Wine Life - Houston

As originally seen in the March issue of  Galveston Monthly magazine   Springtime is upon us and the time to think pink has begun. This month, all of the recommended wines are available on the Island so wine lovers can shop locally without leaving their spring break fun. Top picks include sparkling rosé from New Mexico, a Rioja, and a classic Provence pink.    Lovers of Texas wine will also find a suggestion of a Texas rosé to pre-order directly from the winery to make the most of their time off so they, too, can rosé all day.

As originally seen in the April edition of Galveston Monthly magazine

As originally seen in the June issue of Galveston Monthly magazine

As originally seen in the June issue of Galveston Monthly magazine

I was in Austin last Monday for a Wines of Provence luncheon with a presentation by Craig Collins, MS, at Chef Andrew Curren’s and his West Sixth Street casual French restaurant, Arro. As a lover of Rosé, particularly the dry, mineral-laced style of this region, I was excited to attend. We discussed the region’s focus on Rosé including its long history of wine making and the making of this particular style of wine. About 88% of the region’s production is Rosé although they also make some rich reds and interesting whites.  In most other areas, Rosé is often made as an afterthought but here, every vineyard decision is based on making the best pink wine possible.  The wines are typically blends from red grapes like Grenache, Syrah, Cinsault and Mourvedre but may also include a few others. The hot dry climate helps keep pests and disease at bay so very little intervention is needed in the vineyard. They harvest at night to maintain the acidity. The wines are always dry; t...

2011 Touraine Millesime Sauvignon Blanc from The Loire Valley by Alfed Pery Nose: Clean, medium intense aromas of lemongrass, melon, wetstone and celery. Palate: Dry, medium body, medium+ acidity, medium alcohol with flavors of grapefruit and melon with a medium length finish. Recommended. I served this before dinner out by the pool and it was very well recieved. Purchased at Whole Foods.         2011 Domaines Ott Cotes de Provence Nose: Clean, medium intense aromas of apricot and red fruit. Palate: Dry, medium body, medium+ acidity, medium alcohol with flavors mirroring the aromas with a medium length mineral tinged finish. Recommended. I have had this twice this month. I purchased a bottle at Top Shelf Wine and Spirits in Sugar Land for $22 to bring to a friend's Labor Day party on Galveston Island where it was a big hit. Then, my husband and I had it again last Friday at Aura French Restaurant in Missouri City with t...

Bandol, one of Provence's oldest wine growing regions, is located near the Mediterranean Coast.  Driving through the region, you see medieval villages, terraced vineyards on the hillsides and glimpses of the sea. It can only be described as picturesque.  In general, the topsoil is gravel and stone dominated lying over clay, limestone and sandstone.  Mourvedre is the most important grape when thinking about Bandol Red and   Rosé wine.  The climate is Mediterranean and during my time there, the locals actually apologized for what they felt were unusally high temperatures but, of course, it was not even close to the brutal heat of Houston in August. While I was in Bandol, it was blue skies and sunshine with gentle breezes making for a most beautiful day. After a couple of extra spins through a roundabout, we finally made it to the Chateau Romassan estate of Domaines Ott. This estate lies at the foot of the village of Le Castellet in the ce...

During our recent vacation on the French Riviera, my husband and I decided to rent a car and drive to Bandol which is located about an hour down the coast from where we were staying in Cannes. Bandol is one of Provence's oldest wine growing regions and is considered by many to be the most important AOC in the area especially when looking at the Mourvedre-based red wines. The region is known for its terraced vineyards called restanques built from the local river stone. The climate is Mediterranean as the region lies close  to the sea with long sunlight hours. The Mistral winds and mountain breezes protect the grapes from rot and cool things down at night. I was interested in visiting Domaine La Suffrene as it is very available in the Houston market. Winemaker Cedric Gravier took over his grandfather's business in 1996 and when he heard that I was in town, he was kind enough to show up himself to taste with me and give me a tour of his winery and cellars...

My husband and I have recently returned from the French Riviera in Provence where we, of course, drank buckets of rose wine in between sight seeing, sun bathing and eating. We also sampled some of the local red and white. Despite all of my wine studies, I really had not had that many wines from Provence. It seems to be a somewhat overlooked region when it comes to the various wine classes and I admittedly had not sought out much of the wine on my own.  I was on vacation so I didn't spend my time writing up tasting notes but I did try to take pictures of the different bottles that we liked or make a note of what we drank. Originally, I was not intending on writing up this portion of my trip in regards to the wine. We did spend some time in Bandol and I will be writing that region up more in depth in my next posting. My husband is not one to get all geeked up at the thought of pink wine so it was interesting to see how quickly he got on board with all t...

2009 Pere Anselme Cotes de Provence Appearance: Clear, pale pink Nose: Medium intense aromas of red berries, rosewater, apple  Palate: Dry, medium body and acidity, light tannins; Tart strawberry, saline minerality Finish: short Quality:  good-very good       Price: $10 2009 Domaine du Paternal "Couronne de Charlemagne" Cassis Blanc Appearance: Clear, pale lemon Nose: Light intensity aromas of dried herbs, white flowers and kerosene Palate: Dry, medium body, medium+ acidity; citrus & dried hebs, slight saline minerality Finish: short Quality:  acceptable-good        Price: $18 2008 Vordy-Mayrannes "Old Carignan" Rouge Appearance: Clear, medium ruby Nose: Medium intense aromas of black cherries & red berries, forest floor, smoke Palate: Dry, medium body, medium+ tannins and acidity; Dark berries, dried herbs and black tea Finish: medium Quality: good-very good...