Domaine La Fage 2011 Novellum Chard

In the beginning of my wine education, I never had the liking for domestic Chardonnay. Too oaky, no character, no depth. It took some time for me to venture into white Burgundy territory and taste what real Chardonnay is before it gets juiced up on Red Bull and spray tanned. Following the lead of a friend who was more affluent in French wine than I, we drank through several different bottles. You can't begin to understand the concept of terrior until you sip and savor several wines from Europe particularly France and Germany. Having a someone direct you through the maze of wines from France helps tremendously. Pure terrior driven, flavor filled Chardonnay is something to try especially when trying several from different regions of France to see how the soil and climate influence what's in the glass. As with most whites, do not drink them ice cold as you will not taste any of the nuances intended. When I conduct my Wine 101 class, I always throw out French Chard as my first wine every student tries.

"How many people like Chardonnay?" I ask and usually only a handful raise their hands.

"what do you think this is?"

Generally people guess Pinot Grigio or Sauv Blanc. When I unveil that the wine in question is in fact Chardonnay everyone's mouths drop.

French Chards, for me, have layers of minerality, body, crisp acidity, green apple and/or peach notes and that flavor just keeps developing as the bottle gets lower in volume.

So, a few weeks ago I had to track down a bottle of French white for a customer's gift giving basket. The criteria was French, white, under $15, over 90 points, no Muscadet or Vouvrey or Alsace. Ok?? This is what I found, the Domaine La Fage 2011 Novellum Chardonnay. I knew it would be great, why? Again with the wine clues, the importer was Eric Solomon of European imports.

Here's The Wine Advocate's review...

"The outstanding 2011 Novellum competes with some of the finest Macon-Villages wines one can find. It is made from 100% Chardonnay (from 25- to 30-year-old vines), aged three months in a combination of Burgundy barrels (30%) and stainless steel tanks (70%), and, somewhat innovatively, is aged on Viognier lees which gives it a honeysuckle and white peach-scented nose. There is also a salty sea breeze character reminiscent of the crushed oyster shell-like note my colleague David Schildknect often detects in Loire Valley whites. This crisp, fresh, medium-bodied Cotes Catalanes exhibits lots of earthy/terroir characteristics. Readers should think of it as a brisk, zesty, authoritatively flavored Chardonnay from the cool, alluvial soils on the banks of the Aigly River"-WA 7/12

Stainless steel gives that clean zip for me at least while aging it on the Viognier Lees intrigued me. Mrs. Wine Snob and I opened the bottle last night over a thrilling game of Temple Run our son received from Santa. Fresh from my pseudo wine cellar (my basement) the bottle was a little chilly, so we popped it into the fridge for another 10 minutes. Once opened and then into glasses the magic starts to unwind. The color is a slight golden and when you swirl it into the glass you can see a little viscosity on the edge. The nose comes off with that green apple and ocean air. On the palate, the acidity opens your taste buds to the green apple and minerality I like to refer to as "licking a wet stone". The wine does have body and because of aging it on the lees, you pick up a little of that honey suckle of Viognier. The finish is long and lasting. A tremendous value at $12 by leaps and bounds. If you can find another retailer that has this then buy it by the case! We were both in heaven with the quality. Even though I work in the wine biz, my wife is the one who turns into the wine snob/critic when I open bottles. Funny how that works, but it works.

I wish more consumers would get off their high horse and at least try more French Chardonnay. I'm not saying abandon all domestic Chards, I'm just saying expand your palate and see what else there is to offer! How boring a wine world it would be to ONLY drink Kendall Jackson and J. Lohr all the damn time.

Out on the Town, New Haven

I don't get out much. Job and family will do that to you. But when Mrs. Wine Snob and I hit the town for our date night we live it up. On a recent Sunday afternoon we attended a show at the Shubert Theater. My gift from the wife, tickets to the Rat Pack Christmas Show, turned out to be a lovely evening. After the show we decided to use a couple of gift certificates from Xmas 2011 to Barcelona. I got this love hate thing going on with Barcelona. First time I went there the food and wine were delicious. The next time I went was for a distributor sponsored wine tasting and I was less than impresses with the spread they put out. Understandably that it's not a fair judgment all considering that it's just a trade tasting for us retail and restaurant people. My next visit with the group was a late Friday night after work for a drink with some friends. Did you see the clues there? Late, Friday, night...needless to say as I was walking down Temple St and I was happened to be the recipient of a 9 volt battery to the head by some Jersey Shore wanna be doing a drive by yelling profanity out the car window. Stay clear on college nights. Nothing of any fault of the restaurant's. It's either New Haven has changed since the last time I went out or I'm getting too damn old. Steer clear of Friday and Saturday nights when school is back in session.

Ok, let's put it all behind us. Sundays at Barcelona are half price bottle nights. Score! Sundays around 5PM in December are also a great time because with Yale gone for the semester, New Haven is a ghost town. We sit at a corner high top and order several tapas while I look over the extensive wine list. It's a novel. Barcelona's wine director, Gretchen, is sharp when it comes to wines from the Iberian peninsula. My feelings anytime I see a wine list at any restaurant that is the equivalent of the the entire Lord of the Rings series is that it's just too damn much. Kudos if they turn over that much variety but Damn!! that's a lot of inventory tied up especially with such esoteric varietals and regions. You really have to know your wines, but again this is where the staff and Gretchen's tutelage comes in. The staff is heavily quizzed on what is what when it comes to wine and also pairing those wines with food. Ask your server since they have tasted everything on that menu. 

After much deliberation I selected a Txakolina (sp) which is a very esoteric white wine from the Basque region located between France and Spain. The taste is something like Portuguese Vinho Verde and Spanish Albarino, light, a little acidity, minerality and crisp green apple. The waitress even gets a kick outta pouring the wine. The wine goes really well with the plate of hummus and warm pita chips, but not too tasty with anything else which is fine because I'm more thrilled to be drinking the wine on it's own. As we move onto the entrees I order another bottle, but this time I go for a Mencia from the Bierzo region. One of the up and coming regions turning out top quality highly rated red wines that over deliver for under $20. The taste is something of a cross between Washington State Merlot and Loire Valley Cab Franc. The wine is delicious as is the smoked duck breast I order. The pairing this time is a home run. My wife's Filet Mignon also nails the wine pairing. We top it all off with dessert and cappuccino. 

 The waitress we had that particular evening was one of the absolute best I've ever had at restaurants more exclusive than Ibiza. Again it's a testament to the training and wine knowledge passed down from management. As it was now 6:30-ish and the restaurant began to fill up with young hipsters, it was time for the old folks to get back home. 

Definitely without a doubt this place deserves your undivided attention. Go to Costco and purchase $100 gift cards for only $79.99 and order a half price bottle of wine. If you are in doubt about what to eat or drink ask ask ask! Tapas are good but in comparison to say Ibiza Tapas in Hamden, Barcelona's are just ok. Ignacio Blanco is a hard act to follow, but food like art or wine can be interpreted many different ways. Entrees are well worth the $20+ price tag as I had to be fork lifted outta there. I will tell tales of this terrific culinary date night for years to come!