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lummi island wine tasting oct 31 ’20
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Bread Crumbs
Friday Bread pickup will continue at the Ferry Parking Lot on Fridays from 4 – 5:30 pm through October. We are exploring how to bring Bread Fridays back to the wine shop. perhaps in the partial shelter of the wine shop garage door opening beginning in November.
We are open on Saturday afternoons from 3-5 pm for purchases and perhaps a wee splash of the “Wine of the Week. (see below). We don’t think reservations will be necessary, at least for the time being, but since only one group will be allowed inside at a time, you might encounter a short wait if another party is already inside. Appointments possible if timing is important to you.
The usual social distancing guidelines (see below) will apply. Windows will be open and fans and air filters will be in place as necessary to maintain a rapid air exchange cycle while the shop is open.
Social Distancing Guidelines:
1. Only one group (up to four people) will be allowed in the shop at once for up to 20 minutes.
2. Everyone must wear a mask while inside;
3. Each group must be a “pod” that willingly takes responsibility for managing social distance within their group.
4. Reservations optional (most likely not necessary).
Wine of the Week: La Spinetta IL Nero di Casanova Sangiovese ’15 Italy
Okay, okay, yes, this is the same Wine of the Week as last week. But since no one came by last Saturday, it will still be new to anyone who happens by this weekend! That could be you!
Ruby red in color with intense cherry and spicy mint characteristics on the nose. Densely rich on the palate, this magnificently structured Sangiovese is rounded with a good grip and fine finish.This is a pure expression of Sangiovese from 20-year-old vines surrounding the Casanova winery. i offers a complex aromatic profile of pressed rose, wet earth, liquorice and wild Mediterranean brush, fully expressing its Tuscan fingerprint. This wine has a distinct structure and power not unlike the more well-known Brunello or Montepulciano and aging in ten-year-old oak casks adds further integration, definition and stability to this exciting win
La Spinetta IL Nero di Casanova Sangiovese ’15 Italy $20
Intense ruby red color. Aromas of wild cherry, black currant and sweet plum. On the palate, this wine offers silky tannins and a fruity chewy finish as well as lots of cherry with elegant richness. A funky and intense wine. A better under $20 Tuscan Sangiovese might be impossible to find! This vintage of Il Nero is delicious! Intense ruby red in color with intense cherry and spicy mint characteristics on the nose. Densely rich on the palate, this magnificently structured Sangiovese is rounded with a good grip and fine finish.
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Mar a Lago Update: Looking Back with Exhaustion
Over the past four years we have seen and felt our country grow polarized as never before, not so much by ideology as by deliberately targeted political manipulation from the Right. The uneasy partnership between the Tweetster and Darth McConnell has never been one of the heart* (see below) so much as some kind of ongoing, mutually distasteful political arm wrestling. Their uneasy alliance is that the T gets to stay in the Spotlight, and the D gets to eat all the puppies he can lure into his lair.
This week’s “column” marks something like the 180th weekly edition of this little commentary feature here on our wine blog, our ongoing fearful lament against the increasingly virulent Tyranny of Ignorance perpetuated on our country and our planet by the petty vainglory of self-righteous Republicans. The pilot edition of this feature was in late April, 2017.
Now here we are (Finally!) on the eve of another Presidential election. We find ourselves deeply fearful that Republican attempts to stifle Democratic votes by slowing postal deliveries of mailed ballots, deliberately leaving valid ballots uncounted, and legally challenging Democratic ballots in courts across the land will occur and may succeed in at least some states. As amply evident during the Mueller report hearings, the Impeachment hearings, and the Supreme Court nomination hearings, we know that Republicans place Party and personal political advancement far above loyalty to, say, Truth, Justice, Honor, Integrity, or the Constitution.
It’s a tense time, with the whole world in the middle of a deadly pandemic, and voting rules varying wildly among states. In any case, now finally comes our chance to bring our country back on track with the values enshrined in our Constitution, and to bring all Americans together in the pursuit of our common goals. Raise yer glasses, lads and lassies, and unite in the hope for a better future!
* “Mommy, is it true Republicans have hearts of Stone?”
“No Dear, not at all; Republicans don’t have hearts.”
lummi island wine tasting oct 24 ’20
click on photos for larger images
Bread Crumbs
Friday Bread pickup will continue at the Ferry Parking Lot on Fridays from 4 – 5:30 pm through October. We are exploring how to bring Bread Fridays back to the wine shop. perhaps in the partial shelter of the wine shop garage door opening beginning in November.
The wine shop is presently open for sales on Saturdays from 3-5 pm for purchases and perhaps a wee splash of a “Wine of the Week.” We don’t think reservations will be necessary, at least for the time being, but since only one group will be allowed inside at a time, you might encounter a short wait if another party is already inside. Appointments possible if timing is important to you.
The usual social distancing guidelines (see below) will apply. Windows will be open and fans and air filters will be in place as necessary to maintain a rapid air exchange cycle while the shop is open.
Social Distancing Guidelines:
1. Only one group (up to four people) will be allowed in the shop at once for up to 20 minutes.
2. Everyone must wear a mask;
3. Each group must be a “pod” that willingly takes responsibility for managing social distance within their group.
4. Reservations optional (most likely not necessary).
Wine of the Week: La Spinetta IL Nero di Casanova Sangiovese ’15 Italy
Ruby red in color with intense cherry and spicy mint characteristics on the nose. Densely rich on the palate, this magnificently structured Sangiovese is rounded with a good grip and fine finish.This is a pure expression of Sangiovese from 20-year-old vines surrounding the Casanova winery. i offers a complex aromatic profile of pressed rose, wet earth, liquorice and wild Mediterranean brush, fully expressing its Tuscan fingerprint. This wine has a distinct structure and power not unlike the more well-known Brunello or Montepulciano and aging in ten-year-old oak casks adds further integration, definition and stability to this exciting win
La Spinetta IL Nero di Casanova Sangiovese ’15 Italy $20
Intense ruby red color. Aromas of wild cherry, black currant and sweet plum. On the palate, this wine offers silky tannins and a fruity chewy finish as well as lots of cherry with elegant richness. A funky and intense wine. A better under $20 Tuscan Sangiovese might be impossible to find! This vintage of Il Nero is delicious! Intense ruby red in color with intense cherry and spicy mint characteristics on the nose. Densely rich on the palate, this magnificently structured Sangiovese is rounded with a good grip and fine finish.
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Mar a Lago Update:
It’s been a challenging week around the wine shop. In politics, the Republikans appear ready to clamp down on their opportunity to cram yet another highly Conservative Justice onto the Supreme Court.
Turmoil in election forecasts shows increasing volatility and improving odds for Democrats to take over White House and both houses of Congress. (oh please, oh please!) while Republikaners pat themselves on the back for their moral courage at the ability to break any rule at any time.
Al told there is tremendous volatility in our national body politic.
And being as how some of us have gotten very little sleep the last few days, for this week we are signing off early.
to be continued…
lummi island wine tasting feb 14 ’20
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Friday Breads This Week
Levain w/ Dried Cherries and Pecans – Made with a levain that is made the night before using a sourdough starter. This allows the fermentation process to start and adds a lot of flavor to the bread. The final dough is mixed the next day with the levain, bread flour and fresh milled whole wheat and then loaded up with dried cherries and toasted pecans. A nice rustic loaf that goes well with meats and cheese – $5/loaf
Pan de Cioccolate – A delicious chocolate artisan bread that isn’t an enriched sweet pastry dough with lots of eggs, butter and sugar. Rather this bread is a rich chocolate bread made with a levain, bread flour and fresh milled rye flour, honey for sweetness, vanilla and plenty of dark chocolate. Makes fabulous toast, even better french toast – $5/loaf.
…and pastry this week is something really special and I don’t make it often as it is a really loooong process.
Panettone – an Italian brioche-like sweet bread, generally made during the Christmas holidays. It has become quite popular and one company (Panetonne from Roy) sells a large size Panetonne for $50! These panettone are a smaller version but are every bit as good. Requires building a sweet Italian levain over several days before the final dough is mixed with lots of sugar, butter, eggs and honey and flavored with candied ginger, lemon peel, and chocolate before being topped with a chocolate glaze. Great as a pastry, sliced for toast or french toast, or for bread pudding – 2/$5
(breads must be pre-ordered by Wednesday for pickup here at the wine shop at our Friday wine tasting, 4-6pm. Planning a visit to the Island? Email us to get on the mailing list!)
Climageddon Outlook
Like most of you, we have been wondering more and more about how we as individuals can make a difference in the climate crisis we humans have created. Since the beginning of the “Industrial Revolution,” we have mined and burned coal, oil, and natural gas at exponentially increasing rates to heat our buildings, fuel our transportation systems, and power our electric grids and Global Twitter accounts. These hydrocarbon deposits are the organic remains of hundreds of millions of years of life on our planet. Those of us fortunate enough to have been born in the developed world have enjoyed luxuries and lifestyles Royalty of the past could not even have imagined. We found the Golden Goose, brought it home, and have had a good run cashing in those golden eggs.
Everyone has known at some level that these resources wouldn’t last forever, and someday we would have to come up with another way to power our exploding population and energy-intensive technologies. But we find ourselves in a collective Shock and Denial that this threat that was vaguely Out There Somewhere is now in 3D, standing on our doorstep like a Depression hobo for a handout or maybe The Devil with a Major Accounting. There’s a collective Uneasiness, so we all muse about how we might help. One thing we have mused about lately is whether there is any way we could store more carbon in our undeveloped five-acre woodland. If different species grow faster, last longer, or store more carbon for longer, there might be some net benefit to such efforts.
A recent article in the NY Times explores recent proposals to plant a Trillion Trees to combat global warming. And a series of tweets starting with Greta Thunberg discusses the merits. The upshot is that planting and maintaining millions of new trees would help a little, so the more the better! At the same time, the Sheer Scale of the Problem– so many people burning fossil fuels so often in so many places– is such that there is No Substitute for Not Burning the hydrocarbons in the first place. So yes, by all means plant more trees, cut fewer down, and build things with them that last for a long time.
As shown in the chart, since 1950 world population has tripled from 2 to over 7 billion people, and continues to increase by about 3 people per second, mostly in the less developed countries of Asia and Africa. At the same time the availability of food and water fluctuate dangerously in those same places. Thirst, hunger, and poverty are on the rise, driving both climate and politically induced migrations and resistance to them across the globe. (cont’d next week)
Mar a Lago Update: Taking Bearings
One of the classic characteristics of the Psychopathic character strategy is the Tough/Generous duality. It boils down to an exaggerated punishment/reward system: please me and you get Big Rewards; let me down and you will get Totally F#*ked. We have seen this so often with the Tweetster that it is now a cliché when he throws yet another government professional under the Bus for crossing his interests; the list grows almost daily. Today’s headlines feature the T’s bashing of the career DOJ attorneys who tried the case against the T’s friend and co-conspirator Roger Stone, causing them all to resign from the case.
That has led to a public outcry about yet another Twoverreach conspiracy with AG Barr to get Stone’s likely sentence reduced or eliminated. So there is a New Big Kerfuffle and political Over-reach just when Susan Collins had assured us that he “had learned his lesson” during the impeachment process. Well, it seems, not so much!
Meanwhile, Democratic challengers to contend this Fall are regrouping after their first public skirmishes in Iowa and NH, with a few big Surprises, with Sanders and Buttieg emerging as leaders, Klobuchar surging ahead of Warren, and Biden dropping to the rear…surprising results.
The really Bizarre thing about all of this is the sort of hysteria that is settling in around this year’s election. Somehow we have all been convinced that a majority of our countrymen have lost their minds and will lurch to the polls like a great Zombie Army and make the Tweetster a permanent Evil Dictator like Ming the Magnificent. Even as we write this in the wee hours of the night, and logically see it for the madness it is, we can feel the icy reality of our Fear. We see the continuing blind allegiance of so many of our countrymen to this coarse, ignorant, and self-aggrandizing imposter and find it so completely incomprehensible that it’s hard to find solid ground to stand on.
So here’s the key: he’s making us all Crazy with the endless tweets, the constant assault on Truth, and the incomprehensible ability to get away daily for years with words and actions that would have had any of his predecessors run out of town in Tar and Feathers. Like any Cult Leader, he has the entire Audience in a Trance with his little Magic Show.
Well, it’s time for everyone to wake up, grab an oar, and pull together. Fight for your favorite candidate without putting down any of the others. And be willing to support our collective candidate 100% without reservation. So say we all.
Washington Post Tweetster Lie Count to date : 16,241 as of 01/24/20
This week’s tastingit
Folie a Deux Russian River Chardonnay ’18 California $16
Exuberant white with vibrant acidity; clean, rich, and bright on the nose and palate of sweet melon, golden apple and bright perfumed pear. Flavors of ripe vanilla, mandarin, toasted marshmallow, butterscotch, banana and citrus blossom are accompanied by a creamy mid-palate.
La Quercia Montepulciano ’17 Italy $13
100% organic montepulciano d’abruzzo from low-yield vinification by winemaker Antonio Lamona for one of the best, most expressive, and balanced Montepulcianos around. Opens with aromas of sour cherry with a hint of new leather; ripe fruity palate exhibits juicy blackberry, raspberry and a hint of anise; easy drinking with soft tannins.
Sharecroppers Red Blend ’17 Washington $14
Merlot-syrah blend; bright garnet hues lead to aromas and flavors of fresh herbs, vanilla, sweet tobacco and candied berries with underlying nuances of wet stone, cedar and earth on the lasting finish.
Folie a Deux Dry Creek Zinfandel $15
Fermented 20% whole cluster and aged four months in neutral oak; the aromas are pure, bright and fruit filled, with notes of raspberry, ash, cherry and flower; light, elegant, smoky finish.
lummi island wine tasting oct 25 ’19
click on photos for larger images
Friday Breads
Poolish Ale – Made with bread flour, a bit of yeast and, instead of water, a nice ale for the liquid which is then fermented overnight and mixed the next day with bread flour and fresh milled whole wheat. This makes a great all around bread with a nice crisp crust – $5/loaf
Buckwheat Walnut & Honey – A flavorful artisan bread also made with a poolish, fresh milled buckwheat and bread flour. Buckwheat is actually a seed not a grain, closer to rhubarb and sorrel than to wheat, and contains no gluten. (note: this bread is not gluten free as it is also includes some wheat flour.) Buckwheat has an earthy flavor that in this bread is balanced with a little honey and toasted walnuts.- $5/loaf
and pastry this week…
Chocolate Croissants- A traditional laminated french pastry made with a bit of sourdough and another pre-ferment to help create the traditional honeycomb interior. Rolled out and shaped with delicious dark chocolate in the center. – 2/$5
( breads must be pre-ordered by Wednesday for pickup here at the wine shop at our Friday wine tasting, 4-6pm. Planning a visit to the Island? Email us to get on the mailing list!)
La Quercia
Montepulciano is the 2nd most planted red grape in Italy (after Sangiovese) and has a reputation for making low-priced, juicy, “pizza-friendly” red wine. Winemaker Antonio Lamona of La Quercia winery is a grizzled and likable grape farmer who grew up in a grape-growing family. Years later he became the first in the family to bottle his own wines. Following a Muse in the late sixties, he began organic cultivation of his vines, with all grapes hand-picked and pressed within two hours of harvest. Located on a windy hillside along the Adriatic in Moro d’Oro in Abruzzo, the farm produces salami, bread, vegetables, olive oil, and cheese as well as great wines.
The farm is run by four friends who became colleagues by chance in the late 80s. In 2000, they took over a small winery called La Quercia, which includes about 12 hectares in vineyards and 3 in olive tree groves. They strive to produce wines that reflect the qualities of their vineyards. Quercia means “oak tree” which is a symbol for strength and genuineness. We have been carrying wines from La Quercia through Seattle importer Small Vineyards for well over ten years, and they are always refined and delicious.
Many of you are familiar with their Montepulciano Riserva, which we have carried for many years. This is the first year that we were not offered an opportunity to buy the Riserva but instead will be pouring the younger version. While it does not have the depth of the Riserva, it offers the brightness of younger vines and the freshness of less aging. And it’s also $10 less per bottle!
Hat in search of owner
During the most recent Artists Studio Tour on Labor Day weekend we had a lot of visitors much of the day. I do recall at some point noticing a gentleman of a certain age, maybe a bit Zorba-like, part of a family group perhaps. He was casually and comfortably dressed, accented by the hat and sunglasses shown at left.
At the end of the day I noticed that the hat and sunglasses were still in the shop, left atop the shelf over the stairs where we usually display bubbly. As in the photo the glasses were left atop the hat.
The man did not look familiar, so it is unlikely he will ever see this post. However, perhaps someone reading this will recognize them and help us get it back to theri rightful owner.
Mar a Lago Update: Matters of Honor
We find ourselves unconsciously contrasting the apparent character of some of the players in the current News Cycle– the Tweetster, Secretary Pompeo, Senator Graham, and Ambassador Taylor among them. And in particular we are musing on the apparently archaic notion of “honor,” most eloquently described in a short paragraph written in 1899 by John Walter Wayland, an historian from Virginia, in his winning response to a contest conducted by the Baltimore Sun looking for the best definition of a True Gentleman. He wrote:
“The True Gentleman is the man whose conduct proceeds from good will and an acute sense of propriety, and whose self-control is equal to all emergencies; who does not make the poor man conscious of his poverty, the obscure man of his obscurity, or any man of his inferiority or deformity; who is himself humbled if necessity compels him to humble another; who does not flatter wealth, cringe before power, or boast of his own possessions or achievements; who speaks with frankness but always with sincerity and sympathy; whose deed follows his word; who thinks of the rights and feelings of others, rather than his own; and who appears well in any company, a man with whom honor is sacred and virtue safe.”
These days we rarely speak of “gentlemen” in these terms or any other, or think much about character, honor, loyalty, service, or grace. Yet when we think about the values enshrined in our Constitution, we see the same principled aspirations. And it used to be comforting to imagine our nation would always choose leaders who would embrace these values in their dealings with us, with each other, and with other nations.
Ambassador Taylor stands out to us as personifying these values over some fifty years in the military and in foreign service, demonstrating by his actions a firm stand on principle. In contrast, Secretary Pompeo, like Taylor was a distinguished West Point graduate and military veteran. But unlike Taylor he has chosen to compromise his honor and principles by witnessing and going along with the Tweetster’s extortion attempt on the Ukraine President, and now dissembles about it, when he has been trained to know that an evasive statement is as dishonest as a Lie. He should have heeded Michael Cohen’s advice, that the Tweetster would Drag them all Down as he did Mr. Cohen. We confess some disappointment with Pompeo’s choices.
Mr. Graham, in contrast to both, is typical of an entire class of contemporary politicians, who can assert one thing today and its exact opposite tomorrow if that is what expediency demands. If Pompeo’s honor is in tatters, Graham’s (and many others) have none and have no idea what it is or what is means. All exigency orbits around a single idea: remaining in power at all cost.
Finally there is the Tweetster himself, a bizarre melding of bete noir and enfant terrible, a man who is completely incapable of telling the truth about Anything, as if some traumatic childhood experience taught him that his Emotional World Would End (like Daddy disapproving or Mommy disappearing…?) if he admitted Anything about Anything. “Honor” is to him, like a Hurricane at sea, “most devoutly to be eschewed,” because it would surely lead to unbearable Pain. Instead, like all psychopaths, he has a gift for telling people what he instinctively knows they want to hear so much they will compromise their values to hear it…as every con man does, and as Michael Cohen warned.
At the moment we have Republicans falling over themselves trying to court the Tweetster’s favor, as if they are in some kind of trance. If his astonishing betrayal of the Kurds, strongly suggesting a deliberate and treasonous collusion to help Russia and Turkey, isn’t enough to terrify his disciples enough about the implications of Another Term to call them to Action, things could get Really Ugly Really Soon.
Washington Post Tweetster Lie Count to date: 12,000 as of 6/10/19
This weekend’s wine tasting
Jane Ventura Cava Rose ’16 Spain $16
Clean aromas of almond with strawberry, and cherry with aromas of anise and country herbs; well balanced, dry, light and fresh with a long,
persistent finish.
Bernier Chardonnay ’18 France $12
Lemon, herbs and lees on the nose. Full-on minerality, with a touch of lemon curd. Crisp, elegant, steely, and citrusy personality; classic Old World style.
La Quercia Montepulciano ’17 Italy $13
100% organic montepulciano d’abruzzo from low-yield vinification by winemaker Antonio Lamona for one of the best, most expressive, and balanced Montepulcianos around. Opens with aromas of sour cherry with a hint of new leather; ripe fruity palate exhibits juicy blackberry, raspberry and a hint of anise; easy drinking with soft tannins.
Can Blau Can Blau ’16 Spain $16
Long an Artisan favorite; consistently showing aromas and flavors of ripe dark fruits and berries, a seamless texture, and long, silky finish that improves with aeration.
Seghesio Angela’s Garden Zinfandel ’17 California $19
Aromas of wild blueberry, briary raspberry patch and baking spice give way to a palate of juicy, ripe blackberry and black plum. Soft tannins, a rich mouthfeel and focused acidity lead to a long finish.
2072 Granger Way