Wine Journal

The hardest part is not to start something. The hardest part is to keep it going.

I drink wine [practically] every day. For the past 20 years, I have been removing the labels from the wines I drink and putting them into the journals. Next to the labels, there were brief notes and drinkability ratings. For the past 6-7 years, I still remove the labels and put them into the journals, but the notes now are few and far between (don’t ask me why). For some time now, I had the idea of starting an electronic journal and putting there my daily wine notes. I don’t know if that will work, but I’ve got to try. Starting today.

06/15/24
2021 Field Recordings Super Gnario Happy Canyon of Santa Barbara (13.9% ABV, 75% Nebbiolo, fermented with native yeats for 45 days, 10 months in 70% French oak and 30% Russian oak 10% new)
The bottle was open the day before. Ruby color, red fruit on the nose, red and black fruit on the palate, good acidity. It drinks well but doesn’t really solicit an emotional response.
Drinkability: 7+

06/16/24
One of the most hectic Father’s Days I ever remember. Still finishing home projects – cutting grass, cleaning and organizing the shed, working on the new water hose setup – and then cooking. I was hoping for some wine program – sparkling, then white, then red – but none worked. I was planning to open Smith-madrone Riesling 2019, but then it was just left standing in the fridge. I had to find a bottle of red to drink, and I quickly settled on Oregon Pinot.

2019 Gran Moraine Pinot Noir Yamhill-Carlton Oregon (13% ABV)
Garnet color, smoke and plums on the nose, classic Pinot. This Pinot Noir is more Californian than a typical Oregon Pinot – sweet plums, violets and cherries on the palate, firm structure, medium to full body, good acidity, generous overall.
Drinkability: 8-

06/17/24
Finished the leftovers of Gran Moraine. The wine lost a bit of structure, became more mellow and needed a touch more acidity. I liked it more on the first day.

06/18/24
It is Tuesday, so there is typically no wine due to Taekwondo. It doesn’t mean that wine is not on top of the mind nevertheless.
Two peculiar articles were shared today on Twitter. One was about the Riesling craze in China – the article is peculiar because it offers contradicting data sets while talking about the popularity of German Riesling in China and the growth in exports. Riesling in China makes a lot of sense to me, as Riesling pairs perfectly well with spicy food, and Asian food in particular, so if it is popular it wouldn’t be surprising.

The second peculiar article was talking about how novice consumers are more likely to purchase wine with sweetness scales on labels. There are a few “peculiar” elements here – the sweetness scale is used only for Riesling, and it would make limited sense for other wines as I don’t believe just listing sweetness level can be a basis of comparison of, let’s say, Sancerre and New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. Second, the sampling size for the conclusion was 200 responders – this is way too small of a group to support any conclusion. But it makes it for a nice article…

6/19/24
Strangely enough, another evening without wine… had to run errands for the upcoming party on Saturday, and by the time I was done, it was really too late to open a bottle. However, same as yesterday, a peculiar wine read – “Could sommeliers and AI be the perfect pairing?“. AI is at the peak of the hype at the moment, which means that it is a perfect solution for any problem. You don’t know what wine to order with your dinner at a restaurant – AI almighty will figure it out and give you a perfect suggestion. How? Doesn’t matter. We just have to believe that it will.
In a Twitter conversation, there was a point made that the absolute majority of restaurants don’t employ a sommelier, so the AI sommelier is better than no sommelier. This is possible, but the dilemma is that in restaurants where people don’t care how much they pay for a bottle of wine, an actual human sommelier will always be preferred. In restaurants where people care about how much they will spend on the wine (majority), selection will be most likely made by the price, no matter what “somm” will advise. We can spend hours and hours debating this subject – let me just leave it as it is. But in case you are reading this page and have an opinion, feel free to comment and argue.

6/20/24
Would you believe it? No wine again. But – a pour (or two) of the very nice Hochstadter’s Slow and Low Rock and Rye, made with straight rye whiskey, rock candy, raw honey, aromatic bitters and navel orange. The sweetness of the candy and honey paired with the acidity of the rye whiskey, plus some added complexity thanks to the bitters – a delicious sip all around. Paired very well with ice cream cake from Dairy Queen – I’m sure it would pair very well with a lot of desserts, but it is no doubt perfect on its own (neat).

6/21/2024
Finally, wine. 2019 Smith-Madrone Riesling Spring Mountain District Napa Valley (13.3% ABV). I wanted to open this bottle for the entire week, and I finally did. Wow. What a beauty. Light golden in the glass. Two of my favorite aromas are most prominent on the nose – honey and petrol. A dollop of honey and just a whiff of petrol. My first thought was – this is sophisticated wine. I don’t know why “sophisticated” was the descriptor that came up in my head, but this is how it was. Definitely thought-provoking. The pleasure continued on the palate, with a touch of honey – not in terms of sweetness, but more as a reference – paired with crisp acidity and a spicy grapefruit note. Thought-provoking perfection. A sophisticated wine.

Also, read today about the wine called Commandaria – the oldest continuously produced wine in the world, made in Cyprus from partially dried grapes – traces its roots back to 8 BC! This is a sweet wine, but still – I would love to try it.

Finished the day with a sip of Park Cognac Borderies Miziunara Oak – round and spicy, something to enjoy slowly, little sip by little sip.

Big day tomorrow – birthday party, lots of people, lots of food to make. Can it not rain, pleeeease?