Wine Ministry – The Wines

I’m so far behind in writing the tasting notes of these wines!  There were some really wonderful wines we shared over the past couple of weeks.  In addition to the individual wine reviews, I’ll also post a listing of the wines for that particular day.  So far I have posted reviews for the following:

Monday, June 30, 2008

1 2006 Henry’s Drive Pillar Box Red [Australia] $10.79
2 2004 Yalumba Shiraz-Viognier [Australia] $14.99
3 2007 Gascon Malbec [Argentina] $8.99
4 2005 Dominican Oaks Cabernet Sauvignon shared by Lisa [California] $14.99

Tuesday, July 1, 2008

1 2006 Pölka Dot Riesling Spatlese shared by Jason [Germany] $9.99
2 2007 Senorio de Barahonda Yecla Carro Tinto Bellum [Spain] $9.99
3 2006 Torremoron Tempranillo Ribera del Duero [Spain] $10.79
4 2006 Las Rocas Garnacha shared by Paul [Spain] $9.99

More reviews coming soon!

Sixty-Six Bottles of Wine

Need I say more?

Not right now.  Soon there will be photos (thanks, Stephen!), eventually I’ll get all of the reviews posted, and I’ll have many reflections about our shared Wine Ministry.  The memories of our community, exquisite friendships, rich conversations, and wonderful wines — those are enough for now.  Thanks for the blessings, friends…

[yellow tail] Throwdown!

[yellow tail]. It’s everywhere. It’s extraordinarily popular. In 2005 this Australian winery produced more than 11 million cases of wine (yes, that’s more than 132,000,000 bottles of wine). There is more of this wine imported into the United States than all of the wines from France combined. More than 2 million glasses of [yellow tail] are consumed in the world every day. With this much wine being sold it simply MUST be good, right?

Wine connoisseurs (aka snobs) refer to [yellow tail] with great disdain. It is the antithesis to good wine. Its chemical aromas and overly sweet, fruity flavors should never grace the inside of a Riedel stem.

But this wine sells! Do we Americans really lack that much discrimination? We don’t really fall for sophisticated marketing, product placement, label design, price point, and market saturation, DO WE??? We would not permit our wine palates to be manipulated by engineered product, WOULD WE??? It is precisely these things as well as the sweet, fruity flavors that have lured consumers that have little or no wine expertise into the uncorking (unscrewing) of countless bottles of [yellow tail]. Did I mention that the makers of this wine add sugar to the wine to make it sweeter?

Ok, so now I’m sounding like a wine snob.

The project at this evening’s wine tasting was a [yellow tail] THROWDOWN. Since it’s the most popular wine in America, let’s see if people really like it when it is compared side by side with other wines. We did a semi-blind tasting. People knew that [yellow tail] was going to be served, they just didn’t know which wine it would be. So there were four wines each served without disclosing what it was. One was [yellow tail] Cabernet Sauvignon. As a control in the experiment, we also served a decent California Cabernet Sauvignon just to show what a Cabernet “should” taste like (which, admittedly, is very subjective). The final two wines were chosen because of their price and wide availability. They are approximately the same price as [yellow tail], but the wine snobs (me) actually drink these bargains, claiming that they are actually really good wines. So here’s the lineup in the order they were actually served:

2007 [yellow tail] Cabernet Sauvignon
2005 Avalon Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley
2006 Perrin & Fils Cotes du Rhone Reserve
2006 d’Arenberg The Stump Jump Grenache – Shiraz – Mourvedre

And the winner is? In this order of preference by the esteemed panel of tasters:

#1 – Avalon Cabernet
#2 – The Stump Jump
#3 – Perrin Cotes du Rhone
#4 – [yellow tail] Cabernet

It is very important to point out, however, that [yellow tail] was the number one choice of three of our tasters. I haven’t decided whether or not they are invited back tomorrow evening. Two others preferred it over the Perrin Cotes du Rhone. It was a close race to first between the Avalon and the Stump Jump. Both were well-liked.

We had four other wines after the blind tasting, also in the under-$10 category. There were some really enjoyable wines, including one in that new eco-friendly cartons with milk carton-like spout. I’ll write reviews of all of the wines from this evening, but to round out this posting the other wines were:

2006 Bandit Cabernet Sauvignon (the one in the box – Thank you, Stephen!)
2005 Poliziano Rosse di Montepulciano (yummy!!! Thanks, Cory!)
2005 Ravenswood Old Vine Zinfandel Sonoma County (Pepper! Thanks, Barbara!)
2006 Marquis Philips Shiraz (we liked it tonight!)

With a great deal of thanks to our esteemed panel of judges, we must officially dethrone the [yellow tail] from its place of prominence (at least in terms of appeal as a wine). To be sure, some folks really like this wine. Drink it! I hope you’ll discover what you like and truly enjoy it. For those who didn’t care for the [yellow tail], we’ve given literally dozens of alternatives in the under $10 wines that are more than just drinkable – they are actually excellent wines.

I’m working hard at getting all of the reviews done. There is a lot of wine to review… I promise I’ll get them all posted! I raise my glass to each of you – those who shared these wines tonight, and those who share with us vicariously through this blog…

2006 Las Rocas de San Alejandro Garnacha Calatayud

2006 Las Rocas de San Alejandro Garnacha Calatayud
Spain, Aragón, Calatayud

Rating: 92

Uncorked: 2008.07.01
Wine Ministry – CTS DMin Happy Hour
Week 1, Tuesday, Wine No. 4
Provided by Paul C.

We finished off this second evening of wine tasting with a winner. All of the wines have been good tonight, but this is a great closer. Like the relief pitcher at the end of an exciting game, this wine comes on strong and focused.

Interestingly, Garnacha is the Spanish version of the Rhone varietal Granache. But the Spanish embolden the soft and fruity grape and make something very different from the subtle, textured Rhones.

The grapes for this wine are from 70-100 year old vines grown at high altitude in the rocky mountains of Aragon. This imparts particularly concentrated flavors in the wine. It’s as though you can smell the mountains and the earthy soil along with dark, ripe berries and spice. In the mouth it is enormous. It is thick, peppery, and tight at the initial taste, then opens up with explosive bursts of ripe black cherries, plum, and currants. The fruit flavors are followed by undertones of cedar, spice, and mushroomy soil. For some, the hefty tannins and alcohol heat (14.5%) at the finish might be too much. Decanting the wine for at least an hour will help, as will letting it live in the bottle for the next 3-5 years.

This wine is an excellent value at less than $10.

$9.99 widely available

2006 Torremoron Tempranillo Ribera del Duero

2006 Torremoron Tempranillo Ribera del Duero
Spain, Castilla y León, Ribera del Duero

Rating: 91

Uncorked: 2008.07.01
Wine Ministry – CTS DMin Happy Hour
Week 1, Tuesday, Wine No. 3

It has been said that Tempranillo, the big and bold Spanish wine, could make a bullfighter out of you with its daring flavors. Whether or not we will be waving a red flag while wearing colorful tights, I can say that this is a bargain wine with an enormous mouthful of flavor for a very small investment. And drinking it is safer than dodging an angry bovine.

The nose is pretty big with wild berries, cherries, and spice. The mouth is awash with vibrant, concentrated flavors of cherry, plum, and berries. There are subtle loamy and leather flavors near the long, soft finish. I like the structure of this wine, it’s ripe flavors, and it’s youthful exuberance. This would go great with grilled meat, burgers, or even beef stew. It will soften and improve a bit with 3-5 years in the bottle.

$10.79 widely available

2007 Senorio de Barahonda Yecla Carro Tinto Bellum

2007 Senorio de Barahonda Yecla Carro Tinto Bellum
Spain, Murcia, Yecla

Rating: 89

Uncorked: 2008.07.01
Wine Ministry – CTS DMin Happy Hour
Week 1, Tuesday, Wine No. 2

This is an unoaked Spanish blend of:
50% Monastrel (aka Mouvedre)
20% Tempranillo
20% Syrah
10% Merlot

This wine is a great bargain for less than $10. It is big, bold, and brash. Decanting will help it stretch its legs a bit – very tight right out of the bottle. As it opened up the nose was full of ripe fruit, cassis, blueberry, peppery spices, and some woodiness – almost like fresh pencil shavings. Multiple layers of deep flavors for a wine of this youth and price: ripe, sweet fruit, mocha, cedar, and smoke. This wine has no hard edges and surprising balance for its youth and its bold 13.5% alcohol. It is an extraordinary value for a wine with this much going on.

$9.99 widely available

2006 Pölka Dot Riesling Spatlese

2006 Pölka Dot Riesling Spatlese
Germany, Pfalz

Rating: 85

Uncorked: 2008.07.01
Wine Ministry – CTS DMin Happy Hour
Week 1, Tuesday, Wine No. 1
Provided by Jason

What a pleasant wine! It is a Spatlese Reisling (medium-sweetness, see below) that is full of fruity aromas and flavors with some very nice vegetal and mineral hints. In the nose there is rich apple and ripe pear with subtle lime and citrus skin. The wine coats the mouth with lush fruit but is balanced by substantial acidity. Pears, green apples, and a taste of honey, but it remains light with distinct citrus flavors, quartz minerals, and some grassiness. The finish is crisp and short.

This fruity mouthful falls in the middle of the three categories of sweetness used to define German Rieslings: Auslese (sweetest – literally, “selected harvest”), spatlese (medium sweetness – literally, “late harvest”), and Kabinett (semi-sweet – literally, “cabinet” referring to a finer wine set aside in a cabinet for later sale, like a “reserve” wine).

Rieslings are one of the most terroir-expressive wines. In other words, the aromas and flavors of the wine are clearly influenced by the place from which it comes. This particular Riesling is no exception with some very unique minerality and spiciness that connects it to the land and conditions out of which it was harvested.

$9.99 widely available

A Note About Ratings

Rating wines is absolutely subjective. The points (and even the tasting notes) ascribed to a particular wine are the opinions of the reviewer and reflect the rater’s own tastes, biases, and preferences. I make no claim to be able to give wines an objective tasting, review, or rating. If your palate and tastes are similar to mine then you’ll probably agree with my reviews. If, however, you prefer a different style of wine, you’ll most likely wonder which planet I have visited in order to give a particular score.

I’m good with this diversity of experiences of wine. In fact, I cherish it. But that’s the subject of a different blog post. For now, I want to give a brief summary of what the numbers mean to me. Here is the scale I use when rating wines. It reflects the scale used by most wine reviewers and what you’ll see on store shelves. I think it’s really funny that the scale really begins at 50. But as one who has continued academic study for most of my life, I’m familiar with odd grading/scoring scales… Here it is:

Extraordinary (96-100 points)
Outstanding (90-95)
Very Good to Excellent (85-89)
Good (80-84)
Average (75-79)
Below average (70-74)
Avoid (50-70)

Blessings

Barukh atah Adonai, Eloheinu, melekh ha-olam
Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the Universe,

borei p’ri hagafen (Amein)
Who creates the fruit of the vine.  (Amen)

It has been a quiet Saturday at the end of a full week. Some of the blessings of this day and the days of the past week…

• Attentiveness to practices, particularly hospitality, blessing, and prayer
• Coffee and a bagel, a sunny morning, and good conversation with Rob and Paul
• Colleagues in ministry, time to study and learn, a community of inquiry
• Katie’s giggles that send me, even when I can only hear them on the phone
• Kerri whose love and support is boundless
• Seeing friends from Pleasant Hill, and the good people of Gwinnett being good enough to celebrate the occasion with fabulous fireworks
• Wine Ministry and communities that deepen around the fruit of the vine
• The terroir of Bordeaux and the Rhone River Valley
• The terroir that imparts taste and texture in the stories and people I have encountered this week
• BBT’s laugh
• Rob’s anticipation of parenthood
• Prosecco with a slice of ripe strawberry
• Belly laughing with Mark, Mary, David, Bekah, Matt, Chris, and Paul — the 2006 Waterwheel Memsie might have contributed to the spirit in the room
• Time to write and things to write about
• South Carolina peaches
• The Dekalb Farmers Market and Sherlock’s Wine Merchant
• Raindrops on my window that now look like shimmering diamonds with the sun shining through them
• Paul’s Red Wine and Blues song — in process
• Mudhouse Sabbath by Lauren Winner
• Domaine de Perilliere Cotes du Rhone

For these and all thy gifts I give thee thanks O Lord.

2005 Dominican Oaks Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

2005 Dominican Oaks Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley
United States, California, Napa Valley, St. Helena

Wine Rating: 85

Uncorked: 2008.06.30
Wine Ministry – CTS DMin Happy Hour
Week 1, Monday, Wine No. 4
Wine provided by Lisa R.

This wine is easy, approachable, and very likable (see notes below). The nose presents with red raspberries, ripe cherries, plum, and subtle oak – all of which carry into the flavors of the wine. It is a pleasantly fruity wine with dark berry and stone fruit flavors. The tannins are soft and the finish is very quick. While it is fairly uni-dimensional in the mouth, the flavors are all straight-forward and pleasant.

This is a very typical mass-produced California Cabernet. It is one of the many sub-labels of the Rutherford Winery, and is one they often use to sell to corporate incentive gift marketers to add their own label or engraving to the bottle. The down side of that is that it’s a “safe” wine – there is very little in this wine that would offend anyone. The up side to that is that it is VERY drinkable. The winemaker has figured out what most people like, and has made a really good wine to match that palate.

So if you’re looking for a red wine to take to a friend’s house for dinner and aren’t sure of their tastes, this is a really safe bet. It’s a very nice wine to sip on the back deck. It’s also a good choice to serve to guests whose palates you don’t know. It’s hard to not like this wine.

$14.99 widely available

2007 Don Miguel Gascon Malbec

2007 Don Miguel Gascon Malbec
Argentina, Mendoza

Wine Rating: 88

Uncorked: 2008.06.30
Wine Ministry – CTS DMin Happy Hour
Week 1, Monday, Wine No. 3

Alluring color that is a dark, inky purple – almost black. There is a bit of funk in the nose that seemed to clear after a few minutes of breathing, but right out of the bottle there was some definite artificial, almost rubbery (old tires?) aromas. Also present are dark, ripe cherries and blackberries. In the mouth there is a wash of flavors – dark fruit, ripe plum, and a bowl full of black cherries. Nice toasty mocha and a rich loamy earthiness grounded the wine. Substantial tannins – slightly bitter, and a bit of alcohol burn on the back of the throat (14.2%). The QPR (quality-to-price ratio) is very high – for under $10 it’s a bold bottle of Malbec. It’s a lot of wine for a little money – well worth the price. Still, for a few dollars more there are even better expressions to be had.

$8.99 widely available

2004 Yalumba Shiraz-Viognier Barossa

2004 Yalumba Shiraz-Viognier Barossa
Australia, South Australia, Barossa

Wine Rating: 90

Uncorked: 2008.06.30
Wine Ministry – CTS DMin Happy Hour
Week 1, Monday, Wine No. 2

95% Shiraz – 5% Viognier

Deep, dark purple color in the glass. The nose was surprising given the wine’s dark color, but it burst with floral aromas (that’s a big contribution of the Viognier to this wine). Along with flowers there are potent dark fruits, a bit of spice, and oak in the nose. The wine is pretty big in the mouth with bursts of ripe fruit – blackberry, plum, and blueberries. The mouth feel is round and pleasing. It’s a fruit-forward, bold, mouthful of wine. Slightly over oaked for my taste. The finish was long and well layered with substantial enough tannins for this to lie down and mellow a bit in the bottle over the next 3-5 years.

$14.99 widely available

2006 Pillar Box Red

2006 Henry’s Drive Pillar Box Red
Australia, South Australia, Limestone Coast, Padthaway

Wine Rating:  91

Uncorked: 2008.06.30
Wine Ministry – CTS DMin Happy Hour
Week 1, Monday, Wine No. 1

50% Shiraz – 42% Cabernet Sauvignon – 8% Merlot

A bit surprisingly this wine was a crowd pleaser.  It’s big and assertive, and “in your face” kind of wine.  There is no mistaking this for a Shiraz (in spite of its Cabernet and Merlot components) and it’s made in a bold and sassy style.  The wine is really dark — an inky purple color.  It’s beautiful in the light.  On the nose there is lots of fruit — red raspberries, strawberry, and ripe plum.  There’s almost a candy store licorice small, but it’s definitely not off-putting.  in the mouth it bursts with flavor.  It’s explosive with red fruits, ripe plum, cola, and pepper.  For all the assertiveness, though, it is remarkably balanced.  The tannins are bold but not overpowering, the alcohol (15%!) burns a bit but balances the ripeness of the fruit, and the finish lingers with appropriate oak and humus (yes, there is a definite terroir in this one).  It’s a mouthful, and it’s a joy to drink.  Next time I’ll leave it in the bottle for another year or two, and decant it for at least an hour.  Extraordinary value.

$10.79  widely available

Wine Ministry at Columbia Seminary – Summer 2008

 

It’s officially a tradition now.  I prefer to call it a practice.  But whatever we call it, this is now the third incarnation of “Wine Ministry” as part of the Doctor of Ministry program at Columbia Theological Seminary.  Last summer we inaugurated the practice, carried it on in New York City in January of this year, and now we meet again — this time in the upstairs lounge of the Harrington Center each afternoon around 5:00.  It’s not a bad way to transition from a day of study and learning into whatever the evening holds (usually more reading and/or writing).

To be sure it’s a time of drinking wine.  We put together interesting tastings — so far we’ve had big chewy reds, Spanish delights, and the terroir of the Cabernet grape.  Tonight we’ll be sauntering through the Rhone River Valley (and a few other places the lovely Syrah grape has been transplanted).  Tasting notes of each of these wines will come soon.

But this is more than wine.  Wine is simply the practice that facilitates what is really happening.  The community being formed among doctoral students from around the country is what it’s really about.  We laugh heartily, tell stories, and connect with each others’ lives in ways that will be indelible (much like the stains of red wine in the shorts I was wearing last night).  Others bring a bottle of wine or food to share, the circle gets wider, and the feast just happens.  It’s a feast of wonderful tastes and new experiences of wine, it’s a feast of friendship, it’s a feast of lives connecting with one another.  We’re all theologians and pastors, so we talk theology and ministry.  But all that talk is more sublime and insightful when the words are blended with the flavors of Bordeaux and Malbec.

I raise my glass to this gift of time and friendship.  I toast the lives of those with whom I have shared the sacred juice of the vine.  And I even toast the Spirit of God whose presence is as flavorful, complex, and delightful as the wines we have shared.