Wine & Dine

By Paul Gregutt
Wine adviser

   Q. I’m trying to find a nice decanter for a gift but I’m not sure where to look.
A. Most big department stores carry decanters (along with wine glasses, etc.) in their kitchen/dining room sections. Fancier decanters can also be found in the kitchen specialty stores, or obtained through any of the large online/catalog wine accessory companies. These can be quite expensive.
I have a dozen decanters, all quite old (some date back to the 1800s) and all were obtained at antique stores or auctions. Most of these places will have a few to choose from, and occasionally you find a real treasure trove. Prices are almost always quite low. Check to be sure that there are no cracks or chips (especially around the rim) and that the stopper is original (sometimes they substitute a cheaper one when the original has been lost).
You also want to confirm that the decanter will hold a full bottle of wine (some smaller, older decanters were made for liqueurs), and also that it is not so badly discolored that it will obscure the wine. The best of them are hand-cut glass (sharper edges than the machine-made) and/or hand-blown (look for imperfections on the underside of the base).

Paul Gregutt can be reached by e-mail at wine@seattletimes.com.

By Paul Gregutt
Wine adviser

Wrapping out the year, some highlights, changes and memories …
I set out in January to focus this column’s attention more regionally on wine, emphasizing place over grape or producer. Because place, often referred to as terroir, is the defining element in all great, and most good, wine.
With that in mind, there have been columns devoted to Greek wines, wines from emerging regions in Spain and France’s southwest, from Italy’s northeast, New Zealand and western Australia. Emerging grapes have had their time in the spotlight also, with columns on malbec, gruner veltliner, and the new dynamic duo, riesling and pinot noir.
My most memorable discoveries have been made right here in the Pacific Northwest. Washington vintners are entering a brilliant period of innovation and exploration, while Oregon is finding life beyond pinot noir as southern and eastern Oregon vineyards define themselves with grapes such as tempranillo, syrah and the Bordeaux reds.
Second generation winemakers — Paul Golitzin (Quilceda Creek), Chris Figgins (Leonetti Cellar), John Bookwalter (J. Bookwalter), Kristina Mielke van Loben Sels (Arbor Crest), Adam Campbell (Elk Cove), Luisa Ponzi (Ponzi Vineyards) and others — are making wines that surpass the legacies they were handed.
In September I visited British Columbia, enjoying a whirlwind exploration of wines whose flavors perfectly bookend those from Oregon and Washington. Is B.C. the world’s best least-known wine region? I believe it may well be.
Dark and smoky syrahs, earthy Bordeaux blends, silky pinot noirs, racy rieslings and crystalline pinot blancs are among the highlights. Though few of these wines cross the border, they are well worth a trip north, whether to tour the Okanagan wine country or to sip them in the chic restaurants of Vancouver and Whistler.
In past years this column has covered trends such as alternative packaging for wines (boxes, cartons and cans), alternative closures for wines (screwcaps, bottle caps and glass) and unoaked or unwooded wines. What’s on the radar for 2008?
Prompted by the ever-vigilant Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), the federal government’s Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) is moving closer to requiring more stringent warning labels — specifically ingredient labeling — on wine bottles. The proposed regulations would require that wineries “declare the presence of milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, wheat, peanuts and soybeans, as well as ingredients that contain protein derived from these foods, on a product label.”
Fish, you wonder? Yes, derivatives of fish and other so-called “ingredients” on the TTB list are occasionally used to fine (clarify) wines. Fish gelatin and isinglass (another fish-based fining agent) pose a particularly thorny problem for the TTB, which has devoted a considerable amount of time to deciding whether the particular species of fish needs to be called out on the wine label.
The TTB has also proposed adding nutritional value information and serving size facts to label requirements. Here again, wineries and ultimately consumers would bear the costs of chemical analysis for each wine in each vintage, as well as designing and having approved custom labels for each.
If all this becomes required (it’s currently optional), stopping by the grocery store to pick a wine for dinner will turn into a chemistry class, with laundry lists of  ingredients (such as those above) plastered on every bottle. If you want to review all of the details for yourself, check out www.ttb.gov/faqs/allergen.shtml
In other news, the wine industry is taking the lead and making great progress in reducing or eliminating the use of chemicals in the vineyard, and reducing or negating the carbon footprint of wine production, packaging and transportation.
Parducci winery in Mendocino — the first in the country to be certified carbon neutral — uses tree-free paper and soy-based inks for their printed materials, chlorine-free cardboard boxes for shipping and storage, and biodiesel fuel for their tractors. The Opici Import company has introduced wine in B-Paks, one liter cartons that are recyclable, lightweight, and use 50 percent less energy than glass.
Oregon’s Willamette Valley Vineyards has switched to biofuel in all of its tractors and delivery vehicles, offers refunds on wine-bottle and wine-shipper returns, and recycles its packing material, foils, paper, and cardboard. And in the Walla Walla Valley, an organization called Vinea — the Winegrowers Sustainable Trust — is guiding and certifying growers who are committed to investing in sustainable viticulture.
I hear from many readers turning away from super-jammy, oaky, high alcohol wines. Though 16 and even 17 percent alcohol monsters continue to be made, the trend is toward wines, both white and red, that are more expressive of place, with layered, elegant flavors of fruit, mineral and acid.

Unoaked, cool climate varietals such as pinot grigio, gruner veltliner and riesling are in; out are the thick, buttery, oaky chardonnays. Pinot noir, a naturally light and elegant red wine grape, is in; while merlot, a thin and miserable shadow wine (except in Washington), is way out.
In 2008 the sinking dollar will make imported wines more expensive. Look for the last bargains to come from southern France, Spain, Greece, Chile, Argentina and, of course, Australia.
This was the year that the Washington wine industry turned 40. Both Chateau Ste. Michelle and Columbia made their first varietal wines in 1967. Ste. Michelle celebrated with the opening of a spiffy new Col Solare winery atop Red Mountain, and gave itself a birthday present, purchasing Napa’s famed Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars for a reported $185 million. Columbia, now part of the mammoth Constellation Brands, played Scrooge, telling employees just before Christmas that it was closing its Woodinville winery and moving to Sunnyside.
Washington state recorded its 500th winery this year, an obscure little Walla Walla venture called Sweet Valley Wines. “It certainly wasn’t intentional,” said a startled David McDaniels, who owns the winery with six others. The publicity helped Sweet Valley to power through their first release, 300 cases of a merlot/cabernet/syrah blend called Double Barrel Red.
In a year filled with outstanding tastings, I would have to say that Rick and Darcey Small’s extraordinary lineup of Woodward Canyon Dedication Series wines — all poured from magnum — topped them all. Beautifully staged by Chris Sparkman and the staff at the Waterfront, the tasting featured every vintage from 1981 through 2005. It was, by any standard, world-class.
As we wrap up 2007, let us raise a glass and say a prayer to honor the memories of some who died this year — Chas Nagel, a WSU food scientist who did pioneering wine grape research; Lance Baer, whose Woodinville winery produced the acclaimed Ursa and Arctos wines; and viticulturalist/winemaker/educator Stan Clarke, who made wines for and consulted to more than a dozen wineries throughout his career.

Pick of the Week
Three Thieves Bandit 2006 Chardonnay, $9/liter. The most important trend in the wine industry in 2007 was the movement, by more and more wineries, to environmentally friendly practices. From organic farming to recyclable packaging, wineries are trying to minimize their use of chemicals, balance their carbon footprint, and explore new eco-friendly solutions to winemaking. You may know Three Thieves for their fun wines sold in one liter glass jugs. For 2008 they are stepping up with wines in one liter cartons. Less weight, less waste. California chardonnay (the best), pinot grigio, merlot and cabernet sauvignon are all being offered in the colorful packages, which are resealable and easy to store.

Paul Gregutt is the author of “Washington Wines and Wineries The Essential Guide.” He can be reached at wine@seattletimes.com.

Paul Gregutt
Wine adviser

    Q. In a recent column you talked about some wines that were served to you that had some problems –one had the wrong date, another was corked and the third was a charm. Who was on the hook for the first two bottles? Who bears responsibility for checking the date? The cork crumbles, who is stuck?
A. There are no hard and fast rules for these situations, but the more control you the consumer assumes, the better your odds. In the column you refer to, the first bottle that was brought bore the wrong vintage date. I always — always — check vintage dates on wines purchased in restaurants. It is by far the most common inaccuracy in wine service. If you don’t care, then don’t bother. But if you have specifically chosen a wine for its vintage, you should always be certain that is the wine being offered. If the restaurant shows you the wine before it is opened (as they should), then it is no problem sending it back, as I did. Since the wine was unopened, there was no charge. Had I not checked the date and approved the wine, I would have had to pay for it.
The second bottle, which was corked, will be returned by the restaurant to the distributor. The fact that the cork crumbled was not the issue; it was the contamination with TCA that rendered it undrinkable. In this instance, the distributor will probably attempt to recoup the cost from the winery. A corked wine should never be the consumer’s responsibility to pay for.
The third wine, which was delightful, was the one for which we were charged.

Paul Gregutt can be reached by e-mail at wine@seattletimes.com.

Paul Gregutt
Wine adviser

Once again, in the retrospective spirit of the season, I offer a highly personal list of the year’s Top 100 Washington wines.
There are now over 530 bonded wineries in the state. If they average just 10 wines annually (some less, some more) that’s over 5,000 wines. Do I taste them all? In my dreams! But I do taste a significant percentage, and that, along with frequent visits to wineries and vineyards, numerous conversations and tastings with the winemakers themselves, and a depth of reference tastings reaching back a quarter century, all enter into this ranking.
Many of the elite Washington wineries sell most of their wines to mailing list customers, select restaurants and wine shops. It is important to recognize them — even if they are expensive and rare — because these are building a quality reputation for Washington state, which I believe to be the most important emerging wine region in the New World.
Included also are some widely available, inexpensive wines — those which offer exceptional flavor and value. These every day bottles evangelize for the affordability of Washington wines.
I try to list just one wine per winery, although many of these producers make a full lineup of outstanding wines. My aim is to be inclusive. Even so, barely 20 percent of the wineries in the state will make this list. The competition, needless to say, gets tougher every year.
This ranking is not done strictly by the numbers, although these are all wines that score very well on the 100-point scale. I believe that consistency year-to-year, overall style and quality, and relative value (to comparable wines) are equally important guidelines.

Paul Gregutt’s Top 100 Washington State Wines For 2007
1. Wine of the Year: Leonetti Cellar 2004 Reserve ($110)
2 . Chateau Ste. Michelle 2006 “Ethos” Late Harvest White Riesling ($40)
3. Quilceda Creek 2004 Galitzine Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon ($95)
4. K Vintners 2005 “The Beautiful” Syrah ($50)
5. Sineann 2005 Block One Champoux Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon ($65)
6. Cayuse 2005 Widowmaker Cabernet Sauvignon ($65)
7. JLC 2004 Spofford Station Estate Syrah ($32)
8. DeLille Cellars 2006 Chaleur Estate Blanc ($34)
9. Poet’s Leap 2006 Riesling ($20)
10. Betz Family 2005 La Serenne Syrah ($50)
11. Dunham 2004 Lewis Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon ($75)
12. Woodward Canyon 2004 “Old Vines” Cabernet Sauvignon ($75)
13. McCrea Cellars 2004 “Cuvée Orleans” Syrah ($60)
14. Chateau Rollat 2005 “Edouard” Cabernet Sauvignon ($62)
15. Andrew Will 2005 Sorella Red Wine ($65)
16. Matthews Estate 2003 Conner Lee Cabernet Franc Reserve ($110)
17. Robert Karl 2005 Syrah ($29)
18. Syncline 2005 Cuvée Elena Red Wine ($35)
19. Fielding Hills 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon ($38)
20. Walla Walla Vintners 2005 Sagemoor Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon ($40)
21. Bunnell Family Cellar 2005 Boushey-McPherson Vineyard Syrah ($38)
22. Novelty Hill 2004 Stillwater Creek Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon ($28)
23. Soos Creek 2005 Artist Series #5 Red Wine ($35)
24. Barnard Griffin 2004 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon ($30)
25. Basel Cellars 2005 Syrah ($36)
26. Abeja 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon ($38)
27. Buty 2006 67 percent Semillon/33 percent Sauvignon Blanc ($25)
28. Gorman Winery 2005 “The Bully” Cabernet Sauvignon ($40)
29. Mark Ryan 2006 Conner Lee Vineyard Viognier ($28)
30. Stevens 2004 “XY” Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon ($42)
31. Isenhower 2004 Bachelor’s Button Cabernet Sauvignon ($32)
32. Nicholas Cole Cellars 2004 Camille ($48)
33. Pepper Bridge 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon ($50)
34. SYZYGY 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon ($32)
35. Northstar 2004 Merlot ($50)
36. Seven Hills Winery 2004 Syrah ($26)
37. :Nota Bene 2004 Syrah ($28)
38. Alexandria Nicole 2004 Destiny Ridge Vineyard Red Table Wine ($45)
39. Col Solare 2004 Red Table Wine ($75)
40. Smasne Cellars 2006 Smasne Vineyard Estate Dry Riesling ($22)
41. Beresan 2005 Merlot ($29)
42. Barrister 2005 Cabernet Franc ($25)
43. Januik 2004 Lewis Vineyard Syrah ($30)
44. O•S Winery 2005 Dineen Vineyard Syrah ($42)
45. Pedestal 2004 Merlot ($55)
46. Doyenne 2006 Roussanne ($32)
47. L’Ecole No 41 2006 Fries Vineyard Sémillon ($20)
48. Amavi Cellars 2006 Sémillon ($20)
49. Merry Cellars 2006 Stillwater Creek Vineyard Sémillon ($18)
50. Sparkman 2006 Lumière Chardonnay ($40)
51. Chateau Ste. Michelle 2005 Canoe Ridge Estate Chardonnay ($20)
52. Milbrandt Vineyards 2005 “Legacy” Syrah ($25)
53. Cadence 2005 Bel Canto Red Wine ($55)
54. Three Rivers 2004 Syrah ($24)
55. Forgeron 2003 Syrah ($30)
56. Otis Kenyon 2005 Seven Hills Vineyard Reserve Merlot ($40)
57. Va Piano 2005 Syrah ($38)
58. Walter Dacon 2005 C’est Syrah Magnifique ($38)
59. Canoe Ridge 2004 “Block 1” Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon ($45)
60. Brian Carter Cellars 2004 L’Etalon ($30)
61. J Bookwalter 2005 Merlot ($36)
62. Charles Smith Wines 2006 Kungfu Girl Riesling ($12)
63. Gamache Vintners 2004 GV Reserve “Gamache – Champoux Vineyard Select” Cabernet Sauvignon ($40)
64. Waters 2005 Columbia Valley Syrah ($25)
65. Saviah Cellars 2005 Une Vallée Red ($32)
66. Tertulia Cellars 2005 Syrah ($27)
67. Des Voigne Cellars 2005 “Montreux” Syrah ($27)
68. Seia 2005 Clifton Hill Vineyard Syrah ($30)
69. Cuillin Hills 2005 Syrah ($32)
70. Gordon Brothers 2006 Sauvignon Blanc ($13)
71. Animale 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon ($26)
72. Nelms Road 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon ($20)
73. Hedges 2004 Three Vineyards ($22)
74. Olsen Estates 2006 Chardonnay ($28)
75. Chatter Creek 2004 Clifton Hill Vineyard Syrah ($30)
76. Arbor Crest 2004 Wahluke Slope Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon ($30)
77. Tamarack Cellars 2005 Cabernet Franc ($25)
78. Hightower Cellars 2004 Merlot ($28)
79. Ash Hollow 2006 Gewurztraminer ($19)
80. Hestia 2004 Red Wine ($20)
81. Apex 2006 Dry Riesling ($20)
82. Vin du Lac 2006 “LEHM” Estate Dry Riesling ($20)
83. Coeur d’Alene Cellars 2006 Chardonnay ($18)
84. Trust 2006 Semillon Ice Wine ($40)
85. Cascadia Winery 2006 Riesling ($16)
86. Columbia Crest 2006 “Two Vines” Riesling ($8)
87. Snoqualmie 2006 “Naked” Riesling ($11)
88. Airfield Estates 2006 Pinot Gris ($16)
89. Lone Canary 2006 Sauvignon Blanc ($10)
90. Kestrel 2006 Estate Viognier ($20)
91. Bergevin Lane 2006 Viognier ($25)
92. Willow Crest 2005 Cabernet Franc ($16)
93. Wineglass Cellars 2005 Les Vignes De Marcoux Syrah ($35)
94. Thurston Wolfe 2005 Zephyr Ridge Petite Sirah ($20)
95. Woodinville Wine Cellars 2006 Sauvignon Blanc ($18)
96. Trio Vintners 2006 Lewis Vineyards Riesling ($12)
97. Waterbrook 2004 Merlot ($20)
98. Covey Run 2005 “Quail Series” Chenin Blanc ($8)
99. Dusted Valley 2005 Birch Creek Vineyard Chardonnay ($28)
100. San Juan Vineyards 2006 Madeleine Angevine ($14)

Paul Gregutt
Wine adviser

    Q. With respect to your recent article the correct way to store wines, is it less important for long-term horizontal storage if the cork end is covered with wax, or if the bottle is a large format (1.5L, 3L, 6L, etc.)?
I have several large format bottles that would be more difficult to store in my cellar on their sides given the size of the shelving. Currently they are standing upright on the wine counter.
A. Wines in large format bottles are often purchased as unique collectibles, and intended for either re-sale (as a donation or an investment) or for long-term storage. It is generally agreed that wines in larger bottles will age better and longer than those in the standard 750ml size, provided, of course, that the wine itself was ageworthy to begin with.  I would urge you to find a horizontal solution for your storage. Unless you plan to consume a particular bottle within a year or two, I would be concerned about having it standing up indefinitely. Why not lay them down on the counter, if the shelving is too small?
As for the impact of wax on the cork’s ability to forestall drying out, I have no experience that would shed any light on that question.
Readers, do any of you have a good answer for that one?

Paul Gregutt can be reached by e-mail at wine@seattletimes.com. 

Paul Gregutt
Wine adviser

Think of the havoc that can be created when unregulated wine terms are tossed around. There are so many different words to choose from. Let’s consider just two:  nouveau (as in Beaujolais nouveau) and reserve (applied to thousands of wines worldwide). What do these words signify?
Nouveau is simply French for new, and in the case of Beaujolais, it refers to the first red wines to be released for drinking after the conclusion of the harvest.
Beaujolais wines (both nouveau and oldveau) are almost always made from the gamay grape, by a process called carbonic maceration, which keeps the grape clusters intact during fermentation. The resulting wines are quite yeasty and fruity.
In a cool, wet year such as 2007, the Beaujolais nouveau wines are likely to be even lighter than usual. None of this much matters, however, as Beaujolais nouveau is supposed to be consumed immediately, and will rarely last until the next vintage appears.
As a wine term, to the best of my knowledge, nouveau is only semi-regulated. In certain parts of France, nouveau wines (also called primeur wines) may not be released before a specific calendar date, which may be as early as the third Thursday in October. The nouveau Beaujolais must wait until the third Thursday in November, which conveniently places it just ahead of our Thanksgiving holiday.
Sensing a cash cow, many wineries around the world have joined the nouveau fray, with even less regulation. What difference does it make, you might wonder, since these wines are so young that their youth is truly their only calling card?
To be perfectly blunt, the nouveau hype brings with it prices that do not qualify as bargains under even the best of circumstances. These infant wines should really be sold from trucks and poured into portable containers at a cost of, say, a dollar or two a liter. Unfortunately, the laws in this country forbid such practices, which are quite common in Europe.
More importantly, the disappointment of drinking sub-par Beaujolais nouveau has almost certainly kept some people away from drinking the region’s more substantial wines. Right now, for example, you would be better served to purchase cru Beaujolais from either the 2005 or 2006 vintage.
Cru Beaujolais starts off with the advantage of being made with grapes from one of 10 villages given higher appellation status than the rest of the province. The best of these wines, from a good producer in a superior vintage, can age for up to a decade.
I recently enjoyed a pair of 2006 crus Beaujolais from Maison Joseph Drouhin. The first, a Moulin-à-Vent, was sturdy and sharp, with intense red fruits and a long finish. The second, a Brouilly, offered up scents of stone and flower, tongue-tickling acids, and bright raspberry fruit. My friend Jon Rimmerman calls Brouilly “a mouthful of rocks and wild flowers wrapped in silk” — as apt a description as I’ve ever read.
Both of these Drouhin wines capture the elusive mix of strength and refinement that is so quintessentially French. Their alcohol strength is a perfect 13 percent, which allows you plenty of pleasure without paying a penalty the next day. They are, of course, well-matched to turkey or any other fowl, but would also accommodate more difficult dishes such as quiche or a tomato tart. Suggested retail is $18-$20.

Perhaps the most-abused, completely unregulated wine term of them all — at least in this country — is reserve. In Europe, for wines to be labeled reserva or riserva, they must follow some fairly strict guidelines. But here there are absolutely none. American consumers are barraged with reserves — estate reserve, winermaker’s reserve, vintner’s reserve, private reserve and on and on. These terms may be applied to $6 wines or $60 wines; price is not a factor. When you are talking hundreds of thousands of cases of reserve, you have to wonder, what didn’t make the “cut”?
Amid such chaos, you must look to a brand that has already built a reputation for quality, then decide for yourself if their reserve wines justify the additional cost.
Two years ago, I wrote about the wines of Sonoma’s Blackstone winery. Though part of the immense Constellation Brands portfolio, Blackstone has staked out a claim as a reliable producer of flavorful, well-priced California merlot — not an easy challenge, given the dismal quality of most of the competition.
When my original article appeared, Blackstone’s winemaker was the talented Dennis Hill, and Hill was excited about a new lineup of reserve wines he was about to introduce. Last January, Hill departed the winery, and along with his departure came a radical revision of the winery’s reserve wine program.
Gary Sitton, who had spent the previous eight years with Ravenswood, was named winemaker. As he explained to me in a phone call, the confusing lineup of up to 30 wines, many of them reserves, has been pared down. Blackstone’s popular California bottlings will remain, but the various reserves are being consolidated into a new lineup of just four wines, marketed as Blackstone Sonoma Reserve. These include a chardonnay, a merlot, a pinot noir and a red blend named Rubric, all priced between $18 and $20 — a significant break from the older reserves, which were considerably more expensive.
Sitton did the final blends on the current releases, although Dennis Hill vinified both the 2005 and 2006 vintages. The Blackstone 2005 Sonoma Reserve Merlot was (apparently) so-named to capitalize on the winery’s excellent track record with merlot. Sitton’s reserve blend is a most unusual mix that includes cabernet sauvignon, petite sirah, syrah and — believe it or not — teroldego (a dark, fruity red grape native to Italy’s northeast).
I have nothing against creative blending, but the current federal regulations, that allow varietal labeling as long as the wine uses at least 75 percent of the named grape, seem in such instances to be a bit lax. But that’s a rant for another day.
Nonetheless, the merlot is a round, pleasantly fruity wine, although the Blackstone 2005 Sonoma Reserve Pinot Noir may be the better buy. Here again the blend is quite creative, with malbec, petite sirah and Dolcetto in the mix, but this wine is 90 percent pinot, and the other grapes have been carefully used to add color, weight and aromatic nuances. It’s not easy to find good pinot noirs, reserve or otherwise, priced under $20; this is a welcome addition to the ranks.

Pick of the Week
Tizzano Pignoletto Frizzante, $11. It’s not Prosecco, but this non-vintage Italian sparkling wine offers similar pleasures at an excellent price. The alcohol measures a sane 11.5 percent, and the wine is quite dry and food friendly. Frizzante is finished at a lower pressure than spumante, so it tickles the tongue rather than spanking it. With its nutty, crisp and yeasty flavors, this is tasty enough to drink as a holiday aperitif, but cheap enough to mix with whatever you like.

Paul Gregutt can be reached at wine@seattletimes.com.

Paul Gregutt
Wine adviser
Q. Winemakers talk about using American oak, French oak, new oak, neutral oak, one-year old barrels, etc. What’s the difference and why does it matter?
A. Wines made from certain grapes — chardonnay, sémillon, the Bordeaux reds and so on — gain complexity and add layers of flavor when aged in new oak barrels. However, the type of barrel and the time in barrel can vary infinitely.
Oak may be sourced from various forests in both Europe and America, and once harvested, may be air-dried or kiln-dried, aged for different lengths of time, and then toasted to different degrees. Winemakers love to play with the wide range of flavors available to them, which they often compare to a chef’s spice rack. This is all well and good, but the final results, as always, depend upon the skill of the artist.
Neutral oak is wood that has been used for more than two or three years. After that the barrel has been drained of flavors and is simply an aerobic medium for wine fermentation and storage. Apart from barrels, there are many types of oak flavoring available to wineries that do not wish to pay the $1,000 or so that good new barrels will cost. Oak staves, chips, powders and the like can add certain flavors (especially vanilla) to cheap wines, but nothing comes close to the complexity gained by aging fine wine in great barrels.
American oak is generally spicy, sometimes offering pickled notes while French oak is toasty and subtler.

Paul Gregutt, author of “Washington Wines and Wineries The Essential Guide,” can be reached by e-mail at wine@seattletimes.com.

Paul Gregutt
Wine adviser

No sooner had I written a column of advice on handling sticky wine situations in restaurants than I found myself in the midst of one. It has led me down some very interesting trails.
To set the stage: Just before Thanksgiving, Mrs. G and I were out with friends at a cozy bistro. Our friends had brought an excellent bottle from their cellar — a 2003 Isenhower Malbec (sold through their wine club only) — that we were enjoying so thoroughly that it was clear a second bottle would be needed.
The wine list was produced, and a quick scan revealed a hidden gem — a 1982 Château de Cayrou, from Cahors. Cahors, in the southwest of France, produces good value red wines blended mostly from malbec, which the locals refer to as cot or sometimes auxerrois. I can’t pretend to know much about how these wines age, but 1982 was reasonably kind to Bordeaux (just ask Mr. Robert Parker) and so it seemed as if this wine had a shot. At $75, it seemed worth the risk.
The wine was ordered and the bottle appeared. Just as the cork was about to be pulled, I glanced at the label. It read 1999. Sticky wine situation No. 1: wrong vintage. Should it have been caught by the restaurant? Absolutely. But it is always best to do your own inspection. I reminded our server that the wine list had promised an ’82.
Apparently the distributor had accidentally slipped a ’99 in with the ‘82s, I was told. A second bottle bore the correct date. The proprietor, who was now becoming a bit flustered, began struggling with the cork, which promptly began to disintegrate. Sticky wine situation No. 2: trouble in cork-ville. By the time the battle was over, the cork lay shredded before me. Plunging ahead, I gave it a sniff. More bad news — it reeked of TCA.
A little wine was poured into my glass. By now the whole table was riveted on the unfolding drama. Believe me, I hate to be Mr. Wine Critic when I’m out with friends. At first, the wine seemed dull, but not dreadful. A second sniff, however, confirmed that this was a corked bottle and nothing good was going to happen as it breathed. Sticky wine situation No. 3: corked wine.
I apologized for the trouble, but said it was unacceptable. The proprietor graciously took it back, and brought out a third bottle — his last. Again, a touchy cork began to shred. There is a trick to removing corks of a certain age, and this was clearly a learning experience for our host. Finally it came out, and before the bottle could be snatched away (presumably to remove bits of cork from the wine) I grabbed it and poured it into the decanter.
A lovely aroma immediately filled the room. The wine was soft, relatively light, but perfumed and elegant, with the grace and evanescent polish of age. The bits of cork were a minor nuisance at best. The owner smiled, I smiled, our friends smiled, and wine, once again, revealed its unique ability to create — how else to put it? — live theater.
Malbec is a grape that is beginning to prove itself in Washington. In addition to the excellent Isenhower we tasted, I’ve had recent releases of varietally labeled malbec (meaning it comprises at least 75 percent of the blend) from Walla Walla Vintners, Three Rivers, RiverAerie, Gamache and Sagelands. Outside of Argentina, it is hard to find benchmarks for these pioneering efforts. This 25-year-old Cahors, well preserved and ripened to perfection at just 12.5 percent alcohol, suggested that malbec might well prove to be at least as ageworthy as merlot, if not cabernet sauvignon.
I was intrigued enough to see what I could learn about the wine. In Paul Strang’s sadly out of print “Wines of Southwest France” (Kyle Cathie Limited, 1994), I found a detailed history of Cahors. In pre-phylloxera times the region was known for its so-called black wines, made by heating the grapes in ovens before fermenting them, to concentrate the color and strengthen the alcohol.
But even then the locals preferred drinking the lighter table wines, more like the ’82 I stumbled upon. As long ago as the early 1800s a local expert, Dr. Jules Guyot (best known for his experiments in the pruning of vines), mourned the fact that these excellent table wines were being ignored: “The trade does not buy them, they are interested only in depth of colour. Today industry has created synthetic wines based on … blending and cooking.”
Cahors has survived the abuses of the trade, the ravages of phylloxera, two world wars and many other trials and tribulations since Guyot’s lament. It was given its own appellation contrôlée in 1971, when Jean Jouffreau purchased the Château de Cayrou property. The new AC regulations required that Cahors wines be at least 70 percent auxerrois (malbec), with merlot and tannat comprising the rest.
Jouffreau re-planted the vineyard, while his son-in-law, a trained enologist, brought modern technology to bear on the winemaking. Though the Cayrou wines are considered old fashioned, they are really just Old World, rather than attempting to be what is today glibly known as International in style.
Jouffreau, whose family also owns Clos de Gamot and Clos St. Jean, is now esteemed as one of the pioneers of the Cahors revival. Along with his properties, other well-regarded Cahors producers include Caminade (distributed by Triage), Château du Cèdre, Clos la Coutale (a Kermit Lynch selection, distributed by Cavatappi) and Château Gaudou (distributed by Grape Expectations). Also available in this market are wines of Domaine la Berangerie (distributed by Cordon) and Coustarelle (distributed by Noble).
These are the sort of wines that are quite popular in the U.K., Holland and Belgium. If you prefer red wines with a lower level of alcohol (rarely above 12.5 percent), and favor elegance over fruit jam, they will please you. Wines such as Cahors more effectively capture the flavors of their particular terroir than many of the blowsy New World wines that claim to have terroir when they do not. Better still, most wines of Cahors sell for $10 to $15, at least until the crashing dollar is felt.
You may have to special order them from your local wine shop. I suggest you drink them with the sort of French country food that is so satisfying at this time of the year. That includes confit, cassoulet, grilled duck breast, leg of lamb, smoked ham and game such as boar, venison and rabbit. And if you should stumble upon an older bottle, as I did, it would be wise to have an ah-so on hand.

Pick of the week
Chateau d’Argadens 2004 Bordeaux Rouge, $13. It’s a joy to find a well-made, affordable bottle of Bordeaux, from a classic vintage, at a modest price. Granted, this won’t bump the Mouton off the table, but at roughly 2 percent of the cost, it delivers fine flavors of red currant and cranberry, spice and truffle. It’s supple and bright, and soundly made at just 13 percent alcohol. There is also an excellent companion white, the Ch. d’Argadens 2005 Bordeaux Blanc.

Paul Gregutt, author of “Washington Wines and Wineries The Essential Guide,” can be reached by e-mail at wine@seattletimes.com.