Each year Wine Enthusiast’s Toast of the Town is one of the most impressive tastings in Manhattan. In addition to the bevy of fine wines and spirits poured annually, key New York City restaurants come out and each prepares a signature dish at the event. All of this is set against the backdrop of a tremendous venue, Lincoln Center. Over the years Toast Of The Town has grown and in 2009 it’s being held in 4 different cities. Next year Dallas will be added and it’s expanding to 5.

This years Toast Of The Town in New York City is Monday June 15^th, just a few days away. Over 500 wines and other spirits will be poured there. The main event starts at 7:00 PM and lasts until 10:00 PM. Tickets are $95 and can be purchased through their official site. There is also a VIP tasting that begins at 5:00 PM. During those first couple of hours quite a few reserve and limited production wines are poured. The ticket price for the VIP tasting, which also includes the main tasting, is $195.

Each year I get to many wine tasting events of every shape, size and scope. I’ve attended Toast Of The Town a number of times and highly recommend it. It is without question one of the most complete premier tastings year after year. If you can swing it, the VIP tasting ticket is the way to go in my opinion. If not, the main event is still quite excellent. I hope to see you there!

A couple of days ago I had the pleasure of tasting wine with the Douro Boys. What’s that, you don’t know who the Douro Boys are? In short they’re five Winery principals from the Douro Region of Portugal. For the last seven or eight years they’ve joined forces to market their wines and their region together.

While I said I tasted wine with them, it was really so much more than that. These folks present a Masterclass in their wines that’s an excellent introduction, or at the very least enhancement, of the knowledge one has of the Douro. Each of the Douro Boys (one of them is a female btw) exudes passion about the region and its ability to offer unique world class wines. They are of course very different individuals and they approach wine making with divergent thoughts and ideologies. One thing they seem to agree on is this. For the Douro to have a major impact on the global wine market they need to focus on indigenous varietals. The Douro is loaded with old vines, many of them field blends with dozens of varietals planted. It’s in these old vines and Portuguese varieties that they have something to offer no one else does. To plant Cabernet Sauvignon or some other international variety wouldn’t serve them, nor would it offer anything new to wine drinkers.

Of the 23 wines we tasted through four were white, six were ports and the remainder red. I’ll mention some specifics about my favorites below but first a few generalities. The wines we tasted had retail prices starting at under $15 all the way up to over $100. In general the quality was very high and the wines were clearly crafted with care and passion for the art. While I had my favorites, by and large each of them was unique and interesting in its own way. I found the reds to generally have particularly expressive bouquets, often with prominent spice components.

Here are a handful of the wines that stood out most to me:

Amongst the whites, the 2007 Redoma Branco Reserva from Niepoort was my favorite. This wine is composed of about 30 varietals. I found it to be and impeccably balanced white with an excellent finish. Touches of caramel, nutmeg, and toast stood out.

Several of the wines poured are still in barrel back in Portugal. One of these was likely my overall favorite of the day. The 2007 Reserva from Quinta do Vallado is a field blend. The vines it was sourced from are about 80 years of age. I found this wine to have some sour cherry notes, a touch of bacon fat on the finish with a nice bite. Excellent acidity and good balance also stood out here. I found myself crazing roast leg of lamb with rosemary and garlic when tasting this wine. The suggested retail price for this offering once it’s bottled, will be about $50.

I mentioned the excellent aromatics most of these wines contained, a shining example of that was the Quinta do Crasto 2006 Reserva. 24,000 cases of this beauty were produced from vines with an average age of 65 years. The nose was simply loaded with spice. Clove and nutmeg stood out in particular. For $35 I recall this being an impressive wine that seemed like it would pair with diverse foods.

The Quinta Vale D. Maria Van Zellers 2007 was a wine I found particularly interesting. Approximately 2,500 cases of this offering were produced from purchased fruit. This red was aged in stainless steel. I found it to be a straightforward wine with some Beaujolais like qualities. This is a red wine I’d serve with a hint of a chill on it. An excellent choice for Paella

One of the ports that really stood out was the Quinta do Vale Meão Vintage 2007. This is an incredibly aromatic wine. It offered plenty of dried red fruit characteristics as well as excellent spice. This was a superbly balanced port that I imagine will age nicely. Decanting it and drinking over a long evening would be an interesting study.

The last wine tasted was a Niepoort 1991 Port. This one wasn’t on our tasting sheet and Dirk van der Niepoort pulled it out after someone commented on his 2005. The 1991 was a real stand out for me. Nuts, caramel and fig notes were the story of a gentle but complex palate. This wine was sweet but restrained. Graceful and elegant are the two words I feel best summed up this lovely finish to an afternoon of tasting and learning.

Anyone tasting these wines, especially with the Douro Boys, would know a lot more about Portugal and the Douro afterwards. The best way to learn about wines is of course to taste them. You can read about them all day, but one sip tells you more than days of research. This Masterclass from the Douro Boys was a case in point. While I’ve had quite a few Portuguese wines in the past, tasting these current and upcoming releases from the Douro was nothing short of a revelation. Going forward I know I’ll have a stronger need to taste the wines of Portugal.

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When I attend a large scale Wine Tasting in successive years, one of the first thing I look for, is differences from the previous one. Last year I felt that the New York Wine Expo was very good, particularly for a first year event. I was hoping however that the 2009 event would be even better.

What I found upon entering the Javits Center, is that the 2009 New York Wine Expo was being held in a larger space than last years event. As I hoped, that meant it was more spacious, (not just crammed with more tables) and easier to get around. Another upgrade, in my opinion was the selection of wines. I do believe there were more wines being poured this year, but that’s not what I mean. The wines being poured formed a broader cross section of the wine world at large. Each area represented seemed to have a number of producers, allowing tasters to get a nice feel for a region. Argentina, Austria and Germany are three countries that I particularly noticed good representation of.

Argentine wines are a particular interest of mine, and I’m always glad to see their wines out in force. Germany and Austria are both countries I feel often get short shrift at tastings and on US Wine Store shelves. So to see them being well represented, was pleasing.

Among the producers that stood out, Château de Valloubière had a lovely Rosé that I look forward to sipping all summer long on my deck. New Zealand’s Staete Landt had several impressive selections including a Sauvignon Blanc and a Pinot Noir. Amongst the Austrian standouts was the Tegernseerhof 2007 Rosé Zweigelt and the Steininger Loisiumweingarten 2007 Gruner Veltliner. The 2004 Hall “Kathryn Hall” Cabernet Sauvignon impressed me with its complexity and finish. It’s sure to age for close to a decade. Several selections from Portuguese producer Quinta do Vallado stood out as well. Neige, an apple Ice Wine from Quebec, provided something quite different, and memorable.

Also of note was Four Wines 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon. This is the first wine in a tube. What this represents is the latest take on premium boxed wines. It’s the equivalent of 3 liters of wine (4 bottles), with a suggested retail price of $40. I found it to be a tasty wine, more complex than the average $10 bottle of Cab. They claim it’ll be good for a minimum of 4 weeks after opening.

Wine lovers in the NY area who didn’t attend the 2009 Wine Expo will want to keep their eyes open for the 2010 iteration. The number, and variety, of available wines, from the world over, makes this a worthwhile event.

Starting  this Thursday: 12 Days of Cabernet Franc! 

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The 2nd annual New York Wine Expo is just two weeks away. I attended the premiere event last year and wrote about it here. This years event takes place from February 27th through March 1st. Once again the event is being held at the Jakob Javitz Convention Center. I found last years Expo to be a good one, especially for a first year event. There were a wide range of wine to taste from many corners of the world. The event was also well organized out by region. I’ll be attending it again this year and writing about it.

Much like in past years Wine Enthusiast’s 2008 Toast of the Town was amongst the best large-scale public tastings in New York. For those wanting to sample a large array of wines, from around the world, under one roof Toast of the Town provides that. Quite a few New York restaurants were also present, each preparing one signature dish for attendees to sample. A Jazz combo played music in the background that added to the ambiance and feel of the tasting.

The event ran from 5:00 PM to 10:00 PM. The first two hours were a VIP tasting. Tickets to get in early went for $185, while tickets for the Grand Tasting, which started at 7:00 PM, were priced at $95. As it has in past years the venue was Lincoln Center.

The benefits of the VIP ticket were essentially three fold. Of primary importance was the fact that just about every exhibitor was pouring several higher end, and reserve wines during the first two hours that were not available during the grand tasting. Secondarily there are fewer VIP tickets sold and thus it’s easier to get around during that portion of the evening. While it’s not uncommon for an event of this scope, the Grand Tasting can be a crowded event, where it’s sometimes necessary to jockey for position at a particular exhibitors tasting table. The final benefit of the VIP Ticket is the simple fact that you have 5 hours instead of three to make your way around. With all that time, there is no need to attempt a dizzying pace.

One of my first stops of the evening proved to be amongst my favorite tables of the tasting. The wines being poured at this table were several labels that Susana Balbo of Argentina produces. From her entry-level wines in the Crios line, to the BenMarco and Susana Balbo labeled wines, the selections were impressive. What I enjoyed about these wines was a combination of consistency in style and true varietal character. Look for more detailed coverage of her wines her in the future, as I’m confident they are worth taking a close look at.

Throughout the night there were a solid handful of wines that really stood out from a potpourri of exhibitors and producers. A Monte Rosso Cabernet Sauvignon from Louis Martini was noteworthy as was the newly released 2005 vintage of Don Melchor, the undisputed King of Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon. Dead Letter Office from Henry’s Drive was the best Australian Shiraz I had at the event. Amongst a number of Italian wines I really enjoyed, the Biondi Santi Rosso Di Montalcino was a stand out. A bit more locally, the wines I sampled from Carneros producer Artesa Vineyards and Winery, particularly their Pinot Noir, really resonated with me.

Another table that was a highlight of the tasting for me also featured Argentine wines. In this case the producer was Luigi Bosca. Several Malbecs, Cabernets and blends were exquisite as well as excellent values. As with the Susana Balbo wines I plan to take a closer look at them in the future.

Outside of the wine realm there were also numerous exhibitors pouring fine spirits at Toast of the Town. Amongst these I found Domaine De Canton’s French Ginger Liqueur unique, refreshingly different and well worth seeking out.

My one gripe with this event is a situation with the tasting glasses. At some point later in the evening I misplaced my glass. It was a bit of a struggle to get a second glass. The folks handing them out said they were under strict instructions that each person could only have one glass. Since there appeared to many boxes full of glasses right behind the folks I was speaking to, I’m not quite sure what the issue was. Eventually, I was able to get another glass, but it shouldn’t have been so difficult. I noticed a few other people having a similar issue soon after. If there is a policy that each person can only have one glass for the evening, it should be made clear as people walk in. If I had known of such a policy I would have been more protective of the first glass I received.

As a whole, Toast of the Town continues to be an excellent event for lovers of fine wine, food and spirits. Lincoln Center is an elegant setting that lends additional class and an air of importance to the proceedings. Whether one chooses to attend only the Grand Tasting or the VIP tasting is going to be dictated by their own tastes and budget. If feasible the VIP tasting is the recommendation here as it does add significant value. If you have never been to Toast of the Town and you love wine, mark you calendar for Spring 2009.

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Wine Enthusiant’s annual tasting is hitting New York City in just 2 weeks away. Having attended this event in the past I can attest that it’s an excellent event with a wide array of wines and food to sample.

Wine Enthusiast
TOAST OF THE TOWN
NEW YORK 2008

Experience Wine Enthusiast’s spectacular annual epicurean evening of wine, food and soft jazz in the city’s cultural epicenter, Lincoln Center of the Performing Arts. International wine and spirit companies will pour more than 500 of their premium products, and over 30 top New York restaurants will be showcased.

Date: Monday, May 19, 2008
VIP Tasting: 5:00-7:00 p.m.
Grand Tasting: 7:00-10:00 p.m.

Location: Lincoln Center’s New York State Theater

63rd Street and Columbus Avenue, NYC

Silent auction to benefit: City Harvest and the Food Bank For New York City

Tickets:

VIP Tasting $185
Grand Tasting $95
Space is limited, reserve in advance:
www.toastofthetown.com or call 800-847-5949

Up Next: The 12 Days of Petite Sirah Continues!

This weekend I attended the first annual New York Wine Expo. Similar events have take place in Boston and Washington DC for a number of years. The New York City version was held at the Jacob Javits Convention Center. Friday and Saturday was open to the public for $85 and $95 respectively. The event also took place on Sunday for those involved in the Wine trade in one form or another.

With clearly numbered aisles and good organization it was easy to navigate around the venue and find particular wineries that were listed in program. The wines of a couple hundred producers were represented. Many wine producing regions were featured but Argentina had a particularly large representation. It was easy to see that there is quite a bit of diversity and quality coming out of this South American country, often at a great price. Being a New York event, local wines were also prominently showcased. In addition to those examples wines from Africa, Portugal, Chile among others were also featured along with the countries people traditionally think of when wine comes to mind.

Of particular note were some dessert wines from Cyprus that seemed to find the intersection between Sherry, Port and Madeira. I sampled four different releases and they were each remarkably delicious and distinct in character. A Pinot Noir from Fulcrum Wines of California also stood out. However these are just a few examples. There were a tremendous number of interesting wines to try throughout the weekend.

In addition to wine a few booths were dedicated to exhibiting food products such as cheese, organic snacks and churros. One strange thing for an event of this size was that bottled water was being sold. Most events of this magnitude seem to have a bottled water sponsor who doles out tons of the stuff for free to attendees. That said, regular ice water was available for free throughout the venue.

All things considered this was a very good event for Wine Lovers. The Javitz center has plenty of room and it was well organized and well run. If you missed it, look out for the 2nd annual New York Wine expo in early 2009.

This Week: Three Releases from Australian Producer Smidge Wines.

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Yesterday was the Gambero Rosso Top Italian Wines Road Show in New York City. It was held at 583 Park Avenue, which proved to be an excellent venue for this type of event.

The idea to have the best and highest rated Italian wines from the previous year under one roof, is a terrific one. Over two floors and dozens of tables one well made, well rated and often legendary wine after another was available for tasting. The gamut of Italian wines from traditional Chianti, Barberesco, Barolo etc were poured alongside the relatively newer Super-Tuscans and single varietal bottlings of things such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and the like.

One of the most interesting tastings of the day for me was a 3 year vertical of Verdicchio. The years on hand were 2002-2004. All three vintages were unique and interesting. However the 2002 was for my palate the one to drink now. It has achieved a minerality and subtlety that the younger vintages have yet to achieve. This was proof for anyone who tasted through them that some Italian whites can age very well. In fact for me the 2002 Umani Ronchi Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi Classico Riserva Plenio (imported by Bedford International) was one of the top two or three White Wines of the event. Considering the great wines being poured that says a lot.

There were approximately 170 of the best Italian Wines being poured yesterday. To get to all of them would have been impossible. That being the case I made my way around in a leisurely fashion throughout both floors and made a point to taste some wines such as Tignanello that I was already familiar with. But I made even more of an effort to seek out wines that I was previously either unfamiliar with or only knew by reputation. I should be covering some of these hear in the not too distant future.

The bottom line is that Italy is producing some of the best wines in the world. Overall quality across price levels was impressive. If you have a way to beg, borrow or steal your way into a future Gambero Rosso tasting, it’s highly recommended.

Yesterday I attended the Wine Australia Festival at Cipriani on Wall Street in New York City. Hundreds of wines were available to taste from all areas of Australia.

As it has the last few years, this event sold out in advance. This is no surprise since it’s been a consistently good and fun event to attend. One would have a hard time getting to half the wine, let alone all of it. My strategy was to taste some whites early in the day and then walk around cherry picking between favorite producers I was already familiar with and unfamiliar ones that sounded interesting.

I’m happy to report coming across several wineries I was previously unfamiliar with that impressed. In general there are some terrific wines emanating from some of the burgeoning cooler climate areas of Australia. Yarra Valley is amongst these areas. Several Pinot Noir’s I had from this area as well as Chardonnays were particularly noteworthy. Amongst them was Giant Steps. Successive vintages of their Pinot Noir and Chardonnay were standouts. Both were true to their varietals and made in an old world style. They were also well balanced and built for food. Overall the number of wines I tasted yesterday made in this style was impressive.  

Another noteworthy producer was Boggy Creek Vineyards. Several of their wines were quite tasty but my favorite was a Cabernet-Shiraz blend. It was full bodied, loaded with ripe dark fruit, but not overwhelming, or overly alcoholic.

Naturally there was a lot of great Shiraz to be had. Regardless of what style you like your Shiraz, you were bound to find numerous examples to tempt your palate at the Wine Australia Festival. Additionally there were a multitude of different blends, both red and white which were impressive. Some of them were standard types of blends such as the Cabernet-Shiraz I mentioned above. But in other cases they were slightly more unorthodox. One was a Chardonnay-Viogner blend that just knocked me out. It only had a small amount of Viogner in it but it lifted the nose to stratospheric heights. This wine was by Hungerford Hill. It’s in their Fishcage Series. The retail is around $12.00 and it over-delivers at that price.

These are really just a few examples of what was a lot of good and interesting wine. There was also plenty of food placed strategically throughout the room to munch on.  Water was also readily available so everyone could make sure they stayed properly hydrated. I’ve attended the Wine Australia event several times now. If you’re a fan of Australian Wine this is a great way to taste quite a few of them and likely come away with some new favorites. If you are new to Australian Wine this tasting is a good way to familiarize yourself with the wide array of wines and styles they’re producing. The Shiraz tends to get all the hype, and it’s deserved as it is their signature grape. But Australia is doing so much more than that with their wines these days it’s really a very worthwhile country for wine-lovers to delve into and explore.

The event itself was well organized and thought out. In addition to the normal tables where wineries, distributors and importers poured their wares there were also “Regional Heroes” tents. They would pull standout wine from one area and varietal to taste side by side. This was a good idea and a terrific way to compare wines to their counterparts.

The Wine Australia Festival takes place in New York City every January with tickets going on-sale the previous fall. If you missed it in 2008, keep your eyes open for when tickets go on-sale for the 2009 version. It’s well worth the time and ticket price, which was $70.00.