By Joel Magalnick, Editor, JTNews
We’ve been doing this for so many years now, it’s become something of a JTNews tradition. But while our annual Passover wine tasting’s format has been roughly the same year after year, the most important part of the event — the wine — has always changed.
That was certainly the case this year, as we tasted eight wines from six different wineries around the world, each very different and, surprisingly, none truly standing out (which isn’t to say they weren’t good, as most of the wines stood on their own).
The purpose, as always, is, as taster Brian Eckerling put it: “I’m trying to get out of the Manischewitz mold.”
“That is a really tough sell,” replied Esther Friend, the local representative for Royal Wines Manufacturing, who each year has graciously supplied the wine as well as the background and tasting notes for each vintage. This year, however, kosher wines, specifically those from Israel, have gotten a big boost: noted wine critic Robert Parker, a household name for those in the business, did a write-up of Israeli wines that has gotten the burgeoning region the attention of enthusiasts.
The real way for regular wine drinkers to gain an appreciation is “to create a seamless move from one wine to another,” Esther said, “so you don’t categorize them as kosher wines.”
One difference in the wines this year was that where it’s usually a mixed bag, all but one were mevushal. This is the process in which the wine is flash-heated to allow for observant Jews who might be in a setting where the wine is poured by a non-Jew to drink the wine. Those same people can drink a non-mevushal kosher wine, but it would have to be poured by an observant Jew. Any wine can be kosher, but the process from picking to bottling must be done under rabbinical supervision with the manufacturer using its own equipment throughout.
We had a mixed group of wine (and wine-tasting) veterans and wine-tasting newbies.
In order of tasting, these are the wines:
Teal Lake 2006 Chardonnay, Australia, $12
Baron Herzog 2005 Sauvignon Blanc, Oxnard, Calif., $11
Carmel Private Collection 2003 Chardonnay, Galilee, Israel, $14
Alfasi 2002 Malbec-Syrah, Chile, $11
Herzog Special Reserve 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon, Alexander Valley, Calif., $39
Teal Lake 2007 Shiraz, Australia, $12
Carmel Private Collection 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon, Galilee, $12
Bartenura 2006 Malvasia, Salento, Italy, $14
Prices are suggested and may vary upon purchase location. Any of the wines we tasted should be available at Tree of Life Judaica & Books, Albertson’s on Mercer Island, the University Village QFC, and most PCC and Safeway stores.
Our tasters were:
Brian Eckerling
Jenny Fox
Joel Magalnick
Ned Porges
Daniel Robbins
David Schor
Cheryl Wilson
The whites:
Teal Lake Chardonnay: “I’m not a big chardonnay drinker, but I like this,” Dave said about our kickoff wine, which he found buttery and fruity.
Dan liked the aftertaste. “It clings to the side of my mouth,” he said.
“I found it a bit alcoholic on the nose, really crisp, and a good level of acid,” Cheryl said. “It’s not a wimpy wine.” She added that she thought it would stand up to just about any food on Passover.
Ned said this vintage had an afterglow to it: “When you swallow, it seems to burst,” he said.
The Baron Herzog Sauvignon Blanc, which won silver medals at the California State Fair and the Pacific Rim Wine Competition, was a much more dry experience, everyone agreed.
“Lighter nose, a crisper, minerally edge, but not too much,” wrote Jenny in her notes. She appreciated the hints of pear.
Dave found this wine to be “light and flowery, kind of green flavored — like grass.”
We swung the pendulum toward the sweet again with the Carmel Chardonnay. I tasted an almost overpowering vanilla, which Cheryl attributed to the French oak barrels Carmel used for fermentation.
It’s a “chardonnay for chard lovers,” she said. Still, while she said it was smooth going down, and she appreciated the grassy, peppery flavor, “the second sip is not as good.”
Dan agreed.
“The first sip is better than the third,” he noted about what he found to be a very “meaty” wine.
Jenny noted the distinct, smoky flavor while Brian found it buttery and spicy, with hints of pineapple.
The reds:
The Alfasi Malbec-Syrah was highly tannic, noted Ned, and several of the tasters felt something of an industrial characteristic to this wine.
“Heavy industry was the smell I got,” said Dave, “as if the whole point was oak aging,” while Jenny said it reminded her of the mustiness of her great-grandmother’s apartment.
Proving that all taste is subjective, Cheryl tasted blackberry jam in the nose, while Brian emphasized it was not fruity at all. Esther noted a black fruit aroma as well.
Next we tried the Herzog Cabernet Sauvignon, from the Alexander Valley in Northern California. “Fairly tannic,” noted Cheryl.
“This is my favorite so far,” said Brian. “This one has the most complex flavor for me.”
Ned got hints of leather. He found it to be smooth but a bit weak.
Dan and Dave — who marked this as his favorite — thought it to be quite strong, however.
“A room-filling smell,” said Dan.
Dave noted the deep richness in the nose, as well as a barnyard grassy aroma, which Cheryl said can sometimes be intentional. It’s a practice vineyards common to Burgundy, she said, because “it’s a way of expressing where it comes from — but it doesn’t taste like that at all.”
The Teal Lake Shiraz had hints of strawberry and raspberry flavor, said Dave.
“Strong on the tongue,” noted Ned. “Fruity.”
Brian found it had a “less interesting taste” than the Herzog Cabernet, likening it to Slivovitz. Jenny and I both tasted a smokiness to the wine, which really added to the complexity.
Rounding out the heavy reds was the Carmel Private Collection Cabernet Sauvignon. From the moment it hit my lips, it definitely felt and tasted like a Cabernet.
Ned however, said it was “too astringent,” and “puckery.” Dave added he thought this wine had “a spirit that lives in Middle Earth,” though we’re still trying to figure out what that means.
Brian liked the aroma. The initial taste, he said, was “bright, easy to drink, polite. Yum!”
Dan enjoyed this wine as well. “Very comfortable, smooth, ‘heimish,’” he said.
“Of all the reds tasted,” Cheryl noted, this one has “the nicest balance between acid/fruit/alcohol.” She marked it as her favorite.
One part of our wine tasting tradition we broke this year was our final note — historically the Bartenura Vineyard’s Moscato D’asti. For this year, Esther replaced it with another Bartenura, this time their Malvasia. Also an effervescent with high sugar and low alcohol content — only 5 percent compared to the usual 11 to 15 percent — it came off as a delightful wine and a good choice “for those who drink all four cups of wine,” quipped Esther. In contrast to the Moscato, she added, this wine was much less fruity (though much darker in color). Our tasters still found the fruit, though.
“Very floral,” said Jenny.
“If I close my eyes and tasted this, I might think it’s Moscato D’Asti,” said Cheryl. She did find it a bit syrupy on the nose, and it reminded her of a Dr. Brown’s Black Cherry soda.
It reminded Brian of the Izze carbonated fruit juices.
Ned tasted cranberry, strawberry and cherry, and he liked the floral aroma as well. “A good summer wine to lay down [with] on the patio,” he said.
Dan said it reminded him of lace curtains and butterflies. Perfect, perhaps, for summer, and definitely a perfect and delicious way to end the Passover meal.