by Julian Schultz
julian@oxfordwineroom.com
If I were as facile with my fingers as I try to be with pen and lip, I would surely strike two gold medals for two local wine educators/wine experts:
Dr. Bob ("the palate") Ouellette has taught wine appreciation, including this year, his 31st, at Assumption College; is president of Worcester Wine Tasters and Les Compagnons des Bons Vins that resume meetings in September.
Jim ("the nose") Nicas, maitre d' and sommelier at the Castle, likewise in September, begins his monthly Sunday afternoon tutored tastings interspersed with wine dinners.
Both devote tireless energy, thought and concentration every day, every month, every year as they instruct their students how to appreciate the noblest beverage of them all, wine.
I was sipping a Rhone Valley Hermitage from the venerable Paul Jaboulet Aine firm with the seared and sauteed blade steak that my expert cook and caregiver had prepared for my dinner. I was reminded of a dinner at The Castle that Dr. Bob and Jim had organized that showcased Jaboulet wines.
Always the wine pedagogue, genial Dr. Bob ensured that the some 100 wine lovers would be educated. He had arranged for Gerard Jaboulet, sixth generation director of the family's estate, to conduct a seminar during the dinner in which he covered the characteristics and uniqueness of Rhone wines and their matchups with the menu of the dinner.
Countless times I have heard Dr. Bob and Jim during their monthly wine tastings interrupt their mellifluence-d, cadenced and flights of rhetoric to remind us, "All our words of wine wisdom are of little import if you don't pull the cork."
You may read about wine from lowly scribblers like me, but your education will be slight when compared to aficionados who vigorously sniff and eagerly sip, savor and speak after pulling the cork...and know what they are doing and why.
This evening, the dinner being a festive one, Jim enthusiastically yanked the corks with uncustomary theatrical élan...even frightening some of the more fragile wines. Dr. Bob sparked the discussion with a serious scholar's eye and a dedicated wine lover's passion. Grand Master Chef Stanley Nicas, owner of the internationally renowned king of the kitchen, and his knights and ladies of the stoves and food preparation tables created a dinner that reached the zenith of haute cuisine. Guests consumed the food with unrestrained zeal, sipped the wines with audible satisfaction and discussed them with uninhibited euphoria. Dr. Bob and Jim promised us "a learning experience"; it was all that and much much more.
Rhone Valley wines are rough when young, but with age the reds equal Bordeaux and Burgundy in quality. Harsh and bitter when young from extended barrel aging, the great Hermitages and Cote Roties can become soft and velvety. When old, they deliver bouquets of unforgettable perfume and aftertastes of forever. Nirvana when paired with game or full-flavored cheese.
I suspected a spectacular evening was in the offing upon entering the festive reception area: I was greeted by tables containing over 100 gleaming glasses with aerating Crozes-Hermitage Rouge "Les Jalets" 1995. The full-fruited, robust Rhone, made from the Syrah grapes, and the Castle's exhilarating ambience, inspired in me such a rush of euphoria and eloquence that I blurted out an Omar Khayyam quatrain to startled sniffers and sippers at our table:
"And if the wine you drink and the lip you press end in the nothing that all things end in - YES! Then fancy while thou art, thou art but what thou shalt be - NOTHING! Thou shalt not then be less."
"Now what sort of elaborate nonsense is that!?" Fifi Fluttereyes asked impatiently. Then scornfully: "Julian you are again practicing wine snobbery for which you are well-known, and thereby you are frightening away wine novices from pursuing the pleasures of God's blessed libation."
Taken aback by the onslaught I admitted that I really wasn't sure, but I believe it means if the wine you drink and the lip of the glass you press end up in nothing bad, go ahead. Think you are now what you were yesterday when you were fine, and tomorrow you won't be any worse.
Fifi answered: "Why not express yourself in a manner more 'lowfalutin' so as to be comprehensible, instead of showing off and sounding like the insufferable wine snob?"
Embarrassed by the exchange, I admitted, "you're right, Fifi. You'll see when I write the wine column...yeah, I'll be real 'lowfalutin.' "
I found the Crozes-Hermitage full of cherry fruit but rough and tannic, initially denying the taster the pleasure of its future charms. After aeration in the balloon-shaped wine glass, it softened and released generous flavors of cherries, earth and tar. I made a note to buy four bottles promptly, which I hope to start draining in 2000 and beyond.
Hermitage Blanc "Le Chevalier de Sterimberg" '99 and St. Joseph "Les Grand Pompee" '99 were poured to the serving of thin-sliced marinated buffalo tenderloin.
The red St. Joseph offered complex aromas and flavors that danced in the nose and sang on the palate. Lots of cherries, mint and pepper, it will improve given three to five years. In 'lowfalutin' language: "super sipping felicitously flavored, pampers persnickety palates, prudently priced."
The Hermitage Blanc was a gem: "As fleshy and seductive as nude nymphs' thighs in the underbrush," I blurted exuberantly.
Sizzling Sis Sylvester, the flame of our wine tastings and wine dinners, gasped and my table members exploded with laughter. Dr. Bob, frowning, furtively looked around to see who might be listening: "There you go again with your nonsense and you don't care if you turn off novices who don't understand you and your cockamamie wine assessments. I thought you agreed to use 'lowfalutin' language."
From Jim: "Like Bob and Fifi say, you'll turn off novices, and by your doing that they won't attend my monthly Sunday afternoon seminars. Without their support and contribution to the expense of the many prestigious wines I pour - most times over 20 -- and table-full of varied sumptuous hors d'oeuvres, I don't want to end up being a maitre d'/sommelier in the Poor Farm pouring for the indigents."
I tried to assure them my evaluation of the Hermitage Blanc was a metaphor of my imagination and that I had been with "no nymphs in no underbrush" and even if I were I wouldn't know what to do with them.
"Ha, ha! Tell me another," Sizzling Sis said snickering.
"If I did, you would be shocked out of your panties." I said. "In the vibrant golden days of my youth when the fires of desire flamed coursed through my veins, I --- "
"Stop! Cease and desist immediately! And I mean im-med-i-ately!! Dr. Bob reprovingly protested. "You offend my moral sensibilities, my sense of propriety, my insistence on decency, my --"
Fifi: "Mine, too!"
Sizzling Sis: "Mine, too!"
Jim: "Weeeel, I'm not so sure. If it's X-rated, hell! Bring it on!!"
"OK, OK! I'll take the high road, boring as it might be to me," I said resignedly. "But my cavorting with nude nymphs in the underbrush -- it's got a stimulating ring, don't you think?"
Dr. Bob glared at me. I feared I was in for another one of his classic lectures.
"Well," I continued, "the Hermitage Blanc offers aromas and flavors of pears peaches, almonds, acacia, honey and sweet wood. I would rate it in the mid- to high 90s on a 100 point scale."
I congratulated Stanley for the tenderness and flavors of the buffalo tenderloin first course. The pleasing flavors of this marinated ultra-low calorie meat, accompanied by capers, tiny onions, black olives, and slivered pickles, paired perfectly with the red and white wines.
The entrée of roasted loin of lamb, thick and butter tender, encrusted under macadamia nuts and cracked black pepper, accented with sliced petite potatoes, sauteed spinach, honnied carrots and black currants and vodka sauce, was matched to the great Hermitage Rouge "La Chapelle," vintages '86 and '91. We hailed the lamb and wine combinations, agreeing they exceeded any dish in memory.
The Hermitage Rouge is ranked among the world's great wines, but fortunately is not so expensive: the '86 selling (at that time) for under $30 and the phenomenal '91 for under $50.
The '86 offered blackberries flavors. After aerating it in my glass for 15 minutes, chocolate nuances emerged. The younger '91 was a bomb, exploding voluptuously with red currants, cherries, spice and tar flavors. It grabbed the palate and wouldn't let go.
Dessert was all forbidden calories and ecstatic flavors of custard-y crème bruleé accented with caramel and vanilla sauce.
Thanks Dr. Bob, Jim and Stanley for providing Central Massachusetts wine lovers and gourmets with an unforgettable dinner.
Rhone wines can be world class, comparable with the world's best. The Rhone wine growing region is extensive, about 125 miles from Lyon to Avignon; it is divided into three parts: the northern, the central, the southern, each producing some specific and quite different wines.
Northern Section
COTE ROTIE: Limited production from about 90 acres are laid down in first growths.
First growths: Cote Brune, Cote Blonde.
The vines: Syrah (red), Viognier (white), both yield fruit of wonderful delicacy.
Cote Rotie red wine: dark purple color, full-bodied, vinous strength and aromatic savor, bouquet reminiscent of raspberry; white wine: very little exported.
CONDRIEU: Grows Viognier, dry white wine, flavor of terroir (soil), full-bodied, magnificent perfume. Seldom seen in the U.S.A.
Chateau Grillet, from Viognier, a marvel and a rarity; varies from dry to half-sweet, powerful, full-bodied, fragrant bouquet. Generally unobtainable except locally in Condrieu.
Central Section
CROZES-HERMITAGE: Red wines are produced by Syrah grapes; whites by Rousane and Marsanne.
Aromas and flavors of reds: wild hawthorn and raspberry; whites are light with hazelnut perfume; sweet at first, they become dry as they age.
Resemble Hermitage very closely, said to be first cousins.
HERMITAGE: Syrah grapes only for reds; Roussane and Marsanne for Hermitage Blanc.
Description: Both reds and whites are rich of color; prolonged assertive aromas and intense flavors. Outstanding, unrivaled wines reflecting vines, soil and climate.
ST. JOSEPH: Produces superior red and white wines, the reds being better and more plentiful.
CORNAS: Produces only beautiful garnet colored full-bodied red wines from Syrah grapes. Yield is small, but worth seeking out.
SAINT PERAY: A white wine produced solely by Roussane and Marsanne grapes: pale yellow, dry, full body and violet bouquet.
Sparkling wine: Yes, makes sparkling wines of great delicacy; secondary fermentation in this bottle; considered best sparkling wine after the better Champagne; rare in U.S.A.
Southern Section
CHATEAUNEUF-DU-PAPE: (new chateau of Pope John XXII's summer residence).
Vine species planted: Grenache 40 percent, Syrah 30; Cinsault 20, Mourvedre 20, Counoise 20, Vaccarese 20; Clairette 10 percent, Bourboulenc 10.
Grape combinations: The many permitted combinations of grapes account for the variation of flavor and quality in a range of wine blends bearing the Chateauneuf name; each grower has his own style. No other wine-growing region of France shows such a large number of vine species and aroma and flavor diversity among producers' bottlings - 8.
Chateauneuf White is generally made from white grapes: Clairette and Grenache Blanc, are used and account for less than 2 percent of production.
The wine: It is the most powerfully bodied of the Rhone white wines, with a warm flavor and extremely aromatic bouquet.
Grapes hand sorted, similar to German Auslese: Only perfect examples are allowed into the Chateauneuf White cuvee.
TAVEL ROSE: pink, dry wine, full-bodied, rich in alcohol and ethers, heady and full of sap. Made from primarily Grenache Red grapes. Its popularity throughout the world is due to its great overall quality, flexibility, and its unique adaptability to all food.
Lirac: an equally dry wine, but a little firmer than the Tavel Rosé; Lirac is grown in a neighboring parish to Tavel.
COTES-DU- RHONE: The red wines are generally full-bodied and warm and can be consumed early; excellent when they have developed sufficient finesse (cleanliness and purity of bouquet and flavor - and like a soufflé should be delicate and subtle rather than harsh).
The white wines are dry, full-bodied, with a high degree of aroma.
The rosé wines are replete with alcohol, can be slightly sweet, and generally fruited.
Jim murmured to me: "I would forgo at mixed case of the great Chateauneuf from different wine growers for an hour's romp in the underbrush with those nifty nude nymphs...hey, don't let wife-y Denise read this."
Turning so Dr. Bob shouldn't read my lips, I whispered: "Me, too, Jim."
Wine pick: Reynolds New South Wales Merlot 2002, $7.99 - $8.99, blended with 10 percent Shiraz. Deep purple color, plumy fruit, nuances of blueberry and toasty coconut, supple soft tannins and fruit acids integrate with rich fruit flavors for perfect balance; rich, velvety mouthfeel and long aftertaste. Big bargain warrants attention.
Wine pick: R.H. Phillips Dunnigan Hills Shiraz 2002, $11 -- $12; enjoy a mouthful of fresh jam-y raspberry flavor with added complexity of toasty oak and varied spices and soft tannins; mouth-coating lingering fruit finishes smoothly and persists in the aftertaste.
Wine pick: Midnight Cellars Full Moon Red Table Wine 2001 $11.99, a blend of Zinfandel, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc; all complexity from flavors of integrated wines and spice varieties; nicely balanced with fruit, fruit acids and firm tannins. Super bargain on a premium wine that will only improve.
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julian@oxfordwineroom.com