Yesterday was the Fall/Winter Wine Club release at Purple Cow Vineyards in Forest Grove, OR.
If you’ve ever read this blog before, you know I’m a big fan of Purple Cow. I stumbled upon them (quite literally) at the Seafood & Wine Festival in Portland about a year ago, and was so impressed with their 2006 Pinot Noir, and their wonderful, chewy, bold Tempranillos, that I left the event with a case of wine and a wine club membership!
In September, you may remember that I helped out at 2009 Harvest at their Vineyards. Just tasting a few grapes from the vine was enough to get me excited about the final product. Last night, Jon Armstrong (Owner, winemaker) and the P.C. crew cleared out the shop for the release party. There was a great spread of food, a bonfire, and they brought out a couple barrels of future releases to try!
First was the 2008 Pinot Noir. The nose was like roses and bright fruit: Pomegranate, huckleberry, cranberry. It tasted of soft, slightly under-ripe raspberries, rose petals, and soft, evenly balanced tannin.
Then came the one I was really excited about, the 2007 Petite Syrah. With juice from California, this Petite Syrah had been in the barrel for a while. It poured the color of squid ink…a spectacular black purple. I could tell it was one of the darker wines I’d seen in a while, even in the low, flickering firelight.
It had a rich, blackberry jam nose, but the taste was heavy raisin & currant. It initially had a strong Port quality…thick & rich, heavy raisin, big, spicy fruit.
A few sips later, the raisin had softened, revealing big black fruit first, followed by soft, spicy currant. I can not wait until it is released! Purple Cow only has 1 barrel, so about 125 cases…just enough for the wine club and a few leftovers! I recommend joining the wine club today!
Thank you to the entire Purple Cow family for a tasty, fun afternoon! Cheers!
My favorite seafood dish, by far, is Cioppino. I got turned on to it while working as a cook in Seattle in 2001, and now, anytime it’s on a menu, I order it. Sadly, it’s not on very many menus. I decided to make the dish last night. If you’ve never had or heard of Cioppino, it’s an old Italian/San Francisco Wharf seafood stew. They would take all the scraps from the days catch, throw it into a boil with tomatoes, etc, and eat it. It’s been refined, naturally, and is just wonderful! I make my Cioppino a bit spicy, and served with crusty bread and a mustard aoili. But, since it’s a bit spicy, needed a wine to stand up to it. Last time I made Cioppino, someone else chose the wine, a Dolcetto, which just got crushed by the meal. I grabbed a bottle that had been a gift a couple years ago…a 2004 Sapolil Cellars Syrah. Sapolil is a small Winery in Walla Walla, sourcing their Syrah grapes from nearby Columbia Valley, my favorite AVA for Syrah.
The wine poured an inky purple/black color with a very rich, jammy fruit nose. It did not take much to fully open this wine up, as I’m sure it is within a year or two of peaking. The Syrah was layers of over-ripe blackberry, but also had just a touch of a more sharp, almost ripe boysenberry. It had full, round tannen, but they were surprisingly mellowed by a velvety vanilla finish. All through the taste and into the finish, there was just enough spice to hold up against the meal, though I suspect that a year or two ago, the spice would have been much bolder, making for an even better pairing.
Now, if you are interested, my Cioppino with Mustard Aoili recipe (and yes, this is MY recipe)
Cioppino (serves 3-4)
Seafood: 1lb large shrimp; 1 lb white fish (Tilapia, cod), 1/2 lb bay Scallops (Optional. when available: Mussels, Crab Legs, Salmon, Calamari)
1 Large onion, diced
1 Clove Garlic, crushed
4 Large Tomatoes, seeds removed, diced
2 Cans stewed or diced tomatoes
2 cups dry white wine
2 cups seafood stock (I used the broth from boiling the shrimp)
Optional, if desired: 1 Large Bell Pepper, diced
Seasoning: 2 bay leaves, Saffron, Red pepper flakes, Paprika, salt & pepper
Sautee onion & garlic in pan heavily coated in olive oil until opaque, add 1 cup white wine, reduce until 3/4 gone.
Add all tomatoes & bell pepper, stock, wine, bring to a boil.
While bringing to boil, add 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes, 2 pinches Saffron (this makes the dish in my opinion), 1/2 tsp Paprika, bay leaves, S&P
When boiling, add UNCOOKED seafood (I pre-cook the shrimp to have easy de-shelling, and to create broth). Simmer for 10-15 minutes until seafood is cooked. Reduce to lowest heat until ready to serve.
Aoili:
4 TBSP Dijon Mustard
2 TBSP Mayonnaise
1 TBSP lemon juice
1 egg yolk
pinch of saffron
salt & pepper
Combine all ingredients into bowl, whisk until blended. Drizzle over baked crisp french baugette slices
TO SERVE: Place 2-3 pieces of bread with aoili in bottom of serving bowl. Scoop Cioppino over bread. Garnish with 2-3 more bread pieces. Enjoy!
I spent the day on Sunday (Sept 27) with the great people of Purple Cow Vineyards, helping them harvest their crop for the ‘09 crush. Here’s a little photo tour of the day…To learn more about my favorite Oregon Winery, visit their tasting room, or buy online: www.purplecowvineyards.com
Work starts at 9am, and yes, most of the crew had been up late the night before drinking!
The perfect rows of Pinot Noir grapes, ready for picking!
These beauties speak for themselves.
In 4-5 years, this is going to be one great glass of Pinot!
Just yummmmmy!
I Heart Wine
BUSTED!!!
Don't just do something, stand there!
There's more grapes to be picked, people!
The Tempranillo grapes were MUCH easier to pick...looser clusters, hanging farther from the vine. The Temp went very quick!
Before...
After!
Is it safe to say that even the Almighty likes Purple Cow's Pinot Noir?
To this point, I’ve kept my little blog dedicated mostly to wine: reviews, experiences, and so on. Wine is a part of my life that I enjoy writing about, and sharing with anyone who wants to listen. I’m also a big music lover…shoot, I’ve created 2 volumes of my favorite wine & music pairings! Last week, I attended a solo show at the Doug Fir Lounge in Portland by Eddie Kowalczyk.
Yeah, we go way back!
If the name’s not familiar, he is the lead singer of the band Live, who happens to be far and away my favorite band. Live recently announced that they are taking some time off after 20 years of making music together to do some solo and other projects. While sad to Live fans, it seems reasonable.
As I’m watching the acoustic show, listening to songs I’ve heard literally thousands of times, I started thinking about how much influence music in general has on people’s lives, and how much of a soundtrack Live’s music has been in my life. I’m sure I’ll miss a few profound moments, but I thought I’d share some of my favorite Live reflections, along with a few video clips I grabbed on my phone at the show.
It all started for me in late 1994, when I heard “I Alone” on KNDD, 107.7 Seattle. I was in 9th grade. My buddy Chris and I immediately dug the song, and, as a proud member of an order-by-mail CD club, I ordered the album, Throwing Copper, Live’s 2nd studio album. (To be completely honest, the first couple times I heard the song I thought it was a new R.E.M. song! Live acknowledges R.E.M. and U2 as major influences on their early music…pretty good taste if you ask me!) At some point, I must have thought it important to save the invoice from the purchase of Throwing Copper, because I just stumbled upon it in a box of memorabilia!
A few months later, tickets went on sale to see Live at the George in George, WA. 5 buddies and I (a mad bunch 0f 16 year-olds) all bought our tickets without even worrying about how we were going to get to the concert. Oh, to be 16 again! So August rolls around, and I’ve had my drivers license for 2 whole weeks, so naturally I assume I’ll be able to drive mom & dad’s minivan full of guys 3 hours to a rock concert. Mom & dad had other ideas. So, mom volunteers to drive our motley crew out to the show, and sit in the car and knit while we were inside. When we got there, she got to chatting with the lady at the turnstiles, and talked herself into the sold out concert for free! We all set up on the hill, and after 2 terrible opening acts (PJ Harvey and Veruca Salt), the 6 of us bolted for the stage for Live. For most of us, this was our first rock concert, and in 1995, it was the height of moshing and crowd surfing. We pushed ourselves as close to the stage as we could and waited. Finally the lights went down and the stage lights went up. Already in awe of the beautiful setting (if you haven’t seen a show at the George, do so), we were livid about the concert we were about to see. Feedback kicked in and the opening notes to “The Dam at Otter Creek” started playing. The band made their way onstage to a fever frenzy of screaming fans, us included. In retrospect, it must have been an amazing moment for the band…4 high school friends, now in their early 20’s playing to 15,000 people in one of the most incredible venues in the US. I’m glad I was a part of it!
They played most of the 2 albums they had released to that point, their 1st, Mental Jewelry, and Throwing Copper. My favorite moment came when they played “The Beauty of Gray” off of Mental Jewelry. The songs builds for the first couple minutes, then, the second time through the chorus, Ed cracked a huge smile as he picked up the tempo, and I remember thinking about how much fun he must be having, and how much fun I was having too. Here’s “The Beauty of Gray” from the solo show:
That concert would be the first of what has now been literally hundreds of concerts, and at last count, 15 Live shows! 1995 was the year Live really took off…they were Spin Magazine’s Artist of the year, had a huge #1 album, and so on. In 1997, the week before their follow-up album, Secret Samadhi, was released, they were the musical guest on SNL. I was working at KMart’s electronic department when Secret Samadhi came out, and we got our shipment a week before it was on sale…it was everything I could do not to walk out with a copy a week early! Mind you, this is pre-internet…no advance song releases, bootlegs, etc.
A couple years later, in 1999, they released The Distance to Here and played Bumbershoot in Seattle as a headliner. On their website they ran a contest for fans to write 10 interview questions they would ask the band, and the setting they’d have the interview in. They gave the 50 best responses passes to a “secret warm-up show” the night before the Bumbershoot show. Well, I won! There was also to be a meet & greet opportunity, so I was out of my mind! Well, 2 days prior to the show, I was contacted by a publicist and told that the venue had changed, and now was no longer all-ages, so I couldn’t attend. I was 19, and pissed! I went around and around with her, and finally she set me up with a backstage pass for the Bumbershoot concert instead. So, just before Live took the stage, I bailed on my friends (I only had the 1 pass after all) and got ushered backstage. They then took me to an elevated platform on the side of the stage where there were about 8 chairs. The other side of the stage was the platform where the media sat…I was on the side with the band’s VIP’s: Wives girlfriends, family, etc. It was amazing! I was looking down on the show from above the stage. The only odd part was that the people around me had heard the songs a million times, and here I am singing along, excited about hearing new songs, and generally worked up, sitting with a pretty mellow group of people who had no idea who on earth I was.
After the show, I was guided down to the trailer where I waited for the band to emerge. One by one, they came out. They all knew me by name without introductions, and were very apologetic about the mishap the night before. When Chad Taylor, the guitarist came out, he said “Hi, you must be Graham…I’m Chad” followed by me saying “I know! It’s good to meet you!” He told me the story of meeting U2, one of his favorite bands. He said when The Edge introduced himself, it went like this: “Hi, I’m The Edge”. Chad: “No Shit!” All in all, it was a great experience, as I had feared that these guys who I’d been listening to nearly every day for 5 years would be jerks. Not in the slightest! All were very wonderful to me, signing multiple autographs and hanging out for a while.
The next time they came through Seattle, I won the opportunity to be in-studio on the air at KNDD with Ed for the morning show. 4 people, myself included, got so sit in for the interview, ask some questions, and get pictures & autographs. Later that year, a friend told me he had won tickets and backstage passes to a Live show, but it was in Aneheim, at the House of Blues. So, naturally, we took a plane down to LA, rented a car, met up with Chris (previously mentioned in this essay) who now lives in CA, and my brother, also in LA, and went to the show. That night, they played their version of John Lennon’s “Imagine”…still one of the greatest moments in my concert going lifetime: one of my all-time favorite songs preformed by my favorite band. Later in the show, something rather odd happened…Dennis Rodman, apparently a friend of the band, came out on stage during the encore and sang “I Alone” with them. Needless to say…he’s a better basketball player than singer! After the show, we were backstage, and at one point I turned and literally crashed into Dennis. For the record, he’s HUGE! I’m 6′1″, and my head was somewhere around his sternum! He’s built like a tank! On the way to our car after the meet & greet, we saw him wobbling to his ride with his arm around a groupie.
So, all told, I’ve seen Live in 5 states (WA, OR, CA, NY, NJ). Last July, 2008, they played a show at Marymoore Park in Seattle with Collective Soul and Blues Traveler. Once again, I managed to find myself with a backstage pass, so off we went. Mind you, Lara’s 9 months pregnant at this point, and we were planning to go and return in one day. (Side note: I love you honey!). The show was great, and we waited backstage with a bunch of aging fans (oh wait, I’m one of those too) who were mostly all hammered (not me, driving back to PDX w/pregnant wife). Ed emerged from the trailer and stopped to talk to someone. There were about 20 fans waiting for him. He scanned the group and pushed his way through to us to talk to the pregnant lady, which drew plenty of glares from the others. He was great, asking about gender, due date, and telling us about his 2 girls. Then he was even cool enough to sign Lara’s belly! What a guy!
I sit here writing in disbelief that I’ve been listening to their music for 1/2 of my life! Over 15 years. I can’t even venture a guess how many times I’ve heard “Lightning Crashes”.
Or my very favorite song “Pillar of Davidson”, an amazing song that was never a single on the radio. As Lara and I planned our wedding, my only request was to have a Live song as our 1st dance. We chose “Dance With You”. Here’s that song from Eddie’s solo show:
Music is pretty important to me, there’s always a song in my head. Every one of my favorite songs and albums come with very specific memories of my life at the time I first heard them. “I Alone” was in the bonus room in my parents garage with Chris. “Lakini’s Juice” watching SNL. The Dolphin’s Cry in my car in a bank parking lot, not driving so I could listen closely. “Heaven” in Time Square. There are dozen’s more, each with a memory. Thanks Live! Eddie’s new song, Zion, gave me great hope that there is still wonderful music to come:
On my visit to Napa a couple weeks ago, I decided to drop in on the WineShop At Home home offices. I’ve been a WSAH Consultant for almost 3 years, and met a lot of the team, but not everyone, nor had I ever seen the home office. While I was there, Founder John Lynch asked me to help with the tasting notes for the new release wines: the 2008 McKenna Sauvignon Blanc and the 2007 McKenna Caberner Sauvignon. Here is the video that came from that tasting…enjoy!
Yeah, I’m a big fan of both music and wine. I like a lot of different music, from old country ( Dolly, Kenny, Willie) to classic rock from the 60’s & 70’s, and, those of you who know me know I have a lot of 90’s “alternative” rock, and those band’s subsequent albums (Live, Counting Crows, Collective Soul).
Like food, not all music pairs well with good wine. I made a couple compilations of my favorite wine drinking music, and thought I’d share them with you. Here’s volume 1. Click on the song, and it will take you to a video, so if you haven’t heard the song, you can see why I like it. These songs have a good mellow mood, some upifting lyrics, some a bit more haunting. If a song rattles your glass, it’s not a good fit. I like to be able to close my eyes, hear the story within the song, and let the music and wine take me away!
Rather than just review & recap the places we visited in our 1st Napa visit, I thought I’d make up some awards! So, without further Ado:
There when we needed you award: Andretti Winery
We drove overnight Saturday, and Sunday we were absolute zombies, so no wine for us. Monday, we went to the SF Zoo, and got back to Napa around 4:30 pm. Now, the thought of 2 days in Napa with no wine was heartbreaking to me, so I drove around looking for an open tasting room. After 3-4 failed attempts, at 4:53pm, I stumbled upon Andretti’s, open until 5. Named after founder Mario Andretti, I was sceptical about the quality of the wine, but the staff was friendly, and offered me a complimentary taste, as they were closing. I chose the red blend, 50% Zinfandel, 50% Primovito. Wonderful! I bought 2 bottles; 1 for dinner that night, 1 to take home. Thanks Andretti’s for being there for me!
Rombauer had been mentioned and recommended by a handful of people for their Zinfandel and Cab, but I arrived to find 1 Cab, 2 Merlot’s, and a Chardonnay on their tasting flight. The setting was beautiful, at the far end of the Napa Valley, high up in the hills, with beautiful picnic areas, metal sculptures, and a nice tasting room. But the wine was mediocre at best, and very expensive for the quality. I went home with a bottle of the Chardonnay, which was actually nice for an Oak aged Chard, but at $32, was at the high end of my thresh hold. Fortunately, they were redeemed, because outside their tasting room, we met the:
Most helpful tour guide who was great, but would have driven us nuts if we were his clients award:
Lara and Adella waited outside with the views while I tasted at Rombauer, and I came and went, bringing tastes to Lara. We got to chatting with a Limo driver, who asked us our intended stops for the day. I had a few in mind, including V. Sattui. He immediately put a stop to our plans, as V. Sattui is the last “free” tasting room in Napa, and is a Mecca for White Zinfandel/Sweet wine drinkers looking to get a buzz. He sent us across the street, to Flora Springs, which turned out to be a real wonderful place! The reason I say he would have driven us nuts was because he talked constantly, and kept loading dip in his lip, and chasing after his clients, making sure they were having a nice time. Nice guy, but a bit much.
I’m not sure I should be liking this wine, but I do award: Peju Province’s Provence
A blend of 55% White wine and 45% Red, served chilled, it’s not a Rose, not a Red…I’m so confused! But it’s truly unique and wonderful, a great summer wine. And Peju Province is a beautiful winery, though it’s set up like a machine (you walk into a lobby, where you are greeted and told to wait for a minute until the next tasting begins, then whisked away to 1 of 8 tasting areas…it’s a bit Disneyland for a somewhat small winery). But the wine is very good, and my tasting guy was fun.
Great wine, bad “aftertaste” award: Ballentine Vineyards
Recommended to us by Flora Springs, Ballentine is by appointment only, but it was quiet and they let us sign in for a tasting. Petite Verdot, Cab Franc, Syrah, and multiple Zinfandel’s on the menu made me a happy taster, and the wines did not disappoint! But, after tasting and choosing some wines to buy, the young lady who had been pouring for us rang me up, offering a 30% industry discount. Suddenly, from the back office, another woman came to the register and gently scolded the girl, saying that I applied for a different discount (???) and only got 20%. Now, believe me, a 20% discount is great, and a perk of working in the industry, but it shouldn’t be my problem that there was a lack of training, and to give me a total, then take it back in front of me like that…well, it left a bad aftertaste.
Best Overall: Truchard Vineyards
No surprise here…I’ve been a wine club member for 2 years, and love everything I’ve tasted that they put out. From the Carneros region, their wines are very earthy, hearty, and fruit forward, full bodied wines. Sunset Magazine gave their Syrah the “red of the year” a couple years ago. They commonly rank in the 90’s from Wine Enthusiast and Wine Spectator, and they deserve it! Syrah, Zin, Pinot, Rousanne, Cab, and even the Chardonnay…all truly wonderful, affordable, and overall great! If you find yourself in Napa, make an appointment. You will not be disappointed!
Best Reds:
Ballentine 2002 Block 9 Zinfandel
Andretti 2006 Zin/Primavito
Flora Springs 2006 Toad Willow Pond Pinot Noir
Truchard 2003 Cabernet Franc
Best Whites:
Luna Vineyards 2007 Pinit Griggio
Black Stallion 2008 Syrah Rose
Best Vacation Rental:
Yeah, we stayed at a nice house in downtown Napa called Casa Alta: www.casaaltanapa.com
I met the good people of Purple Cow Vineyards last November at the NW Food and Wine Show in Portland. I actually sought them out, because with a name like Purple Cow, they are either going to be mediocre wine with a kitchy label, or a surprising gem. They were the latter (though the label is pretty fun). I left the show a wine club member carrying a case of wine!
In February, I received a bottle of their 2006 Marechal Foch, a varietal I’d never tried before. On Sunday evening, my 1st Father’s Day, I wanted to open a nice bottle, so I went for the Foch. I’ve had a few other Purple Cow wines; the ‘06 Pinot Noir is truly epic, so I was excited to try something different, without having any pre-conceived notions about the varietal.
Right out of the bottle, the nose was very bright fruit, but the “hot” overpowered most other aromas. A good swirl mellowed some of the alcohol, but for the first 1/2 glass, it was still a bit hot, perhaps a testament to it’s aging ability. I personally enjoy tasting a bit of alcohol on some wine, and could still pull flavors out from the wine. Licorice was a prominent flavor, which matched well with the hot. As the wine mellowed, it became very velvety in a hurry, dramatically changing the smell and taste. What started as bright fruit on the nose became earthy & dirty (my wife’s opinion), and smelled like coffee to me. The big red spice that I noted on the first 1/2 glass mellowed into the velvety blueberry, with just a touch of lingering spice on the finish.
Sadly, Purple Cow only produced a very small amount of the Marechal Foch, and didn’t even have another bottle for me to buy, so I won’t get a follow up, 2nd chance with this wine. But, they’ve fast become my favorite Willamette Valley Winery, and I know that the next Purple Cow wine I uncork will be another win!
For the 3rd year in a row, right on cue for Memorial Day, WineShop At Home has released their very popular and wonderful Fog Zinfandel. This is the 2007, and I’d been looking forward to it for some time. Even after drinking a few bottles of each the ‘05 and ‘06 Fog Zinfandel, I still have over a case of each…yeah, I’m a fan.
Yummy
When the ‘07 arrived last week, Lara and I didn’t have an evening together to open it until Friday night, and each day became more painful in anticipation (for the record, working opposite schedules sucks). But finally we popped the cork and poured a couple glasses. The first sip was everything I’d hoped for. Big dark fruit with a punch of heat from the alcohol, followed by a strong Cinnamon spice that gained intensity when I placed my tongue to the roof of my mouth. Just perfect! As an ‘07, it’s pretty young, and giving it a few good swirls mellowed it out a bit, especially the alcohol heat. As we finished our glasses, the berry had gotten bigger, to the point of feeling like a hearty jammy boysenberry, and the spice kicked in sooner, and lasted longer.
My case of the ‘07 Fog Zinfandel is on it’s way, and now I can’t wait to pop a bottle of each the ‘05, ‘06, and ‘07 for a vertical flight. Fog also released their 1st ever Petite Syrah, which I will review shortly. If you like Zinfandel or Petite Syrah, don’t miss out, as the Fog label is extremely popular and the Fog wines sell out VERY quickly! Get yours HERE…each only $18.50/bottle! Cheers!
I love Zinfandel. I have 2 favorites, Truchard Vineyards, and the Fog Zinfandel from WineShop At Home. The 2006 Fog has been released and I will be trying it this week…review to follow! If history repeats itself for the 3rd year in a row, the Fog will be AMAZING, and sell out in a matter of days/weeks, so get yours quick! I personally have a waiting list for 4 cases, and production is only in the hundreds!
Fog has also debuted a Petite Syrah this year, which I can’t wait to try! I will also review that wine…but there are only a few DOZEN cases if that wine…don’t miss out on a gem!
Both wines are under $19/bottle, and available HERE, or my emailing me HERE
A few sips later, the raisin had softened, revealing big black fruit first, followed by soft, spicy currant. I can not wait until it is released! Purple Cow only has 1 barrel, so about 125 cases…just enough for the wine club and a few leftovers! I recommend joining the wine club today!
