Winecast

Today’s podcast is a bit of a change in the regular format and my first co-host show. It is with Alan Baker, the CellarRat from the Ratcast podcast released in what we think is an unprecedented format: the Simulcast. We talk about and taste a Syrah from Pax Wine Cellars.

Show notes:

00:23 - Welcome and show theme

02:39 - Pax Syrah Simulcast

20:27 - Tasting Notes: Pax Wine Cellars, Syrah, Walker Vine Hill Vineyard, Russian River Valley 2003 ($60)

21:27 - An announcement about the future of Winecast

22:26 - Contact details

22:50 - Next show theme

Feedback: [email protected] | Audio comments: +01-206-33-WINE-9 (+01-206-339-4639)

Copyright 2006 Tim Elliott. Licensed to the public under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

Today’s podcast is my first of 2006 and my second take on my favorite red varietal: Zinfandel, and I interview Alan Baker, the Cellar Rat.

Show Notes:

00:22 - Welcome and show theme

00:37 - Zinfandel background

02:42 - Tasting Notes

02:56 - Ridge Vineyards, Zinfandel, Geyserville 2002 ($27)

04:14 - Trinitas Cellars, Zinfandel, Bigalow Vineyard, Contra Costa County 2002 ($28)

05:45 - Peterson Winery, Zinfandel, Dry Creek Valley 2002 ($18/sample)

06:54 - Best of Tasting: Ridge Vineyards, Zinfandel, Geyserville 2002 ($27)

07:35 - Best Value: Peterson Winery, Zinfandel, Dry Creek Valley 2002 ($18)

07:50 - Interview with Alan Baker, the Cellar Rat

20:44 - Contact Details

21:07 - Next Show Theme

Feedback: [email protected] | Audio comments: +01-206-33-WINE-9 (+01-206-339-4639)

Copyright 2006 Tim Elliott. Licensed to the public under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

The theme for this month's event is provided by Derrick at An Obsession with Food who asks us to Judge a Bottle By Its Cover. Basically, he just asked us to pick up a bottle only selected by its label art and not any other factor such as producer, reputation, vintage or critic review. I thought it would also be interesting to pick up only wines from producers I am unfamiliar with.

So I went to the wine store and found my first selection right away from Nova Wines the producer of the famous Marilyn Merlot, the 2005 Norma Jeane Merlot. The label is a stunning shot of the young Norma Jeane Baker in a bikini sitting on a large flower. It certainly commands attention alongside more modest labels. It’s a blend of 80% Merlot and 20% Syrah from the Tallerico Vineyard in French Camp, California. Here are my tasting notes:

Nova Wines, "Norma Jeane", Merlot 2005 ($10.50) - Clear ruby in color with explosive wild cherry and papaya aromas; simple wild cherry flavors with a hint of the tropical fruit on the finish. Quite quaffable, but not up to the latest crop of Beaujolais Nouveau tasted on my last podcast. Tasted at cellar temperature, but a bit better slightly chilled. Scores - Label: 10/10; Wine: 7.5/10

My second wine stood out from the rest on the shelf for it's minimalist typography and 3-dot esthetic. This wine is an Eric Soloman Selection, who seems to always have great typographical label art. It is from a co-op of 15 wineries and growers in Portugal’s Duoro valley and is a blend of old vines fruit from all 15 producers. Being a typographer from the pre-computer days, I really appreciate the clean use of sans-serif font and white space; a very elegant label that attracted my attention.

Lavradores de Feitoria, "Tres Bagos", Duoro, Portugal 2002 ($16) - Deep ruby color with aromas of blackberry, earth and spices; nicely concentrated blackberry fruit and black pepper flavors with dusty tannins and high acidity. Another very good food wine and one of the best table wines from Portugal I have tried. Scores - Label: 9.5/10; Wine: 8.5/10

So both wines take an honor this time; for best label art, Norma Jeane Merlot 2005 and the best tasting wine is the Lavradores de Feitoria, "Tres Bagos" 2002.

Thanks again to Derrick for the theme and I'll see you all next month.

Feedback: [email protected] | Audio comments: +01-206-33-WINE-9 (+01-206-339-4639)

Copyright 2005 Tim Elliott. Licensed to the public under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

The theme for this month's event is provided by Derrick at An Obsession with Food who asks us to Judge a Bottle By Its Cover. Basically, he just asked us to pick up a bottle only selected by its label art and not any other factor such as producer, reputation, vintage or critic review. I thought it would also be interesting to pick up only wines from producers I am unfamiliar with.

So I went to the wine store and found my first selection right away from Nova Wines the producer of the famous Marilyn Merlot, the 2005 Norma Jeane Merlot. The label is a stunning shot of the young Norma Jeane Baker in a bikini sitting on a large flower. It certainly commands attention alongside more modest labels. It’s a blend of 80% Merlot and 20% Syrah from the Tallerico Vineyard in French Camp, California. Here are my tasting notes:

Nova Wines, "Norma Jeane", Merlot 2005 ($10.50) - Clear ruby in color with explosive wild cherry and papaya aromas; simple wild cherry flavors with a hint of the tropical fruit on the finish. Quite quaffable, but not up to the latest crop of Beaujolais Nouveau tasted on my last podcast. Tasted at cellar temperature, but a bit better slightly chilled. Scores - Label: 10/10; Wine: 7.5/10

My second wine stood out from the rest on the shelf for it's minimalist typography and 3-dot esthetic. This wine is an Eric Soloman Selection, who seems to always have great typographical label art. It is from a co-op of 15 wineries and growers in Portugal’s Duoro valley and is a blend of old vines fruit from all 15 producers. Being a typographer from the pre-computer days, I really appreciate the clean use of sans-serif font and white space; a very elegant label that attracted my attention.

Lavradores de Feitoria, "Tres Bagos", Duoro, Portugal 2002 ($16) - Deep ruby color with aromas of blackberry, earth and spices; nicely concentrated blackberry fruit and black pepper flavors with dusty tannins and high acidity. Another very good food wine and one of the best table wines from Portugal I have tried. Scores - Label: 9.5/10; Wine: 8.5/10

So both wines take an honor this time; for best label art, Norma Jeane Merlot 2005 and the best tasting wine is the Lavradores de Feitoria, "Tres Bagos" 2002.

Thanks again to Derrick for the theme and I'll see you all next month.

Feedback: [email protected] | Audio comments: +01-206-33-WINE-9 (+01-206-339-4639)

Copyright 2005 Tim Elliott. Licensed to the public under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

Tonight’s show is a celebration of the 2005 vintage with Beaujolais Nouveau, tasting four shippers wines from this great year.

Show Notes:

0:21 - Welcome

0:35 - Beaujolais Nouveau Background

4:31 - Tasting Notes

4:41 - Francoise Chauvenet, Beaujolais Nouveau 2005 ($10)

4:59 - Antonin Rodet, Beaujolais Villages Nouveau 2005 ($10)

5:25 - Mommessin, Beaujolais Nouveau 2005 ($10)

5:51 - Louis Tete, Beaujolais Nouveau 2005 ($12)

6:15 - Best of Tasting and Best Value

6:45 - Contact Details

7:10 - Next Show Theme

Feedback: [email protected] | Audio comments: +01-206-33-WINE-9 (+01-206-339-4639)

Copyright 2005 Tim Elliott. Licensed to the public under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

Tonight’s show is a celebration of the 2005 vintage with Beaujolais Nouveau, tasting four shippers wines from this great year.

Show Notes:

0:21 - Welcome

0:35 - Beaujolais Nouveau Background

4:31 - Tasting Notes

4:41 - Francoise Chauvenet, Beaujolais Nouveau 2005 ($10)

4:59 - Antonin Rodet, Beaujolais Villages Nouveau 2005 ($10)

5:25 - Mommessin, Beaujolais Nouveau 2005 ($10)

5:51 - Louis Tete, Beaujolais Nouveau 2005 ($12)

6:15 - Best of Tasting and Best Value

6:45 - Contact Details

7:10 - Next Show Theme

Feedback: [email protected] | Audio comments: +01-206-33-WINE-9 (+01-206-339-4639)

Copyright 2005 Tim Elliott. Licensed to the public under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

A return after almost a month off with a podcast focusing on the great varietal of Tuscany: Sangiovese. I also talk about the Podcasting Expo and recommend a wine podcast to check out.

Show Notes:

00:22 - Welcome and show theme

00:46 - Background of Sangiovese grape

04:26 - Tasting Notes

05:01 - Castello di Fonterutoli, Poggio alla Badiola, Toscana, Italy 2002 ($13)

05:37 - Lungarotti, “Rubesco”, Rosso di Torgiano, Umbria, Italy 2001 ($15)

06:09 - Jim Neal, “Chariot”, Sangiovese 2003 ($12)

06:44 - Peterson Winery, Sangiovese, Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County 2001 ($16/sample provided by winery)

07:22 - Best of tasting

08:04 - Best value

08:15 - Podcast Expo

09:01 - Ratcast feature

14:43 - Frappr! map

15:45 - Contact Details

16:10 - Next show theme

Feedback: [email protected] | Audio comments: +01-206-33-WINE-9 (+01-206-339-4639)

Copyright 2005 Tim Elliott. Licensed to the public under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

A return after almost a month off with a podcast focusing on the great varietal of Tuscany: Sangiovese. I also talk about the Podcasting Expo and recommend a wine podcast to check out.

Show Notes:

00:22 - Welcome and show theme

00:46 - Background of Sangiovese grape

04:26 - Tasting Notes

05:01 - Castello di Fonterutoli, Poggio alla Badiola, Toscana, Italy 2002 ($13)

05:37 - Lungarotti, “Rubesco”, Rosso di Torgiano, Umbria, Italy 2001 ($15)

06:09 - Jim Neal, “Chariot”, Sangiovese 2003 ($12)

06:44 - Peterson Winery, Sangiovese, Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County 2001 ($16/sample provided by winery)

07:22 - Best of tasting

08:04 - Best value

08:15 - Podcast Expo

09:01 - Ratcast feature

14:43 - Frappr! map

15:45 - Contact Details

16:10 - Next show theme

Feedback: [email protected] | Audio comments: +01-206-33-WINE-9 (+01-206-339-4639)

Copyright 2005 Tim Elliott. Licensed to the public under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

A new weekly side podcast highlighting some of the wines I have recently tasted and think you would enjoy. In this first installment I review two California Pinot Noirs for under $10 a bottle:

- Mark West, Pinot Noir, Central Coast 2004 ($8)

- HRM Rex-Goliath, “Giant 47 Pound Rooster”, Pinot Noir, California NV ($8.50)

Feedback: [email protected] | Audio comments: +01-206-33-WINE-9 (+01-206-339-4639)

Copyright 2005 Tim Elliott. Licensed to the public under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

The theme for this month’s edition of Wine Blogging Wednesday is provided by food blogger Fatemeh of Gastronomie who challenged us to pick up a wine that was made in a batch of less than 250 cases. As fate would have it, the day this theme was announced I received a sample from a small winery for an upcoming show on Sangiovese. The wine was made in a garage in a batch of just 84 cases, so I took this as a sign that this wine was meant to be featured this month. The fact that it came from a winery that donates their profits to charity sealed the deal. So, for the first time since I started participating in this event, I will feature just one wine: Humanitas, L’Huile du Garagiste; a non-vintage red blend of Sangiovese and Cabernet Sauvignon made from Napa Valley fruit. A sort of Super Tuscan, California-style.

The bottle is quite distinctive with the first U.S. commercial application of the Australian Zork closure that appears to be almost like a wax seal on the top. After peeling back the plastic, it took a bit of work to get the closure off the bottle, but it was much better than a recent experience I had with a synthetic cork in a Chilean Carmenere. So here are my tasting notes for this unique wine:

Humanitas, L’Huile du Garagiste, Napa Valley NV ($30/received as a sample) - Deep ruby in color with complex aromas of raspberry, white pepper and earth; bright raspberry and black pepper flavors combine with noticeable, but supple, tannins and a long finish. A nice balance between the fruit and tannin makes this a delicious wine now and one I will age for another few years to see what develops. Score: 9/10

I found this to be a very individualistic wine and wanted to get a bit more background on the winery and the winemaker, so I interviewed Judd Wallenbrock the winemaker, proprietor and head bottle washer of Humanitas. If you listen to the podcast, you will hear our conversation about this wine and his cause. I have placed an order for more of this wine and encourage you to check it out yourself. It is not often that we can combine our passion for wine and charity at the same time.

Thanks again to Fatemeh of the Gastronomie blog for a great theme and for Judd to spend a part of his day with me today. I’m looking forward to the last WBW of 2005 next month.

Feedback: [email protected] | Audio comments: +01-206-33-WINE-9 (+01-206-339-4639)

Copyright 2005 Tim Elliott. Licensed to the public under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/