Kosta Browne Sonoma Coast 2005

I recently acquired several half bottles of this amazing wine. I am not going to share any of them with you, dear reader, unless you can prove that you care enough about good Pinot to really enjoy them. This is not some snobbish rebuke. You have to really give a sh*t to understand and appreciate a wine like this one. And it is not even their top flight offering.

Kosta Browne Sonoma Coast 2005 is a lovely, pure, medium-ruby-cola color. The wine is quite viscous, with profound glycerine that puddles and pools all over the sides of the glass. This viscosity translates into a profoundly smooth mouthfeel with subtle, integrated tannins that carry the substantial fruit flavonals and bright, volatile acids. Classic Pinot notes of cherry, Coca-Cola and warm spices are evident. The finish is long and complex, with flavors evolving toward more of a cassis profile with vanilla and moderate oak in perfect balance. The alcohol, while substantial at 15%, is kept in check by the profound extraction and stunning fruit. The nose is lustrous and beautiful, filled with cherry, strawberry, vanilla, cinnamon, and so forth. These guys really know how to make Pinot. They are one of the best producers in Sonoma County, if not the world, and their wines sell out very quickly. I have never seen their wines for sale anywhere, so when I saw these half bottles I decided to grab a few.

This is the best, biggest Pinot I’ve had the privilege to try. It certainly ranks alongside Seasmoke Southing or any great, powerful new world Pinot Noir. It is the sort of wine that makes a person pause for a moment to reflect on his or her mortality, life choices, and reasons for being alive, and for that it is worth every penny.

Heck, it costs about as much as therapy, but works better.

Cheers!

The PRE-MONSOONAL

We just hosted our annual PRE-MONSOONAL party, and based on the turnout I’d say it was a success. This is the second time we’ve done this. The first time was in response, more or less, to losing my job at the gallery, and while things are fine for us this year, we know many other people in crisis. Divorces, drug relapses, and hospitalizations seem to surround us on all sides, and we are reminded of the fragility of life and the temporary nature of our closest relationships.

The PRE-MONSOONAL has come to represent a feeling, one of tension and release, much like the atmospheric tension that precedes a monsoon storm. It’s the kind of feeling where you just can’t take any more and you're ready to scream. It’s where you can’t give any more of yourself, even if you wanted to. It’s the moment of truth where all deception fails, where the lies we tell ourselves no longer work, and we’re confronted with naked reality.

Then the sky opens up, and water drowns the land.

The cicadas are buzzing in the trees, and someone saw a paloverde beetle. Deep within the ground, insects and animals are beginning to stir, anticipating the rainy season. This is my favorite time of year. It is a time of absolution. Soon there will be rain. Soon we will find relief from the hundred-degree heat.

Soon life will begin anew.

Cycles Gladiator Pinot Noir 2005

After trying several Pinot Noirs under $15 I was beginning to become frustrated. Most of them were either overdone or lacking in some critical area. Then I stumbled upon this modestly priced bottle and was immediately satisfied. The 2005 Cycles Gladiator Pinot Noir (Hahn Estates Winery, Soledad, CA) is an excellent example of classic California Pinot. The nose is a lovely mix of cherry cola and spices, so classic that I'd call it indicative of the region. In the mouth the wine is very smooth with cola, cherry, cranberry and vanilla notes and minimal oak on the medium-length finish. I believe it would pair well with most foods, with the possible exception of highly acidic foods or very sweet and spicy foods.

Again, this is an ultra-classic Pinot from the upper Santa Maria Bench area of California. It tastes almost exactly like wines from Foxen and Cambria, but at half the price (and half the enjoyment). A lovely, casual Pinot for everyday use or the occasional party.

And at $11, you simply can't do any better.

Sometimes Forever

Sometimes I get so tired of managing other people's mental space that I just want to get in my truck and leave forever. Not that I ever will, because I'm one of the so-called good guys. But it's important to remind myself that I really could leave, if I needed to.

I really could.

And no one would ever find me.

Ever.

More Artworks Photos

Tom

Marco

Joe

Bonnie

Barefoot Merlot

Last night I tried a bottle of Merlot by Barefoot Cellars. It was a gift from a friend who came over the other night for dinner. This review in no way reflects on the quality of the friendship, only on the quality of the wine.

Barefoot Merlot (unspecified vintage--scary) is a medium transparent ruby-purple in the glass with modest glycerine and no sign of aging. On the nose the wine smells strongly of black currents and hand soap with just a touch of asphalt. In the mouth the wine was fairly tannic with modest alcohol and a reasonable balance of acids and sugars. It tasted of black fruit, leather, spice and perhaps a hint of cold mix asphalt. The finish was uneventful and of medium length, ending with an aftertaste of sun-bleached wood. Overall, I found this wine to be undrinkable. It would probably go fine with a Carl's Junior Bacon Cheeseburger and Curly Fries.

How it won a gold medal is beyond me. All the other wines in its class must be terrible.

And the winner is...

Apparently I am the non-student winner of the Harmony Contest for my short story The Sound of Wolves Might be Dogs Barking. I haven't been notified by anyone. The prize money is supposed to be $500, and my story will be published in their journal. I'm now officially a published author. Cool!

Thanks to all of you who helped me with this story. If anyone would like to read the finished story, let me know and I'll send you a copy.

Cambria Pinot Noir Julia's Vineyard 2005

I'm happy to say that the 2005 vintage of this excellent wine is just that--excellent. Wonderful dusty cherries and clove on the nose give way to sour cherry, oak, vanilla and warm spices with very little tannin and delicious acidity. Not overdone, medium body with modest alcohol.

The winemaker is a woman, and she clearly knows how to make a wine that would go well with just about any type of food. The 2004 was great and this one might be better. You can find this wine for around $19 a bottle retail, and while most wines in this price range are not worth the money, this one is. An elegant, well-made and very versatile Pinot. I'd buy a case if I had $230 to spare.

Cheers!

McManis Syrah 2005

My dear fellow wine drinkers, my condolences to all of you two, three and six buck Chuck afficionados out there who have yet to discover the meaning of a really good affordable bottle. Here it is. This is the one, the crowd pleaser for 2005.

McManis Syrah is almost certainly the best bottle of affordable red wine made in California, bar none. It even outshines their wonderful Petite Sirah, at least in the 2005 vintage. A booming nose of blackberries, black cherries and vanilla, followed by opulent berries, spice, vanilla and mocha in the mouth. A nice balance of acidity and sugars with succulent fruit. Medium dark ruby in the glass with modest glycerine (legs). Smooth tannins and moderate oak with good structure (could be aged a few years). Really, really satisfying, and at $10 this wine is simply unstoppable.

Really.

So stop wasting time with all the others. Realize that there is something better out there, and for not much more than you were paying for that rotgut Yellowtail or that dillwater Napa River. After you've tried McManis, you'll never go back.

Cheers!

Tarragon Cream Chicken

After years of experimentation, I finally came up with a dish that uses that most challenging herb of all, tarragon. The taste of tarragon falls somewhere between basil, mint, and citrus, making it a perfect match for—chicken? I prefer fresh tarragon, since its flavor is a little more subtle. The problem with tarragon is that it is a very singular taste that becomes cloying if not balanced out by other flavors. The following recipe is approximate. It is not a recipe for a novice cook. You will need to finesse the sauce to get it right, since cream has a tendency to absorb certain flavors and augment others. Be careful not to burn your garlic or scald your half & half.

Tarragon Cream Chicken

2 pounds chicken apple sausage (or shredded chicken)
2 pounds asparagus (about two grocery bundles)
6-8 cups noodles (wheat or rice to match roux)
1 pint half & half (don’t hold back)
1c prepared rice or wheat flour roux (to thicken the sauce)
2-3t lime pepper or equivalent (Spice Barn is perfect)
1t ground nutmeg
1/2t turmeric (for color; provides minimal flavor)
1c finely minced fresh tarragon
5 cloves crushed garlic (fresh, not powder or salted)
2T unsalted butter
salt to taste
water to thin sauce if needed

t = teaspoon
T = tablespoon
c = cup

Grill or sauté the sausage then cut it into thin slices. You can also remove it from its casing, crumble and fry it chili style. Make sure it is thoroughly cooked and set it aside.

Pre-cook your asparagus and julienne. Grilled is best. Set it aside.

In a large sauce pan or skillet, melt butter on low heat until just melted. Add crushed garlic and spices, including tarragon. Whisk a little to mix and activate spices. Wait until butter begins to bubble, then add the half and half. Bring to steaming hot, whisking occasionally to prevent scalding. Heat should still be fairly low. Begin to add flour roux. Cook sauce slowly over moderate heat, whisking constantly, adding more roux until desired thickness is reached. The sauce should be about as thick as barbecue sauce. Taste for salt, and adjust if needed. Add more lime pepper if desired. Add sausage and asparagus. Stir and coat all ingredients. Heat until hot but not boiling, then remove from flame. Pour over noodles.

I served this with a salad of spring mix, apples, cranberry goat cheese, candied pecans and apple vinaigrette.

This meal would go nicely with a good white wine. Zaca Mesa’s outstanding Roussanne was my choice, but any great Pinot Grigio (Girgich Hills comes to mind) or Sauvignon Blanc (Kim Crawford) would work fine. Try to find something with good acidity, citrus notes and not much residual sugar.

A decent beer to have with this dish would be Stella Artois.

Enjoy!

Tobin James "Liquid Love" Late Harvest Zinfandel 2004

Want to try something really different, that’s actually special if handled correctly? I picked up a bottle of Tobin James “Liquid Love” the other day as a Valentine’s Day experiment. We opened the bottle not knowing what to expect. The bottle itself is thin, about as big around as a towel tube, giving one the impression of concentration. Well, the wine is concentrated, but not in the way that normal wines are concentrated. In a normal wine, the winemaker makes decisions to create a highly extracted wine, resulting in a dark, syrupy liquid filled with mysterious power and, if not treated carefully, too much alcohol from grapes harvested late and fermented too long. In the case of Tobin James “Liquid Love” the grapes were intentionally harvested late, allowing the sugars to concentrate. Then the wine was handled carefully to prevent runaway fermentation. The alcohol is still quite high (at 17.5 percent) but the residual sugars (4 percent) and glycerin are substantial enough to counter the alcohol. The result is a drink that is of medium transparency with modest extraction, very low acidity and a cloying sweetness not found in normal wine. This sweetness allows a person to eat similarly sweet and tannic foods like chocolate, which normally would kill the flavor of just about any wine. In fact, I found the inclusion of chocolate to be essential to the experience, since drinking the wine by itself was almost suffocating. The chocolate cut the sweetness in the wine, allowing the other flavors to emerge. Taken together, the chocolate and wine tasted unlike anything I’ve encountered before. And of course the mixture of downers and uppers was a little like drinking absinthe with a hit of cane sugar. Really different, and special, if handled correctly.

Cheers!

All That Matters

To those of you who have the audacity to think your personal drama matters (like me) think again.

My cousin Heather's youngest baby is dying from cancer.

Art and Money

Well, I've sold three large oil paintings over the last couple months, for a total of $2450 (my take; half the retail asking price). It's a start. I'm back in the studio now after many months, with plans to produce enough work to keep Mo's Gallery happy and hopefully some additional work for a new gallery in Tubac or Prescott.

I'm also submitting my new short story in a week. The prize money is $500. I'll keep my fingers crossed on that one.

Gotta pay the bills...

McManis Cabernet Sauvignon 2005

This modest bottle ($10) from McManis Family Vineyards is one of the nicer low-budget cabs I've tried in a while. The nose is classic Cabernet with just a hint of asphalt that carries through to the mouth. In the mouth the wine is fairly smooth with good acidity and low tannin, making it fine for a variety of foods and casual sipping. Alcohol is restrained at 13.5 percent, reflected in the medium level of extraction, medium viscosity and medium dryness. Not too much oak to get in the way. A nicely balanced wine without any flaws and plenty of value for the price. Another winner from the same winery that brought us that outstanding 2004 Petite Sirah!

Waffles Kaplan

You will never eat waffles the same way again...

Waffles Kaplan:

Mix waffle batter the same way you would for regular waffles. Make sure your waffle iron is set to the crispier end of its cooking cycle. Cut bacon into small strips; small enough to fit inside the waffle iron. Pour the batter, then plop down two or three (or four) pieces of bacon on top of the wet batter. Close the lid, and cook until ready (crispy brown). Top with syrup. Butter optional.

By the way, I can't take credit for this idea. I believe it was Chance and Lynn who came up with this recipe, in honor of our good buddy Matt Kaplan (aka 'Neighbor Matt') a known hedonist. This is the same Matt Kaplan that used to drink the hot wing sauce after he finished a plate of four-alarm wings. You get what I'm sayin'?

Enjoy!

2007

I haven't posted in a while on account of holiday craziness. I'm glad that 2007 is here, and I hope things shift in the direction of financial security and creative freedom. 2006 was a tumultuous year that basically kicked my ass and left me feeling less secure than ever. I guess getting fired, having another baby, and having a nervous breakdown would do that to a guy!

On a brighter note, I finished a short story which will be entered into a contest at the University. I wouldn't have been able to justify this effort were it not for the $500 prize money. The title of the story is The Sound of Wolves Might Be Dogs Barking. It has mostly to do with my current occupation (working with the mentally handicapped) but also with romantic love in the workplace. If you want to read it I would be happy to send you a copy.

All for now.

Reality

There was a time when things like being an artist mattered. Not any more.

Thanksgiving 2006 - A Culinary Report

Bobby Flay ain’t got nuthin’ on us:

Roast Turkey with Chili Cacao Rub and Red Móle Gravy
Wild Rice Stuffing with Cranberries and Toasted Almonds
Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Fresh Cranberry Citrus Relish
Sauteed Asparagus with Wild Mushrooms
Pumpkin Pie with Heavy Whipped Cream and Mexican Chocolate Sauce
Sea Smoke Cellars “Southing” Pinot Noir 2004

If you want to know how to make any of these items, let me know. I’d usually write down the instructions, but I’m too busy with children and holidays and everything else. It goes without saying that the above meal was unbelievably delicious and will never happen again in quite the same way.

If you have the opportunity, I strongly recommend you pick up a bottle of Sea Smoke Cellars pinot noir. Their 2004 “Southing” is transcendental, the sort of wine that grabs hold of your soul, forcing you to pause and reflect for a moment while you reel beneath a many-layered sensory assault. Wow! I won’t mention the price. Let’s just say it was worth every penny.

Cheers!

Beyond Bem Mesa

This is my latest oil painting and one which I feel good about. It contains most of the elements of my style, which is to say it makes good use of abstraction, simplification, zero-point dimensionality, geometric rhythm and mystery. I’m also satisfied with the colors and the way they interact. I like the way the trees inhabit flat space while the hills inhabit volumetric space. This entire painting, from start to finish, was painted in about five hours, with another two hours for canvassing and gesso. If it sells, I’ll be making about $100 an hour, which ain’t too shabby.

If it sells.

Artworks Photos

Some of the fine folks I work with at Artworks:

Jack

Ron and Debbie

Eddie