Give Thanks to these Holiday Wines

The Fall season is always an exciting one for wines as new releases are brought to market and the current year’s harvest is completed. I understand that California from coast to coast had a banner harvest with little rain as an impediment and rich concentration of juice, with no overproduction. The only exception was the Pinot Noir crop. The dry weather has left vineyards scrambling for grapes to make this wine. The shortage of Pinot could lead to rising prices for this fragile grape. But we won’t be able to taste the goods for a year or two.

• San Diego Wine Company is touting the Chateau Bellisle Mondotte, St. Emilion Grand Cru Bordeaux, 2005, for just $28.95. ‘05 was an incredible year in France.
  
  
• Robert Mondavi Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley Reserve 2004. Just out as the #9 wine in all the world from Wine Spectator at 95 points. $125. This was the last year that the Mondavis had a hand in the winemaking before being taken over. But wait…I just tasted the ’04 Mondavi Cab, not the reserve, but a rich, beautifully structured non-reserve wine, for just $20… your choice. Just don’t bother with the ’05: a stinging taste and flavor…ugly!
  
  
• Banfi Chianti Classico, 2005. Well balanced, easy to please the palate Sangiovese grape. Easy price at $10.
  
  
• Pedroncelli “Mother Clone” Zinfandel 2005. Sonoma’s most pleasing old vine Zin. Full-bodied classicDry Creek Valley wine. Just a touch of Petite Syrah for a bit more bang. “ Mother” is 100 year old vines. Great concentration. Worth a look at www.pedroncelli.com. $18.

Monterey Winery Owners & Carmel Wine Tasting Shop

Dawn and Jack Galante never miss a chance to get out of their home base in Monterey and preach the gospel of wine along the Central Coast and Monterey. You talk to them and become a believer mostly because they have such a good time on the circuit. ( photo shows them at the recent Santa Barbara event.)

The Galante family has a long history in the area. Jack’s great grandfather founded the town of Carmel. He built the Pine Inn and the Highlands Inn, both landmarks in that fabled coastal village. Jack’s father controlled a 700 acre cattle ranch in the Carmel Valley in the late 60’s, then turned some of it into a vineyard. Jack built the winery featuring ultra premium wines in the mid 90’s concentrating on Cabernet. They currently are releasing Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc and two brands of Cab that caught my attention. The Pinot is grown at about 1,800 feet elevation and only 10 miles from the coast, a potent combination that Pinot grapes feel at home with. Bigger bolder flavors are extracted from the current ’05 vintage that sells for $25. per bottle.

The Galantes operate the first tasting room in Carmel by the Sea along with a western emporium. The vineyard and winery is east in the Carmel Valley. The Galantes love to have fun and it shows in the “Wine Gang” Club writeups. Jack loves to tell the story of the time he and Dawn were doing a commercial. He’s sitting naked in an old fashioned tub that you pour water into to bathe. Dawn is standing over the tub with several bottles of wine ready to pour and asking the obvious question… “would you prefer white, or red.” You might be able to see which one he bathed in by checking out the web site at
www.galantevineyards.com.