A wine term - “CLOS”
I was sitting at my desk the other day thinking about the “rare grape series” that I’ve been writing over the last year, and it occured to me that a similar series featuring wine terminology (especially foreign language terms) might also be entertaining as well as interesting for one and all, no? And so we proceed…
The FIRST wine term in this new series is the French word “CLOS” (pronounced “Cloh”). I’m relatively confident that most of you have seen this term on labels from everywhere in the world, but the term is most closely associated with France (it’s a French word after all), an even more particularly, with Burgundy, though it is by no means exclusive to this region.
So what DOES it mean? It’s a very simple, but still very specific meaning - the term “clos” refers to nothing more or less than a walled vineyard. Intuitively, one knows that simply putting a wall around a vineyard doesn’t actually DO anything for the vines, but it definitely is a SYMBOL for something, and that something is prestige and quality. French wines that include term “clos” are “select” wines. Think about it - if you put a wall around your vineyard, you’re clearly calling attention to it, and apart from the protection that the wall provides from the “rabble”, and some grape-eating four-legged critters, the attention the grower is seeking is recognition for the unique and finer qualities of that particular site, and a wall gives such a powerful visual symbol to all who see it. Further, the ability to use this word on one’s labels conveys the same level of prestige to the buyer and drinker that it does to the local who can actually eyeball the old pile of bricks in situ…
Just as an aside, in Catalunya, the word is “closa”, and in the Veneto region of Italy, the word “brolo” is used to mean the same as “clos”.
TOM CIOCCO
Everybody’s trying to get into the act…
Ninty-some percent of the lands under vine are found, not surprisingly, in vitis vinifera’s traditional homelands that range from certain pockets in the near east out as far as Portugal. As I said, no surprise - the vine has had thousands upon thousands of years to populate this part of the world.
And only until about 400 years ago, this was the ONLY place one could have found the vine being cultivated. But with the rise of the age of European colonialism, these old time wine cultures, in an attempt to re-create each nation’s respective wine cultures in their new lands (surprising to many, South Africa was the first place in the “New World” in which the vine was extensively cultivated!), “New World” wine was born: The aforementioned South Africa, the South American countries, the United States, Australia, New Zealand, etc. And before the first root was sunken into the earth in any of these places, none of them had any more connection with the vine than Timbuktu’s DPW now has with snow ploughs, apart from just one thing: CLIMATE. All of the viticultural areas in the “old” New World were climatically similar if not nearly identical with climate zone from which the vine originated. Certainly there are some differences, and I guess that it could be said that if one looks at the extremes, some fairly significant ones to be sure, but at the end of the day, there have always been more similarities than differences.
But now the world is witnessing the birth of “New New World” wines, and like James Brown said “…comin’ from some funny places…” too. The new New World wines that are spilling onto the scene are emanating from places like Brazil, Virginia, China, India, and even Thailand! So I guess that the obvious question is “why”? Well, the first reason is now they can. As both vineyard and cellar technologies make advances in clonal selection, soil and pest management, engineered yeasts, temperature controls, etc., etc., regions that for reasons of climate and soil that had always been off limits for vine growers have been put within reach for local and adventuresome farmers. With contemporary technology, India is no longer impossibly hot, and Thailand is too humid no more…
The main IMPETUS however for the creation of these “New New World” wines, if there can be said to be just ONE, is at least for my mind, seated in the attempt to generate status and prestige. Like it or not, wine is a powerful symbol worldwide for affluence, sophistication, and education. Wine-producing countries are also often considered to be among the world’s most respected and sophisticated, and it is thought that developing a wine culture can be a shortcut to such global prestige, and this may be right, but this path is clearly fraught with dangers…If these wine newbies can begin, after of course the requisite start-up difficulties that any new winery faces, to produce decent or better wines, there is an equally decent chance that at least among the local gentry, that the winery will survive if for no other reason than from local pride. But, if these wineries that are, let’s face it, fighting mother nature, cannot produce a product that is worthy of export, they will survive as little more than local curiosities, or worse, might slowly slide down the slope of diminishing returns into eventual oblivion. Running a successful winery in California or Argentina or New Zealand is hard enough without the added difficulties of a less-than-cooperative terroir, and a local culture that has little to no historical interest in anything as esoteric and expensive as wine…
So what is the future for Chinese wine, for example? Right now, it’s hard to say. The initial successes have been there for some producers in these non-traditional wine growing areas, but the question remains whether this is just a fad or a curiosity for the local markets, or if indeed these upstart producers are truly on the threshold of making wine a fully GLOBAL phenomenon. Can these folks produce a product that is either priced properly and/or offers enough unique characteristics to cut a sustainable channel into the market? If so, they’ve got a chance, but for now, if I were betting on it, I’d wager that this is one sun-drenched slope that might be just a bit too steep for most growers in Maharastra or Chiang Rai to climb…we shall see…
TOM CIOCCO
Croatina - The grape that shall remain mis-named
The “Rare grape series” continues…In this installment, we consider…Croatina…
Croatina - the name almost always “isn’t”, but the grape most definitely “is”…so what the hell am I talking about? Well, first things first - Croatina is a black grape that hails from the confluence of the borders of the three northern Italian regions of Lombardia, the Emilia part of Emilia Romagna, and Piedmont. So back to the nomenclature…Croatina is the most proper name for this grape, though there are very few producers that actually use this name (it’s a long story). The name that they DO use most often is BONARDA. “So what’s in a name?” you ask? Well, in many cases the subjects still do smell as sweet, but in this case we’ve got something rotten in the state of Italy (sorry)…
The essence of the problem here is that there are four different varieties called “Bonarda”, but in fact there is only one TRUE Bonarda. First, we’ve got our subject, Croatina. Next, there is a variety called “Bonarda Novarese” which is also not true Bonarda but rather a variety most properly called Uva Rara. Then there is the Argentinian variety with the moniker “Bonarda”. This grape is actually a variety called Charbonneaux (AKA California’s Charbono). And then (drumroll) there is the REAL Bonarda, which is most fully called “Bonarda Piemontese”. It is an aromatic variety…
OK, enough writing about things OTHER than our subject. Croatina is a thick-skinned variety that buds and ripens late, and produces very deeply colored wines that are more tannic than acidic, but are often known for a supple, dense, dark fruit with good tannic grip. Croatina often shows aromas and flavors of plums, black cherry, and ground cloves.
The Craotina grape appears most commonly in the Oltrepo` Pavese DOC, but it makes an appearance with Barbera playing a supporting role in the Gutturnio DOC, and in the excruciatingly obscure San Colombano del Lambro, Colli di Parma appellations in Emilia, and the Bramaterra, Colline Novaresi, and Coste della Sesia appellations in Piemonte.
Croatina pairs well with egg pastas with meat and tomato sauces, boiled and roasted poultry, especially the more “noble” varieties (turkey, duck, pheasant, et al.), beans with sausages, and salamis.
The link below will take you to the two Croatina wines (yes, I know, they’re labelled as Bonarda - I thought that we went over this;-)) As always, if you pick one or both (or some other) of these wines up, please post your tasting notes here as comments.
TOM CIOCCO
Punching up leftovers
Hey folks! Though summer is always the slowest time of the year on the wineseller’s calendar, somewhat oddly, I’ve been extra busy…Today’s topic is leftovers. Exciting right? Actually, I’m not kidding…Sometimes, maybe even most times, I think we all just pull out the Tupperware, dump the leavings on a plate, nuke it, and then eat the thing while fixing a thousand yard stare at the telephone. But why not try to make it interesting? Here’s how…Empty your refrigerator of the still “safe” edibles - the sauces, the meats, pastas, vegetables, etc. Now start thinking RECOMBINATION! Hmmmm…I’ve got this basic tomato sauce that I used to braise a piece of beef Saturday and there’s at least 3/4 lb. of the beef itself relaxing in the sauce, and (look, pick, look) I’ve got these peas that are still in fine shape, and there are an aging bunch of carrots that desperately need eating…hmmm…AHAH! Remove the beef from the sauce. Add the peas. Check the seasoning, boil up some pasta, and you’ve got a “new” first course. Now, shred up the braised beef in the food processor (pulse it), add an egg or two, some bread soaked in milk and then squeezed dry, a mixed handful of those bunches of slightly tired herbs that I KNOW you’ve got in the fridge, a chopped clove of garlic, and some S&P. Now, make up some hamburger-shaped patties (in Italian they’re called “polpette”), dust them with breadcrumbs that you made from your OWN stale bread (I HOPE - Why buy breadcrumbs? Stale bread will give them to you at no extra cost AND with better quality - just spin the crap out of some cubed-up HARD stale bread), and then fry them in a thin layer of olive oil. In the meantime, steam up the carrots, and grab that lemon from out of the bottom fridge drawer, slice it up, and serve it on the side of the polpette.
What I just outlined doesn’t even require you to leave the damned house, and sometimes, that’s just what you need, right? Now clearly, things are not always going to work out so swimmingly, and it also might take a few “misses” in recombination before you learn what goes with what, but that’s the point, right? LEARN how to eat frugally by being CREATIVE!
…A wine sidebar…Since I often match dishes with their regional wines, my wine selections are often clear and well planned. But, when one is just re-working leftovers, one often ends up with a result that is not clearly “Provencal” or “Tuscan” or “Hungarian”. So facing this set of facts often frees me up from sticking to the “rules”, giving me the opportunity to try some “unorthodox” pairings…
A friend of my wife’s recently told her that she doesn’t eat leftovers - that whatever her family doesn’t eat just goes into the garbage. To me, that’s shameful, but I can understand why eating 5 day old pork stew might not get you very exicted, but if you learn how to appetizingly “re-work” your leftovers, you’ll ease the burden considerably. Give it a try…
TOM CIOCCO
stand on more legs (and fins and wings and roots…)
Yesterday, Sunday, I cooked a rabbit. Rabbit is not in our weekly cooking rotation (quite upsettingly, price is a factor here, but that’s another story), but it is something I’ll pull out for weekend action from time to time. As some of you may remember, I’m quite an admirer of all things Basque, food in particular. I had laid in a bottle of Txakoli, and I still have the better part of a case of the exceedingly rare RED Txakoli made from 100 year-old Hondarribi Beltza (red Hondarribi) vines that I specially ordered for myself some months ago. So with these two wines as my guide to plan our dinner, I began poking through the pantry, the fridge, a pile of books, and then put in a half hour or so in front of the computer. So after a little back and forth with myself, I decided on a bonito tuna (line caught) salad with piquillo peppers, scallions, and thyme over Boston lettuce dressed with a sherry vinegar vinaigrette. The main course, as previously stated, was rabbit stewed in a walnut and chocolate sauce (apparently a very old recipe from Alava province). And, just to be cheeky, I served smothered carrots on the side. These are the details - now to the point…
Now I’m sure that very few of you give a toss about what I eat for dinner, but strangely, I care about what you eat…hmm… Without wasting any more of your time, my point here is, in two words, COMESTIBLE DIVERSIFICATION. Though this idea might be controversial amongst the hardcore vegetarian and vegen set, I’ve both heard and read that the lightest “footprint” that one can leave on Mother Nature is to eat EVERYTHING ORGANIC, and to me that makes good sense. Let me clarify this idea - the emphasis is on both words here. The “organic” part is fairly cut and dried. The “everything” part however is just as important, but perhaps not as self-explanatory. By “everything” we mean just that - things that fly, swim, slither, run, hop, AND grow from trees, shrubs, vines, plants, roots, even from under the sea - EVERYTHING!
The rule or philosophy in play here can be analogized to a heavy object, and how that object stands itself upright. If this object has only one leg, that one leg would HAVE TO be a spike that penetrated deeply into the earth to allow this object to stand. This analogy could be said to represent an olde schoole “beef and potatoes” uncle for example - you know, the guy who thinks that chicken is for sissies, lamb is for foreigners, and vegetables for rabbits. Now take the same “heavy object” analogy to the other extreme…support this same object with many different “legs” (read “foods”) - not only beef, but pork, chicken, lamb, goat, rabbit, frogs, fish, duck, pheasant, squid, octopus, snails, as well as every which kind of green, pulse, legume, fruit, and tuber etc., etc. When you support this “weight” with eighteen legs rather than one, each leg “penetrates” (read “damages”) MUCH less deeply into the earth, AND affords the eater with that many more different and interesting and tasty things to eat! Think about it a little more - goats like one type of terrain, food, etc., cattle another, and geese yet another. Potatoes can be grown in harsh, cold climates, while guavas need lots of heat and rain. If we eat EVERYTHING, we create the need for eighteen different farms (not just one), AND if all of these farms are organic, whatever damage is done from land clearing is notably reduced.
In the end we all eat what we like to eat, but when given a chance to try something new - animal, vegetable, or even mineral - give it a try - the land (and health) you save may be your own.
TOM CIOCCO
