A Return to Terroir

Ever since my last trip to Terroir, I've felt a certain illogical but unavoidable sense of guilt by association. I actually visited twice, on successive days in October 2009, and smack in between those two stops, the place was flooded. What seemed at first to be relatively minor damage turned out to be much more serious, enough in fact to shut down Terroir for long enough that myself and no doubt others began to wonder if the anointed king of San Franciscan natural wine destinations would ever re-emerge from under the wreckage. Luckily, current owners Luc Ertoran and Dagan Ministero persevered, reopening their doors earlier this winter. And happily, I managed a return last week, during a day's trip up to San Fran from our post in Monterey. The guys didn't seem to have held anything against me....

I always seem to end up with at least one photo that I really like when shooting at Terroir. Something about the place must inspire creativity.

In fact, they even had something special open for me (at least that's the way I liked to think about it). Actually, it seems there's always at least one option by the glass at Terroir that's out on the bleeding edge of the establishment's already devout focus on site-expressive wines. Last time 'round it was something orange. This time, it was the 2005 "Savagnin de Voile" from Evelyne and Pascal Clairet's Domaine de la Tournelle, an expression of Jura Savagnin aged under a veil (sous voile) of flor-like, surface dwelling yeasts. Dagan called it a "baby vin jaune." Nearly all of my companions on a mid-Thursday afternoon found it a little too bizarre for their tastes. I called it compellingly delicious, with its intense nose of fino-like oxidative characteristics, oily yellow flowers and crushed, blanched almonds followed up by a penetrating, long-lasting presence on the palate. Very cool juice that, if I understood Dagan correctly, is brought in especially for (and perhaps available only at?) Terroir by Tournelle's importers, Jenny & François.

Yes, that does read "2 x 75cl," what former Terroir partner Guilhaume (not to mention the guys at The Ten Bells in NYC) likes to call a full bottle. Check out Guilhaume's photo-profile of Derain at The Wine Digger. (No more photos, I'm afraid. The Wine Digger has since gone into hiding.)

My friend Joe, he of the Old School, met up with us just as we were finishing our first pours. Knowing that we were there as part of the celebratory preparations leading up to our friends Steve and Stacy's wedding, Joe treated us all to a magnum of "Chut... Derain," a sparkling Aligoté produced by Dominique Derain at his estate in St. Aubin. It went down way too easy. And yes, it's no coincidence that the swoosh on the bottle label resembles the natural curvature of the feminine posterior form. Luc explained the etymology and wordplay involved in the cuvée's name but I can't for the life of me remember the details. You'll have to stop by and ask him for yourselves.


As afternoon all too quickly bled into night and appetites started to flare, I was jazzed to see Spencer on the Go set up their french bistro food truck. I'd missed them on my last Sunday/Monday visits — the Chez Spencer mobile unit feeds Terroir customers and other passersby Wednesday through Saturday from their parking spot in the lot at 7th & Folsom, directly across the street from Terroir. A braised lamb cheek sandwich to go and I was back at the Terroir bar, enjoying my meal with a little taste of Derain's Mercurey rouge, poured for us by Luc as counterpoint to the bottle I'd ordered to close out our visit....


Luc warned me. "Pigeage... barriques... 2005... extracted... tannic... young." Joe just kind of sneered. But I was unstoppable. I'd enjoyed some of the white Burgundies of François Mikulski in the past but had never encountered any of the producer's reds. When I spotted Mikulski's '05 Pommard on the list at Terroir, it stuck in my head. The price was fair, it was an opportunity to explore Burgundy. I had to go for it. But I should have listened. One tough customer, very dark and closed, even a little volatile. Natalie and I, in fact, debated the finer points of the Pommard's aromatic profile, I calling it reminiscent of paint thinner, she in her painterly ways correcting my description with a comparison to the subtler scents of "odorless" mineral spirits. Guess I need to spend a little more time sniffing solvents. I took half the bottle back to Monterey with me and, honestly, it never opened or markedly improved over the course of the next two days. Makes me wonder what its future will bring.

Hey, you can't win 'em all. But you can sure enjoy the trying. I'm ready to go back....

Terroir 1116 Folsom Street San Francisco, CA 94103 (415) 558-9946

Spencer on the Go 7th & Folsom (across the street from Terroir) San Francisco, CA 94103

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Double RIP

I'm going to do a rare thing tonight (for myself, that is) and be a man of few words.

Two people who had subtle but lasting impacts on my life passed away today. One was a man, confoundingly young beyond his years yet long legend in his own field, who will most likely (and sadly) always be remembered more for how he influenced others than for what he did himself. The other was in today's world probably most often associated with something — wine — that I write about here more than anything else. Yet for me, he'll always be indelibly stamped in my memory as the protagonist of one of the most memorable syndicated television series of my childhood years.

Tonight, I say rest in peace Alex Chilton (1950-2010).


And rest in peace Fess Parker (1924-2010).

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Starbelly

We weren't in the Mission (though we weren't far from it), just on a mission. The object: lunch. Requirements included good food and good beverages, but not too all-consuming a focus on either. Large party accommodation and kid friendliness were also musts. The recommendation from a local friend — we're talking about San Francisco here, just in case my silly intro didn't make that clear — was Starbelly. We went for it, arrived as happy campers and left even happier campers.

Starbelly's space is inviting from the get-go: high ceilings, open duct work, loads of natural light from the large windows at either end of the long space. A bar immediately to the right of the entrance flows into the communal table (really a double-sided bar) shown in the picture above; the room then opens into the main dining area, followed by, weather permitting, a really inviting looking outdoor dining patio.

The first four to arrive, myself included, landed at the equally inviting if smallish frpmt bar area, where we found much needed relief to a certain collective thirst. The beverage program at Starbelly is compact and eclectic, featuring an international wine list that, though not incredibly exciting, offers a thoughtful array of bottles with most options in the under $40 range. There's a creative list of signature and traditional cocktails, as well. The Diablito, a beer-based concoction blended with tomato and lime juices, served in a spice-rimmed tumbler, was bright and refreshing.

The real strength, though, is in their beer program. Again, it's compact, but the beer list offers a well-balanced mixture of local and global selections, ranging from the light and crisp to the heady and intense. Drake's Blonde, a kolsch style ale brewed in nearby San Leandro, CA, was a great lead-off, so good in fact that I stuck with it for the duration. Crisp, clean, thirst quenching; golden and spry in its flavor and oh-so-easy going down. Between myself and the rest of the group clamoring for sips, the first pint disappeared in a flash.

As tempted as I was to make this an episode of A Burger and a Beer, it was pizza that I craved. From a lunch menu offering small plates, salads, sandwiches, a few more elaborate dishes and, yes, pizza, I went for the house-made chorizo pie, topped with over-easy eggs and whole-leaf cilantro. The herbs and chorizo put a southwestern spin on an otherwise northern Italian classic (think cotechino in place of the chorizo and scratch the green stuff), while the light, cracker-y crust kept the amply sized pie light enough to be tackled by a single if hungry eater. (I'm told the Prather Ranch burger was quite tasty too, by the way.)

No one claimed to want dessert yet nobody seemed ready to leave without it. Two orders for the table then... a slice of warm toffee cake with mascarpone and medjool dates, and a dish of caramel pot de crème (pictured above), accompanied by rosemary cornmeal cookies. I focused primarily on the latter — it was at my end of the table, after all — and have to say it was hard not to horde it all for myself. To top it all of, a couple of large pots of french press coffee, brewed with beans from Oakland-based roaster Mr. Espresso. I can't drink much of the black stuff after noon but what I did sip was rich, comforting and deeply balanced.

Is Starbelly the destination restaurant I'm given to understand the Castro has been craving? That I can't answer, at least not until a further visit or two at dinner time. For lunch, though, it's a destination worthy of your visit, whether it be local or from far afield.

Starbelly
3583 16th Street (at Market)
San Francisco, CA 94114
415-252-7500

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Mazel Tov, My Friends!

We're back from California — five days of whirlwind action leading up to a beautiful finale. While there's no lack of fun posts waiting in the wings to chronicle our stops along the way, first and foremost I want to give an emphatic shout out and a huge, bloggy hug to my good friends, Steve and Stacy.

That's the happy couple below, under the chuppah at the old whaling station in the historic district of Monterey, midway into their exchange of marital vows on Sunday, the be-all and end-all inspiration for the trip. I've known them both about as long as they've known each other. I've watched them grow together, shared some great times with them and was really and truly jazzed to be there to share in their big day, to see them finally taking the plunge after all these years.

The rabbi had a great sense of humor, the groom a constant, just barely held back tear of happiness in his eyes, and the bride an unbeatable smile throughout. It was a really beautiful service.

The reception was a great time, too. I owe a big thank you to my pals Mike and Joe for getting the wines to the party in fine time and in great shape; both were big hits with the friends and family gathered for the day's celebration.

Something old world, something new, something hoppy and some hipster brew....

The bride walked to The Pixies' "La La Love You," an inspired choice, perfect for the day and for the couple. No do-overs needed (you'll know what I mean when you watch the video below). Mazel tov, my friends! Like the guys in the band say, I love you.

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Going Sans Soufre in Monterey

Please pardon the dead air of the last few days. I've been in California since Wednesday, here to celebrate (and help with as much as possible) the pending nuptials of my great friends Steve and Stacy. They welcomed our arrival on Wednesday night with a simple meal Chez S&S, which we all enjoyed along with a fantastic bottle of Marcel Lapierre's 2008 Morgon.

While the bottle above may look no different than usual (Meyer lemons aside) to the American-based imbibers of Lapierre's wines, let me tell you that this wine was different from what you're likely to have enjoyed before. The secret's all on the back label....

You may remember me mentioning here before that Lapierre actually produces three different "batches" of his Morgon: one with no sulfur and no filtration; one with no filtration but with a light dose of sulfur; and one with both light filtration and a little sulfur. Importer Kermit Lynch had never brought the unsulfured version into the States, as he prefers the more stable nature of that with a light sulfur dose for the rigors of national distribution.

Notice that I wrote "had" rather than "has," as Kermit has now brought a small lot of the unsulfured version -- "Lot n," as you can see in the photo at right -- specifically at request of the crew at San Francisco's natural wine bar extraordinaire, Terroir. Though I've had several bottles recently of Lappierre's regular 2007 Morgon, I've yet to drink the regularly sulfured version of his 2008 release, so this is a bit of a McIntosh to Gala comparison. Taking the liberty of tasting across vintages, though, I found the unsulfured version to be a little darker-fruited and earthier in aroma, crunchier in texture and ever so slightly more rustic than the regular cuvée. It was also really delicious. Which begs the question: when, where and how will I get to drink it again???

Thanks for the treat, guys! Lookin' forward to all the great things to come.

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Art Ensemble 40, Ars Nova 10

Saturday night's performance by the Art Ensemble of Chicago, the fourth and final show in the Ars Nova Workshop's Anti-Jazz Series, proved to be fittingly climactic. Once through the first couple of minutes of tuning in and finding their rhythm, the band was on — and in a seriously powerful groove — for the duration of their gig, putting on what was for me by far the most completely enjoyable show of the series. Even though my photo (above) sucks from a technical perspective, I kind of like the way it captures the energy of the show — very circular and vibrational, with a hum that you could feel all the way through your body if you just closed your eyes and let it take you.

The show was a fitting finale to the series from a benchmark perspective, as well. As the Art Ensemble, founded in 1969, has just entered its fifth decade of active musical artistry, Philadelphia's Ars Nova Workshop is poised to celebrate its own ten-year anniversary. Ars Nova's official 10th anniversary show is coming up in just a little over a week. Whether or not you make it to that performance is a moot point. Ars Nova promotes an amazing array of shows, with a nearly non-stop schedule. I won't go so far as to say there's something there for everyone; however, if you live in the Philadelphia area (or plan to visit) and are into creative music and cutting-edge jazz, you need to keep a regular watch on the Ars Nova event schedule.

As for last Saturday's show, I wasn't quite sure what to expect but was obviously pleased. It had been the better part of 30 years since I'd last seen the Art Ensemble — an early '80s show at the Wax Museum in Washington, DC, just a year or two at most after the video you can watch and hear below. Though founding members Lester Bowie and Malachi Favors are no longer with us, Roscoe Mitchell, Famoudou Don Moyé and the newer additions to the group are still bringing it. If presented with the chance, catch them while you still can.

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On the Barbera Trail

As promised a few days ago, and at the kind request of the estimable Dr. P., I've contributed a guest blog post, written from my perspective as a wine retailer, for the Barbera 2010 project. Here's an excerpt to whet your collective whistles:

"It's the wines that capture Barbera's innate rusticity and display its ease at the table that I find myself leading people to time and time again.

Take the wines of Roberto Ferraris, a grower of Barbera d'Asti whose nine-hectare farm is nestled in the hills of Agliano Terme. Ferraris is not a producer on many people's radar but I kind of like it that way. It removes any pretense of selling his wines based on a name. The focus instead is entirely on quality, and Roberto delivers just that, from his entry-level Barbera d'Asti through his vineyard designated wines...."

To read the whole story, head on over to my post at the Barbera 2010 blog. Thanks for having me, y'all. Buon viaggio!

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MFWT Turns Three

MFWT has its third birthday today. It's been a quick three years yet somehow it also seems like I've been at it much longer than that.

On the eve of my bloggiversary, I considered celebrating by opening something above and beyond my usual Wednesday night selection but, given that I was dining alone, I decided against it. In the spirit of ascetic relativism, I opted to save that "special" bottle to share with friends and loved ones and instead popped open an everyday value from, you guessed it, the Loire.

I've been meaning to write-up this wine ever since Jim Budd of Jim's Loire mentioned to me that he'd never seen or heard of it, in spite of having visited with Vincent Ricard at Domaine Ricard on multiple occasions. So, this one's for you, Jim....

Touraine Sauvignon, Domaine de la Potine (Vincent Ricard) 2008
$12. 12.5% alcohol. Composite cork. Importer: Petit Pois, Moorestown, NJ.
Domaine de la Potine is an eight-hectare property situated on hillsides overlooking the Cher, not far from the village of Thésée yet separate and distinct from the main property at Domaine Ricard. This is the only wine produced from la Potine, 100% Sauvignon from 20-25 year-old vines planted in clay and limestone (argilo-calcaire) dominated soils, farmed to yields of about 55 hl/ha. Unlike at Domaine Ricard, where everything is harvested by hand, about 30% of the vines at Potine are machine harvested. To prepare for what the machines can't see, Vincent and his team pass through the portions of the property destined for machine picking about two weeks prior to harvest to remove any rotted or otherwise less than perfect fruit.

The grapes are crushed in a pneumatic press, the must racked off the skins and moved into steel tanks for a three-week fermentation at controlled, relatively cool temperatures, followed by four-to-five months of aging on the fine lees before the wine is bottled. As with all of Vincent's wines, the farming at Potine is organic with the addition of selected biodynamic principles, fermentation is conducted on the ambient yeasts and sulfur use is kept to a bare minimum.

Year in and year out, Potine is a solid value, delivering simple pleasure via direct citrus fruit and fresh-mowed flavors and crisp, refreshing acidity. For those that love their Sauvignons to burst with primary fruit or to serve as an easy-drinking aperitif, the '08 may have been at its peak during the summer and autumn months. It has now grown leaner and shed some of its sweeter-fruited flavors, bending more to a firmer mouthfeel and an herbal, slightly bitter, more table-oriented flavor profile. Last night's bottle was showing grapefruit pith and jalapeno, in particular. Though not quite as ripe or mineral as "Le Petiot," the entry-level Sauvignon from Domaine Ricard proper, at $12 a bottle, "La Potine" delivers a pretty solid expression of Touraine Sauvignon.

So, what would you have opened?

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Marcel Lapierre Vin de Pays des Gaules

Given the comic nature of the artwork by Siné coupled with the good-spirited script on the label at right, one could be forgiven for thinking that Marcel Lapierre was indulging in a bit of Gallic wordplay with the release of his "country wine of the Gaules." That was my initial reaction upon first seeing Lapierre's new wine hit the US market earlier this year.

In actuality, though, Vin de Pays des Gaules is indeed a relatively new (about three years-old now), official (yet not widely approved of) addition to the INAO's short-list of large, regional VdP designations. The area covers Beaujolais in its entirety, plus, if I'm interpreting the map correctly, fringe portions of the Mâconnais and the Northern Rhône. Like most other VdP designations, it's much more forgiving/inclusive of grape varieties than the AOC system. Vin de Pays des Gaules allows for as many as 19 varieties, Syrah and Viognier among them, along with the more obvious Chardonnay and, of course, Gamay, which alone constitutes upward of 95% of the plantings in question.

The primary objectives of the new Vin de Pays des Gaules designation, as with the similar and simultaneous creation of Vin de Pays de l'Atlantique for the greater Bordeaux region, are two-fold: to reduce the overall quantity (theoretically thereby raising the overall quality) of AOC wines being produced in the region and to create a category of simpler, easier to drink, less expensive wines. In two regions where the market is already awash in inexpensive, innocuous and often sub-par quality wines, though, I'm not sure the creation of these new VdPs does anything more than further muddy the already murky waters for those faced with marketing largely unwanted wines to an ever-increasingly competitive world market.

In the case of Lapierre's wine, though, I'm not going to argue with the results.

Vin de Pays des Gaules, Marcel Lapierre 2008
$15. 12.5% alcohol. Stelvin. Importer: Kermit Lynch, Berkeley, CA.
I've already seen retailers succumb to the temptation of referring to Lapierre's Vin de Pays des Gaules, which is varietal Gamay by the way, as "Morgon Junior." Who could blame them, I suppose. But in practice, Lapierre has actually captured the spirit of simplicity that's idealistically intended by the new VdP. While I've never had any problem drinking (as opposed to "tasting") Lapierre's Morgon, this is even more eminently easy-drinking wine. Vin de Pays de Gulpable, if you will. Crisp, light and snappy, it lacks the depth of the Morgon but is still full of flavor, with early season raspberry fruit laced with bright, refreshing citrus zest and herbal nuances.

It's unmistakably the product of carbonic maceration and fermentation, yet, as with all of Lapierre's wines, the grapes are fermented on their native yeasts, so there's no trace of the telltale banana aromas so oft associated with carbonic wines. It's hard to imagine a more uncomplicated pour that's still wine-y rather than grape-y. Great served with a stiff chill, this would make for a great summertime BBQ and/or porch wine. For now, it goes down just as easy with a good old Monday night pizza.

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Follow the Barbera Boys (and Girls!)

Oh, to be in Piemonte. The magical region in NW Italy has been beckoning me back since my first and last trip there... amazing to think it's already been four years.

Though it won't exactly make up for my disappointment in not being able to join the group that's headed there next week, I'm looking forward to following the exploits of my friends and wine writing cohorts on the Barbera 2010 trail. Jeremy "Doctor DoBi" Parzen has gathered a select group of North American wine writers, bloggers and restaurateurs to travel to the prime growing zones of Alba, Asti and Monferrato for a concentrated blitz on the world of Barbera from March 8 through March 11. You can follow along with them, just as I will, at the official Barbera 2010 site as well as at the various blogs and websites of those that are, unlike myself (sob...), able to make the trip.

A token shot from the MFWT archives.... Giacomo Conterno's 2005 Barbera d'Alba "Cascina Francia" was among the more compelling examples of Barbera I've enjoyed over the last couple of years. One of the great things about Barbera, though, is that it need not be profound to be eminently versatile and enjoyable.

Even though I won't be there for the main event, I'm due to do a little warm-up guest blogging at the Barbera 2010 site in the next couple of days, so check it out, bookmark it or subscribe, and stay tuned. I'll post a reminder here when my contribution is alive and kicking.

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