Heaven is in Oregon

This past July Charles Communications put together and participated in the ultimate tour of the Willamette Valley through the recommendations and hospitality of Archery Summit Vineyards. We spent a couple of days immersed in good wine, food and a very laid back, luxurious lifestyle (yes the two do exist together!)

The trip started with an exploration of the food truck scene in Portland, which locals claim was buzzing well before the trend hit the nation. Portland has created food truck 'pods' where you can find Korean tacos, falafel, fish n' chips and curried rice bowls all in one spot. All without having to chase the trucks around the block.

Dinner that evening was quite the departure from the morning victuals and was spent in the Archery Summit caves, where winemaker Anna Matzinger and winegrower Leigh Bartholomew hosted a library wine tasting to pair with a local feast prepared from neighboring farms. The Archery Summit Pinot Noirs have evolved gracefully over the years. The standout wine of the night was 2002 Red Hills Estate Pinot Noir. The fruit was lively and fresh, but with maturity and nuance that only comes with age.

The next morning, having spent a blissful night of sleep at the beautiful Allison Inn & Spa, guests were given the ultimate tour of Archery Summit's five Estate Vineyards - by air, naturally. Two-by-two we were lifted off the ground via helicopter for an aerial tour of the Dundee Hills, with Mt. Hood looming in the background. Watch video here.

The vineyard tour was followed by a hands-on opportunity to learn about the art of blending with the talented female winemaking duo. Anna and Leigh explained the unique characteristics that the terroir of each of the single vineyards produces in their wines and how to use our beakers, calculators, or just our palate alone to create our own signature blend of 2009 Pinot Noir. The Renegade Ridge Vineyard produces black fruit tones like boysenberry where as the Looney Vineyard has a bright, cranberry rhubarb quality. We could have been there forever trying the endless combinations of aromatics, fruit, texture, finish etc. Once each person was happy with their personal blend they were bottled, corked and labeled for storage. I'll let you know how the Charles Communications bottle turns out in when it's time to drink it in 12-20 months. If we can wait!

Our stay was capped off with an unforgettable meal at The Jory, the restaurant at the Allison Inn & Spa. I am still thinking about my salad. Yes, a salad. Frisee, duck confit and a farm egg were a decided Northwest take on a French classic. So. So. Good.

We encourage everyone to spend some time in Dundee Hills of the Willamette Valley. It is unmistakably NOT California wine country. When you're there be sure to stop by Archery Summit to say hello to Anna and Leigh and their great team.

Wine made from light?

We Danes are known for a lot of things. Big dogs, buttery pastry, a certain young lady with a fish tail where most of us have legs. But even though Denmark seems to have this kind of eclectic brand, wine doesn’t seem to fit in this picture. But maybe that's about to change - at least global warming is working in favor of my countrymen's struggle to turn Denmark into a real wine country. It's probably only known to a few people out side Denmark, but we do actually have a EU-defined quota of vineyards of no less than 222 acres. That's less than a third of the Robert Mondavi Winery's possessions, and less than 0.005 percent of the total wine grape acreage of California. During my summer vacation in Denmark I got to visit one of the 44 commercial wineries in Denmark, called 'Lille Gadegaard' and located on the small island Bornholm far east of the rest of Denmark in the middle of the Baltic Sea. There, I was lucky enough to get to talk to winemaker Jesper Paulsen who will be harvesting his 10th vintage this year.

Throughout these 10 vintages Jesper Paulsen has only bottled 3 vintages of wine, which he considers suitable for sale. The rest has been distilled to brandy except for the 2004 vintage, which was bottled and labeled 'Not suitable for drinking - works best as decoration'. To his own surprise he actually sells a few bottles of that vintage every year. At CCA we blind tasted his '2007 Syd' red wine based primarily on the Rondo variety, and though there's no doubt that the wine is well made and completely unflawed, the fruit in it just doesn't allow the wine to really excel. With the past 10 vintages in mind, Jesper Paulsen has now decided to replant his vineyard with varietals known to do well in the northern German regions with similar cold climates.

Bright summer nights On another small Danish island with the romantic name Lille¸ (Little island) another winegrower, Hans Lund Hansen and winemaker Anders Selmer have had somewhat more success doing just that by growing varietals such as Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Sylvaner and Solaris. The result is a beautiful dry white wine, with a floral nose and flavors of white flowers and peach. Winemaker Anders Selmer explains that what Denmark lacks in terms of warm temperatures, it makes up for in terms of light. With its northern location Denmark has long summer days and short, bright summer nights and according to Anders Selmer that's more important than warm temperatures - since it's light, not warmth, that catalyze photosynthesis in the plant.

Nordic food trend It's too early to tell, whether Denmark will eventually become a real wine country. Claus Meyer, chef and co-owner of the Lille¸ Winery and the restaurant Noma, which recently was awarded the first place in the 2010 San Pellegrino 50 Best Restaurant Award, recently offered winemaker Jesper Paulsen a piece of advice. He suggested for him to make wine based on berries that grow naturally in Denmark, such as red and black currant, raspberries, gooseberries and strawberries. That's also the idea behind Noma's success: To use ingredients sourced locally and process them using a mix of traditional and modern methods to create world-class gourmet food and wine. Jesper Paulsen took his advice and is now producing sparkling wine based on red and black currant and a still wine based on strawberries. Personally, I prefer Jesper Paulsen's berry based wines, but I'm sure that with the right selection of grape varieties he will also be making great white wines some years ahead.

Jesper Paulsen, Danish owner and winemaker at Lille Gadegaard Winery in front of his Rondo vineyard

Q & A with TJ Evans: A Domaine Carneros Pinot Noir tastes like a Domaine Carneros Pinot Noir

Domaine Carneros is a well known sparkling wine Estate, has this shaped any part of the still Pinot Noir program?My tutelage while working with Eileen Crane at a sparkling wine property has been instrumental in the development of our still wine production. With that said, Domaine Carneros has four estate ranches and 300 acres are planted exclusively for still Pinot Noir production- and that always has been the case. The Pinot Noir program was not born out of sparkling, but rather conceived due to the potential of the vineyard site from the very beginning.

Why were you drawn to Carneros to make Pinot Noir? Carneros speaks to my mission in winemaking; it has immense potential, but needs a winemaker to help coax it out. The Carneros climate is ideal for Pinot Noir grape growing. The long, moderately cool growing season tempered by the maritime breezes and lingering fog of the San Pablo Bay provides optimum conditions for slow, even ripening in Pinot Noir. But beyond the physical reasons, Carneros has never really provoked the fanaticism that other regions have. I’m excited by that. I want people to taste the Domaine Carneros Pinot Noir and say “these wines just keep getting better and better.” I believe that the things I’ve learned- the lessons, the trials, the experiments, the crazy leaps of faith- they are all part of learning what Carneros wants to do.

What is it about Pinot Noir for you? Making Pinot Noir is hard; you have to get everything right. It takes a lot of patience and experimentation before you know you are even getting 50% right. I’ve been trying for 15 years. But what I love about it, is to do it right you have to spend the time in the vineyards, you have to get out of the truck. Pinot requires a winemaker to be devoted to working with the land, the climate, the people, it requires someone with patience, and someone that is truly excited about what can be produced. Winemakers move around, they chase hot spots, hot varietals, but I can’t imagine not making Pinot Noir.

Would you consider Domaine Carneros Pinot Noir a New World or Old World style? To be honest, I'm tired of the critic's preconceived "darling" Pinot regions and their need to categorize different styles of Pinot Noir making. I don't feel that California Pinot Noir should be justified by its likeness to Burgundy. My time spent in the northern Rhone taught me a lot about how different CA is to France, and why people can’t compare the two in the same way. While working in the Rhone my biggest challenge was how to balance the immense amount of natural acid. You find yourself adding sugar. While in California, as a winemaker you often add tartaric acid, because the grapes’ natural acidity is so low. So, to answer your question, I consider Domaine Carernos Pinot Noir to be in the Carneros style.

What elements of the Domaine Carneros Estate add to the uniqueness of your Pinot Noir? The clonal diversity on the Estate offers a palate of flavor, texture, complexity and aromatics with which to work with while blending. Take for instance a well-known and loved Pinot region like the Russian River Valley, predominantly only two different clones are used there: 667 & 777. In Carneros over 15 different clones are planted on the Domaine Carneros Estate. Also, the history of organic and sustainable farming at Domaine Carneros has resulted in exceptionally healthy vines. 100% of all Estate vineyards at Domaine Carneros have been certified organic by the CCOF. Our vineyard manager, Roberto Gonzales, has managed the vineyards at Domaine Carneros for 23 years. He knows the vineyards better than anyone in the company and is a constant resource to me.

You mentioned earlier that experimentation and crazy leaps of faith are helping you learn what Carneros is capable of. Are you willing to share any of your discoveries? I love to whole cluster press- it adds an exotic spiciness that I think Pinot Noir benefits from and needs. However, the stems in Carneros don’t get ripe enough to add all the most desirable characteristics of whole cluster pressing. So I experimented with de-stemming each cluster and I allowed the stems to sun ripen separately. Each day I soaked the stems and tasted their readiness, and then added them back in. I was once told experiments like these make up the difference between a man who is just making Pinot and man who is obsessed with the Pinot he is making.

TJ Evans in the hot chair

Welcome to Wine Lands!

People from around the world flocked to Outside Lands, one of the largest music festivals of the year, taking over Golden Gate Park. Headliners at this year’s Musicpalooza included The Strokes, My Morning Jacket, and Kings of Leon, along with dozens of other great bands. Music was not the only thing worth going for. The food and wine were on a level that only San Franciscans could appreciate. There were booths offering Anchor & Hopes BBQed oysters, Grumpy’s tater-tots with lavender honey mustard, and Namu’s Korean tacos.

You just can’t have great food without great wine. If you wanted to go with your typical concert beverage, you could easily get a Coors Light, but many music fans this year were lining up for glasses of Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc to enjoy at the next show.

CCA was there with DeLoach Vineyards, one of the lucky few wineries in Wine Lands, an oasis of reputable wineries. Music lovers from near and far lined up to taste dozens of California wines all in one Wine Country-influenced pavilion. “Only in San Francisco would there be a place like this for people to taste all these different wines at an event where you would only expect beer and soda. It was a great opportunity for DeLoach to reach an audience that doesn’t normally drink wine.” – says Sonia Meyer, CCA's newest team member who helped pour at the event.

DeLoach Vineyards poured a refreshing and balanced Pinot Blanc, a succulent Zinfandel and a favorite for many, their Pinot Noir, which was so popular that the barrel was dry before the afternoon headliner.

The DeLoach Pinot Noir was so popular that the barrel was emptied in record time.

CCA clients in good company at SF Chefs

San Francisco has long been an innovator in the world of winemaking, spirits and of course cuisine. We saw a great benefit for our clients to showcase their wine and cuisine among their peers and appreciative fans for a very appreciative and qualified audience, upwards of 5,000 people this year. Our client, Wente Vineyards, had a prominent role in the opening night festivities as Karl Wente cut the ribbon with the city's top chefs, as well as, performing with his band the Front Porch and serving the Wente Family Estates portfolio of wines. Bar Bambino's arancini stole the show according to Eater SF and Tablehopper. Events allow attendees be they trade or consumer to interact in a more meaningful way with our clients, and we strongly believe in choosing the right events to best spotlight brands.

Kimberly Charles pouring wine for Wente Vineyards to an enthusiastic audience

Boisset's Taste of Terroir Opening

For his entire career Jean-Charles Boisset has always had a vision beyond the day-to-day in the wine business. Whether it's converting the DeLoach Vineyards property he bought in 2004 to a biodynamic farm and vineyard, challenging the industry to come up with lower carbon footprint packaging, or in the case of his newest endeavor, bringing a new twist to the wine country tasting room, Jean Charles has defied convention yet again. His Boisset Taste of Terroir salon on the square in Healdsburg, CA invites the visitor to explore the nuances of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay with three dozen selections from his Burgundian portfolio including Domaine de la Vougeraie, Bouchard Aine & Fils, Jean-Claude Boisset and Louis Boillot as well as DeLoach Vineyards and his eponymous series, JCB. Nine different themed flights invite the curious to better understand the subtleties of terroir and the art of blending, and his unique barrel to barrel offerings of vineyard designate Pinot Noirs from DeLoach demonstrate a back to the future technology. The design of the salon is reminiscent of a left bank boutique, cozy, elegant, inviting, so make sure it's on your itinerary the next time you're headed to Healdsburg, it's not to be missed. Read more