Brazenly Lucid Wines

STAN'S PICK FOR MAY AND JUNE..... OWEN ROE EX UMBRIS SYRAH '06

Brazenly Lucid — Wed, 21 May 2008 22:30:12 -0700

I absolutely fell in love with the ‘o5 vintage of this wine. When the new vintage was released I was doubtful that it could hold up to the quality of it’s predecessor. Not only was I pleasantly surprised, I was blown away!! Of course I should have known this was the case. Owen Roe wines have long been known for their outstanding quality and consistency. Can you remember ever getting a bad bottle of Abbott’s Table Blend or Sharecroppers Cab? This being said, my expectations are always high when opening a bottle of Owen Roe. The ‘06 Ex Umbris is head and shoulders above any syrah I have tasted in recent memory including the ‘05 Relentless by Shafer, although in all fairness this was a close call. The Ex Umbris syrah shows all the qualities I look for in this varietal. Deep rich concentrated fruit with dark plum, smoke and bacon fat tones. The tannins are solid yet you hardly notice them because they are so smooth and integrated with the fruit. From beginning to end this wine is impressive and the finish lingers so long that when you go to bed you are tempted not to brush your teeth just to savor the flavors. This may sound a bit over the top and I make no excuses for my passion. This is an outstanding wine that deserves to be part of your experience in wine tasting and has made it to Stan’s Pick for May and June of ‘08. Do not hesitate to purchase this wine and remember........... It will go quickly so get it while it is available.

BARNARD GRIFFIN FEATURED IN THE MARCH TASTING.

Brazenly Lucid — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 08:16:54 -0700

March 20 was the second tasting at the Grange Hall and it turned out to be a real treat for those who made room in their schedule to attend. Barnard Griffin was the featured winery and I chose them since I believe that Rob Griffin is one of the best in Washington wine making. March is Washington Wine Month and I thought it appropriate to have this winery for the aforementioned reasons. Steve Schaeffer, National Sales Manager and Chris Arsers, Pacific NW Regional Manager for Barnard Griffin came geared up to taste wines, and they were fabulous. No surprise since they had such great wines to share. Also there to help with the experience was Chuck Marush and Pete Stephenson both from Noble Wines who are the distributors of Barnard Griffin in Western Washington State. The line-up was terrific and I would like to take just a moment and mention some of the highlights of the tasting.

Many were impressed with the Sangiovese Rose. This is a very hearty rose with a lot more fruit in it then your average, yet dry enough to satisfy the discerning palate. The other obvious favorite was the non vintage cab-merlot blend. I have always recommended this wine as one of the best values in reds. Many had a chance to taste it for the first time and were blown away by the quality. One of the sleepers in the Barnard Griffin portfolio is their semillon. Semillon tends to be softer in style then sauvignon blanc and not nearly as big as a chardonnay can be. Rob Griffin has found a happy medium with this varietal and as a result produces an outstanding white. Many were surprised at how good this wine was and we sold a lot more of it then I expected.

Also available to taste were the reserve reds. Many lingered a little while longer in front of these wines as they savored the intensity of flavors. There were a reserve cab, merlot, syrah, and barbera that were all simply outstanding.

Overall, I would have to say that this was another outstanding experience in wine-tasting at the Grange and I hope that many more will get a chance

to be at this fun and educational event.

Stan

WINEBOW TASTING A BIG HIT!!

Brazenly Lucid — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 08:45:03 -0800

I was just a little nervous as the day for the first tasting at the Grange Hall approached. I knew we had a good line-up of wines with David Bronlewee of Winebow presenting his choice of both Argentine and Italian wines. How many would respond to this new arrangement? I have to say that I was simply blown away by the outstanding response and support for the new location. All the familiar faces made an appearance and many more as close to fifty showed up to socialize and taste some very nice wines!

The format was the same as before with a price list for the wines and special prices being offered for those in attendance. The only difference was the wines are now offered at my new/old digs at Kings Market. Verne Howard, owner of Kings has graciously allowed me to continue this event as full-time Wine Steward of his store. I love working for Verne who is an avid fan of wine himself.

Kings Deli provided the appetizers and they were outstanding, although we ran out a little earlier than expected since more showed up then anticipated. The tasting table got very crowded as the enthusiastic group made their way to taste the wines. There were three whites and seven reds presented giving everyone a chance to taste a wide variety. It was obvious by talking with the group that there were three wines that stood out from the rest. Amazingly two of the three were white wines. The most surprising was the ‘07 Nieto Senetiner Chardonnay Riserva from Argentina. This is the first and I am sure not the last Chardonnay that I really enjoyed from this region. It was nice and round with tropical fruit notes and a pleasant finish. Many participants took advantage of the excellent price offered on this wine.

Certainly not a surprise was the nice showing of the ‘06 Argiolas Costamolino Vermentino from Sardegna, Italy. This is a zesty little white with nice hints of pineapple, citrus, tropical fruits and honey. This is a personal favorite of mine and is quite diverse when matching with food. I love this wine by itself before a meal.

The reds were all quite nice. However the one that blew everyone away was the ‘04 Allegrini Palazzo Della Torre (Veneto) This wine is a blend of 70% Veronese, 25% Rondinella and 5% Sangiovese. This rich full-bodied red is made in a very interesting method called the ripasso style. What this means is that 70% of the grapes are vinified immediately. Thirty percent of the grapes are dried until December. At that time they are vinified and re-fermented with the original juice. What you get is an intense red with rich currant, blackberry and anise flavors that linger for quite some time. I would have to say that this was the overall favorite of the night. David and Pete were both quite animated as they discussed the wines with the group and I believe many walked away knowing quite a bit more about Italian and Argentinian wines. David Bronlewee has already sealed a date for presenting Spanish wines in October.

These tasting events are not open to the public. If you are interested in being a part of upcoming events, please contact me at stan@blucid.com.

BRAZENLY LUCID WINES

Brazenly Lucid — Sat, 06 Oct 2007 14:30:09 -0700

I have always said that wine is an individual sport. What is good to you may not be good to me. We should never be pretentious about wine. Just because Parker or the Wine Spectator touts a wine as good doesn’t necessarily mean that it is a good wine for you. If you do not like it, it is not a good wine. Thus, the name of this blog. My approach to wine is simple, if I like it I will tell you why and I do not expect you to agree with me. Many of the wines I write about may not be my favorites but I realize that many out there will like them very much. I do not use any kind of a scoring system since I believe these are deceiving unless you are keen to my personal tastes. I will simply tell you the make-up of the wine as I see it and if you like what you read, give it a try. So I may be brazen in my approach yet very lucid about the subject of wine. I hope you enjoy the information in this blog and I encourage all my readers to give me their input by e-mailing me at stan@blucid.com. Cheers to all you winers out there!!!