Alma de Cattleya Wines Pair - Share - Enjoy

At the age of 14, Bibiana Gonzalez Rave knew she wanted to be a winemaker.   Alma de Cattleya Wines was created, born from the fruit of the vines and transformed by human hands. Bibiana is following her passion, creating a product that can be alive and age for decades.

Named after the national flower of Columbia, Cattleya, Bibiana wanted to share with you a piece of her, what made her what she is today.  Alma means soul, that represents the soul of the land that gives life and allows her to make affordable wines.  On each label is a flower, which is an interpretation of the Colombian National Flower.

Growing up in Colombia shaped me to who she is today.  Her training in France defined the winemaker I became and California gives me the land and the opportunity to make exceptional wines.” -Bibiana González Rave

Bibiana sources her fruit from many vineyards throughout Napa and Sonoma. She produces approximately 5,000 cases and is distributed in 4 markets - California, Florida, Texas, and North Carolina. I found her wines beautiful and elegant.

2017 Alma de Cattleya Chardonnay

Sourced from the Sonoma County AVA where the coastal influence gives the right balance between acidity, texture, softness and length. The wine is fermented in both stainless steel tanks and barrels of which 15% is French Oak. The wine is aged for fifteen months before bottling.

Tasting Notes: You can smell hints of butter with lemon and melon. The palate showed green apple, melon, and lemon rind. The wine was nicely balanced with nice acidity.

2017 Alma de Cattleya Pinot Noir

The Pinot Noir grapes were sourced from the Sonoma Coast AVA with a focus on sites close to the Pacific Ocean. A blend from four different vineyards and eight different clones. The wine goes through 100% malolactic fermentation. The wine is aged for 16 months in French oak barrels of which 15% are new.

Tasting Notes: Complex red fruit aromas coming from the glass. Strawberry, red raspberry, cherries and a hint of spice. Flavors of ripe raspberries and earth tones finish with a hint of spice.

2016 Alma de Cattleya Cabernet Sauvignon

We move over to Napa Valley to source the grapes for the Cabernet Sauvignon. The grapes come from the valley floor between Highway 29 and the Silverado Trail. The grapes come from two different vineyards and is solely clone 337.  The wine is aged for eighteen months in French oak barrels of which 10% are new oak.

Tasting Notes: Beautiful complex aromas of black cherry, plum and dark red fruits. The palate is full of concentrated dark fruit with a soft and silky texture. Very romantic.

Artezin Vertical Tasting with Winephabet Street

It’s not too often you get to taste vertical tastings of wine unless perhaps you go to an event at a winery featuring verticals of their wine. Other reasons are, well, you just don’t keep the wine in your house long enough.

Last month for Winephabet Street our topic was Z for Zinfandel. I had two bottles of Artezin Mendocino County Zinfandel. I chose the 2017 Artezin Zinfandel one for the program and later did a vertical tasting with their 2016. It is interesting to see the differences and we’ll discuss that in a bit.

About Artezin

Artezin’s winemaker Randle Johnson has been with the winery since it began in 2002. He makes Zinfandel from old vine plantings through-out Medocino and Sonoma Counties. He works with family-owned farms and if you visit their website they introduce you to the farmers they work with to create their Zinfandel. Besides Zinfandel they also use varieties such as Carignan and Petit Sirah. Artezin is part of the Hess Family Wine Estates

Vertical Tasting

A vertical tasting is a tasting of the same wine but different vintages. The 2016 and 2017 Artezin Mendocino County Zinfandel are similar yet different. The blend and price are slightly different. I’ve participated in blending before and it is an art. Not every vintage will be the same as the growing season is different so for the winemaker to achieve what he/she is looking for there might be more, less of a grape blended in, if blended at all.

Let’s take a look at each of the wines. The similarities and differences.

2016 Artezin Mendocino County Zinfandel SRP $18.00

A blend of 85% Zinfandel, 10% Petite Sirah and 5% Carignan. Notes of juicy cherry, blackberry and pomegranate aromas with subtle hints of chocolate fill the glass. The palate is full of red jammy fruit with hints of baking spices.

2017 Artezin Mendocino County Zinfandel SRP$16.00

This wine blend is slightly different. It’s 85% Zinfandel and 15% Petite Sirah. This wine had a lot going on. Notes and flavors of blackberry, plum and boysenberry with hints of black pepper, clove and cinnamon on the finish. As the wine opens you get some chocolate on the finish.

Two different years, two different growing seasons. I felt like 2017 had a higher alcohol content than in 2016 when the difference is 0.3% with 2017 being higher. The 2017 had much more black fruit with 2016 having more predominant red fruit.

Both Zinfandels were very good. Nicely made, easy to enjoy and pair with food. Inexpensively priced under $20 makes it a go-to wine.

Learn more about Zinfandel with Winephabet Street

In September Winephabet Street concluded their first season with Zinfandel. Learn about the Zinfandel grape and some of the great winepairings with me and Lori. Watch the webinar or listen to the podcast.

Webinar

Podcast

Celebrating Garden Harvest with Brazilian Wine #WinePW

This is my first time participating in #WinePW. It stands for Wine Pairing Weekend and the pairing this weekend is with wines from Brazil. I have to thank Susannah at Vigneto Communications for sending me a bottle of Brazilian wine because after 3 liquor stores and strange looks I came up with no wine.

Wine Pairing Weekend (#WinePW) takes place Saturday, September 14 at 11am ET. I hope you can join us on Twitter as we discover Brazilian Wine and the pairing that go with it. Just follow the hashtag #WinePW

As one harvest ends another begins as the seasons are reversed between the US and Brazil. I’m harvesting the last of my cucumbers, peppers and tomatoes and say goodbye to the 2019 growing season as Brazil begins to say hello to their 2020 growing season.

About Brazil

Brazil is the worlds fifth-largest country located on the continent of South America. There are 10 countries that share their land borders with Brazil, they are; Bolivia, Argentina, French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname, Paraguay, Uruguay, Venezuela, Colombia and Peru. It is the largest country in Latin America and the fifth-largest wine producer in the Southern Hemisphere.

The first vines were brought to Brazil in 1532 by Martim Alfonso de Souza from Portugal. They were planted in the Captaincy of São Vicente but the unfavorable conditions along with a mix of climate and soil were no favorable for the vines. It wasn’t until the Italian immigrant João Batista Orsi came to Brazil in 1824 and got the permission of Dom Pedro to cultivate European grapes. He became one of the pioneers in Brazil wine production.

Brazil Wine Regions

There are approximately 10,000 hectares of Vitis vinifera planted in six main wine regions: Serra Gaúcha, Serra do Sudeste, Campanha, Campos de Cima da Serra, Planalto Catarinense and the Vale do São Francisco in the northeastern part of the country.

• Campanha is home to some of the oldest vineyards in Brazil and sits on the border of Uruguay.
• Serra Do Sudeste was discovered in the 1970’s. There are very few wineries in the part as most of the grape production is transported to other regions of Rio Grande do Sul.
• Serra Gaúcha is the largest wine-producing region in Brazil and is responsible for 85% of the national wine production. The region predominately produces red wine and more recently sparkling wines.
• Campos de Cima da Serra is a cooler climate growing region. They produce good quality red wine and white wines rich in aromas.
• Planalto Catarinese is a high altitude region between 900 and 1400 meters above sea level. It produces red, white and sparkling wine along with Icewine.
• Vale do São is a region where the climate is tropical. It is possible with the proper scheduling to harvest all year long. This area produces grapes with high sugar content resulting in fruity wine.

The Wine - Alísios Seival Estate by Miolo 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot

This wine is part of the Miolo family thats history dates back to 1897 when Giuseppe Miolo came to Brazil from Italy. He planted his first vineyard in the Vale dos Vinbedos. In 1989 the third generation founded Miolo Winery. Miolo is now the largest wine group in Brazil.

Their philosophy is to make terroir-based wines and sparkling wines that highlight each region. The Seivel Estate where this wine is produced is located in the Campanha Meridional region. There are 200 hectares that produce 1.3 million liters.

Alísios meaning trade winds is named after the cool winds that blow from the Atlantic Ocean into their Northeast vineyards. This wine is a blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon and 50% Merlot that has spent 12 months in oak barrels.

Tasting Notes:  Deep black cherry in color. Very fruit-forward on the nose leads into a ripe fruity palate.  Lots of juicy blackberry, black cherry, black fruit and blueberry. Light tannis makes this a drink now wine. 

The Pairing

I think of steak when I think of Brazil so I took out a flat iron steak. Since it’s harvest here, I went out to my garden and collect what is left. I made a marinade that consisted of rosemary, sage, thyme, peppers, juice of one lemon and 1/2 cup of olive oil. I let the steak marinade for 24 hours. To accompany the steak I made a wonderful tomato salad with some cucumber, onion and feta cheese.
Not sure how this would pair with the fruitiness of the wine, I was amazed at how the food changed the wine.  This wine is definitely a food-friendly wine.  Both the steak and the tomato salad toned down the fruitiness of the wine and blended right into the flavors of the dish.

#WinePW Participants

Thank you to Susannah for arranging this months #WinePW and chat. Please visit my other fellow wine bloggers and see their pairings and wine. Join us Saturday September 14, at 11 am ET on twitter.

Camilla of Culinary Adventures with Camilla shares “A Brazilian Sparkler +Frango à Passarinho and Pao de Queijo”

Linda of My Full Wine Glass will be posting “Head to Southern Brazil for High-Quality Wine”

Cindy of Grape Experiences   writes “Wine and Dine Brazilian Style with Alma Brut White Sparkling Wine from Salton Winery and Fried Calamari”

Gwen at Wine Predator shares “A Poet Pairs Poetica Sparkling Rosé from Brazil”

David of Cooking Chat  will be pairing “Brazilian Beans, Greens and Bacon with Sparkling Wine”

Pinny of Chinese Food and Wine Pairings will be serving “Miolo Alisios Pinot Grigio/Riesling and Raw Ahi Tuna 3 Ways”

Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm will be adding “Enjoying Indian Summer with Alma Sparkling Brut from Brazil”

Cynthia and Pierre of Traveling Wine Profs will be sharing “Friends, Seafood, Bubbly and Chardonnay:Our Brazilian Wine Pairing Dinner”

Debbie of The Hudson Valley Wine Goddess writes ” Final Garden Harvest Accompanied by Brazilian Wine”

Sarah of The Curious Cuisiniere writes “Pastel de Queijo and Brazilian Sparkling Wine Pairing”

Jill of L’Occasion “Bubbles from Brazil: a Treat for Wine Lovers”

Jennifer of Vino Travels muses about "Brazilian Sparkling Wines with Salton Brut" while here at Avvinare , I'll post about "Miolo Merlot Paired with Brazilian Skirt Steak with Golden Garlic Butter."

Hudson Valley Wine & Spirit Competition Results

For the past 12 years or so I have been the chairperson for the Hudson Valley Wine & Spirits Competition. When it first landed in my lap I began to volunteer at other wine competitions ( The NY Classic) to gain some insight on how other wine competitions run.  It is from the many years of experience volunteering that I made some changes to the Hudson Valley competition to make it what is it today.

 I have to say I have a wonderful pool of judges that I contact every year. I couldn't do it without my backroom staff or my friend Dawn who spent hours with me labeling all the sheets for the judging. I owe a big thank you to my sister and nephews who spent the day at Whitecliff with me labeling all the bottles. I think my nephews got a bit of an education on wine varieties.

 Results can also be found on the Hudson Valley Wine & Grape Association website at http://hvwga.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/2019-Results.pdf

 Here are the winners. Congratulations to all!

2019 Hudson Valley Wine & Spirits Competition Results by Debbie Gioquindo on Scribd