The Reference Council

A Drink A Day

2010 Mud House Pinot Noir

One of the great things about WSET studying I am doing is all the great wine I get to taste that I may not normally get to try. The 2010 Mud House Pinot Noir is a perfect example. As you have noticed, on a pinot tear as of late, but I may have overlooked this one in the shops. I am glad we had it in class and that I took the left overs home! This a great wine and a perfect example of the rapidly growing wine industry that is coming out of the Central Otago region of New Zealand, which happens to produce the most southerly grapes in the world. It is also the highest in elevation out of all the New Zealand growing regions. With Pinot Noir only making up about 1.5% of all New Zealand’s wines, it was a treat to find one that was so wonderful .

This pinot was unmistakably garnet in color and hit your nose with the expected red fruit notes and a great spice on the end that was more there as the wine opened up.  When tasted it greeted you with strong currant and ripe cherry. There was the expected oak hanging out in the background as well. It had a smooth to medium tannin level that lets the wine sit for an extended finish of red fruit. If you get the chance, give this relatively young winery a chance and pick this up!

-by Brian Aufdenberg

George 2008 Pinot Noir

I want to write and in depth fanboy type write up about this wine and the experience I had with it, but I will save that for a different forum. For now I will just give you the basic rundown on it. In a humble way, I will start off and say there is a good chance 99% of you will never have the ability to taste this wine. Why? They only produced 83 cases with a limited bottling of 1,555 bottles. This vintage is SOLD OUT at the winery and the only remaining 250 bottles are in circulation are spread out among restaurants in LA, NYC, and Las Vegas, which is where I had it. I was at a nice sized work dinner when one of my co-workers /host/generous woman paying the bill said “Hey Brian, you know wine, pick out a great red.” Who was I to say no? They wine book was over 50 pages and had some beauties in it no doubt. But then I saw it. The coveted George 2008 Pinot Noir. Sought out by devout fans of American Pinot Noir and known for its dedicated, obsessive vintner and high quality. If I recall correctly I made some kind of moan when I saw it on the menu. I was asked if I had found something with a laugh and I just nodded my head. I was told to order it and pass the wine menu down. I thought I was dreaming but it was really going to happen.

The wine for sure lived up to its hype. It was a deep, rich purple. Once you get this up to the nose you get greeted with a very pronounced nose of cherries and strawberries. There are hints of earth/soil, oak, and hints of spiciness. The palate caused another slight moan to escape me. The cherries and strawberries were there again, and were now joined by nutmeg, white pepper, and the most delicate taste of oak to let you know it was there, but not to be show up anything in the glass. It had soft, ripe tannins, a delicately medium finish and perfect mild acidity.  This wine is realllllllllyyyyyyyyyy easy to drink and by far one of the top wines I have ever had. I seriously think I need to visit this winery for sure. For more in for on George and all the great boutique wines they make, visit: http://www.georgewine.com/

-by Brian Aufdenberg

Hangtime Pinot Noir

If I have not mentioned it yet, I am obsessed as of late with American Pinot Noirs.  I have some choice favorites, but I can honestly say I have been into trying any good ones I can get my hands or wallet on. In the past, I wrote them off with out trying to many, and boy was I wrong. Since I have been taking a more dedicated look and study of all the wines of the world the blinders have come off and I have made some great discoveries. This Pinot Noir from Hangtime is one of those great revelations.

I had just settled into my hotel in Boston after a long drive then made my way to the hotel bar for a drink and the bar tender recommended this, and it was a taste this tired traveler was very much in need of (You can read about the trip here: http://thevastparlor.com/2012/03/13/wicked-smooth-start-in-boston/ ).  When poured it had that great vivid red I love in a good Pinot that was matched in its vivid red fruit nose with light hints of spice and a touch of pepper. It was backed up with the same profile on the palate with a great long finish.  It was low in tannins and medium acidity. It was great to drink solo, but would go great with food as well. Overall, a great wine, and priced in the states at about fifteen bucks a bottle, well worth it for any occasion.

-by Brian Aufdenberg

The Ashtray

I think you reach a certain point in your drinking career where novelty drinks and shots that are not whiskey just become a bad idea or just not fun anymore. Yet every now and again one comes along that makes ya go “ok, that’s something I have never seen or tried”. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you The Ashtray. Which is literally served, in a real bar ashtray.  It sounds gross, and depending on what you like to drink it may sound gross too.  It’s a great blend of cream, Kahlua, Bailys, Godiva liquor. Its blended and served in an ashtray with chocolate shavings on top to give the ash appearance and a half straw with a bit of paper to resemble a cigarette.  For a guy with a sweet tooth like me, it was a fun change of pace, but not something I would enjoy more than one of.

1.5oz Kahlua

1.5oz Godiva

.75oz Bailys

.75 Cream

Spinkle chocolate shaving on top

Garnish with straw

-by Brian Aufdenberg

Orval Trappist Ale

I know I came out of the gates of 2012 firing on all cylanders, but then I hit peak travel season for work and my WSET classes and the writing  about drinks and drinking took a big back seat to the actual drinking its self.  So I am settling down and going to knock out some serious postings, so just go ahead and bookmark Drink A Day and lets get this going…..

Since its been a while, so the back story is a bit irrelevant, but here is the basic jist. Sunday, brunch, ladyfriend and her sister, beautiful day in Philadelphia. Lots of laughs and good food.  The PM light had not yet come on, but it still seemed like a good idea to get into some good Belgian trappist Ale.  I noticed they had Orval on the menu and I went straight after it.

It was that perfect copper color I love so much with a slight range tint to the whole thing. It had a very champagne like palate, mostly due to the fermentation methods used in trappist ales. It had the tell tale biscuit/yeast overtone but with hints of lemon and orange. Exactly what I was looking for.  The finish was a bit short, but sometimes you don’t want that long linger this early on a Sunday. If you like a good trappist ale, this one is spot on.

-by Brian Aufdenberg