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Grand Vintage 2010; Sydney Delivers – by Brad Hickey

Posted by Brad - 03/10/10 at 03:03:11 pm

We are settling into what looks to be a grand vintage in McLaren Vale. The Gods have cooperated and kept the extreme heat at bay. Thorpe Wines has picked all the fruit off its “Pelion Block” and it looks healthy, fresh, and delicious. However, many growers here are hurting, and looking for somebody, anybody, to buy their fruit. Contracts aren’t worth the paper they are written on, and $300 per ton is not an uncommon figure, where the district average was once over $1000. Rumor has it that next year will be even more brutal with many a grower leaving more fruit on their vines, since there’s no point in picking something you can’t sell. Recently there was a suicide up the hill by a grower that was feeling the pinch. One never knows the ins and outs of these tragic actions, but we hope that it isn’t to be a recurring theme. Farmer suicides due to the drought inland have become a major worry, and I have never seen anything like it. I do live in a beautiful, albeit harsh, country.

We trod on, and sometimes try to celebrate the harvest. A harvest lunch at Alpha Box and Dice winery with wine educator Gill Gordon-Smith tasting Italian varietals helps distract us. This lunch/tasting was the first of three on offer this season; check with her bottle shop in the Vale, Fall From Grace, for more info. It’s a great chance to try some fantastic European wines matched against their Australian counterparts. Her superb and relatively new wine shop on the Main Street in McLaren Vale focuses on European wines from thoughtful, small producers and is offering tastings and all sorts of educational activities. It has become a great reference point for local winemakers and winelovers alike. And for me it is like being back in NYC again, since many of the wines Gill sells are impossible to find in Oz and were stalwarts on the winelists in places where I once worked.

There is a nice rhythm to the vintage this year, according to our viticulturist, Peter Bolte, unlike last years all at once blitz due to the heatwave pounding on the fruit. Thorpe’s winemaker, Tim Geddes, is crushing fruit now like nobody’s business, as is par for the course, but fortunately it’s coming in waves. Unlike the last few years when it was all over the place, or all at once, this year has a steady calm to it. Thorpe Sign The subregions around the Vale are harvesting in a timely fashion. As I get to know this terrain, it’s interesting to watch how different districts perform.
One thing for sure is that the harvesters and semis loaded with grapes are working thru the night now. Transport specialists, like Sully here, are kicking long hours to get the juice moved from point A to point B. Of course, he always has time for a quick ale after work when pressed.

A quick junket to Sydney took me to 3 of the cities best spots: Quai, Est, and The Bentley. I’m still wondering how I made it home in one piece. Great rooms, superb sommeliers, and really nice food. The Bentley is chef Brent Savage and Nick Hildebrandt’s place and it just opened after a 6 week renovation. It is also home to ‘wunderkind’ Glen Goodwin, who keeps a low profile here. Glen ran the wine program at WD50 and worked on the all-star wine crew at Cru Restaurant in NYC for years before returning to Sydney to surf, readjust to a sense of normalcy, and marry his American sweetheart. The Bentley is the kind of place you want to go to all the time. In fact, it is where the sommeliers from Quai and Est go on their nights off. Enough said. Sit at the bar, pick thru the genius international list, and be served.

Food culture in Sydney is advancing at a fast clip. For the first time I met real talent in the restaurants I ate in. Ironically, most sommeliers here dream of going to NYC and doing the hard yards in the “center of the universe”. If only I could warn them; it doesn’t get much better than balmy Sydney, guys. Reality is merely an illusion, although a very persistent one. Granted, NYC is the greatest city in the world, so I can see where they are coming from.

“It is natural for man to indulge in the illusions of hope. We are apt to shut our eyes against a painful truth, and listen to the song of that siren till she transforms us into beasts… For my part, whatever anguish of spirit it may cost, I am willing to know the whole truth, to know the worst, and to provide for it.” Patrick Henry, US Lawyer and Patriot (1736-1799)

On the Fast Track from Melbourne to the Mornington

Posted by Brad - 02/19/10 at 11:02:39 am

At this time of the year things once again get confusing. It’s harvest time for the grapes in McLaren Vale, and the Northern Hemisphere is buried in snow. The Winter Olympics are underway and rather than jumping over slushy puddles in NYC, as I would normally be doing, I’m enjoying the cooling breeze of jumbo jet sized ceiling fans here in South Australia. To get some perspective it’s always a good time to head out of town for a couple of days and check out somebody else’s backyard. This time it was to Melbourne and then to the Mornington Peninsula.

I know Melbourne better than most Australian capital cities, besides Adelaide, and would happily move there one day if for no other reason than to encounter the endless permutations of bars and restaurants. The food culture is top notch, and so it was when we flew in to see my friend Duncan Wilcox. Duncan is an American that owned London Street Restaurant in Lyttleton, NZ and was mentioned over 2 years ago (wow!) in this blog for famously serving me up a 1990 Chateau Rayas Chateauneuf du Pape as casually as one might ask if you’d like a glass of sparkling water.Nicole,Alex,Duncan @ Siglo He now lives in Melbourne with girlfriend Alex Hallatt, the artist behind the syndicated cartoon “Arctic Circle”. We met at Cumulus Inc. for a glass and some terrific small plates, including a luscious tin of Ortiz anchovies in olive oil w/ toasted ciabatta. After a couple more pit stops, it was on to dinner at Coda. We were fed good wine, friendly service, albeit a little slow at times, and well executed Indonesian apps and mains in a subterranean space with the open kitchen hustling behind the bar’s racks of liquor. After-dinner drinks at the crowded rooftop bar, Siglo, were enhanced by views of the House of Parliament flooded in lights below and the old cornices and building paintings of the neighboring Princess Theater. Strangely enough, it was nice to see smokers and drinkers uniting once again, as well, under the starry dome.

Next morning we drove an hour and a half SE of Melbourne to Red Hill, the heart of the wine region in the Mornington Peninsula (MP) to meet our Melbourne merchant and to look around. The MP has rolling hills, forests and isolated beaches, and is Melbourne’s version of the Hamptons, the posh coastal retreat on Long Island where New Yorkers recharge their batteries. There is a lot of money and opulent estates in Portsea, a sunfilled town that is safely tucked in at the end of the peninsula, but the rest of the MP seems pretty humble and caters to many types of people. Our first stop was an out of the way osteria called La Campagna. Nicole K Thorpe That it was out of the way made it more special, since getting there was an elaborate game of hide and seek. And the reward for all our troubles was their Lasagna. This dish was so lovingly made with what seemed like 100′s of leaves of homemade pasta infused with a perfectly calibrated bechamel sauce and dressed with fresh tomato and ground beef ragout. The pizzas were good from the wood oven, as well. I really liked La Campagna because it wasn’t some souped up winery charging an arm and a leg to make more money; it was no frills here. This was a soulful, Italian place out in the country, like you might find in the mother country herself, making everything themselves. The food even made the wines taste good and the plain bricked downstairs dining room feel warm.

Our other favorite restaurant meals were at Paringa Estate and The Long Table. After visiting the swish newly opened, ultra-modern Port Philip Estate and being denied a table in their cold, concrete dining room, we headed to Paringa Estate and sat out on the verandah eating nice food served by a polished staff enjoying the view of the vineyard. Owner/Winemaker Lindsay McCall came out to say hello. The pinot noirs there are worth seeking out, as are their cool climate Shiraz.

The Long Table almost didn’t happen, as a lazy day at Lindenderry Resort almost did us in, but we rallied late and caught their last table of the night. Chef Andrew Doughton and the crew are working like clockwork in an open kitchen watching over the warmly lit, compartmentalized dining room. We loved the food; smart combinations of ingredients executed well. What more can you ask for? Kingfish tartare, salted cucumber, Vietnamese mint & sand crab vinaigrette ($18) was so clean and zippy it made a mockery of the pinot gris served with it. I should have listened and taken the server’s advice and gone with the Austrian gruner veltliner from Domaine Wachau. Gruner Veltliner is a white varietal indigenous to Austria that works surprisingly well with tough wine matching flavours like mild vinaigrettes. Port Lincoln sea bass, smoked potato, Dromana mussels & chorizo ($34) worked equally well with a lithe, Burgundian styled chardonnay from Ocean Eight and a light, smoky pinot from Ten Minutes by Tractor. We left utterly convinced and would gladly visit again. A smart local and international wine list coupled with attuned service (which is a good and rare thing these days) sealed the deal.

The MP is a cool climate winegrowing region, a fair bit further south than where I live in McLaren Vale, which really started growing grapes commercially in the early 1970′s. They excel in chardonnay and pinot noir; two varietals that appreciate steady temperatures and sloping vineyards. Top wines from this district are Paringa Estate, Ten Minutes by Tractor, Port Philip, Kooyong, Aylward, and Main Ridge Estate. There is Red Hill Brewery making artisanal brews and Red Hill Cheesery also following traditional methods to great effect. The peninsula has glorious isolated backbeaches that beg to be compared with some of the hidden sandy coves one finds on the south side of Crete or any untrodden Greek island. Gaps in the forests occasionally offer great views of crashing surf, not unlike Margaret River, and the light here is as bright and glowing, as well. This is the same kind of light you see out in the Hamptons in summer that Edward Hopper captured so well in his paintings.

So, this is the backyard of Melburnians, and I can see why. It’s a pricey place, the Mornington, and a weekend here is almost too short to get the relaxing vibe of the place. I felt that with all the good wine and local food at your finger tips, that a week would be more like it. Getting a bungalow with a kitchen near the beach would be perfect. You can still feel and see the old farming elements of the MP, with tractors of all shapes and sizes dotting the landscape still providing produce for the Melbourne markets. There is a real sense of community here, like most old farming regions, mixing the old and the new: strawberry farms and chocolatiers live side by side.

Many of the beaches have rows of small, sometimes colorful beach huts. Some sell for half a million dollars in monied towns like Portsea. It did cross my mind, however, that if you put in a skylight, a couple of windows, and a hammock that one of these cozy huts, in a lower rent district, might just do the trick as a little weekender. After all, in the Mornington Peninsula everywhere you want to be is outside anyways.

II. The Best Cathar Castles to Visit

Posted by Yoann - 02/17/10 at 05:02:12 pm

Here are the best castles, but reaching them may be a challenge.

Chateau de Peyrepertuse a Duilhac–If you see only one Cathar castle, make it Peyrpertuse. You can drive most of the way up to its limestone outcrop, but the trail, on worn limestone footing, takes you around the back of the castle and undergoes several elevation changes. They won’t let you use the path in a storm. It’s treacherous when wet.

Chateau de Peyrepertuse

You can see Peyrepertuse easily in one day along with nearby Chateau de Queribus in Cucugnan and Chateau de Puilaurens in Lapradelle. The drive between them is quite nice. A lunch stop in Cucugnan is recommended. There are three restaurants. We had a very nice lunch at Auberge de Vigneron (A Logis de France Hotel Restaurant). They have a terrase overlooking the Chateau de Queribus but weren’t serving outside that day for some reason, a fact that made people quite upset. Still, the 22 Euro menu featured some wonderful food presented well. (phone 68 45 03 00 within France).

Château de Queribus

I. The Easiest Cathar Castles to get to

Posted by Yoann - 02/17/10 at 05:02:12 pm

Chateau d’Arques–The parking lot is close to the Chateau, only a small elevation change gets you to the gate. This is one of the few Cathar structures to exist on flat land. A plane tree shaded drive takes you from the Chateau to the city of Arques, where you’ll find a small museum which is free with your ticket to the chateau. You can buy local honey at the entrance.

Arques is first mentioned in a document written in 1011. Construction of the Castle’s donjon (the main tower) was started in 1280. It has four floors, accessed through spiral staircases, with good views of the surrounding countryside.

Château d’Arques

Chateau de Puivert–This chateau is on a hill, but you can drive most of the way up. It has a tower with four stories you can visit. But the interesting part of Puivert is in the stone carvings in the chapel revealing peaple playing medieval musical instruments. These eight instruments have been replicated and at the museum Quercorb-Puivert and you can see them and hear them being played through a multimedia display. In the village of Puivert there is also a shop on the river where you can buy hand-carved marrionettes.

Château de Puivert

Photos from the Valpolicella

Posted by Aaron - 02/04/10 at 12:02:59 pm

Although in the future I’ll probably be writing mostly about Argentina on here, today I wanted to share some photos from a recent visit I was lucky enough to make to the Tedeschi family’s beautiful vineyards in the Valpolicella region of Northern Italy, just outside the historic (and stunning) city of Verona.

Soon enough, when the weather warms up, these vines will become heavy with the Corvina, Corvinone, and Rondinella grapes which are then dried out and used to produce Amarone della Valpolicella, one of Italy’s greatest wines (of which Tedeschi produces and lovely and traditional example).

I hope you enjoy the photos!

Flyin’ the Flannel in the Pacific Northwest – Brad Hickey

Posted by Yoann - 01/23/10 at 12:01:00 pm

Blog post of Brad Hickey. Brad is the wine selector of AOC Fine Wines for all the Australian and New Zealand Wines.
View Original blog post: http://bradhickey.typepad.com/brad_hickeys_wine_odyssey/2009/12/flying-the-flannel-in-the-pacific-northwest-.html

Driving a car up from San Francisco to Vancouver, BC is a chance to see and eat some amazing things. Recently on a Thorpe Wine sales blitz thru the Pacific Northwest, I had a chance to revisit some favorite places and friends. “Flyin’ the Flannel“, an album and song from the 90′s US alternative band fIREHOSE, was still an appropriate moniker for the region which prided itself on the rugged individualism that paved the American frontier Westward. Plaid flannel shirts, the preferred garment of lumberjacks, fIREHOSE bassist Mike Watt and legions of NW “Grunge” rockers and their devotees, were still the fashion in the chilly Pacific Northwest. The warm, working class fabric betokens a region renowned for its laidback charm and woolen comforts. You need to get north of San Francisco and Napa Valley first, however, which involves overcoming some serious gastronomic obstacles.

Friends that cooked at Bouley, where I used to be the wine director, were now advancing thru the ranks in fine SF restaurants. We ate at avant garde, yet delicate Coi and luxurious classics like white truffles paired with an ethereal 1997 Chablis “Montmains” from Raveneau at Michael Mina, which were both superb experiences. Mina for its spread out, deep comfort amongst high columns and tall ceilings in soft light, and Coi for its intimate front room and tightly controlled dishes. Husband and wife chefs Evan and Sarah Rich are cooking up a storm at each place, respectively. It’s great to stay in touch and watch them cook like banshees. I look forward to the day when they open their own place in SF. It was also nice, as always, to have friends on the inside keeping an eye on things.

An hour north and you’re in Napa. And why not try to eat lunch at the French Laundry (TFL)when you are in the neighborhood, right? We got into the quaint “French farmhouse” without a booking (although we were wait-listed 3 weeks prior) and had a good lunch, which means it was sort of disappointing, since they normally blow you away. The main issue was a spoiled hollywood exec getting hammered on Martinelli zinfandel behind me, as you can see in the picture. This brings up an interesting point: what is the protocol at places like the Laundry, perennially one of the top-rated restaurants in the world, when a tame guest is seated near an obnoxious one? In our case the issue was tricky since we basically were a walk in and didn’t want to make any waves, although clearly we should have. The maitre d’ came trotting out after me, as we were initially declined a table. “Sorry, Mr. Hickey” he said,”but we just had a cancellation.” I had already doffed my tie and was, in my mind, already on my way to Taylor’s Automatic Refresher for a burger. While we were happy to get into the Laundry, nonetheless, it was to be our third tasting menu in a row after Mina and Coi. It was my second time to the Laundry, but a first for Nicole, so we were behaving as one should; namely, grateful, albeit full.

The service is still excellent at TFL, friendly and knowledgeable without being pretentious. The chef’s tasting menu is US$240 with service included, which is part of chef/owner Thomas Keller’s philosophy that the house shares all gratuities. The lunch degustation included such standouts as Moulard duck foie gras torchon, gingerbread puree, Tokyo turnips, watercress, toasted pecans and cranberries (pictured below). They automatically bring out the toasted brioche and 5 minutes later bring out another serve to make sure what you have is warm. This attention to detail makes diner’s swoon, and is also a standard at Keller’s NYC outpost, Per Se. My only real problem with the meal was the tolerance afforded to the Hollywood guy seated behind me. Throughout his meal French Laundry managers sat around his table trading jokes. It wasn’t until he tried to affix a spoon to his nose and it clanked loudly on a plate that I became seriously aware of him. Then, since he was a regular, he was given xtra desserts that were normally on the dinner menu. We were overlooked, which was bad form. This oversight was particularly bizarre since the waitstaff knew we were growing annoyed, since the guy was now making out sloppily with his date at the table. I asked about their extra delicacies, since we were there for the food, and the captain from Belgium said just that, that they were regulars and they liked to have treats from the master menu. Recently in a copy of NZ’s Cuisine magazine, issue 136, Sept 2009, there is an interview with TFL’s maitre d’, Mr. Nadeau, in which he tells how he deals with rambunctious tables. In the article he says to offensive parties, for example, “It’s a pleasure having you here and we appreciate you coming all the way from Texas. I just need to ask you to keep your language down a bit.” He then goes on to say in the interview that he would shift nearby diners to another table. If only we were so lucky, since there were many open ones. The trouble here was that the problem table was the house’s “friend”. All top spots, and low, have their so called “club members”, which I know from the Bouley and Daniel days. And perhaps lunch in general at TFL is a looser service. Maybe I need to loosen up, too.

Later that day we met our friend from Chateau Montelena, marketing mastermind Jeff Adams, for dinner at Bouchon, another Thomas Keller establishment, and a precise copy of a classic Parisian bistro. They call the Napa suburb of Yountville “Kellerville” since he owns a lot of real estate there. An old friend of mine from NYC, Rachael Lowe, is a sommelier at Bouchon and had just finished first in her class for the advanced course in the Master Sommelier derby. She, and the rest of the staff, took very good care of us with interesting wines from the Jura, a wonderfully fresh seafood platter, and almost perfect service. Rachael will be one to watch.

A visit to Chateau Montelena was on the way to Buster’s Southern BBQ in Calistoga, so we popped in to say hello to Jeff. After lunch we were driving to Redwood National Park. The Chateau Montelena itself, where the wine is still made and aged, is built into a forested hill and has well maintained Chinese gardens on the grounds from previous owners. They are experiencing a new flood of enthusiasm after their key role in the movie “Bottle Shock” about Montelena’s shocking victory over some top French wines in the early 1970s. They even have a “Bottle Shock” tour in the works there. You gotta love marketing.


After 2 days of driving due North, thru the great redwoods and along the rugged Oregon coast, we finally hit Portland. I used to live in Portland from 1991 to 1996, and I was very eager to return for a 4 day visit. We stayed at the hip, but friendly Ace Hotel downtown near Jake’s Famous Crawfish. The city was famous for its bookstores (Powells), good coffee (StumpTown Roasters), and fresh salmon (Higgins Restaurant) from the Columbia River. That organic gardening is popular is an understatement and the dress code is to dress down. Looking “clothes-conscious” is a no-no here as it shows you’re trying too hard, which young Portlanders don’t think is cool, although theirs is a studied look of dishevelment. As a friend once said, the “gas-station-mechanic look” is all the rage. The hippie scene still cuts a long shadow here with hemp clothing readily available and patchouli oil still wafting through the air. The city is also within 40 minutes of one of the world’s premier pinot noir growing regions, the Willamette Valley. When I lived in Portland I cut my teeth at Portland Nursery learning about and selling plants. On the side I was a landscape designer, which meant I put a lot of my over-educated friends to work. PDX, as the locals call it, is home to the loveliest Japanese garden outside Japan. Fields of Japanese Maples are cultivated in the wide open by the nursery industry outside the city, which is almost unheard of due to the trees’ delicate foilage. Portland is a perfect place to grow plants as it is veritable garden of Eden. A recent visit to the Portland Japanese Garden showed the maples still at the peak of their Fall color under the pewter skies and forest green backdrop in the West Hills. I was wearing a t-shirt, red checked flannel top (an homage to fIREHOSE), and a light jacket to stay warm. Layers are the key to warmth, as the mists are gentle and prolongated during the Fall and Winter in the Pacific Northwest.

What would a trip to the Northwest be without a visit to Breitenbush Hot Springs? A geothermal wonder, and kind of hippy chic now, the naturally heated meadow pools at Breitenbush were sublime as the snow started falling at a heavy rate. The location is in the heart of a protected old growth forest 2 hours East of Portland. Soaking in the outdoor pools is absolutely cathartic. A stop in the lithium induced steam house is also the finishing rough touch to a detoxifying cleanse. Breitenbush is always a great place to “heal thyself”, since it was once a victim of land abuse itself, and remains today one of the most sacred and serene natural spaces on the planet.

I also love the beer in Oregon, ah beer, and the McMenamins’ pubs brew some of the best. Hammerhead pale ale and Terminator stout are still pouring freely. It was a major shot of nostalgia, as those beers caused me a headache or two in the day. The pubs tap into the hippy element and psychedelic culture of the Pac Northwest psyche. Has the restaurant scene improved greatly in PDX since my last visit in 2002 or have my senses become more finely honed? Le Pigeon, an unassumming communal style restaurant in the once shady area of E Burnside, near the thumping live music venue the Doug Fir Lounge, is plating up mouthwatering briased meats and suckling pig. I love this place, as well as the passion of owner Andy Fortgang, a former NYC sommelier at Craft. It deserves a solid mention here and your attention when you are in Portland. The wine list at “the Pigeon”, as it’s called locally, was compact, but perfectly balanced with local and European wines to work with the game meats and earthy fare. We drank a 2005 Hermitage from JL Chave there that was ferocious, and quite rare, and worked magically with the spicy tenderness of their benchmark Beef Cheek Bourguignon ($29). Also, I would be remiss not to mention the humble Bunk Sandwiches on SE Morisson. Hands down the best pork belly Cubano sandwich I’ve had outside NYC and Havana. And again, zero attitude, just delicious simple food (approximately 200 sandwiches per day keeps things fresh), and classic kosher dill pickles. It is an eight dollars well spent.

More than the great food and wine, however, there were the old friends with whom I reconnected. You never know if you will see people again when you move away, so it was with great comfort that I could spend some quality time with some quality folks. And that’s what it’s all about: just add wine and a soft, worn-in flannel shirt and you won’t want to leave.

Bordeaux: Tourism and Fine Food

Posted by Emmanuel - 11/04/09 at 01:11:57 pm

Au Lion d’Or – Arcins – 05 56 58 96 79 Regional South West cuisine. The chef Jean Paul Barbier is fun to an irritating point. It is worth a detour. Cordeillan Bages – Pauillac Route des Châteaux 33250 Pauillac www.cordeillanbages.com Saint James – Bouliac www.saintjames-bouliac.com Hostellerie de Plaisance – St Emilion – 05 57 55 07 55 A great hotel and restaurant in one of the France’s most beautiful villages. Superb St Emilion wine list. A must. Places not to be missed: If you want to take a break from tasting and talking about wine, then I strongly recommend a visit to Cap Ferret. Cap Ferret could be called the Hamptons of France. It’s a very exclusive vacation destination located on the end of a peninsula with the Atlantic Ocean on one side, the bay on the other. Great villages, lovely houses and beaches. Le Pinasse Café – 05 56 03 77 87 Most of the Crus Classes have now their own restaurants The cuisine is often much better than in local restaurants.

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