My 8 Most Memorable Wines of 2019

When I look back on the wines that I’ve enjoyed during the last year - dutifully memorized by the external brain pack I call an iPhone - it always makes me pause. The breadth of amazing wines that I have access to is quite stunning. I drink more amazing wines in a year than most wine drinkers do in the lifetime. It is exciting and humbling at the same time.

Today, I recap the 8 most memorable wines that I enjoyed in 2019. This isn’t a list of the very best wines, but the most memorable.

What makes a wine memorable? Surprise. Originality. Unique character. A perfect blending of wine and food pairing. And, of course, the pure, exceptional quality of the wine itself.

Grand Polaire 2018 Yoichi Kerner

Think of Japanese wine and you’ll likely think of Sake, even though that technically isn’t wine.

This is a beautiful off-dry Kerner from the ‘Snow Country’ of Hokkaido, Japan.

I came across this wine in the neighborhood of Noge in Yokohama. It is one of the very few areas of Japan that was spared destruction in World War 2. Noge gives visitors a view of prewar Japan, full of small restaurants and interesting bars.

Marco 2018 Ramato

I went with a few close friends to Porchetta Fest at Pittsburgh’s Churchview Farm.

The team from the city’s amazing Bar Marco was there and they shared their private label Ramato which had been hidden for employee use only.

A wild and delicious wine from Oregon’s Willamette Valley in the Eola-Amity Hills AVA.

Mount Eden Vineyards 2010 Chardonnay

Despite living in Santa Cruz, California during 2015 and 2016, I was never able to visit one of my favorite wineries in the world - Mount Eden Vineyards until 2019.

But it wasn’t during the vineyard visit that I tasted this wine, it was the Cutting Edge Selections holiday party.

I believe Mount Eden makes America’s greatest Chardonnay and this bottle only reinforced that belief. Long and complex, moving into beautiful secondary flavors. No Chardonnay made in American ages this well.

Walsh Family Wine 2018 Plateau Pet-Nat

Walsh Family Wine is a newish winery, founded in 2014. Already there wines are showing superb quality and confidence.

Their Pet-Nat is made from single vineyard Cabernet Franc in Loudoun County, Virginia. It is fresh, acidic, and lip-smackable.

Many of the wines of Virginia are not at world-class level yet, but each time I visit, I discover more exception wineries with Walsh Family.

Cheval Blanc 2004 St. Emilion Grand Cru

Surprise! Surprise! Something the greatest wines in the world are actually worth their reputations.

This was a blind pairing selection by the Sommelier at L’Auberge Provencale in Virginia and it wowed long before we saw the label.

Lush, sexy, complex, creamy, and memorable. Everything world-class Right Bank Bordeaux should be.

Chateau Montus 1998 Madiran ‘Cuvee Prestige’

An epic 6-hour Sunday feast that we call Duck-A-Palooza finished with a last minute raid of a friend’s wine cellar.

There is no better pairing for duck than well-aged Madiran and maybe no better bottling that Montus’ Cuvee Prestige. Layers of complexity with the classic hard edges of the Tannat grape.

Guigal 2010 Cote-Rotie ‘Chateau d’Ampuis

Despite it’s current unpopularity, I love Syrah. Few make it better than Guigal in the Chateau d’Ampuis label. To make things even better, this one was singing at nearly a decade of bottle age.

Smoky bacon-fat, blueberry cream, softening tannins, and lots of complexity. A beautiful wine!

Birichino 2017 Mourvedre ‘Vignes Centenaires’

I worked with Alex Kruse, founder of Birichino, when I was at Bonny Doon Vineyards and I’ve always enjoyed the wines. It was a pleasant surprise to find that he’s now opened a Tasting Room in downtown Santa Cruz.

I tasted through the entire lineup one afternoon in September, but the 100-year-old-vine Mourvedre stood out with its pretty delicate purple fruit character.

Not surprising, since the ultra-small production historic-old-vine wines of California are some of that state’s best kept secrets.

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Note: At the time of this writing, I work for a wholesale distributor that represents some of these wines in Ohio and Kentucky. Neither my representation of these wines or lack thereof, affects this list in any way.

In Alloro Vineyard with Owner and Winegrower Dave Nemarnik

Tour Alloro Vineyard in the Willamette Valley with Owner and Winegrower Dave Nemarnik.

Alloro brings Old-World allure to Oregon, just 30 minutes southwest of Portland. The 80-acre estate is a bucolic homage to Italian tradition, from its iconic Tuscan farmhouse and culinary gardens to the heirloom sheep that graze the vineyard cover crops.

Alloro is Italian for laurel a salute to David Nemarnik's Italian / Croatian heritage, and the Laurel Ridge site itself. Holistic agricultural practices and respectful stewardship create terroir-driven wines showcasing purity of fruit with a clear sense of place.

https://www.allorovineyard.com

http://www.austinbeeman.com

This is Episode #68 of Understanding Wine with Austin Beeman. Download the Video directly here.

Barolo Boys. The Story of a Revolution. Wine Documentary Review.

In the 1980s and 90s, a small cadre of young men in Piedmonte, Italy aggressively broke with the winemaking traditions of their fathers. Born of economic necessity, these “Barolo Boys” embraced French techniques including intensely ripe fruit and the use of New Oak French Barriques. It was a revolutionary move causing scandal in Italy, but also resulting in enormous financial and cultural rewards. The wines were beloved by critics both within Italy and overseas.

Barolo Boys: the Story of a Revolution (2014) tells this story primarily through interviews with the people that lived it.

Buy Barolo Boys from Amazon and Support This Blog. Thank You.

The trailer is below:

For the first time on the big screen, Barolo Boys. The Story of a Revolution tells the fascinating story of a group of friends who bring a revolution in the Langhe, and how Barolo exploded as a world phenomenon.

I rate this movie 87 points on the 100 Point Wine Rating Scale popularized by Robert Parker, Wine Spectator, and others…

The best things about Barolo Boys:

If you are new to the story of the Barolo Boys or are first being exposed to the wine region of Piedmont, you’ll likely find this a pleasant overview. The story is told clearly and concisely. The characters and their dilemmas are well drawn. There are also some soaring videography of Barolo’s beautiful vineyards.

The most precious parts of this documentary, however, are the intimate interviews with some of the Barolo Boys: Elio Altare, Marc de Grazia (Barolo Importer), Giorgio Rivetti, Robert Voerzio, Bruno Ceretto and more including Barolo Girl Chiara Boschis. Preserving for posterity the first hand accounts of their figure is a blessing. Many of these winemakers are of advanced years and their isn’t likely must time left to document their stories. See the full list here.

The least effective parts of Barolo Boys:

The documentary is quite short, coming in at only 64 minutes, and yet often feels slow and bloated. You could easily trim this to 45 minutes and lose nothing. There is so much more to say about this topic that is interesting. Long sequences of marching bands and soccer players didn’t add to the film. I definitely believe that this film was padded to get to feature length for festival submissions.

In addition, the filmmaking was at times amateurish. The directors didn’t seem to trust the film’s ability to keep our attention in flashback. They are digitally over-processed in the style common to college film students. It makes the film feel cheaply made. This is unfortunate because there are other times, specifically vineyard photography, where everything is smooth and professional.

The last major flaw is the intro and outro by Joe Bastianich. He simply lacks any charisma onscreen. You feel bad for him as Bastianich is a deer in the camera’s headlights. Don’t feel too bad for him, though. He has famous parents and manages dozens of awesome restaurants around the world as well as Eataly. But he should not have been in this documentary and his introduction may make many people turn it off prematurely.

In Conclusion:

If you are new to the story of the Barolo Boys, you’ll get a lot out of this. I do recommend that you watch Barolo Boys even if you are already knowledgeable about them. It is great to see the vineyards of Piedmonte and many of the prominent winemakers of Barolo. Not a bad way to spend an hour.

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FTC Disclosure:

• I rented my copy of this documentary.

• In my job at Cutting Edge Selections, we currently sell in Ohio and Kentucky some of the wineries referenced in this documentary, but most of the wines and the major importer featured in the documentary are with direct competitors of Cutting Edge.