Zaca Mesa 2004 Z Cuvee Santa Ynez Valley Red Wine

Zaca Mesa Winery is located in Santa Ynez Valley on an 750 acre estate whereof 244 acres are planted vineyard. The winery was founded in 1972 and was one of the first in Santa Ynez Valley since the prohibition ended. It was originally planted with varietals such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Chardonnay, Zinfandel, etc. In the early 1990's it was determined that Rhone varietals such as Syrah, Grenache, Mourvedre, Viognier, and Roussanne grew best on the site, and it was decided that these were the varietals the winery would focus on. Since 2002 an additional 100 acres have been replanted with new clones of Rhone varietals.
All grapes used in their wine is grown on their property with sustainable wine growing as the goal.
An interesting trivia is that their Syrah was served in the White House by President Clinton to the French President Chirac.

The Zaca Mesa 2004 Z Cuvee Santa Ynez Valley Red Wine is a Chateauneuf-du-Pape style blend of Grenache, Mourvedre, Syrah and Cinsaut. The different varietals were fermented and barrel aged separately for 7 months. They were then blended and aged an additional 9 months in French oak.

This dark ruby red wine shows raspberry, sweet vanilla, cherry and a hint of strawberry on the nose. Once in your mouth the palate reveals soft raspberry, cherry, blackberry and a big kick of peppery spice at the end. The finish is at first fruity but is soon overpowered by the earthy, tart tannins.
This wine did not make me jump with joy but neither was it totally off. I wish it was more balanced and had softer, more integrated tannins for a smoother finish. The vanilla on the nose was also slightly overshadowing the fruit.

You can order this wine direct from the winery for $18. Or you can find it for as low as $13.95 at both Wine-Searcher.com and Winezap.com.


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A Taste of Sacramento

Friday night we went to a food, wine, and beer event in Sacramento, A Taste of Sacramento, a benefit for Easter Seals. It featured over 70 local wineries, breweries and restaurants who showcased their wine, beer and food to ticket holders. As you understand there was not enough time, nor room in my stomach to tasted everything at the event but I did want to share a few thoughts with you on some of the participants that I particularly enjoyed (or not).

Let's start with the food. Best BBQ in town was served up by J.R.'s Texas Bar-B-Que who plated mesquite smoked brisket and baked beans. This is what BBQ should taste like. Ruth's Chris Steakhouse had sliced steak with mashed potatoes. Yummy. Rubio's flavorful, juicy and tender carnitas in flour tortilla with guacamole was surprisingly good considering it being a chain restaurant. Someone was serving a good mahi mahi taco roll as well, but I can't recall who it was... I also had shrimp with a great cocktail sauce that I think it might have come from Pilothouse Restaurant...
For dessert I had two favorites, The Berry Factory (owned by Shari Fitzpatrick of Shari's Berries) with their chocolate dipped strawberries (to die for) and a local chocolate maker that I had not heard of before, Chocolate Silk The Chocolate Architect. They had a wide variety of fudge. The toffee chip chocolate fudge and espresso chocolate fudge were my two favorites.

On to the wine. Holly's Hill Vineyards from Placerville, produces Rhone varietals, and poured a 2006 Viognier that really stood out with intense white peach on the nose and pear at the palate. Sometimes viognier can be a little bit over the top for me but this one did not have to sweet fruit and was lighter and more refreshing then most viogniers. They also had their 2005 Patriarche, a blend of Mourvedre, Syrah, Grenache, and the lesser known Rhone varietal Counoise. Very nicely balanced with large, but not to ripe fruit, and savory tannins. Good wine for food.

Montevina was there and I only tasted their Barbera and it was a disappointment to me. The entry level Barbera was bland and diluted and lacked the concentration this grape can have. Tasting the one-step-up Terra d'Oro Barbera didn't do it for me either. I moved on...

Cosentino Winery was there and poured a long line of wine. As a former wine club member I know their wines very well. I tasted their 2005 Franc (Cabernet Franc) and the 2005 CigarZin (Zinfandel). These two wines have a very constant quality trough vintages and these were not an exception. They were as big, concentrated and plush as ever, with good tannins.

R. Merlo Estate Vineyards, poured one of the few Pinot Noir that was at the event. The style of this 2002 Pinot Noir was more delicate and less concentrated, compared to the central coast Pinot I usually drink, with red cherries and red berries and only hints of darker fruit. I usually prefer some more of the later, but it was never the less a really nice Pinot Noir. I also tasted their 2002 Syrah. This one full of ripe, big berries and tannins to match. Very good.

Last but not least M2 Wines was there, with owner/winemaker Chris Matheny and his wife Diana pouring the wines. This was one of the best pourings at the event. I have tasted their wines at a wine tasting a while back and reviewed them in a prior post. They had the same line up at this event and you can read my thoughts on their wines here. One extra wine was poured that I had not tried before, the 2004 Clone Six Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. A great wine with dark cherry, black currant, oak and high on firm tannins. Will definitely drink well for many years to come.
Chatting with Chris and Diana they told me about the M2 Autumn Winemaker Dinner they will be hosting October 20th at Fair Oaks Nursery. When seeing the menu and the wine they'll be pairing with the four courses, it was hard to say no, and we did not... They are hosting a gourmet meal with appetizer, choice of crab bisque or roasted beet salad, for entree beef tenderloin or plank grilled salmon, and then a chocolate creation for dessert. All paired up with M2's exciting wines, for a very reasonable $80. To get more information, and join in on the fun call Diana at (916) 838-7914 or email her at dmatheny@m2wines.com. Maybe I'll see you there...

With that I am wrapping up my thoughts on the 2007 A Taste of Sacramento event. I'll be back next year.

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One day in the El Dorado wine country

Yesterday our good friends and neighbors had rented a limo and invited us to come along for a day of wine tasting in Shenandoah Valley (45 min from Sacramento, CA). I am not the one to decline such an invitation and after accepting I was told that I was in charge for the itinerary. This is how our day panned out.

We started of with a visit to Villa Toscano. I had been there before and really enjoy their wine and the beautiful architecture and surrounding garden. Being after noon we were all starving and started with a meal from their Gourmet Bistro. We all shared a mix of freshly baked pizza, salad, panini, anti pasto mix, cheese and crackers. You can enjoy it at a table in their garden or in the big tent they have set up in it. And so it was time for tasting... They poured around 15 wines + four futures right out of the barrels. They produce chardonnay, viognier, sauvignon blanc, sangiovese, barbera, merlot and several bottlings of zinfandel. Although all the wines showed very well the zinfandel is the wineries forte. The 2003 Fox Creek Old Vine being my favorite. The oldest vines in this vineyard is over 110 years old. Producing a very round, concentrated zin with some lighter spice and made in a little more elegant style.

After this we moved on to Terre Rouge and Easton Winery. We had a great tasting here were they did a separate tasting for the eight of us in our group. The gentleman who did the tasting explained the grape and style of wine for every tasting he poured. Very educational and a great opportunity to ask questions and get in depth information. They had a really good sauvigon blanc here. The 2004 Sierra Foothills Sauvignon Blanc is aged in oak as opposed to the more traditional stainless steel tanks. That gives this wine a little bit rounder, more creamy, palate with some vanilla oak, but still shows tropical fruit, great acidity and freshness as it has not gone through malolactic fermentation. A great wine to sip on in your backyard a warm summer day. The other standout was the 2001 Amador County Mourvedre. A traditional grape in Rhone blends, here on its own with great dark fruit and berries and the characteristic spiciness.

Our next stop was supposed to be Vino Noceto. They had their annual spring release party, and it was so packed that we decided to stop at a newer winery, that we had not heard of, next door instead. Stonehouse Vineyards and Winery offers Chardonnay, Viognier, Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel. All of them really nice wines, my favorite being the 2003 Shenandoah Valley Zinfandel with ripe blackberry and cherries, a hint of oak and spice, all nicely balanced with medium round tannins. Stonehouse is owned by Mitchell and Maarit Shultz, and reacting to Maarits name as seemingly Scandinavian my husband found out that she was born in Finland but grew up in Sweden. As you can imagine I got very excited and the two of us talked for quite a while. Great and unexpected treat to be conversing in Swedish on our little trip! Mitchell and Maarit are friends of Thomas Kinkade and therefore have the privilege to feature a Thomas Kinkade Signature Gallery in the wine tasting room. Visits for wine and art...

Last stop before dinner was the Bella Piazza Winery. This winery have the same owners and wine maker as Villa Toscano and is also located in a very beautiful building surrounded by a great garden with water features. You can tell that not only the wine but the architecture and surroundings are very important to the owners. Just like at Villa Toscano, they had a massive list of about 15 wines being poured and then four futures in barrel tastings. Again all very good and well crafted wines. They grow a few not to common grapes around here, Primitivo and Montepulciano, that was a real treat to taste. Another fun wine was the 2002 Bella Rosso. A blend made from Sangiovese, Merlot, Syrah, Barbera and Cabernet Franc. A really smooth red, with soft but ripe black fruit and berries, a hint of spiciness, and good balance of acidity and tannins.

After all of this it was time for dinner. I had made reservations at Bidwell Street Bistro in Folsom and upon arriving we started of with three plates of appetizers shared at the table. Grilled Ahi Tuna with Sesame Asparagus, Prince Edward Island Mussels and Tiger Prawns in a Savory Broth, and Grilled Wild Boar Sausage with Corn Meal Griddle Cakes. All three very good, but the standout was the Wild Boar Sausage, packed with flavor. I ordered the Garden Salad which was nothing special, but my husband really enjoyed the French Onion Soup. For entree I choose the Roasted Halibut on a bed of Cauliflower Puree, Creamed Leeks and a Ruby Port-Currant Sauce. This was Delicious! The Halibut was cooked perfectly and the subtle flavor of the fish was not over powered by the mild cauliflower puree and creamed leeks. It all played very well together and despite of the mildness of the ingredients this was a very flavorful dish. I will order this again in a heart beat. For dessert we shared Profiterols with Vanilla Bean Gelato and Warm Bittersweet Chocolate Sauce. Hard to mess up and it was a great ending to our meal. Over all a great dinner!
So our day ended and it was time to go home...

There are a wide array of great wineries in El Dorado County, far to many to visit in a day or two... Find more information at this website where many of the, however far from all, are featured.

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