Oh Mosella, keep pouring your wine.... (from Old German drinking song, found on Schafer-Reichart Selections website)

I made a new discovery! An importer of Mosel wine approached us months ago when we had a German tasting. A couple of weeks ago he brought a few of his Mosel Ausleses, and they were excellent - and priced right. We're going to get these Ausleses in by July and do a tasting of them with our customers on Thursday August 21.

The importer is Christian Schafer and his company is Schafer-Reichart Selections. Here's their website: http://schafer-reichart.com/ Great wine, nice guy - a nice discovery for us. I tasted through 5 Ausleses from great vineyards - Graacher Domprobst, Brauneberger Juffer Sonnenuhr, Urziger Wurzgarten, Wehlener Sonnenuhr. All very good wines.

German wines are always so exciting. Here's hoping I find as much excitement in wines from other parts of the world.

P.S. In map above, perhaps the explanation why I am so attracted to Germany and German wines: note the proximity of Nancy to the Rhineland. Coincidence? I think not.

Tuesday Musings - Persepolis, J Vintage Brut, and Who Knows What Else

There are not that many movies that I like, but a notable one that I watched recently was Persepolis, which I enjoyed on a flight to Vancouver. It was one of those flights which I love - where they have the movie screen on the back of the chair in front of you, and you can select which movie you want to watch. That is the BEST! On those flights, I hardly even need to have a great book. Reading is hard to do after some hours, and I find it exhausting on a long flight, unless it is a really great book. A nice movie is a treat, especially when I can choose the movie and choose when to start and stop it.

In other words, I am really hoping that the flights that I will be on in a couple of days will have this movie option.

So onto Persepolis. This movie was so good I was moved, and watched it again for the second time on the flight back. I recommended it to all. The movie is animated and in French. It is very cute but also political and historical, which I enjoyed. I didn't know so many things about Iran's history. I am lame for learning history through cartoons, but hey, I'm not perfect. I really enjoy history but have not been reading enough books or paying attention to this so far in my life, so I am trying to catch up. Being in wine makes me more prone to learning about history since it seems intertwined, or at least, it leads me there.

Persepolis is about a girl who grew up in Iran and lived through the revolution and subsequent government there, which, as the story goes, is oppressive. Her parents are progressive, but they still have to live within the contraints of society. So they send their only child to Austria to go to school. She lives there for several years and reaches adolescence. It is an interesting time for her and she has some good times, but ultimately doesn't feel like she fits in, so in a particularly bad moment, after days of living on the streets and contracting pneumonia (or some other lung infection), she returns home to Iran to live with her parents.

But life is not all grand at home either. She tries marriage; it fails. She tries university - it too is oppressive. Finally, the story ends when ... wait - you might want to watch it so I'll stop there!

It's a hilarious movie. There is reference to Sachertorte. I might have to try this just to say I have.

Okay, what else. I have put a magnum of 2000 J Vintage Brut in the fridge. It is too much for 2 people to drink, but we have not had the opportunity to have people over so I put it in there. I want to try some! It was part of a birthday present for Johan back in January. It' s the end of May! It is time to open it. I'll write notes on it. I have high hopes for it. I hope it tastes like vintage Champagne. :)

Final note: I wrote a short article about 2007 vs 2006 German wines for an online site called German Wine Estates. Here's their link: http://www.germanwineestates.com/ I have written for them before and they published and here's hoping they will publish this also. If they do, I'll mention it here and link over!

An Evening with Robert Eymael, Part II

After hosting a busy and bustling tasting with 49 loud and happy participants, most of whom bought bottles and asked Robert to sign, we rushed off to have dinner at Long Beach's famous steak house, 555 East. Located in downtown Long Beach, this establishment has a cozy decor that harkens to the days of old, full of dark wood, black and white tiles, and brass. I had dined here once before and noticed that they had a great and complete wine list. Tonight, we chose this restaurant because Robert Eymael loves California red wine - "full of fruit and alcohol, I love it," he says. So we put away our previous idea of Vietnamese cuisine and German Riesling, in favor of rotwein and steak.

The wine flowed, and so did the conversation. I found myself in that frame of mind where I felt, yeah, this is why I'm in the business! This is the best part, being in the midst of people that make great wine and the people that sell great wine, enjoying the best dining that money can buy, with fun people that truly love wine and that glorious experience that wine brings. If you don't like this part of the business, then there is pretty much no reason to be in this business, I say!

We enjoyed two bottles of California rotwein. One of them gave me a "wine moment," which I really had lately. The first of the two reds we had was 2005 Justin Isosceles. You might recall that I did blog about enjoying a 1994 Justin Isosceles about 2 months ago at a wine dinner, a finely cellared wine that had great complexity and flavor. Last night's 2005 was not like that at all, and was in fact, more like what one would expect from a Paso Robles wine, very extracted, very grapey, very thick-appearing in the glass. I burst out laughing when Randy described it as creme de mure (blackberry liqueur). It kind of was! The aroma was of sweet brown sugar sizzling on a pan, that sweetness one gets from toasted American oak barrels. The wine wasn't bad, it had sippability, and it grew on a person the more one sipped on it. But I didn't end up finishing my glass.

Robert Eymael liked it - he said he really liked California's style of reds, and they were relative bargains next to France's wines. Of French wines, he said he prefers Chateauneuf du Pape, in particular, he mentioned Vieux Telegraph. He also said he likes Bordeaux, but to get the quality of wine one desires, the wines are too expensive. We nodded in agreement. Robert also mentioned that he was not a fan of Burgundy or Pinot Noir in general.

Now, onto the second wine. That was the epiphany moment - this was a wine not on the wine list - a last bottle. Randy ordered it and it was decanted. When I stuck my nose into this glass, I could not get it back out - it was that kind of wine that demanded to be noticed and enjoyed with ample time by the olfactory senses. Just smelling the wine over and over again made me fall in love with it. It made me want to be just with this bottle of wine and Johan and that was it. It made me want to know the name of this wine. Napa Cabernet? You've got to be kidding! The aroma told the story of a French wine. Before I could see the bottle, Robert Eymael was already saying it was like a Pauillac. That made sense. The aroma was like what you want all Cabernets to smell like. Not like berries or jam, not like eucalytus or mint or green peppers. Just pure Cabernet, at its most elegant and refined and perfectly aged and not a day too old or young. Just like that. And that was still before I put it to my lips.

And so when I tasted it, it did not disappoint. The texture was there, a touch of earth, a touch of gravel but not too much, and just silkiness and medium body, a bit more richer than one would expect a Bordeaux to be, but so unlike Napa Cabernet or Southern Hemisphere Cabernet that we are used to tasting. Of course, that's an unfair comparison - I don't typically get to taste 1997 vintage Cabernets from anywhere.... maybe Don Melchor or Penfolds Bin 707 after 10 or 11 years of careful aging will give me that - in fact, I'm pretty sure that I can get that good feeling with those wines after a decade. But at any rate, the wine that made me fall in love with wine again was 1997 Clark-Claudon Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. What structure, what finesse! And of course, fruit was there, but in a non-bomb fashion, nice savory-style fruit that lingers on the palate.

After smelling and drinking this wine, the other one, the Justin smelled and tasted even more clunky and fruit-bomby.

Ah, what a night! All the elements of fun, rolled into one. Wine geekdom, wine maker, wine sellers, and eatin' and drinkin'!

An Evening with Monchhof's Robert Eymael, Part I

Yesterday afternoon, we had the privilege of hosting Mosel superstar Robert Eymael, owner of the estate Monchhof and now producer of the Joh. Jos. Christoffel wines. It was nothing short of wonderful.

It was a quiet day at The Wine Country, until 4:30 came and fans literally piled into the store to meet and re-meet Robert Eymael. It was a tasting to reveal the new 2007 Monchhof Estate and 2007 Monchhof Mosel Slate Spatlese, tasted right next to their 2006 counterparts. We ended with a 2006 Monchhof Urziger Wurzgarten Auslese which of course showed wonderfully, with that rich honeyed pineapply Botrytis goodness that so marked the 2006 vintage.

So many of our regular customers came in to say hi to Robert. Many knew him already from a big tasting we hosted with him last year, where we tasted 10 wines from Monchhof, including the 2002 Monchhof Erdener Treppchen Eiswein and the 2005 Monchhof Erdener Pralat Auslese, both of which we no longer have in stock. That tasting had been a sit-down seminar where Robert regaled stories of his storybook vineyards and rich history behind them. Yesterday, he had a different set-up where we had a stand-up tasting much more casual and personal in nature, where he had a chance to converse with many of our loyal customers.

In all, it was a huge success, with the 2007 vintage winning more fans than ever. Tasted side by side, the 2006 and 2007 showed such distinct differences that were fun and educational to experience - the 2006s rich and long and honeyed and frankly delicious, with some petrol development already showing in the 2006 Estate, while the 2006 Mosel Slate showed tons of Botrytis; in contrast, the 2007s were so fresh and clean as a whistle, with brighter acidity and clarity and focus.

Robert was signing bottles like crazy, with requests left, right, and center. He was definitely the rock star of the evening.

Stay tuned for Part II of this story when The Wine Country owner Randy Kemner takes us Robert, Rudi Wiest representative Allie Mitchell, my husband Johan and me out to dinner! An evening with Robert Eymael indeed!

Gearing Up for Austria

It's a week before I take off to Vienna, and I am very excited. I'll arrive on the Friday morning, a day before the official Vie Vinum wine fair, be able to get into the hotel and check in and relax for a moment, then the evening holds a soccer game (footballmatch) - the VieVinum Cup - a prelude to EURO 08 - the international journalists vs the Austrian wine growers playing football, followed by what appears to be a dinner at a typical Viennese Heuriger called Mayer am Pfarrplatz.

The following morning will begin the VieVinum wine fair, held at the palace in the center of town. It appears we will be milling about learning and tasting the wines on our own. That evening, there will be a big Austrian wine party hosted by the Austrian Wine Marketing Board, with what they promise to be good music, nice people, and more wine!

Sunday will be another day of the VieVinum event, more wine-tasting and learning about Blaufrankisch and much more.

Monday - free morning! Maybe by this time I will have somewhat acclimated and will go for a run through Vienna. That will be nice. I remember logging 2 runs during my trip last year to Germany, the first in Ahr along the Ahr River, and the second in Nackenheim in the Rheinhessen.

Monday at noon we will be departing for Krems, with a detour first at a winery where we will have lunch and do a tasting of three producers. This winery is one I am not familiary with - Schwarzbock, but I am familiary with one of the other producers who we will be tasting there - Hofer. The third producer is Ecker.

That evening, after checking in the hotel in Krems, we will attend dinner and a party at Schloss Gobelsburg. I am not familiary with this house either, but it sounds fabulous!

Tuesday morning we set out to Langenlois to taste Hirsch, Brundlmayer, Schloss Gobelsburg and Hiedler.

Wow, I seem to be setting myself up to love these wines. Yikes!

In the afternoon, it looks like we will be going to a place called Salomon.

Wednesday, the itinerary suggests we visit Nigl, Berger, and Setzer, followed by Jamek and Alzinger, then later, tasting and dinner at Nikolaihof.

And wow, there's more! Thursday, we're heading for Carnuntum to taste Glatzer and Sattler, and surprise! Hungary! We're crossing the border to by boat across the Neusiedlersee to Hungary to taste with Heidi Schrock, Prieler, and Lehrner. Followed by dinner in Hungary at the old border station hosted by a 2-star Michelin restaurant called Taubenkobel!

What a line-up!!!

Taking a Brief Break from Reading About Robert Mondavi's Life to Tell You About Last Evening's Ausleses

Wow, lots of great stuff to read about the amazing life of Robert Mondavi, who died yesterday at the age of 94. I had read some things about this man's life, but I am not intimately knowledgeable about the details as many who love wine are, but I am fascinated with the stories. The passion and the dedication to California fine wine, before there was California fine wine - now that is foresight and trail-blazing at its best! I love stories like that.

Now, back to Auslese. Last evening we hosted an event with only a mere 9 present to taste the wonderful category of German wine known as Riesling Auslese. We featured 10 wines, 9 from the Mosel, and only 1 from the Rheingau.

Our first flight included 2 from the Monchhof winery in Urzig - the 2006 Monchhof Urziger Wurzgarten and the 2006 Monchhof Erdener Pralat. Both wines showed well, but the Erdener Pralat won hands down in terms of elegance and complexity. The Wurzgarten was nice also, but more fruit-driven, with tons of tropical notes - pineapple-type ripeness filling the glass and lots of sweetness on the palate. The Pralat, on the other hand, had a balance of minerality and restrained fruit, and much more focus and precision.

The second flight was also from Robert Eymael, in conjuction with Hans Leo Christoffel - 2003 JJ Christoffel Urziger Wurzgarten Auslese* and 2002 JJ Christoffel Erdener Pralat Auslese**. Both wines showed development, but the 2003 showed more petrol on the nose and on the palate, with savory notes of slate along with still-present fruit and sweetness. The 2002 was fresher, with brighter acidity and just a hint of petrol on the palate. Both wines were very nice overall, and showed the development of these wines with some age. They certainly made better food wines than the 2006 Ausleses.

The third flight consisted of JJ Prum: 2006 JJ Prum Graacher Himmelreich and JJ Prum Wehlener Sonnenuhr. The Graacher was much more open for business, filling the glass with rich aroma of yeast/beer and underlying white peach fruit and slate. The Wehlener was more closed and had a more sulfury aroma, even though I explained that this is likely not due to a higher sulfur addition to the wine, but more due to prolonged lees contact. I thought the wines were solid and quite fantastic, especially the Graacher showing so well, but members of the audience were less impressed, and at this juncture, more folks were impressed with the Pralat from the first flight than they were with the more highly celebrated JJ Prums. Shrug! And yes, everyone discussed that JJ Prums are more for aging than drinking at this embryonic age...

The fourth flight consisted of two very big wines from Reinhold Haart: 2006 Reinhold Haart Wintricher Oligsberger and 2006 Reinhold Haart Piesporter Goldtropchen. Both wines are Erste Lage (First Growth) wines and they were huge, showing tons of tropical fruit and red fruits on the nose and palate, ripe, dripping yellow peaches. The Piesporter showed somewhat better than the Oligsberger, and would have been my choice if I were to buy one of the two.

The final flight pitted one big boy from the Mosel against the lone Rheingau Auslese: 2006 Fritz Haag Brauneberger Juffer Sonnenuhr and 2006 Wegeler Rudesheimer Berg Schlossberg. Let's say first that the Wegeler was a disappointment. Perhaps I should have put this wine earlier in the line-up, but given that it was a Rheingau, I thought final place should be best - I was somewhat wrong. It was not as bold and firm as it could have been - instead it was merely sweet and fluffy and fruity. One tasting member commented that this is not Wegeler's best property - the Wegeler Mosel's Berkasteler Doctor Auslese would have been a better choice. I agree. I did try to purchase the 2006 Wegeler Bernkasteler Doctor Riesling Auslese but the importer was out of this wine at the time. Alas, I will have to try to order it again.

Now, the Fritz Haag Auslese - that was excellent, and perhaps arguably, the wine of the night. It showed power and elegance all in one - so different from the other wines - so much depth and length and fruit and minerals - it had everything. Sure, at this point I was all sweeted out, but I could still appreciate the greatness of this wine. Fantastic.

So if I were to rate the 10 Ausleses from best to poorest performing last night it would be in this order:

1. 2006 Fritz Haag BJS

2. 2006 Monchhof EP

3. 2006 Reinhold Haart PG

4. 2006 JJ Prum GH

5. 2006 Reinhold Haart WO

6. 2002 JJ Christoffel ET

7. 2003 JJ Christoffel UW

8. 2006 JJ Prum WS

9. 2006 Monchhof UW

10. 2006 Wegeler RBS

Beer can be so good

I had a few good wines this week but for the most part they were German Auslese, so rather than say the same great things I always say about German wine, I thought I would just fast forward all that and talk about Beer.

This is not going to be a comprehensive talk about beer, but rather, a brief note of admiration for Belgian beer in general and for Father's Office, a beer hall that I appreciate, specifically.

Last evening, I picked up my husband from the airport and our plan was to hit Culver City, where a new Father's Office has opened up, a copy of the original Santa Monica Father's Office, which we have enjoyed on many occasions.

I heard about the new Father's Office from a wine account manager who was visiting me and showing me 2006 Clos de los Siete, among other Argentine wines. At any rate, the recommendation was great - the new Culver City Father's Office was a delight and a perfect after-hours beer place with great food - a veritable Gastro-Pub if we were to use the British term - a pub with a relaxed atmosphere that serves upscale, better-than-usual-pub-fare food with specialty beers.

I enjoyed a fresh-from-the-tap Chimay Tripel which passed my lips with delight and I was reminded of a Belgian saying that my father-in-law taught me and that was "it is as though an angel pissed in my mouth." You gotta love Belgian humor - you just gotta!

With my refreshing and flavorful beer I enjoyed some comfortable patio seating, nice down-time with hubby, and the following yummy grub: sweet potato fries served a la carte - which means it comes in that cute metal shopping cart that I remember so well from the Santa Monica location, and a Duck Confit Salad. Johan had the classic burger for which they are famous - fresh ground Angus beef in a hogie bun along with applewood smoked bacon, Maytag blue chese, arugula, and sauteed sweet onions. He had a couple different Belgians, the first was a Maredsous 8 (dark beer) and the second was the Delerium Tremens (a golden). We both had a delectable and satisfying meal and it had the relaxed atmosphere we so enjoy in pubs.

That's it. Lots of love and praise for Belgian beer, pubs, and summer-like evenings out on the patio of a posh yet still relaxed place called Father's Office. Go there some time. Best fries around (regular or sweet potato) and NO KETCHUP, just aioli for dippin'.