Bacchus
Wine really started to massage my palette just the right way while working in a beautifully refined restaurant in upstate New York called The Trillium, which for many years was considered arguably the finest dining room between New York City and Montreal. And as you might imagine, their wine list was ridiculous, garnering many awards from Wine Spectator and the like. I had to learn it, so I started drinking and spent my formative wine education within its walls. And for the record, it’s their fault. Now I’m helpless under the Dionysian spell of fermented grapes.
Enter Joseph Carr. Once upon a time in the early days of the restaurant, he was the wine director and sommelier for The Trillium and consequently that wine list was his brainchild. Sure, it had evolved and been updated in the years that followed his departure, but its essence and soul remained through my days traversing that dining room. Well, after he left he made his way as an executive in the industry for ten years before following his heart to the vineyards of Napa. From his plot of vines bordering Napa and Sonoma, Mr. Carr has spent the past five years building his portfolio and reputation as “a producer to watch,” according to New York Times writer Eric Asimov. And the capstone wine in that portfolio: Cabernet Sauvignon.
Cabernet Sauvignon. I’m not sure I know what that means. Sure, I know all the tasting notes and the quips: the “king of grapes,” the grape that built Bordeaux, the Judgment of Paris, the savage maker, the big and burly California red, oak’s bedfellow, and on and on to the point where I mistake the words for Rimbaud. Allow me a brief disclaimer: I’m not a big fan of Cabernet Sauvignon… and not because I don’t like the classics; I’ve popped open too many California Cabs that just don’t understand the notion of balance and subtlety. I guess it’s sort of a reflection of the Old World versus the New World. In France, winemakers speak of terroir and allowing the land to speak for itself; in California there is a tendency to say forget what the land says, let’s jam the alcohol and tannins and intensity and everything into hyper drive. And a lot of California Cabs suck. Of course, that’s my opinion for what it’s worth.
Joseph Carr is a student of the classic Bordeaux blends that define the Old World approach to winemaking. I’ll let the man speak for himself:
I always take a classic Bordeaux style approach to my Cabernet Sauvignon employing Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc in the final cuvee. It’s all part of a mission to produce complex yet balanced wines that echo a European sensibility and exhibit approachability upon release.
He further accents his Cabernet Sauvignon through barrel aging for 18-22 months in 1 and 2 year old American and French oak and what he has crafted is truly exquisite. As Eric Asimov of The New York Times said, “Cabernet, like Cabernets should be.” And finally we have a California Cabernet blended and aged to create a wine of wonderful balance with a proper respect for terroir. And I agree, Cabernet, like Cabernets should be — of balance, restraint and subtle beauty. The wine has a richly deep purple hue and a nose of ripe black currents, smoke and saddle. The taste buds will also just love the notes of dark cherry, ripe plum and that kiss of vanilla and cocoa dust. And that filet mignon you just ordered is the perfect accompaniment. Enjoy!
$20 a bottle in any wine store with good taste.
