Very easy drinking and immediately approachable. Excellent restaurant choice…good price…no decanting required. A rich nose of black cherry, dark spice and dark chocolate. A jammy mouth-feel but interestingly lean on the finish with soft tannins and balanced acidity. Flavors of cherry and plum with a bit of raspberry and spice with espresso on the finish. Buy This Wine
An excellent value Pinot Noir with a rich, round and soft texture. A bouquet of red plum and raspberry with notes of herb and espresso. Soft tannins with flavors of red berry fruit, plum raspberry and ripe strawberry. An intriguing franco-earthiness in the finish. Buy This Wine
A lush full mouth-feel (typical Carneros Chardonnay body) with plenty of acidity to keep things interesting, especially at the $20 price point. An intriguing nose of apple, pear and citrus with notes of caramel and a hint of nuttiness. The palate is treated to flavors of pear and pineapple with added notes of caramel and minerality. Great with food or as a stand-alone sipper. Buy This Wine
We had the opportunity during the 2012 Aspen Food and Wine Classic to sit down with the stylish and charming Jean-Charles Boisset of Boisset Family Estates. To refer to Jean-Charles, Wine Enthusiast Magazine 2009 Wine Innovator of the Year, as a “force of nature,” may be selling short his infectious enthusiasm accompanied by his passion for life and wine. Jean-Charles is a powerful blend of Old World sensibilities and New Word zeal.
Born in Vougeot, in the heart of Burgundy to a winemaking family, Jean-Charles came to the U.S. as a teenager to complete high school. From there he obtained his undergraduate degree from the London Business School and his MBA from UCLA. It was during his MBA studies that he decided to expand his family’s French winery holdings to California. Today Boisset Family Estates is the largest Pinot Noir producer in Burgundy and the third largest winery operation in France. In California, they operate 11 wineries and labels including Raymond Vineyards, DeLoach Vineyards, Lyeth Estate, Lockwood Vineyard, JCB and Buena Vista Winery. History is integral to Boisset wineries both here and abroad. Most of their acquisitions have some viticulture historical significance. As Jean-Charles said “we are here to share together a unique moment, not be manufacturers of a beverage.
Today, Jean-Charles resides in Napa Valley with his wife, winemaker Gina Gallo, of Gallo Family Vineyards and their toddling twin daughters. Continue reading »
We had no plans to attend. We didn’t even expect to be in town so we made no effort to get press credentials for the Aspen Food and Wine Classic 2012 until it was far too late. But the best times, as we learned, can happen with a total lack of planning…but always include wine.
Since one of our sons was home from college working at his restaurant management internship, we decided to cut our travels short and return to Denver earlier than expected. Over the previous two weeks a number of kind wineries and winemakers had sent invitations to your humble bloggers for off-site Aspen parties. So after a little effort we booked a small condo in Snowmass, 8 miles away, and decided “who needs the fancy tents anyway…we have wine parties to attend!” In all honesty, next year I really want event tickets after seeing what I could from afar. Continue reading »
