22
Jul
2009
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Category: On the Road with the Grape Guy
For the second year in a row, after eighteen years without, Hillebrand was looking down the barrel of a rainstorm on jazz day. The morning arrived with cloudy skies, which opened wide at about 9:00 AM and dumped the wet stuff on Niagara for more than an hour; even worse, the forecast called for it to continue all day. Contingency plans were made and even the idea of what to do if they had to (God forbid) cancel, was floated as a last resort, mostly because there was lightning in the forecast, and nobody wants to be onstage attached to an electrical instrument when the lightning strikes. Thankfully none of that came to fruition because the skies cleared, for the most part (there was still a few sprinkles interspersed during the show) and the festival went on without a hitch.
Up in the winemakers tower sixteen folks including myself, my fiancé Erica, Darryl Brooker (winemaker), his wife, the godfather of Canadian wine writing Tony Aspler, his wife, Master Sommelier John Szabo plus wife and child, Rod Phillips from Ottawa and others, all sat and enjoyed a lovely lunch prepared by chef Frank Dodd and his staff while listening to the sounds of (amongst others) Joe Sealy and the Shuffle Demons (who brought even us in the tower to our feet as they stole the show). Highlights of the lunch were "Wellington" County beef rib eye, wild salmon and herbs, Ted's Arctic char and a chilled sweet pea soup with smoked bacon ice cream (I couldn’t have made that one up even if I had tried). It was truly a lovely afternoon. Of course, no afternoon spent at a winery is complete without wine, and many were poured, not just with lunch, but also as aperitif and sneak peak at the new wines coming out from Hillebrand. My top five are below (some of which I have reviewed before): (See some of the pictures of the event here )
1 - 2008 Showcase Ghost Creek Vineyard Riesling - $25.00 (*****)
2 - 2007 Trius Red - $21.95 (*****)
3 - 2008 Artists Series Limited Edition Sauvignon Blanc - $16.95 (****½)
4 - 2008 Trius Unoaked Chardonnay - $14.25 (****½)
5 – 2008 Trius Cabernet Franc - $15.25 (****)
To read about more interesting adventures thru the world of wine check out the On the Road With the Grape Guy blog.
09
Jul
2009
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Category: On the Road with the Grape Guy
What does Treana, Austin Hope, Liberty School and Candor Wines all have in common? They all fall under the purview of Hope Family Wines, a winery started in 1978 as one of the first wineries in Paso Robles (halfway between San Francisco and L.A.). Back then there were 4 wineries and only 1000 acres of grapes planted, today there are 180 wineries in the region and 30,000 acres of grapes; if you consider that the Paso appellation is about 600,000 acres all told, that means that 5% of the land within the appellation is planted to grapes. The Paso appellation also has some 10-12 microclimates within it and the diurnal temperature (high to low) in a 24-hour period can range, some 40-50 degrees. But back to Hope Family …
In the beginning the winery saw themselves as mainly a Cabernet house and planted the majority of their vineyards to this grape. In 1996, they began making their signature blend Treana, a mainly Cabernet blend with other grapes they grew thrown in for added complexity. As we learned from this 10-year retrospective tasting, Treana has always been a work in progress (see notes below).
Hope Family’s other big name wine label is Liberty School, a brand started in the 70’s by Caymus, but then it was set adrift when Caymus decided to focus their attention on their own signature wine. The Liberty School brand was finally rescued, from certain death (and sure ridicule), by Hope in 1995, turning it into a value priced, quality brand.
Finally, the newest member of the Hope Family of wines is Candor. Currently, only two non-vintage wines are made under the label: Merlot and Zinfandel, two varietals that winemaker Austin (Hope) loves to make wine from. The hope (no pun intended) is to make “reasonably priced good wine” in the line. Instead of vintage dated they will be lot numbered and use grapes from a variety of vintages, their alcohol level will be around 14%. The desire with these wines is to be “honest with people” about how they are made (Candor), as Austin put it “Truth Defined”.
Today’s tasting consisted of 10 red Treana wines (1996-2006) and the current releases of Liberty School (3 wines) – here’s how the best shake out: (Read more )
To read about more interesting adventures thru the world of wine check out the On the Road With the Grape Guy blog.
