Do You Know Negrette?

During one of our trips to Paso Robles a few years ago, we visited the Kenneth Volk tasting room and really enjoyed their wines.  The Paso Robles tasting room is no longer open, but on a subsequent trip to Paso, we stopped in at the Albertsons market (on Niblick Road just off Highway 101) to shop for local wines and found a Kenneth Volk Negrette (Ne-GRET). We were not familiar with that varietal, but knew that Kenneth Volk produced nice wines, so we bought it (along with a bunch of other local wines! - Albertsons is a great place to shop for local wines in Paso, after you've visited the wineries!).

Negrette is mostly found in southwestern France. Outside of France, Negrette is almost nowhere to be found. Except for a small amount of it in San Benito, California, where the Kenneth Volk was from.

The Negrette grape (formally known as Pinot Saint-Georges) is very dark and pigmented and, as a varietal, produces fruity and floral wines with a bit of spicy flavors. The wines are low in tannin and acidity. Because of this, winemakers often will blend it with Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Pinot Noir for additional body and age-ability.  But, on its own, it makes for a very nice, smooth wine.

So, if you are not familiar with Negrette, keep your eyes open for the seemingly rare bottles of it outside of France. And, if you find one, I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Cheers!

Do You Know Limnio?

I always enjoy it when someone asks me a wine question that I don't know the answer to. It gives me another opportunity to learn. So, when I was recently asked if I was familiar with Limnio (LIM-nee-oh) I said no and started to do some research.

Limnio is a grape that is indigenous to Greece. Apparently, it was originally from the Greek island of Lemnos and history seems to indicate that it's been around for more than 2000 years.

The Limnio grape produces a red wine that is still being made today. Although little or no Limnio is grown on the island of Lemnos, it is being grown in other parts of Greece.

When made as a varietal, it produces a dry red wine that is full-bodied and can be quite high in alcohol. It is also described as being very herbaceous.

But, it seems that Limnio is more commonly blended with other red wines, often Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Grenache and Petite Sirah. My research even found purely Greek red blends that include Aghiorgitiko and Xinomavro with the Limnio (which gives me two more unique grapes to research!).

So, now that I know a bit about Limnio, I'm curious to try it.  I'll be on the lookout for the varietal or a blend. According to the person that asked me about it, the blend is quite good! Cheers!

Barbera - A Wine Originally from Italy

Last time we took a look at Barbera, a wine that hasn't gotten the respect it deserves. And, I mentioned that my first exposure to Barbera was a real eye-opening experience.

Unfortunately, in California, the Barbera grape has predominately been used in the production of mass-produced jug wines in the past. So, it's no surprise that Barbera has gotten a bad reputation.

But, that's changing. Regions throughout California are now producing some very nice Barbera wines, especially the Sierra Foothills, Amador County, Shenandoah Valley and El Dorado Counties in northern California.

But, Barbera has its origins in another famous wine region of the world - Italy.  Barbera is actually one of the most widely planted grapes in Italy. It is a common table wine in the Piedmont region, where it is often referred to as the "wine of the people" because it is plentiful and, yes, cheap.

Even in the famous Piedmont wine region of Italy, Barbera is overshadowed by the Nebbiolo and Dolcetto wines. But, Italian Barbera has a lot of very positive traits. So much so that it's even been referred to as the "poor man's Pinot Noir." That's because Barbera from Italy has traditionally been lighter in body with bright fruity flavors of cherry, strawberry and raspberry. Sound familiar? It should, because if you know Pinot Noir, you know that it too has those same red-fruit flavor profiles.

So, look for Barbera from Italy. You're likely to see it from various regions labelled as Barbera d' Asti, Barbera d' Alba and Barbera del Monferrato. But don't confuse these great Italian Barbera wines with Barbaresco. It may sound similar, but that's a wine made from the Nebbiolo grape.

Whether it's from Italy or California, or any other region of the world, give a Barbera a try. It's well worth it. Cheers!

Barbera: A Wine That Doesn't Get the Respect it Deserves

Several years ago, while visiting northern California, I was served a glass of red wine from Amador County that made me do a double-take.  When I asked what is was, I was told but the varietal didn't mean anything to me. I ended up having another glass and again asking about it, but it just wasn't a varietal that I'd heard of before that point in time.  Finally, I asked one more time what I was being served and was told it was a Barbera. I had never heard of it, but I knew I really liked it.

Excited by learning about this varietal, I returned home from my trip and, at my first opportunity, headed out to a nicer wine seller in search of a Barbera. I looked up and down the aisles but wasn't able to find the Barbera.  There was a very knowable wine guy at the store, but he was busy helping another customer with a wine selection and talking extensively to the customer about the wines they were interested in purchasing. This was definitely the guy I wanted to talk to, knowing he'd help me find a great Barbera. After waiting for quite some time, the wine guy became available and it was my turn to have a conversation with him. I walked right up and asked "Do have any Barbera wine that you'd recommend?"  After a bit of an awkward pause, he uttered one word; "No."  I was somewhat put on my heals but asked if he sold any Barbera wine. Again, the one-word answer was "No."  I thanked him politely and walked away. Had I said something wrong?

Well, it turns out that Barbera has been widely planted in California for a long time, but in the past, it was solely used as a blending component in mass-produced jug wines. Hence, it hasn't had a very good reputation as a varietal and still doesn't seem to get the respect it deserves. 

But, all that changed with the Barbera planting in the Amador and El Dorado Counties in the Sierra Foothills of California. Today, they continue to produce nice Barbera varietal wines.  They are not widely distributed, so they are still hard to find.

So, if you haven't ever heard of, or tried, a Barbera varietal, keep your eyes out for one. And, if you are so lucky as to come across one from the Sierra Foothills of California or from anywhere, give it a try. You're likely to be surprised by this wonderful medium to full-bodied wine with great dark fruit flavors of blackberry, black cherry, and plum, And, when aged in oak, it also develops even richer full-bodied fruit flavors with a hint of chocolate.

There is another wine region of the world that produces nice Barbera. And, we'll explore that region next time. Until then, Cheers!

German Rieslings and the Various Categories

German Rieslings can be a bit confusing. Last time we took a look at the basic styles of German wines.  Most notable was the German term "Trocken" that means dry (no residual sugar).  So, if you are looking for a German Riesling that is not sweet, "Trocken" is the word to remember.

In addition to the different styles of German wines, there are also different designations. The German word Prädikatswein translates as "quality wine with specific attributes" and is the top level of German wines. But, Prädikatswein range from dry to intensely sweet. Unless it is specifically indicated that the wine is dry or off-dry, these wines always contain a noticeable amount of residual sugar.

The different Prädikat (quality) designations used for German wine (wein) are as follows, in order of increasing quality, price and sugar level:

• Kabinett (Ka-bee-nett) - These wines are dry to off-dry and the lightest and most delicate style of German Riesling. Picked early in the harvest, with low sugar content, it is often very low in alcohol.  Off-dry Kabinett wines have an alcohol content of around 7-8% ABV and dry Kabinett wines are usually around 10-11% ABV. These are light-bodied and refreshing wines.

• Spätlese [SHPAYT-lay-zeh] - While this translates as "late harvest," these wines are made from riper grapes (more sugar), not necessarily those picked late in the harvest.  These wines can be dry to sweet with more body, richness and intensity of flavor. These are often more like a medium-bodied wine.

• Auslese [OWS-lay-zeh] - These "selected from the harvest" grapes are from particularly ripe bunches.  These very ripe grapes have high sugar content and often exhibit some amount of noble rot (botrytis).  These have very concentrated, intense flavors and are considered medium to full-bodied wines.

• Beerenauslese [BEAR-en-ows-lay-zeh] - These "berries selected from the harvest," produce a very sweet dessert wine also made from botrytis grapes. These wines are produced from low yields, are often aged for decades, and are always sweet. These wines are rare because they are not made from every harvest.  Often Berrenauslese is only made two or three time per decade.

• Trockenbeerenauslese [TRAW-ken BEAR-en OWS-lay-zeh] - Here's that word trocken again. But this time it indicates the grapes have been dried on the vine before harvest. This drying process results in a super sweet, syrupy, wine. These are extremely rare. And expensive!

So, I warned you, finding just the right German Riesling can be a bit confusing. But if you make note of these key terms you'll be on your way to finding the ones that best suit your tastes.

Next time we'll take a look at another great region for Riesling, Alsace in France. Until then, Prost!