Rose Season Is Upon Us - Horse and Plow's Newest Rose Featured in Chronicle

Roses in the Chronicle's recent tasting

Memorial Day weekend is the beginning of summer (at least in some places) and so it's official for people who need permission: it's time to drink rose!

This week the Chronicle featured top roses of the season and listed one of my perennial favorites, although it changes each year: Horse and Plow's North Coast Rose ($17 a bottle).

I had a chance to visit with winemakers Suzanne Haggins and Chris Condo at their Sebastopol home recently (the location will soon be home to their tasting room as well - in a few years time) and will feature more about that visit later. Their Horse and Plow wines consistently pair fine wine making with affordable prices - a rarity! Thus, they are frequently among my favorites.

This wine is sourced from one of my favorite organic, heritage, dry farmed vineyards - Testa in Calpella (near Ukiah in Mendocino County) from a blend of 68% Carignane, 16% Syrah, and 16% Grenache.

Horse and Plow's previous rose won a top 100 wine listing from the Chronicle's annual awards, so it's a pleasure to see what the new vintage is like, since it's a wine that changes from vintage to vintage (but is always made solely from organically grown [and certified] grapes).

To purchase, contact the winery or order online here. This wine will sell out - not much is made - only 325 cases - so time is of the essence.

OAKLAND DWELLERS - VERDAD ROSE AT FARMER JOES

Pay no attention to the label on the box -
but to what's inside - VERDAD 

Just saw one of my favorite roses ON SALE and AT THE LOCAL MARKET - Verdad 2012 Rose is just $11.99 at Farmer Joe's on Fruitvale in Oakland.

This normally sells for $18 from the winery.

Grown from biodynamic grapes in San Luis Obispo County, this is a summer MUST.

At this price - and right down the street - be sure to stock up!

New! First Rose from Cooper Mountain

The inaugural release. Get it here.

Boxed AND Organic - A Rose for You East Coasters

A French rose that's both organic and comes in a box AND a Dr. Vino recommendation: what are you waiting for?

I don't usually recommend foreign wines for us California locavores, but since you may hail from the East Coast (where the food miles from Europe to U.S. via shipping outweigh food miles from California to NY via trucking in carbon emissions terms), this sounds like one to check out.

Dr. Vino also mentions some stealthy uses for wine in box I had not previously considered.

As for you West Coasters, I can recommend my favorite local bottled options (from previous post) - Verdad, Testa, Naughty Boy... Still good. Even amid the summer fog, I find pulling out the rose makes me think...it could be hot again soon.

Would You Like Rose Petal Aroma from Rose? (I Do.) And Other Goodness from a Pale Pink Bottle...

It's summer and if you've been suffering from the heat, you've probably reached for some rose.

Instead of buying a questionable bottle at Trader Joe's, why not check out any of these beautiful organically grown ones? They're sort of like Baskin Robbins 31 flavors in that they come from so many different varietals.

I've tasted - and strongly recommend - these:

1. Verdad - Grenache Rose $15

I'm into the second case of this one. It's the daily drinker in my house - and has been a hit at every picnic and dinner I've brought it to as well. It's biodynamically grown in Edna Valley. Verdad specializes in Spanish varietals. This one's my favorite rose.

They actually pick the grapes TO MAKE rose specifically. Most unusual. It's 90% grenache and 10% mourvedre. And it's fermented biodynamically as well - which includes natural yeast fermentation.

Tasting notes: strawberries, hints of rose petals (the latter being perhaps the reason why I like it SO much.)

Where to Buy: I got this from the producer, but it's available online. I also found it locally to pick up in SF (online).

2. Naughty Dog Vineyard - Dry Rose (of Pinot Noir) - $16

The newest vintage from Naughty Dog is out and it's very fine indeed. I recently sampled it down by the creek/river with winery owner and grower Jim Scott. Along side us, his two naughty boxers ran up and down, splashing through the "tasting room" (a couple of chairs on a rock bed of the creek).

Delightful.

Barrel fermented from organically certified grapes.

Where to Buy: Sold in Northern California stores - call Naughty Boy to find a local store in your area that carries it.

3. Bonterra Rose - $10

Bonterra has to make one of the most unique roses on the planet - who else blends together Zinfandel, Sangiovese and Grenache for a super bright pink glass of summer flavors. It's truly a New World wine.

Where to Buy: You might even find this one in your supermarket. Otherwise, you can order it online.




4. Testa Simply Rose (of Carignane) $18 (10% case discount)

Testa has just released its first rose which might be one of the only roses of carignane around. I've written about it earlier, but it should definitely be part of any rose roundup.

Where to Buy: Locally around Ukiah in stores; contact Testa for direct orders or to find retailers in your area.

5. Horse and Plow Rose $15

This just got a noteworthy mention in Jon Bonne's rose picks. This one is sourced from organic syrah, grenache and carignane. Here's what he says about it:

2010 Horse & Plow North Coast Rosé ($15, 13.9%): This label run by Lutea winemaker Suzanne Hagins and her husband, Chris Condos of Vinum Cellars, has a deft hand with Rhone-native grapes, including this effort sourced mostly from an old vineyard north of Ukiah. A blend of Carignane, Syrah and Grenache with a pleasing grip and spicy bite. Black pepper and celery seed, plus orange peel, apricot and huckleberry


Where to Buy: Online or from the winery.
.

6. Domaine Abatucci Rouge - $29-32

I don't usually feature European wines on this blog (locavore-y and all that here) but once in awhile, you might want to know about something special from regions further afield.

This Corsican "Cadillac" of Roses is imported by Kermit Lynch and is around in wine shops as well. At first, I balked about this wine, wondering how a rose could cost This Much. But it came in my monthly Kermit Lynch wine club (2 bottles a month for $40), so it just arrived in my inbox, as it were.

It's hard to resist KL's descriptions - the wine maker sings to the vines, etc. etc. - but it is grown biodynamically and it does have some of the most amazing aromatics you will find in a rose. It's made from an indigenous grape - Sciacarellu - grown on steep mountain hillsides in the interior of the island.

Shall we go there?

At least by glass.

Kermit sells it for $32 but I saw it for $29 at Arlequin.

This is a great wine if you want to impress a connoisseur - for some reason. A delicate and lovely perfume.

Where to Buy: Online through Kermit Lynch or in fine wine stores; call Kermit Lynch for locations.

Testa Vineyards Launches Second Organically Grown Wine - a Rose - Just in Time for Summer

Is it hot enough for you? All around the Bay Area temperatures have climbed sharply into the 80s, and a nice cold summer wine is definitely in season. Testa Vineyards' brand new Rose (of carignane), released this weekend at A Taste of Redwood Valley, is the perfect antidote to a heat wave.

The wine sells for $18 a bottle with a ten percent case discount.

The photo on the label is of Maria Testa Martinson's Aunt Rose,
now 95, who's lived to see the family vineyard and winery,
first started in 1912, restored to life by Maria.

Crisp, light and refreshing, the wine is the second organically grown wine from this heritage winery, part of a next gen Italian heritage renaissance in Mendocino County, that inlcudes Chiarito Vineyards in Talmage (which grows not only Zin but some rare southern Italian varietals - [its wines are practicing but not certified organic]) and Testa in Calpella.

(Nearby organic Barra has been in the winery business since the late 90s making popular varietals; bustling Graziano winery's Enotria brand [not organic] makes some Italian varietals not commonly grown in California including Arneis and Nebbiolo. But that's another story...)

But John Chiarito and Maria Testa Martinson represent a new generation of revivers - each with a passion for dry farmed, Italian heritage grapes.

Testa's rose is made from head-pruned, dry farmed carignane on the 25 acre property
(on the east side of 101 near the Calpella exit) (just south of Barra Vineyards.)

The original Testa Vineyards was started in 1912 - yes, 1912 - and continued to make wine right through Prohibition in the basement of the family house now next to Highway 101. "We had raids right down here in the basement," says Maria.

Maria Testa Martinson, of Testa Vineyards, in the original cellar

Maria grows the blending grapes for Testa's Black wine - black being the traditional, old timey name for a red wine among the Italian immigrants in the region - on the dry farmed estate property. Although it's named in a heritage way, Maria's Black is predominantly Cabernet Sauvignon, which she grows organically at her other vineyard a mile and a half down the road.

"My goal with the Black is to vary it year to year until we get just the right blend," she said. The most recent vintage - 2010 (her first legal crush) is made of 89% cabernet sauvignon, 8% carignane and 3% petite syrah.

Maria made some wine from Charbono grapes on the family property in 2004 for her aunt Rose's 90th birthday - and the response was positive. Seven years later, with the release of her first Rose, she's making her first wine made exclusively from the organically grown, old Italian varietals.

Hundreds of people stopped by over the weekend to try the wines and enjoy the old-timey atmosphere, music and great food at Testa during A Taste of Redwood Valley.

While other Italian vineyards (that still grow organically) dot the state - Madonna Estate in Carneros  and Barra in Calpella come to mind - if you want to see Italian grandmothers serving up polenta, and eat BBQ, drink wine, and see the Italian heritage culture in action, there was no better place than Testa's weekend fest.

Italian grandmothers dished it up at A Taste of Redwood Valley, with polenta, tomato sauce, and BBQ
Featured here is Maria's great auntie Lee Testa, a second generation Testa

A photo display of the family's winemaking heritage

Testa's Black wine harks back to the days when Italian red wine was called Black

Picturesque old farm equipment by the head pruned dry farmed vineyard

Chocolate - take your pick of brownies or truffles - and old timey music filled the barn

BBQ among the vines, Testa style

TOURING
You can tour Testa by appointment.

BUYING
Testa Vineyards wines are available at local stores in the Ukiah area as well as online. They also offer a Testa White (which is not organically sourced) in addition to the organically grown Black and Rose.

Bliss State: Batic Wines - Natural AND Organic

With Miha Batic and Batic's Rose

I don't usually blog about foreign wines, since my aim is to promote the local organic and biodynamic wines of California (and the Northwest) but that's certainly not to say I don't enjoy wines from other regions.

The burgeoning natural wine movement here is making some exceptional wines, sometimes using organically grown grapes (though they are often not certified). I hope to see them move more into certified sources as we the consumers do our part to move the growers, vintners and industry in that direction.

It was a great pleasure to taste the natural, organic wines from a very old  winery and vineyards in Slovenia, an important place in wine history, since the wines of Slovenia tell us a great deal about how wines from the past taste - in addition to being fantastic wines you will be sure to want to try. Batic was founded in 1594. The wines are mouthfilling, flavorful, and decidedly unlike anything from the U.S.

I'd say the patrons of Punchdown were fairly unanimous in falling in love with the wines of Batic (located in the Vipava Valley). Wednesday we also got extra tastes of the Pinot Gris and a blow-you-away red dessert wine Valentino.

I have already posted the list of wines in the tasting, but just so you know, the Batic flight will continue to be offered at Punchdown so if you haven't tried to taste the past in the present, there's still time.

Batic is distributed here by Blue Danube Wines. You can purchase the wines at Punchdown or online Blue Danube Wines.

Five Great Summer Wines - Organically Grown, Under $20

My new book Drink Green: 101 Organically Grown Wines for $20 or Less will feature the best American wine values that are organically or biodynamically grown.

Here's a sneak peak at some of the world class wine listings:

1. Albarino, Verdad, biodynamic, $18
2. Tocai Friulano, Cooper Mountain, biodynamic, $14 (free shipping on $200+ orders)
3. Muscat Canelli, Barra, organic, $16
4. Vermentino, Tablas Creek, organic, $15 (older vintages available online)
5. Grenache Rose, Cowhorn, biodynamic, $19

To learn more about when the book comes out, sign up to receive blog postings via email. It's coming in May or June!