and old world Tempranillo blends is significant. It is wonderful to see the number of new and old world Rieslings and Sauvignon blancs in the list. The “pure varietal” winner, however, is Pinot Noir. Otherwise, Cabernet Sauvignon combined with the Bordeaux blends and other  cab-based red blends would be the overwhelming winner.

Top Regions: Some of the top regions include:  Napa Valley (inclusive of internal AVA’s- 13 total), Tuscany (inclusive of internal regions - 14 selected), Australia’s Barossa Valley (6 selected), Sonoma’s Russian River Valley and Sonoma Coast(13 combined), France’s Bordeaux (6 selected), Argentina’s Mendoza( 5 selected). What is a revelation in this analysis? It is really remarkable to see the great showing and good value of the Columbia Valley, Washington wines (12 selections).

Number of Wines $20 and under Since these two lists were compiled with value and availability weighing against judges’ scores, it is still astonishing to see that there were 31 wines that are $20 or less.

Email :  maggie@grapestoneconcepts.com and we will send you a document of the combined list of the Top 200 WS and WE  wines that retail for $20 or less.

 

4 least expensive wines in  the combined 2009 Top 200 Wine Spectator and Wine Enthusiast:

Producer	Region	Wine	WE/WS Rank	Price
Barnard Griffin	Columbia Valley, WA	Riesling	66	$8
d’Arenberg	McLaren Vale, Australia	The Stump Jump Shiraz	82	$11
Allram	Kamptal, Austria	Qualitätswein Trocken Kamptal Strassertaler	45	$12
Loosen Brothers	Mosel ,Germany	Riesling QbA	62	$12

4 most expensive wines in the combined 2009 Top 200 Wine Spectator and Wine Enthusiast:

Producer	Region	Wine	WE/WS Rank	Price
Fontodi	Chianti Classico, Italy	Colli Della Tuscan Centrale Flaccianello (Sangiovese)	8	$110
Close des Papes	Châteauneuf-du-Pape, France	Châteauneuf-du-Pape	42	$115
Château Ducru-Beaucaillou	St. Julien, Bordeaux, France	Bordeaux blend	96	$145
Bonneau du Martray	Burgundy, France	Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru	98	$150

Producers picked by both publications:

There were only 3 producers selected by both Top 100 lists.

1. Bodega Centena Zapata (Argentina) for their 2005 & 2007 Malbec

2. Brancott’s (New Zealand) Sauvignon blanc

3. Two Hands (Australia) Shiraz - Bad Impersonator and Bell’s Garden

 

Data: Combined results of the Top 100 Wine Spectator and Wine Enthusiast 2009 selections

Most frequently selected countries and varietals:

Country	# top wines
Argentina	6
Australia	14
Austria	5
Chile	5
France	31
Germany	5
Hungary	2
Italy	27
New Zealand	6
Portugal	4
South Africa	2
Spain	15
USA	78

Top Varietals and Unique blends only	# Top Wines
Pinot Noir	18
Cabernet Sauvignon	17
Red Blends including Bordeaux with Cab	16
Chardonnay	16
Syrah*	13
Riesling	12
Shiraz*	11
Sangiovese Blends (including Chianti)	11
GSM+ Blends	11
Tempranillo Blends	7
Malbec	6
Nebbiolo	5
Sauvignon blanc	5
Pinot Gris/Grigio	4
Touriga National Blends	4
Zinfandel	4
* same grape, stylistically different

Readers: Your comments on these trends are valued.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year to all the new followers of GrapeStone Concepts! I'll be posting a retrospective analysis on everyone's Top 100 Wines of 2009 very soon. Combined, there are some interesting trends to observe. In the meantime, be safe and have a wonderful evening.