A Mostly Off Day

On a rare day mostly off from the shop, Emilia suggested I fire up the grill. At first I resisted. Then I relented. As usual, her instincts were spot-on.

It's a primal pleasure starting a fire and cooking over it. I use natural lump charcoal because there's no unnecessary things added to it like with regular charcoal (such as sawdust, Borax, Sodium Nitrate, starch, limestone). Therefore it doesn't yield awful chemical smells but instead imparts a delicious flavor to whatever you grill. It also doesn't need nasty lighter fluid to get it started (I tend to use just a few old pages of a newspaper). Luckily, I had a big bag of natural charcoal around that I bought last summer, but it shouldn't be hard to find this time of year.

We kept it simple. Burgers, using grass-fed ground beef from Albert Wilkow at the Fort Greene Farmers' Market. Blue Cheese from Pt. Reyes. Terrebrune Bandol Rosé 2006. An assortment of Rick's Picks to garnish.

Simply divine to slow down and linger over lunch outside in the sunshine and talk. Of course we brainstormed about Thirst, but it was so relaxing not to be in the thick of things.

After a rather long winter, and all the rain we've had in May, we really savored this SF-like day.

More Reasons Why Chardonnay Doesn't Suck

I could live happily on a desert island with a cellar full of François and Antoine Jobard's wines.

In his 11/08 newsletter, Kermit Lynch described Jobard's 06s as "the best I have experienced from Jobard since his 1989s. Why? The vintage itself is opulent and showy. You combine that with the Jobard style—firm, mineral, discreet—and you have the best of all possible worlds. "

You should treat yourself to a bottle of their delicious Bourgogne Blanc 06. It gracefully hits all the classic notes (peach skin, toast, hazelnuts) but the vintage gives the wine a definite voluptuousness.

It's also reassuring to see, with François and Antoine, another example of continuity.

The Vin de Pays des Gaules is Here!

Emilia and I are long-time fans of Lapierre's wines. We remember when the price for his Morgon was south of twenty dollars. His son, Matthieu, is now working alongside him. They make wine the way it should be made: vinify without SO2 and without adding additional yeasts. They cultivate their vines biodynamically, without weed killers or chemical fertilizers.

Yes, for a long time we've had an obsession with cru Beaujolais. From the time we opened, we sold the Gang of Four, and a slew of other cru (a kind of insane thing when you're operating a small store). There's something so alluring about the Gamay grape. It's hard to beat its versatility and food friendliness. What I love best, though, about the Lapierre wines is their purity.

Marcel & Matthieu Lapierre's Vin de Pays des Gaules 2008 is a true vin de soif (thirst-inspiring wine). It's super refreshing, best enjoyed with friends at picnics and barbeques. Serve it cool. It's a steal at $13.

We discovered the VdP des Gaules at a salon tasting with the Gang of Four Plus at the Lapierre property in January. I wish we weren't in such a rush to make it to the next stop because I could have spent an afternoon there, chatting with Matthieu, eating the delicious home-made food, and drinking the various wines. That's Matthieu on my right.

Amiot & Fils BGO Chardonnay 07 has Arrived!

The wines from our January trip to France begin to trickle in.

One of our missions is to educate people about the beauty of Chardonnay, white Burgundy in particular. Early on at Thirst I conducted a tasting called "Why Chardonnay Doesn't Suck!" The wines from Guy Amiot & Fils we have in the store demonstrate how much finesse and structure Chardonnay can have. Yes, there's a lot of sucky over-oaked Chards out there, but don't throw the baby out with the bathwater.

(Fabrice Amiot is pictured along with Claude-Geoffrey Thivin from Chateau Thivin at a Kermit Lynch Winemakers tasting at the store last October. )

I adore the supple richness of Amiot's old vines Chassagne-Montrachet, but the price tag isn't for everyone. When we tasted the latest vintage of Amiot's BGO Chardonnay at their property, we immediately became excited at the thought of selling (& drinking) it for a measly twenty bucks. It's delightful--un-oaked, crisp, with hints of limestone--a great Spring/Summer quaffer. It'll be regularly stocked in our personal refrigerator and I suspect, once you try it, you'll do the same.

Indications of Spring

Henry

Part of the fun of owning and working in a wine store is all of the awesome dogs and kids our customers bring in. Henry is a big-time fave.


A lot of dogs are excited to enter the store but Henry's entrance is like no other. He usually enters with a howl or two to announce his presence. He's handsome and really sweet. And he sports a mohawk. Here Emilia captured Henry happily licking his chops after being given a treat. If he were a wine, I think he'd be a feisty Regnie.

Lunch with Lulu

There were so many highlights on our January trip. But THE highlight was meeting and having lunch with Lulu at Domaine Tempier. This was our last view of her prior to our departure. You can see her vivacity.

We learned about Lulu Peyraud, and her late husband Lucien, through two books that remain tremendous influences: Kermit Lynch's Adventures on the Wine Route and Richard Olney's Lulu's Provencal Table. Lucien was instrumental in the ascendence of the Bandol appellation and made Tempier into arguably the best winery in Bandol. I wish I could have met him.

Lulu is legendary for her food, generosity, and gracious hospitality. Meeting her was a dream realized. The reality far exceeded our expectations.