Hmm Cabernet or Malbec Watson?

Now if I could pick one talent to have (and comic book superpowers were off the table) it would be a toss-up between being able to play the guitar like a rock god, speaking several languages fluently or being a supertaster a la Robert Parker.  Who, as an aside, claims that he can remember every wine he has ever tasted!  One thing I’ve learned is that don’t improve on anything by sitting around, so I was really happy that I had a chance to attend one of the regular wine classes that the Frederick Wine House co-hosts.  It was titled ‘Wine Detectives- The Art of Identifying Wine Blind.’

Not surprisingly it turned out to be a great evening with good company and a wonderful wine exercise.  The host, Shawn Clopper, from Monument Fine Wines led about 80 of us through a tasting of eight different bottles of wine. He helped us break down the tasting process starting with appearance (clarity, color, brightness and viscosity) and then the smells and then finally tasting the wine.  He gave everyone a wonderful handout with the categories and subcategories of flavors.  Breaking it down into a standardized methodology allows you to isolate the variables with the goal of helping you to identify the wine.  In this case we were going for the varietal.  After we went through all eight wines and made our notes the winemaker’s tasting notes were provided to us.  It was fascinating to see how divergent our notes were from the winemakers’.  After that came the great reveal and then everyone made a bee line for their favorites and finished off all of the leftover wine.  I could not believe how fast two hours went by.  I am embarrassed to say that I went 1 for 8 while Mrs. F went 2 for 8.  Of course there is only one solution for this situation practice!  Reportedly one of the participants got 6/8

Lastly I would also be remiss if I didn’t mention the nice hors d’oeuvres that were served with the tasting and that the evening started off very nicely with a vintage prosecco.  An excellent way to spend an evening.  I will post here when they announce the next class.

Muddle some basil leaves (6-8) in about 1 1/2 ounces of lime juice with a few wedges of lime for effect  To this add 1 1/2 ounces of limoncello.  Fill the glass with a good scoop of crushed ice and then top off with  prosecco.  Enjoy!

Toast to Frederick wine festival- April 21st and 22nd at the Frederick fairgrounds

The Maryland Craft Beer Festival at the Frederick fairgrounds.  May 12th from noon to six.

Frederick Beer Week- May 12-19th.  Events all over the Frederick area.

Wine in The Woods- May 19 and 20th at Merriweather Post Pavillion.

Quite frankly I do not care what the tasting area looks like as long as the wine is good. I did get to taste all of Knob Hall Winery’s current releases.  As usual with my Maryland wine tasting adventures I am always pleasantly surprised, uncovering wines that can hold their own against others from better known areas.  My two favorites were their Chambourcin and their semi-dry rose.  The rose was only slightly sweet and had nice fruit and acidity.  The Chambourcin was full bodied and very interesting, with lots of sour red fruit and hints of earth and leather.  It is unusual to see a single varietal made from Chambourcin, a fairly obscure grape, and I was excited to try it.  Defintely worth a trip and bringing  home a bottle or two as well.

Knob Hall Winery is located at 14108 St. Paul Road in Clear Spring, Maryland.  Their phone number is 301-842-2777.

Previous thoughts on this event for 2010, 2009, 2008, more 2008, and 2007.

Please join the Voltaggio Brothers for an action packed night at the Harry Grove Stadium
- Home of the Frederick Keys Baseball Team - Tuesday, October 18, 2011 6 -10 p.m.Two of America’s best chefs have joined together in the creation of VOLT ink, a new cookbook by Bryan and Michael Voltaggio… and we are throwing a party to celebrate!

Concession food courtesy of the Voltaggios take on ballpark food. Beverages by Flying Dog Brewery and Brewers Alley.  FACKA Double Header (Frederick Adult Co-ed Kickball Association) featuring one regular game and a second All Star Game with the brothers playing on the East
Coast vs the West Coast team.  Concert provided by the Regal Beagles Yacht Club Band and the Blatant 80′s.  Kids Fun Zone for oodles of fun for the kids.

Entry tickets $8 for adults and free for children 12 and under. Children will need a ticket for entry.

Early release of the book will be on sale for $40 and the brothers will be on hand for signatures.

I’m going to keep an eye on the forecast for Tuesday, but right now it looks decent. You can get tickets by calling 301-815-9939 or clicking here.

The tour starts in their tasting room.  You are given six wooden tokens, each one good for one three ounce sample of their beer, and let loose in the bar area.

Hard decisions to make with only six tokens!

They have pretty much everything they make on draft including all the specials and seasonals.  Two knowledgable servers were pouring and on hand to answer all your questions.  Following a good while in the tasting room the tour began.  I wont bore you with a blow by blow- just go.  The people I went with ranged from home brewing beer geeks (yours truly) to casual drinkers and everyone loved it.  We saw the mash areas, the fermentation vats, the labs, the bottling line (which was running full tilt and very impressive) and finally the warehouse, which was like a Stonehenge of beer.  Interspersed we learned about the founder and how Ralph Steadman got involved.

The warehouse. Can you lock me in for a night?

All questions were welcomed and the guide was knowledgeable and friendly.  We learned some interesting trivia.  For example: all the sample packs have to be made up by hand so there is some poor schlub who spends all day mixing the bottles and placing them in the boxes.  Think of that next time you buy one!  At the end we went back to the tasting room where you could ‘spend’ any unused tokens.  There is also a Flying Dog gift shop where you can purchase their beer and other merchandise.  As a lovely parting gift you get to keep the tasting glass.  I plan to go back until I have a complete set!

Also in a sidebar the article talks about Voltaggio’s new TV show that he’s working on that might air on PBS in the fall.  Equally interesting is the tidbit that he is now considering the old Carmack Jay’s property for his new second restaurant.

 My only complaint?  Should be a month long!