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Don't miss our older newsletters which contain tasting tips and other valuable information! Volume 4, Issue 3 August 2004 A Field Trip to Provence
Last June I traveled to southern
France to rendezvous with Tom Byrnes of T. Edward Wines, founder/owner
of my New York wine distribution company, and his staff as well as about
35 restaurateurs and wine store managers to celebrate T. Edward's 10-year
anniversary. Just imagine a bunch of wine people, mainly from the New York,
New Jersey and Connecticut area, visiting wineries in Châteauneuf-du-Pape,
Gigondas, Vacqueyras and Bandol during the day and then A couple of winemakers who
I met that stood out for me were Cécile Dussere of Domaine de Montvac
in Vacqueyras and Cédric Gravier of Domaine la Suffrene in Bandol.
Cécile Dussere makes delicious Vacqueyras and Gigondas from She produces a wonderful rosé that she makes by drawing off or "bleeding off" a small amount of rosé juice from the red wine fermentation tanks, pre-fermentation. If there was one thing I wanted to learn on this trip - it was the methods used to produce rosé. When making rosé at Domaine la Suffrene for example, Cédric Gravier puts red grapes directly into press and extracts the juice right away, or overnight, to make a lighter wine in terms of tannin, yet in a region of warmth and high-ish alcohols. There are different shades of rosé ranging in color from light salmon to cranberry depending on the ripeness of the grape and length of skin contact time. I respect and enjoy the lighter color-style of the wines from Bandol, but I believe the American consumer looks for a more light cranberry color fuller bodied rosé. In almost all cases the rosé wines pair well with most cuisine, especially the cuisine of Provence, like steamed zucchini, complete with flower, covered in a creamy mushroom sauce, or a simple corn, green pepper, egg and cheese tart, or guinea fowl in a Bordelaise sauce. One of the sommeliers from New York mentioned that rosé is one of the few wines that goes well with tomato dishes. As way of confession, I enjoyed the entire last night of my stay to watch the night-time sky, the quietness of countryside Provence, and witness the sun rising the day of my departure. Speaking of Rosé!
It's that time of the year for rosé. It's perfect as a summertime, refreshing, flavorful wine that matches well with a range of dishes from hearty green salads with or without grilled fish, to dishes emphasizing tomatoes or grilled meats cooked outside on a wood fired grill. Did I mention that I produce and sell one called Flying Cloud Syrah Rosé? It's put into a clear bottle and displays a beautiful light cranberry color accented by a blue capsule. Not only is it beautiful to look at, it's very expressive in its raspberry fruity perfume, and it's light and refreshing, like white wine, with just enough acidity to compliment warm weather cuisine; for best results, served chilled. Stephen Ross 2003 Barrel Adopter/Futures Offering We are offering the 2003 vintage Adopt-A-Barrel program and the opportunity to purchase two cases of futures plus dinner at a great price. Current price is $650. The investment period is approximately 8 months, and all of the wines will be available at the annual dinner next spring. After recently putting together the 2003 Edna Valley Chardonnay blend, it is perhaps the prettiest, richest, most graceful and flavorful white wines that I've produced in the Edna Valley. The benefits of the program
are two cases of wine (three assortments from which to choose) and two
invitations to the Barrel Adopters' Dinner on April 23, 2005. Additionally,
you will have the opportunity to purchase (at one-third off retail) Stephen
Ross wines as they are released. The Barrel Adopters' dinner is truly a
gourmet feast prepared by Chef José Dahan, arguably the best chef
on the Central Coast. If you would like to participate, please call me
at 805.594.1318 or go to www.stephenrosswine.com to register on line.
Vintage 2004 - Perfection, So Far We anticipate a superb vintage
this fall. Last winter was cold, rainfall was low at 18 inches, and bud
break occurred in early New Release - 2002 Bien Nacido Vineyard Pinot Noir The 2002 vintage was superb with slightly cooler than average temperatures, a few overcast days with high humidity, but no rainfall, and below average rainfall during the previous winter. The wine is dark ruby in color and has aromas of raspberry, black cherry, cocoa, allspice and white pepper. There is a powerful, lingering core of "small red berries" in the flavor with a hint of roasted coffee beans. It has a vibrant mouth-feel, lively flavors and firm refined silky tannins. Stephen Ross Upcoming Events - 2004/2005 November 4-5 Wine
November 6
For information call 805.541.5868 or go to www.slowine.com March 4-5
For information call 805.489.1758 or go to www.worldofpinotnoir.com April 25
"One day we will have
to admit that the health of human beings and their creativity is linked
to a large extent to their food; and that quality is mainly made by life
forces which cannot be seen with microscopes" - Nicolas Joly, Proprietor
of Clos de la Coulée de Serrant a biodynamic vineyard in France.
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dining
together at night enjoying French cuisine and drinking French and Californian
wine, Stephen Ross included. For me, as a winemaker who loves to travel,
loves really good food and wine, and has a craving to learn more about
wine and how it can be improved upon, this was a trip not to be missed.
We stayed outside of the town of Aix-en-Provence. The T. Edward staff and
salespeople stayed in a 17 bedroom Chateau, which also served as the site
for dinners, swimming, tennis, etc., etc! The rest of us stayed at a small
hotel nearby the 
Chateau.
The beauty of Provence in June is the weather and the landscape. We enjoyed
moderately warm days and mild nights. The combination of vineyards, olive
groves, fruit orchards and green hillsides was soothing to the soul.
Grenache,
Syrah and Mourvedre. Her red wines see no new oak; in fact she ferments
her white wine in new barrels and afterwards uses the barrels to age red
wine.
March.
Although we had a few days of temperatures near 100 during early May, the
summer was mild. The crop size is low to average - we "balanced the vine"
by removing weak shoots and dropping green immature clusters at color change.
The bird nets are up, so at this point we monitor the water needs of the
vines and prepare for harvest.