Porterhouse was the elegant venue for a tutored tasting of La Follette wine lead by winemaker Greg La Follette (formerly of Flowers, de Loach) who recently launched a new winery last year called La Follette.

The morning began with an introduction by vivacious Master Sommelier Evan Goldstein -- and then a tasting of both Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from his collection of site-specific bottlings from Sonoma and Mendocino counties ($30-$60 SRP).

Of the three Chardonnays were I preferred the  2008 La Follette Lorenzo Vineyard, which was very Meursault like and Greg said was due to the specific vineyard. The other two were very nice - the Manchester Ridge 2008 and the 09 Sangiacomo Vineyard.

Of the Pinot Noirs, my favorite was the 2008 La Follette Manchester Ridge Vineyard which was very floral and elegant. My vote for the wines NYC's geeks would love best was the 2008 La Follette Van der Kamp Vineyard, which comes from a volcanic site very high on a mountain. A very strong signature aroma and palate here.

During the presentation, Greg was a fountain of knowlege,  discussing the various measures he uses to make his wine as pristine as possible and true to the land.

scallops

During lunch, we were served four whites and four reds from Quivira Vineyards and Winery and older vintages from Tandem Wines and Torbreck Vintners (all distributed by Martin Scott).  We were encouraged to mix and match them with the starter of scallops two ways (pan roasted diver scallop with celery root puree, brown butter, capers, crisp parsley) and grilled driver scallop) and duck two ways (Magret Duck Steak with swiss chard, bacon, ginger, rhubarb confit, and confit of duck leg with heirloom bean and root vegetable casoulet, green peppercorn reduction).

My favorite wines with both scallop dishes were the 2007 Tandem Sangriacomo Vineyard Chardonnay and the 2009 Torbreck Roussanne/Marsanne/Viognier. The 2009 Quivira Fig Tree Sauvignon Blanc was exotic and delcious, however.

For the duck I liked ALL the reds -- with my favorite match being the 2006 Torbreck RunRig Shiraz. and runners up the 2001 Torbreck RunRig Shiraz (3% Viognier) and the 2001 and 2006 Torbreck The Struie Shiraz.  

What was fun during the lunch was having Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg, writers of Becoming a Chef and many books on food and wine pairing, at the table with me. It was fun to compare tasting notes together.

Thanks to Master Sommelier Roger Dagorn of Porterhouse and Porterhouse owner/chef Michael Lomonaco for arranging such a great food and wine pairing with lunch.

Fabulous wines and a very educational talk.

Have you tried a themed tasting? In studying for my MW (Master of Wine) program, I typically ask wine stores to send wine blind (wrapped in bags) to try them with a friend before dinner and deduce what they are. Just recently, I decided to ask the stores to create "themed" tastings, which is more similar to the MW program in which students are given 12 wines grouped into "themes" and asked what the wines are.

A psychic would have little luck on these tests, as naming the correct answer will gain few points. It's all about the argument of "why" a wine is believed to be a certain varietal from a certain region.

So tonight we had one of our first themed tastings of three Pinot Noirs. The clerk wrote that one is from California, one from Oregon, and one from Burgundy. They were labeled A, B, and C and in the end A was Clairborne & Churchhill 08 from the Edna Valley (CA), B was Montinore Estate 09 from Wilhamette Valley, and C was Bourgogne "Les Charmeux" 07 from Henri Prudhon and Fills.

We are cautioned against making an assessment before taking careful notes on the wine, so I repressed my thoughts until the final analysis, and took the extra step of comparing them against one another.

I am pleased to say that I made the correct choices, with "C" chosen for Burgundy because of several reasons yet mostly the way the light translucent color belied the incredible power and muscle, with the wine also having a certain finesse and elegance the others didn't.

"B" was chosen for Oregon because of its dark color and assertive nature, and also a "tobacco" sort of characteristic I associate with Oregon, along with other factors too technical to mention.

"C" was California because, though very delicious, seemed as if it had been a bit "overdone" with slightly too much oak, too much intensity, too much of whatever the producers did to "enhance" the grape's natural flavors.

.... so by now, you've seen the film Sideways, tasted Pinot Noir, and count yourself as one of the varietal's many fans. Yet do you like Pinot Noir from around the world, or just certain locations? Have you taught yourself to tell the difference between a Pinot from New Zealand and Burgundy?

The folks at Craggy Range in New Zealand put several wine journalists to the challenge recently by creating a blind tasting of twelve Pinot Noir wines from California, Oregon, Burgundy, and New Zealand. Guests were given time to write tasting notes on each wine, rate them from one to twelve, and guess its origin. Among the many familiar faces were writers such as Howard Goldberg of Decanter and the New York Times, and Andrew Dorenberg, who with his wife Karen Page is the author of many award winning books on food and wine.

Speaking for myself, I could tell the difference between the "new world" wines and the "old world" wines, yet the youthful 2007/2006 vintage meant that the Burgundies weren't showing as well as they would in a decade's time. I also discovered that from a pure sensory point of view, I really instinctively liked the what turned out to be the New Zealand wines, all from Craggy Range individual vineyards (Te Muna, Zebra, Aroha, Calvert, and Sluicings). These wines range from $39 to $85, and reflect the individual soil, as well as the percentage of new French Oak they are aged in. To my palate, they were lighter and fresher than the Burgundies and the Oregon producers, and had a signature ripeness of red berry fruit I associate with New Zealand.

At my table for lunch was winemaker Rod Easthope, who is passionate about Pinot Noir and all the other wines they make. from this vineyard. The property looks gorgeous - if you go to http://www.craggyrange.com you will see the famed mist near the mountains, and can even arrange to stay on property and taste through the wines.

Yes, it takes time, but it is possible to train your palate to detect the subtle differences between new and old world PNs first, and then differentiate between California and Oregon and New Zealand. A very dramatic effort on behalf of Craggy Range which underscored that the time is right for those who love Pinot to try quality wine from New Zealand as opposed from considering Burgundy the benchmark of good wine.

Pinot Noir? Yawn. Been there. Done that. Sure, this finicky grape had more than its fifteen minutes of fame in the film Sideways, where the film’s characters got teary-eyed just thinking about this thin-skinned black grape varietal.

Few people, however, can know this grape completely. Like a beautiful and exotic woman, the grape retains its mystery and also takes on many different guises and moods. If you like red wine, such as Syrah or Cabernet Sauvignon, it’s very possible you did not respond to Pinot Noir at first. The flavors might have struck you as being too light and delicate. Yet as you taste more Pinot Noir from different regions of the world, you will be surprised to realize Pinot Noir can take on so many textures, aromas, and levels of acidity and tannin. Among Pinot lovers (sometimes called Pinotphiles) arguments often break out about the grape, with some swearing by Oregon, and others its traditional home of Burgundy, France.

Today, I’d like to talk about Pinot Noirs from the Sonoma Coast in California. Right now I am tasting a MacRostie Pinot Noir from their Wildcat Mountain vineyard and it is surprisingly delicious, with gorgeous concentrated red and black berries on the palate, and a long, strong finish of deeply colored wild fruit with the kind of assertive tannins that can stand up to a juicy, rare Porterhouse steak and at the same time, complement grilled Ahi tuna or Alaskan King salmon.

Wildcat Mountain Vineyard is located on the volcanic highlands of the Sonoma Coast appellation with elevations ranging from 500 to 700 feet overlooking San Pablo Bay, typically covered in fog brought through the mountains by a wind so powerful many of the vines have a windswept look about them. The soil is red, pebbly clay loam and consists of volcanic basalt, and discerning palates will be able to taste this mineral quality in the wine. Climate? Cool and rather breezy. As you can imagine, under these conditions vines must struggle to survive. In the wine world, a struggling vine produces the most concentrated fruit.

The 2005 growing season extended to a late harvest. As typical at Wildcat, yields were low, about two tons per acre, resulting in the intense concentrated flavor described above. The grapes were hand harvested in two days, gently destemmed into open-top fermenters, and the cap (the “crust” of skins and pulp that form on the top of the juice) was managed with a combination of punchdowns and pumpovers to maximize positive extraction. The wine was then aged for ten months in French oak barrels (30% new) and bottled on August 17, 2006.

If you usually go to Oregon or Burgundy, France for your Pinot, I encourage you to try this wine. Whether it is the fog-shrouded mountain location, the Pommard and Dijon 667 clonal selections, or winemaker MacRostie’s magic touch, this wine is truly spectacular. And if you have found yourself shying away from Pinot Noir, thinking it a delicate wine, you will be impressed by the assertive fruit, tannins, and powerful structure in this wine.

And hey, you never know. One day you may find yourself at a party, like the Miles character in Sideways, telling fellow guests about your passion for Sonoma Coast Pinot.

- Unusually mild weather this year has permitted the major grape varieties to ripen steadily without a hitch

- A handful of North Coast producers are now picking sparkling wine grapes and early-ripening white varieties, especially Sauvignon Blanc, which show relatively high acid levels.

- Later-ripening varieties on cooler sites, such as Napa Cabernet Sauvignon from the mountains, may not be picked until October, so it's still too early to gauge quality. If the mild weather continues, it could translate to nicely balanced wines with relatively low alcohol levels, but late-season heat could send sugar levels soaring.

- In Napa Valley, the weather has been uneventful, without the intense summer heat spikes that often plague growers. Canopies are green with little irrigation. Vines well-balanced. 

- Modest rainfail, dry and mild spring in North Coast led to budbreak and flowering about two to three weeks earlier than normal. Welcome change from California's 2006 and 2005 vintages, both of which ran late. The dry conditions helped curtail the vines' shoot and leaf growth, directing their energy into maturing the fruit, and also resulted in small berries, which can yield more intense wines.

- Chardonnay and Pinot Noir producers from Sonoma County appellations, as well as Napa, Carneros and Mendocino--expects a small crop due to high cluster ounts but smaller berries (a la 2002). 

- Sparkling wine estates are usually the first to begin picking in earnest. Schramsberg, based on Diamond Mountain, began with Pinot Noir from Napa's Oak Knoll District and Chardonnay from Carneros on Aug. 10, a few days earlier than normal. Bloccks have high acid levels.