Pee No.

I love Pinot Noir; it's quite likely my favorite wine. I'm probably pretty biased, as the three wineries I worked at all specialized in Pinot, but maybe it was just a 'fate' -like happening. It's such a delicate grape and the spread of possibilities of what the wine may turn into is giant across the globe. Tonight I'm sipping a Penner-Ash 2007 Rubeo, a budget-end blend of Pinot Noir and Syrah from a reputable Willamette Valley producer. I had it with dinner, a spicy pork-sausage and tomato cream sauce pasta dish, but it's elegance graces my stemware as it opens up more and more after dinner starts to digest. The 'Oregon Funk' as I like to call it, a good 'funk' in my opinion, like a James Brown grove or George Clinton on his A-Game, is a synthesis of decaying evergreen forest with the liveliness of a fresh cranberry bog and ripened cherries. The touch of smoke from some french wood aging adds a welcomed layer. I haven't really written any bad reviews of wine yet; perhaps that's a reflection of my general optimism or I'm not drinking enough wine or taking enough risks (like the 2004 Vernaccia di San Gimigniano I bought last night knowing 99% that it would be bad but wondering what it would taste like anyway). My blog is also pretty juvenile. Penner-Ash was my first harvest gig and ironically the winery that taught me how un-romantic winemaking can be produces some of the sexier wines I've had the pleasure to drink.

Perfection.

I'm listening to this band: The Avett Brothers, and drinking this wine: 2006 Novy Nebbiolo, as I watch an utterly beautiful mid-summer sunset over Minneapolis. I couldn't ask for more.

Summer in the city

It's HOT here in Minneapolis. Luckily the thunderstorms that ravaged the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area this evening have lowered the temperatures a bit and I am blessed not only to have a sealed apartment to call home but also a fully functioning air conditioning unit to cool my abode. Needless to say when I got home from an extended day of work today, the refresher I grabbed was an ice cold beer. (Before I came home I was at a wine seminar put on by one of my associates, the very mythical Bill Abrahamson (look him up), that covered the Tempranillo wines of scorching Spain). Readily available in my fridge was a can of "Back in Black" Black IPA from 21st Amendment Brewery. Though these guys hail from the city by the bay (San Francisco) they have been brewing some beer for the Minnesota market at the relatively local Cold Springs Brewery. Unlike anything I've ever tried before, this beer is brewed with dark malts instead of the lighter fare that is typical to the IPA style. I was not a fan upon first sipping, but to be fair, the ballsy beer has grown on me. Its 6.8% ABV is something to remember, or rather help you forget the day past, but the hop profile is nicely rounded and balanced and is an interesting complement to the heavier body of the innovative beer. The packaging is pretty sexy too. It lacks the citrus finish and dazzle of many hoppy IPA's but it's something different and is definitely worth the $10 for a six pack. Sometimes beating the summer heat doesn't always mean light and fresh!