THE MCBEE WINE BLOG DIARY

My mother, Camille McBee, partnered with Bobby G. Smith, Winemaker, in North Texas for over 30 years. Together they worked to develop a National and International name for Texas Wines. In 2009 she passed away too young, but she left behind a Texas Wine Industry that was better because of her dedication and she left a family with a deep rooted love and appreciation for wine and entertaining. This blog serves as a diary of my adventures in wine and as a lasting toast to my mother. -Cheers!

This blog is NOT intended to be the authority on tasting notes, or a professional guide for wine experts; it's simply a place for me to share some of my opinions and findings about wine with my friends and other wine lovers.

I truly hope you will use this blog to help you the next time you are thinking about what to buy at the wine store or deciding what to order at a local restaurant or when you travel to the wine country. ENJOY!

Friday, February 25, 2011

Paul's Birthday at Eddie V's

Last night Meredith and I met our friends Melanie and Paul and Matt and Mandy at Eddie V's on Oak Lawn to celebrate Paul's Birthday.    This was my first time there.    First impression was great as we were greeted by a friendly hostess and escorted directly to our table.    Our waiter was excellent and made some great recommendations, including an eclectic calamari and some wonderful cold crab claws.

Our first wine selection was a 2007 Nickle and Nickle's Vogt Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon. ($168)  Big wine, that is this wine in a nutshell.  It was full of fruit and had that distinct California Cab Oak smell and taste which I love.  A little pricey, but you will find this wine from about $80 to $100 in the wine store.  This is a 90+ scorer on almost every guide.

Bottle two was one of my favorites and i think now it is one of Paul and Matt's favorites.    The 2007 Palmeyer Jayson ($120) is a Bordeaux blend by Jayson Palmeyer.    This was a real hit at the table, but you need to understand that this wine never disappoints.   This was a smooth wine with plenty of complex flavors of black cherry, berry and chocolate.   This wine spent 18 months on new French oak and it shows it.

There was a lot of conversation about this wine from around the table.  We had a long discussion about Meritage and Bordeaux blended wines.  Matt asked an awesome question... he made the comment that he likes blended wines. He wanted to know if wine experts view blended wines as inferior to pure varietals.    I told him that this is purely in the eye of the beholder, but I would suggest the most wine geeks view blended wines as some of the best wines (the French do for sure) as the winemaker is free to make the best wine possible from a variety of sources.   There is an argument to the contrary, but the point I want to make is that don't get trapped into buying a grape -  Cab, Merlot, Chardonnay or whatever.   If you are focusing on the Cabernet section of the wine menu you might be missing some great options.   Next time ask the sommelier to suggest a great blended wine.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY PAUL!!

Monday, February 21, 2011

Central Market has "Decoy" on Sale

One of my favorite value Caberbet's is Decoy from Duckhorn Vineyards and Central Market had it on sale today for $24 a bottle.   Duckhorn is another great Napa vineyard just off the Silverado Trail in St. Helena.  Decoy is made from 92% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Merlot and 2% Cabernet Franc, aged in French Oak Barrels for 12 months.  It has great taste of berry and tobacco and mint.  

For the money, I always love this wine.   I highly suggest you run over to Central Market and pick up a few bottles while they are on sale.    Don't forget Central Market gives an additional 10% for 6 bottles or more.

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Comittee Meeting

Our good friends Laura and Bart hosted 10 friends at their house last night.  We had a great time with all our close friends.   Dinner was great, thanks Laura and Bart.   Everyone brought along some wine for the evening and we had two that were quite a treat.      The first was a 2008, Cain Concept.  ($58)  Cain is a great winery on Spring Mountain in the Northwest Napa area.   I have been there and it is a beautiful winery; you can see the Pacific ocean from the vineyards.   This winery produces and distributes wine to restaurants so you will be able to find this in almost any restaurant.  Concept is a Bordeaux blend with plenty of punch.      it was a great wine, had plenty of fruit, very light notes of coffee and oak and it had a hint of a metallic taste, which is not common in read wines.

Ok, now for the next wine.   Melissa brought a 2002 Silver Oak Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon.  ($149) I have had Silver Oak in the past and have liked it but it had never been on my favorite list.   Well, let me say that this wine last night was awesome.   I am a sucker for big Napa Cabs and this one is the poster child for sure.   This 2002 bottle has had some time and it was really well balanced with fruit and Oak.  I tasted berry and a bit of chocolate.  I really enjoyed the entire glass, thanks Mel for this great gift for the evening.

Thursday, February 10, 2011

Tried another one of my picks from Central Market

The 2008 Rowland Cellars Ramspeck Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon was a great choice.  ($24) This first thing I noticed about this wine was the great smell.   No earthy or musty overtones, just fruit, almost a flowery smell.  Its got a true tanic Cabernet taste and I taste coffee and leather.

I did a little research on this vineyard and the wine.  Small family owned winery started in the early 90s.  after looking into the Ramspeck label, it makes more sense now that i like this wine; it is 78% Cabernet Sauvignon, but has 9% Petit Verdot, 7% Merlot and  6% Malbec, which is a Bordeaux blend minus the Cab Franc.   Grapes are from the Stag's Leap Region which I also love. 

For a mid $20 wine, this wine is a great value.   Pick one up!

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

It's Good to See Old Friends

Met my old friend Price for a drink at Houston's in Preston Center last night.  He had arrived early and already had his selection picked out.   He was having the Mi Sueno Cabernet / Syrah blend and he suggested I do the same.   It was $16 a glass, but honestly I didn't find it all that impressive.   It was peppery, almost reminded me of a Malbec.  It was a bit musty, but had a lot of fruit and tanic taste.   It grew on me and Price and I were surprised by the amount of sediment left in our glasses at the end. 



For my second glass I chose the Chappellet Mountain Cuvee, $15 per glass.   This was much more my speed... ahhhh a Bordeaux Blend.   Big oaked fruit with a hint of chocolate.  This is a pretty popular wine and I have it quite often so I knew what to expect, this one is consistently a good choice.  Of this "by the glass" choices at Houston's, this is the one I suggest.

Price, thanks for the conversation and the drinks!

Saturday, February 5, 2011

Trip to Central Market Results in some Great New Finds

Ran over to Central Market to stock up a few bottles in anticipation of the Super Bowl.   A cool bottle caught my eye.   edge, from Napa is in a dark bottle with silver and red simple markings and I picked it up for about $25.   This Cabernet is selected from various vineyards on the Silverado Trail in Napa.  

I have to tell you, I really enjoyed this wine.   It opened up quite a bit over the evening.    It was full of fruit at first, but then mellowed and the alcohol became more noticeable.   It was a typical Napa Cab with plenty of fruit, but this wine had a light earthy taste with a bit of smoke which was nice.   This one was a value at $25.   Try it, I don't think you will be disappointed.

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Ice Storms and Pinot Noir

The entire city is under ice advisory and everyone is hanging indoors and cooking warm dinners.   Meredith made a great pasta dish and I chose a 2008 Concannon Pinot Noir Limited Release.    This is from the Santa Barbara area.   Pinot Noir grows best in cooler, wetter climates closer to the coast.   This is why some of the better Pinot are being grown farther North in Washington State and Oregon.  You will find a lot of the California Pinot grapes are grown in the the Santa Barbara or San Franssco Valley and some of the better ones in the Carneros District in the lower Napa Valley Region overlooking the Ocean.  It is really one of the prettier areas in Napa.

This Pinot Noir has very soft fruit tastes, maybe plum or cherry, and a slight oak aftertaste.   It is not to earthy, but has a definite Pinot Noir aroma.   13.5% alcohol and only 450 cases produced.  It is alright, and for the money I would say a pretty good value.  For $10 more I probably could have been a lot more happy this evening, but who's complaining?

Nick & Sam's - Dallas, Tx

Last week I attended a dinner at Nick and Sam's for a business dinner.   What a great restaurant!   Food is always superb, service never disappoints, and the wine list is always impressive.   We have two different wines that evening.   First one of the guests at our table ordered the the 2007 Hourglass Cabernet Sauvigon.   $300 bottle was definitely a treat to be able to try this.   It was not that quintessential big California cab.  It was 15.5% alcohol, but drank more like a true French Bordeaux blend, because it was smooth and tastes were subtle.    If you like a big fruity, jammy cab, skip this one, it is jut not built for that.   Next we ordered the 2006 Jordan, Alexander Valley Cabernet.    It was a great drinker.    Not particularly huge on the mouth, but a good wine for the price ($125) following the first barn burner.   Jordan is a classic California Red Wine maker.    They offer a range or wines and price points, and produce a consistently good product.

While in Jackson Hole, WY

Man there was a lot of snow this year.    14 inches overnight one evening.    This, however, did not stop us from getting out and hitting some of the great restaurants in town.    One of our favorites is Snake River Grill.  It sits atop the town square underneath a big commercialized sign.    At first sight you might confuse the place as a tourist trap or even a chain restaurant.    Once inside, you will be pleasantly surprised to find quaint decor, small seating areas all surrounding a center fireplace.   This is the best place in town if you like game such as Elk, Duck or other such trappings of the area.    I had the Elk Loin Medallions...   haven't stopped thinking about them since.   The appetizers are great; don't skip the Onion Rings.   

One of the best things about this restaurant is the big but reasonable wine list.    We ordered a bottle of the 2007 Clos Du Val Cabernet Sauvignon.   This is a Napa wine, found on the Silverado Trail by the way; its reasonable and a really good cab.    It was pretty big, with plenty of fruit and it went well with all of the the food we ordered.  I highly recommend the wine and the restaurant next time your in the Tetons!