Rinascimento Wine Co at Cheese Store of Beverly Hills : Ze Pinot Trio

So the lovely people at Cheese Store of Beverly Hills (www.cheesestorebh.com) were nice enough to invite me to participate in their monthly cheese and wine tasting, which this month was centered on the Pinot Noir grape and its progeny, Pinot Gris (or Grigio if you are Italian) and Pinot Blanc (or Weisser Burgunder, if you happen to be Austrian!)

A great time was had by all and I showed 3 wines of the 6 presented that night. The Stadlmann Weisser Burgunder 2007 from Thermenregion, Austria, the Domaine Roland Schmitt Pinot Gris from Alsace, France and the Ronco Severo Pinot Grigio from Friuli, Italy, made in a "Ramato" style (i.e. fermented on the skins to get a nice copper color.)

Below is a little photo essay made from fantastice pictures taken by Anja of the Cheese Store of Beverly Hills . . . of course she could have made me a little thinner, but who is nitpicking?

Some selections of cheeses: munster, epoisses


2008 Domaine Roland Schmitt Pinot Gris

Yah, that would be me yakking . . .


and me yakking some more and lifting my feet . . .


and people listening to me yak some more . . .


who knew I was pigeon toed?


mmmmmmm, fig cake .....


Munster d'Alsace to go with the Pinot Gris


the famous Epoisses to go with the red burgundy


Big Munster!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


the Cheese people treat me so well. Tony even pronounced
the name of my company correctly . . . 3 times!

beautiful summer evening with the roof open at Sharky's


The Ronco Severo of course was the most controversial wine of the night. No one had ever seen Pinot Grigio with that color or taste or smell before. Since the wine is fermented on the skins just like a red wine, it has the color of the grapes and of Pinot Grigio grapes at harvest are almost the color of copper. Plus, the wine has some tannins from the skins making it perfect for cheese and other fatty foods, but at the same time, quite disturbing for the uninitiated. Let's just say that I was dancing as fast as I could to get these people to look at the wine and Pinot Grigio through a different lens than they normally would. Tough but I made a few converts.


The Stadlmann Weisser Burgunder was the revelation of the night. Crisp, almost salty in its minerality, it showed the best of what Austrian white wines can be when grown in the right areas by the right people. Just lovely.

A good time was definitely had by all and thanks again to all the guys and gals at Cheese Store of Beverly Hills for being such great friends to me and Rinascimento Wine Company.

Domaine Balivet Bugey Cerdon

I've been showing this wine around for a few days now and the response has been incredible. What a great summer wine for barbeques and for charcuterie or salumi! The soft, slightly off-dry fruitness is the exact antidote for the salty and smokey meats. Slightly rose` colored but with great acidity.

With Lambrusco making a comeback and Moscato d'Asti in the wings, I would count this is the next best wine for people looking for a great quaffing, festive wine of summer.

Producer: Domaine Balivet (Organic)

Region: Savoie

Wine: NV Bugey Cerdon Méthode Ancéstrale

Very fresh and zesty, this wine is a fabulous addition to just about any occasion.

Low alcohol (8%), off-dry and unique. It shows good minerality and acidity in the mouth with fresh grape aromas in the nose.

From Michael Sullivan, Beaune Imports:

In the foothills of the Alps northeast Lyon exists a little-known winegrowing area named Bugey Cerdon. Bugey is the area and Cerdon is a small town within. In this samll region a handfull of dedicated growers continue to produce a wonderfully refreshing, off-dry rosé sparkling wine, the Méthode Ancéstrale. When entering the region by car, unlike other winemaking regions of France, it is not readily obvious where the grapes are grown or in fact, if there are grapes at all. The vineyards, once spotted, appear to be small patches or clearings on the high slopes of the steep hillsides, generally facing south. Without a local winemaker, access to these vineyards would be impossible. This unique wine can be made from a variety of different grapes, but most are made from same Gamay that is grown in nearby Beaujolais. The wine is bottled during the primary fermentation when the alcohol level is roughly 6%. The fermentation continues until the pressure inside the bottle stops the fermentation at around 8%. This is basically the same process as artisanal cider production.

We stumbled upon this wine in a wonderful farmhouse-restaurant in the hills above Beaune. La Ferme de la Ruchotte serves only meats, eggs and dairy that they raise and their wine list is exceptional. Mostly organic, very reasonably priced and highly eclectic.

Vincent Balivet and his family are one of only a couple of organic growers in the area, and they produce but one wine.

'97 Prager Gruner Veltliner Smaragd Achleiten.jpg

Just all wet stones and yellow flowers who so much acidity it hurts. Still very young. Tropical flowers in the nose. Really quite good.
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1988 Domaine Hubert de Montille Pommard Pezerolles 1er Cru

Out of Magnum. Holy cow! This wine is all old truffles and spices in the nose with cherry and smooth tannins in the mouth. Juicy and rich but with some backbone. Just a beautiful long finish.
Unbelievable.
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Hwy 5 Rest Stop

Driving down Highway 5 late at night after working the San Francisco market for two days.

Tiring but sold a good amount of wine so I am happy
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Tasting the new Campo Catturesi with Cipriano and Antonio Barsanti

Macea . . .