Wine Market Background

     In class I often extol the virtues of Sauvignon Blanc by pointing out there are several world-class examples priced between $15 and $19. I then exclaim, “There’s no such thing as world-class Chardonnay under $20!” And I do believe that statement to be true. At least it used to be. Which is not to say there haven’t always been a handful of eminently pleasing Chardonnays priced under $20. It is just that competition amongst Chardonnays has always been so much more intense than it is in other white wine varieties. In America, Chardonnay outsells both Pinot Gris (Grigio) and Sauvignon Blanc individually by a factor of four or five. Good Chardonnay can easily command $20 to $40 a bottle, and great Chardonnay commands $50 to $100. The only reason for a winery to price a very fine Chardonnay under $20 would have been when they needed to sell 50,000 cases of it, or if they had very limited confidence in their sales and marketing capacity. Of course, this Recession economy is creating many unusual, and enjoyable surprises for buyers.

Wine Education

     There are several justifications for the expense of a good bottle of Chardonnay. First, the grape itself is not particularly distinctive. It doesn’t have the unique aromatic signature of (say) Gewürztraminer. Nor does it have the strong flavor of (say) Sauvignon Blanc. That means concentration is doubly important and, in Chardonnay, that translates to lower yield. Lower yield means higher price per ton. Whether one gets three tons per acre in Sauvignon Blanc, or five tons per acre, the distinctive flavor is still going to be fairly obvious. Not so with Chardonnay. Taking a Chardonnay vineyard from three tons/acre to five tons/acre would have an effect…

Wine-Food Matching

     Read this post in its entirety, with wine descriptions and food-wine matches, on the Stanford Wine Blog.

Restaurant Recommendation

     Bodega (website, 415-921-1218, on Larkin – two doors uphill from Eddy, medium priced with a couple temptations to splurge) may sound like a noteworthy California seafood place. That’s actually Hayes St Grill, about eight blocks away. When I tell you BoDeGa is a Vietnamese restaurant, you may immediately think of plates filled with vegetables. That’s not entirely untrue, but it’s helpful to know the translation from the Vietnamese language: Bo = beef; De = lamb; Ga = chicken. Vegans can eat at Bodega, but they can’t get uppity.
     Let’s not mince words here. If you insist on ordering beer to drink with the food at Bodega, you’re a Philistine.

Wine & Food Pairing

     Chef-owner Jimmie Kwok has an enviable résumé. He worked at some of San Francisco’s top hotel restaurants, and also several years with Il Fornaio. He describes Bodega as “cuisine Indochine” and, as befits Vietnam’s history, there is a considerable French influence to several of his dishes. Take the Tournedos for example. That would be filet Mignon and foie gras wrapped in bacon with a black truffle sauce. Better order them when you make your reservation. They sell out early. An older Syrah from Santa Barbara County would be a good match. Perhaps 1999 Qupé. But, for a ‘standing O’ from your dinner companions seek out a five- or six-year-old bottle of Stolpman La Croce (50-50 split of Syrah and Sangiovese fermented together).

Educational Background

     On the more traditional side, Jimmie’s Pho (beef and noodle broth) includes a homeopathic dose of …

Read this post in its entirety on the Stanford Wine blog.

How green is your wine?

     Talking about how ‘green’ a wine is can be very complicated. Not using pesticides says little about the winery’s attention to energy and water conservation. Is an ‘organic’ wine from Italy still green after all that weight of liquid and glass has been shipped to San Francisco? Does your ‘bio-dynamic’ winery pay their workers a living wage? And do any of these matters contribute to good taste? How far can I trust claims of ‘greenishness?’

de Tierra Vyds

     It’s a thorny issue. We will revisit it frequently on the Stanford wine blog [StanfordAlumni.org, it’s titled Straight from the Vine]. But we will begin with a winery recommendation that needs very few qualifier adjectives. These two wines taste great, and they are both pretty reasonably priced. The grapes are grown within 100 miles of the Stanford campus. The vineyard was the very first one in Monterey County to be certified organic by CCOF (California Certified Organic Farmers).

Continues at Stanford wine blog.