Newman's Own - A Legacy Worth Celebrating

I have been trying to decide how best to remember the gentleman and legend, Mr. Paul Newman. As it happens, I've had a few bottles of Newman's Own wine kicking around, just begging to be reviewed. So to honor the man, the philanthropist and the actor, I decided to throw a Newman's Own party. A little corny, I know, but what can I say?

THE SET-UP
I invited about twelve friends who were either Newman fans or just along for the free booze and grub. In lieu of background music, we fired up the DVD player and played a continuous loop of my four favorite Paul Newman films--The Sting, The Long Hot Summer, The Hustler and A New Kind of Love.

THE MENU
I tried to keep it simple and I wanted to use as many Newman's Own products as I could:

THE TASTING
Before the eating and official boozing began, I decided to hold a quick, mini wine tasting to get everyone's thoughts on the wines. I'm always a little skeptical of celebrity wines, but I did my due diligence and found that Newman's Own wines are produced by Three Thieves.

Newman's Own Chardonnay - Very lush and fragrant with scents of ripe tropical fruits... mainly pineapple. Lush and full on the palate as well. More tropical fruit woven with bright pear, golden apple and a thread of creamy vanilla oak lending flavor to its viscosity, all tempered by enough acidity to provide a crisp finish. Chardonnay haters thought it was too fruity and too creamy, but otherwise it was well received and a true indication of its worth--there was not a drop left at the end of the evening.

Newman's Own Cabernet Sauvingon - Bold and berry filled, this cab suprised all of us with its layered intensity. Rich and warm with scents of macerated berry, spice and sweet tobacco. Dried berries, plums and cassis round out the flavor profile and add a certain chewiness to the texture. This wine begs for a fire in the fireplace and bowl of stew in hand. Like Mr. Newman, this cab was adored by all.

Both the Cab and the Chard are quintessentially California wines. All sunshine and smiles. Infinitely like-able. You can find them at many large grocery chains as well as Cost Plus World Market in the $10 - $13 range.

Cave de Lugny Macon Villages 2006

VARIETAL: Chardonnay
REGION: Burgundy, France
PRICE: $11
This was sort of a last-minute buy at Whole Foods. People coming for dinner. Flounder in parchment already in the oven and I had only a bottle of rose and a bottle of albarino chilled. Not a disaster if you're having friends over. But alas we were expecting a picky relative, so off to the market. I figured you can't really go wrong with a decent white burgundy--generally pleasing to even picky palates and a good match for the fish. Not wanting to spend a lot of $$, I chose the Cave de Lugny. I was pretty familiar with other Cave de Lugny wines so I gave it a shot. Lovely scents of golden apple, pear and citrus were enticing, but there was no pay-off. I found this wine a little thin and flat, almost watery. And though it did exhibit nice, clean, distinctly Burgundian minerality, there was not much else to balance it out. I even let it warm up a bit thinking it might be too cold. Nothing helped. But I am not (yet) convinced that the problem is the wine. Next time I'll buy one off the shelf and chill it myself. Perhaps it lingered in the store's refrigerated case a bit too long? I'll let you know. In the meantime, do try to buy whites that are un-chilled and chill them yourself. Or if the store has one, use the instant chiller.

Fire up the grill - Wines for Chicken

You can't have a picnic, or cookout or backyard BBQ without the beloved bird. You have infinite options when it comes to cooking chicken, but for laid-back gatherings go simple and crowd pleasing--fry it, or rub it with the spices of your choice and throw it on the grill.

Old fashioned picnic types will doubtless be serving mountains of potato salad and fried chicken. Crispy on the outside and succulent on the inside--if I didn't think it would kill me or make me fat, I would eat it every day. And my beverage of choice, in this ideal, fried-chicken-eating world, would be bubbly. That's right. Sparkling wine, champagne, in this case Cava, is the ideal match for anything fried. The bubbles clean your palate and are the perfect counterpoint to the crispy crust. The Cristalino Cava is one of my stand by wines for large gatherings. It is inexpensive but tastes like a quality champagne. Bright and crisp with hints of pear and golden apple, it is a toasty sparkler that is sure win you over.

Cristalino Cava Brut $9
Macabeo 50%, Parellada 35% and Xarello 15%
Straw color, smooth and fresh aromas; fine and fruity palate with a dry aftertaste. Clean, dry and crisp with citrus and apple flavors. (from Wine.com)

I know many of you will shun the fried chicken - it is an artery clogger - as well as the sparkling wine. So for you I have chosen a luscious chardonnay to complement a marinated or spice-rubbed grilled chicken. The folks at Hope Estate in Hunter Valley, Australia (yep, the same Hope that makes the shiraz I mentioned yesterday) make a wonderfully round, rich chard that is so reminiscent of a Mersault you'll have to look twice at the label. What differentiates it from its Burgundian big sister is the abundance of ripe, tropical fruit flavors, countered with crisp acidity, and the lack of minerality that is so present in white Burgundies.

Hope Estate Chardonnay 2006 $11
The key for our chardonnay is balance and complexity. Without using too much oak our barrel fermented style has an amazing length of peach, pineapple and melon characters but is balanced beautifully with stone citrus freshness. (from Hope Estate Winery)

Edna Valley Vineyard Paragon Chardonnay 2006

VARIETAL: Chardonnay
REGION: San Luis Obispo, California
PRICE: $14
Let me start by mentioning that I am usually wary of $12-$16 California chardonnay. I like to go cheaper or more expensive because in this range they are often too creamy, too fat, too manipulated with oak chips and god knows what else. Good grief! I like buttered popcorn and marshmallows, but I certainly do not want my chardonnay to exhibit hints of either one.
That said, I was quite pleasantly surprised by the Edna Valley Chardonnay. This is a superb pick if you enjoy subtle oak balanced out by vibrant fruit--peaches, pineapple, grapefruit--and a touch of minerality. It feels full in your mouth, without being knocked on the noggin with toasted oak. I enjoyed it with grilled salmon with basil cream, but I bet it would pair quite nicely with a roast chicken or shrimp and grits.

Check it out: Edna Valley Chardonnay 2006

Day at a Spa Wine Gift Basket

The holidays are coming, so why not think of the special Chardonnay-lover in your life with a gift basket that says "you deserve to be pampered"? Just think - you get all the good karma of sending them to a spa at a fraction of the cost, and they might even share their wine with you if you play your cards right. How can you go wrong?

Includes:

* Chardonnay
* Chardonnay foaming bath gel
* Gentle shower gel
* Soothing body lotion
* Relaxing Chardonnay bath salts
* Fragrant French milled soaps
* Chardonnay biscuits
* Key lime cookies

Day at Spa Gift Basket

Sticks - 2004 Chardonnay White Wine

Year: 2004
ABV: 13.5%
We Paid: $14
The color is a brilliant light straw with vibrant green hues. The bouquet possesses nectarine, peach and savory oak characters. The palate is clean and dry with tropical fruit flavors and a crisp zesty finish.

"Former Aussie rules footballer-turned-winemaker Rob (Sticks) Dolan, brought the wheel full circle when he (and others) bought, and renamed Sticks, the Yarra Ridge winery where he was once the winemaker. This is a great example of unpretentious Yarra Valley chardonnay style, fruit-driven with nectarine, honeydew and citrus, line and length its foundation."
-James Halliday

At Sticks 2004 Chardonnay - White Wine

Sonoma-Cutrer 2005 Sonoma Coast Chardonnay

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When we read today's story on Liquor Snob about the whiskey aged in wine casks (Woodford Reserve), we got it in our heads it'd be cool to check out the wine they used. We've never had it and it's slightly higher than our typical price range (closer to $30 than $20), but we like Woodford Reserve enough we'd like to try both side by side.

It's somewhat fitting that as we launch the inaugural vintage of our Sonoma Coast Chardonnay, we were blessed with an abundant harvest full of intensely flavored fruit. Flavors of lemon, apple, pear, pineapple and cantaloupe-the full array of Sonoma's cornucopia of fruit, joins a nutty, spicy, lightly oak profile that stakes out a unique territory sure to please those who love Chardonnay.

Sonoma-Cutrer 2005 Sonoma Coast Chardonnay - White Wine

Jewel 2004 Un-Oaked Chardonnay

We haven't really taken a stance on the whole "un-oaked Chardonnay" controversy we've heard about lately, but we enjoyed this guy quite a bit. We'll obviously have to do some more research to fully form our opinion.

The 2004 Chardonnay is produced in 100% Stainless Steel, both fermented and aged. This "un-oaked" approach produces a bright, fruit-forward style wine that is aromatic, clean and refreshing on the palate. The appealing aromas of citrus and tropical fruit lead to generous fruit flavors of green apple, melon and pineapple finishing with well-balanced acidity. This refreshing Chardonnay is at its very best with food.

Jewel 2005 Un-Oaked Chardonnay - White Wine

2001 Toasted Head Chardonnay

We've been getting into Toasted Head quite a bit lately, but until recently we hadn't tried their Chardonnay. We're glad we fixed that mistake - we were very much impressed with the quality of the wine and the nice fruity notes. We recommend it highly.

Taste Bright tangerine and pear fruit aromas are highlighted by clove and nutmeg. This medium-bodied wine has a crisp acidity and long finish, with pear and toasty butterscotch oak flavors, and creamy texture.

RH Phillips 2005 Toasted Head Chardonnay - White Wine

Pure Evil Chardonnay Review

With all those cute and fuzzy new wine labels out there - y'know the ones we're talking about, the ones with kangaroos and penguins on them - it's kind of fun to encounter a new wine with a bit of an edge. We don't expect much of a tough guy act from our wines, and those cutey wines can be pretty tasty, but we want a label that will let us hold our heads high as we walk out of the wine shop.

Our favorite newly-discovered wine is Pure Evil. No, it's not some kind of demon-possessed label...that's the name.

Continue reading: "Pure Evil Chardonnay Review"

Woot Wine 11/06/06: Sierra Club Chardonnay

Calling all eco nuts! If you can stop spiking trees long enough to log onto the Infernets, this week's Wine Woot is right down your alley. Introducing Sierra Club Chardonnay, a California Chard that usually retails for about $15 a bottle, but is available in four-bottle clusters from Woot for $40 plus $5 shipping. As always, this will only last as long as the wine does, or until the week is over.

Folks in the Woot blog seem divided on this stuff, but moreso over the politics than the quality of the actual wine. Our verdict? It seems cheap enough, and it's available for a lot of states (but not Masschusetts...grrr). If you agree with the Sierra Club and want to give them your dough, get there. If you think they're a bunch of tree hugging wack jobs who don't deserve your hard-earned money, save it and buy some acreage of your own to clear cut as you see fit. Doesn't bother us either way.