2008 Wollersheim Winery Prairie Fume

Many places in Wisconsin have this wine available - if shelf talkers are to believed it is the number one selling Wisconsin wine (or is it wine in Wisconsin?...I think the former). This is made with 100% Seyval Blanc. Through the winery it's nine bucks, but figure a few bucks more if you shop elsewhere.

Lime and slate on the nose - a bit of air and grapefruit comes through. A bit more and some grassy notes come through.

Lime seems to dominate, with pink grapefruit, some pithy qualities as well. I don't often get the whole "slate" thing, but this definitely is bringing it through. My initial thought was this wine was flabby but with a bit of air it seems to balance itself out. A tad sweet, but not by no means cloyingly so. Low alcohol - 10% - though still dangerous as you can easily drink an entire bottle with little thought.

A very mild pink grapefruit quality is what lingers on the finish.

At nine bucks I cannot complain - a great picnic and/or patio and/or Ravinia wine. The price is right, the balance is good, and overall we have just a crisp, easy drinking wine. If you wish Sauvignon Blancs were just a bit sweeter and more approachable, this will be up your alley.

Score: 86

2001 Kracher Zwischen Den Seen Welschriesling Trockenbeerenauslese #8

Kracher...ah, yes Kracher...some of the best dessert wines made come from this producer in Austria. This half bottle runs for, I kid you not, $80. If you live near Chicago, Binny's frequently 'end of bin' sales these so you can get them for far less if you time it right.

Potent dried fruit - apricot, mango, vanilla, plus some heat on the nose.

There are complex wines where you can rattle off a hundred things and there are complex wines where it's difficult to pull out even one. I'm going to start with peaches - not fresh though, the juice from canned peaches is what hits the palate first. Make some caramel and add a bit of vanilla and throw it in the mix as well as some golden raisins and dried apricot and perhaps a dash of honey. The mouthfeel is comparable to olive oil - thick and viscous. The wine is incredibly sweet, but it somehow manages to not be cloying - there doesn't seem to be much acid but it clearly works it all out. There is more...

A lengthy finish - a dried mango quality comes through, candied orange zest, and sugarfied peach last for minutes.

Dessert wine is tricky to even think about scoring, but this is just outstanding. It's complex, tasty, and balanced. Outrageously priced? Yes. Worth it? Perhaps. Kracher is known as being one of the best dessert wine producers on the planet, this wine proves it.

Score: 96

2006 Almaviva Rothschild/Vina Concha y Toro Red Blend

This wine retails at various local stores for $89. I've seen it (and acquired it) for somewhat less than that. This was decanted for four hours before sampling. This is a Bordeaux blend with: 63% Cabernet Sauvignon 26% Carmenère, 9% Cabernet Franc and 2% Merlot

Cassiss and cherry on the nose. Way deep in there is some campfire - burn some chunks of cedar to ash, splash some water on it, and breathe deep. Here you go. Tobacco and even green pepper as well. An almost startlingly complex nose.

Smoke hits me first. Plum, vanilla, mocha, cherry, blueberry, a bit of bell pepper - dare I even say, a bit of a beet quality? Deceptively smooth and balanced - great tannins, acid, fruit, and earth. That being said, the nose on this one is more interesting than the palate.

A funkier finish than one would expect follows - roasted red pepper with qualities that aren't necessarily tobacco, but actually straight up cigar. Imagine a cigar dipped in pureed red pepper.

A very good bottle of wine, but I am cringing at the notion of paying almost $100 for this.

Score: 93+

Dinner - Lockwood - 5/14/10

Oh, Lockwood...you frustrate me, but I still like you. Like. I want to love you, but I can't.

I've been to Lockwood a few times mostly for lunch and had a dinner some time ago. I've enjoyed each visit. This visit - and a previous one - both shared one very large issue: every hot dish arrived lukewarm.



The bread at Lockwood is among the best I've had. I would visit this place for the bread alone.




A deconstructed shrimp cocktail was the highlight of the meal. Those are laughing bird shrimp and an array of sauces. Flawless.




The deconstructed chicken wings are good....lukewarm, though (the bread was warmer than the chicken). The menu describes these as "filled with great hills blue cheese" - these were not. There were, however, chunks of blue cheese on the plate so one could control the amount. This is merely an observation rather than a complaint - a comment in case it looks like the kind of think you want to try but you dislike blue cheese.




Saffron risotto was good, with a bit of lobster on the top there.




Four different preparations of pork - rib, tenderloin, and I don't remember what else. Everything was good, but yet again....lukewarm.


Frustrating. People on yelp complain about slow service at Lockwood. In my opinion, the service doesn't "feel" slow - it is certainly deliberately paced, but no more so than most high end restaurants. Is the lukewarm food the fault of the leisurely service? Or is the kitchen to blame? Perhaps the chicken wings were prepared and plated before the shrimp and it sat too long? I don't know. I liked our waiter - he was friendly and attentive, so I hate to blame him.

To be blunt: If I disliked Lockwood I wouldn't bother posting these photos. The food is quite good and the prices are fair for the quality. That being said, in order to truly enjoy the experience you have to look the other way on enough things that my recommendation is a qualified one. I will likely return, but it will be later rather than sooner.

Lunch - Blackbird - 5/14/10

We had lunch at Blackbird on May 14 as part of a weekend of gluttony to celebrate the ol' wedding anniversary.



We ate at Blackbird so I figured Blackbird rose was a fair choice. No notes, but I enjoyed it.




Sweetbreads was the appetizer. If you go to Blackbird, you must get sweetbreads. Seriously. The green stuff is not avocado but pistachio along with some preserved plum.

Blackbird is not only delicious, but it is a rather outstanding bargain at lunch. This pork belly sandwich - which was quite large - was $13. The fries were, without exaggeration, the best fries I have had anywhere ever. Seriously.

Fran had the grilled hanger steak with cavolo nero, cajeta-braised onions and watercress.

I was quite sold on Blackbird with our dinner visits, but lunch was outstanding all around. I don't think anything on the menu was over $20 except for a three course lunch deal that had three courses. Sold.

N/V Portly Gentleman Australian Dessert Wine

Once in a great while I find a wine label that speaks to me....I present to you one such label. I'm not tasting this blind and am doing notes over the course of a few weeks. Retail on this is around $14.

Black cherry, black raspberry, and dark chocolate on the nose. After a few weeks of being open the nose is dominated by brandied cherries or maybe even cherry kijafa.

This wine needs air - pop it, pour a glass or two, and let it sit for a while (fridge or counter). Day one I called this flabby and dull. Now I'm rather sold. Big body, spice, oak, vanilla, spice, cinnamon, vanilla, plum, a bit of nuttiness.

A somewhat short finish - dark cherry at first, drifting away to vanilla.

Tasty and complex enough you'll want to drink it, cheap and tasty enough it would be great to poach some pears in. No complaints.

Score: 88* *not blind

2005 Iron Horse Ultra Brut Sparkling Wine

This goes for $50 from the winery and appears to be a limited offering.

Green apple on the nose. As in bite into a ripe Granny Smith and shove your nose in it - this is it.

As expected, tart green apple dominates. There's also a grassy sort of thing going on, perhaps some lemon zest. A very nice stream of tiny bubbles that last quite a while give this a very nice mouthfeel. As it breathes, I do get a bit of doughy notes that I am digging.

More of that lemon with a bit of lime and some interesting floral kinda qualities.

A good bottle...quite good, in fact. Great? I don't know.

Score: 87+

2008 Two Lads Pinot Noir

This is a Pinot Noir from northern Michigan up on the Old Mission Peninsula near Traverse City. Recently we've had some Michigan Pinot Noir from Black Star Farms and Shady Lane Cellars and they both has similarities - perhaps terroir? Does this have it? Let's fine out. This goes for $35 through the tasting room.

The nose? Funk. Sassafras and earth - not much in terms of fruit until about two hours in, then some ripe, farmer's market style strawberry comes through.

All sorts of dark spice - clove, cinnamon, nutmeg. I considered this to be perhaps even too spice driven, but that blows off after a few hours. Beautiful acid - integrated nicely, present and strong but not in your face or abrasive...in fact, in terms of acid this might be one of the best examples of 'balanced' that I've had in some time. For fruit, I'm getting mostly a black raspberry thing.

The raspberry thing really comes through immediately on the finish. A bit of vanilla bean seems to come through - in a spicy rather than creamy kind of way - as well.

Though I'm not doing a direct comparison and not taking away from the other wine, I do think this is noticeable step up from the other MI Pinot Noir. Of course, at $35 a bottle though, it's also a step up in price. Is it worth it? That's up to you. That being said, when I found out this was a Michigan Pinot I was not surprised - it had many of the same qualities, but the whole thing just hit me as a bit more polished.

Score: 91

Tweet and Taste - Monday, May 17

The next Michigan Tweet and Taste is coming up in a couple weeks. Monday, May 17 at 8 pm EST. Get on Twitter and search #ttmi to follow along.

This one will feature four different wines from the Lake Michigan Shore - the southwest part of the state.

The wines being tasted are:

Domaine Berrien 2007 Syrah
St Julian Braganini Reserve 2006 Chancellor and St. J Red
Round Barn 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon
Warner Vineyards Veritas

I will not be tasting along this time but it will be worth your while. Two (old-ish) reviews have been done of the wines in question and the hyperlinks above go to those reviews.

2005 Cafaro Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

This goes for $39 through the winery. I know nothing about this winery other than the bottle curiously does not have a barcode and I don't think I've ever seen it in a shop. I acquired this through a silent auction at a charity event.

Plum and blackberry on the nose, but cigar box dominates.

Smooth and nicely balanced - this is just a nice drinking wine. It's fairly big, but also elegant, you won't confuse it with something Old World, but it has none of the downfalls that plague many New World wines. A gentle giant, if you will - the Pete Steele of wine. Cherry and ripe blackberry come through with cedar, mint, and (very mild) anise. Mid palate, oak and/or cedar come through considerably as do some more spicy qualities including a bit of brown spice.

An almost Grand Marnier quality comes through right at the start of the finish, as that fades a cherry, currant, and a vague mint quality linger for some time.

Forty bucks is a tad more than I'd prefer to spend on a bottle of wine, but there's absolutely nothing to complain about here. Nicely done.

Score: 91+

2007 Seven Deadly Zins Lodi Zinfandel

Seven deadly Zins, seven ways to win, seven holy paths to hell and your trip begins. This is a fifteen dollar bottle, though you can often find it on sale for less. I've wanted to try for some time now.

A very thick nose - black cherry, almost cough syrupy.

Smooth - a bit of smoke, a bit of cherry, a bit of plum, a bit of vanilla, a bit of red licorice, even a tad bit of black licorice. A bit jammy, but not overly so. A bit sweet, but by no means sickeningly so (though enough to knock off a few points). I'd gladly serve this at a BBQ with burgers and I can absolutely see this with ribs.

Vanilla, cedar, and cherry on the finish.

A big wine, tasty, and not terribly simple. I'm digging this. If I found it on sale I could see grabbing another bottle. If you (or someone you love) is a fan of Yellow Tail or that sort of thing, this is a tremendous next step. It's big and slightly sweet, but it's a clear step up in quality.

And now for some Maiden....



Score: 86

2007 Shady Lane Cellars Pinot Noir

Aerate aerate aerate. My initial thoughts - and dare I say even my thoughts after 90 minutes - of this wine were negative. It hit me as rather harsh and overwhelmingly tart. What happens on day two, a full 24 hours, after opening? This bottle was comped and sells for $22 through the winery. We tasted it as part of the Tweet and Taste, but these notes are based on the next day where things were a bit more sedate and settled.

Day one brought brown spice. Day two brings out a clear raspberry leaf with a touch of mint - almost a raspberry tea.

At first, this was harsh. Now? Rather smooth. At first, overwhelming acid and tartness. Now? Well integrated acid with fruit and earth coming through. Raspberry dominates with a bit of carob. When I say raspberry, I am talking part fruit, part leaf, part root...it's an earthy, funky, dirty raspberry. As in, don't pick the raspberry, pick the entire plant out of the ground and blend it - that's this. I'm not getting a whole lot in terms of tannin, but acid and earth are more than present. Some people on the Tweet and Taste were discussing an "artificial" quality, which I could see at the time, but as it opens, I think it's really more "essence" and "herbal." Have you ever had those Vitamin Waters that have no calories, no fake sugars, and only "essence"? I haven't seen them around lately, but I do recall them fondly - this reminds me of that.

More of that funky/earthy/dirty raspberry on the finish.

Sit on it for a while or give it 4+ hours in the decanter. When it comes together, you may or may not dig it, but you will respect it. $22? I'm not sure, but it is a Pinot Noir...Michigan has a distinct style of Pinot - it's light, funky, acidic, and spicy. I think this is an excellent representation - not for all palates, but for those who dig it, I couldn't imagine not being a fan.

Let me just say something here - Shady Lane's Pinot Noir and Riesling really came together after multiple hours of air. Some wines completely fall apart after three hours of air, these start getting good at that point - it's a testament to the quality. I'm giving this 87, but I have a feeling in 2012 or so, this wine is going to annihilate. It's a shame the Mayans are going to kill us all by then. Speaking of Mayans, have you seen Apocalypto? Holy crap - what a good movie.

Score: 87* *not blind

2008 Shady Lane Cellars Blue Franc (Blaufrankish)

This wine goes for $22 through the winery. We tried this comped bottle as part of the Tweet and Taste Michigan - search #ttmi on Twitter and check out all the tweets! During the Tweet and Taste I was not on my A game due to an array of reasons, so by all means check that out, but you may be better off ignoring the comments from @thewineauxs.

On first pour I got barnyard, but now I think it's more the precursor to barnyard, which is of course, bacon. Bacon, mint, basil, all quite mellow.

Very smooth. Black cherry, blueberry, soft tannins, soft acid, soft everything really. I can see this working with a bit of a chill on it, but it's going nicely at cellar temp. I hate to even suggest bastardizing a good bottle, but this would be perfect for warming up and mulling some spices...don't do it, but I think it would work, but really, don't do it. The balance is almost too good on this...everything falls right into place. The sort of wine I describe as dangerous because it's so easy drinking and so seemingly "simple" that you don't even think about what a pain in the ass it must be to get a wine so perfectly integrated.

Cola hits me right away on the finish. As do cherries. Cherry cola? I suppose so.

Recently I was asked for a good red wine that's not sweet, but not too big or harsh. This is it. This is probably the finest red wine of that style I can think of. Exceptionally drinkable, quite mellow, with some nice subtleties.

Though this review was not done blind and the bottle was comped, my opinion has not been consciously swayed.

Score: 90* *not blind

2008 Shady Lane Cellars Dry Riesling

This wine retails for $16.50 through the winery. We tried this comped bottle as part of the Tweet and Taste Michigan - search #ttmi on Twitter and check out all the tweets! During the Tweet and Taste I was not on my A game for an array of reasons we'll avoid here, so by all means check that out, but you may be better off ignoring the comments from @thewineauxs.

Spicy apricot hits me immediately on the nose, with some slightly unripe golden apple, maybe even apple blossom. Apple flavored herbal tea comes to mind.

So, when I read "Dry Riesling" I admit the occasional eyeroll, but I'll be damned, this s.o.b. is dry. Lots of acid, fruit and floral notes, but very little - if any - sugar. The fruit is slightly unripe with pear, apple, maybe even green grape. There's a definite petrol quality - the sort of thing you'd expect in a much pricier Riesling, and a funky kind of asparagus thing. The mouthfeel is slightly viscous, but the acid creates a good pucker that makes it barely noticeable. Everything here comes together nicely.

Lengthy finish - unripe stone fruit, peaches mostly. You know, it's kind of like if you take a peach, squeeze out all the juice and somehow remove the sugar - the way back end of the finish has this pungent dry peach thing that, lame as it sounds, is somewhat exciting.

I am digging this one a lot. My advice - and the consensus of many people on the Twitter feed - is let this one warm up a bit before drinking. This bottle has been out of the fridge for a full two hours and can be be described as "cool" and I think it's at its finest point. I originally gave this one an 88, but after it warmed up it completely elevated to a new level.

Though this review was not done blind and the bottle was comped, my opinion has not been consciously swayed. That being said, I'm not afraid to say a crappy wine is just that - this is solid.

Score: 91* *not blind

Tweet and Taste - APRIL 13, 2010 - 7 pm!

Tuesday, April 12 - 7 pm CST, go onto Twitter, search #ttmi and follow along!

A bunch of people are going to be tasting some wine and talking about it on Twitter. Here's what's on the agenda:

2008 Dry Riesling
2007 Pinot Noir
2008 Blue Franc (Blaufrankish)

If you can't follow along on Twitter, come back around 9 pm and I'll put full notes on each of the wines up.

2004 The Furst Vin d'Alsace Riesling

So I was at a performance of a local theater company which had a silent auction going. They had a few different lots of wine which I bid on, and won. This is one of the wines in question. At a retail cost of $12, this is almost certainly too old to drink.

A slight petrol thing, some floral notes, with an array of unripe tropical fruit - pineapple and papaya.

Not a hint of sugar on this one - dry to the bone. A dried unripe fruit quality - take an unripe pineapple and dehydrate it, it probably tastes like this. Maybe some peach or nectarine, even melon of the cantaloupe variety, even a bit of green grape - once again, all unripe. Some floral qualities too, this may be the first wine (in quite a while, if not ever) that I've gotten very distinct rosewater from. Don't drink this one any colder than "cool," it is far better closer to room temp.

The dry, unripe, dried fruit thing continues on the finish.

Certainly well made, but not quite to my palate. If you have one of these in the cellar, it's probably time to pop it open.

Score: 85

N/V Albero Cava Brut

This is seven to eight bucks depending on where you live and it is a Trader Joe's exclusive.

A bit of white bread - not yeast, more clearly Wonder Bread - on the nose.

Light body, dry and crisp - just a hint of green apple with lemon dominating, if you swish wine around in tasting a slightly unpleasant lemon dust spray thing comes out.

The finish brings lemon, but to be clear it's not sour, almost lemonade, maybe just maybe a bit of an Arnold Palmer thing? I think so.

At seven bucks this isn't bad and is comparable to other cheap cava on the market, but by no means is it any sort or bargain. No flaws, but nothing great either.

Score: 80

2007 Argyle Willamette Valley Pinot Noir

The local wine shop has this $25, but I know it can be found for considerably less if you shop around.

A bit of raspberry on the nose.

Light, very light, for a red wine. Almost a dark pink - I've seen (albeit, unusual) roses darker than this. Cherry and raspberry is it with a bit of green pepper. Great acid, rather tart, and not a hint of sugar.

More cherry and a bit of grape stem on the finish.

This is a nice light bodied wine, thin, tart, but great for food. I liked this one, but it just hit me as being a tad too simple - if found at the $13 range I'd say it's worth a shot, but at $20ish all I can do is say pass.

Score: 85

Tweet and Taste #2! April 13, 2010

The second TWEET AND TASTE is coming up sooner than you'd expect.

Here's the Facebook fan page.

Here's the webpage run by Michigan By the Bottle.

Tuesday, April 13 - 7 pm central (8 pm EST) - log into Twitter, search #ttmi and you'll be in for some interesting discussion. The last Tweet and Taste was an outstanding success and I'm sure this one will be just as good.

For those unable to make it, a transcript will likely be up at Michigan By the Bottle and I'll be putting up formal notes on the bottles here.


The best part of this is the shipping deal:

Pick up the wines we are tasting at your local wine shop or online. Shady Lane Cellars is offering $.01 shipping on all wines through April 13th with no restrictions. They can ship directly to Michigan, Florida, and Minnesota. To qualify for the discounted shipping, email your order to info@shadylanecellars.com with "ttmi" in the subject line. All orders must be accompanied by a faxed (231.947.7616) or scanned copy of your drivers license. For orders outside these three states, call the Tasting Room (231.947.8865) to discuss options.



Nice? I know.

Here's what we're tasting:

2008 Dry Riesling
2007 Pinot Noir
2008 Blue Franc (Blaufrankish)


I'm stoked.

2007 Domaine Charvin Vin de Pays de la Principauté d'Orange à côté

It really does need to be repeated - put your young red wines in some sort of decanter for at least an hour before drinking. This wine was extremely tight for the first ninety minutes or so and really didn't come together until hour three. Eleven bucks at Binny's - many places online have it for fifteen - I snagged a bottle on a whim thanks to a Parker 90 point rave.

The nose has something kind of strange, almost a buffalo wing sauce quality comes through on the nose - spice as in hot pepper spice. There's also a cherry candy - red Starburst - thing.

Cherry and strawberry candy, generic sort of red fruit, with a dash of black pepper, menthol, and a bit of cigar, all with a slightly medicinal back palate. This is fairly light in body - when I think of medicinal wine, I think heavy and viscous, not so much here, which makes what can be perceived as a flaw into an interesting quirky quality.

More of that medicinal, menthol, minty, and cherry thing linger on the finish.

This was apparently aged for eighteen months in concrete - I'm not sure I've encountered a wine not aged in either steel or oak. Concrete...fascinating... Personally, I'd sit on this wine for another year or so before opening. I'm less thrilled than Parker, but considering the eleven dollar price tag, I also can't bash it.

Score: 85