It was a real treat to meet Marie Albrecht Monday, February 22nd, 2010 just a week ago. I knew that she was coming because Arielle Monaco our Country Vintner rep had called to ask if they could stop by Cleveland Park Wines & Spirits ( 3423 Connecticut Avenue N.W. Washington D.C. 20008 Tel:202-363-4265 sales@clevelandparkwine.com www.clevelandparkwine.com ) where I manage the wine department.
I was quite busy when Arielle and Marie showed up as there was a wine delivery coming through the back door at the same time and I had to work with Nelson to put it away as I had a full day ahead of me and I wanted Nelson to help price some of the wines while he was there giving me time to write the store email.
So at first it was all hustle and bustle and I barely acknowledged them as I cut wine boxes, priced wines, arranged for places to put them, signed invoices and at the very end broke both a bottle of wine that fell from the stacks onto the clean Reidel wine glasses that I had washed minutes ago in our back bathroom. Argh! Oh well, I had some good French Alsace still and sparkling wines to look forward to as well as making the acquaintance of Marie.
Funny, I began to piece all the details together once that I finally got over to the tasting table and introduced myself and welcomed Marie in French : " Bonjour. Comment ca Va? Soyez bienvenue chez nous." This caught her off-guard as she did not know that I spoke French. She smiled and I began to look at the bottles, take digital pictures with my Canon camera and collect my senses that had been a bit jostled already by so many things happening at once.
And then Sotoris Bafitis walked into the store and I remembered that he and I were going to taste and discuss the wines that would be poured later in the week by Olivia of VOILA Collection on Saturday with our customers. I could not focus on that and on these wines of Marie's and so I told Sotoris to return in about twenty minutes. He obliged and was out the door and I returned to tasting the 2007 LUCIEN ALBRECHT Pinot Gris " Cuvee Romanus " , an AOC opulent Alsace white. I loved the focus and the definition, the style and it's immense personality. I wrote : " nice, great, exotic fruits like pineapple & lychee." I loved the weight and the mouth-feel of this wine as well. It was impressive and we are buying some that will come to the store this week as we are short on a good Pinot Gris. This ALBRECHT 2007 " Cuvee Romanus " will sell for $21.99 and I am sure that I can find some happy homes for it really soon.
I would show Marie the pictures as I would take them and explain some of what I was doing ; some of what I was hoping for whether planned or not. I have to have faith as I point my camera up towards the ceiling and snap away wishing for the best. I'm always looking for original compositions and things that catch one off-guard and draw them to take a second, third, even fourth look: the more the merrier.
I also love taking pictures like the one below which is a bit more posed and academic as when I enlarge it it will help me with details of vintages and names, etcetera to help jog my memory, especially when it comes time to write these stories and reconstruct the moment we have enjoyed together that often rushes along of it's own volition and which I only take note of certain things with most rushing past me before I may focus on them. Tant pis, on fait le maximun effort q'on peut, n'est ce pas vrai Marie?!?
I love these artsy photos that I take and which capture certain of the components that make it up : like the wine glass, the wine being poured, the bottle, perhaps the label being visible, too and just a bit of Marie's brown hair and skin. I like how the ceiling lights above make the color of green in the wine bottle shine brightly as if sunshine is passing through it, reflections and all. I get something that looks like a very few pieces of the puzzle already in place with many still missing. Does that make you want to fill them in? Do you in your mind's eye?
Next Marie poured for me some of the LUCIEN ALBRECHT 2008 Riesling Reserve AOC from Orschwihr. I quickly tasted and snapped away as with this picture above. I asked Marie to put the bottle up to her face like this so that some of her features would appear through the green bottle and the rest would be visible to the side - connected and yet quite different pieces of the puzzle of her face, the unmistakable yellow label of her family's, the wine in my Reidel glass with it's intense yellow/golden color, the reflections, the composition as a whole, Marie's smile and the red and gold capsule with the written words of Alsace and Lucien I believe?
Of this 2008 Riesling LUCIEN ALBRECHT AOC ( $21.99 ) I wrote : " very soft, round - " and then heard Arielle say : " the long and crisp finish is the best " which I agreed with completely. I then finished my own notes : " full, smooth , acidity comes at the end."
I was having fun taking lots of pictures ( posed and not ) of Marie with the wine glass and the color of the whites there connecting the two. Look at the amazing golden color of the wine here with the reflections on the glass to accent it, the color of my skin holding the glass and the dark clothing of Marie behind to enrich it?!
I think that this is essential : to always show the relationship that is very tangible and that exists between the owners, the wine-makers and their wines. You can't have one without the other. This is the most important chord that exists and I like to show it in all the many faceted ways that a digital image can capture to include along with my written words - my impressions of this very real relationship.
Marie is starting to relax and play along with me as I continue to taste and snap away with my Canon camera. Her smile is a bit stronger here in the picture above as she wonders what will result from all of these pictures that must look pretty funny from her point-of-view? I never thought about that until now. What must they look like/ what must I look like as I take so many unorthodox pictures?
I also love to take pictures of the label through the wines and their color that are hidden from sight within the dark green glass of each bottle. The Reidel wine glass distorts and elongates the labels and the reflections on the wine glass of the ceiling lights above add accent. I also like how the rim of the wine glass becomes a wonderful arc of antique white.
Finally a really bright smile from Marie in the photo above. I was talking and tasting and she was not aware that I was taking pictures of her at this moment. That's good ; that means I get a more natural,less self-conscious expression on her face.
In this picture above of Marie pouring one of these still whites you can see the colors of the yellow label and the green glass of the bottle inside my Reidel wine glass. You have to enlarge the image as it is a bit blurred. Also the golden color of the wine is visible.
I really like this picture of Marie above that I got. It's more of a close-up and she is now much more comfortable with my unorthodox methods here and perhaps really enjoying herself quite a bit now as she wonders where it will all go / where it will all end? Will it end?!? If you know her you can tell that she is holding a bottle of her own wine. Otherwise anyone can see that she is holding a bottle of Alsace wine in her hands.
As you can see I was enjoying very much taking all of these pictures. As I told Marie I usually only get one chance to do this as our paths may not necessarily cross again. And if they do I may not be able to take any pictures.
I got a nice picture here of Marie pouring her next wine for me. It's pretty abstract : her hand holding the green bottle, the label, a bit of the wine in my Reidel wine glass, my two fingers holding it, and a small triangle to the right of bright light coming from the ceiling light above.
I also really like this picture of Marie above. The camera pointing down this time and looking down at her only captured a part of her : but ohhh, what a part. I love the smile, really I do. It tells it all, really it does. You don't even need the rest. You can easily imagine the rest but what's here paints a great picture all by itself.
Here Marie continues to pose for me with a bottle of wine in her hands. She's poured me some of her family's 2008 Gewurztraminer Reserve, Alsace AOC ( $24 approximately ) to taste. I wrote : " Really round, really lush, really pure. So like a good Kodak moment. Good smooth finish ; crystal, lush , clear." I liked it quite a bit and will buy some when we have some room for another Gewurztraminer. For the moment we have enough on our shelves so it will have to wait.
I for got to tell you all that while I was rushing around like a madman before tasting with Arielle and Marie that Arielle was busy finding my blog on her father Jean Albrecht when I had met him a year or so ago and enjoyed a very special lunch and wine-tasting before and during at Vidalia with a number of other guests. I took my handy camera with me and used it a lot to capture that moment that I late blogged about. I got some great shots and was happy with my blog entry. She had never seen this one before but when she saw it she said that she had already been to it for another blog entry which she could not remember at the moment.
I then went in search of my small guest book that I take with me when I got to the restaurants and leave the store for a special tasting. Arielle had mentioned that I probably did not have anything signed by Jean Albrecht and I had to think about this for a moment before remembering my book and the label of the 1979 bottle that Jean had brought specially from his cave in Alsace for this luncheon. Boy was it special and I was happy to peal it off the bottle on our table and fix it wet as it was quickly to my page where Jean signed it.
I got Marie to sign it - the label and date it, too. She also signed the book on the page across from where her father had signed it. She said to me in French that she thought it was " maron " ( I hope I have the right spelling here? I will have to check it )that I had met her father. I asked why she thought that it was " maron " as I found it quite natural and completely " in order " and almost " expected " as I love meeting all the people behind all these marvelous wines. Especially those of Alsace that have a very special place in my heart and on my palate, too.
It's late now on Monday night, February 1st, 2010 at 11:44 PM and I am very tired having been at this blogging off-and-on all day as I have tried to valiantly catch-up to all the work I have left in their draft forms on my blog site so as to catch every night of the Winter Olympics. Well, last night the Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada officially ended and now I can after 17 days get back to some semblance of my regular schedule. Wish me well : I still have lots of catching up to do though I have gained valuable ground this Monday.
That's a nice close-up picture of you above Marie. I hope you like it. One side of your face is in greater focus than the other as my Canon camera lens needed cleaning and I was too caught-up in all that I was doing at such a fast speed that I did not take enough time to note this and clean it before continuing. It does provide a nice and subtle contrast at any rate. I like the picture and am happy to include it here with all the others.
I will pick this back up tomorrow evening and finish telling about this wonderful moment of ours as we met for the very first time. I also have to talk about the two cremants d'Alsace from LUCIEN ALBRECHT ( a regular and a dry rose ) that will be coming to Cleveland Park Wines & Spirits by Friday at the very latest. Cheers et a demain ...
Voila! C'est le matin deja et je suis bien la pour recommencer mon blog. I just got back from walking my dog and it's quite chilly and brisk outside and there's still lots of snow everywhere from the recent " snowstorm of the century " for our area.
I am remembering now that I should mention the 4 Morning Poems that I wrote and have already posted based on thinking of what this first meeting with Marie would be like? I did not know here. I did not know if sh was young or older? I knew nothing about it except the wines really and so as I liked very much the wines I thought it would be nice to think about this first introduction and what it could mean or bring us both?
I like focusing my thoughts this way. It makes me think about a subject and to organize and gather whatever I know already and combine it somehow and try and make some sense of it all. This is a great exercise of the mind if nothing else and in this case I am very glad that I did it. I gave both Marie and Arielle copies of these 4 Morning Poems signed as a gift to the both of them. I gave them that and I also gave Marie the quick portrait sketches ( 3 I believe ) that I dashed off at the very last minute before they were on their way to their next appointment this February morning in Washington D.C.
As much as I really liked all three still Alsace whites of Pinot Gris, Riesling and Gewurztraminer it was time for tasting the two LUCIEN ALBRECHT Cremants D'Alsace ( fewer and bigger bubbles ) in these two sparkling wines. I heard both Arielle and Marie talking while I was snapping away at my handy digital photos here. Marie said something about not blending ever their grapes. I wonder if that also applied here to the two sparkling wines which I would have assumed were blends of the Pinot Noir grape and perhaps the Pinot Blanc as they do not produce Chardonnay in Alsace? But now on second thought these two might both be made from 100% Pinot Noir? I will have to get this information soon as it is still a question mark for me.
However, what is definitely not a question mark for me is how wonderful the two tasted this day : so different and for me this time equally impressive. In the past I have almost always favored the dry rose. This time I think I liked them both equally well.
How do you like the picture above of Marie and Arielle? I really like it. I remember how we did this same thing a year or so ago with Jody and the young Italian lady international sales rep for Philipponat French champagne I believe? It was Jody's idea and I have loved this using of the cork and capsule over the eyes very much ; especially when both young ladies are so attractive and charming as well. Nice on the eyes ...
I went in search of my nice Reidel champagne flute for this as this was going to be a treat.
The non-rose cremant is how we started and it caught me off-guard as I was not expecting to like it so much. It charmed and warmed to it's side immediately. I liked the richness and brightness of the taste - the fullness of the lively and energized flavors and the creaminess that it wrapped first my tongue and then my throat and pretty much all of me as it worked it's magic completely over me. Just like a wand only better as I could feel it all. I could easily have taken off the rest of the day and enjoyed both bottles over the course of the rest of it with these two. Now that would have been a real treat.
There was no bite or harshness or anything that I did not enjoy about this first cremant. It settled nicely, it's gentle bubbles tickled me ever so delightfully and I loved the color, too.
As I said I love showing the wine with the person responsible for making it or paying for it to be made or both. I like showing the relationship that exists between things. In this case with Marie and the cremant I was also happy to include the cork that she was still holding in her hands. It's a quickly-composed picture like so many of mine where I trust that things will work out and they almost always do.
Her brown hair above her eyes is like a thatched roof would be with one knowing the comfort and warmth that awaits them inside. It falls and frames eyes and her smile and settles and rests nicely on her shoulders and the columned knit of her dress ( like a salute to those that were worn back in Rembrandt's time when he painted so many ladies in their fine attire with dresses that would rise up and circle a lady's neck in worked-lace and formidable fabrics; and thus draw attention to it while also protecting it ).
Of course Marie's is all about comfort, warmth and style appropriate to her age and it is drawn together from each side almost as if it was leading into the top of my fluted Reidel glass still filled with charming/dancing/bursting-from-their-long-imposed-contraints-now-finally-set-free-bubbles that mimmick a bit the color of her skin.
In this picture above you have Marie's beautiful eyes that shine and sparkle and look like two amazing orbs/bodies of water that you can barely resist the instant impulse to dive head-first into. I bet Sotiris would agree with me on this as he was waiting now patiently for me to taste his selection of French wines.
I like the composition of the picture above. I like the intense reflection as if by sunlight on the champagne flute, the " V " shape of the bubbles as they rise from their liquid body, the shiny silver ring on her left hand, the two silver lines of her jacket that provide light and contrast. This is the artist talking in me and I ask your indulgence here as it really has nothing to do with the cremant itself which is also charming. Together everything is doing a great job to charm me completely.
Nothing like witnessing the release of the bubbly from it's bottled constraints into the brightness and openness of the world. Look at the brim as it's whiter and bathe your sense of sight in all the animation and gaiety of those freed bubbles!
Just in case you could not see them well enough in the picture above you can get a better picture of them in the one below.
I spoke quite a bit with Marie in French as I tasted and took these many pictures. I discovered that she had worked after school for the famous French chef Alain Ducasse. Before that in school in the champagne region of France she had studied oenology. She has a younger sister and I think she may following in Marie's footsteps soon?
Anyway I discovered that this was the very first month that Marie has worked full-time with her father Jean to promote the LUCIEN ALBRECHT Alsace French wines of her family. It's really thrilling to meet her just as she is starting her career which I know will be long and hard and fabulous all in one. It will take lots of work and patience especially now as we are all in such an economic upheaval. France is suffering, too. I have heard this now from many vignerons.
Here in the picture above Arielle Monaco is pouring for me the cremant rose which I have been waiting to taste from the very start. It's the one that I remember the very best of all the LUCIEN ALBRECHT wines and cremants as it catches me off my guard each and every time and this was no exception. Although I must say that at this tasting here in Cleveland Park I liked everything that I tasted very much without exception. They were all stars today for me.
The LUCIEN ALBRECHT cremant rose was even more fine and silky and creamy and elegant. It was so easy to sip and so light and welcome on my tongue. I enjoyed it for all it's subtle nuances of flavors and taste. As a note here I wish that I had had a bit more time to focus on it because of it being so delicate and fine and silky. I should have closed my eyes and really shut everything else out of my head and mind besides this wonderful salmon-colored cremant LUCIEN ALBRECHT Alsace soft-dry rose...
I will finish this blog later tonight but want to post what I have already now before dashing off to work. I will add more and so stay-tuned and enjoy these pictures and stories and text that I have included so far. Cheers, TONY PS : It's Tuesday, March 2nd, 2010 at 9:54 AM as I close this and go off to work in Washington D.C.
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