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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
Herzog International Food and Wine Festival 2011 Results
Well 2011 has come and gone and I am finally getting the chance to write up the 2011 International Food and Wine Festival (IFWF) that was held at the Herzog winery in Oxnard. In some ways it was the best ever and in some ways it was not. To start, 2011 was the fourth incarnation of this event and each time it has been well worth the trip. This past year’s event, in many ways, was the best. The food, as usual, was fantastic! The food is catered by Chef Todd Aarons, the head chef of the Tierra Sur, the world-class restaurant that is in the Herzog Winery. As usual, the food that Mr. Aarons and his staff prepare the event is bite size or a bit larger format, food that easily fits on a small plate. Essentially, think of them as normal or slightly large tapas, depending upon the food in question. As usual, the tapas were just divine, and as usual I always get the scarps. I say that because, I want to finish tasting the wines before I eat the awesome food, which would seriously inhibit my ability to write coherent wine notes. Of course, there is never a lack of good wines to taste, so essentially, I always eat whatever is left over as they are winding up the food and wine service. It is a mad rush to get some pictures and eat some food – truly sad, and totally my fault!
This past year’s event was even larger than its predecessors. As usual, the Herzog winery was fully decked out and expanded in the back by adding on a few heated tents. Normally, the French and Israeli wines were poured from the back room and the tent, behind the back room, which itself abuts to the parking lot behind it. This past year, they expanded further by pouring only Israeli wines from the entire back areas, moving Capcanes to the Spanish and Italian section, and moving all the French wines to its own room – the Herzog Situation or Conference room, which is off to the right from the entrance, essentially on the other side of the building. Some may look at that and say they relegated the French wines to the “basement”, but the way I see it, Royal has SO MANY wines to show off from its portfolio, and only so much room in the winery that they chose the best holistic group they could that would not look too small or take up too much room, in the conference room, and that fell to the French wines.
This was the first of the, not so good points, and that was the lack of communication around this change of venue for the French wines! I totally understand the complexity of it, and there was signage. However, given the drastic change that was in affect, a bit more information for some would have been good. I found myself telling many people about the new location for French wines, that they thought were AWOL for 2011. That said, I think this will not be an issue in 2012, as the event will be moving from Oxnard and the Herzog Winery to LA at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, Century Plaza!
Of course, with all the room taken up by wines and wonderful food, there still needs to be place for the humans and this was issue number two, which again will be fixed in 2012. That being, there was very little room to move about as the evening moved on. I found myself having to find a corner to just write notes, let alone not to feel claustrophobic, which is a problem I do not normally exhibit. That said, I hope that the new venue will allow the event to stretch its wings and soar to higher heights with more space and more opportunities to showcase its wonderful food and wines.
I truly believe that 2011, was the first year where the wines totally out shone the food, excepting for 2008, when the French wines were truly off the hizzy. This is not in anyway a slight to Aaron’s food, rather it is a compliment to Royal wine portfolio, that has now reached world class, and something I am sure they are extremely proud of. I do not need to repeat the story of Herzog, which can be found in the middle of last year’s post, as that would be just repeating myself. I just hope you read this and it grabs you enough to buy some tickets that are going really fast for the 2012 version of the International Food and Wine Festival which will be happening in LA this year – enjoy the notes. I need to add my personal thank you to the entire Royal and Herzog staff for putting together such a great show, and much luck on your new 2012 event!
The wine notes follow below, in the order they were tasted:
2007 Domaine l’OrDeLine Chateauneuf du 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 kiwi, grapefruit, lemon, gooseberry, mineral, apple, and white peach. The mouth on this medium bodied wine is rich with white fruit, tropical fruit, and mineral. The mid palate is round and balanced, with nice spice and mineral. The finish is long with clean yet round flavors of of fruit, spice, mineral, and bramble. The wine is so classic in its minerality and clean lines yet ripe and luscious. Read the rest of this entry
2012 Herzog International Food & Wine Festival comes to Los Angeles
Once again Herzog is putting on its massive food and wine festival on February 15th, 2012 (MAN I still cannot get used to that number) starting at 6PM. The festival is a great place to get to taste some of those wines that are either beyond your price budget, or hard to find wines, or ones that you pass by on the shelves because you just have no idea how good they are. They will be pouring more than 100 bottles of wines, so be sure to get there early, before the crowds show up. There will be a few new faces this year, with a couple of new wine makers showing up, and a few surprises (think new kosher wineries), from what I hear. Of course, there is also the food TO DIE for, from Mr. Aarons and his staff of insanely competent chefs! So please be sure to BUY your tickets here (coupon code below). The wineries pouring will include; Flam Winery (newly Kosher), Tulip (also newly kosher), many wonderful French brands, Goosebay, Teal Lake, Harkham, Barkan, Segal, Shiloh, Gamla, Carmel, Psagot, Domaine Netofa, Domaine du Castel, Binyamina, Morad, Capcanes, Ramon Cardova, Elvi Wines, Casa de Corca, Porto Cordovero, Alfasi, Yatir, Fleches de los Andes, Rashi, Bartenura, Weinstock and Herzog Wine Cellars… OVER 130 WINES WILL BE POURED!
Tickets are going fast so grab one or more while you can. Like last year they will be pouring wine and spirits – from around the world. Last year they poured cognac and scotch, and the display/table was “well attended”.
Here are my notes from lat year’s event!
Please note the change of scenery! The event this year will be in Los Angeles BABY!!! That is right you heard me correctly! You do not need to drive 50 minutes to and from your home; rather you can drink and eat to your heart’s content, and then crash at one of the many rooms in the lovely Hyatt Regency Century Plaza! Herzog is working out a deal with the Hyatt and will hopefully have great deals for staying there on the website soon.
The last four years that we have enjoyed attending this event it has been getting a bit more crowded each year. This year with all the room that the Hyatt has to offer, the hope is that there will be more than enough room to roam and taste the aromas of the world and the flavors of Todd Aaron’s world renowned Tierra Sur Restaurant. Please DO NOT worry, just because the event is at the Hyatt does NOT mean the Hyatt will be doing the catering, rather ALL food preparation will be handled by the incomparable staff of Tierra Sur Restaurant. The food will be prepared on the premises, just as if it was still in Oxnard!
Yes, Yes I left the best for last. Herzog is giving out a coupon out for 10% off the ticket price – use the coupon (on the page after you add the tickets to the cart) KOSHER.
Every year we go and every year we are so excited because it gives us a chance to taste the wines and to see what to buy for the upcoming holidays. So grab you mouse and start clicking and we look forward to seeing you all the 2012 Herzog International Food & Wine Festival.
This is a copy of the blog posting from Herzog’s web site:
Join Herzog Wine Cellars in celebrating fine wines and cuisine at the 2012 International Food & Wine Festival. Year after year, this massive event has highlighted choice wines and spirits brought in from around the globe. This year’s festival is coming to Los Angeles, CA for the first time, and is the perfect place to taste amazing, rare and hard to find wines and spirits. More than 100 labels will be poured from Royal Wine Corp’s diverse international portfolio, all in the sophisticated setting of the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza.
2011 International Food & Wine Festival at Herzog Cellars in Oxnard, CA
Once again Herzog is putting on its massive food and wine festival on February 16th, 2010 from 6PM to 9PM. The festival is a great place to get to taste some of those wines that are either beyond your price budget, or hard to find wines, or ones that you pass by on the shelves because you just have no idea how good they are. They will be pouring more than 100 bottles of wines, so be sure to get there early, before the crowds show up. There will be a few new faces this year, with a couple of new wine makers showing up, and a few surprises, from what I hear. Of course, there is also the food TO DIE for, from Mr. Aarons and his staff of insanely competent chefs! So please be sure to BUY your tickets here.
This is a copy of the blog posting from Herzog’s web site:
Some of the finest names in kosher wine today are coming to Oxnard, California on February 16 to celebrate the kosher renaissance of fine drinking and dining. They hail from France, Spain, Italy, Israel and (of course) California and include such renowned wineries as Leoville Poyferré, Pontet Canet, Yon Figeac, Giraud, Malartic La Graviere and Laurent Perrier (from France); Capçanes Flor de Primavera (Spain); Domaine du Castel, Yatir, and Barkan (Israel); and Herzog and Covenant (California). Hosted by Herzog Wine Cellars, this annual event offers attendees a most extensive and exclusive array of high-end kosher wines as well as the opportunity to meet winemakers who rarely find time to come to California.
In addition to the impressive wine line-up, attendees will be treated to a mouth-watering selection of gourmet delicacies prepared Chef Todd Aarons, of Tierra Sur restaurant, located at Herzog Wine Cellars. Tierra Sur was recently recognized by Zagat as the top rated restaurant in Ventura County. Chef Aarons continues to dazzle diners with his Mediterranean-influenced cooking, which will be on display for all to enjoy throughout the festival.
At the spacious, contemporary Herzog Wine Cellars, guests will not only be able to taste wines and enjoy dishes prepared by Chef Aarons and his staff, but they will also be able to view the winemaking facility, located about one hour north of downtown Los Angeles, a mile off Route 101 at the southern edge of Oxnard. Tickets are available for purchase at www.shopherzog.com.
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
International Food & Wine Festival at Herzog Wine Cellars 2010 Summary
It all started on the first Monday in February, Benyamin Cantz and I were driving down to LA to attend the 2010 International Food & Wine Festival. This is the third installment of this wonderful event, and we have both attended them in earnest, as to be honest, there are few places where one can taste hundred dollar kosher bottles of wine. As usual, the event is set up by the congenial and detail oriented Monica Agyekum, who heads up the marketing & public relations at Herzog Wine Cellars. The drive down started without much fanfare, but things changed quickly within the last 2 or so hours. Benyo wanted to stop off at a wine supply shop, and since we went down with the 101, we hit Paso Robles and the shop pretty quick. The visit to the shop though was far from quick. To be fair, I asked a bunch of questions as well, so the visit was a 50/50 time drain. After that, we were supposed to get to the Coast Wine Services (CCWS) in Santa Maria, to meet up with some folks making Rhone Ranger style wines, mostly GSM and GS (Grenache, Syrah, and Mourvedre) blends. Well no matter how hard we looked we could not find them. After asking around it turned out that their car had broken down, and we were more than happy to lend a hand. The only problem was that our car was already packed – NO not with clothes; this was a two-day trip for goodness sakes. But with Benyo’s wine! It turns out that he has many happy clients in LA, and we were shipping it to them! Well the trunk was filled with MANY thousands of dollars of wine, and we needed to pick up these two poor guys, and all of their belongings! AHH!! Thank the Lord, we made it work. However, the two guys were covered to their heads with their stuff, in the back seats. Well, we thought that would be the totality of surprises for this leg of the trip, but not long after Oxnard, a police man pulls us over. We are not sure for what; we were driving with the traffic. However, once he saw the two poor guys in the back, it was game over; he kept harassing me and begging me to say something stupid. All the while, I kept my cool, and prayed that we get out of this as well. Once again, Baruch Hashem (Thank the Lord), he came back and told us to drive slower. At that point all I wanted was some food and a bed to sleep on. I was dead. We had been driving and walking and packing for some good 10 hours or so. We slowly got to Jeff’s Sausage, where we inhaled two dogs and fries. We dropped off our guests, and headed over to our sleeping accommodations.
The next day started off and ended in a wonderful way, which was a huge step up from our previous 24 hours. The day started off with a late morning, Starbucks coffee, and a short drive into Encino, CA found me meeting Craig Winchell at this nice Kosher Sushi restaurant, called Sassi Sushi Bar, for a late lunch. Craig has been a long time friend, and is the owner of the still existing Gan Eden Winery, and also the owner of the wonderful Smokin’! Restaurant in Valley Village. The last time we were here in LA, Benyamin Cantz and I enjoyed a meal there, and my posting of that dinner can be found here. We met there and we both enjoyed the meal, and on the way out I bought some plain (unsweetened) rice to go, to use as a palate cleanser for the upcoming wine tasting event that we were both going to. So many times people go to these wine tasting events and have no way to manage tasting more than some 20 or so wines, before their palate’s either die, become overrun with wine characteristics, or worse, ghost characteristics. I first heard of this approach on Rogov’s Forum, and I have used it many times, since then.
After lunch we got into the rental car, and drove north on Highway 101 for some 38 or so miles. Herzog Cellars winery is a fascinating story. It started with Eugene Herzog immigrating to the US from Austria in 1948 after the war and after communism took over his winery. He worked for a small winery in NY, and by 1958 he became the majority owner of it. In deference to his grandfather, they called it Royal Wines, as he was given the title Baron in Austria. By 1985, the family decided that they needed a California presence, and so they hired the famous Wine Maker Peter Stern, to build their initial footprint into the world of high end wines. After that they moved to Santa Maria, hired the now head wine maker, Joe Hurliman, and leased space from Coast Wine Services (CWS), while all the while knowing that they needed a place that they could call home. In the end, Joe went looking for a plot of land, that was as close to a Jewish Community as possible (for the Kosher Wine managers), and landed on Oxnard. Not a classic place to house a winery, but one that is close to the highways to truck in the grapes and one close enough to a Jewish Community to allow for full time Jewish supervision. The winery opened in 2005, and three years later it started hosting the now yearly International Food and Wine Festival.
As in years past, we came for both the trade and consumer parts of the festival. The festival’s name, International Food & Wine Festival, is aptly applied, as it is a celebration of both the Tierra Sur Restaurant and the wines made and imported by the Royal Wine Company. The trade portion is open during the early afternoon, while the public portion is open in the early evening. Craig and I arrived for the trade portion of the event right on time. As we approached the front of the winery, we were greeted by a pair of hostesses who took down our names and gave us name tags. As we entered the winery, I had a case of Déjà vu. The layout and setup was the same as the previous two incarnations. As you enter the winery, the conference room is to the right, where Jay Buchsbaum, Vice President of Marketing and Director of Wine Education, holds his unique and eclectic wine seminars, on subjects ranging from reading a label, wine tasting, or what kosher wine is. They are seminars that should not be missed, and on an aside, a personal note, Jay if you are reading this, I hope your leg is doing better. To the left though was the Raison d’être of the evening – the wines and Todd’s delicious food. As you enter the tasting room, the table with Herzog Moniker-ed glasses is to your left. With a glass in hand, we entered the hall that is Herzog’s tasting room. There were some 12 to 13 tables with wine on it, someone to pour the wine, and finally, a person intimate with the wines or better, the wine maker. Past all the tables and wine bar, is the now renowned Tierra Sur Restaurant, run by the incomparable Todd Aarons, the Executive Chef of Tierra Sur. The entire restaurant, the sitting areas, and the adjoining patio, was setup with elaborate dishes and on-the spot preparation utensils, to heat/smoke/finish any of some 20 to 30 dishes. The layout, display and hands on preparation by the many chefs of the restaurant, only help to accentuate the evening, and gives the average consumer, an almost chef’s table view into the world of elite class dining.
As usual, the staff of Herzog Winery were out in force, and it was great to see them all again, Cellar Master Josh Goodman, and the fore mentioned Head Wine Maker, Joe Hurliman. However, to pull off an event of this scale, you need many people. Even if you leave aside all of the mashgichim needed to pour the wine, or all the wine makers/wine promoters who talk to the wines on the table. What about all the spit buckets that magically are empty when you turn to use them, though you swear you just spit into one of them a few moments ago. Or, what about all the preparation that was required to pull this off (hint hint Monica), the setup of all the tables, the shipping in of all these wines, the Herzogs that seemed to be in view whenever you took your eye off the wines or food, or the management of the human mass that seemed to almost overrun the winery, but not to the point of getting in your way. All of this work, which is in NO way small, needs a huge round of applause. No, I do not work for Royal, nor do I sell their wines. What I am is a wine blogger with at least a decent eye for the not so obvious. Some call me observant, and not only in a religious manner. In no way was the gathering in your face, nor was it oppressive or difficult to get to wine you wanted to taste. Instead, the event was quite impressive, well run, and in so many ways yet another step forward for this progressive kosher winery.
Last year, the event was equally impressive, but the crowds were smaller, in an almost diminutive and unfortunate manner. More than a few of the wines were corked or DOA. Further, sometimes, the tables were left with people who poured the wines, but knew nothing about them. All of these issues took away from the event. This year, all of those issues were rectified, in an impressive tour de force that truly brought the Herzog and Baron name great “nachas” and accord. Nary a bottle was DOA this time, some may not have been so great, but none were dead because of poor shipping, lack of foresight, or poor cork/bottle management. The crowds were robust, but as stated already, not oppressive. The tables were manned by people passionate about the wines, and equally capable of talking to them at a drop of the hat. Finally, the selection was impressive as well. I asked one of the Herzog’s why many of the wines that were poured at the New York wine tasting, were not here in California? He aptly replied that it is up to the wine makers. If they want to come to California, then they are more than happy to help promote the wines. However, a few of the wineries, like Alexander and Tzuba Wineries, both of which we have highlighted in previous, were no shows at the California tasting. I hope that next year, more people will get a chance to taste some of these magnificent wines from Israel.
So without further ado, left us take a quick virtual tour around the room before, we adjourn to the restaurant, where we will give Todd his insane due. Read the rest of this entry
Herzog Wine Festivals on both coasts start next week!
This year, Royal Wines and its wine producing arm, Herzog Cellars, will once again be hosting wine festivals. For the past four years, Royal has had a wine event in New York, to showcase their wines before Passover, as that is one of the busiest times of year for kosher wine stores. Think of it as the Black Friday for kosher wine producers, importers, and stores. Well, to further showcase their California winery, Three years ago, Royal Wines started a west coast version of the wine festival. I have had the great luck to be part of the past two International Food & Wine Festivals. The first International Food & Wine Festival was grand, with many wine vintners; tons of great wine, and great food. The second International Food & Wine Festival was a huge success, with some new and returning vintners; some great new wines, and as usual Chef Todd Aaron showcased his wares from his world class Tierra Sur Restaurant.
The New York event will be on Monday February 1st! This is the first year that the New York event comes before the Herzog Cellar wine festival. Also, Adam Montefiore (of Carmel & Yatir) will be at the New York event, but not at the west coast Wine Festival – which is a real bummer!!!!
The West Coast event – the 2010 International Food & Wine Festival will be on Wednesday, February 3rd.
Hopefully we will see you all at the 2010 International Food & Wine Festival this coming Wednesday! Please remember that you should not drink and drive. So, please get a designated driver, or get a room at many of the hotels near the winery!
International Food & Wine Festival at Herzog Wine Cellars 2009 Results
This past week saw Benyamin and I going to Los Angeles to visit the Herzog Winery’s showcase event of the year. The winery threw this event last year, and it was a major success. This year I arrived a bit earlier for the press tasting and stayed on for the public one as well. I was able to spend far more time with the three wine makers that were there this year. I spent some time with Goose Bay’s Philip Jones – Managing Director & Senior Winemaker who is the founder of the winery. I asked him how the relationship occurred between Goose Bay and Royal Wines. He explained that he had always wanted to make kosher wine – but was not in the right place and time to make that happen, until a few years ago when he contacted Royal and things just popped into place. Listening to him talk about Ph, excess acidity, malolactic fermentation, etc. really gave me an appreciation for the decisions that wine makers need to make when crafting a wine. The myriad of minute issues that pop-up are mind boggling and the stress of not really knowing what the outcome will be, can only but exasperate the issues. I want to thank Phil for taking the time to explain his wines to me and for making the event that much more special. I also had the luck to talk with Joe Hurliman and to ask him a few questions about the event and the lineup of wines that Herzog was presenting from their own winery. Of course the coming out party was for the new flagship wine from the To Kalon vineyard, but there were far more wines from Herzog that were on display and many were quite nice. I saw Eli Ben Zaken walking about and spent some time with him around the French wine table.
I arrived at 3 PM and started tasting the French wines. This year they had more verticals than they had last year, but they also had fewer French wines that were top notch than last year. Also, a few of the bottles on the French table and many more around the whole event were oxidized or corked. Either way, about 6 to 9 bottles overall had to be pulled, or were not right, which is a shame. The French wines that were not oxidized were also not knockouts. That is except for the usual French suspects of — Pontet Canet and Chateau Guiraud Sauternes. The stars of last year were either no shows or DOA.
- Yatir was a no show
- Segal was a no show
- Castel C was there, but the 2003 vintage, which is not available. Kind of makes you wonder what they thought about the 2006 vintage, if they did not want to bring it.
- Chateau Smith-Haut-Lafitte Pessac-Leognan was a no show
- Francois Labet Puligny-Montrachet 2002 – which was last year’s star, was oxidized.
- The Meursault Premeir Cru – was also oxidized or corked.
- Carmel and all of their wonderful single vineyard and appellation wines were a no show
- Finally, the 2005 Capcanes Peraj Ha’abib, Flor de Primavera tasted fine but was oxidized on the nose to the point of not being able to enjoy it. Same goes for the Binyamina Ruby Syrah – which was a major hit the last time I tasted it.
With all the misses, there were a ton of hits including the awesome food made by Todd Aarons, chef of the winery’s Tierra Sur Restaurant. The food was incredible, from pulled duck Gnocchi, to lamb bacon, to chicken mole. You name it, it was there. Essentially, the menu of the Tierra Sur restaurant was open to the guests – which was quite a treat.
So I want to thank the winery for being such gracious hosts and putting on a fabulous show. The wines were wonderful, and the food was to die for. The wine notes follow below:
2003 Chateau Leoville Poyferre Saint Julien – Score: A
The nose on this garnet to black colored wine is huge with blackberry, cassis, cranberry, eucalyptus, and cloves. The mouth on this full bodied and crazy bold black wine is mouth coating with sticky tannin. The mouth starts with blackberry, cassis, figs, and anise. The mid palate is boldly tannic, with oak and coffee. The finish is long and astonishing with balance of oak, coffee, chocolate, and more tannin. This wine continues to impress and is a dense black wine with complex layers of black fruit, tannin, coffee, and chocolate. Impressive, but still too tannic.
2002 Chateau Leoville Poyferre Saint Julien – Score: B
The nose on this dark garnet colored wine is hot to start but that blows off after a few hours, along with cassis, cranberry, oak, and allspice. The mouth of this full bodied wine is tannic with cranberry and cassis. The mid palate is acidic, oaky, and tannic. The finish is long with a heady mix of tannin, core acidity, and a nice balance of rich oak. A nice wine, but one I think that is either sleeping now or again a bad bottle. Read the rest of this entry
International Food & Wine Festival – 2008
On a cool Winter’s night, my friend and I drove up to Herzog Winery in Oxnard, CA for a kosher wine tasting and food event. The first thing that struck me was the number of Rabbi’s that were at the event. I had heard that because of the large amount of non-mevushal wine that Royal Wine Corp would be pouring that night (Herzog Winery is a subsidiary of the Royal Wine Company) – that there was a call made out for all the Rabbis that they could get.
This is the first year for the west coast version of this event. Last year the event was a huge success on the east coast – in New York and the Herzog Winery really stepped up and put on quite a show. The event was called for 7 PM for the public and 6 PM for the press. The advantage on arriving early was not for early an tasting, rather it was to be able to mingle with the winemakers that were brought in from around the world for this event. We first met Assaf Paz from Binyamina wines. Assaf is a very insightful person. We had a long talk on Carignan wines. I was in the middle of writing a piece on the 2004 Carmel Carignan Old Vines wine for kosherwine.com’s wine club and he told me that he was one of the people that saved the very vines that helped produce the very nice wine. We talked about kosher wine and Israel – a very touchy subject – but one he was very gracious with us about. We then met Pierre Miodownick – the wine maker for Royal’s Herzog Selection wines that come out of France. Pierre oversees all wine that is chosen for Kosher production and was very knowledgeable about his wines and very gracious with his time and brutally honest about his own wines – which is quite a nice change of pace from other wine makers. Joe Hurliman was around and stopped by once during our Carignan discussion as did Jeff Morgan. Both men were around during pourings and were more than happy to talk about their wines and answered almost all questions we posed – again whether complimentary or not.
The event was laid out with wineries displaying their wines on a set of tables and the food was served in Herzog’s award winning Tierra Sur Restaurant. The food was served tapas style. The presentation of the food was quite lovely. Unfortunately, we did not get a chance to sample of all of it, as it closed a bit early. We got to taste some of the fish and a couple of meat dishes – but totally missed desert.
The event had its highlights and its misses. Some of the things we took notice to:
- The public came in LA style. They came late and left early. Quite humorous really. We started tasting some wine and there was no one to be found. Later we picked our heads out of our wine glasses to look around, and all of a sudden the rooms were filled with people. We were happy to see so many folks so was Monica (Herzog’s one man show in producing this wonderful event). Monica felt there were 100-150 people that arrived for the festivities, and that it was a good start for an event that we hope will be held annually at the winery.
- Most of the people arrived for the food and a few came for the wine. I was really happy to see that the public did not come to get sloshed. I have no issue with the crowd that the event brought in. In the end, the event was held to showcase the wine and in a smaller scale – the restaurant. The crowd was respectful of people’s space and people’s attitudes towards each other.
- The buzz was almost tangible and very electric. There was noise everywhere – in a good way. People were happy to be there and all the conversations that I heard in passing were positive about the event.
- There was a ton of food, and it never ran out. The food was presented quite nicely and tasted quite good – of the little that I had a chance to get.
- Some of the people pouring the wine knew about the wine, but most had no clue. To the point of a fault. I was given a glass of Meursault Premeir Cru that was obviously spoiled, and the pourer said nothing. Same with a few glasses of Yatir wine. Quite a shame – as Herzog was presenting some of it top of the line wines in a very bad light – to its own detriment we believe.
- The event was a marked departure from its east coast version. There were many more wines poured there. But at the same time – it was so overcrowded in NY – that many who went there are thinking about not returning next year. Of course that is more bluster than reality, as there is nowhere else in the world that one can go, and see the variety of wines that were poured at either event. In the end it is about promoting the wines – and Royal will improve, we are sure, the presentation of its wines and manage the events to better meet the needs of the event goers.
The event by almost all perspectives was a smashing success, and we hope they will continue to improve both events for many years to come. Now to the wines notes:
A few overarching themes that kept appearing throughout the evening.
- The wines were more red and green than dark and brooding – weird because we tasted many big Bordeaux, California, and Israeli wines.
- Many of the wines we saw and tasted will not be in stores until Passover and maybe beyond, as some have been just bottled and some are just not in the area yet in quantity.
- I have added links to the wines through http://www.wine-searcher.com or Google when wine-searcher get finicky. I have no affiliation with this company. I just find them accurate and useful. I am tangentially affiliated with kosherwine.com and so I have not linked the bottles to them directly. They commonly show up in wine-searcher results. Of course please – ALWAYS support your local shop before you run off to a web page near you.
Segal Unfiltered Cabernet Sauvignon 2002 – Score: B+
This ruby colored wine was aged in oak for 18 months. The nose on the wine is filled with raspberry, plum, smoke and spice. This full bodied and round wine is smooth and has carry over notes from the nose of plum, berry and spice. The finish is long and filled with spice and smoky wood.
Domaine du Castel ‘C’ 2006 – Score: B+
This straw colored wine was aged in french oak for 12 months. The nose on the wine is filled with oak, pineapples, citrus, and lychees. This full bodied wine is edgy with strong notes of apples, summer fruits, and spicy wood. The finish is long and filled with more spice and toasted wood.
Chateau Valandraud St. Emilion Grand Cru 2002 – Score: A-
This wine has a crimson red mature color to it. The nose is heavy with earth, raspberries, and plum. The mouth of this medium bodied wine has earth and dark berries that linger long on your mouth after the wine is gone. Th
e finish is medium long with tannins and spice.
Chateau Leoville Poyferre St.-Julien 2002 – Score: A-
This wine has a deep garnet color. The nose is filled with earth, smoke, black berries, licorice, and oak. The mouth is of this medium – full bodied wine is very tannic still and is complex, deep and brooding. Spice, dark fruit, and mint all come together in a medium long and satisfying finish.
Chateau Leoville Poyferre St.-Julien 2003 – Score: A-
This wine has a deep ruby red – garnet color. The nose is filled with red fruit, raspberries, oak, and plum. The mouth is of this full bodied wine is very tannic still and wound as tight as a coiled snake around its prey. Spice, dark fruit, and licorice are overpowered by the chunky nature of the wine’s tannins. The finish is super long and linger on your mouth long after the show is over.
Chateau Smith-Haut-Lafitte Pessac-Leognan 2002 – Score: A-
This wine has a ruby red-garnet color. The nose is filled with raspberry, cherry, earth, spice, and smoke. The mouth of this full bodied wine is overpowered still with chunky tannins earth, fruit, and sweet wood. The finish is long, satisfying, and wrapped in a cloak of smoky tobacco.
Covenant Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 2006 – Score A- to A
This wine has a lively garnet color. The nose assaults you with raspberry, cherry, earth, and spice aromas. The mouth of this full bodied wine is overflowing with flavors of chocolate, coffee, and oak. The long finish is wrapped in oak and smoke and the flavors linger a long time in your mouth. This is a very young wine and will develop nicely over time.
Herzog Generation VIII Cabernet Sauvignon 2004 – Score: A-
The color on this was is a lively ruby red. The nose is filled with chocolate, smoke, black cherry, and oak. The mouth on this full bodied wine is laden with cherries and plums. The chunky tannins have yet to integrate, but the finish is long and smoky and the wine lingers long after it is gone.
Herzog Chalk Hill Warnecke Special Edition Cabernet Sauvignon 2004 – Score: A-
The color on this wine is a clean Ruby-Red. The nose has aromas of black cherry, mocha, and toasted wood. The mouth of this medium-full bodied wine has notes of cassis, spice, and cocoa. The finish is long and spicy.
Herzog Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley Special Reserve 2004 – Score: A-
The color of this wine is garnet with dark edges. The nose on this wine is earthy with aromas of cherry, raspberry and oak. The mouth on this full bodied wine is almost chunky as the tannins have yet to settle in. The spicy wood and red fruit all flow together quite nicely into a medium finish that ends with a flourish.
Herzog Pinot Noir Special Reserve 2005 – Score: B+
The color of this wine is light ruby. The nose on this wine is earthy with aromas of cherry, dust, spice and oak. The mouth on this light to medium bodied wine has carry over from the nose. The cherry comes through grabbing some anise along the way and ending in a medium long spicy finish.
Herzog Syrah Special Reserve 2003 – Score: A-
The color of this wine is deep garnet to purple. The nose on this wine is laden with spice, tar, black berries and toasted wood. The mouth on this full bodied beast has carry over from the nose. The tannins have yet to fully integrate – making the wine a bit chunky, but the tar, black cherries, and pepper flow easily together into a medium long finish.
Francois Labet Puligny-Montrachet 2002 – Score: A
This was one of my favorites of the evening. The color is an almost electric light straw. The nose is stuffed full of citrus, apple, lychee, and light creme. The mouth on this medium bodied wine is both acidic and citric but nicely balanced with oak and fresh fruit flavors. Lychees and peaches jump into the mid palate and stay along for the long ride to the finish and than lingers on your palate long afterwards.
Chateau De La Tour Clos – Vougeot 2002 – Score: A-
The color on this wine is a mature light burgundy. The nose on this wine is earthy, vegetal, and loaded with oak. The mouth on this medium bodied Burgundy is packed with wood, tannins that are far from integrating, and almost mud-like flavors, with a finish that was long and satisfying. This wine is far from ready, over tannic, wound tight like a boa constrictor around its prey, and fruit that is almost not visible. I am sure this one will come out of its coma and be a really fun wine with a lot more time under its belt.
Chateau De La Tour Clos – Vougeot 2003 – Score: A
The color on this wine is a mature and dark burgundy. The nose on this wine is earthy, filled with red fruit, and loaded with oak. The mouth on this medium to full bodied Burgundy is fruit forward with cherry – almost overpowering, the woody and chunky tannins. The finish is long and tannic. This wine is far from ready, the fruit has yet to integrate with the tannins and the oak is watching from the side wondering when it can join in as well.
Chateau Le Crock Saint Estephe 2003 – Score: A-
The color on this Bordeaux is deep and maturing garnet. The nose on this wine is packed with dirt and earth, a bit of vegetal aromas and a fair amount of black cherries. The mouth on this full bodied wine is still very tannic. The cherries run with the vegetal qualities into a very long and spicy finish. This one has some time yet to settle. One of the best of the night by far (and far more reasonably priced to boot)
Chateau Lafon Rochet St Estephe 2003 – Score: A-
The color on this Bordeaux is a deep ruby color. The nose on this massive wine is packed with dirt, earth, blackberries, dark cherries, and a ton of oak. The mouth on this massively bodied wine is tannic but still closer to balanced than any other 2003 Bordeaux tasted. This is more to do with it huge fruit that balances out the tannins. Earth, mint, and blackberries run along side the dark fruit that takes hold of this wine, until the extra long finish that is filled with oak and spice. A great bottle for the price and a real favorite at the show.
Chateau Guiraud Sauternes 1999 – Score: A+
First off – this wine is a killer wine. One of the top rated wines in the world – both kosher and not. That said this wine is a winner and can be cellared for quite a long time. The color on this magnificent Sauterne is golden and deep. The nose on this super concentrated wine is filled with honey, cooked fruit, lychees, and apricots along with spice and oak. The mouth on this full bodied wine is quite insane; it is almost creamy in nature. The wine hits you first with the carryover honeysuckle, cooked fruit, and spice. But the structure and acidity is what makes this a wine and not a syrupy mess. What a wine. The wine has a super concentrated finish of acid and fruit and a lingering affect on your mouth that is sure to please everyone at the table.
Chateau Pontet – Canet Pauillac 2003 – Score: A
The color on this Bordeaux is deep garnet to purple. The nose on this massive Bordeaux is chock full of chocolate, earth, oak, licorice, and dark berries. The mouth on this super concentrated and full bodied wine is still very tannic. The blackberries and cassis take second fiddle to the chocolate and coffee that dominate the palate. This massively structured wine is a beast and will take quite a long time to settle down. The finish is long and has an extra dollop of mineral and oak to close out the show. Quite a wonderful wine and quite a close to the evening as it was the last bottle that we tasted that evening.
Barkan Altitude Series 412 Cabernet Sauvignon 2003 – Score: B+
The color on this Cabernet is deep garnet. The nose is filled with spice, cherry and raspberry. The mouth on this medium – full bodied cabernet is nicely balanced with oak, berries and mint. The finish is long with spice and oak.
Barkan Altitude Series 624 Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 – Score: B+
The color on this Cabernet is light garnet. The nose is filled with raspberry and cherries. The mouth on this medium bodied cabernet is nicely balanced with oak, cherries and raspberry. The finish is medium long with sweet oak on the side.
Barkan Altitude Series 720 Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 – Score: B+
The color on this Cabernet is light garnet. The nose is filled with smoke, cherry and raspberry. The mouth on this medium bodied cabernet is nicely balanced with oak, cherry red fruit, and licorice. The finish is medium long with smoke and tobacco.
Rashi Barolo 2000 – Score: B
The color on this Barolo is a classic Piedmont red. The nose on this wine is a earthy, filled with cherry and floral aromas. The mouth on this medium bodied wine is nicely balanced with a bit of tannin, sour cherry, oak, and raspberry. The finish is short and the structure is fading. Drink now.
Carmel Limited Edition 2004 – Score: A
The color of this Cabernet/Petit Verdot/Merlot mix is deep garnet to purple. The nose on this wine is filled with deep and brooding fruit that almost smell purple in nature. Aromas of blackberry, oak, and cassis hit you. The mouth of this full bodied wine is fat with tannins that have yet to integrate. Blackberry, cassis, licorice, and a hint of chocolate fill your mouth like a velvet glove. The finish is long and the chocolate and spice linger on your palate long after the wine is gone.
Carmel Kayoumi Single Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2003 – Score: A-
The color of this brooding Cabernet is deep garnet. The nose is filled with earth, raspberry and blackberry. The mouth on this full bodied wine is still brooding with chunky and fat tannins. Once they integrate with the blackberry, cassis and oak they will make this winner a truly delightful wine. The finish is long and spicy.
Yatir Forest 2004 – Score: A
The color on this Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot/Syrah mix is deep garnet to purple. The nose on this wine is almost assaulting. Blackberry, oak, smoke, and spice come at you from all directions. The mouth on this full bodied wine is loaded with berries, plum, oak, and chunky tannins. The finish is super long and earthy with a bit of spice that comes along for the ride.
International Food & Wine Festival
Just got back from the International Food & Wine Festival at Herzog’s Oxnard winery. To use a single word (or a few single words) – Stupendous, Vibrant, Electric, or Fun. Everyone from the Herzog family down to the people cleaning the floors (yeah I stayed late 😉 ) – were just great. I went there with friend and we must have gone through some 20+ wines. Wine notes will follow – but for now the clear winners:
Chateau Guiraud Sauternes 1999 – Huge winner!!!
Chateau Leoville Poyferre 2003
Chateau Pontet-Canet 2003 – Killer!!!
Capcanes Peraj Ha’abib 2004 – I did not like it as much as the 2001, but so many loved it – I had to place it on the winners.
Carmel Blend “Limited Edition” 2004 – Big favorite
The bigger disappointment was the Barkan altitude wines. To be fair – some liked it – but it was too light for such a wine. A clear trend in the wines I tasted at the event was red fruit. Even the larger Bordeaux vintages and wineries still were very red in flavor, when I was expecting black fruit.
Awesome event, great turnout, fantastic food and a great time by all. I hope Herzog saw the love it needed and will continue to support the west coast with events like this one. Congratulation Royal Wine on such a wonderful event.
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