WELCOME BACK TO THE K & J SESSIONS! It's been a long hiatus indeed--our schedule has changed--and the two of us no longer have our beloved Monday nights in the office. Why we didn't think to get together OUTSIDE of work to drink before now is beyond us. Now that we have a clue, you can only benefit and be amused by our reunification.

TONIGHT'S WINES (yes, plural!):

2007 Helfrich Gewurztraminer

and

2008 Darby & Joan Cabernet Sauvignon

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K: Hey J! Welcome to my house. Now we can really swear and screw around and giggle while we're drinking wine.

J: Thank god I only live about a block away. I may have to walk home.

K: Thanks for bringing snacks, too. No one ever brings food to my house. They just assume i'm going to feed everyone. I mean, I always do--but the thought was nice. We're going to start with the white.

J: Of course. If you're going to taste wine properly, whites should always come first. You'll dilute your palate if you try to go red to white. Standard Gewurztraminer scents here--reminds me of a tropical island. Guava, mango, papaya...

K: I get that too. Exotic. It smells like it's going to be sweet. I get creamy lychee nuts and...here comes my one weird scent...baby powder.

FIRST SIP

J: It's really tangy. This is a hard nut to crack, though. Probably why I failed on the whites in the blind wine tasting last week.

K: I was terrible at the reds at the blind tasting, which is a crushing blow for me. I enjoy the tip of the tongue tingle with this wine, there is definate acidity, but nothing that overwhelms the rest of the flavors.

J: I'm still working on said flavors.

K: I'm getting the spicy/sweet at mid-palate. Plus a little grapefruit.

J: The finish is buttery, almost like an oaky chardonnay. There's a hard candy element to it as well. Life Savers...pineapple Life Savers.

K: Spicy grapefruit candied pineapple.

J: With a little sugar coating in there. It's not tremendously sweet, but the sweetness is there, if only momentary. It's definately not dry. I understand that Rieslings and Gewurztraminers are akin to one another, but I don't find this much difficulty in pinning down flavors in a Riesling.

K: Well, I can see how the lines could be blurred. Gewurztraminer and Riesling come from a region of France that's a cultural combo of French and German. Even the names of the villages in Alsace are a Franco-German jumble.

J: Unique to this region is the fact that they print the grape varietal on the label. The rest of France feels that you should automatically know the makeup when the region is mentioned. I'm not that familiar with French wines for this very reason, and I think this is what intimidates other people about these wines. I miss Elodie!

K: We used to have a lovely assistant manager who was French. This was a big help--but it also meant we didn't have to learn anything at all about French wines--all we had to do was yell for her help when someone wanted a Burgundy.

J: Alsace is known primarily for its whites, even though it produces Pinot Noir. Ever heard of Alsatian Pinot Noir? Of course not. Because they're not that notable...not that i've ever had one.

K: My most favorite fact about Gewurztraminer is that "Gewurz" means 'spicy' in German. This is one of those little factoids I enjoy sharing with customers. It makes me sound so much more informed than I am. I think "wine conniseur" is a hard status to attain. There's always more to learn, so I appreciate every little piece of information.

J: So here comes the food recommendations--

K: Our favorite part.

J: I'd say this goes well with the pita bread and hummus we're eating. Only, a plain hummus would be better. And I support the notion that Gewurz goes with Asian food. I get that entirely.

K: Kung Pao Chicken! (for you, Britto). In all seriousness, i'd also say any sort of fruity custard. I had some amazing barbequed salmon with grilled pineapple the other night, and this would be a fantastic pairing for the barbeque/citrus flavors.

J: If you're less adventurous, i'd say this would be nice with any kind of creamy cheese; like a brie or Delice de Bourgogne.

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Our Alsatian Gewurztraminer is $13.99, and considering the best Gewurz in the world is from Alsace, that's quite a bargain!

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WINE #2: 2008 DARBY & JOAN CABERNET

J: Okay--so there are dual purpose scents to this one. Unswirled in the glass there are scents of wet wood and jam. Once the wine has been swished around a bit, I get more meaty fish scents, like salmon.

K: I will second the wet wood. Also blueberry and mullberry. When I swirl the glass, I get laundry dried in fresh air. Fish and laundry are not at all a match.

J: Proof that one nose differs from another.

K: Proof also that we don't always agree.

J: Now that it's been open for a while, I'm starting to get black licorice and bread dough...and then back to the fish. This scent is going to turn people off until they see the label.

K: We sold four bottles of this wine today. People--women especially--love a pretty label. If you are trying to decide between two bottles, the prettier label will always win. Let's move on to the flavors.

FIRST SIP

J: If this was a blind tasting, I would be thrown off. It doesn't really taste like a Cab. More Petit Sirah with a tinge of Merlot. It tastes like a blend.

K: These are the sweetest tannins i've ever had. Sweet tobacco, sweet tar, and sweet black licorice. Don't get me wrong, this is NOT a sweet wine.

J: A little bit of mineral-graphite as well. It doesn't make any sense that it's 15% abv. There isn't a thing about it that tastes alcoholic. The scents don't even give it away. And i'm not just saying that because I'm semi-drunk.

K: You mentioned something at your very first sip that you were picking up on sour cherries. That is a lot of what I'm picking up on the finish. It's like old-school cheesecake with the sour cream and cherries on top.

J: Like the Cherith Valley Spirited Cherries we have at Benz. Self promotion!

K: To me, a Cab isn't this easy to drink. A Cab is something to mull over, to contemplate. This wine is light-bodied. I'm sure we could easily finish this bottle, but that would render both of us non-functional tomorrow.

J: My favorite Cab is so velvety smooth and oaky, and this doesn't seem to have any relation to that at all. This is, however, a good gateway red. Someone who is somewhat new to red--

K: But not McManis Cab new to red, though.

J: You have to tell our readers what you mean by that.

K: All right. McManis Cab isn't a serious Cabernet Sauvignon. This isn't me being a wine snob. It's a simple wine, has a bit of residual sugar--so it's not this big, bad overwhelming Cab. But it does at least taste like a Cab. It serves its purpose as an intro wine into big reds, but it shouldn't be something you stick to.

J: I think the Darby & Joan is a weeknight wine. However, if you want a true Cab, this isn't an adequate representation.

K: Matt and I have been talking a lot lately about Beef Bourguignon and Beef Deburgo--and though I could see this pairing with beef, I don't think this wine could stand up to anything gourmet.

J: Simple dinners, maybe. Pizza, spaghetti with meat sauce. Something with a little bit of spice.

K: Chili. A mildly spicy salsa.

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Underwhelmed, but approving--our red is from Austrailia, and goes for $8.99! Ladies, you will love the label...

2008 Goulart Classico Malbec

WELCOME BACK TO THE K & J SESSIONS! Happy MLK Day! We are back in the office on this foggy night, ready to dive into another red. We've come to the conclusion that we haven't once reviewed a Malbec, shocking as it were. Considering it's a popular grape and we have many opinions, we've cracked open a relatively new-to-the-store Malbec.

TONIGHT'S WINE: 2008 GOULART CLASSICO MALBEC

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K: So...I think I have a sinus infection, so i'm going to have to work harder to get scents out of this. Or maybe i'll pick up completely unassociated scents and flavors.

J: It's like playing kickball with a cast on, I suppose. You can probably still play, but not very well.

K: We were eating that Vosges Bacon Caramel Toffee earlier--which was great--but when I blew my nose, all I could smell was bacon.

J: I am getting that paper scent, what did we call it--corrugated cardboard?

K: Yeah, like when you are breaking down wine boxes and there's that paper and wood smell.

J: Yes. And flowery. The requisite crushed violets.

FIRST SIP

J: Sweet and spicy.

K: It's candied up front--remember Brach's pick-a-mix candy? The sour balls? That's what it's like. Candied and sweet and sour.

J: Mid-palate is velvety and viscous, but then smacks you with every kind of spice, a bit of tannin, and then becomes smooth.

K: I agree with the sucker punch of spice. It's nutmeg, cinnamon and black pepper all together. I can also agree with the reviews we read where they suggested black tea--that's more on the finsh.

J: Blackberries and raspberries too, kind of bridging the candy in the front with the spice in the middle. I like this. It doesn't seem as dry as a Malbec usually seems to me. I almost avoided them in the past because I felt the dryness was too much.

K: Bordeaux blends benefit from the tannin in Malbec--I suppose it adds more complexity. I always thought Malbec was brought from Argentina to France, but it's the other way around. The grape made it to Argentina before the phylloxera epidemic, so it's THE original strain of the grape.

J: The replanting of Malbec in France is a clone because they were all wiped out by blight and frost in the 1850's. Which is probably why the truest and most popular Malbec is from Argentina, versus those in France and the US. I think people wouldn't be all that into 100% Malbec from the US. It just seems odd.

K: I know there are a few American Malbecs, but you don't see them too often. There are only 7,000 acres of Malbec in the United States. US growers use them the same way the French do--for Bordeaux blends; Meritage and Claret.

J: But we only have 14% of the Malbec produced in the world. There are 50,000 acres of Malbec planted in Argentina. I think they've cornered the market. That, and your average Malbec is going to be significantly cheaper than a French Bordeaux or Cahors (like we blogged about on September 29th of last year. you should check that out. it was a good wine).

K: Okay, I put you on hold with the food pairings before--actually, I didn't. I totally indulged you and we were distracted for ten minutes talking about food. But NOW is the time we can actually talk about what food this goes with.

J: Because I recently made beef stroganoff that called for Cab in the recipe, I think this would be a better replacement--or to drink with it. Which leads me to think steak and mashed potatoes with a cream gravy would be so tasty with this Malbec.

K: I'm going to second you on the cooking element. I'd say this would make excellent coq au vin. I also think this would partner so well with barbeque. Ribs and pulled pork. With sweet potato french fries. But you have to pile the ribs on the sweet potato fries so they get a little sauce on them.

J: Yes. YES. And probably calzones with spicy sausage.

K: Oh, sweet Jesus. A spicy sausage calzone from Zoey's in Marion! I haven't had a calzone from Zoey's in so long.

J: A match made in heaven.

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Our Argentinian Malbec is less than $12! Stop in and get some!

2006 Medalla Real Santa Rita Cabernet Sauvignon

WELCOME BACK TO THE K & J SESSIONS! We're back--as promised--to review the wine we wished we had last week. It would be nice to say that all wine is good wine because it's still wine, but that reasoning doesn't work in this case. Not every bottle can be the Mas Belles eau Les Coteaux:

http://kandjsessions.blogspot.com/2009/08/2005-mas-belles-eau-les-coteaux.html.

Which we're out of. For obvious reasons.

THIS WEEK'S WINE: 2006 MEDALLA REAL SANTA RITA CABERNET SAUVIGNON

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K: I'm in a much better mood tonight. Just the scent of that cork is enough.

J: I am SO SORRY...I started without you. I couldn't help it.

K: Blasphemy! Fine, go ahead--at least give me your impression of the scents before I get to taste it.

J: This is going to sound weird, but it smells like smoky oak campfire in a pine forest.

K: Not weird at all. I think it smells like the inside of a cedar chest. And fresh spices; like the woody part of a sprig of rosemary. Actually, an Asian food sweetness jumps out too--like a sweet soy.

J: I'm not getting any berries at all.

K: Nope.

FIRST SIP (or, at least K's first sip)

K: It actively tastes like the inside of the cedar chest, too. Don't get me wrong--this is a good thing. It makes my mouth water so much, I can't nail anything else down at the moment.

J: It's just every kind of wood. Still no berries. It is velvety in a completely different way--it's the texture AND the scent of it. Like dusty, luxurious fabric. Think of finding a velveteen Christmas dress from when you were little--

K: In a cedar chest!

J: That's it exactly!

K: Lots of exclamation points tonight. I also get a little graphite on the finish--and now, two glasses in--a tiny bit of blueberry added to that. Despite our little girl party dress reference, I think this wine is very masculine.

J: There's lots of juicy acidity in it, but I think it works so well with the smoky oak and cedar. It's like a handsome man in an overcoat and cashmere scarf.

K: It's a Don Draper of a wine. It's suave and seductive upfront, but as the wine opens up, there are untold nuances and layers and flavors coming out. Even now, it's still changing--the oak has become a little sweet, the tannin is softer.

J: I would drink this wine with some sort of nutty cheese. Actually Spanish cheese--and more specifically, Manchego. And a hot baguette.

K: Or the Murcia al Vino--the "drunken goat" cheese. It's goat cheese that has been soaked in red wine. It's so unbelievably good.

J: You mentioned "Asian" scents, would you pair this with Asian food?

K: Yup. Noodles. Teriyaki steak. Damn near anything off the menu at Sushi House. Which seems contradictory, because I like white with Japanese food--Pinot Blanc, Gewurztraminer, off-dry Riesling.

J: So this is an all-around recommendation from us. I understand why this was #57 on the Wine Spectator top wines of 2009.

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Our Wine Spectator AND K&J recommended Chilean Cabernet is under $20...come pick up a bottle before everyone else figures out how good it is.

2007 Cellier Val Durance Cotes du Luberon

HAPPY NEW YEAR FROM THE K&J SESSIONS! Our new year's resolution is to drink more wine. Okay, we drink a ton of wine, we just haven't kept up with writing about it. But we're here, ready to drink, and hope the red we've chosen will warm us against the sub-zero temps outside. The Benz building is all cinder block and concrete--we do not have the luxury of carpeting as an insulator. This is a fantastic place to be during the heat of the summer, but right about now we have our red wines to keep us warm. Onward!

TONIGHT'S WINE: 2007 CELLIER VAL DURANCE CUVEE PRESTIGE COTES DU LUBERON

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K: Happy New Year, J!

J: Ditto, Miz K.

K: I hate to start off the new blog of the new year bitching about something--but I'm kind of bummed that one of the wines in the running for tonight was a ranked Wine Spectator top 100 wine of 2009.

J: Yeah, it was ranked #57 with a score of 91.

K: Eh, what does Robert Parker know, anyway?

J:...we'll save it for next week.

K: Of course. There's so much wine we need to get to.

J: And it keeps coming in daily. It's really not a terrible problem to have, you know.

K: So let's talk about the scents. J?

J: I may be a little rusty. I have been drinking wine recently, but not really evaluating. I'm thinking a little toast? Raspberries?

K: I get the jammy raspberry. I also get a little graphite. There's a scent here that seems like an undertone to a perfume.

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FIRST SIP

J: This is going to be a problem child.

K: It has potential upfront--very berry--

J: But then it changes right away. Lots of tannin suddenly, lots of black pepper.

K: And then it's gone. This wine is a tease.

J: It's complicated for sure. I thought the heat of the pepper would burn off the longer it's open.

K: I don't know if i like it. I mean, I'm certainly not going to dump it out--i am here for the rest of the bottle--but it's working me over. I think the Grenache is what jumps out in front, it's what's juicy and fruity. It would be a great wine if that could hold on and develop into something else. But the sharp turn into black pepper and a blast--albeit temporary--of dryness just isn't winning me over.

J: The body of the wine reminds me of a Pinot Noir. It's like Grenache meets Petite Sirah.

K: I don't think there's any Petite Sirah in it, is there?

J: No, but if you clashed the two together, this is what i would expect it to be. It's just an average table wine. So, the big question is: would you recommend this to someone?

K: That's the million dollar question. It seems like we're not giving out enough information on this wine, but that's all there is to it, kids. It's simple and frustrating. I know you're supposed to drink a Cotes du Luberon young, so it's not like time and patience will make it better. It has softened a *tiny* bit, but it's been open for an hour and a half--who wants to wait that long for wine to be ready? Ugh.

J: I would recommend it to someone, but i would enforce that it needs all that time to become more round and soft. So it's a wine for people with patience.

K: I am exasperated.

J: (laughing) So no from you, huh?

K: It's not a terrible wine. Like you said, it's just table wine. I also don't have a point of refrence, as I've never had a Cotes du Luberon before. I guess I just don't have the patience for it. The last glass and a half I enjoyed. And if I had a medium-well steak, I'd be more okay with it.

J: With a pan sauce. Oooh.

K: Add some good earthy mushrooms to that pan sauce.

J: Why do we even have a wine blog if we just end up talking about food?

2006 Bogle Phantom

WELCOME BACK TO THE K & J SESSIONS! We are now heading into the holiday season, and we thought we'd return to help with your wine selections for this time of year. So if it's big, bold, ornate, and lush (and probably red), then we are your go-to girls. Though, we did have an excellent Sancerre last week. We probably should have blogged about that. Hindsight is 20-20, and right now we only have eyes for:

TONIGHT'S WINE: THE 2006 BOGLE PHANTOM

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J: Right off the bat: peppered plum on the nose.

K: Smells like Christmas. Gingerbread and sugarplums. That is, when the alcohol blows off in the glass.

FIRST SIP

J: Wow, after the smell, I was expecting something a bit more strong, but WOW, and let me say WOW again...velvety smooth! The blend of the Sirah must be what is taming it down. At 14.5% alc., this is definitely a bit of a conflicted wine.

K: This wine is a blend of Petite Sirah, old vine Zin and old vine Mourvedre--and I agree, the Petite Sirah is shutting down the finish on it. I love it, it's another one of those textural wines of which we're huge fans. But it's not as thick and intense as the nose purports. What are the flavors you are picking up on?

J: I can pick up the jam flavor, but having a hard time getting the berry. I almost want to say it's like strawberry jam. I know Petite Sirahs mimic blueberry (and I can taste the blueberry), but for some reason, strawberry highlights the finish. Which, by the way, has a short finish. But that's okay. This is still a winner in my book. In fact, it might make it on my staff picks shelf! No, nevermind that...I don't want us to sell out of it. K, will you tell our readers a bit more about the petite sirah and why there is a petite sYrah and a petite sIrah? What's the difference?

K: Petite Sirah is an interesting grape to add to our list of intriguing grapes. I'm sure you've heard of Syrah. To state it in the most basic way--when you make "petite" a prefix to said grape--you can deduce that it's a smaller version of a Syrah grape. Which is the easy answer, but not the whole answer. "Petite Syrah" is technically the minature relative of the Petite Sirah that is grown in the Rhone region of France. Domestically speaking, anything labeled "Petite Syrah" is a misspelling.

J: A little bit confusing, but when you think about it, it will make sense. The petite sirah is a small grape that packs a good punch of grapes...in other words...it makes a lot of juice.

K: There is a savory quality to it; a bit herbal. Jammy too, I agree--but the short finish keeps tormenting me. I want it to stick around.

J: I suppose that gives you an excuse to just drink more of it. It's a flirt, a tease.

K: The label does say "mysterious and hauntingly seductive". It is a good bottle to split. It's a pretty sexy wine.

J: If you're a Zin drinker, this is a good alternate. It could be great with quite a variety of foods. Pizza. Spaghetti.

K: Yes. Rich, warm, winter foods. Chili. Beef stew. Fudge brownies. Football party foods! Meatballs, beefy, cheesy, nachos.

2006 Clos La Coutale Cahors

WELCOME BACK TO THE K & J SESSIONS! We've had quite the respite from our blogging--we were really only gearing up for fall--great cool weather clothes, harvest food, the 2009-10 NFL season, and of course--deep, dark, red wines. We are cozy warm in the office on this windy night, with a little spread of ciabatta, dill havarti, and olive oil to accompany our fall wine kickoff.

TONIGHT'S WINE: 2006 CLOS LA COUTALE CAHORS

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K: On a completely unrelated note, I would just like to say congratulations to the Detroit Lions on their first victory since 2007.

J: I know! Every week you kind of root for them. They're like the kid that gets picked last for kickball, and you feel sorry for them.

K: So onto wine. How does this smell to you?

J: Tobacco?

K: Yeah, tobacco that's kind of sweet. I also get faint violet scents. My grandmother used to date a man who smoked cigars that came in these perfectly square paper boxes, and he would give the empty boxes to me to keep crayons in. I loved the way they smelled. This is damn close to that scent.

J: But i'm not getting anything other than the tobacco and violet.

K: It's pretty straightforward. That's it.

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FIRST SIP

J: It's very smooth--but I think a few more sips are going to build the flavors before I can really say what it tastes like.

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A FEW MORE SIPS LATER...

J: The tobacco comes through. I'll say it again--it's so smooth. But it's not as intense and spicy as 100% Malbec is, I think the 20% Merlot mellows it.

K: You know what? I think it tastes very fall-like. Leaves and earth and refreshing air. It doesn't leave that hotness in your mouth the way more tannic wines do, though there is some tannin to it.

J: This is a great wine to give to people who are Malbec fans, or a foot-in-the-door wine for those who are afraid to venture into French wines. It's not as intimidating.

K: As you metioned before, Cahors is mostly Malbec--it is a wine AND a small city in southwest France. Cahors wine by law must be made of at least 70% Malbec, the remainder being Merlot and Tannat. Malbec is primarily an Argentinian grape, but almost all of Cahor's vines were destroyed in 1956 due to an extreme frost. Malbec was more widely planted after this and became the dominant grape of the region.

J: They had double bad luck because they were hit pretty bad by the phylloxera epidemic too, right?

K: Yeah. There's all sorts of cool lore around this city and wine. The city is most notable for its Valentre bridge--considered a "Devil's Bridge"--which are bridges that are said to be built by the devil, built with the help of the devil, or built against the devil's wishes. Mostly, they are bridges over some insurmountable pass that took a feat of construction in order to build it.

J: This lovely bridge is on the label of our wine. The bridge even has a small statue of the devil on it. Such a great wine for Halloween. Cahors wine has also been nickamed "The Black Wine of Lot" (Cahors being a city belonging to the region of Lot), and also "The Liquor of Fire".

K: The city is also mentioned in Dante's Inferno as another cursed, evil city akin to Sodom. It was because the bankers charged interest on loans during the Middle Ages, and this was against the beliefs of the Catholic church. MORE HALLOWEEN REFRENCES: When the wine first came into the English court in the 1700's, it overtook the popularity of Bordeaux wines--much to the dismay of Bordeaux vintners. Because Cahors had to make a trip through Bordeaux to make it to the rest of the world, the jealous vintners of Bordeaux tried to stop the transport of the wines before All Saints Day. All Saints Day was a day of feasting and drink, and Cahors threatened to make Bordeaux a passing fad.

J: All Saints Day being November 1st, so this coup happened around Halloween (All Hallows Eve). Insert devil laughter here.

K: Nice.

J: I think this is getting a tad drier the longer it's open.

K: Not offensively dry. Still smooth and tasty. I'm picking up on some black licorice now. It actually goes really well with this bread and cheese.

J: It's a very European meal; bread and wine and cheese.

K: Or it would be good with roasted seasonal veggies. I love Massaman curry with beef and sweet potatoes--I think you could drink Cahors with that. Thumbs up on this one!

2007 Elk Cove Willamette Valley Pinot Gris

WELCOME BACK TO THE K & J SESSIONS! It is Monday, and we have once again made the office a cozy nook for us to taste some wine. Tonight, we have stepped WAY out of our comfort zone, and chosen a smaller varietal white wine from the US. If you've read our blog before, you know we tend to lean toward the international wine room and favor even more the rich, dark reds of Australia and South America. So join us on our safari to Willamette Valley--we may return, if this bottle does us right.

TONIGHT'S WINE: 2007 ELK COVE WILLAMETTE VALLEY PINOT GRIS

K: I don't know why, to me, this smells like fresh cut watermelon.

J: I get fresh cut pineapple.

K: And a little lemon peel.

J: So basically, fresh cut fruits.

K: Yes.

J: Easy. That was so easy. Watermelon, pineapple--fruity freshness. Done. Next?

FIRST SIP

K: I couldn't help it--i took a secret sip while you were getting the last customer a baguette. The scents from the glass were curling around my nose, and I just couldn't tell it no any longer.

J: I really wanted a honey flavor from it--I just anticipated something like that would come through--but it didn't. It's kind of viscous and rich...like lemon pudding.

K: Yeah! Tangy and zingy! I get that fleshy thickness in it, too. Like almost ripe cantaloupe. I'm also picking up on white roses. They have a more delicate, softer scent.

J: I was just thinking a white flower of some sort. So if I ate white roses, this is what it would taste like? Don't white roses mean purity and innocence?

K: There's not much innocence to 13% a.b.v. Or, at least, you're innocent when you START drinking this wine. Where it goes after that is all on the drinker.

J: Let's talk about how this wine is a bit of an anomaly. The Willamette Valley was created when an ice dam ruptured several times and caused massive flooding shortly after the last ice age. Therefore, the floods brought volcanic and glacial soil full of minerals--on that knowledge alone, i would assume there would be some sort of minerality to the wine--but no.

K: Also, the wine resembles more the style of Italian Pinot Grigio (which is a pale, acidic, zingy wine), versus a traditional Oregon Pinot Gris (which is golden in comparison, and has flavors and scents of apples, pears, and melon). This wine does have melon flavors, but the color is so pale it's almost clear. But so lush and tingly.

J: I like that the Willamette Valley has only become a notable wine region in the past 30 years. For such a highly regarded region for Pinot Noir, it seems like it should have been established for longer. I mean, they are notable for producing Willamette Hops for craft beer--and just for further geek knowledge--the valley produces most of the grass seed and Christmas trees that the rest of the country uses.

K: I love geek knowledge. I also love that the Pinot Gris grape is the evil twin of Pinot Noir. Apparently they have similar DNA, but the color difference is due to a genetic mutation. Though technically a white grape, Pinot Gris is actually grey (gris = grey in French).

J: Have we passed off enough random trivia for now?

K: Okay, but since we're about to talk about food I have one more bit of info. A notable gent by the name of David Lett was the first person to plant Pinot Gris in Oregon. Thinking he could make a delicate grape more likable, he grafted Riesling rootstock to Pinot Gris, and then sold the resulting wine to salmon fishermen marketing it as a good pairing for seafood. Brilliant.

J: Not just seafood, but it's gone pretty well with this tomato-herb bread that you made. Sometimes the snack we have with the wine doesn't go so well. But it's nice with the bread and olive oil. Deeelish.

K: Thanks. Though we get all these fruity flavors, I don't think it would go well with dessert, it's too acidic. Considering there is melon to it, it would be nice with prosciutto wrapped melon. The saltiness would be a great contrast.

J: And salty cheese. Parmesan. Manchego. Zamarano. Just salty foods in general. Kettle cooked potato chips.

K: I like that. Wine and potato chips actually go well together--but it's mostly white wine, and really good potato chips. We used to have these red skinned potato chips here, and they would be killer with this wine. It would also go with normal white wine pairings, like if you roasted a brined chicken or turkey.

J: This is a decently priced wine, about $15. Another good pick for tonight's blog. If you're indecisive about what you're going to eat, but you want a tasty, amiable wine--go with this one.