| Lots of things bother us... crummy weather, uncontrollable flatulence, people attaching meaning to the meaningless... But what really gets our goat is when people call certain years great vintages or difficult vintages or whatever...
Let's put things in perspective... suppose you had a job to do, a specific job -- with a measurable outcome, in a specified timeline... And you would get paid well by your client to do the job and do it as well as you could because it was important... you would prioritize your tasks and eliminate those not pertinent or positive... You would not take on the other jobs that; although somewhat profitable, would cause you to create a situation where your primary task would be compromised and it's quality would suffer...
In a word... you would keep quality constant and quantity would be diminished...
Great Wineries produce greatness always. Quantities vary from vintage to vintage. If greatness cannot be achieved in a given year they will simply not produce at all...
These comments are Disneyland... you are probably thinking. To some extent you're right, but what's really awesome for us here at OWC is that we get to try hundreds of contenders in every category -- every vintage -- and we've figured out who the posers are, the BS writers too... and since we are beyond reproach -- we simply don't carry wines that suck...
 | All that being said... there are so many truly awesome wines being released in 2005 it (or the wine) makes our heads spin...
Big, fat, juicy, in your-face Cal Cabs... Syrahs to die for... so many extraordinary Pinots from (of all places) California... Solid, long-lived wines from all over Italy... Aussie reds with bizarre names (but no colors in their names) that will absolutely stun the most hedonistic consumer... 2005 -- A year of wine porn! |
Connoisseur (Kinda-Sewer) -- a quiet moment which defines the essence of being a connoisseur... Contemplation; awaiting that 'moment of discovery' that reveals a wine's greatness amongst its peers...
What is a Sommelier?
Sommelier (smell-ier) -- French: a pack animal driver; official who transports supplies;
Modern: a self-professed expert on wine who will bore you to tears explaining the 'rules' of matching the 'correct' wines with food. P.S. No sommeliers welcome at OWC, only people who are passionate about great times with great wines...
SO WHATS THE BEEF?
So whaddya do when you've got a juicy Wagyu/Kobe steak in front of you and you want a wine that is equal in terms of depth of flavor?
Fast-forward back in time when Dan Morgan sauntered into OWC (Dan occasionally meanders, and sometimes he shuffles - but i digress) and he had this Argentinian guy named Diego with him...
After intros and pleasentries I became aware that Diego and his brother Maximo have a winery in the Salta area of Northwest Argentina. "Oh this is great" I think, fully aware that other then Catena Zapata and a few other names that get great scores from the Spooktator and Bobby Porker "I need another high-ticket Argentinian Malbec like I need a new ******..."
The phone rang... it was my proctologist with some insane suggestion
"Taste this" Dan said "It's not yet ready for release, but with your expertise, you can judge how good it will be when it hits the store" (Dan is an expert at pandering to make his intended victim feel good) Reluctantly I poured some of this inky black liquid into my glass... 80% Malbec; 11% Cabernet and 9% Tannat" Diego explained while I attempted to lossen the aromas trapped in this pit of velvety blackness... "Kinda like a WWF wrestler, angry at having to wear black velveteen tights" I mused... "So what does the name of this wine; 'Desafio', mean in Espanol?" I asked Diego, with my most worldly accent.
The depth of Diego's patiencewas clearly being tried by my abundant ignorance... "Challenge!" Diego said "it means challenge, cause making great wine truly is..." " Damn!", I said; "Damn, damn, and double-dog damn...this stuff is seriously good and..." I turned to Dan "it'll go great with your steaks..."
2004 Desafio, from the Calchaqui Valley: only 200 6packs produced. 16% alcohol (full throttle rich) 18 months in new French oak, unfiltered-unfined. Perfectly ripe, seriously deep with flavors of (red) boysenberries and cherries; (black) berries, black cherries, pepper and cinnamon. Made by the Valsechhi brothers: Diego and Maximo (both good guys)... sold only here at OWC $125.00 bottle
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