Behind the Cork™ - Phantom Chardonnay

2019 Phantom Chardonnay ($18.99)

It’s that spooky time of year again and a great time to re-visit the Phantom. This Chardonnay is from Bogle Vineyards where the story goes that a ghostly figure wanders their cellars at night. There are fleeting glimpses of muddy work boots and blue jeans, then it’s gone. Does the Phantom really exist? They believe so and absolutely believe that it has inspired them.

This California Chardonnay has aromas of honey and vanilla that go right along with flavors of golden apple and pear along with hints spicy caramel notes from the French oak fermentation.

There’s even an app you can download called “Augmented Reality Wine Labels” that allows you to scan the front label with your phone camera so that you can experience the paranormal stories of The Phantom.

Bogle has a lot of fun with this wine. But, don’t be fooled - this is a serious Chardonnay. This Phantom Chardonnay is very attainable and very affordable, making yet again a great fit as a Behind the Cork™  Wine of the Week. And, also look for their red blend; it’s great too! Cheers!

Ever Wonder What Makes a Wine Age Worthy? (Part 2)

Wines with the best “structure” will generally age most gracefully.

Finding wines that will improve over time requires that you pay attention to a wine’s structure. What is structure? These are the primary components:

• Acidity - Wines lose acidity over time, so it’s important that the acidity be moderately high to aid as a preservative. Acidity can be detected in a wine by it mouth-watering characteristic.

• Tannin - These compounds stabilize a wine’s flavor and help maintain its color. Tannins, when young, will be detected by its astringency or mouths-drying characteristic.

• Alcohol - Acts as a stabilizer in higher amounts (e.g. fortified wines) and in some dry wines with >15% ABV). Alcohol levels are generally printed on the label. High levels of alcohol can be detected by a mild burning sensation in the throat after swallowing.

Finally, it’s the interaction of tiny amounts of oxygen in the bottle along with the acids, tannins and alcohol that produce the chemical interactions that affect how a wine ages.

But, each of these attributes must be in balance with one another. That is, in proportion to each other. And, the best way to know if a wine is balanced is by tasting it and learning to detect this overall balance.

Here are some wines that tend to have good structure that tend to be age-worthy:

• Cabernet Sauvignon

• Syrah

• Merlot

• Bordeaux Wines (which are primarily blends of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah)

• Nebbiolo

• Sangiovese (the grape used in Italian Chianti)

• Tempranillo (the grape used in Spanish Rioja)

• Pinot Noir (the grape used to make red Burgundy)

• Malbec

Even with this knowledge, experienced collectors sometimes have trouble determining which wines will age and for how long. So, you’re not alone in trying to figure this out.

Again, most wines are ready for consumption as soon as they are bottle. It’s only a very small percentage of wines that are actually able to age well. And, you’ll probably need to spend $50 (US) or more to find such age-worth wines.

So, if you find a great red wine, with great structure and it’s well-balanced, try putting a few more away in proper storage, and then pull them out one at a time (every 6 to 12 months) to see how they are changing with age. Hopefully for the better! Cheers!

Behind the Cork™ Helwig Frenchmen’s Creek Barbera

2015 Helwig Frenchmen’s Creek Barbera ($35)

Dave Helwig had a dream to move to the wine country upon retirement. After searching with his wife, Nancy, for the perfect wine region to relocate to from their home in Southern California, Dave couldn’t resist the charm and simplicity the Shenandoah Valley of Amador County had to offer.

As I’ve said many times in the past, I’m a big fan of Barbera from the Amador & El Dorado counties in northern California. These Barbara’s are bigger and bolder than Italian Barbera. They are full of bright fruit flavor along with the characteristic acidity.

This wine has big black fruit flavors of blackberry, blueberry, huckleberry, plum, black currant, and black cherry. This one has soft tannins, moderate acidity and really nice finish.

If you are in or near Plymouth California, give them a visit at their beautiful winery and tasting room or check out their wines at www.Helwig.com Cheers!

Ever Wonder? What Makes a Wine Age-Worthy?

It is commonly known that red wines age best. But why, you may ask, is that? Why can red wine be aged longer than whites?  After all, they are both made from the juice of grapes!

The answer has a lot to do with tannins and acidity, but residual sugar and alcohol levels can also play a role.

Tannins are chemical compounds that act as natural preservatives in wine. They come from the skins, seeds and stems of grapes. And, red wines spend considerable time in contact with their skins, seeds and stems during the maceration process as opposed to white wines where the juice is immediately removed from the skins, seeds and stems.

The maceration process for red wines involves steeping the grape skins and solids in the grape’s juice (must) during fermentation, when the developing alcohol acts as a solvent to extract color, tannins and aroma from the skins. Red wines typically will have maceration times ranging from 7 to 40 days. Tannins in wine also come from the wood barrels where the wines are aged. 

The natural acid levels and residual sugar that remains in wine after fermentation can act to preserve the wine. And, wines that are higher in alcohol generally are more likely to age well. Especially fortified wines (e.g., Port, Sherry, Brandy).

But, the bottom line on a wine being age-worthy is that it needs to be “well balanced” to begin. That is, having a balance between tannin, acid, alcohol and residual sugar. If any of these are ‘off’ the wine probably doesn’t stand a chance of improving with age.

But that leads to the question “When I’m staring at bottles of wine on the store shelf, how do I know if a wine is well balanced?” We’ll get to that next time. Cheers!

Behind the Cork™ - Wines of TILIA (Part 2)

Wines of TILIA from Argentina

Tilia’s rural origins in Mendoza Argentina connect them deeply to the land and to their community. As the first Argentine wine to carry the Bodegas de Argentina Certified Sustainable Seal, the TILIA label illustrates their journey toward sustainable viticulture in Argentina. The Tilia or Tilo tree, their wine label’s namesake, produces leaves that are made into a calming tea which is traditionally drunk after lunch or dinner, to facilitate an afternoon siesta or bedtime.

The TILIA wines come from three growing regions in Argentina:

• The Uco Valley is considered to be one of the premiere grape-growing regions in Mendoza. Located 100 miles due south from Mendoza city, its elevation reaches between 3,000-5,000 feet.

• The Eastern Region is one of the oldest and most traditional viticultural regions in Mendoza. Located 50 miles to the southeast of the city of Mendoza, its reaches 1,950-2,150 feet.

• The Central Region of Mendoza is home to the oldest high-quality vineyards. It is also a desert irrigated by the Mendoza River. Located 12 miles due south from Mendoza city, its elevation reaches 2,600-3,700 feet.

2020 TILIA Chardonnay ($11)

This wine is produced from 100% Chardonnay from Mendoza’s Eastern and Southeastern regions. It was aged for three months in French oak.

This wine is a deep gold in color and has aromas of bright, fresh apple and pineapple. On the palate it was creamy smooth with moderate acidity and nice caramel flavor from the oak aging. It finishes light and easy.

2020 TILIA Malbec ($11)

This is produced from 100% Malbec from Mendoza’s East Valley and Uco Valley. It was macerated in stainless steel tanks for 15-20 days before seeing six months in French oak. It’s medium-purple in color with big black fruit flavors, a bit of pepper, some sweet tobacco and herbal notes. On the palate it’s got chocolate flavor from the oak and light tannin with plum.

2020 TILIA Cabernet Sauvignon ($11)

This TILIA Cab is produced from 100% Cabernet Sauvignon from Mendoza’s East Valley. It was fermented for 7-10 days with maceration for ten days in stainless steel tanks. It was then aged for six months in French oak.

This Cab is deep ruby in color with very delicate aromas. On the palate it’s full-bodied with bright black fruit flavors, medium tannin, definite oak influences and medium acidity.

2020 TILIA Merlot ($11)

The TILIA Merlot is produced from 100% Merlot grape from Mendoza’s East Valley and Central Valley. It is fermented for ten days with ten days of maceration in stainless steel tanks. It is then aged for six months in French oak.

It’s medium ruby in color with red fruit aromas. On the palate it has good red fruit flavors plum, some sugar plum and nice black cherry along with a hint of leather from the oak aging. The tannins are easy and this Merlot finishes nicely.

These reds are quite young but very drinkable now and probably could use a couple more years on the bottle. These are all really nice wines that are very affordable and attainable (See wine.com) that fit right in as Behind the Cork™ Wines of the Week. Cheers!

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Disclosure of Wine Sample Submission: I received these samples at no cost for review. The opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Samples Provided by Nonni Strategic Marketing LLC