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Four years ago today, on October 1, 2019, my husband and father of our children passed away. I have occasionally written about Robert, always referring to him as “The Restaurateur.” In addition to three successful restaurants in NYC, Robert had a small theater nightclub and recording studio. He was a true “Renaissance Man,” embracing all he could with boundless energy. And it is Robert who gets the credit for introducing me to the world of wine and encouraging me to explore my palate.  Robert and Penny -still smiling after six months of dating! The first wine Robert ever poured for me was on our second date, a 1969 Petrus. It was an “aha” moment for me. I fell in love with wine! I have one bottle left of the 1969 Petrus, and I can’t bring myself to open it yet. But I have a feeling that the moment will choose me!  Photo credit: Penny Weiss For 44 years, we cataloged many memories, some of which were not the best. I’m sure those who knew us and are reading this now are shaking their heads remembering a few notable and movie-worthy scenes! However, we did create beautiful memories with our sons and a shared passion for wine, food, and music that endured through the years. Our collection of wine grew over the years, and when Robert passed away, I inherited the bulk of the wine left over from his last restaurant. There are some gems in this collection that I haven’t touched. And I can hear Robert saying, “What the hell are you waiting for?” So, I’ve decided to open two wines today in his memory. They are old vintages and likely not good, but let’s explore!  Poto credit: Penny Weiss Far Niente Estate Bottled Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley 1987 John Benson, a forty-niner of the California gold rush, founded Far Niente Winery in 1885, which is situated in western Oakville, Napa Valley. Far Niente fell victim to Prohibition in 1919 and soon was abandoned. In 1979, Gil Nickel purchased the vineyard and winery. The property took three years of restoration, but the hard work led to placement on the National Register of Historic Places. In 1982, the winery’s first Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay were harvested. The Cabernet Sauvignon grapes are grown in the Martin Stelling Vineyard behind the winery, encompassing 57 acres. With a moderately warm climate and gravelly loam soil, the stage is set for producing complex, richly textured, fruit-forward wines. This wine was aged in new Bordeaux Chateau French oak barrels for 18 months. Alcohol: 13.5%  Photo credit: Penny Weiss The color was ruby red. I decanted the wine and tasted it immediately, then let the wine sit for a few hours. My first impression was quite good. Dark berries, cherry, and spice on the nose, with the palate offering sour cherry, a hint of plum and silky tannins.  Photo credit: Penny Weiss My second aroma and taste sample took place about four hours later. Instead of opening up a bit more, the wine, unfortunately, took a turn south. Although the aromas were still pleasant with blackberry, cherry, tobacco, and earth notes, the palate did not improve. Drinkable? Yes, but not enjoyable. In 2018, I opened the 1990 vintage, and it was excellent. I still have 1983, 1986, 1988, and 1989 vintages to explore!  Photo credit: Penny Weiss Château Beychevelle Grand Vin Saint-Julien 1976 Château Beychevelle is a historic property dating back to the 1500s and is considered one of the most beautiful castles in the Médoc, in the Bordeaux wine region of France. Château Beychevelle vineyards are spread over 90 ha of vines composed of Fourth Growth Bordeaux Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot.  Photo credit: Penny Weiss The 1976 Château Beychevelle is a Bordeaux red blend from the Saint-Julien appellation. This wine was aged in French oak barrels, 53% new barrels, for 18 months. Alcohol: 12%. I was not expecting this wine to be good since the cork crumbled immediately. I decanted the wine through a sieve and was surprised the color was a touch more red than tawny, but it was also cloudy. As I was decanting the wine, aromas of sweet red fruit, plum, and musty forest floor wafted my way.  Photo credit: Penny Weiss Being an optimist, I took this as an encouraging sign. I took a sip, and it was not drinkable. I waited for several hours in the hope that the wine might open. The second test showed a significant waning of aromas with only a hint of red fruit. Unfortunately, it was not drinkable.  Photo credit: Penny Weiss Some of the old vintages from my collection have stood the test of time and are still drinkable; others are not. I will continue to open bottles; hopefully, a few gems will still be sip-worthy. My lesson for the day is to listen to Robert and “open all the damn wine!” Sometimes, when I open a bottle of wine, I wonder, “What would Robert think of this?” or “Wow, he would have loved this wine!.” And then there are the wines I open that bring back all the good memories of our journey together. Here is a slideshow of part of our journey. Maroon 5 has a hit song called “Memories Bring Back You.” Whenever I hear it on the radio, I smile, think of Robert, and sing along. Here is the first verse of the song. … Here's to the ones that we got Cheers to the wish you were here, but you're not 'Cause the drinks bring back all the memories Of everything we've been through Toast to the ones here today Toast to the ones that we lost on the way 'Cause the drinks bring back all the memories And the memories bring back, memories bring back you. Cheers to you, Robert! We miss you! ❤️  Until next time…
Cheers! Penina To leave a comment or if you have an inquiry, please contact me at wineknittercomments@gmail.com For those of you who may not know, my education and passion for wine and spirits began in 1980 when I became part of three very successful family-owned restaurants in NYC. Over the years we have collected many wines from around the world and I recently had the good fortune to be gifted a few cases. Among the treasure trove I inherited was a box of Far Niente Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. The vintages include 1983, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989 and 1990.  About four years ago I opened a bottle of the 1983 vintage that had been tucked away in my wine cellar since 1990. It was superb! So, I was very excited about opening my new acquisitions, especially another 1983 vintage! A friend suggested I do a vertical tasting of the wines, but I didn’t have the heart to open all the bottles at once. I want to take my sweet time and slowly savor each bottle.  John Benson, a forty-niner of the California gold rush, founded Far Niente Winery in 1885 that is situated in western Oakville, Napa Valley. Far Niente fell victim to Prohibition in 1919 and soon was abandoned. In 1979, Gil Nickel purchased the vineyard and winery. The property took three years of restoration, but the hard work led to placement on the National Register of Historical Places. In 1982, the winery’s first Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay were harvested, and to this day only these two varietal are produced at this winery. The Cabernet Sauvignon grapes are grown in the Martin Stelling Vineyard located behind the winery, encompassing 57 acres. With a moderately warm climate and gravelly loam soil, the stage is set for producing complex, richly textured and fruit forward wines. It was a difficult decision, but I finally opted to begin the exploration of the Far Niente Cabernet Sauvignons with the 1990 vintage.  Far Niente 1990 Estate Bottled Cabernet Sauvignon In addition to Cabernet Sauvignon, the wine is also blended with Cabernet Franc and Merlot. The blend was aged in 100% new Bordeaux French Oak barrels for twenty months. The cork crumbled when trying to remove it from the bottle, but the wine showed a beautiful color of deep red as it was decanted. Our first swirl and sip put a smile on our faces. We patiently allowed the wine to open up and were then rewarded with an outstanding wine! The aromas were a heady mixture of berries, dark cherry and hints of spice and toast. The palate was layered with dark berries, pomegranate, anise and spice. A velvety mouth-feel, soft tannins and rich texture added to the complexity of the wine, proving once again that Far Niente creates age-worthy wines.  I can’t wait to open more vintages!
Until next time… Cheers! Penina To leave a comment or if you have an inquiry, please contact me at wineknittercomments@gmail.com  Let’s just forget about all the things I did or didn’t do yesterday and get down to the nitty gritty of what wine I opened last night.  When one thinks of 1983, Sally K Ride, the first US woman astronaut in space might come to mind. Or that Ronald Reagan was president, Baltimore defeated Philadelphia in the World Series, and the compact disc arrived to put the vinyl record into a steep decline.  Last night a 1983 Far Niente Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon was all I thought about. The cork came out with ease, which was a good start. The color was deep ruby. On the nose it had undefined fruit and oak. As it opened I tasted cherry, anise and oak. It was velvety and extremely smooth with a long finish. It was a truly enjoyable experience and a pleasure to share it with another wine enthusiast!  I am including a close up photo of the label, which I think is one of the most beautiful wine labels ever! Stained glass artist Tom Rodrigues designed it. Kudos to you, Tom! For more info on the winery, visit: http://farniente.com Have a happy start to your weekend!
Cheers! Penina |
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