La Capitane Chateau de Bel 2005 Bordeaux Superieur

We cracked this bottle with bison sirloins, baby broccoli, and tomato-basil pasta.

This was very tight when first opened. High-toned alcohol burn on the nose, which mellowed a good deal as this opened up. General fruit. Cherries come to mind, but we got some of those at the farmers market the same day, so that may be association.

For some reason this is reminding me of a cab. There's a tartness that sticks around the edges of the tongue for a bit. It's very clean in a way, though. I can't pretend to know enough about bordeaux to say if this is an odd one or a standard one. I like it though.

Achel

One of the more flavourful blondes I have ever had...

From my Southern Californa Stone/Alesmith/Pizza Port/etc. background, I have strayed away from the smaller bottles of beer. On a whim, I decided to pick this Achel Trappist Blonde Bier beer up. It has turned out to be the most flavourful yet inoffesnive blonde ales I have ever tried. If you have no beer experience outside of the big American macrobrews, I would recommend THIS as the first transitional beer experience. Previously, it was Delirium Tremens. In terms of distribution, I can find Delirium much more readily than this Achel. However, if you do find the Achel, it is one of the best lighter beer benchmarks that I have found in over 200 beers.

Caduceus 2005 Primer Paso Syrah

So we opened the Caduceus Primer Paso the other day, after a few weeks of barely controlling ourselves.

This is quite frankly one of the most interesting wines I've ever tasted. It is very obviously a syrah; Maynard has paid very close attention to structure here. There were, however, some very unexpected flavors from beginning to end, and the wine itself behaved rather oddly.
We did a small taste right after popping it open, before we decanted it. There was a warm, spicy flavor with a light initial alcohol burn on the nose. We were immediately aware of the orange flavors. The color was a heavier, earthier red than I expext to see in a syrah. We let it sit in the bottle for an hour or so before we decanted (preparing dinner in the meantime).
Allowing this to open up eliminated the alcohol burn, as well as mellowing some of the spiciness that was present initially. The orange flavor was still there, though it reminded us more of the chocolate oranges one might find at RiteAid. This orange flavor persisted throughout, though the overall character of the wine continued to change from beginning to end.

I don't know that I'd pay $30 for a bottle of this, but it's definitely a delicious and carefully crafted wine. Kudos to Mr. Keenan.

Road Trippin'

If you don't know who Tool is then the beginning of this story won't make sense.

Maynard James Keenan has decided to try his hand at winemaking. If his dedication to his winemaking craft is anything like his dedication to his musical craft, we're in for some interesting wine.


He's dubbed his winery Caduceus, after the ancient symbol of the same name. The wine can only be purchased online, and is produced in very small batches which sell out quickly.

Well, god damnit, we wanted to try it. Caduceus is produced at a place called Page Springs Cellars in Cornville, Arizona, which is basically the middle of nowhere.

I smell road trip.

Lisa, Casey and I loaded a bunch of crap in the car and took off. I think we literally had the idea on thursday and left on friday. At least the winery wasn't in Maryland or something. Still, this wine better be good.

Caine has left out a few of the finer moments of the Journey, so Lisa, in Green, will fill in occasionally. The evening began as one that teetered between rush and deliberate slowness... we knew that if we left too early, we'd be stuck in the middle of nowhere for hours. Friday was the first day of the Long Beach Grand Prix, so once we left downtown, we would not be able to return. This was a good portion of the reason we decided to skip town.

We enjoyed a leisurely meal of Lemon Chicken (a recipe of Casey's invention), fooled around in the grocery store stocking up on road-munchies, and meticulously cleaned the windows of the car while we gassed it up at a lowly $3.19 a gallon. At last, Redbulls and Monsters in hand, we were off.
We left at about 8:30 pm. En route, just over the California border and right around 2:30 am I think, we stopped at a Dennys in Goodyear, where some drunken gay cowboys almost got in a fight with some tiny drunken mexicans while being heckled by some larger drunken mexicans. Everyone was very loud. I don't recommend Goodyear, Arizona.

I think this warrants further explanation, though I'm pretty sure you had to be there. I've been to many Denny's at many a different hour, and to arrive at a Denny's any time shortly after they kick everyone out of bars is never a good idea. Oops. So we knew better. The entire staff, with the exception of the night manager, had to have been exactly or nearly 18 years old. You know what? Nevermind... you had to have been there. Maybe Casey can give the story a try...
Don't go to Goodyear, Arizona.

We arrived on a semi-paved road in the middle of nowhere at about 5:30 am. The winery doesn't start tasting until 11, and we couldn't check in to our "hotel" until noon.
This is the "stuck" we were afraid of.
So we slept on the motel lawn.
But before that, well before that, we parked and waited for a spectacular desert sunrise ('cause goddamnit, Lisa, you need to take some goddamn pictures!). But we started too early.
This is what happened right before the beautiful desert sunrise, which I was too cold and tired to photograph.
See how tired and cold I was?

Having nothing else to do, we decided to locate our motel and kill some time with some breakfast (anywhere but Denny's). We found the road to Cottonwood, Arizona and drove down the one main street, and found the one open business in town. When we walked into the Diner, we faced a room of about a dozen old locals, guys in their 70's in trucker hats - no joke. After a leisurely breakfast, we were dismayed to learn that it was only about 7:15am, so we asked our waitress what there was to do in town to kill a few hours. She responded, "Oh, y'all aren't from Cottonwood?" She and the other waitresses conferred briefly and directed us to Montezuma Castle National Monument, which is a 1000 year old cliff dwelling. Casey and I were interested, so we left the ailing Caine in the car while we ventured out. They wanted five bucks to get in! Five bucks! Okay, it's not a lot, and it's for a good cause, but we had limited cash (and even less energy), so we decided not to go in. The park ranger saw us turn to leave, and told us to visit Montezuma Well. What luck!
When we arrived, we were the only people within earshot. The parking lot was empty. Woo hoo! It was still probably only about 9:30am at this point, so again, with Caine napping in the car, Casey and I headed out on our 1/3 mile circuit along the path.

The path led us up a slow rise with enough height that you could see for miles. It was loverly, in spite of the uphill part.
THEN we slept on the motel lawn. I slept while Casey and Caine sat around and got sunburned. Check in was at Noon, we arrived on the motel lawn at about 10:15.
After showers and naps (and more Redbulls!) we were ready to head to Page Springs. Carol, who was running the tasting, informed us that, unfortunately, none of the Caduceus blends were available for tasting, nor could they be pre-ordered at the winery, only online. So instead we sat down to some of Pages Springs endeavors. Carol was awesome, and though it was crowded and she was the only person working, she managed to keep everything running smoothly and be friendly and conversational with everyone at the same time. We picked up the Vino de Barrio and the Knight's Valley.
Page Springs was more than perfect. After hours and hours of sleep deprivation and extreme boredom, we were treated to a shaded, breezy patio and a sunny day that felt about 75 degrees. I'm not exaggerating when I say it was perfect. We sipped some unusual but delightful wines, and felt at last relaxed to have finally reached our destination. Finally, no more waiting, no more rushing. It was wonderful.

There were actually a couple of other wineries very close by, so we stopped in there as well.

Stay away from Oak Creek Vineyards. Everything we tried was terrible. The blush was cloudy, and everything tasted syrupy but othwerwise completely boring. We really probably should've guessed by the five wines for $5 deal, but here we were, so we kind of had to. The wine was downright gross... not in a two buck chuck sort of way, either.

Javelina Leap, on the other hand, was quite good. We ended up picking up a bottle of petite syrah from them. We met some beer enthusiasts at this place, too, which only enhanced our impression.

While we were wrapping things up at Page Springs, I had asked Carol if she could direct us towards a good place to eat. She sent us about 10 miles west to the mountain-town of Jerome, whose Jerome Grand Hotel boasts a restaurant called The Asylum.

First of all, Jerome is a little hippie town 1 mile up the side of a mountain. It used to be a mining town, but then part of it caught fire and slid down the mountain. When I say the side of a mountain, I mean it. The roads are narrow, and the switch-backs are constant. Needless to say, it could be a bit unnerving. The view from the hotel/restaurant, however, is well worth it. You can easily see 70-100 miles, all the way across the Verde Valley. The Asylum is phenomenal. There wasn't a single double take when we walked in, we were seated immediately, and our server was awesome. The atmosphere is extremely relaxed and quiet, though they seem to market it as a place where it's ok to get a little rowdy. Relaxed and quiet, yes, but definately a fine dining establishment. I myself had the filet mignon, and even through the cold I came down with starting Friday, it was delicious. It could have been rarer, but that was completely my fault. Rare means something entirely different to me than it does to the rest of the world. The snap peas were perfect. Casey had a shrimp scampi over spinach pasta that I almost wish I had gone for, and Lisa had spinach pasta with vegetables that had to have been locally grown. We had a bottle of Page Springs Vino de la Familia with dinner, and it complemented everything. Many thanks to Carol over at Page Springs for the recommendation, and if anyone is ever in the area, you should most definitely eat there.
We then went back to the hotel and passed out. I think it was 7:30 or something. The next morning we got up early and headed toward Tucson to see an old friend of mine from college. We hung out with him for a while and then started the long journey homeward, with a convenient stop, after miles of nothingness on the 8, in Carlsbad to check out Pizza Port Brewing, one of the labels we've taken a shine to here at Bread and Water. Turns out, their pizza's pretty good too.No, no, no, first, we JOURNEYed through hundreds of miles of desert and saw many sights. There were hills, dust storms, an overturned recreational vehicle, SAND DUNES! Enjoy the rest of the photos at Lisa's photo-blog, The Business of Expression. Then we ventured to O'Brien's Pub,where the on-tap beer selection is unmatched. Upon our 7:30pm arrival we learned that they close at 5 on Sundays. Crap!!! So another half-hour later, we got to Pizza Port in Carlsbad. They just happened to be out of the beer that we went there specifically to try, and to top it off, 2/3 of their taps were out of commission because of construction. But our spirits were undampened. It turns out that if you have serious sleep deprivation and about three pints of great, supper hopped beer, it really doesn't matter anymore.

We tried a good number of wines over the weekend. Here are the one's that caught our collective eye:

Caines notes:
2005 RSL Syrah: nose showed plums and cherries. there is a definite alcohol burn in the nostrils. This tended to mellow as it opened.

2005 ECIPS: This was a light, dry wine, with a candied-fruit smell on the nose.

2005 Vino Del Barrio: This had a very straightforward, fruity nose. I got hints of cherries and very light chocolate.

2004 Knights Valley Lawer Vineyard Syrah: This was by far my favorite. I smelled plums and dark chocolate. This was almost portish in a way, though it's most definitely a strong syrah.

Tripel Dipsea

So this afternoon I'm sitting down to a Marin Brewing Company "Tripel Dipsea" Belgian Style Ale, which is amped up on the yeast and hops.

Head is light and disappears quickly. This produces a VERY light fruit aroma which, lucky for me, doesn't translate into a real sweet beer. Color is medium, rich brown, with little to no sediment

The flavor is awesome. I tend to think of Belgian Tripels as very light, and this is anything but. It isn't heavy like an Old Viscosity, but it has plenty of flavor. The yeast, I think, is what stands out most. In a way this reminds me of Delirium Nocturnum, but is a little more sweetly viscous. Very good mouth feel. The alcohol has just the slightest tendency to overpower some of the other flavors in here.

-Caine

The Wine List

For reasons that, if you know us, need no explanation, none of us have the greatest memory. To counteract that, I present here The Wine List, those wines that we find the most enjoyable. In keeping with The Gillett Beer List, these are in no particular order whatsoever. New entries will be in italic:


La Capitane Chateau de Bel 2005 Bordeaux Superieur (France)

Beaujolais Nouveau 2006 Appellation Beaujolais (France)

Toro de Piedra 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon (Chile)

Ciro Librandi 2004 Rosso Classico (Italy)

Sebastiani Alexander Valley 2004 Merlot (California)

Cartlidge & Brown 2005 Pinot Noir (California)

Ferrari-Carano 2000 Tresor Sonoma County Red Wine (California)

Ruffino Riserva Ducale Oro 1999 Chianti Classico (Italy)

Poggiotondo 2004 Chianti Superiore (Italy)

Amala Napa Valley 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon (California)

Tezza Ripasso 2004 Valpocella D.O.C. (Italy)

Pedroncelli Mother Clone Dry Creek Valley 2003 Zinfandel (California)

Chatom Calaveras County 2003 Zinfandel (California)

White Haven Marlborough 2005 Sauvignon Blanc (New Zealand)

Frey Vineyards Organic Mendocino 2003 Zinfandel (California)

Domaine Venot Cote Chalonnaise Bourgogn Rouge 2003 Pinot Noir (Burgundy, France)

Rock Rabbit Winery Central Coast 2003 Syrah (California)

Avalon Winery Napa Valley 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon (Napa, California)

Poggiotondo 2004 Chianti Superiore (Tuscany)

Barricas 2004 Tempranillo (Argentina)

Finca Roja Neuguen Patagonia 2004 Malbec (Argentina)

Vina Progreso Uruguay 2002 Tannat Reserve (Uruguay)

Chateau Manoir Du Gravoux 2003 Cotes de Castillon (Bordeaux)

Chateau Nodoz 2003 Cotes de Bourg (Bordeaux)

Chateau Cedres Cuvee Prestige 2003 Premieres Cotes de Bordeaux (Bordeaux)

Bridlewood Central Coast Reserve 2003 Syrah (Santa Ynez)

Louis Martini Napa Valley Reserve 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon (Nappa Valley, California)

Domaine Trapet Ostrea Gevrey-Chambertin 2003 Pinot Noir (Burgundy)

Librandi 2004 Ciro D.O.C. (Italy)

Tenuta Zicari Diago 2004 Puglis I.G.T. (Italy)

Terre Di Guirfo Maskaria 2004 Cerasuolo di Vittoria D.O.C. (Italy)

Page Springs 2005 Eldorado Roussanne (Arizona)

Page Springs 2006 Saigne (Arizona)

Page Springs 2005 ECIPS (Arizona)

Page Springs 2005 RSL Syrah (Arizona)

Page Springs 2005 Vino del Barrio (Arizona)

Page Springs 2005 Vino de la Familia (Arizona)

Page Springs 2005 Lockwood Oaks Syrah (Arizona)

Page Springs 2005 El Serrano (Arizona)

Page Springs 2004 Carriage Vineyard Syrah (Arizona)

Page Springs 2004 Knight's Valley Lawer Vineyard Syrah (Arizona)

Caduceus 2005 Primer Paso Syrah (Arizona)

Javelina Leap Petite Syrah (Arizona)

Black Mountain Vineyards 2006 Pinot Noir (California)

Gaetano D'Aquino Valpolicella (Italy)

List of Beers Tried

By popular demand, I give everybody the Gillett beer list. It is in no order...at all. I'll add some ratings of very special beers, but this is the general list.

-G

Stone Arrogant Bastard Ale

Stone Levitation Ale

Stone Pale Ale

Stone 8^th Anniversary Ale

Stone 9^th Anniversary Ale

Stone Vertical Epic 04-04-04

Stone Vertical Epic 05-05-05

Stone Vertical Epic 06-06-06

Stone Smoked Porter

Stone Ruination I.P.A (10)

Stone Old Guardian Barley Wine

Stone Double Bastard

Stone Oaked Arrogant Bastard

Stone Imperial Russian Stout

Alesmith Speedway Stout

Alesmith Grand Cru

Alesmith Yule Smith (Summer)

Delirium Tremmens

Pabst Blue Ribbon

Samuel Adams Black Lager (20)

Samuel Adams Boston Lager

Samuel Adams Boston Ale

Samuel Adams Oktoberfest

Samuel Adams Hefeweizen

Samuel Adams Brown Ale

Sierra Nevada Pale Ale

Sierra Nevada Porter

Sierra Nevada Stout

Alaskan ESB

Alaskan Stout (30)

Alaskan Summer Ale

Alaskan Pale

Kirin Ichiban

Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Urbock

Corona Extra

Corona Light

Pacifico Clara

Dos Equis Special Lager

Pizza Port Old Viscosity

Guinness Draught (40)

Guinness Extra Stout

Bass Pale Ale

Victory Golden Monkey

Coors

Coors Light

Rolling Rock

Heineken

Heineken Light

Negra Modelo

Bear Republic Big Bear Black Stout (50)

BJ’s Blonde

BJ’s PM Porter

BJ’s Tatonka Stout

Newcastle Brown Ale

St Peter’s Cream Stout

BJ’s Harvest Hefeweisen

BJ’s Jeremiah Red

BJs Piranha Pale Ale

Oggi’s Black Magic Stout

Fosters Lager (60)

Michelob Ultra

Michelob Amber Bock

Amstel Light

O’Douls

Miller Sharps

Bud Light

Budweiser

Mississippi Mud Black & Tan

North Coast Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout

Miller Genuine Draft (70)

Miller Lite

Fuller’s London Porter

Bayhawk Hefe Weizen

Widmer Hefeweizen

Young’s Double Chocolate Stout

Lost Coast Downtown Brown

Bayhawk Chocolate Porter

Maredsous 10

Sam Adams Old Fezziwig Ale

Baltika 4 Originalnoe (Original) (80)

Baltika 3 Klassicheskoe (Classic)

Tinkoff Zolotoe (Tinkov Lager)

Marin San Quentins Breakout Stout

Baltika 6 Porter

Hofbräu Münchner Kindl Weissbier (Hefe Weizen)

Paulaner Premium Pils

Schönramer Gold

Weihenstephaner Hefe Weissbier

Hopf Dunkle Weiße

Hopf Weißer Bock (90)

Reutberger Klosterbier Export Hell

Reutberger Klosterbier Export Dunkel

Schneider Aventinus

Pizza Port Sharkbite Red

Moylans Moylander Double IPA

Moylans Kilt Lifter Scotch Ale

Orval

Deschutes Black Butte Porter

Schneider Weisse Original

Russian River Damnation (100)

Stone 10th Anniversary IPA

Erdinger Weissbier (Hefe-Weizen)

Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Urbock

Westmalle Dubbel

Rochefort Trappistes 10

Green Flash Nut Brown Ale

Pizza Port High Tide IPA

Pizza Port Old Viscosity

Pizza Port Wipeout IPA

Ballast Point Dorado Double IPA (110)

Lost Abbey Lost and Found

AleSmith Horny Devil

Lindemans Pêche Lambic (Pêcheresse)

Schneider Weisse Edel-Weisse

Westmalle Tripel

Stella Artois

Trader Joes Vintage Ale 2006

Samuel Adams Cream Stout

Marin Hefe Weiss

Pizza Port Santas Little Helper (120)

Chimay Rouge (Red)

Samuel Adams Winter Lager

Chimay Bleue (Blue)

Petrus Oud Bruin

Daleside Monkey Wrench Strong Ale

Wychwood Hobgoblin

Marstons Pedigree

Adnams Broadside Strong Original

Adnams The Bitter

Black Sheep Ale (130)

Meantime London Porter

Meantime India Pale Ale

Lost Abbey Avant Garde Ale

Affligem Noël (Christmas Ale)

Samuel Adams Cherry Wheat

Anderson Valley Brother Davids Triple

Unibroue La Terrible

Wasatch Superior Ale

Delirium Noël

Ridgeway Lump of Coal (140)

Hofbräu München Original

Chimay Blanche (White)

Blue Moon Belgian White Ale

BJs Owens IPA

AleSmith YuleSmith (Winter) Imperial Red Ale

Witkap Pater Singel

AleSmith IPA

Oggis Torrey Pines IPA

Anderson Valley Brother Davids Double

AleSmith J.P. Grays Wee Heavy Scotch Ale (150)

Lindemans Framboise

Alaskan Smoked Porter

North Coast Brother Thelonious

Allagash White

Ommegang Witte

Allagash Tripel Reserve

Affligem Triple

Allagash Curieux

Kasteelbier Donker

Allagash Grand Cru (160)

Corsendonk Pater (Abbey Brown Ale)

Moylans IPA

Moylans Hopsickle Imperial India Pale Ale

Moylans Irish Red Ale

Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier Dunkel

Heather Ales Fraoch

Flying Dog Snake Dog IPA

Flying Dog Wild Dog Double Pale Ale

Avery Collaboration Not Litigation

De Dolle Stille Nacht (170)

Schneider Aventinus Weizen-Eisbock

St. Bernardus Abt 12

Lagunitas Cappuccino Stout

Schloss Eggenberg Samichlaus Bier

Bear Republic Hop Rod Rye Ale

Youngs Dirty Dicks Ale

Delirium Nocturnum

Mickeys Fine Malt Liquor

Steel Reserve 211 High Gravity

Natural Light (180)

Flying Dog Wild Dog Colorado Saison

Hanssens Oude Gueuze

Jolly Pumpkin Oro de Calabaza

AleSmith Old Numbskull

Black Flag Imperial Stout

Flying Dog Extra Special Gonzo

Flying Dog Gonzo Imperial Porter

St. Bernardus Tripel

A Treat

So this last Tuesday we headed over to Vin de Pays for their monthly beer tasting. As usual, there were some phenomenal beers and there were some unexciting ones. We did, however, get the rare opportunity to try an as-yet unreleased specialty by Flying Dog which they're calling Extra Special Gonzo. It was brought over by Jared, a regular at the shop who has worked for Flying Dog in the past (and many thanks to you, Jared). This stuff was bottled on July 31 of '06, and is a twist on their Gonzo Imperial Porter , which had a figlike sweetness to it.

The ESG was dark, but beyond that had very little in common with it's parent recipe. The difference is that the ESP is brewed with Brytanomicies Yeast (no information available, someone help me out) and aged in new American oak barrels. This produces hints of lambic in here, a rather intense citrusy sourness on the front of the tongue. Coupled with this is the faint flavor of either soy or fish sauce, which is kept from being overwhelming by the sourness/citrus overtones, as well as by the light sweetness carried over from the original recipe. This beer is rather viscous. My one note for this recipe is that it needs a bit more carbonation to bring it down a little.

This isn't a beer I would buy or drink regularly. It is, however, definitely worth checking out once it's been released. It's interesting, complex, and not at all what one would expect from a dark beer. I am tempted to buy a bottle when it's available just to let it sit for a year or two to see how it ages.

-Caine