Petite Sirah: I Think I Felt The Earth Move!

There are some common truths in wine appreciation. I think one of those is the more wine you drink, the more you're going to seek out bigger wines.

I've been drinking wine long enough now - seriously about 5 years - that I like the occasional big, big, big wine. Earthquake 2005 Petite Sirah was my latest great find .. and yes, it's spelled that way!

Even the winery has fun with the name. "It's over the top ... and it will rock your world." And as cute as that is, and as much as I hate to admit it, they're right.

This wine rocks!

Now, it certainly can be characterized as a big fruit bomb. And for those who criticize big California wines as fruit bombs miss the point. I don't want all wines to be alike. I want some that knock me over with fruit, or with structure, big bold flavor, sometimes with the tannin structure. I like the fact wines can be so different.

This is not a begginner's wine. It has big flavor and big alcohol at 15.5 percent. That usually is where I start losing interst, and you could tell it packed a wallop, but the huge impact on the palate somewhat lessened the burn of the alcohol in the throat.

This has blackberry, oak and vanilla going on. It has spice and herbs. The word I like best for this big boy is rich!

I bought this wine at Wine Styles in Westfield/Carmel for $24.95. I found it online running $20-$27.

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Here's a Great Chianti That's Easy to Drink

I've been buying up Chianti lately and found some really good ones.

On the recommendation of Ashley at Cork & Cracker in Indy, I recently picked up a bottle of Il Fiorino 2008 Chianti. It retails for around $13.

This was a really satisfying and easy-to-drink Chianti. There are lots of Chianti wines in every wine shop and even grocery stores. It's difficult, unless you really know your Italian wines, to pick one.

I think I've learned a few things in the past month. The Il Fiorino is the classic and traditional blend of 90 percent Sangiovese with 10 percent Canaiolo. The winery Poggio Romita ages the wine in stainless steel instead of oak. They keep it in the tanks just six months and then bottle.

That does two things. First the wine has very mild tannins for that smooth drinkablility new wine drinkers are always seeking out. Second, the Canaiolo is one of many native and traditional blending grapes for Chianti. In recent years, more and more wineries use Merlot to soften the Sangiovese grape.

Simply put: Yuk! It's sort of like dumbing things down.

I've clearly noticed with the traditional blends you seem to get a richer, and more interesting flavor. The natural cherry characteristics of the Chianti jump out of the glass, onto your palate and down it goes for a great wine that pairs well with simple Italian dishes.

What do you serve with pizza? Here is a great wine for that and for newbies to Chianti! By the way, I went back two days later and bought all 11 bottles left in the shop. I have a pizza party in two weeks where I was asked to bring the wine! That's what I thought of this juice!

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French Saumur - The Oft-Forgotten Chenin Blanc!

I've written here and in my newspaper column about following the advice of trusted wine professionals. I made a wonderful French discovery in Italy over the holidays that led me to re-discover the joys of Chenin Blanc.

The French wine in Florence was a beautiful, and aged, Vouvray but more on that in a future blog post. I went shopping for Vouvray Wednesday at Kahn's Fine Wines in Indianapolis and found one! But the young man helping me suggested I try a Chenin Blanc from the Saumur region.

So I bought a bottle of Domaine des Hauts de Sanziers 2008 Saumur for $14.95. He described it as a big white wine that would hold up to food with all the structure of red. He was absolutely right!

I loved this wine. Saumur is a region in the Loire area of France. The property has been owned by the same family for two centurries

The nose is light but interesting. On the nose and palate I found strong lemon and maybe a hint of pear. There was a wonderful minerality about this wine.

But the most enjoyable characteristic is the balance between flavor and acidity.

This is a Robert Kacher selection. He specializes in small producers from France. Robert Parker called him one of the 20 most influential wine personalities of the past 20 years.

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Sustainability A Growing Winery Trend

I'm still backed up from two weeks out of the country. I have a couple quick posts I want to write about Italy. I also have notes on a couple bottles of wine I need to write up.

But I came across a news story today that I found interesting. There is much ado about "sustainability" and "green" farming in the wine industry.

Here is a MSNBC story on "Eco-Wineries.

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