Wine Picks Vol. 7 : An American Wino in Aspen

What can I say, I loves me some Oregon Pinot Noir, and none more than this, the flagship wine in the portfolio of one of the state’s most adored producers. The Drouhin family has been making gorgeous wine in Burgundy for over a century. The Willamette Valley estate was established in the late 1980s and quickly became a paragon of what the region has to offer. The 2012 growing season was one of the best in Oregon history, and Drouhin’s offerings from that year are already the stuff of legend. This wine checks all the boxes. Impeccable structure. Sublime fruit. Complexity. Balance. Refinement. The potential to age another 11-13 years. It’s everything great Oregon Pinot ought to be and then some.

http://www.domainedrouhin.com/en/

Talk to most winos in the know and you’ll find superlatives to be in no short supply when it comes to this vintage from Oregon. Exciting, dynamic, world-class... accurate descriptors all. Nicolas Jay is a newcomer to the Willamette Valley, a partnership between I.R.S. Records co-founder Jay Boberg and Burgundian winemaker Jean-Nicolas Méo of Domaine Méo-Camuzet. At first blush, the 2014 Pinot Noir seems buoyant, maybe even a little dainty. Ah, but take your time and get to know each other better and you’ll find it’s no lightweight. The back end gives, and gives good, suffused with deep dark cherry and roasted nut flavor. It’s savory, structured. Superb.

https://www.nicolas-jay.com

This Bordeaux blend from Tuscany was one of the most popular pours among the hundreds of wines showcased at the Classic’s grand tastings. This was to be expected, of course, given that Arcanum is the handiwork of Jackson Family Wines superstar vigneron Pierre Seillan, the man behind heavyweight labels Vérité and Château Lassègue. With its rugged slopes and diversity of soils, the Chianti Classico region is ideally suited to produce hearty Cabernet Franc, the main varietal in Arcanum’s blend. Seillan took full advantage of the gifts geography presented, and created a wine of extreme elegance and power that is built to age, yet drinks spectacularly now.

http://www.arcanumwine.com

Fifteen years in bottle, and this Rioja classic is still going strong. Hell, given the venerable brand’s track record, I bet it’s got another decade of vibrancy left in it. The grapes — 85% Tempranillo, 10% Graciano, 5% Mazuelo — are all estate grown in the upper Rioja Alavesa, where Tempranillo famously thrives in the chalky soil and cool climate. The Gran Reserva is low alcohol (12.5%), silky smooth, and balances ripe fruit with pleasant minerality. And the bottle comes correct with a 17th century Rembrandt portrait on the label.

http://www.bodegasfaustino.com/en/

This Catalonian cava is made in the traditional Champagne method favored by bubbly purists like you and me. More good news, that age-old rich flavor comes with a non-rich price tag. The Tresor Brut is crisp and fruity with just the right amount of toasty. It’s a wonderful accompaniment to a fresh tuna sandwich on a warm summer’s day at the base of Aspen Mountain. You have my word on that.

http://palmbay.com

Since it’s Shark Week, let me tell you about a South African great white. One of the best “value wines” I came across at the Aspen Classic. Mooiplaas’ vineyards lie between two oceans on steep slopes of ancient mineral-rich soils in the cool, sunny Bottelary Hills of the Stellenbosch Winelands... never been, but I’m told is a really fine place to be. This Chenin Blanc shows some dried peach and almonds on the nose, with good weight on the palate and some minerality on the finish. It’s a big wine with the typical wonderful mouthfeel of ripe Chenin. And like all South African great whites, it’s got some bite.

http://www.mooiplaas.co.za/

In a word, drinkable. In two words, drinkable now. Seriously, get some. Château de Berne has been producing wine in Côtes de Provence for three centuries. They’ve pretty much got it all figured out at this point. What they’ve done here is a delicate flower. A light, berry-flavored summer wine with just the right amount of acidity for balance.

http://www.chateauberne.com/en/wines.html

Full disclosure: I don't regularly shell out 200-plus smackers for a bottle of vino. And by regularly, I mean ever. But when I come across wines of this pecuniary prodigiousness at tasting events, wild horses can’t drag me away. In Aspen, I drank my fill of one of the best-known luxury wines in America and, man, did it feel goooooood. The latest Insignia release is a Cabernet Sauvignon-driven blend that is dark as a Stephen King novel, epic as a Beethoven symphony and tasty as all hell. It’s got body like Anna Nicole in her prime. The mouthfeel is as smooth as a Clapton guitar solo. The finish as rewarding as the Breaking Bad finale. In short, it’s an analogy orgy waiting to happen... or, in this case, one that just did.

http://www.josephphelps.com