We definitely celebrated Merlot month around here.

A couple of weeks ago I shared Exploring California in 5 Merlots. These Merlots were from different areas of California and all were pretty reasonably priced. However, I received quite a few more media samples for participation in #MerlotMe month than I was able to cover in one post, so the party continues, and I’m sharing these today, JUST under the wire for International Merlot Day. (That’s right, Merlot also has a day.)

In this post, we’ll be looking at 5 more Merlots, but this time I’ll be looking at a batch for when you want to kick things up a notch. We all have moments when we feel like something a little more spendy, whether it’s for a special occasion or just because. Sometimes you’ve just gotta “treat yo self!”

Merlot is a great option in times like these because you’ll typically get extra bang for the buck at any price point. Today’s wines are all from Napa, a region that generally pricey. It’s known for Cab, which can be even pricier. The Merlot-based wines can deliver just as much pleasure for comparably less money, regardless of the price bracket you're working in.

Napa doesn’t need much of an intro. It’s definitely California’s most famous winemaking region. That said, the AVA’s in the area are very diverse. Napa Valley was created by geological events that have occurred over the last 150-million years, and as a result there’s a crazy array of soils. So where appropriate, we’ll take the opportunity to get to know some of these individual areas a little bit.

Map borrowed from Wine Folly.

Winemaking and vineyard details are taken from the tech sheets and/or websites.

Long Meadow Ranch Napa Valley Merlot 2015 with Mushroom and Butternut Squash Risotto 

SRP: $37 (Sample). Not a crazy splurge, so it’s perfect for when you’re just feeling a touch extra.
Blend: 95% Merlot, 2.4% Cabernet Sauvignon. 1.8% Petite Sirah, 0.8% Petite Verdot.
Alcohol: 13.5%

Winery: The winery has a long history dating back to the late 1800’s. Today it’s owned by Ted, Laddie, and Christopher Hall – it was purchased by the family in 1989. Long Meadow Ranch is engaged in full circle farming – they employ integrated farming systems that rely on different parts of the ranch to contribute to the health of the whole. In addition to vineyards, they have olive orchards, cattle and horse breeding, vegetable gardens, and poultry for egg-laying. Each piece feeds the whole and everything is certified organic. In addition, they make their own compost and use solar power.

This isn’t the first time I’ve featured once of their wines. Check out their rosé here and here.

Vineyard & Winemaking Deets:  Organically farmed, as noted above. They’re also certified under Napa Green. The wine was aged in 30% new French Oak.

Area:  Grapes grown at their Mayacamas and Rutherford Estates. Their Rutherford Estate sits on a mineral-rich benchland that was once a riverbed.Tectonic plate movements and volcanic activity, and erosion and intermingling over time have created complex alluvial fans that radiate from the hillsides and through the valley floor. The most famous of these alluvial fans is the Rutherford Bench. The Mayacamas Estate is nestled in the mountains high above the Rutherford Bench.

Tasting Notes: Red plum, black cherry, vanilla, hints of tea and dried leaves on the nose. On the palate, notes of licorice, dutch chocolate, and white pepper joined the red plum and cherry notes. There was also a little touch of bitterness, along with tobacco, tomato stem, and medicinal herbs on the finish.  It was medium bodied, with medium acid, and medium/medium+ tannin.

Pairing: We paired this with butternut squash and mushroom risotto topped with shredded chicken and crispy sage. You could just as easily leave the chicken off  and keep it vegetarian. The wine was a good weight to match the food. More earthiness came out with the food, as well, and the white pepper and herb notes were heightened.

The winery also recommends beef, smoked baby back ribs, and barbeque pulled pork sandwiches with this wine. 

Materra Right Bank Oak Knoll District 2015 with Roasted Chicken and Roasted Veggies

SRP: $50 (Sample)
Blend: 99% Merlot, 1%
Alcohol: 14.5%

Winery: Brian Cunat grew up in the Midwest on a farm which gave him respect for farming. Later, he and his wife Miki traveled to Napa Valley and they fell in love with the area. They decided to buy a 50-acre property in Oak Knoll in 2007, then hired an expert team of vineyard managers and winemakers. The family is involved in the operations on a daily basis, though, and it’s become a full family affair.

Vineyard & Winemaking Deets: The winery is certified by Napa Green.
The wine is aged 22 months in new French Oak.

Area:  Oak Knoll District. This area is on the valley floor, near the southern end of Napa Valley, so it’s cooler than many areas of Napa, as it’s closer to San Pablo Bay and feels some of its marine effects. It’s known for wines from Bordeaux grapes (Cab, Merlot, Cab Franc, Malbec, and Petit Verdot) that are actually reminiscent of Bordelais wine –  typically, Napa’s take on these grapes tends to be much bigger and bolder.

Tasting Notes: Appropriately, this wine is paying homage to Bordeaux with the name “Right Bank,”  referring to the area of Bordeaux on the right bank of the Gironde River and specializes in Merlot. Of all the wines we tried, this one was really the most reminiscent of the Bordelais style to my palate. (Or course, still with riper California fruit notes.) When I poured this for Greg, without telling him what it was, he knew it was a step-up in quality. It was very elegant and well-made. It had notes of plum sauce, ripe raspberry, black cherry, and light vanilla and cocoa. On the palate, there was a whole mix of berries, cherries, and red plums. It was velvety with a light cocoa, like chocolate pudding, and a little pencil lead. It was medium bodied, with medium acid, and medium tannins that were fine grained and little dusty. This was a mutual favorite.

Pairing: We had this with roasted chicken with root vegetables. I basically made the same way as I prepared this spatcocked chicken, but instead of za'atar, I used Trader Joe’s Umami Seasoning and this Napa Valley Blend I’m fond of. Use your favorite. Leftovers from this chicken got shredded up and put on top of the risotto above. The wine and the chicken worked really well together thanks to the medium body and elegant nature of the wine. The wine also reflected the spices and herbs on the chicken nicely.

 

Markham Vineyards Yountville Estate Merlot 2015 and Surf & Turf with Friends

SRP: $55. (Sample)
Blend: 75% Merlot, 18% Cabernet, 7% Cabernet Franc
Alcohol: 14.2%

Winery:  Markham Vineyards celebrated 40 years of winemaking in 2018, however, the winery’s history goes back even further. It was commissioned to be built in 1879 and they’re currently the 4th oldest continually running winery in Napa county operating under this original bond number, albeit under different owners and names.

On their website Markham’s winemaker Kimberlee Nicholls notes that “Merlot is the first wine I fell in love with when I arrived in Napa. In my opinion, it is the perfect food wine.”

Vineyard & Winemaking Deets: Markam’s wineries and vineyards are by certified by Napa Green. Fun fact, the budwood for their Merlot vines originally taken from the Three Palms Vineyard. The wines if fermented in 100% stainless steel, then is aged for 15 months in new French oak barrels.

Area:  Yountville. This AVA is right in the heart of Napa Valley, halfway between San Pablo Bay and the southern end of Mount St. Helena. Most of the vineyards here are located on the valley floor. Vineyards for this wine are located at the southern end of the famous Rutherford Bench area. The soils are well-draining, sitting atop ancient alluvial fans.

If you’re ever in the area, downtown Yountville is also a great place to stop. It also happens to be home to Thomas Keller’s French Laundry and Bouchon.

Tasting Notes: This was a hedonistic wine with deep mocha and roasted plums and espresso. There were touches of soy and savory herbs. I didn’t take full structure notes in the moment, but it was a full-bodied and structured. This was a mutual favorite from the batch for both Greg and I.

Pairing: We enjoyed this wine during a surf-and-turf- cookout with friends. It was excellent with the steak, and Greg noted he also really enjoyed it with sweet potatoes.

Pahlmeyer Merlot Napa Valley 2016 with Beef Wellington

 

SRP: $90 (Sample)
Blend: 97% Merlot, 2% Malbec, 1% Cabernet Sauvignon
Alcohol: 14.9%

Winery: Jason Pahlmeyer was an attorney who became captivated with wine. He found a partner who owned an estate in Napa and they set about reimagining the vineyard. They sought assistance from professors at the University of Bordeaux, and searched out the best clones of Bordeaux  varieties from vineyards in France and brought back their “suitcase clones.” They brought them back through Canada and actually got caught along the way. Here’s a fun excerpt of the story from their website:

Jayson's partner smuggled their “suitcase clones” to the U.S. through Canada. All went off without a hitch until their final truckload, when the border authorities uncovered the French vines. Ordered to surrender all their contraband, they kept their French clones hidden and instead turned over to the unwitting patrollers clones purchased from U.C. Davis.

The vineyards were planted in 1981, and they’ve have a pretty amazing set of winemakers come through there over the years. Bibiana González Rave currently holds that position and she is one amazing lady. (She was San Francisco Chronicle’s Winemaker of the Year in 2015, and I highly recommend the read.)  I’m happy to say to have had the very great pleasure to get to know her a little bit over the last couple of years, and she was on my panel this year for Bâtonnage: "Pathways to Inclusion: But How, Really?" I invite you to listen to that here. She also has her own line of wines called Cattleya  which I highly recommend, as well as Shared Notes which she makes with her husband Jeff Pisoni.

I was admittedly very excited to receive this wine as a sample, to get the chance to taste an example of her wines I’d not had before.

Vineyard & Winemaking Deets: The vineyards are farmed sustainably, taking careful measure to prevent erosion, and use organic compost. 100% free-run juice was used for this wine. Great care was taken to sort the grapes, through multiple stages to ensure only the best fruit was used. The fgrapes underwent five days of cold maceration. After primary fermentation, the grapes were gently basket pressed. The wine was aged in 85% new French oak barrels for 20 months.

Area:  Atlas Peak and Rancho Chimiles. Pahlmeyer’s estate vineyards are on Atlas peak, so I’m going to focus on that today, but Rancho Chimiles has a really interesting history you can read more about here. Atlas Peak is one of the highest points in Napa – the highest vineyards are planted at 1665 feet above sea level. The Foss River is largely responsible for the terroir here, rather than the Napa River, although it does eventually meets the larger river. The soils are mostly volcanic and highly porous, which is good for drainage, and lends itself well to high-quality wines. Sadly, this area was hit hard by the wildfires of 2017.

Tasting Notes: On the nose, there were notes of blackberry, black cherry, blueberry, boysenberry, light chocolate, light spice, hint of bramble, red flower petals. A similarly lush combination of fruits returns on the palate, with light bramble, white pepper, and a hint of anise. It was medium + to full bodied in body, medium tannins, but with sufficiently fresh acid to hold it all together. This wine had a great combination of elegance and richness, like a velvet glove and I relished every sip.

Pairing: I decided to embark on a quest of experimenting with Beef Wellington. We paired this wine with the first iteration. I was fairly faithful to this recipe from Delish, with the exception that I used hanger steak, instead of the traditional tenderloin. It was a fantastic match.

Blackbird Vineyards Illustration Napa Valley 2013 with Filet Mignon and Roasted Beets on Salad

Average Price: $106 for this vintage (Not a sample. I pulled this one from “the cellar.”)
Blend:  60% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon
Alcohol: 14.5%

Winery: Blackbird Vineyards is located on a former walnut orchard which was planted to Merlot vines in 1997. It was purchased by Michael Polenske in 2003. Much like a couple of the other wines above, the wines were inspired by the wines of the Right Bank of Bordeaux.

Vineyard & Winemaking Deets: They farm sustainably, rarely using commercial pesticides, herbicides, or artificial fertilizers. Organic materials from farming and harvest are put back into the soils as compost. All wines are fermented via native yeasts. I couldn’t find a tech sheet for the 2013 vintage, but according to their website the 2016 spent 21 months in French oak barrels - 75% new, 25% seasoned. They consider this the most luxurious wine in their portfolio.

Area:  Blackbird sources fruit from around Napa, but they’re based in Oak Knoll, which we covered up above.

Tasting notes: High-toned with notes of violets, orange rind, cherry, red plum, raspberry, and vanilla on the nose. On the palate, there were notes of kirsch, herbs, and that hint of orange rind. It had bright acidity, was medium to medium + body, and had a little grip on the finish. Even though it has a few years on it, I thought it could use a few more since it was still taught or decant.

Pairing: We paired this with filet mignon, which I prepared sous vide. I also prepared a little pan sauce to serve on top. On the side, we had salad and roasted beets. I also had some chimichurri around, so we played around with that as well. The wine was very good with the steak and pan sauce. In large amounts, the chimichurri tended to throw it off a little bit; however, in small amounts or bites where there was a little of everything, it all worked together solidly well.

There are certain wines that start to call to me once the weather outside turns chilly. Barolo definitely falls into this camp for me.

I think my association with Barolo (or Barbaresco, or any Nebbiolo-based wine) as a sweater weather wine has only been strengthened after having visited the region in the early fall last year. Greg and I spent a few days touring the little mountain villages of Piemonte in September, and the region’s rustic beauty was absolutely enchanting. However, even in early September, when most of the rest of northern Italy was still quite warm, I found myself reaching for a sweater in the evenings more often here than in the other regions we visited. 

The view from our room at Tenuta Montanello, our B&B in Castiglione Falletto.

The food here reflects the climate with lots of rich and savory dishes. Partially thanks to the proximity to the French border, you find more butter in use in the cooking here, but it likewise suits the hearty, comforting fare. The region’s truffles are also famous, which play into the warm, earthy palette of flavors. Umami galore!

Nebbiolo, the grape behind Barolo and Barbaresco (i.e. Piedmont’s most celebrated wines, named for the communes they come from), fits in perfectly against this backdrop. It suits the weather and the food perfectly. Nebbiolo tends to produce wines that are high in both tannin and acid, which ideally complements the rich, meaty dishes that are so common here; cutting through the richness with its acidity, tannins smoothing out against the meat.

Moreover, the flavors in the wine tend to mirror the savory qualities of the food. The quintessential description for Nebbiolo is “tar and roses.” Add to this cherries, leather, anise or licorice, earth, mushroom, and herbs. Personally, I also tend to get slightly bitter notes that range from orange peel to quinine. All of these elements smooth out and integrate when you enjoy it as part of a hearty Piemontese meal. In fact, I’d say Nebbiolo feels incomplete without food. It kind of doesn’t taste right unless you have something a little bit rich or fatty to nibble on alongside it.

The grape does have a few drawbacks . . . depending on how you look at it. All that tannin and acidity take a long time to unwind and relax, so many Nebbiolo based wines can be really tight, wound up, and harsh when they’re young. The flipside to this is that many of these wines can age for a lllllllloooooooooooonnnnnnngggggggg ass time. Ten+ years is no problem at all for a good Barolo or Barbaresco, and many can keep on going for decades on top of that. Wines from more modernist producers that age in their wines in new oak barriques will tend to be more supple earlier on. There are also producers playing with techniques or making earlier-drinking Barolos/Barbarescos using non-oak techniques as well.

We had this Borgogno Barolo Riserva 2003 for a combined birthday celebration last year and it was showing beautifully. It coulda kept on going.

Nebbiolo is also kind of a fussy grape to grow, which contributes to the hefty price tag that accompany Barolo/Barbaresco. It’s also kind of a homebody. It does not like to travel. When it’s grown elsewhere, most of the time, it just doesn’t taste like itself.

So why bother with any of it? Because when Nebbiolo is good, it’s F-ing awesome! When everything comes together, the wines can be sooooooo spectacular; complex wines of contemplation that are also amazing at the table. The tannins and acid smooth out and give way to structured, sculpted wines that can have finishes that go on an on. The wines can broadcast their terroir, along with layer upon layer of flavor.

Also, did I mention truffles? They go so well with truffles.

 

THE WINE & PAIRING

Note: This wine was sent to me as sample. However, no other monetary compensation was received and all opinions are my own.

Greg and I opened the Fontanafredda Barolo 2013 shortly before leaving on our trip to Italy as a “let’s get excited!” treat. It certainly did the trick! We didn’t get to actually visit this winery on our trip, but we did drive by the vineyards several times. The letters F-O-N-T-A-N-A-F-R-E-D-D-A dot the hillside, so there’s no mistaking it. (We did visit several other wineries in Barolo and brought back several bottles, so we can look forward to seeing those in 10 years or so. 😉)

Fontanafredda had a rather romantic beginning. The land was purchased in 1858 purchased by Vittorio Emanuele II, the first king of Italy, to produce wine for his personal use. He later registered the entire land parcel under the name of Rosa Vercellana, the king’s mistress with whom the king was madly in love. Rosa later became the king’s wife and was assigned the title of “Countess of Mirafiore and Fontanafredda.”

The property today covers over 122 hectares (301 acres), with 100 hectares (247 acres) of vineyards. It is quite large, making it all the more impressive that all of the winery’s vineyards will be certified organic starting with the 2019 vintage. Owners Oscar Farinetti and Luca Baffigo Filangieri together with chief winemaker Danilo Drocco have long been committed to sustainability, and they began the process of converting all estate-owned land to organic farming in 2016. As of 2019, they will be the largest certified organic producer (CCPB certified) in Piedmont.

On the day we opened the bottle Greg and I picked up notes of strawberry leather, kirsch, orange skin, pink and red flowers on the nose, along with savory elements of tomato leaves and stems. Anise and clove spice joined in on the palate, along with some dried pomegranate, muted potpuri, and a smattering of herbs and underbrush.

One of the interesting things about Barolo, for me at least, is that while the wines tend to be full in body with a lot of flavor, there is also a sleek element to them that blends delicacy with the rusticity. The “tar and roses” description captures this idea for me. They’re gripping, but perhaps not as heavy in the mouth as one might expect. This one felt even a little lighter in body than most, despite the medium+ alcohol. The wine had medium+ to high acidity, and medium+ tannins that were integrated but grippy. Opening the bottle in advance and letting the wine get some air definitely made a difference. The wine kind of plumped up and rounded out allowing more of the fruit to come forward.

Braised meats and ragùs are pretty classic pairings for Barolo, and that’s pretty much what we were in the mood for. I ultimately decided to braise some short ribs in a mushroom sauce. This is fairly straightforward, but I decided to add a few spices, etc., to try to mirror some of the flavors in the wine: a pinch of clove to play up the light spice in the wine; a smattering of herbs; porcini powder to deepen the earthy flavors; and a pinch of orange peel to reflect that note in the wine. I also decided to experiment with adding a splash of Angostura Bitters, since I found something in the wine reminiscent of this flavor. Typically, you don’t want to mesh a bitter wine with a bitter food as they’ll intensify each other, but the tiny splash used here isn’t really enough to make the sauce actually taste bitter. I figured it was an easy way to add deeper complexity to the sauce, and it does completely blend in, just hanging out in the background. If you don’t have some of these things around, don’t sweat it at all. It’s really not a big deal and the sauce will still be absolutely delicious without them.

I decided to put my slow cooker to work on this while I went about my day. You can absolutely make this in a braising pan or a Dutch oven in your oven as well, or even on your stove top – you’ll just need to add more liquid in the pan with the short ribs. Try doubling the amount of liquid. Alternatively, adding enough liquid so that it comes up about ½ to ¾ the way up the short ribs, is a good starting point. Put in the oven at 350°F for about 2 to 2 ½ hours or until the meat is fall off the bone tender.

Risotto seemed like a good accompaniment, but I was in the mood for a grain with a heartier flavor than rice. Barley came to mind and I happened to find a recipe on Smitten Kitchen that fit what I had in mind; I just swapped out a few ingredients for items I had on hand.




This was about as soul satisfying a meal as one could hope for! The combination definitely brought out mushroom and meaty notes in the wine. Greg noted that the aftertaste in the food matched the flavors in the wine seamlessly. He then oh-so eloquently added that the flavor “ascends as acidity [in the wine] carries it through and refreshes the palate.”

PRO TIPS

If you don’t have the patience or shelf space to wait a decade to drink your bottle, you do have several options.

    •    Get some air in there: Decant – I’ll decant a Barolo/Barbaresco a few hours before I intend to drink it. As oxygen mixes with the wine, the wine will start to open up. The air will take some of the edges off the tannins and acid making the wine feel more supple, and the flavors will begin to integrate. If I’m planning on serving the wine for a nice dinner, I’ll open it up and decant it at lunch. Many wine reps have even told me that they’ll open a bottle a day in advance to have it show at it’s best for sales calls the next day.

    As with everything though, not everyone agrees on decanting. I’ve been told by more than one  wine professional or winemaker that they prefer not to decant, usually because they like to see how the wine evolves. Do as you like! Personally, I’ve had too many bottles that I tore into too quickly, only to have the last sip be leaps and bounds above the rest.

    •    Double it up – Need to speed things up further? (Oh no! You forgot to open the bottle at lunch and your guests are about to arrive!) Try double-decanting the bottle. This is just what it sounds like. Pour the bottle out into one container, then pour it out a second time. If you clean out the first bottle of sediment, you can just pour the wine back into its original bottle.

    •    Meh! Who needs this?! –  Don’t  want to bother waiting or decanting? Look for a Langhe Nebbiolo or Nebbiolo d’Alba. These are more regional appellation, so it’s not as location specific as the wines from a specific commune like Barolo or Barbaresco. However, the wines also don’t need to stick to same long aging requirements as Barolo or Barbaresco (38 and 26 months respectively for the basic versions, 62 and 50 months for the Riservas). Often they’ll be made from the same grapes that go into higher end bottlings, but they’re being made for earlier release. They tend to be fruitier and are ready for drinking much sooner. Roero is another good area to look for. Bonus: These wines are a lot cheaper too!

OTHER POSSIBILITIES

The winery recommends this wine with big red meat dishes and medium or mature cheeses. Barolo with a simple steak is also pretty freak’n delicious. 

Pietro Rinaldi Monvigliero Barolo 2008 with steak and roasted mushrooms and cauliflower.

Wine Folly has a substantial list of pairing suggestions for Nebbiolo, but amongst the most interesting to me is a suggestion to have it with the brown sauces found in Asian cuisine. Noted and will try!

Looking for other wines to pair with this that won’t break the bank? (Believe me, I don’t blame you.) We’ve enjoyed some our leftovers with Dolcetto, another Piedmontese option. Searching out more inexpensive Nebbiolo (see description above in pro tips) options is a good way to go. I think an Etna Rosso from Sicily would also show many of the qualities I was trying to bring out here.

Brunello would be another baller alternative. You should generally have good results with earthy wines from other parts of Italy and Europe. Here are few other recipes paired with Italian reds for inspo: 

Cooking to the Wine: Fattoria del Cerro Vino Nobile and Spicy Salami Tomato Pasta
Cooking to the Wine: Borgo Scopeto Chianti Classico with Italian Meatloaf and Pasta Pomodoro
Cooking to the Wine: Vigneti del Vulture Aglianico del Vulture with Braised Oxtails
Cooking to the Wine: Fontanafredda Barolo and Braised Short Ribs with Mushrooms
8 & $20: Braised Chicken Thighs in Mushroom Sauce
8 & $20: Chicken and Spinach Lasagna Rolls

 

THE GEEKY DETAILS

Taken from the tech sheet.

Grape variety: Nebbiolo
Ageing: 2 years in barrel – 12 months in bottle
Vineyard: Fontanafredda Vineyard in Serralunga d'Alba
Aspect: South and southwest.
Soils: Calcareous marl and clay. This plot of land constitutes a border between soils of Helvetian and Tortonian origin. The result is a soil with transitional characteristics, with clayey marls and layers of clayey sand.
Vinification: The vinification process occurs in stainless steel vats at controlled temperatures. At the end of the fermentation, the new wine stays in contact with the grape marcs for about one month. The entire aging process occurs in medium and large oak casks for two years, followed by twelve months in bottles.
Recommended serving temperature: 16–18°C ( approximately 61–64°F)
Alcohol content: 14% vol.

 

MONEY TALK

Wine Searcher has the average price for this bottle at $39. While this may seem pricey, it’s pretty standard for an entry level Barolo. (*Sigh.*  The price tags on these wines are lamentable, but it makes sense when you factor in that that finickiness of the grapes and the aging time required.) It’s still a Solid Buy.

While I lived in New York, my friends and I had a tradition of heading out for a tasting day in Long Island at least once a year while the weather was nice. It was always a lovely day trip.

Stops at Briermere Farms (anytime)  and/or at one of the many orchards in the area for apple picking (in the fall), are favorite detours on a Long Island wine tasting day.

Long Island wine tasting always made a wonderful and much needed escape from the city. However, I’ve gotta admit that I have mixed feelings about the wine, as I’ve found the quality to be inconsistent. I think there are a number of factors contributing to this. First of all, it’s a younger wine region. The first vineyards were planted in 1973, which means they’ve just had less time to work out the kinks. They’re likely to have more weather curveballs coming their way, which means there's going to be more vintage variation. The climate has been compared to Bordeaux’s as it’s maritime and on a similar latitude, and it has a lot of the same problems.

Beyond these understandable hurdles, more than one winery I’ve visited has struck me as a vanity project where someone wanted a pretty vineyard and tasting room to show off, but didn’t really have the know-how to deliver the quality. (Admittedly, these types of places exist everywhere.) They also have a somewhat captive audience for part of the year via Hamptons vacationers that will buy their wines, even if they’re being upcharged (or so it seems to me).

Map borrowed from Long Island Uncorked.

  
I’m sure I’ve now succeeded in making you completely unenthusiastic about this region. HOWEVER, it seems to me that quality in the region is on an upward swing overall. It does have a lot going for it. The upside of the region’s proximity to the Atlantic is that the ocean helps to moderate temperatures. The area also sees a good amount of sunshine to help grapes ripen. The area's sandy soils, with deposits of clay and gravel, are nicely free-draining which puts a check on the vigor of the vines, contributing potential for quality grapes. They’ve been figuring out what works–Merlot, Cab Franc, Chardonnay, and Sauvignon Blanc are generally recognized as showing a lot of promise.

A really awesome aspect to the region is that small, family-run operations tend to be the norm, and there’s a solid handful of truly quality conscious producers. Searching out the cream of the crop is definitely worthwhile. Macari Vineyards is one of those spots for me. It’s a full-on family affair. Joseph and Alexandra Macari moved to the North Fork of Long Island in 1995 with their four children to begin planting vines. Joseph’s father, Joseph Sr., had purchased the then 500-acre former potato farm in the mid 60’s. Joseph Jr. went on to study biodynamic viticulture and takes a ecological and holistic approach to viticulture. Meanwhile, Alexandra Macari has been the Managing Director of Macari Vineyards for over twenty years. Their son Joseph worked extensively alongside his father in the vineyards and has been Vineyard Manager since 2011. Gabriella Macari currently manages education, distribution, marketing, and assists in the cellar and in the vineyard. Macari’s winemaker Kelly Koch brings a little extra lady-power to the operation. 


I crossed paths with Gabriella a bit in NY while we were each working on our WSET Diplomas. She always struck me as one cool gal. She’s going on to tackle the Master of Wine and I’m sure she will be awesome. 

Macari's rosé is lovely on a summer day.

 

THE PAIRING

Gabriella graciously arranged for a tasting for me and my friends during our yearly group outing during our last summer in New York. It proved to be a resounding favorite. On that visit, I took home a bottle of their Macari Vineyards No.1 Sauvignon Blanc North Fork of Long Island 2013, which was fermented and aged in concrete eggs. (I believe this now goes under the name Lifeforce, $28.) Their super crisp and refreshing, stainless steel Sauv Blanc was the group favorite, but I was intrigued by the added textural elements the concrete brought to the variety. More than that, I took home this bottling because I got a clear image right then of exactly what I wanted to have with this wine–a springy risotto.

The next spring, now established in Oakland, Greg and I opened this bottle as a little reminder of fun times in New York. Moreover, at this point Somms Table was in development but not yet live, so I decided to make the risotto I’d envisioned for this wine with the intent to eventually post it. I just never got around to it until now. This month the Wine Pairing Weekend Crew is exploring wines from under the radar U.S. regions, giving me the perfect opportunity to finally share this pairing. (Scroll down to see the rest of their contributions.)

On the day we opened this wine, Greg and I picked up notes of white peach and melon alongside more typical Sauvignon Blanc notes of lemon and lime, including a bit of candied lemon zest and lemon cream, and fresh, sweet snap peas on the nose. There was also a touch of hay and cheese rind. On the palate, it was savory and bright with the notes of citrus, white peaches, green herbs, and hay continuing on in the flavor profile. There was a touch of honeysuckle to add a light floral element. There was a steely, stony minerality  at the core, fleshed out by added texture that rounded out the body.

The idea of a risotto continued to resonate, so we went on with that plan. I decided to make a lemony pea risotto–a pretty classic combo–and I knew I wanted to add a strong herbal component, but was undecided as to which way I wanted to go. I was curious what herb would best work with this specific wine, so we decided to conduct an experiment. Greg and I went through and tasted a line up of different herbs alongside the wine to see what worked. Our two favorites were mint and sage. Mint was refreshing and seemed perfect for warm weather, so that's what we chose for this dish. Sage brought out the earthy side of the wine and I think it would be ideal for fall. The runners up were basil and oregano, similarly taking the dish in  spring/summer and autumnal directions respectively. The nice thing is that since the ingredients for this dish are available year-round (taking into account frozen peas), you can easily adjust the dish to your seasonal tastes.

  
I thought the creamy, silky texture of scallop would be the perfect thing to top off the risotto and complement the wine. They did just that! The whole thing worked beautifully and complemented the wine just as well as I’d hoped. Creamy, fresh, and decadent!


As mentioned, this specific cuvée is no longer available. See Macari's website for info on the Lifeforce, which seems to be the new name for this wine.

OTHER POSSIBILITIES

I think the extra texture on this wine would allow it to pair nicely with weightier foods than one might typically think of for Sauv Blanc. 

For other options, look for medium weight white wines with fresh acidity, rounded mouthfeel, lots of citrus, and herbal notes.