Thirty-One and Counting

It is hard to believe that my Bride and I met one night, thirty-one years ago at a singles dance.  We have been basically been together every day since.  Of course, I also told her that I was going to marry her, that evening; I guess she didn’t try to run away too hard that night.  It doesn’t seem that long ago, but I know that I would never be able to get into any of the clothes that I had, except for my hats, scarves, ties, hosiery, and jewelry; though my Internist wants me to lose some weight, back then it was easy.   These thoughts I am relaying, is because we were out at Taste Kitchen in Ann Arbor, Michigan celebrating (which makes it even harder to lose weight).

We had moved from the bar, to our table looking out the window at the locals walking by, mostly college students.  Neither of us, ever had a student life, during college, as we were our own scholarship program, and back then we worked.  My Bride had the Miso Glazed Salmon with wild mushrooms, bok choy, Fresno chili peppers, and coconut milk.  I went with the Seared Diver Scallops with Fingerling potatoes, an asparagus salad, pepper coulis, and chive oil.  Our choices for dinner, made the next wine selection a bit easier and I selected Domaine Daulny Sancerre Le Clos de Chaudenay 2022 and Etienne Daulny owns fifteen hectares of vines divided into about fifty different plots within Sancerre and none of these wines see Malolactic fermentation.  Les Clos de Chaudenay is a single vineyard cuvee of Sauvignon Blanc, right next to the winery.  Most of the aging occurs in Stainless Steel, but about twenty percent is aged in well used six-hundred-liter “puncheons” and then the wines are blended at the end.  A nice straw-colored wine that had notes of grapefruit, lemon, and herbs.  On the palate, tones of a classic Sancerre, a bit racy, well balanced with a nice long crisp finish with terroir.  

Then my Bride wanted to go back to the bar, for dessert and reminisce again.  I let my Bride select, as I no longer enjoy desserts, like I did at one time, and since Lent was over, she could indulge.  We shared a dish of “Chocolate Delice” with a blackberry-wine reduction, berries, and a cinnamon graham cracker.  She was chomping at the bit, to have their Spanish Coffee, which is made from local products and the restaurant’s house made crème fraiche.  Hyperion Coffee Company of Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti, do their own roasting and blending.  When blended with the Barrel Reserve Spaulding’s Coffee Liqueur made from scratch by the Ann Arbor Distilling Co., she was in heaven. The Spanish Coffee was so great, that my Bride made the poor bartender get us the name of the coffee and the coffee liqueur that was used in the drink, and both were local brands to Ann Arbor.  Hyperion Coffee Company is located in Ann Arbor and in Ypsilanti, and they do their own roasting and blending.  The other ingredient that the bartender shared with us, was the Barrel Reserve Spaulding’s Coffee Liqueur made from scratch by Ann Arbor Distilling Co., founded in 2014. The liqueur is made from cold-brewed coffee and sugar cane and delivered a taste of roasted coffee, almonds, and creamy vanilla.  I was more hedonistic and went with The Rare Wine Co. Historic Series Madeira Savannah Verdelho Special Reserve NV, produced by Barbeito; and they have the longest brand name known to man or woman.  Verdelho is one of the drier and fresher (high acid) of the four varietally labeled, fortified wines of Madeira: Sercial, Bual, Malvasia and Verdelho.  Verdelho Madeira now represents a wine style, as much as the varietal.  After the phylloxera devastation of the 1860’s, Verdelho Madeira almost disappeared as they began using a resistant hybrid Jacquet, now outlawed, and Tinta Negra Mole, but in 1993, legislation was introduced that stipulated at least eighty-five percent of the variety must be used, if it is on the label.  Madeira Verdelho historically is a relatively dry, very fresh, fortified, oxidized white wine.  This wine was released in April 2010 and is still available.  This tawny-amber colored wine offers notes of orange zest, shortbread, ginger, milk chocolate, and almonds.  On the palate the wine is lightly sweet and offers tones of candied citrus, ginger, and some spice honey that ends with a delightfully long finish of spice and citrus sweetness.       

It Was Thirty-One Years Ago

My Bride and I met thirty-one years ago, and I may have ambushed her about the date, as she was just waking up.  Even though we are retired, she has volunteered to help her sister, who just acquired the company that she has worked at, since I have known her; hence her grogginess.  She got all keyed up and suggested that we go to our local place for dinner, and we have been going there almost as long as we have known each other. 

I suggested Taste Kitchen in Ann Arbor, Michigan as we had discovered this restaurant by accident, because I guess they don’t pay off the local world of “food critics” that frequent the internet, because when I was looking for a restaurant in this area, the big bullies of social media, tried to have us believe that we had to be twenty miles away.  We had sat at the bar, shared a dessert and she had the best Spanish Coffee, and I had a Malmsey.  I booked a table, we got there early and she wanted to have a drink at the bar, as she thought the man behind the bar was superb, and he was there.  She wanted something festive, and he poured us two tastes, before we got festive.  The first taste was Champagne Lete-Vautrain 204 Brut NV.  It began at Chateau-Thierry in 1968 when their Maison was founded by Robert Lete and his wife Liliane Vautrain.  They began with a 0.4-hectare plot and progressively until today it is seven-and-a-half-hectare vineyard.  It went to their children and then in 2011 to the Baron-Fuente family in the Marne Valley.  The wine is a blend of fifty percent Pinot Meunier, twenty-five percent Chardonnay, and twenty-five percent Pinot Noir.  It is aged in the cellar for three years.  A nice golden color with fine bubbles, it offered notes of peaches and apricots.  On the palate, tones of peaches and green apple, with bright acidity, minerals and a longer finish of fruit and terroir. 

The second tasting was Veuve Ambal Blanc de Blancs Brut NV.  Anne Marie Ninot was born in Rully in 1859, she met and married Antoine Emile Ambal, a Parisian banker in 1879.  She had two children with Antoine and he died and she moved back to Rully, where she had a brother who was an owner and merchant of Burgundian wines.   She was observant of the beginning of the “Champagne Method” and created her own Maison in 1898 of red and white sparkling wines.  Veuve Ambal has been a family-owned concern and in 1975, they and others saw the designation AOC Cremant de Bourgogne approved.  In 2005 Veuve Ambal Maison built a state-of-the-art premises closer to Beaune.  This wine is a blend of Airen and Ugni Blanc.  Airen is a drought-resistant, white wine grape, that in the 1990’s was the most-planted grape in the world.  It is considered a workhorse grape and along with Ugni Blanc is known as a base for brandy.  The fruit is hand-harvested, and only the first pressing is used and it aged on racks for twelve to eighteen months.  This golden-yellow sparkling wine with fine bubbles offered notes of citrus, lemon, lychee, and white florals.  On the palate there were tones of green apples, plums, and pine nuts.  A nice dry wine, that is very fresh and I thought it would be great as an aperitif, as we were sitting at the bar, and my Bride concurred.

Since we had gotten to the restaurant early and having a drink there, we also enjoyed an appetizer, before we went to our table.  We were going to share an order of Jumbo Lump Crab Cakes with a vegetable escabeche, avocado and Remoulade.  I knew what wine I was going to have, as I enjoy the grape, much more than my Bride does.  I went with Azienda Agricola Malvira Renesio Roero Arneis 2021.  Giuseppe Damonte started to produce wine in the Fifties, in the winery and estate of his family.  In the Seventies the company was renamed Malvira, after the old 19^th century building in the center of Canale that became the headquarters of the winery.  The name refers to the exposure of the courtyard which faces north, instead of the traditional south. In 1989, they moved the headquarters again to the foot of one of their Trinita vineyards. Since the harvest of 2017, they have been certified organic.  They are now into the third generation known for their Arneis, but they have also recently began making Barolo wines as well.  This varietal was almost lost in the Piedmont, but through some dedicated winemakers, it has been saved and locally it is also referred to as Nebbiolo Bianco.  This wine comes from their Renesio vineyard.   The wine undergoes fermentation and maturation in Stainless Steel tanks and undergoes about eight months of repeated batonnage to get all the flavor from the grapes.  It is a pale straw-yellow color with a greenish tint and offers notes of white florals, white peaches, and herbs.  On the palate, where one would expect a sweeter wine, this wine is savory and that perhaps is why I am always drawn to it; the wine proclaims freshness and has tones of almonds or hazelnuts, with a nice maybe a kiss of honey at the finish, after being so crisp in the beginning.      

Three from Chateau Figeac

The final notes on a wine tasting at my local wine shop The Fine Wine Source in Livonia, Michigan.   Of the six wines up for tasting, five were from Chateau Figeac.  Chateau Figeac was rated as Premier Grand Cru Classe (B) in the 1955 Saint-Emilion Classification, and this rating is not static, and in 2022, it was elevated to Premier Grand Cru Classe (A).  At the shop they also had some wine from the 1998 and 2020 vintage, that were not for the tasting, but they were sold by the time I got to the shop. 

The property has been an estate since Roman times, but in terms of viticulture, the estate became known following The Middle Ages.   In the 18^th Century the estate was much larger, but in the 19^th Century sections had been sold off, including to Cheval Blanc in 1832.  A couple of other properties that acquired land during dispersals, have appended “Figeac” to their titles.  Most of the region favors Merlot and Cabernet Franc, but at Chateau Figeac the plots are planted thirty-five percent Cabernet Franc, thirty-five percent Cabernet Sauvignon, and thirty percent Merlot.  The current estate is now forty-two-hectares and is known for have three different types of gravel soil.  The fruit is hand-harvested and then inspected by video-scanning.  After the fermentation process, the wine is aged in all new oak barrels for thirteen to fifteen months.  We started this set with Chateau Figeac Saint-Emilion Premier Grand Cru – B 2010.  During the tasting, I was talking to the representative of the wholesaler and he told me that this wine was extremely tight when it was open, but had truly mellowed, by the time I got to the tasting.  The wine was a deep ruby colored wine and offered pure Bordeaux notes of red and black fruits, and ending with the classic expression of pencil shavings.  On the palate the plums and raspberry were prominent, blending with very fine tannins and with a good medium count finish of fruit and terroir.

The wine is widely considered to have greatly improved since World War II, under the ownership and guidance of Thierry Manoncourt.  The average age of the vines are probably around fifty years of age, and some are over the century mark, as many of the vines were personally planted by Thierry Manoncourt with some help from Madame Marie France Manoncourt.  We then had Chateau Figeac Saint-Emilion Premier Grand Cru – B 2012.  This dark ruby colored wine offered fresh and vibrant notes of red and black fruits, floral fragrances, and some shades of cedar, and tobacco.  On the palate the tones of red fruit were most prominent, blending with the rounded tannins and finishing with a medium count of fruit and terroir.    

The wines from Saint-Emilion all have the potential through quality work and techniques to become Grand Cru status, as the status since the 1955 Saint-Emilion Wine Classification is an evolving process.  The concept being that the wineries will continually improve the quality of their wine.  The regulations are tighter and have more restrictions in the Grand Cru classification compared to the basic appellation rules.   The Grand Cru Classe designation has been conferred in 1955, updated in 2006, 2012 and 2022.  Three of the four regulations concern the nuts and bolts of viticulture, and the fourth requires an extra fourteen months of storage before being released.  As a side note, I have heard that some of the great houses withdrew from the listing, over requirements of visitations, parking lots and marketing requirements; some did not want to become commercial.  The last wine of the tasting was Chateau Figeac Saint-Emilion Premier Grand Cru – B 2016.  This wine is a blend of thirty-eight percent Cabernet Sauvignon, twenty-six percent Merlot, and twenty-six percent Cabernet Franc.  A deep ruby/purple wine that offers notes of ripe black cherries, cassis, licorice, cloves, cocoa, and cedar.  On the palate the tones are so elegant, and complex that it is breath-taking.  It starts with the ripe fruit, but it is blended with “cashmere-like” tannins and multi-layers of pure joy, which my vocabulary cannot do it justice and it ends with a long count finish of like chocolate covered cherries.  A true seductress, the 2016 vintage has been superlative for Bordeaux and of the four wines, this was tops, followed by the 1989 (which I thought was very chewy), the 2010 which was very mellow and then the 2012 (and there was absolutely nothing wrong with that wine); and that is what can drive me crazy on a vertical tasting, but oh that 2016.  I might add that the 2016 received 98 points by Parker, 99 points by Suckling, and 100 points by Decanter.      

Three Unique Wines from Bordeaux

I received a text message from my local wine shop The Fine Wine Source in Livonia, Michigan inviting me for a special wine tasting.  Sometimes, I have been known to enjoy impromptu wine tastings there as well; and this time I was asked what time would I be arriving.  Now, with all of the wonderful wines that they carry, the shop can feel claustrophobic with a crowd eagerly tasting some wines; so, I responded with a time, a little while later, I was asked if I could come at a different time.  That told me, that it was going to be a wonderful tasting experience, so I let them pick the time, and then I agreed.

The first wine out of the icer, was Chateau Brane-Cantenac Blanc Bordeaux 2021, a white wine from the famed house in Margaux.  Chateau Brane-Cantenac was ranked a Second Growth in the 1855 Classification of the Medoc and Graves.   The estate goes back to the 17^th Century, and was purchased after the French Revolution by Baron Jacques-Maxime de Brane.  In the 1950’s the estate was purchased by Lucien Lurton and is now owned by Societe Viticole Henri Lurton and is currently overseen by Henri Lurton.  There are seventy-five hectares of vineyards planted on top of sandy, gravel-bases soil, with an abundance of large pebbles, which are beneficial to the vines for maintaining warms and for excellent water drainage.  Three hectares of vines are planted in the Haut Medoc appellation of their property on gravelly clay soil and it is here that they grow their white Bordeaux wine and the first vintage was in 2019.  The 2021 vintage is a blend of seventy-two percent Sauvignon Blanc and twenty-eight percent Semillon.  The wine is blended and aged in a mix of 225 liters and 500 liters barrels with fifty percent new oak for eight months on fine lees.  The wine is a light yellow in color and offers great aromatic notes of yellow fruits, green apples, cinnamon, and new leather.  On the palette there were tones of candied lemons, tropical fruits, a soupcon of honey, velvety tannins that had a nice long lingering finish of lemon meringue; and I must stress that this wine was dry, even with the lively nuance blend of flavors.

The first red wine of the afternoon was Chateau Petit-Figeac Saint-Emilion Grand Cru 2020.  In 1945, Chateau Figeac was one of the first Bordeaux estates to have a second wine, and it was La Grange Neuve de Figeac, named after a particular plot in the estate.  In 2012, the second wine was labeled Petit-Figeac and is now made from fruit from various plots across the estate.  The production of the Grand Vin is 100, 000 bottles, the production of Petit-Figeac is 40,000 bottles.  Petit-Figeac is harvested, vinified, and bottled to the same standards as Grand Vin, just with younger vines.  The wine is a blend of fifty-eight percent Merlot, thirty-three percent Cabernet Sauvignon, and nine percent Cabernet Franc.  The wine is aged from fifteen to eighteen months in oak, with about twenty percent new.  The deep red wine offers notes of black and red fruit, florals, and spice.  On the palette great tones of cherries, plums, spices blended with polished tannins; a medium-bodied red wine with a good finish of terroir.

Then we started a vertical tasting of Chateau Figeac Saint-Emilion Grand Cru Classe – B 1989.  Chateau Figeac is a forty-two-hectare vineyard that is rather unique as it has a much greater planting of Cabernet Sauvignon, compared to the other vineyards in the Right Bank.  The estate is planted thirty-five percent Cabernet Franc, thirty-five percent Cabernet Sauvignon and thirty percent Merlot.  On the average the vines are forty-five years of age, with some over one-hundred years of age.  The fruit is hand-harvested and then inspected by video-scanning.  After the fermentation process, the wine is aged in all new oak barrels for thirteen to fifteen months.  The wine is a nice ruby-red color offering notes of cherries, plums, florals, tobacco, and earthiness.  On the palate the tones of fruit were a bit feisty or gamey, with that delightful character of an aged Medoc, good acidity, with firm tannins, and ending with a nice decent finish of some cedar, graphite, and fruit.

Fine Wine Source Club Selections – April 2024

Once a month, I go to my local wine shop The Fine Wine Source of Livonia, Michigan to pick up their club selections.  The odds are that I go there more often than that for the camaraderie and the in-house wine tastings.  Another great bonus is that one gets case pricing, even if you only need a bottle or two.  The selections always have one wine representing the Old World and one representing the New World.

The first bottle is Cantine Renzo M “Cornioleta” Chianti Riserva 2019 from the Fattoria di Basciano which is owned by the Masi family since the beginning of the 1900’s. It is a family-run company that has been making wines for three generations in the Chianti Rufina region of Tuscany.  Chianti Rufina is the second most widely known region after the Chianti Classico district, and it has nothing to do with Ruffino, a wine producer in Tuscany (but people get the two confused, because they sound and look similar).  They have long term relationships with growers, and maintains a consultation on how to maintain the vineyards for the highest quality.  The Rufina region is more mountainous compared to the Classico zone and is known for cooler evenings, allowing the grapes to ripen more slowly.  The Riserva is only made in selected years and this wine is ninety-five percent Sangiovese and five percent Colorino (a minor Italian varietal that is known for its dark-black skin and high tannin levels to give color and character to the Sangiovese grapes in Tuscany).  “Cornioleta” means a small grove of dogwood plants (corniolo in Italian) that grown nearby some of the vineyards.  The wine is aged for thirty months in oak and Paolo Masi is considered a “modern-style” winemaker in the region and known for deep colors and elegant aromas.  The dark wine offers notes of cherries, fennel, sage, rose, tar, and graphite.  On the palette tones of mature cherry fruit, blended with full tannins with substantial acidity against a chocolaty backdrop.

The second wine representing the New World is Kenwood Vineyards Merlot Sonoma and Mendocino Counties 2019.   Kenwood Vineyards was established in 1970 in Sonoma.  It was founded by the Lee family when they purchased the estate and winery of the Pagani Brothers that began in 1906 and were successful until Prohibition.  In 1999 the winery was bought by F. Korbel and Bros. and in 2014 Kenwood was bought by the international beverage concern of Pernod Ricard.  Kenwood Vineyards has twenty-two acres of estate vineyards and also sources fruit from dozens of other growers in Sonoma.  The winery has been known for years for some of their Single-Vineyard wines, as well as some of their other collections.  This wine is from one of their other collections as it also uses fruit harvested from seventy-one percent Sonoma County and twenty-nine percent Mendocino County.  The various blocks of Merlot were picked from September through October and ferment separately, then aged with new oak before the final blending.  The wine is eighty-seven percent Merlot, nine percent Cabernet Sauvignon, and four percent Petit Verdot. The furnished tasting notes describes the dark red wine as having notes of blackberry jam, dark chocolate, blueberry, and touches of toasted oak.  On the palette, tones of black plum, raspberry, cedar, soft tannins, and a long finish.

I thought I would also mention a wine that I tasted at Fine Wine Source, that really hasn’t fit conveniently with other wines for an article.   It is Wwe. Dr. H. Thanisch Bernkasteler Badstube Riesling Kabinett 2020.  The winery is currently managed by Sofia and Christina Thanisch and the family goes back to 1636 and covers twelve generations.  The winery first made the attention of the tax men in 1654.  They now have vineyards located in Bernkastel, Kues, Lieser and Brauneberg and all are planted with Riesling; the most famous vineyard is their Bernkasteler Doctor.  Most of their vineyards have been owned by the family for over two-hundred years.  In 1910, they were one of the founding members of the VDP (the Association of Germany’s finest wineries).  The “Villa Thanisch” was built in 1884 and is still the seat of the winery.  This winery is known as a VDP.Grosse Lage (a Grand Cru Vineyard).  The wine is listed as a Riesling Kabinett, which means that the fruit was picked later to ensure richness, and the term is referred to as Mit Pradikat as a designation of further respect, and it is listed as “feinherb” which translates to “semi-dry.”  Riesling wines with Pradikat from Grosse Lage are respected and appreciated and known for long aging potential.  This golden-straw colored wine offered notes of green apples, citrus, and white florals.  On the palette there were crisp tones of green apple, lime, and lemon and a long finish of fruit and minerals; very refreshing.   

Easter 2024

My Bride must have had a premonition, because she started preparations for the dinner, a bit early, as we always have this discussion about the timeliness of the guests.  I had just started my shower when the first of the company started arriving.  My Bride was on her own, but she handled everything with poise and ease.  I as my usual high-maintenance self, arrived downstairs after more of the guests arrived.  I was both pleased and embarrassed, but I survived, as we were getting drinks and appetizers out.  She had gone out earlier in the week to buy all of these ingredients to make a special cocktail that her one sister recently fell in love with, and she was a no show, because of her work.  It happens, and I decided to show everyone a very cute Raconteur when he made an appearance as a Ring-bearer. 

My Bride had started with assorted cheeses and crackers, and she also baked a Brie with Onion Jam, for a more savory finish.  She made Deviled Eggs which I know for a fact is making a comeback, as I even see restaurants making them as appetizers.  We also had shrimp with cocktail sauce, along with fruit plates and vegetable plates.  She is always trying to make everyone eat healthy, and to me that is the antithesis of holiday meals, but what do I know.  I guess even with the sister, that didn’t make it, some of the others wanted to sample the cocktail, so that kept my Bride busy, between courses.  I started pouring Cline Family Cellars “Seven Ranchlands” Viognier North Coast 2021.   Cline Family Cellars is a producer based in Carneros and known for Zinfandel and Rhone varieties and established in 1982 in Oakley.  Fred Cline is one of the original Rhone Rangers of California.  The “Seven Ranchlands” is a way of honoring both the seven children of the Cline family, and the seven vineyard ranches.  The fruit for this wine is from the Catapult Ranch Vineyard in the Petaluma Gap, and the balance is from the Diamond Pile Vineyard at the base of the Wild Cat Mountain.  The grapes are handpicked at night, where they are destemmed and pressed, and allowed to settle for forty-eight hours before racking.  The Catapult portion was inoculated with wild yeast, while the Diamond Pile portion was allowed to ferment naturally in barrels.  After fermentation, the wine was aged in neutral French Oak for six months before blending and bottling.  This was a very soft colored white wine with notes of mango, guava, and pineapple. On the palate tones of dried apricots, pears, and banana in a full-bodied wine with nice acidity and a nice finish. 

The dinner was focused on Roasted Pork Tenderloins, Breaded Chicken, and Broiled Salmon.  We did have her original Caesar Salad, along with Armenian Pilaf (some of the nephews might do a coup d’etat if we didn’t have it), along with Fennel and Onions, Brussels Sprouts with Bacon, and a Scalloped Potato dish that also had Sweet Potatoes in the mixture.  After dinner there was a huge assortment of desserts, pies, cakes, Paklava, Canolis and I am sure that I am missing something else.  For dinner, I was a bit daring and selected Maison Paul Jaboulet Aine “Parallel 45” Cotes du Rhone 1996, knowing full well, that if there was a problem, I was sure to be able to find another bottle somewhere in the house.  Paul Jaboulet Aine has been part of the Rhone Valley for almost two hundred years.  In 1834, Antonie Jaboulet started with a small vineyard on the hills of Hermitage, and since then, it encompasses over one-hundred-hectares of vineyards from the northern to the southern part of the Rhone Valley.  It was family owned until 2006 when it was purchased by the Franco-Swiss family of Jean-Jacques Frey; with holdings in Bordeaux, Burgundy, and the Valais.  Parallel 45 is in the southern Rhone and named after the famous latitude that spans across France. The grounds are composed of clay, limestone and alluvial deposits and round pebbles.  The grape varieties for this wine are Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre, Marselan (which is a recent crossing of Grenache and Cabernet Sauvignon), and Carignan and the vines are now about forty years of age, so they were about ten years of age, when this wine was produced.  The fruit is hand-harvested.  The Syrah is vinified separately with maceration and soft extraction for about three weeks, while the other varieties are co-fermented with the Grenache for color and tannins.  The wine was aged for six months in Stainless Steel vats on fine lees.  The wine still had fruit.   It had a deep red color with no apparent foxing and offered very subtle notes of red fruit and spices.  On the palette there were tones of red fruit, soft blended tannins with a soft finish of terroir.  After decanted into the glasses, there was still plenty left in the bottle of sediment and dregs and there were about four full pours of the wine.  I am quite sure that almost all of the wines from the Nineties onward were all purchased and cellared immediately here, with only occasional jostling of the bottles during restocking exercises in futility as I would periodically attempt to keep up to date with the cellar.             

Easter Eve – Armenian Style

It has become a tradition that one of my cousins has created a special holiday for all the cousins, called Easter Eve.  She said that she took the mantel from her mother, to keep the family together, as she represented the new generation.  The first one was held at her apartment, after she had just gotten married and was overlooking the Detroit River.  That initial party was a crowd pleaser, as I saw a photo of my Bride and I, sitting on an ice chest, as there were no more chairs in the apartment to sit on.  This has changed to a degree, but still a case of déjà vu as my Bride and I ended up dining at the island table in the kitchen, and I did hear that there were forty-two guests.  She has always begun the dinner, with everyone reciting or reading “Hayr Mer” which is the Armenian version of The Lord’s Prayer, and she now has the prayers laminated and everyone gets an Armenian flag to hold as well, during this part of the evening.  The meal was fantastic starting with a big spread of appetizers, beginning with home-made Lahmajoon, an Armenian “pizza” on very thin dough covered with ground lamb, onions, garlic, parsley and tomato paste.  Jumbo Shrimp cocktail with an amazing horseradish sauce.  I could go on and on, about all of the food that was there, some house-made, some catered, some guest-made, but it was all delicious.  The roast lamb was stellar and if there had been a cover charge, the lamb would have redeemed the charge.  One of the cousins had made “Ace’s Hot Ham” as it is called, a true homage to my father and the dish that he created; a Krakus Polish ham that is stuffed with cloves of garlic and coated with crushed pepper flakes, gently baked and sliced paper thin.  The table could have collapsed with all of the food that was being offered, and then there was desserts.  Somewhere between all of this, there was even the traditional Easter Egg battle, each participant grabs a decorated hard-boiled egg and either holds their egg firmly, or is the one to attack another egg that is held firmly, to see whose egg shell was stronger.  The egg is totally symbolic of Easter, especially to the Armenians; and though I am not sure, I have to believe this custom or something similar is done in other cultures as well. 

The first wine that I will mention is Trinity Canyon Vineyards Dukhov Vayots Dzor Armenia 2017 and Dukhov is one of the slogans of the Armenian Velvet Revolution, a peaceful movement from 1918 that raised hopes for a free election and means “with courage” or “without fear.” Trinity Canyons Vineyards was founded by three wine lovers in 2009 and associated themselves with winegrowers and winemakers in the Vayots Dzor Highlands, near the oldest established wine producing site in the world (Areni).  Vayots Dzor is a mountainous province in southeastern Armenia and the motherland of Areni Noir; and contains the most wineries of any province.  The Areni-1 cave complex is a famous archaeological site containing the oldest discovered winery, over 6,000 years ago.  The vineyards here lie mainly between 950 and 1,200 meters above sea level.  The wine is a blend of sixty-five percent Kakhet, twenty-five percent Cabernet Sauvignon and ten percent Areni Noir.  Kakhet has been recorded since the Fourth Century, but until recently (Soviet Era) was reserved for Port-style sweet wines.  It tends to be berry-forward and terroir driven, and offers tones of blackberry, black currant, fig, and black pepper.  U.C. Davis claims that it is a relative of the French varietal Carbonneau.  Areni Noir is a dark-skinned varietal indigenous to Armenia and then the Transcaucus, that is well adapted to the large temperature swings found in the region.  It is known for its elegance and freshness.  This wine underwent Initial Fermentation in Stainless Steel and then was aged for about fourteen months in Caucasian Oak.  A medium red colored wine that offered notes of currants, strawberries, pomegranates, and pepper.  On the palette it showed tones of red fruits, spices, soft tannins, and I thought some traces of rhubarb, with a short finish.

In keeping with the theme of an Armenian Easter Eve, there on the open bar was a bottle of Ararat Five Star Brandy from the Yerevan Brandy Company of Armenia. All I could find out that the wine is made from small white Armenian grapes, but they were not identified. It is estimated that there are thirty to forty wine varieties that are indigenous to Armenia, perhaps some going back to that vineyard that Noah planted when the Ark landed at Mount Ararat in biblical times. The most notable white grapes from the area are Voskehat, Kangun, Muscat Vardabuyr, Garan Dmak and Chilar; so, I will presume that it is one or more of those used in production. Ararat Brandy is still marketed in the Russian speaking parts of the former Soviet States as Cognac, because the company won the Grand-Prix in competition in France in 1900, and they were legally allowed to call their product “Cognac,” but not with the Origen laws in place in Europe, that is not allowed.  The five starts represent five years of aging.  The brandy is an amber color and offers notes of peaches, plums, vanilla, and cinnamon.  On the palette caramel, toffee, and pastry.  I didn’t imbibe or take a photo, I am slipping, so I had to use a stock photo from the internet.  And of course, it will always get a smile and a nod from everyone, as it is my late father’s name.    

The Dinner Reception for Clos du Clocher

It was quite an evening at Vertical Detroit commemorating the Centenary of vintages for Clos du Clocher of Pomerol, along with The Fine Wine Source of Livonia, and AHD Vintners based in Warren.  Jim and Remy Lutfy were being excellent hosts and making sure everything was going smoothly as they saluted Jean-Baptiste Audy, the great-grandson of the founder and now the proprietor of Clos du Clocher.  After the Champagne reception, all the guests were seated and the dinner began.  A Charcuterie and Cheese Board was placed basically between every two guests with some fine in-house cured meats and some assorted cheeses accompanied with breads, crackers, honeycomb, grapes, Marcona Almonds, olives, roasted red peppers and whole grain mustard; I could have noshed on that all night, but that was served with the first two wines from Clos du Clocher, the magnum bottles of 2003 and 2009 vintages.  The second course was a plate of Barbecued Braised Short Rib with Polenta, Kohlrabi Slaw, and Pickles.  A Crème Brulee and assorted Berries followed. 

While the preparations were being made for the second course, the third wine was being poured.  We were served Clos du Clocher Pomerol 2018.  Since, I have mentioned the grounds, and the winemaking, this particular wine is also seventy percent Merlot and thirty percent Cabernet Franc.  A deep garnet-purple colored wine that offered notes of black cherries, blackberries, along with traces of menthol and graphite.  On the palette this medium to full-bodied wine offered tones of black fruits, grainy tannins, and a nice finish of fruit and terroir. 

The final wine that was served side by side with the 2018 vintage was the Clos du Clocher Pomerol 2020.  This was the first year that Organic conversion began and was officially instituted in 2021.  This vintage must be indicative of what should be expected from the entire plateau as well as the rest of Pomerol.  Another deep garnet-purple colored wine that offered big notes of black currants, black cherries, violets, and graphite.  On the palette, this was a big wine of black fruits, bold tannins and a great finish emphasizing fruit and terroir.  Since, the last two vintages were offered in classic bottles, we ordered both vintages to lay down in our cellar.    

A Centenary of Vintages of Clos du Clocher

The Fine Wine Source of Livonia, Michigan along with AHD Vintners celebrated a centenary of vintages for Clos du Clocher at Vertical Detroit.  Jean-Baptiste Bourotte was front and center, as the great-grandson of Jean-Baptiste Audy the founder of Clos du Clocher.  The first vintage for this small, but consistent estate in Pomerol was in 1924.  The winery is just shy of six hectares and is home to some truly ancient vines.  The estate is set in four parcels and seventy percent of these parcels are dedicated to Merlot, and the balance is planted with Cabernet Franc.  The average age for the vines is forty years and they are planted on clay and gravel parcels on the Pomerol plateau.  No herbicides are used and organic treatments are implemented where possible.  The fruit is hand harvested, double-sorted with a density bath, de-stemmed to create a homogenous final crop.  Fermentation is done in small Stainless Steel and concrete tanks by parcel; hence the wines reflect the percentages of the grapes grown.  The wine then is aged for eighteen months in French Oak, of which two-thirds are new.

The first two wines that were served came from the estate for this celebration and were in magnum formats, which are revered, because the wine ages slower in the larger bottles.  We began with Clos du Clocher Pomerol 2003.  Pomerol at first glance doesn’t look like a Bordeaux wine, both historically and physically.  There are really not a series of grand structures and it has no formalized wine system like found in the Medoc, Graves, Sauternes and Saint-Emilion.  Despite this, two wines Petrus and Le Pin, both without a chateau title) command higher prices than many of the Cru Classe wines.  This first wine that we had was terroir driven with a deep purple color and offered notes of raspberry, milk-chocolate, and some smokiness.  On the palate there were tones of raspberry, plum, and cherry blended harmoniously with soft tannins and decent finish of fruit and terroir. 

The second wine that we were served along side of the first wine from magnums was Clos du Clocher Pomerol 2009.  The region is sometimes referred to as the Libournais, as the town of Libourne is in the southern part of Pomerol. There is only about a twenty-meter fluctuation of elevation in the district.  Clos du Clocher is found on the marginally higher land on the eastern section where Pomerol meets Saint-Emilion and three of the most famous producers are immediate neighbors (Petrus, Lafleur, and Le Pin) and this wine is considered a value-priced Pomerol.  This wine was a deep inky purple in color and offered notes of raspberry, blackberry, spring florals, and traces of smoke, mocha, and coffee.  On the palette the tones of the red fruit, mingled with soft and sweet tannins, low acidity and a lingering finish of fruit and terroir.     

A Wine Reception at Vertical Detroit

AHD Vintners and Vertical Detroit were the hosts for an evening with Jean-Baptiste Bourotte celebrating the Hundredth Anniversary of Chateau Clos du Clocher of Pomerol.  Now, I will preface this by mentioning that this was by invitation from The Fine Wine Source of Livonia, Michigan.  I do mention this shop often, as sometimes my Bride thinks I have a home away from home.  I do mention the shop constantly, but I guess I should also mention the background of the shop.  Jim Lufty began selling wine at his family’s business called Cloverleaf Market about forty years ago, while he was attending Oakland University, and he eventually took over the business.  Over the years, his knowledge of wine and his fine palate, plus his fine business acumen has brought him accolades from trade publications and local news media.  He and his wife Livvie, are steeped in the wine industry, they have two children Remy and Margaux, and the family dog Piper.  In 1993, he moved to Livonia and opened The Fine Wine Source.  He has since opened the restaurant Vertical Detroit in Downtown Detroit in the historic Harmonie Park district in 2015.  I must stress that every wine in the store and at the restaurant has been curated by Jim and his staff, there are no “popular crowd-pleasing labels” unless they can actually be selected for quality.

The reception was to honor the Hundredth Vintage of Clos du Clocher of Pomerol.  Representing Clos du Clocher was Jean-Baptiste Bourotte, the great-grandson of Jean-Baptiste Audy.  Jean-Baptiste Audy is a family operated negociant firm based in Libourne and owner of a number of chateau estates on Bordeaux’s Right Bank, with properties in Pomerol, Lussac-Saint-Emilion, and Lalande de Pomerol. The firm has ownership of: Clos du Clocher, Chateau Bonalgue, Chateau Monregard La Croix, Chateau du Courlat, and Chateau Les Hauts-Conseillants.  The firm also has negocient labels like Audy Bordeaux Rouge and Jean-Baptiste Audy Brut, a Cremant de Bordeaux.  Michel Rolland is a consultant for some of the estates.

To begin the reception, all of the guests were served glasses of Champagne Pierre Moncuit Grand Cru Cuvee Moncuit-Delos Blanc de Blancs NV.  In 1889 Pierre Moncuit and his wife Odile Moncuit-Delos, established the house of Champagne Pierre Moncuit at Le Mesnil-sur-Oger.  In 1928, they begin making their own wine, with Cuvee Moncuit-Delos paying homage to the beginning.  In 2007, they build a modern new winery.  Le Mesnil-sur-Oger is a sub-region of the Cotes des Blancs, which is a sub-region of Champagne.  This wine is pure Chardonnay from ninety-year-old vines, with about three years of aging in the cellar.  The light gold colored wine offered notes of white fruits, citrous, exotic fruits, white flowers, creamery butter and vanilla.  On the palate a medium-weight wine with brisk acidity offering tones of pear, peach, lemon, pineapple, kiwi, butter, and vanilla with a soft mousse and a nice lingering finish of earthiness, and chalk (terroir).