David Bowler Wines

The spring trade tasting event for David Bowler wines took place at Tribeca Grill on March 24th. This is one of the better suppliers though it was disappointing to learn right away that they no longer carry wines from Peter Weygandt, one of the top importers in this country. Not to worry though. Shortly after this tasting they had a major coop in taking Louis/Dressner imports from Polaner Selections.

Some of the winners were a Domaine du Tabatu “Camprigou” in St-Chinian (Languedoc), a producer I don’t recall seeing before. A red wine of expressive aromatics, perfect balance of texture, delicate red berry fruit and spice and a good value. Another star was the Le Rocher des Violettes “Cuvee Touche-Mitaine" from the village of Mont-Louis (a chenin blanc cousin of Vouvray on the opposite shore of the Loire). This is a dry, mineral driven style I’m seeing more of (and liking) as opposed to the more common demi-sec styles. Excellent, versatile wine that would retail for under $20.

Polaner at Gotham Hall

This tasting was hosted by New York based Polaner Selections and has been one of my most important suppliers of quality and value wines. Not made up of recognizable brand names, but truly authentic wines of character. I always look forward to their trade tasting event, especially since they only do one annually as opposed to others which will have one in spring and fall each year. Held in Gotham Hall, once a grand bank lobby, it is also one of the more attractive settings.

In addition to their own imports, they also distribute wines from two top level importers. Eric Solomon, based out of North Carolina has an exceptional Spanish and French book. Among these is the Sitios de Bodega “Con Class” Rueda, a top selling under $10 white wine from the Castilla y Leon region of Spain made mostly from the Verdejo grape.

The wines from importer Louis/Dressner and its principal, Joe Dressner, are my favorites. Mostly French, and with a large representation of my favorite wine region, the Loire Valley.

One of my favorites from his portfolio and probably the most consumed white wine by myself over the last twelve months is the Muscadet “Clos de Briords” from Domaine Pepiere. Delicious on its own and fantastic with seafood, this is the quintessential fish wine. Bone dry with citrus and the mineral essence of wet stones.

Having forgot to bring my NYC Metro pass, the chose to dine within a reasonable walking distance and walked from Broadway and 36th to B’way and 20th to Gramercy Tavern. There I started with the Merguez sausage with chick peas and Swiss chard, almond and harissa for which I paired with a cool fizzy glass of dry, red Lambrusco.

For mains I had simple pan-roasted chicken with parsnips and carrots. Their chicken is so tender and delicate. Good stuff. I had a Cuvee Pif from Clos Roche Blanche in Touraine. This is made from Cot (malbec) and Cabernet Franc and is named after the owner’s border collie mix. Pif essentially translates to nose.

Photo of Pif and the newly uninvited Seccotine the cat

in the cave at Clos Roche Blanche in 2008

Re-Summit

Back again to the offices of Wildman, this time for a presentation of their German portfolio and along with Austrian wines from Monika Caha and Francois Baur, a family run winery in Alsace.

Baur was represented by Virginie Baur of the 9th generation, the daughter of the current winemaker, Pierre Baur. I first met Virginie when their wines were first being imported to the US in 2000 and I was acting sommelier at Brasserie Perrier. I laso had the chance to visit at their home in Turckheim. I was thoroughly impressed with the wines then and continue to be. A true representation of Alsace style.

Monika Caha has been importing wines through Wildman for about three years. A native of Austria, she displays true passions for the Austrian wines in her portfolio and they are very good. The gruner veltliner grape has become one of my favorite food wines as well as for sipping on the patio. She also had an interesting dry, aromatic muscat and a flinty, tangy sauvignon. The reds have never been better. Too often they can be over extracted and flabby, but her samples of zweigelt and the blaufrankisch had terrific texture and balanced wild brier scented blue fruits.

The German portfolio was focused on the more drier styles. While German wines are associated with sweet wines, the preferred style in Germany is decidedly drier and that is a message they are trying to get out to the public here.

Across the board, these were very good wines. Riesling is enjoying a great deal of popularity today. People need to get better acquainted with the drier styles which are more versatile and better quality.

Jenny & Francois at the Smith's

This is my fourth year of attending Jenny’s events and I am happy to have been a part of her tasting from the beginning as I have seen her portfolio grow from a group of largely eclectic and funky wine to a collection of some of the most interesting wines on the market.

Jenny’s portfolio focuses on natural and organic wines, mostly from France where she had spent a lot of time and where her partner is from and France is where the natural wine movement is strongest, particularly the Loire and southern France.

The first Jenny tasting that I attended was made up mostly of funky, off-tasting wines. Clearly many in her group had not yet perfected the art of working with natural wines. But it has gotten progressively better with each event.

One of my favorites from this tasting was the new label from Vincent Careme in Vouvray, a chenin blanc village in the Loire Valley. These were some of the most interesting Vouvray’s I’ve ever had. Highly aromatic with lemon curd, beeswax and mineral with a mouthfilling, mellow texture and long finish.

Another exciting newcomer was a sparkling wine from Burgundy by Catherine and Dominique Derain. Dominique Derain is a barrelmaker and decided to try his hand in winemaking. He met his wife in winemaking school in Beaune. Normally, sparkling Burgundy would be made from the locally renowned grapes chardonnay and pinot noir. Derain uses the locally accepted, but obscure aligote which is associated with cheap wine bar whites often mixed with cassis to make a Kir Royale cocktail. This is just another example of what can happen when a lowly grape is lovingly attended to.

This had a really unique and mellow mousse with flavors of treefruits, light spice and a tangy, lemony finish. Despite Dominique’s background as a barrelmaker (cooper), he uses no new oak. The production is so small that his may become hard to get is a New York restaurant takes a stand on this. Hope not.