COME TONIGHT : 5:30-7:30PM : Meet owner Patricio Gouguenheim of his family's own GOUGUENHEIM Valle Escondido, Mendoza, Argentina winery and taste the Bonarda-Syrah 2012, $11.99 a bottle ; and the Torrontes dry 2012, at $10.99. Patricio I am sure will have more wine open for you all to taste; ... and you did, too : a Chardonnay, a Merlot, a Cabernet Sauvignon, a Malbec and a Syrah. I liked them all except the Malbec, it was my least-favorite. We talked a lot about Malbec, and I said to you Patricio : " anything but Malbec ! " I also said that I was probably the only person that you met here in the U.S. that told you that? You answered : " Yes. " and you smiled as we all did as you responded. Oh well, I stand by my statement : anything but Malbec, let all the other grapes live and have a chance. I loved the Syrah - so full and round and delicious, I liked the lightness and the brightness of the Merlot, the charm and brightness of the Chardonnay, and the firmness and the concentration - yet not heaviness of the Cabernet Sauvignon! Well-made, well-balanced, well-priced wines all. Gracias Patricio!
ALSO : Come meet and taste with Valentin Pellegrinelli wines of southwest, France : the J.P. CHENET two reds, 1) Pinot Noir Reserve 2011, $9.99, ... 2) J.P. CHENET Pinot Noir 2011, $9.99 a bottle, and the ... 3) Chardonnay 2012 J.P. CHENET, $9.99.
WHAT AN OPPORTUNITY! Cheers, No Charge, Join Us tonight, Tuesday, April 15th, 2014 from 5:30-7:30PM. Cheers, Anthony ( TONY ) Quinn
ALSO : Come meet and taste with Valentin Pellegrinelli wines of southwest, France : the J.P. CHENET two reds, 1) Pinot Noir Reserve 2011, $9.99, ... 2) J.P. CHENET Pinot Noir 2011, $9.99 a bottle, and the ... 3) Chardonnay 2012 J.P. CHENET, $9.99.
WHAT AN OPPORTUNITY! Cheers, No Charge, Join Us tonight, Tuesday, April 15th, 2014 from 5:30-7:30PM. Cheers, Anthony ( TONY ) Quinn
Wine-Tastings, especially wine owner and winemaker tastings are always tricky and demand constant attention and supervision. That's my take on them and I always want to be present to make sure that everything goes as smoothly and as successfully as possible.
I also want to thanks Valentin of J.P. CHENET that tasted this night with us, and Joe of the Country Vintners Imports that helped bring Patricio to us on this visit of his to Washington D.C. Thank-you all!
From Patricio Goughenheim to me after our GOUGUENHEIM Winery wine-tasting ...Hola Tony
I hope you didn't arrive too late to pick up your wife ( was my fault).
Thank you so much for your hospitality, I did a lot of tastings and never had someone like you so dedicated to the success of my tasting.
See you next time I will be in town, take care
Kindest regards Patricio
It was great to have you Patricio. I was my treat, I only wish that we had had a chance to talk longer as I feel that you would have told me many wonderful stories about Argentina and I would have loved hearing them as they would make my eyes widen and my knowledge of such a passionate and wonderful country expand so much and give me so much more delight and pleasure when speaking of it and it's people and wines, food, culture and land and country. That will have to wait until our next visit! Do you have any pictures to send me still or do I have them all. You are welcome here at the store anytime, I got to my daughter and wife on time, and it will be a pleasure to see you the next time. Keep up the good work, cheers, TONY 4/18/2014
At a wine-tasting everyone is welcome to taste. They are not private tastings for a lucky few - everyone is encouraged to taste with us : EVERYONE! It's important to invite everyone and to include everyone, no matter anything else, at least greet them and make them feel welcome and comfortable and included. Simple as that. If I do that then I feel like I am doing my job thoroughly and properly.
On Passover night, Tuesday April 15th, 2014 we had really bad, cold, rainy weather and we had taxes due ; and so it was not the best evening for a wine-tasting. It was very challenging to say the least, and yet we managed quite well and those that did taste often did buy a bottle from either Patricio or from Valentin that was tasting the French sparkling and non-sparkling wines of J.P. CHENET. It was fun, we had a good time and made the most of a really difficult situation, everyone working together as a team. We helped one another.
The wines all showed quite well on this evening and we had a real cross-section of tastes and flavors, styles, weights and textures on the palate from earthy and barnyard and to fruit and spice and raisin integrated with fruit in wood , and darker, to brighter, fresher, lighter and brighter - from one extreme to another in both red and whites - and then a thoroughly delightful sparkling French wine, too that we had available to purchase in small 200 or 187-size bottles at $4.99 each. Fun!
The GOUGUENHEIM Mendoza, Argentina wines were available in a dry and floral , fresh and bright Torrontes, $10.99 white and also a dry red Bonarda-Syrah blend, $11.99 ( good medium-body, good mouth-feel, good focus and pleasing ) : both showed really well.
THE J.P. CHENET Chardonnay showed big and flavorful and firmly and was best with food being medium-bodied, distinct and with good mouth-feel/grip. I liked it.
THE J.P. CHENET bottles od both the Pinot Noir and the 60% Merlot/ 40% Syrah are more acquired tastes : more earthy and weedy and spicy and like a barnyard of savors and flavors , and definitely need food. John our local guitarist did not like them at all and found them ' off. " That's okay, I told him that it was the style. Other customers liked them just fine. To each hsi own, a chaqu'un son goute ..., all good.
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