Seven Concannon Wines

"Seven Concannon Wines" sounds like an old Irish folk song. My grandmother has dabbled in this music on the hammered dulcimer and a few other traditional instruments. When I first encountered Concannon in the form of a Petite Sirah at a tasting, I was struck by the Irish name. Despite the long Catholic history of the island, the massive imports of wine from France during eras when England was sticking to Ports and Sherries from Spain, and a small indigenous industry, you just don't normally see Irish names associated with wine. But Concannon was founded by an Irish immigrant in the Livermore Valley back in 1883 and the family tradition continues today.

I'm not entirely Irish--my family comes from throughout the British Isles--but with the red beard and freckles and a tendency to sunburn anywhere outside of Seattle, I've got plenty of the blood of Éire running through my veins. When I was in Boston everyone thought I was a local. I don't get obnoxious during St. Patrick's Day (I'm a Protestant, which would complicate matters), but during that high school "wanting an identity" phase I got pretty heavy into the Scots-Irish part of the family tree. Songs were sung, kilts were worn, but I learned a lot of interesting history and developed a general wariness toward England.

Without further blathering and perhaps a teary rendition of "Danny Boy", I present a slate of Concannon wines that I've tried over the past few months:

2008 Concannon Conservancy Chardonnay
Livermore Valley
$15, 13.5% abv.
Apricot nose with a touch of butter and vanilla. A good example of California Chardonnay, and something that needs to be paired up with a strongly flavored poultry dish.

2007 Concannon Conservancy Petite Sirah
Livermore Valley
$15, 13.5% abv.
Dominant aromas of cassis and blackberry. Medium tannins, restrained fruit. Always one of my favorite bargain Petite Sirahs, and I'm glad to revisit it from time to time. Open this up some afternoon with leftover roast beef and horseradish sauce and enjoy a perfect wine/sandwich combination.

2009 Concannon Selected Vineyards Riesling
Central Coast
$10, 13.5% abv.
Light and crisp with a hint of lemony acidity. West coast Riesling can show up in a lot of different styles, but this is one that would be great with simple summer salads like the classic strawberry and spinach.

2007 Concannon Selected Vineyards Shiraz
Central Coast
$10, 13.5% abv.
This one isn't listed on the company website, and past reviews show both the Syrah and Shiraz spelling on labels along with mixed reviews. The sample I received was not the best example of Syrah I've tasted, and was too heavy on the tart side.

2009 Concannon Selected Vineyards Pinot Noir
Central Coast
$10, 13.5% abv.
Initially tart and strong, but it quickly softens in the glass. Boysenberry and a touch of bacon fat, a little bitter tannic finish, and a lighter red appearance. A basic introductory Pinot Noir, and not a bad deal for the price.

2009 Concannon Selected Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon
Central Coast
$10, 13.5% abv.
Bright raspberry aroma, touch of seeds, firm tannins and a long cherry finish. Man, I love that raspberry seed flavor in wine when it's just right. Not going to give a food pairing here, just saying this one should be enjoyed on its own for a nightcap.

2008 Concannon Selected Vineyards Merlot
Central Coast
$10, 13.5% abv.
Green bell peppers, tobacco, tart red cherry flavors. Mild tannins, a round body, and a short finish, where a little chocolate shows up. Halfway between Bordeaux and California. Excellent structure for such an inexpensive wine, and recommended for grilled steak or lamb.


Note: These wines were received as samples.

Two Petite Sirahs

Despite the fact that these two PS wines come from opposite ends of the earth, they use the same spelling. The whole (Petit ∨ Petite) ∧ (Sirah ∨ Syrah) ⇒ "a strong dark red wine" confusion hurts the grape overall and creates problems in inventories and web searches. Sales of PS wines could be huge but are potentially tracked as four separate varieties*.

There's no authoritative answer to this dilemma, so I always just go by what's printed on the bottle. But the abbreviation PS is growing on me, thanks in no small part to the advocacy group P.S. I Love You.

First up is the 2005 Big House Prodigal Son Petite Sirah. $13, 13.9% abv. Pure Petite Sirah from Paso Robles in California. Decanting is definitely recommended--it's got a powerful strawberry jam aroma that needs to blow off before you can properly enjoy it. Aromas of berries and tomato leaves, flavors of rare beef and black cherries. Strong, strong tannins. For some strange reason, this bottle is about an inch taller than other Bordeaux-style bottles.

This winery used to be owned by Bonny Doon, but was sold off a few years ago. The wines are still quirky and fun, though despite the rumors these are not actually produced by prisoners (I've covered real prison wine in a prior post).

Our second wine is directly opposite in body to the first one. The 2007 De Bortoli Petite Sirah is, as far as I know, the first time I've had this grape from Australia, and I hope it's not the last. $10, 13.5% abv. Earthy nose on top, with plum aromas. Surprisingly mellow with mild tannins and a pleasant cherry flavor. A delicate wine that tastes a few years older than its birthdate. Excellent bargain for the quality, and next time I'll try it with something more sophisticated than pizza.

*By Google popularity:
"petite sirah" - 402,000 results
"petite syrah" - 121,000 results
"petit sirah" - 36,500 results
"petit syrah" - 28,300 results

Trio of Petite Sirahs

Here's a handful of Petite Sirah reviews I've been sitting on for a bit...

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Regardless of how it's spelled, I almost never pass up a Petite Sirah. The 2005 Redtree Petite Sirah is from the Lake County AVA, California. $13, 12.5% abv. The bright red synthetic cork was a surprise, and it kind of reminds me of a shotgun shell without the brass jacket. Redtree take note: you've got an untapped market of duck hunters out there.

It's rich and jammy and chock full of blackberry flavors. Fairly light tannins, though a few show up on the aftertaste. The hunting idea above made me think that this would be great with something like a wild duck breast cooked with a splash of wine and a handful of hand-picked berries, either blueberries or mulberries depending on season. Or maybe grilled quail wrapped in bacon. Mmmmm...

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Around my house, "bad dog" is more of a nickname for the two household canines than a verbal punishment. So the label of this wine brought a smile to my face and I thought I'd give it a shot. 2005 Bad Dog Ranch Petite Sirah, $10, 12.5% abv. One of the dozens of labels held by the massive California-based Bronco Wine Company. Decent enough everyday Petite Sirah, with some blueberry and coffee elements.

In the foreground is a roast acorn squash, a frequent request from The Girlfriend. The old acorn squash is pretty versatile and one of them is perfect for one person as a side dish. I slice off the stem end, scoop out the seeds and strings, and then place the squash cut side down in a Pyrex dish. Add an inch of water and bake at 350°F until soft. After that you can do pretty much anything with it, but on this occasion we added butter and brown sugar and mashed up the inner squash flesh. I've also had good luck with olive oil, parmesan cheese, and fresh herbs.

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Paul and I got together for a guys' night a few weeks ago, and I popped open a bottle of the 2003 Marietta Petite Sirah from Geyserville, California. A fun blend of 88% Petite Sirah and 12% Syrah, about $12. A little grilled steak, some blanched white asparagus wrapped in paper-thin slices of coppa crudo, and a bit of potato salad.

The wine was a little dusty on the first whiff, but after a brief period of breathing, a lovely aroma of dark fruit opened up, mostly blackberry. Deep berry flavors followed, with a velvety mouthfeel and light tannins. This is an inexpensive wine that has aged beautifully and would probably hold up for a few more years. Natalie's in Cordova seemingly has the entire line of Marietta wines and I find myself picking up a bottle almost every time I drop by.

Wine & Port

Here's another $30 offering as I work my way through the Marietta catalog: the 2004 Marietta "Emilia's Cuvée", made in Mendocino County, California from the Montepulciano grape. An earthy, ashy aroma with elements of blackberries, giving way to a well-balanced, low tannin black cherry flavor. It proved a good match for the ribeyes, pasta salad, and standard Southern Waldorf salad. (As this was for guys' night, I was looking for full flavor and low preparation. Quick sear and bake on the meat, and the rest came from the deli. Delicious, and it hit the spot.) While a great wine on its own, I still prefer the Angeli Cuvée.

After dinner, it was time for something a little stronger. For a month I'd held on to the 2005 Bogle Petite Sirah Port from Clarksburg, California. I've long been a fan of Bogle and was delighted to see this entry into the market. $20 for a an elegant, wax-capped 500mL bottle. Only 23 barrels made! There are lots of wineries making domestic Ports from various non-traditional grapes, and this is the first I'd seen using Petite Sirah. (For more information on the controversy around using the name Port, check out Fredric's article.) It's a ruby style Port, and was actually quite mild for a fortified wine. In fact, it was much like a very strong red wine. There were nice cherry elements, but overall it was bold and youthful. We had it with some Stilton (couldn't hold up to that cheese), but with organic dark chocolate it was a winner.

Following that, we had to have a bit of the 20 Year Old Sandeman Tawny Port, which showed proper maturity and complexity and was a perfect match for the Stilton. Between the two there is no comparison, yet the Bogle remains a good choice for desserts like cheesecake or simple chocolate and fruit.

2002 Jewel Petite Sirah

I love Petite Sirah, and while it's starting to be taken more seriously, it's still possible to get decent bargain bottles. For instance, the 2002 Jewel Petite Sirah, Lodi, California. $6. Dark and jammy, low tannins, blueberry, plums, and leather. Has held up remarkably well for an inexpensive wine.

I served it with a lamb and beef chili (a pound of each, diced shoulder and chuck respectively). Purists eschew the use of beans in chili, but I soaked a half pound of red kidney beans overnight and added them part of the way through cooking. Most important addition: a can of my new favorite ingredient, Muir Glen Fire Roasted Tomatoes.

Otherwise there was nothing particularly special about this batch of chili, but it was great for a rainy day. I finished it off with some Jamaican Pickapeppa sauce, which is nice and tangy with just a little heat. I've seen it described as Jamaican ketchup, but it reminds me of A-1 Steak Sauce with a nicer flavor and sharper bite. I find myself putting a dab on a finger every now and then just to taste it. Too bad it's not available locally in bigger bottles!

2004 Clay Station Petite Sirah

I've spent a good bit of the day working on a classic French beef stock, with the goal of eventually making demi-glace. Aside from that, I managed to come across a great sale on some Delmonico cuts of boneless ribeye, so I got one thick one for me and a thin one for the roommate who prefers her steaks well done. With mine, I had a glass or two of the 2004 Clay Station Petite Sirah, purchased for a song at $8. Apparently this winery is putting out a series of "emerging varietals", including things like Viognier and Malbec. The Petite Sirah is good, but not as strong as I generally like it. Smooth on the beginning and fully tannic on the end, with notes of cherry and blueberry. I'm anxious to try their other offerings, and appreciate this attempt to bring lesser known grapes into the mainstream. Though with my eclectic palate, these hardly count as unusual. Where's the Negroamaro and Kadarka?

Back to the stock: there's a tradition in restaurants or in households 200 years ago of keeping a kettle slightly boiling all the time. In the modern era, we normally see this with activities like making stock or soup. I roasted a bunch of beef soup bones, carrots, celery, and onion earlier, and added them to the enameled cast iron Dutch oven with a lot of cold, filtered water. I added some peppercorns, sprigs of rosemary and oregano (I don't have any fresh thyme on hand), and have been skimming the broth every hour or so. And when my roommate and I both had leftovers from our steaks, I tossed them in the pot. A couple of green beans got in there? No problem! I picked a couple of ripe tomatoes earlier, rinsed them and crushed them by hand into the sauce. Seriously, I've read incredible stories about what goes into the stock at commercial kitchens. Carrot peels, the inedible portions of the cow, leftovers from the sausage mill... All I can say is, the stock smells awesome and I haven't even strained it yet. Reduced down into proper demi-glace... I can hardly wait.

2003 Bogle Phantom & Happy Birthday Paul!

Dinner tonight was a spur of the moment idea. I had a bottle of wine sitting around waiting for the proper meal. I had a 1.25 lb ribeye resting in the fridge. It was my best friend's birthday (or close to it), and my biggest tomato had reached a state of perfect ripeness. Some would call this a perfect storm; I called it dinner. I dropped Paul an e-mail last night, he responded in the affirmative, and dinner was on.

Nothing special was done with the meat, aside from the usual ground pepper and kosher salt on the outside, as well as letting it rest at room temperature for half an hour before being grilled over hot coals until nicely rare. The tomato shown in the photo is a slice from my biggest Brandy Boy specimen, weighing in at little over a pound (about half a kilogram) and dusted with kosher salt. Also pictured are some blueberry corn muffins (recipe may follow some day), as well as some grilled radicchio quarters with fresh mozzarella, using a recipe from the great Michael Chiarello. Everything had powerful flavors and deep intensity. In the background, you might see the remnants of a mint julep in a highball glass. I had bourbon, and lots of mint, and sugar in the pantry. Plus it's hot outside, so why not?

Paul's a big fan of the Bogle Petite Sirah, so I served the 2003 Bogle Phantom. I've been extremely happy with all of Bogle's $10 offerings, and this was my first foray into their higher end line. The label is dark and mysterious, but it's a really delightful wine. This is a mixture of 59% Petite Sirah, 39% Old Vine Zinfandel, and 2% Old Vine Mourvèdre. Surprisingly mild beginning, with a full bodied mouth feel and a slightly tart finish. 14.6% alcohol, so it's a little strong, but not overly harsh. Deep, dark plum and cherry flavors, some blackberries. The Zinfandel really helps with the body, providing a rich full experience without being too much. Elements of leather and tobacco show up later in the drinking of this wine. I'm really impressed with this wine, and it went exceptionally well with the unique meal at hand.

2003 Crane Lake Petite Sirah

Continuing my run through the bargain offerings from Crane Lake, I decided to give the 2003 Petite Sirah a try. This isn't on the floor at our local shop, but the owner is keeping a couple of cases in the back for friends. And who couldn't resist the temptation to try a $4 Petite Sirah? I've got to say that it's quite good. Not as good as the $10 bottles from Bogle or Concannon, but a solidly built wine in its own right. Blackberry aromas with a matching, jammy flavor. Deep purple color, and well-rounded tannins. And yes, it stains your tongue dark blue if you have more than a glass.

I had two bottles this weekend, one with New York-style pizza and one with some boneless ribeyes. Three other people tasted this wine with me and were very impressed even before I told them about the price. I doubt that it will age well, but this is a fun little wine, particularly if you haven't had any prior experience with this grape.