The Wine's the Thing
Mitch Kornfeld
12/22

Last Minute Shopping: Wines for Christmas.


Way back in the mid 1970's when I was just starting to learn about wine I decided I needed a book to guide me. The book I selected was The Signet Encyclopedia of Wine, a paperback by the Reverend E. Frank Henriques of Sutter Creek California. It was a perfect choice for me. I quote it to this day. Here's the opening of the Forward, from memory, and I swear that I'm not going to look it up until I make that final click and send the finished column to our esteemed editor.

"The book you are holding is one of the most presumptuous and audacious in the history of American publishing. I almost said the most presumptuous and audacious, but that would have been presumptuous and audacious."

It looked like fun, and fun it was. There was the occasional entry written just for laughs. Again, from memory, "Sax's Natural Arkansas Grape Wine: Here's the original wine long sought after by historians, a sample of which when sent to the University of Arkansas for analysis came back with the following report: 'Your horse has diabetes.'" His humor was usually more subtle and it permeated and percolated throughout the book. There was always a chuckle somewhere. Sometimes, when reading some of his entries, I wondered if the good Reverend hadn't gotten a little too deep into researching his subject, not that I minded.

Rev. Henriques was a former Catholic priest who became an Episcopal priest, got married, had five children, and wrote books about wine and spirits. I figured anybody like that had to be a pretty good guy and I was going to like his books. I figured right.

The Signet Encyclopedia of Wine, as near as I can tell, only had two editions, the original in 1974, and the revised, in 1984. I saw that '84 edition on shelves for many years. I went to my local Barnes & Noble the other day looking for a third edition. I don't know if it exists. They didn't have it or the '84. The '84 is hopelessly out of date and I fervently hope that Rev. Henriques still walks this earth so he may complete the revision as only he can. If Rev. Henriques is not on the scene or is doing something more important and doesn't anticipate ever doing a revision I would be remiss if I didn't mention I know where Signet can find a good stand-in (ahem!).

Surely some of you must have been wondering why the good Reverend thought his book was so presumptuous and audacious. He said it was because he was making judgments about matters of taste "down to the last 25 cents worth," and that there was no arguing about tastes. He of course also said it in Latin, and I'll probably butcher it, but it was something like "Il gustibilis non est disputatum." At least a couple of times he said, "The first rule of wine appreciation is 'If the wine tastes good to you, it is good wine'." You can see that echoed in my inaugural column. More than once I've been at sit-down tastings listening to people commenting on a wine and I would say to myself, "Are we drinking the same wine?" and I realized that maybe the Romans were right and that Rev. Henriques was on to something.

So, with that in mind, let me take a page from Rev. Henriques and give a whole bunch of recommendations for wines to have with Christmas dinner.

Rev. Henriques gives recommendations in three price ranges, according to various occupations. Get this. They are $6 to $8, $8 to $12, and $15 and "up, up, up..."

And that is for the revised edition! That part has changed. I am going to basically double the price ranges, and my "up, up, up..." is going to top out at about $75.

There's plenty of excellent wine out there without having to pay for scarcity and reputation. Remember, "You can't drink the label." I'm going to recommend a sparkling wine, a white wine, a red wine, and a dessert wine, in each of three price ranges. Remember we are talking about matters of taste here and if the exact wines I mention are not available in your wine store the people there should be able to find something very similar. Of necessity I will recommend wines that are ready to be enjoyed on next Monday so that rules out some serious reds that are not ready to drink, and it rules out top choices that just aren't on the shelves anymore, such as 1989 and 1990 Bordeaux, and 1990-91-92 California Cabernet Sauvignons.

Wines under $15, for most of us, including dot-com entrepreneurs, etc.:

Sparkling wine: From France: Brut d'Argent, a 100% Chardonnay wine from outside of the Champagne district.

From Italy: Rotari Brut, from Chardonnay and Pinot Noir (Pinot Nero), Zardetto Brut Prosecco.

From California: Domaine Chandon Brut or Blanc de Noirs (I prefer the Blanc de Noirs).

White wine: A California Chardonnay from: Alderbrook, Chateau St. Jean, Dry Creek Vineyards, La Crema, Sterling, Simi, or Souverain.

A California Sauvignon Blanc (also called Fume Blanc) from: Dry Creek Vineyards, Caymus, Chateau St. Jean, Kenwood, or Sterling.

Red wine: A Cru Beaujolais (see column of Nov.24) such as Chateau De La Chaize, or a bottling from Trenel et Fils, or the ubiquitous Georges Duboeuf. (The 1998's should be fine.)

A California Zinfandel such as: Cline, Fetzer Barrel Select, Seghesio, or a mid-range bottling from Ravenswood (Amador, Lodi, or Napa). Prefer a '97 if they're still available.

Dessert wine: A Ruby Port from a good Portuguese producer such as: Cockburn, or Quanta Do Noval.

From Australia: Yalumba Clocktower Port. It's in between Ruby and Tawny in character, and it's a great value.

From California: Quady Essencia. The universal description is "Grand Marnier lite."

Wines from $15 to $30, for plumbers, electricians, actors with jobs, College Professors, etc.:

Sparkling wine: From California: Domaine Carneros, Roederer Estate, Kendall-Jackson Kristone, or a bottling from Schramsberg, California's best indigenous sparkling wine producer.

From France: Genuine Champagne from: Henri Abele, Moet et Chandon, Nicholas Feuillatte, Mumm Cordon Rouge, Perrier-Jouët Grand Brut, or Pommery Brut Royale.

White wine: From California: A Reserve or single vineyard Chardonnay from the producers above, such as Chateau St. Jean Robert Young, Dry Creek Vineyards Reserve, Simi Reserve, or Sterling Diamond Mountain Ranch. Or a Chardonnay from: Morgan ("regular" or Reserve), Calera, Beringer, Bernardus, Franciscan (regular or Cuvée Sauvage), or Landmark.

From New Zealand: A Sauvignon Blanc from: Brancott, Cloudy Bay (my favorite NZSB so far), Giesen, Selaks, Stoneleigh, or the Villa Maria Reserve. 

Red wine: From California: Zinfandel (Look for 1997's for all California reds): An "Old Vines," designated wine from Dry Creek, St. Francis, or Ravenswood, or, a single-vineyard or Reserve from one of the other "R" Zinfandel producers: Rabbit Ridge, Renwood, Ridge, or Rosenblum.

Merlot: Blackstone, Chateau St. Jean, Havens, Pine Ridge, Ravenswood Sangiocomo Vineyard, St. Francis, or Whitehall Lane.

From Oregon: Pinot Noir. Get an excellent 1998. Begin at the beginning of the alphabet with the regular bottlings from: Adelsheim, Amity, Archery Summit, Arterberry, and Bethel Heights, then look for Evesham Wood, Domaine Serene, and Ponzi.

From Italy: Chianti Riserva from 1997, one of Tuscany's all-time best vintages, from: Antinori, Badia a Coltibuono, Castello di Gabbiano, Felsina Berardenga, Fondoti, Frescobaldi Nippozzano, Castello di Querceto, Ruffina, or Viticcio.

Dessert wine: From Portugal: A Late Bottled Vintage Port (an LBV as they're known), look for a 1994 from: Calem, Churchill, Cockburn, Graham, Osborne, Rozes, or Quinta Do Noval.

A 10 to 20 year-old Tawny Port such as: Dow's 15yr. Old Boardroom Port, Ferreira 20yr. Duque de Braganca, Ramos-Pinto 10yr. or 20yr.

From France: A Muscat de Beaumes de Venise (prefer a 1998) from: Chapoutier, Domaine Durban, Paul Jaboulet-Aine, or J. Vidal-Fleury.

From Spain: A Sweet Sherry such as: Williams & Humbert 15yr. Solera Especial Finest Oloroso, or a bottling from the prolific Emilio Lustau. Look for the words "Cream," "Moscatel Superior," and "Pedro Ximenez," for his sweet ones. They are excellent values, and you might find one near $15.

Wines for $30 and up, for senior law partners, cosmetic surgeons, stockbrokers with tenure, celebrities, and Alex Rodriguez.

Sparkling wine: From California: One of their finest: Mumm DVX Napa Valley, Roederer Estate L'Ermitage Anderson valley, or a Schramsberg Reserve.

From France: A Brut (fairly dry) Champagne such as: Bollinger Special Cuvée, Gossett Brut Excellence, Jacques Selosse, Mumm de Cremant, Roederer Cuvée Royale, Taittinger La Francaise, or Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin. Or Vintage Champagne from Pommery, Moet et Chandon, Taittinger, or Veuve Cliquot.

White wine: From France: Alsatian Riesling or Gewürztraminer: Try a single vineyard wine, or a wine with a name such as Trimbach Cuvée Frédéric Émile Riesling, from one of these producers: Paul Blanck, Albert Boxler, Schlumberger, Domaine Weinbach, or Zind-Humbrecht (pricey, but they're the best).

Chablis: Look for the remaining 1997's from: Jean-Marc Brocard, Rene and Vincent Dauvissat, Jean Dauvissat, Domaine Laroche, Long-Depaquit, La Chablisiene, J. Moreau & Fils, Verget, and Vacoret. Some of the Grand Crus are over the $75 mark, but I think that the Première Crus are better with food. You can't go wrong sticking to one of them.

From California: Chardonnay from Talbott, Kistler, or the Beringer Reserve.

Red wine: Zinfandel: A single vineyard wine from Ravenswood, or any bottling from Turley, if you can find one.

Merlot: Duckhorn, Matanzas Creek, Pride, or the Reserves of St. Francis, Chateau St. Jean, or Beringer.

From Oregon: 1998 Reserve or Single Vineyard bottlings from: Archery Summit, Beaux Freres, Ponzi, Domaine Serene, or Evesham Wood.

Dessert wine: From Portugal: A top Tawny Port: Dow gold label 30 yr., or a 10, 20, or 30 yr. bottling from Taylor Fladgate.

From France: Sauternes (or neighboring Barsac) from the current excellent 1997 vintage: Chateaux; Climens, Coutet, Guirad, Lafaurie-Peyraguey, La Tour Blanche, Rayne-Vigneau, Rieussec, or Suduiraut.

There. If you follow the advice above, you will have a very Merry Christmas indeed. Next week we'll delve into the relationship between New Years and sparkling wine.

© Mitch Kornfeld 2000 All rights reserved


Previously by Mitch Kornfeld...

Nouveau Beaujolais, Etc. (11/24/00)

Going to a Tasting 101 (12/01/00)