Category Archives: Kosher Dessert Wine
Wines from the weekend along with lovely meatballs and spinach kugel
This past weekend we had friends and family around the table to enjoy some great food and some pretty good wines. This week there was no wine theme, actually to be more precise, the theme was that there was no theme. The theme was Drink up or let die. I say this as I have far too much history and track record in this area, and it has been my sworn duty going forward that I would embrace and channel the work of Dorothy J. Gaiter and John Brecher and attempt to always open that bottle in its time. To meet this need I attempt to create wine themes when there is no pressing wine to get to, otherwise, I drink the wines that are up next.
I use drink by dates of the late Daniel Rogov, Cellar Tracker, and of course, my own personal notes. This week it was time to get to some bottles that I have been worried about. I got to a couple of them, but missed out on the 2005 Ella Valley Pinot Noir, which we last tasted on some 3 years ago. We did get to enjoy some wine that we have not tasted in a couple of years, the 2001 Yarden Merlot, Ortal Vineyard, one of the finest Merlot that Yarden has ever produced, along with the 2006 Recanati Cabernet Franc, both of which have a year or maybe more left on them. Both are drinking lovely now, but if you too wish to live the motto “no good wine will be left to die“, drink it now and you will not be sorry.
I often laugh when people ask me when they should drink a particular bottle. In the kosher wine world more and more wines are being created that are built for cellaring. All that means is that the bottle you buy is not quite ready to drink, and the wine maker and winery have decided to diversify their risk and have you cellar the wine rather than them. For the most part, most wine (kosher or not) is made to be drunk within the year or two. There are reserve wines that are built to age a few years maybe 4 years at most. Then there are the a fore mentioned high-end wines that are truly not enjoyable at all from release, and need time to come into their own/peak.
The Recanati Cabernet Franc is at its true peak and can be left for another year or so, but why? Unless you have more pressing wine to enjoy – drink it now! There is only one sure thing, other than taxes, and that is – that the wine will eventually die. Why not enjoy it now. There is rarely a perfect time to drink a wine. There is just the acceptable and peak time to enjoy the wine and the rest is what you make of it! Read the rest of this entry
Teperberg Wines at the 2012 Gotham Tasting and Sommelier
This is the tenth article I am writing on wineries from the Judean Hills wine region of Israel. No matter where you look around the landscape of Israeli wines and wineries you will find story after story of rebirth, renewal, and a fair amount of plain old new! Carmel, Binyamina, Barkan, were all producing mass consumption/bulk wine up until 1o to 15 years ago. Since then, they have seen serious rebirth, still selling almost undrinkable swill for the masses, and also selling high-end, and very respectable wines for us wine aficionados.
Personally, I think it is the correct business structure to have for a growing winery. You need simple bulk wines that have high margins and can be sold anywhere and everywhere. Wines that people buy in the millions, literally. Then you need wines that bolster the lineup, entry-level wine-drinker wines, that can be the bridge to take you from swill to paradise. Think white zinfandel from Herzog Wine Cellars, they sell those bottles by the millions and they are the perfect gateway drug to get you to Chenin Blanc and then maybe to Chardonnay or Black Muscat, and finally to some real dry red wines.
Today the winery we are looking at is the Teperberg winery which was founded in 1870 by the Teperberg family (from where the name of the winery is derived) in the Old City of Jerusalem. Actually, to be accurate it was located in an alleyway of the old city of Jerusalem, and may well have been the first winery in the modern era of Israel. Later in 1964, the winery moved outside of Jerusalem, to the then quiet suburb of Motza (now a thriving community), and took on the name Efrat. The winery, ignoring its many name changes, continues to mostly produce sacramental sweet wines, as that is what its main clientele are looking for. However, in the 1990s Efrat started to create dry red wines, and to be honest they were a disaster. I remember always passing up on them, even when in school, and buying Carmel dry or semi-sweet wines instead. Read the rest of this entry
Gotham Wine’s Ninth Annual Wine Extravaganza results – WOW!!
I have posted often about why we love going to the Gotham Kosher Wine Extravaganza. Sure, Royal Wine’s International Food and Wine Festival is quite lovely, but in the end the wines are just from the Royal’s vast Portfolio. At the Gotham Wine Extravaganza, you get to taste Royal’s wines (though we skipped most of them this year as they were repeats of the IFWF) and wine from 7 other importers. To me this was the best one yet, hands down. We have been coming to this event for four years now, and it was where we first met many in the NY wine scene, as well. The evening was absolutely fantastic. Last year’s event was complicated by the difficulty of finding a place for the event. This year’s event was planned out beautifully in advance and it was once again hosted in the same location as it was last year – the West Side Institutional.
As stated many times already, the event is driven by the master in arms, Costas Mouzouras, General Manager of Gotham Wines of Manhattan, NY, and his merry band of helpers. Just like last year, the tables were setup by wine importer rather than by region, because at this event there was more than just one importer. The event is one of those truly rare opportunities where a person is able to taste wines from all around the world, from any importer, and almost any top line kosher wine that exists out there. Of course, there was a very large table of wines imported by Royal Wines. However, there was another 14 tables of wines and food from all around the world! Every year I feel like a kid in a candy shop!
Where else can you taste up to 500 or more different wines that are from wineries as varied as Dalton, Tepperberg, Recanati, Tishbi, Bravdo Winery, Happy Hearts Importer, Victor Wines, Hevron Heights, River Importers, and Royal (Carmel, Capcanes, and Yatir Winery). Each of these tables has the winemaker, wine importer, or wine expert. They were knowledgeable about the wines and as passionate about them as I am about wines. Overall the event was another home run. There must have been easily a couple hundred people at the event, all packed into the second floor of WSI. That said, I never had to wait long to get a glass of wine, and even if one of the people manning the tables was busy talking to a guest about a wine or winery, there was another person happy to pour for others. There was also a fair amount of wine mavens/maniacs, like me, that were a joy to converse with and get tips on what wines were really special or interesting to try, which came in handy when there are so many wines to look at/try.
2012 Herzog International Wine Festival – a feast for all the senses under the big top!
This past week I was under a big top enjoying kosher wines from around the world and Chef Aaron Todd’s sumptuous splendors were available for all to enjoy. The event was the 2012 Herzog International Food and Wine Festival (IFWF) that was being held at the stately Hyatt Regency Century Plaza in Century City. Last year’s event was held at the state-of-the-art Herzog Winery, in Oxnard CA. The intimate lighting and setting was lovely last year, but the combination of the Royal’s larger wine portfolio, the wonderful food, and the growing crowds made it feel like the event was getting too big for its britches. So, with much dismay we waited to hear where the event was going to move to. When the word came out that the event was going to be held at the legendary Hyatt Regency Century Plaza in Century City – the event became the must attend hot ticket event for everyone who enjoys food and wine in the LA area – which is about all Los Angelenos.
Now before anyone thinks the event was held in the stately Los Angeles Ballroom – it was not. Actually, it was held in the lovely Plaza Pavilion, whose name does not even begin to give the unique 9,000+ square foot space its due. The event was moved from the somewhat cramped, yet intimate, setting of the winery to a beautiful tent that is a permanent fixture in the hotel and the social calendar of many a LA party hopper. Actually it is with good reason, if I may say so, as the room is a long rectangle with sufficient yet dim-able lighting and enough space to host the many food and wine stands that the 500 or so attendees partook of. Never during the evening did I feel cramped or claustrophobic like I did last year. Further, while the smell of charring wood and meat is a huge turn-on (for me), it totally messes with my olfactory abilities, which when attending a wine tasting (not drinking) event – really bites! There were copious examples of carnivore delights, which were all prepared on site, but the smells did not permeate the walls of the pavilion. The larger space allowed for more vertical sitting spaces with round tables, in case you were not heads down like I was tasting wines. Also, the ability to stroll out of the pavilion and sit in the reception area, a few feet away, made for a far more roomy feeling event. Finally, the pavilion’s lovely champagne, antique gold and chocolate-brown colors, along with the chandeliers and wall-to-wall carpeting made for an evening of sheer elegance and 
grandeur. Just an aside, while the surroundings were indeed attention grabbing, the guests who attended the event were equally well draped. Some came with tails and a top hat, others dressed to kill in evening ware gowns and suits. I of course, jeans and long sleeve shirt, however, the majority of the crowd were clearly channeling the elegance of the evening.
The confluence of events that just happened to fall on Wednesday, February 15th, made it feel like the odds were stacked against a successful foray out of Herzog’s home base. First it rained – I mean pouring rain! If any of you saw L.A. Story, I hope you can appreciate how rare that is – even in the so-called winter! Further, POTUS decided to do not one, but TWO drive-bys, bringing traffic to a standstill while people craned their necks to catch a glimpse of the most powerful man in the free world. Still, blessedly, nor rain nor sleet nor traffic (the latter a very common malady that Los Angelenos are used to) can keep good citizens of LA from enjoying some seriously good wine and food. The event to me was a major success for many reasons, but the main reason was the fact that sure the event was attended by Jews interested in seeing what wines to buy for the upcoming Purim and Passover. However, there was a large contingency of party goers who attended the evening festivities to enjoy good food and wine – irreverent to their religious and dietary beliefs (which trust me in LA is saying a LOT)! The opportunity to show the L.A. glitterati that the word kosher does not relegate one to an automatic 15 minute timeout, is serious step forward for the kosher industry. Read the rest of this entry
Tzuba Winery – the Winery Incubator / grape capitalist of the Judean Hills
As we drive the 395 to get to Kibbutz Tzuba the winery’s vines grace our approach – they stretch from the bottom of the hillside along the valley below and all the way to the entrance of the Kibbutz. The Kibbutz is a high tech Kibbutz, building bulletproof glass and other protective shielding, a thriving business in these trying times.
As we drive up to the winery, which is to the left, after you enter the Kibbutz gate, the winery is straight ahead, and Paul Dubb was there to greet us. Paul is the wine maker for the Tzuba Winery and has been growing grapes for the Castel Winery, and some other 10 wineries, since 1996.
Actually, Tzuba is a winery whose history and very existence is intrinsically intertwined with Castel Winery, and many of the other big boys of Judean Hills. How you ask? Well, it all started in 1996 when Kibbutz Tzuba made a highly fortuitous and almost prophetic decision to plant some 110 acres of grape vines! That was only a year after Castel’s maiden release of its Grand Vin, and only a few years after Ronnie James started Tzora Winery, also in the Judean Hills. The crazy thing is that the Kibbutz decided on doing this even before they had actual contracts to sell these grapes. Further, they planted more than just the classic noble grapes. Of course they planted Cabernet, Merlot, Chardonnay, Shiraz, but they also planted Pinot Noir, Cabernet Franc, Sangiovese, Petit Verdot, Malbec, Grenache, Mourvedre, and Nebiolo! The winery has three sets of labels for its wines (levels if you may): the top-of-the-line Metzuda that is produced only in selected years; Tel Tzuba of varietal and blended wines, and the popularly priced Hamaayan.
Yes, that is the setup, but how is Tzuba Winery intertwined with Castel and other Judean Hill wineries? Simple, where did these wineries get their grapes? Who had vines back in 1999? Tzuba! Who was the vineyard manager in 1996? Paul Dobb. Who was the vineyard manager for Castel in 2000 till 2004? Yes, Paul again. What is Castel named after, the old Belmont Castel fortress that Eli Ben Zaken named his winery after! The very same castle/fortress that over looks the Tzuba Winery! The very same fortress that the Metzuda (the fortress) wine label is named after. The same fortress that the Belmont wine label uses. In so many ways the Catsel winery is deeply intertwined with the Tzuba Winery. In a way, you could say that Kibbutz Tzuba and the Tzuba Winery are the grape capitalists of the Judean Hills.
With all that said, this is NOT to say that Tzuba is Castel’s second label, rather Tzuba is many ways is the purveyor of Castel’s very blood, its grapes. Further, Tzuba’s approach is actually 100% counter to Castel’s approach. Mr. Ben Zaken will be happy to tell you that his desire is to recreate Bordeaux, without its terroir flaws (climate and temperature). In many ways Ben Zaken has been successful in his desired transportational affect, but that is not what Mr. Dobbs is looking for. Actually, Mr. Dobbs is looking for Mediterranean styling in his wines. He desires the very fruit, mineral, and rich herbs that drench the hillsides of the Judean Hills to be transported into the very body and nose of Tzuba’s wines.
Winemakers Dinner with Jeff Morgan, Benyamin Cantz, and John Herzog, and some nice wines
This past week we had the extreme honor of having the company of Jeff Morgan, from Covenant Winery, Benyamin Cantz from Four Gates Winery, and John Herzog, the west coast manager for Royal Wines. The evening was filled with lively conversation around and about food and wine. The varied points of conversation moved about like a weather vane in a hurricane, all of it thoroughly enjoyable and informational, to say the least.
We started the meal off with Kiddush on a glass of 2007 Dalton Viognier Reserve, Wild Yeast. It was as good as I remembered it, from the last time I tasted it at the 2010 Gotham Wine Extravaganza. It was rich and smooth with lovely acidity and bright summer fruits that were wrapped in a bee’s nest of honey, caramel, all gathered from flowers that abound in the area (metaphorically of course). That was followed by some Challah that the Rabbis’ wife made, which was nice, but I did miss my wife’s whole wheat Challah, no slight of course intended.
The courses started with some smoked wild salmon and some smoked farmed salmon, along with black olives, and hummus. The Dalton Viognier easily stood up to the hummus and smoked salmon and was quickly laid to waste (again metaphorically).
The next course was my sweet and sour brisket, brown Basmati rice, and a fresh green salad. To pair with the meat, I opened two bottles, and I wish I had opened them both earlier. The first was the 2001 Capcanes Peeraj Ha’bib, which I had opened a few hours before, and was thoroughly enjoyable, but was time to drink up, and I think was helped by opening it, to allow it to hit its potential. The second wine I opened was the 2001 Yarden El Rom, which is lovely, but needs time to air out and open. We quickly made waste of these as well, but I wish I had opened the El Rom earlier, to allow it to show its best characteristics. Finally with desert we enjoyed some Tzuba Port that I brought back from Israel.
Jeff of course was super generous and brought over some of his trademark wines, as did Benyamin, but we never got a chance to enjoy them, I hope we can rectify that problem soon!
Again, I want to thank all our guests for making the evening as memorable as it could be, and I hope we get another chance to do it all over again, in the not too distant future. The wine notes are below:
2001 Yarden Cabernet Sauvignon El Rom - Score: A
The notes on this wine have not changed drastically, the tannin is still kicking, the mouth equally as rich, and the heat has dissipated. This is one of the best wines I have tasted from Israel. The wine is still a bit closed, so an hour or two of air time would be of great help!
The nose on this brilliant and deep garnet to black colored wine is filled with heavy layers of blackberry, cassis, raspberry, tobacco, and oak. The mouth on this wine was also a bit slow out of the bottle, but that changed quickly enough. The mouth was complex and multi layered. This is no simple wine, it hits you in waves. The mouth on this full bodied wine is still tannic though the tannins are breaking down and adding even more opulence to this rich and mouth coating wine filled with blackberry, cassis, rich sweet oak. eucalyptus, and almost jam like – but not in a chewy annoying way – more in a rich and cultured manner. The mid palate follows off the first set of layers and is where the structure comes in. The structure is built on tannin, acidity, and lush layers of vegetal flavors. The finish is crazy long and is filled with blackberry, cassis, chocolate, tobacco, rich dirt, slight vegetal notes, and sweet wood. This is really quite a fine wine and one that is not yet peaked at all, though quite enjoyable now as well.
2001 Celler de Capçanes Montsant Peraj Ha’abib Flor de Primavera - Score: A-
Drink up – this wine is lovely but is really at its peak or a drop past it!! The score from previous tasting is a bit lower then the first score we gave this wine, and the same as my second tasting, but not because of tannins. The notes are very much in line with my previous tasting. I recommend opening the bottle 1 hour ahead of time, and NO more than that and enjoying it then. This bottle will not last four hours after opening, so drink now and enjoy.
The nose on this deep black colored wine, with a bit of a brown halo, is popping with blackberry, plum, cassis, sweet cedar, herbs, raspberry, licorice, and tobacco. The mouth on this full bodied and mouth coating wine is now smooth and layered with blackberry, plum, black currant, and cassis. The mid palate is packed with lovely tannins, bright acidity, and concentrated black fruit that comes at you in layers. The finish is super long, spicy, and concentrated with cloves, herbs, blackberry, plum, raspberry, chocolate, tobacco, and sweet cedar. The wine lingers long with cedar, plum, tobacco, rich vanilla, and chocolate.
2007 Dalton Viognier, Reserve – Score: A-
The nose on this light gold orange haloed colored wine is expressive with caramel, honeysuckle, butterscotch, toasty oak, flora, melon, lemon, peach, and apricot, with the honey, toast, lemon, and butterscotch showing itself more expressively over time. The mouth on this rich and full bodied wine is oily, layered, and textured with melon, peach, apricot, citrus, and honeysuckle. The mid palate is still rich and balanced with acid, butterscotch, caramel, oak, and spice. The finish is super long and rich with butterscotch, rich honey, caramel, summer fruit, and melon.
2010 International Food & Wine Festival at Herzog Wine Cellars Wine Reviews
I wrote a posting, about the wonderful 2010 International Food & Wine Festival at Herzog Wine Cellars that occurred February 3, 2010. As stated previously, this is the third incarnation of this wine festival, where Royal Wines pulls out all stops, and displays more than 200 wines, and some of its very best ones to boot.
On an aside, I thought I would list the wines I missed, and ones that I do not think you should miss given the chance.
- 2007 Domaine de Maltaverne Pouilly Fume’ Bokobsa Selection
- Segal Argaman, Rechasim, Dovev Vineyard
Please find my wine notes below in the order they were tasted:
2008 Covenant Lavan Chardonnay, Napa Valley – Score: A- to A
The nose on this vibrant yellow colored wine is screaming with lychee, green apple, guava, peach, oak, and almonds. The mouth on this full bodied wine is creamy and hopping with butterscotch, apple, peach, and oak. The mid palate is balanced and structured with bracing acidity, spicy oak, oak tannins, and mineral. The finish is long and creamy, with more butterscotch, almonds, oak, peach, and lychee.
2007 Selection Bokobsa Sancerre - Score: B to B+
The nose on this light gold colored wine has peach, dry mineral, dirt, bright acidity, apricot, and goose berry. The mouth on this light bodied wine carries from the nose with peach, apple, and goose berry. The mid palate is bright with acidity and mineral. The finish is long with peach, apple, bracing acidity, and mineral.
2003 Francois Labet Puligny-Montrachet - Score: B to B+
The nose on this light gold to gold colored wine is hopping with butter, rich apple, oak, guava, and green fruit. The mouth on this medium bodied wine is filled with spicy oak, butter, mineral, and apple. The mid palate is oaky with more butter, acid, and green fruit. The finish is long with green fruit, mineral, and a dollop of butter. This one was far better a few years ago.
2002 Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru - Score: C+
This wine was dead with close to no nose and a bit of almonds, peach, apple, and oak. This one is pretty much dead, drink up what you have or leave it alone as a paper weight.
2007 Domaine l’Or de Line Chateauneuf de Pape – Score: B+ to A-
Would love to know how Herzog pulled this one off, and who is the negotiant for this wine. I found a lovely write-up about the winery and the name, anyway, on to the note.
The nose on this light gold colored wine is hopping with lemon, goose berry, mineral, apple, and white peach. The mouth on this medium bodied wine carries the nose, with white peach, goose berry, green apple, and mineral. The mid palate is round, balanced, but still bracing with acidity, and mineral. The finish is long with clean yet round flavors of apple, peach, and a hint of spice. Quite a nice wine.
2008 Goose Bay Sauvignon Blanc – Score: B+
The nose on this light gold colored wine is hopping with rich ripe gooseberry, lemon, peach, apple, and guava. The mouth on this medium bodied wine is filled with rich ripe fruit that follows the nose with gooseberry, lemon, peach, and guava. The mid palate is acidic with light amount of oak, and lemon. The finish is long with lemon, acid, and tart lemon.
2007 Goose Bay Pinot Gris – Score: B+
The nose on this straw colored wine has melon, pear, and peach. The mouth on this medium bodied wine is ripe, super sweet fruit, with pear, melon, and peach. The mid palate is balanced with nice acidity and fruit. The finish is long with a bit more sweet wood and crisp flavors of lemongrass. A nice showing for this Pinot Gris. Read the rest of this entry
Kielbasa Sausage Stew, Kosher Cabernet Sauvignon, and Four Gates Chardonnay
This past weekend we were surrounded by many of our friends, from close and far, and it was a truly lovely evening. I have always said that food and wine are greatly improved by the company that surrounds you. One of our guests was a close friend who left some 10 or more years ago from our area, so it was really great seeing him again. Benyamin of Four Gates Winery joined us as well for the evening and shared some wines with us along with one of our guests who brought a bottle of Psagot Cabernet.
The evening started with one of our consistent hits – Herb Encrusted Baked Fish Loaf, alongside olives, chumus, and jalapeno salsa. The fish was paired with a fantastic 2005 Four Gates Chardonnay and a 2005 Psagot Cabernet Sauvignon. The Chardonnay was perfectly paired with the fish, while the Psagot was a bit too astringent for our liking.
For the main course, the fish was followed by another wonderful dish that we have made a few times – Kielbasa Stew, Brown Basmati rice, and fresh green salad. The Red C followed the lackluster Psagot and was also lackluster to us. The last time we tasted the 2006 Covenant Red C we LOVED IT! This time however there was a lack of depth and body that truly surprised us. That was followed by the two highly enjoyable 2004 Ella Valley Cabernets. These wines are really supposed to be twins at birth, but they seem to have been separated at some time, as they each showed different characteristics. The two wines were the 2004 Ella Valley Cabernet Sauvignon and the 2004 Ella Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Israel 60 Special Edition. They start off quite different and even with air do not change from their separated paths. However, after a fair amount of time the twines were finally reunited, but lacking some of the concentrated characteristics that make them super special, but still quite lovely. Benyamin also brought a bottle of the 2005 Four Gates Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley. It showed as well as the last time we tasted it (also with Kielbasa Stew and Tajine), and was enjoyed by all. The dinner was capped off with a killer dessert brought by another of our guests, who we jokingly call our local artisan bakery! The wonders she creates are always devoured, with crumbs nowhere to be found. This past week she honored us with a rum soaked sponge cake with rum frosting – killer!! It was paired with leftovers of the 2005 Four Gates Cabernet Sauvignon and a bottle of the 2006 Tzora Or Shoresh Gewurztraminer. This wine was one of the two highest scoring wines when Robert Parker and Mark Squires held their first ever wine tasting of Israeli wines. It was scored a 92 by them both and I scored it a way too high score of A+ when I was at the winery in March 2008. This time it was a lovely wine but not an A+ but very close to a 92, more like an A-, which is a really fine wine. It is clearly at its peak or a drop below it, drink up.
Many thanks to all my friends who shared their wine and food with us and may we all be blessed to share time and food with our friends and family. The wines are listed in the order they were enjoyed:
2005 Four Gates Chardonnay – Score: A-
We last tasted this wine during a winery visit in 2009 and we loved it even more now. The nose on this gold colored wine is screaming with caramel, butterscotch, butter, straw, apple, peach, apricot, cut grass, lemon, and smoky toasty oak. The mouth on this full bodied wine is rich and concentrated with toasty oak, rich full summer fruit, butterscotch, lemon, and peach. The mid palate is balanced and bracing with acid, butter, toasty oak, butterscotch, caramel, and peach. The finish is super long and rich with toasty oak, summer fruit, smoky notes, caramel, nice butterscotch, with a touch and finish of cut grass and hay.
2005 Psagot Cabernet Sauvignon – Score: B to B+
The nose on this garnet colored wine shows crushed herbs, cranberry, raspberry, plum, oak, black plum, licorice, chocolate, and tobacco. Over time the nose turns blacker with blackberry and black plum. The mouth on this medium to full bodied wine is spicy and mouth coating with raspberry, plum, and blackberry. The mid palate is a bit astringent with acid, tobacco, nice integrated tannin, and oak. The acid is over the top, but it does seem to calm down over time. The finish is long, spicy, and bright with raspberry, plum, oak, nice tannin, and tobacco.
2006 Covenant Red C – Score: B+ to A-
We had much higher expectations for this wine since the last time we tasted this, but it was not to be. The nose on this purple colored wine is the high point of this wine with rich chocolate, oak, smoky notes, raspberry, plum, blackberry, and herbs. The mouth on this medium bodied wine was missing, clearly lacking though showing raspberry, black fruit, and plum. The mid palate is balanced with oak, nice tannin, and chocolate. The finish is average with spicy oak, chocolate, tannin, raspberry, plum, and vanilla. The wine lingers with black fruit, vanilla, and a touch of herbs.
2004 Ella Valley Cabernet Sauvignon - Score: A-
The nose on this lovely dark garnet to black colored wine is similar to its near twin Israel 60 Special Edition in structure, with each showing different lovely notes. The nose on this dark garnet to purple colored wine is hopping with chocolate, tobacco, cedar, vanilla, raspberry, blackberry, cassis, plum, herbs, and mint. The mouth on this full bodied wine is rich and concentrated with ripe plum, blackberry, cassis, and a full mouth feel from integrated tannins. The mid palate is balanced with cedar, tannin, tobacco, and crushed herbs. The finish is super long and sensuous with black plum, spicy notes, cedar oak, chocolate, tobacco, and vanilla. The wine lingers long with chocolate, tobacco, vanilla, black plum, and cassis.
2004 Ella Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Israel 60 Special Edition – Score: A-
The nose on this dark garnet to black colored wine is exploding with roasted meat, smoky notes, vanilla, ripe blackberry, cassis, black plum, fig, raspberry, and tobacco. The mouth on this full bodied wine is mouth coating and concentrated with lovely tannin, ripe plum, blackberry, cassis, and raspberry. The mouth is concentrated and packed with nice fruit. The mid palate is balanced with acid, spicy oak, spice, tannin, tobacco, and licorice. The finish is long, spicy, and extracted with tobacco, spicy oak, roasted meats, ripe plum, and blackberry. The wine lingers with tobacco, plum, spicy oak, and vanilla.
2005 Four Gates Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley – Score: A-
The nose on this dark garnet to black colored wine is filled with blackberry, cassis, plum, oak, and spice. The mouth on this medium to full bodied is concentrated with fruit that follows the nose, blackberry, cassis, and plum. The mid palate is balanced with oak and still gripping tannins. The finish is long and graceful, with spicy oak, black pepper, cassis, and a hint of leather.
2006 Tzora Shoresh Or Gewürztraminer – Score: A-
The nose on the gold to amber colored wine is popping with floral notes, grapefruit, pear, guava, mango, honey, and pineapple. The mouth on this medium to full bodied wine is concentrated with a sweet tooth, ripe rich fresh and fleshy fruit, pear, grapefruit, honey, guava, and a nice floral hit to boot. The mid palate flows off the mouth and is balanced with nice acidity, honey, and sweet mango. The finish is long and fun with sweet rich and ripe mango, guava, honey, and acid with a touch of butterscotch. The mouth on this wine is rich and sweet but is also balanced with enough acidity and butterscotch to make the world go round.
Tunisian Couscous Au Poulet and an assortment of wines
On the evening of November 5th, we finally got around to making my favorite dish, Tunisian Couscous Au Poulet, whose recipe can be found in this post. When I think about couscous it reminds me of family and friends, as my mother used to make it every Friday Night at our house while I was growing up. Her recipe was a bit more authentic, but I believe I am close enough on the Couscous soup and makoud. Where I have totally taken the liberty to change things up was with the meatballs (boulette).
The thing I love about couscous is the assortment of food and options that the guests have to enjoy. The couscous starts with a chicken/meat/fish/vegetable soup, which has a large assortment of cubed vegetables. The chicken or meat of the soup is used in the makoud (potato kugel), and the couscous itself is fluffy and full of the soup flavor, as it is steamed with the soup. Along with all of that, there are cold pepper and carrot salads, and meatballs. All of these options allow the guests to eat at their own pace and enjoy the plethora of flavors that meld so well together. The contrasts that the display themselves on the palate are a product of the wonderful flavors that each dish on the menu shows. The couscous is soft and fluffy and in perfect contrast with the just firm vegetables. The meatballs are hot and a touch spicy which plays well with the couscous and cold salads. The vegetables are warm and infused with the meat or fowl’s flavor, which carries into the couscous and the rest of the plate.
The official meatball recipe is an artery clogging heart popping display of fried food at its greatest. The meatballs are each topped with a fat slice of potato and then fried in oil until golden brown and finished in the oven. Yes the original recipe sounds and tastes great but I am past the oily flavor, so we have been using a more Italian styled recipe with meatballs braised in tomato sauce. I have been playing for many years with the sauce and the texture of the meatballs. I have tried baking and braising the meatballs, and I keep coming back to braising. In the past few years we have pretty much nailed the tomato sauce that the meatballs braise in, but this week we killed on the meatballs as well. We used a combination of beef, turkey, and mounds of shredded raw vegetables. I was concerned that we put in too many vegetables and that the meatballs would be runny and messed up. Instead they were structurally firm but moist in the mouth and to the fork, while not crumbling to easily as well.
Of course if couscous is on the menu close friends cannot be far behind. Our table was filled with some friends who have been absent for too long and some old standbys. Benyamin Cantz was present and brought some lovely old Four Gates Chardonnay, along with other friends who brought a few Cabernet, but we only got around to one of them, that being a 2006 Yarden Cabernet. The wines were served from lightest to boldest, and there were no duds to be found!
Though the dishes do not call for heavy reds, the meatballs and the flavorful broth and makoud easily stood up to the mixture of reds that we served until the last one, which was an all out beast. The meal started with a pair of 1996 Four Gates Chardonnay and was followed by the only partial dud of the evening – the 2007 Hagafen Cabernet Franc Estate Bottled. We last tasted this wine, almost a year ago, at the winery and it was wonderful, full of floral notes, oak, chocolate, and red fruits. We bought two bottles from the winery and though the wine tasted fine, it lacked the fullness, polish, and finish that we remembered from a year ago. I can only guess that the wine is in some dumb period and will once again display its true potential, when it exists it dark cloud period. The third wine of the evening was the much talked about 2008 B.R. Cohn Cabernet Sauvignon, Trestle Glen Estate Vineyard. Mr. Bruce Cohn is the manager for the famous Doobie Brothers, and has been making wine for some 25 or so years. Much has been made of the wine, including a wonderful score of 92 from Daniel Rogov and a lovely write up on the wine and winery as well. For full disclosure, I did not pay for this wine. It was given to me to be tasted and the notes follow below. It was the third rated wine of the evening behind the next two. Those being the 2005 Ella Valley Cabernet Franc and the 2006 Yarden Cabernet Sauvignon. The final wine of the evening was the 2005 S’forno Monastrell Dulce, while nice, was clearly showing its age in color and palate.
The 2005 Ella Valley Cabernet Franc was not sold here in the US. I imported it during one of my visits to the Israel. I bought them at the winery, and alas, this was my last bottle. This wine is still expressive and explosive and one that is not on its last legs at all. The 2006 Yarden Cabernet Sauvignon is a pure beast, one displaying bright and powerful fruit, oak, and layers that come at you in waves. The B.R. Cohn is a polar opposite, in many ways, of the Yarden and Ella Valley wines. Where the Ella Valley and Yarden wines are explosive and highly expressive, the B.R. Cohn is more of an elegant wine with its own flair of complexity and expression. In no way is that a back handed compliment to the wine, but just a definition of its character and makeup.
The B.R. Cohn Cabernet Sauvignon was made in the Herzog Winery, some 420 miles south of the vineyard. The grapes were trucked down and the wine was pressed, fermented, and aged in the Herzog winery, under the B.R. Cohn label and the supervision of the OU. The thing I find truly fascinating, beyond the fact that Mr. Cohn wanted to make kosher wine, was how he and the winery kept it such a secret until it was released. With more and more connoisseurs looking at wines in the kosher market, it is truly hard to keep a secret. Everyone is looking for the next big or special wine to show off to their friends and family. Notwithstanding, the Herzog and B.R. Cohn wineries did a wonderful job at keeping a lid on this success, and we can only hope for more wines to be coming out of this winery in the future.
On an aside, I also served a bit of the 2009 Terrenal Cabernet Sauvignon from Spain. As discussed in my other posting, this is a wine that is available at Trader Joes and one that is really catching on in the kosher market. Look for more coming soon on Terrenal and the rest of the wines under the Trader Joes white label.
The wine notes follow below in the order they were enjoyed. My thanks again to B.R. Cohn Winery for the opportunity to taste the wine and the Allison at Coats Public Relations who was instrumental in procuring us the bottle of wine we so greatly enjoyed:
2007 Hagafen Cabernet Franc Estate Bottled Napa Valley – Score: B+ to A-
This is Hagafen’s second release of a single varietal Cabernet Franc, the other one being the 1996 vintage. This is the second time we are tasting the wine and it did not show nearly as well. The last time we tasted this wine at the winery, almost a year ago, it was showing quite nicely. This time the wine showed weaker with a more shallow finish and less body overall. We got these bottles from the winery, so I am not sure what could be wrong. We really loved the 1996 vintage, but this one was even better, though it has been around 10 years since we last tasted it.
The nose on this dark garnet to black colored wine showed a bit of floral notes, some crushed herbs, chocolate, along with a bunch of rich and ripe raspberry, black cherry, plum, and sweet oak. The mouth on this medium to full bodied starts off with mouth coating tannins, raspberry, plum, and black cherry. The mid palate is packed with balancing acidity, spicy oak, chocolate, and nice tannins. The finish is medium long and oak with chocolate, vanilla, rich ripe plum, spice, and black fruit.
2009 Terrenal Cabernet Sauvignon Yecla (Spain, Murcia, Yecla) – Score: B+
The nose on this dark garnet to black colored wine is rich with dirt, raspberry, blackberry, crushed herbs, a hint of chocolate, and black cherry. After some time blueberry also makes an appearance, however at that time the wine is starting to degrade. The mouth on this medium to full bodied wine is heavy with tannin that lends to a nice but crazy mouth feel, along with blackberry, raspberry, and black cherry. The mid palate is bone dry and acidic along with some chocolate and a fair amount of crushed herbs. The finish is long with chocolate, blackberry, black cherry, crushed herbs, and some mineral. After a few hours the tannins soften a bit and turn more mouth coating along with some nice vanilla. However, after a bit more time the wine turns totally tannic and out of balance, so be careful to drink this wine with 3 to 4 hours after opening.
2008 B.R. Cohn Cabernet Sauvignon Kosher Trestle Glen Estate Vineyard – Score: A- to A
The nose on this wine starts off closed and not very enjoyable. After quite a few hours the wine becomes very enjoyable and “elegant”. This is not a sledge hammer wine, not an overly complex or layered wine, rather this is a wine that has enjoyable characteristics. The nose on this purple colored wine starts off closed and muted. Over time it opens to display light notes of sweet oak or cedar, raspberry, black plum, eucalyptus, cranberry, tobacco, chocolate, and a hint of vanilla. The mouth on this medium to full bodied wine is elegant in its attack, again, not one that relies on shock and awe, rather a wine that attacks with ripe raspberry, plum, cranberry, lovely tannins, and a mouth feel that is luscious and attention grabbing. The mid palate is balanced with acid, tobacco, chocolate, cedar, and eucalyptus. This finish is spicy and long with ripe plum and raspberry, tobacco leaves, dark chocolate, licorice, and vanilla.
2005 Ella Valley Cabernet Franc (Israel, Judean Hills, Ella Valley) – Score: Almost A
The nose on this purple colored wine is hopping with blackberry, cranberry, raspberry, plum, sweet oak, tobacco, chocolate, meaty notes, vanilla, and nice mint. The mouth on this medium bodied wine filled out as it got more air. The mouth on this medium bodied is layered with rich oak, cranberry, blackberry, plum, and tannins that calm down as the wine sits in the glass. The mid palate is balanced with a rich mouth, just enough acidity, and not yet integrated tannins. The finish is long and luxurious with a playful amount of spice, tobacco, chocolate, and vanilla that is joined in by rich fruit. This was the winner of our Cabernet Franc lineup once again – unfortunately I do not have any more. This is a wine that still has another year or two under its belt and another winner for this wonderful winery.
2006 Yarden Cabernet Sauvignon (Israel, Galilee, Golan Heights) -Score: Almost A
This wine is not going to sneak up on you – it is more like a combination of a sledge hammer and a two-by-four hitting you right between your eyes. The nose on this massive, complex, and sledge hammer styled wine explodes with super ripe blackberry, raspberry, chocolate, herbs, rich oak, licorice, plum, tobacco, and sweet cedar. The mouth on this massive full bodied wine is now showing softly integrating tannins that give the wine a super lovely mouth feel. Please do not let the lovely mouth feel fool your perception of this wine, it is massive, aggressive, and heavily layered wine with rich ripe blackberry, plum, cassis, and dates. The mid palate is inky black fruit, massive sweet oak, dates, and balancing acid. The finish is super long and spicy, with nice spice, cassis, date, oak, chocolate, tobacco, and still gripping tannins.
2005 S’forno Monastrell Dulce (Spain, Murcia, Yecla) – Score: B+
The nose on this garnet to mahogany colored wine is hopping with spicy oak, fig, dried plum, dates, honey, spice, and fair amount of heat (alcohol). The mouth on this medium to full bodied wine is rounded and accentuated with sweetness and alcohol, but balanced with nice spiciness, along with honey, fig, date, and spice. The mouth is coating and round from the tannin, alcohol, and sweetness. The mid palate is balanced with acid, more spice, date, and dried fruit. The finish is long, spicy, and sweet, that is punctuated at the end with more dried fruit, fig, and honey. This is a nice wine that is a bit over the hill, but still showing enough qualities to make it enjoyable.
