EXPLORE
August 4, 2011
It's quiz time! Time to gauge your wine savvy. Below you will find a host of questions on topics covered these past seven months. See how much you've absorbed... information-wise! 1. "Pride of the Wineries: A California Living Book" stated that this wine is "for people who like to sleep on the ground, play rugby, climb mountains, eat brussel sprouts and do other things in which some punishment is part of the pleasure. " They were referencing… a. Cabernet Sauvignon b. Syrah c. Merlot d. Zinfandel 2. What grape has the following flavor profile: peach, quince, apricot, apple and pear with intriguing hints of clotted cream, crème fraiche and buttermilk followed by aromas of ripe grain, strawflower, marzipan and toasted nuts?
NEWS
By Yeganeh June Torbati, The Baltimore Sun | May 23, 2011
In a Canton basement lit by fluorescent lights, a dozen glass jugs of fermenting grape juice share space with a washer, dryer and furnace. Standing before them, Erik Bandzak surveys his wines: two deep reds made from a Rougeon grape and an Isabella blackberry blend, which every few minutes emit tiny bubbles of carbon dioxide through their glass air locks. A glass hydrometer, an instrument that gauges a wine's sugar content, measures his Rougeon at about 0.99. "That's what I want it at," Bandzak says.
FEATURES
By Michael Dresser, The Baltimore Sun | December 6, 2010
Is this expensive for a dry Riesling? Yes. But this happens to be one of California's finest white wines and one of the world's best dry Riesling's this side of Alsace. It's a bone-dry wine with tremendous crystalline strength and clarity, with flavors of pear, citrus, slate, herbs, smoke and kerosene (a positive note, really). It's a complex wine with a terrific, lingering finish, and it will age better than 95 percent of California's white wines. From: Oak Knoll District of Napa Valley Price: $22 Serve with: Sushi, shellfish, spicy Asian cuisine
ENTERTAINMENT
July 27, 2010
If you like a fine dry white wine but don't care for the heavy-handed oak found in many chardonnays or the herbal bite of many sauvignon blancs, this may be the wine for you. Forget the prevailing image of riesling as sweet wine. This is dry without being severe, a crisp and flavorful wine at a most attractive price. It displays classic riesling flavors of tart apple, peach, minerals and lime. Its finish is long and satisfying for an under-$10 wine. Great value! — Michael Dresser Wine Find: 2009 Chateau Ste. Michelle Dry Riesling From: Columbia Valley, Wash.
ENTERTAINMENT
By Michael Dresser, The Baltimore Sun | June 15, 2010
This very dry, steely Riesling exemplifies the Australian style with this varietal. It's a flavorful white wine with hints of sweet pea, herbs, white pepper and slate. Its touch of severity is offset by a bracing intensity and long finish. Fine value, with a crew cap. — Michael Dresser 2008 Cat Among the Pigeons Riesling From: Barossa Valley, Australia Price: $13 Serve with: White-fleshed fish, shellfish
NEWS
By MICHAEL DRESSER | January 14, 2009
2007 Hugel Riesling From: Alsace, France Price: $18 Serve with: Pork and sauerkraut, seafood The phrase "opulent austerity" would seem to be an oxymoron, but devotees of riesling from France's Alsace region will understand that description of this fine release from Hugel. At first sip, this is a clean, elegant, bone-dry white wine with distinct mineral nuances. But as it opens up, it reveals the intense citrus and apple fruit underneath. This is quite young for an Alsace riesling, and this wine could develop in fascinating ways over the next three or four years.