This month Wine Blogging Wednesday is hosted by Frank Morgan of Drink What You Like and he decided on Gamay. Gamay Noir is a cross of a Pinot Noir and the ancient white variety Gouais. Gamay is grown in the Loire Valley and among other places in the Hudson Valley.
For this Wine Blogging Wednesday I chose a Whitecliff Vineyards, 2007 Hudson River Region Gamay Noir. This wine is estate grown at Whitecliff and he is the only Hudson Valley producer of Gamay. I made Paul dig this out of our cellar and it was a good thing he did.
2007 was a banner year in the Hudson Valley and in all of New York. It was one of the best harvest ever. Some wines are met to drink sooner than later and this wine is a sooner. This tasting was in two phases.
Phase 1 - After opening the bottle and pouring it, I noticed a strong earthy, barnyard nose. Very much like the barn I pass on my walk every morning. The wine had a plumish hue to it and was thin in texture. There was some sour cherry upfront with an acid finish. Hmmmm....
Phase 1.5 - As the wine sits in the glass it seems to open a bit and the barnyard smell seems to lessen. Some fruit comes back and I can taste a bit of strawberry.
Phase 2 - Remembering that the winemaker had told us to serve it slightly chilled we stuck the bottle in the fridge for a bit. I will say it did make a difference slightly chilled. The berry flavor comes forward more and the acid softens a little.
I served this with grass fed beef Kielbasa, caramelized onions and sauerkraut. It was a nice pairing.
In conclusion, if anyone is holding the 2007 Whitecliff Gamay Noir, open it and drink it now. Don't wait much longer.
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