2009 - A Review

As this year is coming to an end, I'm finding myself reflecting on what has happened over the year, but also the things that didn't happen. I didn't find the time to blog like I had hoped, even though I think about blogging at least once a day. We've had some really great experiences, but I sometimes wonder how much more we could've done with our year. Looking back at the year, here are the standout events for me.

March was a great month for two reasons, the NCAA tournament, and the Boise Co-Op. For the second year in a row, Portland State made it into the NCAA tournament, and this time was playing in Boise. Now, how often will I get to watch the Vikings play in the NCAA tourney within driving distance of home? Probably not in the near future, so we took the opportunity to watch them play in Boise. While there, we visited with some friends of ours, who introduced us to the Boise Co-Op wine shop. The Co-Op is like nirvana for wine geeks. They have one of the best selections of wine we've seen, but that's not what makes the shop so great. They have an entire room that is temperature controlled which houses some pretty amazing stuff. I think we spent 45 minutes in there just geeking out on the wine that was there. We ended up getting a 6-pack of various stuff while we were there (thanks to recommendations), but sometimes I wish they opened up one in Portland.

In May, we hosted our first double blind tasting. Well, it was double blind for everybody but Sirpa and I, as we had picked the wines. For us, it was just a single blind tasting, as I bagged up the wines when nobody else was looking, and by the time we poured them, I had forgotten which was which. It was really enlightening to experience a wine without knowing what the producer was. The weekend with good friends and good wines was definitely a highlight of the year.

Early in November, we went to a party in celebration of some friends visiting town (the same friends that introducted us to the Co-Op). Now, I had heard some things about the parties that were hosted by the person that was hosting this one, and basically, they were usually a big group of wine geeks geeking out over wine all night, with plenty of juice flowing all night long. Turns out, that's exactly what it was. What started as a sampling of vintages from 1993-1999 of Willamette Valley Pinot Noir added a blind tasting between '05 California, Oregon, and Burgandy Pinot Noirs, as well as some bigger reds and some ridiculous desert stuff. '60 Port? '52 Madiera? Check and check. A really amazing night with some awesome people, I couldn't have asked for more.

I think I'm finding that while going out tasting and exploring with Sirpa is fun and enjoyable, being able to share our findings with friends as well as experience other new things with them is the most enjoyable aspect of wine. Sure, the flavors are usually delicious, and a responsible buzz from time to time isn't a horrible thing, but the shared experience of friends and wine is the best.

To the friends we've shared amazing experiences with, and to the friends we haven't seen enough, cheers to you!

A Cab and a Chard, all in the same night.

Yesterday, I was really in the mood for a Cabernet Franc. I'm not sure why I was in the mood for this, but it just sounded really tasty. Unfortunately, what we had for dinner (chicken and rice) didn't really pair well with red, so we decided to drink a 2000 Cristom Chardonnay. We don't really have Chardonnay very often, and the 2000 Cristom is about all we have in inventory right now. Cristom only has 4.5 acres out of their 65 acres planted with Chardonnay, so its a very minor part of their wine selection. Their Pinot Noirs are very big (for a Pinot) and the ones we have are going to be stored for a while. The Cristom Pinot Gris is one of the best I've had, and was one of the first wines I drank that I really enjoyed. I think the Cristom Pinot Gris and the King Estate Domaine Pinot Gris are the wines that got me into wine.

But I digress, so back to last night. The Chardonnay was a good drinker. It wasn't overly complex, and not very oaky, so it was a really great Tuesday night wine with dinner. I'm not usually a fan of Chardonnay, as they are usually to oaky and big. The way most Oregon Chardonnays are made though, they are lighter and usually fermented in stainless steel. The Cristom is oak-fermented, but it is still a good example of how I would make Chardonnay.

After dinner, and friend came over and we had a bottle of 2005 Erin Glenn Cabernet Sauvignon. I'm not usually a fan of Cab due to the high tannins, but Erin Glenn makes a Cab that is easy to drink, even for a guy like me with a "delicate" palate. This wine is definitely on the lighter end of the Cab spectrum, which I appreciate. It was a wine that was easy to drink on its own, and did not need food to go with it. Again, it wasn't a super complex wine, but a very drinkable, and very good wine overall.

Sometimes you don't have to have the most complex and superb wine to enjoy a dinner and nice evening with friends. A good bottle (or 2), good food, and good friends are all you need.

Link to Cristom

Link to Erin Glenn