Birichino Malvasia Bianca 2012

Just in case it's bothering the multitude of people who read this blog (aka: my parents), I am well aware that it seems like I rarely ever touch red wine. The reason I tend to favor whites is mainly due to the fact that I live in San Antonio, Texas where it’s hot as hell for at least eight months out of the year. I really do love red wines, but after moving back home four years ago I started leaning more towards whites simply because it was too damn hot for me to enjoy the bold, spicy reds I typically bought. Once it gets cooler the color in my glass will change and I will regale you with many tales of red wine, but for tonight I’m sticking with white: Birichino Malvasia Bianca 2012.

The Birichino winery was founded by Alex Krause and John Locke in 2008, but only showed up on my radar about six months ago when Kye (the Quarry Whole Foods wine specialist) took an interest in them. His passion for wine has led him to develop a knack for tracking down little-known and rather unique wines from all over the world. He wound up bringing in several of Birichino’s wines (Malvasia, Vin Gris, Pinot Noir, Grenache and Muscat Canelli to be exact) and not a single one disappointed.

The lovely white wine I’m discussing tonight is from Monterey in California. It is 100% Malvasia Bianca (a varietal of ancient origin, most likely Greek) and aged for five months in stainless steel. A beautiful pale gold color with greenish tinges displaying aromas of tangerine, wet limestone and floral notes on the nose. The palate is light-bodied and racy with flavors of lemon peel, lime zest and white nectarine followed by hints of jasmine, fresh ginger and bright minerality. Crisp acidity cuts through the floral and fruit to deliver a clean finish. Really enjoyable for this summer weather we’re still having in San Antonio... in the middle of October.

The Birichino Malvasia Bianca is a truly lovely, complex wine and a rather hard to find varietal (in Texas at least). I've no doubt that will be enjoyable even after the weather decides to cool down. In case I've managed to peak your interest I would suggest hightailing it to either of the Whole Foods Markets in San Antonio.

… Except of course for puppies, puppies are better than everything ever.

Abbazia di Novacella Kerner 2012

I got to try some absolutely stellar wines from Alto Adige today that inspired me to pick up Abbazia di Novacella Kerner after work. The last time I bought this wine I loved it and left about half the bottle at my parents’ so they could try something new and fun. I realized my mistake when I found out later that they’d thrown it into a batch of sangria which is a sure sign that they didn’t like it. I still haven’t let them live that down. Now every time I leave good wine with them I make them promise not to mix it in with sangria. Luckily for me they tend to only make sangria around Easter so most of the hand-me-down wines I give them have escaped that fate.

Just to give you a little background: Kerner is a cross of Schiava (also known as Trollinger or Vernatsch) and Riesling. It was bred in Germany in 1969 and named after the German poet, Justinus Kerner, whose works included songs and poetry about wine. In the 1990s it was, for a time, the third most planted grape in Germany, but plantings since then have fallen. In fact the few Kerners I’ve seen in store were all from Alto Adige in Italy. Alto Adige was part of Austria-Hungary before it was ceded to Italy after World War I which can explain the distinct German and Austrian influences on the wine industry in that region.

This wine exhibits a clear and light gold color with aromas of lemon zest, honeysuckle and grassy notes on the nose. Medium-bodied and spicy with zesty flavors of key lime, orange peel, pineapple, beeswax, cream fraiche and fresh jalapeno. Hints of wet slate combine with medium acidity that creeps up on you slowly to lead to a longish finish.

As my parents proved it’s not a wine that appeals to everybody, but it is definitely worth it if you want to try a cool, rather unique varietal. 

Kurt Darting Dürkheimer Spielberg Scheurebe Spätlese 2010

My parents are amazing and I know that I am damn lucky to have them. My father is awesome, I got both my dry sense of humor and cynicism (though he’s not too thrilled about that) from him and I am beyond grateful for both those traits. My mother is the kindest, most wonderful woman, who always wants to see the best in everyone. They balance each other out so perfectly and also drive each other crazy at times. I have never doubted that they love each other and my sisters and I (and all the dogs I might have kinda guilted them into getting) very much. If it weren't for them I might have never discovered how utterly fascinating and beautiful wine is.

For my 21^st birthday they had gotten me a bottle of Now and Zen Wasabi White (mainly because my mother loved the label... another habit I picked up from her), but forgot to bring it with them when they drove up to Dallas to see me, so my mother insisted on visiting several different liquor/wine stores in an attempt to find another bottle of it. We didn't find it and I honestly couldn't tell you what they wound up getting me instead to make up for it, but I remember being really amazed by how much they knew about wine, since it was something they'd only started getting into after I left home. What really sealed the deal though was a weekend visit I made probably a few months after that. They’d recently gotten really into New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc and one of the last nights I was there we thought it'd be fun to do a blind-tasting of sorts with three different bottles of that varietal. Basically we put all three in paper bags then tasted each one and scored them somehow (the details are a bit fuzzy), not perfect, but still a lot of fun. The wines were Kim Crawford, Drylands (which I'm pretty sure was the winner overall) and a third I can’t recall. The details aren't really all that important... the point is that after that weekend I started to fall madly in love with wine all thanks to my parents.

Since then I've become way more of a wine geek than either of them and I’m sure that my slightly ridiculous passion for wine perplexes them at times, but they have been nothing but supportive anyways. Of course it pays off for them as well since I've introduced them to some rather awesome wines. Of those one of their favorites so far was Kurt Darting Dürkheimer Spielberg Scheurebe Spätlese from Pfalz, Germany.

I have Kye (my friend and fellow wine buyer at Whole Foods), to thank for introducing me to this wine (and for the picture above) and he has Terry Theise to thank for introducing him to Scheurebe. I’m really glad that he stumbled upon this beautiful wine after reading Theise’s book “Reading Between the Vines” and I’m really lucky that he was awesome enough to share that experience with me. Just to give a brief background on this little known varietal: Scheurebe (or Sämling 88) is a crossing of Riesling and an unknown grape (originally thought to be Sylvaner, but DNA analysis ruled that out in the ‘90s). Primarily grown in Austria and Germany it is highly aromatic and, like Riesling, the wines made from it can range from very sweet to bone dry.

The Darting Scheurebe was beyond gorgeous, I still list in as one of the top ten white wines I've ever had. After that first bottle I kept gushing about it to my parents and wound up buying another bottle of it to drink with them so they could experience it as well ($19.99 at Twin Liquors, though I don't believe they carry it anymore). Normally I’d do my best to describe Scheurebe, and I could go into detail about the pink grapefruit, orange zest and honeysuckle flavors but I just feel like Terry Theise does such a better job of explaining this varietal than I could ever do, so I’ll just leave you with his words:

“I don’t drink Riesling all the time, though I’d hardly mind doing so. Still, there are occasions when something more pagan is called for, and that’s when I summon my guiltiest of wine pleasures: Scheurebe.

"Scheurebe (shoy-ray-beh), often shortened to ‘Scheu,’ is Riesling just after it read the Kama Sutra. Put another way, Scheu is what Riesling would be if Riesling were a transvestite. If Riesling expresses all that is Noble and Good, Scheu offers all that is Dirty and Fun. It is Riesling’s evil, horny twin.”

-Terry Theise, "Reading Between the Vines"

Menguante Garnacha Blanca 2009

I don’t have a whole ton of friends, but the ones I do have are as close (if not closer than) family to me. I have no problem with that, I prefer having few close friends, who I can count on no matter what, to having several fair-weather ones I can’t rely on. Of course most of these friends are spread out all over this state (and Louisiana) at the moment, not surprising considering how badly we all wanted out of this city after High School... I'm just the only one so far to return. That just means I appreciate the times they get suckered into coming back to SA all the more and the last time it happened I celebrated by picking up Menguante Garnacha Blanca 2009 from Specs (totally blanking on the price, but will fix that shortly).

I’m not really sure why Grenache Blanc intrigues me so much (in blends or as 100% varietals), but I’m not complaining, it usually works out well for me. So far Spain and South Africa have impressed me the most with their wines made with Grenache Blanc, but a lot of that is due to the fact that you don’t see this varietal so often elsewhere.

This one was ripe with flavors of baked pear, orange peel, dried apricot and lemon zest. There was a bit of oiliness that reminded of the one (and only) Condrieu I’ve ever had. This was balanced out with crisp acidity and bright floral notes that led to a creamy, honey-butterish finish. Really glad I took a chance with this wine and even happier that I got to share it with good people (especially since those seem hard to find these days).

Casa Silva Sauvignon Gris 2012

 Chilean wines will always have a special place in my heart simply because they remind me of my grandmother (Chilean)  who was a huge part of my life until her death almost 13 years ago. To me she was an extremely graceful woman, cultured and sophisticated, not a single hair out of place. She drilled my sisters and me on proper etiquette and manners until she was satisfied we were perfect (for the record I don't think I ever managed that perfection). It was a bit ridiculous and not very useful in the world outside of her home, but she was determined that her granddaughters not be ill-mannered hooligans. I’m probably making her sound like a ridiculous tyrant, but really she wasn’t, she just had standards for everyone, especially her family, and she made damn sure that we met them. To me she was elegance incarnate and I find most Chilean wines to be that same way.

The Silva family pioneered grape growing in the Colchagua Valley in 1892 and have the oldest cellar in the valley. The Sauvignon Gris is unique in that you almost never find that varietal anywhere since almost going extinct following the phylloxera epidemic. Not much has been planted since it was rediscovered in the 1980s in the Loire Valley. The Casa Silva Sauvignon Gris 2012 is medium-bodied and with crisp citrus flavors of lime zest, orange peel and pink grapefruit.  Fresh floral notes, spice and medium acidity lead into a rich, vibrant finish. It is elegant and complex, a wine I’m sure my grandmother would have loved and not just because her maiden name was Silva.

Shaya Old Vine Verdejo 2011

When I was twelve years old my family spent a week in Spain over spring break, where I fell head over heels in love with the country. I simply couldn't imagine anywhere else in the world could be more beautiful and vibrant. So it only makes sense that nine years later I'd fall in love with Spanish wines. The bold, spicy reds and fresh, vivacious whites were just so much more alive and expressive than any other wine I'd experienced before. That first bottle of Spanish wine (a Rioja crianza) turned what had been a strictly platonic liking of wine into a full-blown infatuation and led me to where I am today. 

Since Spain is to blame for all of this I thought it only fitting to start this off with Shaya, an old vine Verdejo from Rueda and one of my favorite white wines of all time.

This medium-bodied white is 100% Verdejo with notes of mango, white peach, apricot and honey. Crisp minerality and vibrant acidity lead to a surprisingly creamy finish. It is an absolutely gorgeous wine, perfect for the miserably hot summer that's ahead!