Tag Archive for 'press'

Santa Barbara Winery New Release

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Pierre
on September 4, 2008
in Chardonnay, New Releases, Santa Barbara Winery and Wine News
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Santa Barbara Winery 2007 Chardonnay

Winemaker Bruce McGuire was able to travel throughout western Santa Barbara County choosing several vineyards (including Scheid Vineyard up in Monterey County) for this multi-vineyard blend.

These vineyards meet Bruce’s standards for viticultural practices and growing conditions suitable to make this full-bodied yet eminently approachable Chardonnay. All the grapes for this wine were pressed as whole clusters and 51% of the wine fermented in stainless steel without undergoing malolactic frementation.

These two steps lend brightness to the fruit intensity that then integrates with the mouth pleasing weight and supple flavors enhanced by barrel fermentation. Our Santa Barbara County Chardonnay is a good all around choice to satisfy a wide variety of foods.

With enough structure to age for five to seven years, we think this wine is very enjoyable two years after the vintage year. This nicely balanced wine is a great choice for service with roast chicken, sea bass, and pasta. Try with a mixed fruit and nut platter featuring a selection of light to mild semi hard cheeses.
Suggested Retail Price 14.00/750ml
To order:

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Labor Day Weekend at Santa Barbara Winery

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Pierre
on August 30, 2008
in Santa Barbara Winery, Tasting Room, Wine News and Winery News
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Beautiful warm day in Santa Barbara. Ran the first white grapes of the season — for a neighbor winery — at Santa Barbara Winery. Only 2 tons but enough to make sure the press was working well and ready. We expect our Sauvignon Blanc late next week or early the following week. Unfortunately, this year is going to be a very light year, either because of frost damage in the spring or nature’s whim.

Below are photos at the Santa Barbara Winery Tasting Room on Saturday, August 30, 2008.

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Viognier/Roussanne/Marsanne Cheese Pairings

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joanie
on August 28, 2008
in Joanie Hudson and Wine and Food Pairing
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Last night, Spiritland Bistro’s Wednesday Wine and Dine theme was Viognier/Roussanne/Marsanne (white wines from France’s Rhone region), and the cheese pairings were so perfect that I must share.  If you haven’t read my previous posts about this event, in short, Spiritland hosts a themed four course dinner on the last Wednesday of each month.  They choose a theme (July’s theme was Rose, September/October’s theme will be SRH Pinot), and during the first hour guests are able to pour themselves a taste of all of the wines that each person brought along.  During this first hour, guests graze on cheese from local shop, C’est Cheese that are meant to complement the wine.  

There were three cheeses last night, all served at a recommended room temperature so that they become almost spreadable on crackers.  First there was the Idiazabal from Spain.  This is a pressed unpasteurized sheep’s milk cheese that comes from the Basque country.  It has a buttery flavor with hints of hazelnut and is slightly acidic.  Nice for cutting through the richness of Rhone varietal white wines.  

Second we had Toma Maccagno from the Valle Cervo in Biella, Italy (Piedmont).  This one was best kept at room temperature because it is semi soft to begin with and was the perfect consistency to spread on a tiny cracker.  Toma is made from cow’s milk.  It is rich and earthy and like the Idiazabal has a buttery texture.  

Last there was my favorite, the Hoch Ybrig (hohk ee-BRIG) from Switzerland.  This is a full flavored cow’s milk that has a firm texture and ripe stone fruit essences, primarily apricot.  This wine would also be nice with a Riesling.  

The wine’s were fantastic, as usual, and I particularly enjoyed the 2006 Tablas Creek Bergeron that I brought.  Bergeron is 100% Roussanne (a French Savoie grape). If you are not familiar with the Tablas Creek wines, they are one of my favorite wineries in California and produce Rhone varietals in Paso Robles.  One reason I love their white wines so much is that their acidity keeps them nice and crisp, never cloying.  Their lean character makes them very food-friendly and balanced.  

Hope to see you at the October 6 SRH Pinot dinner!  See a previous post for the menu.  

Spiritland Bistro, 966-7759

Joanie Hudson, Assistant Tasting Room Manager, Santa Barbara Winery

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Brie, Fig and Prosciutto Grilled Cheese

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joanie
on June 29, 2008
in Joanie Hudson and Restaurant News
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A recent spotlight in the Santa Barbara News Press on the Bistro’s Grilled Cheese Night (Thursday evenings) included a recipe for one of the delicious sandwiches that I would like to share here. 

“This is not your mother’s grilled cheese.  Joshua Keating, executive chef at Bistro Restaurant & Wine Bar, experiments with specialty cheeses in his sandwiches, including Carmody cheddar, fontina, brie and more.  Any plans he might add American? “No!” he insisted.  “That’s what Mom used to make…I’ll never live up to Mom’s expectations!”

Brie, Fig and Prosciutto Grilled Cheese

Butter or olive oil, to coat bread

2 slices of sourdough bread

Drizzle balsamic vinegar

Drizzle extra virgin olive oil

3 ounces brie

2 slices prosciutto

3 Black Mission Figs, cut in half and marinated in 2 ounces of red wine

Butter or oil exterior of bread slices.  Drizzle balsamic vinegar and extra virgin olive oil on interior.  Place remaining ingredients between slices.  Grill in panini grill on medium-high heat for about 6-7 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bread is golden brown, or fry in frying pan on low heat for about 4-5 minutes per side.

Yield: 1 sandwich

Joanie Hudson, Assistant Tasting Room Manager, Santa Barbara Winery

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Fontina Val d Aosta Cheese

Published
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joanie
on May 18, 2008
in Joanie Hudson, Restaurant News, Santa Barbara Winery and Special Events
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Another yummy sandwich featured on the Pierre Lafond Bistro’s Thursday night Grilled Cheese menu is Fontina pressed between two slices of artisan sourdough bread with prosciutto.  The suggested wine pairing is Pinot Noir, but I would also say you could go with our off-dry Riesling.  

Fontina is an Italian cheese made from cow’s milk of which there are many variations produced throughout the world.  Originally and famously it is produced in the Alps, specifically in Italy’s Aosta Valley (Val d’Aosta) bordering France and Switzerland.  Additional areas of production include other parts of Italy as well as Denmark, Sweden, and France.  Its creamy texture morphs with age - softer in its youth and progressively firmer as it matures.  The 45% milkfat content lends to its buttery richness.  Like Gruyere, Fontina cheese melts well and is great for grilled panini sandwiches and fondue.  The peasized holes scattered throughout the cheese are a classic characteristic as well as its earthy and nutty flavors, both of which become more prominent with age.  The color is reminiscent of the sun beating on straw and along with its mild fruitiness there is a sweet hint of honey that is left to linger.  

The Italian variation of Fontina is typically aged for longer periods of time than, for example, the Danish version.  The aging affects the texture, making the Danish version more of a semi-soft creamy cheese.  The darker the rind gets the older it is.  When buying the cheese, look out for the Italian stamp of quality on the label. 

Another ingredient in the Fontina sandwich is prosciutto, whose saltiness cuts right through the fattiness of the cheese and adds a meaty quality to the mix.  A nice and mellow Pinot Noir is a great complement as the raspberry notes work well with the nuttiness of the cheese, and its acidity also slides right through the fat.  Mushroom notes in the cheese (which really presents itself in an aged Fontina) work well with Pinot Noir’s characteristic earthiness.

Joanie Hudson, Assistant Tasting Room Manager, Santa Barbara Winery

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Gruyere Cheese at GCN

Published
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joanie
on May 15, 2008
in Joanie Hudson, Restaurant News, Santa Barbara Winery, Sauvignon Blanc and Special Events
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The Pierre Lafond Bistro’s Grilled Cheese Night (GCN) features five different cheeses on Thursday evenings.  Each sandwich offers unique flavors and textures, which call out for an appropriate wine pairing as a complement.  Most people, me included, don’t know very much about cheeses.  For example, I know that there are a lot of different types of cheese produced throughout the world, but until recently I never would have guessed the daunting nature of cheese production. 

And since wine and cheese go hand in hand, knowing which wine to pair with specific cheeses is very useful information for wine lovers like ourselves.  We carry a variety of cheese books at the winery if you are interested in learning more.

Over the next couple of weeks, I will focus on one of the cheeses available on the Bistro Grilled Cheese menu and discuss why we chose the “suggested wine pairing.”  First is Gruyere cheese and our 2007 Sauvignon Blanc.  Gruyere cheese is pressed and melted to perfection on crisp sourdough artisan bread with sweet grilled peppers, which add a silky caramelized texture swimming in melted cheese.  This semi-hard cheese is made exclusively from whole cow’s milk, giving it a richly dense and compact texture that is less tangy than Cheddar.  Its slightly sweet saltiness (the result of the brine used to create it) is smooth, nutty and not overpowering. 

Traditionally used in the classic French Croque Monsieur (a melted cheese and ham sandwich) as well as a main ingredient in fondue, it is a notoriously great melting cheese.  It can be cooked without becoming rubbery or oily.  Sauvignon Blanc is a wonderful complement for a few reasons.  First of all, its cleansing acidity offsets the richness of the fatty milk.  A slightly salty cheese like Gruyere is perfect with the sweet tropical and citrus fruits that are in the wine.  Ever wonder why Bleu cheeses are commonly paired with dessert wines?  It is because the saltiness offsets the sweetness (think about Kettle Corn).

To make Gruyere, raw milk is heated up to 93 degrees F, and then the producers curdle the cheese.  Afterwards the curd is cut into small pieces that are stirred and release whey (the liquid portion).  Curd is cooked and quicly raised to a temperature of 130 degrees F.  The cheese is finally pressed to remove moisture and then salted in brine for 8 days followed by a ripening and curing period that lasts 4-10 months.  The longer the curing period lasts the higher quality cheese produced (cheese.com).

Like many cheeses and wines, true Gruyere is part of the AOC (Appellation d’Origine Controlee) legal system, which guarantees that products from a specific region carrying its name really do originate there.

Joanie Hudson, Assistant Tasting Room Manager Santa Barbara Winery

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Summer Pink

Published
by
joanie
on May 8, 2008
in Articles on Wine and Vineyards, Joanie Hudson, New Releases and Rosé of Syrah
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Mass market American “blush” wines that were popular in the 1970s are a far cry from the dry and refreshing Rosés being produced today in California, Spain, Italy, and southwest France.  These pink wines are not to be confused with the cloying sweetness of grocery store boxed wines.  The resurgence of dry style Rosés in California has resulted in the production of a variety of styles that are a playful alternative for the summertime.

But what makes these wines pink?  How are they different from red and white wines?  I hear these questions often.  Red wines get their deep color and tannin from being fermented on their skins to extract color and tannin.  White wines are produced by immediately pressing the juice off of the skin to minimize contact between the two.  The next step is to ferment the freshly squeezed grape juice (aka the must).  During Rosé wine production, the juice is left in contact with the red skins for a short amount of time (anywhere from one to three days) resulting in its characteristic pink color.  Fermentation continues as a white wine, usually carried out in stainless steel tanks.  Rosés can be made from any variety of red grape — Syrah, Grenache, and Pinot Noir are popular here in Santa Barbara County.

Rose wines possess characteristics of white wine, making them popular as temperatures rise.  Stainless steel fermentation results in pleasantly light and crisp fruit qualities.  They are extremely versatile — popular by the glass as well as to accompany summer meals.  I personally think that Rosé wines can e drank all year round, especially in California because they also complement a variety of fall and winter root vegetables.

Our 2007 Rosé of Syrah is the fifth vintage Bruce McGuire has produced with grapes from the Hilltop Ranch vineyard in the Santa Rita Hills.  It is made from 100% Syrah grapes.  Plump strawberry and orange peel aromas are emerging with an extremely refreshing mid-palate fruit explosion and crisp acidity.

Joanie Hudson, Assistant Santa Barbara Winery Tasting Room Manager

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