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Meyer Family Micro Cuvee Chardonnay

Chris Stenberg — Sat, 31 Jul 2010 09:15:40 +0000

2007 Vintage
Tasted: July 2010

This is without a doubt the most expensive chardonnay in the Okanagan Valley and I had to know what it was like. At $75 for the 2007 vintage it is far far from cheap, and to top it off, the new 2008 vintage is only available as a magnum 1.5L bottle, making it $150 — for the Okanagan that’s expensive.

Knowing the price I saw it fitting to pair this up with something decent, so I cooked up a feast consisting of a pan cooked halibut with roasted yellow pepper puree and Okanagan apricot salsa.

I was on the mark with the pairing, but how was the wine?

Without any prejudice I will say that this chard was fantastic. It’s got nice acid, a bit of malolactic fermentation without too much, and a wild cacophony of flavours. All in all this might be one of my favourite Chardonnays from the Okanagan, and overall it’s a nice blend of sweet and tart.

It’s nicely structured with butter and honey on the nose while the palate brings a mix of granny smith caramel apple and kettle corn. The finish brings a nice lingering toasted oak with some acid. All in all this is a great chard, but the real question is whether or not it’s worth it for the price.

At the end of the day I think this is a wine for chardonnay aficionados. At $75 it is about $40 more than the La Frenz Reserve or Blue Mountain Reserve Chardonnays which are both excellent. While this one could arguably worth the money I feel that the extra money spent just brings diminishing returns.

It’s a great wine for chard fans with some extra digits in the pocket book, but if you’re not a fan it may be best to buy two bottles of something else.

Don’t get me wrong, I love it, but know what you’re getting into!

Native Shoes Review

Chris Stenberg — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 20:49:34 +0000

Native Shoes aka. “The Hipster Croc” caught my eye prior to their release when a friend of mine at a trendy Vancouver wine bar was sporting them.

“What the hell are those?” I believe was the first thing I said.

They appeared to be a hybrid of the contentious Crocs holey shoe and some kind of old school Keds or Converse sneaker. I’m not sure if Sneakerheads will find this a bastardization of sneaker culture, or if they will find them cool and functional, but either way I couldn’t help but want a pair.

There aren’t too many totally original choices for footwear, and when the summer temperatures hit I was in need of some cool cool footwear. Flip flops are great, but wreak havoc on my aging body, so the Natives seem to fit the bill with a little more support, but still adequate ventilation.

I ordered mine from The Black Markers, a cool online shop that I found through the Native Shoes website. I chose them because they seemed to be doing shoes the right way with their flat rate shipping and simple return policy. The shoes arrived promptly, and I’ve been wearing them around the beaches of the Okanagan for a little while now.

So how are they? Well, let me start by saying that they have definitely raised some eyebrows and turned a few heads. It’s nice to be on the leading edge for a change. In terms of fit, I ordered mine a size down on advice from Natives as I am normally a 9.5 and they only come in full sizes. My question to them was “what size Natives should I wear — do Natives shoes fit small or fit big?”

The advice I received for me was to order them on the slightly snugger size and let them stretch out as they break in.

Now that I have them I can say that erring on the smaller side actually worked fine. They appear to fit a little long, but the model I ordered, The Jefferson, also fit on the narrow side which fit my feet perfectly. So going down a half-size was actually fine. If you are ordering these shoes online, also keep in mind that you’ll likely wear them without socks, which changes the sizing a little bit too.

They are fairly stretchy which should accommodate wider feet, but if I had wide feet I would likely order the loafer styled Corrado, which seems a bit boxier judging by the photos.

So what’s the verdict? These shoes are pretty damn comfortable, and are certainly way easier to walk around in than flip flop sandals. I like the style, and the price was reasonable. They are well vented, but because they are plastic my feet feel mildly clammy in them after a while. I like the breeze through effect of all the vent holes though.

I think overall I would consider these my sport utility shoe for summer activity. They’re perfect for walking around town and look cool enough to pass for dinner on a summer patio, but are breezy enough for a trip to the beach. I’m going to say I’m still into flip flops for direct to beach travel, and for short walks, but for those extended meandering summer outings I’m going with the Natives. At $60 Canadian they aren’t overly expensive, and they’re still obscure enough to be a bit of a fashion statement.

I like them.

Cedar Creek Winery

Chris Stenberg — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 09:04:08 +0000

Cedar Creek Winery is located in the Lower Mission area of Kelowna and is one of the veteran players in the Okanagan wine game. The wines of Cedar Creek are well acclaimed and the property itself is a true estate winery.

Perched above Lake Okanagan on Lakeshore Road, a short drive out of the city part of Kelowna, Cedar Creek has a magnificent view and a great country feel. The tasting room is rustic and is always an enjoyable experience, and the property also plays host to an ongoing series of noteworthy musicians throughout the summer.

On my recent visit the staff were all lively and fun — joking with us and playfully pouring us our wine. In a relatively young industry, the Okanagan wine experience should be fun, and not pretentious, and that’s how I found it to be Cedar Creek. It’s a level of exuberance that also shows through in the wine.

I am a particularly big fan of the Platinum Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon, but I can say with confidence that pretty much everything from Cedar Creek is at a very high level. In fact, I think Cedar Creek gets my “you can’t go wrong” designation for wine choice.

You can find Cedar Creek Winery at:

5445 Lakeshore Road
Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada
V1W 4S5

Telephone 250 764 8866
Facsimile 250 764 2603
E-Mail INFO@CEDARCREEK.BC.CA
WWW.CEDARCREEK.BC.CA

Tantalus Winery

Chris Stenberg — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 09:02:12 +0000

Tantalus Vineyards winery is located in the Lower Mission area of Kelowna perched on a hill looking out over the vineyard and Lake Okanagan. Rolling up on the winery took us down a long gravel driveway to a stark white modern building.

The clean and mildly austere lines of the recently built LEED certified building made me feel like I was at a secret Volvo design facility. The design of the building is very modern and very Scandinavian, and to be honest — I love it.

Inside, the tasting room is airy and spacious, and makes great use of negative space. The room is basically empty, allowing you to focus your attention on the two most important aspects of this place — the view, and the wine.

Despite the modern elements, I didn’t feel anything pretentious about this place. It’s just really well designed. It’s slick without being gaudy, and that aesthetic extends itself to the wine packaging and graphic design. Everything is clean, simple, modern, and tells a good story. I like it.

The nice thing about Tantalus is that it’s not all marketing driven hype — the wine here is excellent.

Their Old Vines Riesling has an excellent reputation, and on first taste, it lives up to the hype. This is a true Riesling lover’s Riesling. Big petrol on the nose combined with a nice tart apple taste. This one is meant to age.

Other notables from Tantalus are their upper tier Pinot Noir and their Rosé which is a blend of Pinot Meunier and Pinot Noir.

You can find Tantalus Vineyards at:

1670 Dehart Road
Kelowna, British Columbia, V1W-4N6
Phone 1.877.764.0078
Fax 250.764.0771
Email info@tantalus.ca
www.tantalus.ca

Summer Hours: Daily Noon to 5PM. No appointment required.

Laughing Stock Syrah

Chris Stenberg — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 08:24:37 +0000

2008 Vintage
July 2010

This is a Côte Rôtie style Syrah from Laughing Stock Vineyards meaning it’s a blend of Syrah and up to 20% Viognier. Côte Rôtie allegedly means “roasted slope” and refers to the long hours of sun exposure that the hills of the Northern Rhône Valley receives. It sounds a little similar to the Naramata Bench where it’s Eastern situation brings long hours of sunshine. This particular blend is 92% Syrah and 8% Viognier.

It seems like there are a bunch of Syrah/Viognier blends popping up around the Okanagan — particularly on the Naramata Bench, and Laughing Stock, as always, is on the leading edge.

On first whiff of this one I picked up something distinct from my childhood — waffle cone. This almost sounds like wine tasting blasphemy, but I like waffle cones, so who cares! Just to be sure I checked the next day, and it was still there, so either I’ve lost my marbles, spent too much time in an ice cream shop, or some combination of the two. Hey, I do live in the Okanagan.

Aside from the waffle, the nose brings around aromas of black pepper, tobacco, and a decent amount of alcohol as witnessed by my tingling nostrils.

In the mouth there’s some nice cherry, a little toasted oak (aka waffle cone), and some plum. I think if I had done this tasting blind I might have mistaken it for a Malbec, but that could be my inexperience with Côte Rôtie wines. Overall this wine is nice. It’s got a rich purple colour, medium body, medium but firm tannins, and some nice plum lingering on the back end.

At $34 this one doesn’t come cheap, but it’s certainly not out of line. I might cellar this one for another year or two, but would likely just drink it soon. Pair with a wide range of meats and poultry dishes to round out a nice meal.

La Frenz Cabernet Sauvignon

Chris Stenberg — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 08:01:17 +0000

2008 Vintage
Tasted: July 2010
The Cab Sauv is probably my favourite red wine from La Frenz. It’s big, it’s bold, but it’s not lacking in complexity or refinement. The current 2008 vintage is peppery with bright fruit and chocolaty characteristics. If you spent a lot of time on this one you could likely pick out more, but all I really want to say about this one is that it’s very very good and well worth packing a few away in the cellar for years to come in addition to drinking some asap! I’m a fan. This is the kind of wine I’m not sure whether to share with my friends or just horde myself. I mean, I’m mostly a sharing kind of guy, but this one sells out fairly quickly. Hmm, conundrums… In any case, this is another solid wine by La Frenz.

2006 Vintage
Tasted: July 2010
Still posessing good acid and ripe fruit characteristics, the 2006 Cab Sauv from La Frenz could probably last a few more years in the cellar, but it is certainly drinking very well. Tannins have mellowed in comparison to the new 2008 vintage which makes for easy drinking, but I almost prefer the 2008 vintage’s sharp notes and big pepper. I think they’d be great for different things. The finish is subtly dominated by lingering cassis, toasted oak and leather notes. There’s still a nice pepper component to this one at four years old. I’m likely going to leave my one remaining bottle for another year and see how it progresses, but overall it’s great to drink now.

Two Buck Chuck and Other Cheap Wines From Trader Joe’s

Chris Stenberg — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 07:49:05 +0000

A while back in Chicago while staying at The James Hotel, I decided to check out the wine selection at the Trader Joe’s across the street. I had heard of the fabled “Two Buck Chuck” Charles Shaw wines available at the store, so I decided to give it a little look-see.

First let me say that Trader Joe’s is actually a decent place to buy wine. Maybe not collector wine, but good for a dinner party wine. They stock wine typically under $30 from some reasonably reputable wineries like Coppola, etc.

On this trip, however, I was only interested in one thing — cheap wine.

So, I fill my free evening by picking out three red wines under $10 and proceed to have a wine taste shootout in my hotel room. I wanted to know, is the $20+ for a good Okanagan red really worth it? Has somebody pulled the wool over my eyes? Maybe cheap wine can be good?

2002 Little Boomey Cabernet Merlot — Australia — $4.99
2005 Charles Shaw Cabernet Sauvignon — California — $2.99
3rd wine – Unmemorable Cabernet Sauvignon — California $9.99

I hate to report that all of them were crap. That might sound harsh, but I would only drink any of these if I was eating heavy amounts of food to mask the flavour, or if I was trying to get drunk in a hurry. All 3 of them were mostly indistinguishable from each other, all of them tasted like spiked Welch’s grape juice, and all of them ended up going down the sink.

So there you have it, there is something to be said for paying a little more for wine. I guess the old adage runs true — you get what you pay for. Next will be cheap white wine from Trader Joe’s. This likely has a better chance of success…and there is that vineyard myth out there about the $2 Charles Shaw Chardonnay that took a gold medal at a prominent wine festival in a blind tasting.

To be continued…

Vindication Vineyards Viognier

Chris Stenberg — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 06:11:44 +0000

2009 Vintage
I have to give props to this rare find to the boys over at Cherries & Clay. I had no idea Elephant Island was releasing some non-fruit wines under a different label until I took a perusal on the Cherries & Clay blog. It’s actually a great nod to the power of social media and the blogosphere these days. It’s a bit scary, but a well positioned blog can carry some clout!

So in terms of the actual wine it’s an interesting mix of things. It’s got a bit of body to it and has a strange mix of those sort of lychee and citrus notes with a little hint of Sauvignon Blanc in there, which apparently there is some used in this Viognier as a blending grape.

I’m honestly having a bit of trouble describing what this wine tastes like. It’s not a typical Viognier, but it’s fun. I’m just going to describe it as “a party in my mouth.”

This is a fun summer sipper with some great story and marketing behind it. The label is über cool and, well, it’s just fun. ‘Nuff said!

The wine is somewhat exclusive and available at restaurants, through the winery (with some cajoling of course), or at the Naramata General Store. The price is just over twenty bucks and there will eventually be a website up for Vindication Vineyards at www.itoldyouso.ca

Peter Lehmann Barossa Shiraz

Chris Stenberg — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 05:51:00 +0000

2004 Vintage
Tasted: July 2010
This one has been sitting in “the cellar” for a while now, and for whatever reason I haven’t drank it. I guess I knew it was good and probably worth saving, but I probably should have drank it by now. Anyway, I digress.

Later vintages of this wine scored in the 90+ range at Wine Spectator, so I’m going to venture a guess that the 2004 would fit in close to that range too.

On opening my first instinct is “wow, that’s smooth!” The nose is soft fruit, and not too boozy. It’s quite smooth on the palate and still possesses good acid on the back end, but is a little soft on tannins and fruit. It has definitely taken on some of the mushy blackberry characteristics, but still has a bit of smoke and leather in there somewhere.

The finish is probably shorter than it once was, but is still decent with a bit of lingering ripe fruit. I think it’s softened beyond gamy meat territory, but is certainly an easy sipper at this point, and tasty too. If you’ve got some of the ’04 vintage around I would hurry up and drink it!

http://www.peterlehmannwines.com/

Lance Armstrong Nissan Leaf Commercial

Chris Stenberg — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 23:36:47 +0000

While Lance Armstrong maybe behind in the 2010 Tour de France, he’s certainly ahead in many other ways, one of which would be his endorsement of the forthcoming Nissan Leaf electric car. Touted as the first affordable zero emission vehicle for the masses, the Leaf is creating a media wave. Team Radio Shack is not actually using a Nissan Leaf as a team car in the Tour de France because of the distance requirements, and is instead using the European equivalent of the Nissan Rogue, but it will be cool when they do start to use the car in shorter stage races.

As a cyclist I know all to well the feeling of breathing exhaust fumes. This commercial featuring the 7-time Tour de France champion is a great homage to what will hopefully become days gone by where we sniffed fumes all day while on the bike.