November 2009

When I was a kid in the seventies and early 1980s my parents drank "jug wine" in gallon sized green glass bottles; they might have as much as two glasses a night, usually with dinner, but sometimes, one before dinner as well. They alternated between red and white; I remember the white was often Gallo Rheingarten, and the red was sometimes Gallo Hearty Burgundy. I got all nostalgic the other day when I noticed that Gallo was not only making consumer table wine varietals, but they'd brought back Gallo Hearty Burgundy.

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I'm slowly working my way through all twelve of the Sutter Home table wine varietals. This time, it's the Sutter Home Cabernet Sauvignon 2007. The wine is a deep red, with ruby highlights, and a definite fruity Cabernet Sauvignon aroma, that's a bit of a cross between plum and cherry. It's middle-of-the-road Cabernet Sauvignon, lighter and more fruity than my favorite California table wine Cabernet Sauvignon, from Meridian. This Sutter Home Cabernet Sauvignon is rounder, with less of a edge from the tannin. The Sutter Home Cabernet Sauvignon is a balanced Cabernet Sauvignon, with hints of cherry and plum, and a slight hint of toasted oak, but it's less oaky than Meridian, and not quite as dry.

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At first sip, this very pale citrine-colored Sauvignon Blanc actually reminded me of Chardonnay. I know, I know, but it's important to be truthful, yes? And I admit, freely, I don't know what I'm talking about. But once the wine warmed a little—I do think, honestly it was really several degrees colder than it should have been—it opened up, and was much more complex and yes, much more like Sauvignon Blanc. It shifted from acidic to slightly sweet peach and mango flavors, with the faint herbal-grassy hint I like so much with Sauvignon Blanc. The aroma too was decidedly fruity; peach and ripe pear.

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I confess, I didn't have very high expectations for this wine. California and Sutter Home specifically, were once known for their old vine Zinfandel. The grapes for Sutter Home's Zinfandel are from the Sierra Foothill and Lodi regions, both long-term growing areas for Zinfandel. But I thought, given that Sutter Home very much markets this and their other wines as consumer table wines, that this would likely be sort of fruity, and over-ripe, and too sweet, rather than the lively peppery tones I'd expect from a Zinfandel.

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I like that the Blackstone Winery Web site is unabashedly about quality, enjoyable consumer table wine from California. I hate that the Web site is Flash-based; this means it's impossible for people using adaptive technology to use the site because they can't see to use the site—and it means that much of the site isn't accessible via a link.

I like, very much, the general attitude of Blackstone winery, based on the language they use on their Web site:

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The Italian Pinot Grigio is essentially the same grape as the French Pinot Gris; in both cases, the grape is named for its pine-cone like clusters of grapes, and the "grey" color that in actuallity is more blue than grey. The wine actually occurs in a range of colors from a deep gold, to a pinkish copper, and even a pale straw shade of yellow. Pinot Grigio is an old grape, going back to the Middle Ages in France and Italy, and likely, one with Roman heritage. It left a definite foot print in Burgundy, and was deliberately planted in Hungary by a number of estates.

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