Dave McIntyre's WineLine

Bobby Kacher - Dean of the DC Importers

The Washington, D.C., region is a very fun and active market for wine consumers, especially for those of us interested in imported wines. There is a vibrant cadre of wine importers serving this market, enough to keep wine lovers turning bottles to look at the back label to see who is importing which wines.

The dean of these importers is Bobby Kacher, the ever loquacious face, palate and voice behind Robert Kacher Selections. I profile Bobby in my wine column this week in The Washington Post.

Bobby represents about 75 producers, and about 70 of these are French. (He has two producers in Argentina, one in Portugal, and one in South Africa, that I know of.) All are family owned and operated, they emphasize organic viticulture (at least, no pesticides and herbicides), temperature-controlled fermentation to keep the wines fresh, no filtration, etc - many of these seem commonplace now, but Kacher helped promote these practices when he started importing wines in the 1980s.

As you'll see in the sidebar on wine recommendations, I learned a lot about French wine by purchasing Bobby's imports back in the late 1980s. There are many more importers in the DC area that I follow now, and I seem to be learning about more every year as the market thrives and expands. And I've followed Bobby less reliably as I've explored other importers' portfolios. But each time I taste some of his wines, I'm reminded of my wine-loving roots.

And whatever you do, don't miss out on that Saumur ...

Happy 30th Anniversary to Becky Wasserman!

Becky Wasserman is the grande dame of Burgundy. An American ex-pat, for the past 30 years she has represented many of Burgundy's greatest estates, helping sell their wines to the United States, Britain and elsewhere. Earlier this year, I had the opportunity to visit with Becky in her offices in Beaune, on a cute little side street off a large square. It would have been idyllic except for the street construction that seemed, she said, to go on interminably. As I look out on my own suburban street, torn up for the second summer in a row for some mysterious water main repair, I want to say to Becky, "It's not just the French!"

My profile of Becky appeared in Wednesday's Washington Post. The photo shows Becky with David Croix (left) of Maison Camille Giroud and Jean-Yves Devevey of Domaine Devevey.

A Bouquet of Rosés for Valentines Day

Throughout the Mid-Atlantic, folks are probably celebrating a prolonged Valentines Day - curling up with their loved ones to stay warm after hours outside shoveling snow. There may not be an opportunity to get to a flower shop for the traditional bouquet of roses, but hopefully there is some sparkling rosé in the fridge. And if not, I have a few suggestions up and down the budget range in today's Washington Post Food section.

Sweet Endings for 2009

Earlier this month I wrote two columns for The Washington Post recommending sparkling wines for the holidays - one on wines above $30, the other for more budget-conscious revelers. All the wines were dry. That led one frustrated reader to fire off an e-mail complaining about "brut this and brut that," reminding me that some people prefer sweet sparkling wine.

So this week I oblige, with some delightful recommendations from southern France, Italy and Spain.

Cheers, and thank you for reading Dave McIntyre's WineLine in 2009! What started 10 years ago as an e-mail newsletter (no one called them "blogs" back then) will continue in 2010. You can find me on Facebook at /wineline and Twitter @dmwine as well!

Happy New Year!

Champagne Outside the Envelope

Champagne is too expensive to be an everyday tipple, much as many of us might want to enjoy it on a daily basis. Rather, ít's a special occasion wine, and this often leads us to rely on familiar brand names when we splurge on a bottle of bubbly. While those old favorites - the Veuve Clicquots or Moet & Chandon - are fine and reliable fizz, there is more excitement out there. So this year, I suggest looking either to small grower Champagnes for something distinctive and individual, or to some nice bubbly from other regions. Drink outside the slipper, or the envelope, or whatever cliché you want to recite.

Anway, my recommendations for high quality fizz for those willing to splurge this holiday season are in today's Washington Post. (The online version has more recommendations than the print edition.) I'll have some bargain bubbly recommendations next week.

Cheers!
Dave

Pinot Reigns Supreme at IPNC

Everything you may have ever heard about the International Pinot Noir Celebration is true. Over the past 23 Julys, pinotpheliacs have congregated in McMinnville, Oregon, to spend a weekend pickling themselves in their favorite wine. This year's IPNC, held July 24-26, was a little less crowded than recent years, according to some regular attendees I spoke with. But the economy did not dampen the enthusiasm of about 800 wine lovers who ponied up $1000 each for the chance to mingle with winemakers and sample the cuisine of some of the best chefs in the Pacific Northwest.

This year's featured wineries included 46 from North America (including one Canadian) and 14 from Europe (two Austrian wineries, one from Alsace and one from Champagne, the rest from Burgundy – the lack of German participation was surprising). Australia and New Zealand sent four. British wine writer Jancis Robinson served as master of ceremonies. On Friday and Saturday, about half the attendees enjoyed seminar tastings designed to show the terroirs of Oregon and Chambolle-Musigny, while the rest boarded buses to vineyards throughout the Willamette Valley for tours and luncheons. And then of course there were more tastings, a petanque tournament, tastings, and dinners, including the annual salmon bake.

A threatened heat wave held off, though late-afternoon temperatures did climb into the 90s. Locals wilted in the heat, but District denizens reveled in the low humidity.

Bill Sanders of Washington, D.C., was attending his third consecutive IPNC. Sanders, a “workforce development consultant” who also blogs about wine and olive oil, said he values the connections and friendships he has forged with winemakers.

“I love to travel to the wine regions of the world, especially France,” he said, “and when I come here I meet the vignerons, then I go to Burgundy and there's an open door. I've made great friendships with the French winemakers here, and that makes travel to their region much more rewarding. It can be hard to get into Burgundy.”

As for the wines at the event, Sanders likened the exploration of pinot noir year after year to peeling the layers of an onion. (That reference may not endear him to many winemakers, actually.) Every year, you learn something new. “The pinot here is across the board, from syrupy monsters to laser-like fruit,” he said. Sanders has already registered for next year's conference.

Bob and Susan Crenshaw own two natural food stores in Goldsboro, N.C., and were here in McMinnville attending their 18^th consecutive IPNC. “Every meal you make new friends and meet up with old friends,” Bob Crenshaw said, pointing out three winemakers by name among the crowd milling around after the Saturday night salmon bake.

The tables on the lawn at Linfield College in McMinnville were littered with the detritus of a bacchanal – empty bottles from the featured wineries and from the personal collections of the attendees. Part of the fun at an event like this is walking around, glass in hand, looking for someone you recognize and seeing what they're drinking.

Photos: Bertrand Ambroise, of Domaine Ambroise in Burgundy, demonstrates petanque technique, left; a traditional Native American salmon bake capped off the festivities, above.

Here's Mud in Your Eye, Mon Ami!

One of the first things Barack Obama will do as president of the United States on January 20 will be to insult the French.

Immediately after he takes the oath of office and delivers his inaugural address, the new president will join 200 dignitaries in Statuary Hall of the U.S. Capitol for the traditional Inaugural Luncheon. Congressional leaders have hosted this event every four years since 1897, toasting the new chief executive in a spirit of bipartisan celebration.

The wine that will fuel these toasts? Korbel Champagne Cellars Russian River Valley Natural' Champagne. Korbel has been the inaugural bubbly ever since Ronald Reagan's second inauguration in 1985, the winery said in a January 9 press release.

The use of "Champagne" on American wine labels has been an issue of contention between Washington and Paris (and Brussels, as the Euopean Union has weighed in) for many years. Although the United States agreed to ban the use of most Euopean place names on wine labels, it insisted on and won a grandfather exeption for certain older brands such as Korbel that had been using the word Champagne for decades. They are not allowed to use it on wine shipped to Europe.

The Office of Champagne USA in Washington has launched a nationwide advertising and peitition effort aimed at protecting place names. It has some allies in the U.S. wine industry. The Napa Valley Vintners Association, for example, is very vigilant against wines with "Napa" in their name when the juice is produced elsewhere.

A spokesman for the Office of Champagne USA declined to say anything on the record and indicated the office would not protest the choice of Korbel for the inaugural luncheon. And with the spirit of goodwill surrounding the new administration, I doubt Foggy Bottom will be getting an angry cable from the Quai d'Orsay.

Still, it's an interesting choice for such a high-profile setting to feature a wine that has been at the center of diplomatic disputes. I have nothing against the quality of the wine - Korbel will do just fine for the toasts. But there are many U.S. sparkling wines that would do as well while celebrating the U.S. origin and character without the marketing crutch of pretending to be something they aren't.

Then again, insulting the French is as American as apple pie. Perhaps some viticultural jingoism is not out of place at a presidential inauguration.

Holiday Bubbles!

Even in economically depressed times, sometimes nothing less than Champagne will do!

For some people of course, especially in down times, nothing less will do!

After all, it was John Maynard Keynes, the noted economist whose theories got us out of the (original) Great Depression, who said on his death bed, "My only regret is that I did not drink more Champagne." Or something like that.

If Champagne offers the only bubbles to lift your spirits, then my December 17 column in The Washington Post is for you - I offer tips for finding extra bang for your buck.

But if you're more budget-minded this holiday season - despair not. My December 10 column mines values in Prosecco, Cremant and California.

Cheers, and Happy, Bubbly Holidays!