A Single Malt from India?

A couple of years ago our friend Steve Morrison of Sterling Cellars in Mahopac, New York, provided me with a bottle of Amrut Fusion Single Malt Whisky. To be honest I was skeptical. I assumed that this was an effort to dupe unsuspecting Scotch drinkers. And, my sense of place told me that ‘Single Malts’ should come from Scotland. The Amrut does not claim a Scottish origin only that it is a ‘Single Malt Whisky’. However, Steve has an excellent palate and eventually, I opened the bottle. Since that initial taste I have been sure to always have the Amrut Fusion as a late evening/post-dinner option.

Amrut Distilleries produces approximately four million cases of spirits each year. There are a million cases of blended whisky amongst those four million, but there are only 10,000 cases of Amrut Single Malt and only 6-7,000 cases of Fusion. By comparison, Glenlivet, the most popular single malt in the United States sells nearly 420,000 cases in the U.S. each year. Amrut sells its 10,000 cases in nearly 20 countries with a U.S. retail price generally around $80.

The distiller uses 25% peated Scottish barley and 75% unpeated Indian barley. American oak is used during the four-and half-year aging process. Amrut’s master blender estimates that because of India’s warmer climate, “one year of barrel-aging in India is equal to three years of aging in Scotland”. They age the whisky for 4-5 years. They believe the whisky reaches its peak at approximately four years, and “by five years it starts to get too much tannin”. The ‘Angel’s Share’ (product lost to evaporation) averages 11-12% each for Amrut compared to an average of 2% in Scotland. The Fusion is bottled at 50% ABV.

The have made good decisions, in 2010 whisky writer Jim Murray proclaimed Amrut Fusion the Third Finest Whisky in the World.

This is a very approachable single malt. Give it a short time in the glass to open and enjoy sweet spice on the nose with hints of raisin and just a touch of smoke. Those elements continue onto the palate combined with a creamy texture that glides into the finish.

Learn from my reluctance. While India may seem an unusual place in which to find excellent single malt, the Amrut Fusion is excellent.

Recently Joy and I had the opportunity to have dinner with Steve, a close friend from my debate coaching era. We had reconnected through Facebook and discovered that mutually, in our ‘post-coaching lives’, both of us had gravitated to the wine industry.

Even more recently, Steve (the friend) has asked some advice regarding an upcoming wine trip to Italy that he is organizing for a group of enthusiasts. Joy and I had traveled through many of the same regions he was visiting, and he was seeking our insights as to approaches to wine tasting and local eateries. The trip sounds wonderful and has sparked our interest in returning to Italy to sample more wine, food, and culture.

More immediately, while reviewing our notes from weeks traveling through Italy, I remembered that we had multiple bottles of Brunello that had been waiting for decades to be opened. Joy was making lasagna and that, along with the prompt of Steve’s trip, justified opening a 1991 Fastelli. The vintage was modest, and the wine was on the decline. However, we enjoyed it with the Lasagna and reminisced about the trip during the which the wine was acquired and, with great fondness, the amusing wine shop/restaurant owner who sold us the bottle. The quality of the wine was far less important than the memories surrounding the acquisition.

How many more bottles like the Fastelli reside in the recesses of our cellar[GV1] ?  We actually have wine coolers as there are no ‘real’ cellars in the Low Country of South Carolina. And, how many more memories are still to be resurrected? It is time to carefully cull the collection for those bottles. It is time to resurrect memories.

So, what is the right time to open that bottle you have been saving for a special occasion? How special is the bottle? And, more importantly, how special should be the occasion? The warning I offer is – don’t wait too long.

Wall Street Journal wine columnists Dorothy J. Gaiter and John Brecher “invented Open That Bottle Night”. The last of Saturday of February is set aside to “finally drink that wine that is otherwise simply too special to open”. Sadly, as I write this post, I realize that this is not the last Saturday of February. Darn. However, I did attend a neighborhood organized oyster roast tonight. And, I realized that an oyster roast would seem to be an excellent opportunity to open a ‘special bottle’. Luckily, the event felt like it was “the last Saturday of February”.

What I carried to the community ‘barn’ was a 2016 Napa Valley Quilt Cabernet. Not exactly an ‘oyster wine’, but Cabernet is always comfortable, and the neighbors with whom I shared it were not concerned that a Cab might have been too heavy for the oysters. The Quilt was in no way too heavy for the moment…or the memory.

Enough said … you get the point.

 [GV1]

David Phinney is an interesting (and irreverent) guy.

Phinney created the Prisoner in 2000. I remember when I was still closely connected to Sterling Cellars in Mahopac, New York, that we were stunned by the depth and the quality of The Prisoner. The package was interesting, and the price was reasonable – it became a phenomenon.

The Prisoner was on the Wine Spectator top 100 hundred list multiple times, and the 385 cases that Phinney had vinified in 2000 had morphed into thousands. Phinney sold his share of the wine in 2010 for $40 million. There were not vineyards and no winery included in the sale. Constellation Brands bought a name for $40 million. Constellation is now producing more than 15 million cases of a wine on which Phinney consulted for a few years.

Phinney also signed a non-compete clause. He agreed to refrain from producing any Zinfandel for eight years. The non-compete clause has expired, and David Phinney is back in the Zinfandel business with ‘Eight Years in the Desert’.

Our local (and favorite) wine bar, Accent on Wine, in Summerville, SC, acquired a few cases of this excellent Zinfandel to enjoy with their wonderful Lunch Bites. We enjoyed both the bottle with lunch and another bottle to enjoy with dinner a week or so later. Ironically, we were invited to participate in a Total Wines video conference with David Phinney soon after. I recognize the concern that many of you who patronize local wine shops may have about a recommendation of a ‘behemoth’ seemingly dedicated to the eradication of local wine shops – that is a conversation for another day. An advantage of a large organization (like Total Wines) is that can connect patrons with people like David Phinney in a variety of ways.

Joy and I enjoyed the video conference. It was a wonderful way for those who enjoy the work of this innovative winemaker to both hear from him regarding his winemaking and packaging process to interact with him via the internet.

Eight Years in the Desert debuted in 2016 with 94 points from the Wine Advocate. Predominately vinified from Zinfandel with significant Petite Sirah and a lesser quantity of Syrah, this is dark red wine with wonderful depth and fruit that offers an excellent finish. The 2017 ‘Eight Years’ is another wonderful wine.

The video conference highlighted a winemaker unconcerned about traditional image. He designs his own (very creative) packages. He directs photo shoots on each of his projects and spends hours on the final product. The result is a label that engenders conversation and attracts conversation. And, David Phinney knows how to make wine.

Track Eight Years in the Desert down (a few thousand cases produced at $40+)…you will not be disappointed.

A detour to Bourbon…

Two trips to the Bourbon Trail in the past nine months clarified the distinctive approach of each distiller to a uniquely American drink and permitted us to sample a wide variety of these corn based and oak aged whiskeys. And, like most wineries, distillers do not undercut their retail partners by selling their products at lower prices than you can find at your local shop. However, if you are lucky, the distillery does make available products that are allocated, experimental, or as occasionally noted, were recently uncovered in some ‘forgotten corner’ of the warehouse. You will not find Pappy Van Winkle or Old Weller, but we stumbled across Lux Row’s Blood Oath Pact 3 in the Spring and a some ‘found’ bottles of Blood Oath Pact 2 a few weeks ago.

The real treat, however, was a gift bottle of Orphan Barrel Rhetoric 25. A shared interest in Bourbon was only recently uncovered in a long-time friendship that began in New York and has continued for more than 30 years. We communicate largely through email and phone from her home in the Mid-West to our home in the Southeast. The opportunity to connect in person over the New Year’s weekend also resulted in the transfer of this unique Bourbon.

Orphan Barrel (owned by spirit giant Diageo) follows the model of Scotch bottler Gordon and MacPhail. Like Gordon and MacPhail, Orphan Barrel is not a distillery, but rather an agency that tracks down ‘orphaned’ barrels of whiskey that did end up in bottles carrying the original distiller’ name. Distilleries do not lose barrels of their whiskey. However, a particular barrel may have a flavor package that the master distiller finds inappropriate to include in a final blend or a distiller may have left the business with some of their aging stock lost in the transfer to another distillery.

The Orphan Barrel whiskey stock was found at the Stitzel-Weller Distillery Warehouses in Kentucky. The Stitzel-Weller Distillery, founded by Julien Van Winkle, operated until 1972. Many of the brands (including Old Weller, Pappy Van Winkle, Rebel Yell) had been sold off prior to the closing. The warehouses, however, continued to serve other distillers. Diageo reopened the facility in 2014 and today produces Bulleit Bourbon at the Shively location (just outside Louisville, Kentucky).

Orphan Barrel has released six limited edition bottlings of the Rhetoric. Aged from 20 to 25 years, with 25 the final release. Each whiskey has offered unique flavor packages. These changes in flavor would likely be a result of the location within the warehouse that each bottle was stored rather than the mash bill.

The mash bill is the percentage of each grain utilized in the distillation process. Rhetoric offers nearly 85% corn and a very low percentage (6) of rye. The remaining 8+% is barley.

While some critics argue that the oak dominates the nose, I found caramel notes on the nose, and a nice blend of sweet spices and chocolate on the palate. The finish is a little short, but the total package is very pleasing.

Unlike many long-aged Bourbons, the Rhetoric does not overwhelm the senses with oak.

There is still some of the Orphan Barrel 25 on the shelf, and the price is very attractive when compared to other 20-25-year-old whiskey.

I need to talk about the Willamette Valley…
Joy and I have had the pleasure of visiting Napa and Sonoma many times over our decades of enjoying wine and traveling to better understand the nature of the terroir and the quality of the people producing those wines. Our first visits to Napa/Sonoma were easy affairs. You generally planned to arrive in Napa Valley on a Sunday evening, and you arranged to leave the region by Friday afternoon. The ‘valleys’ were crowded on the weekends with many San Franciscans traversing Route 29, the Silverado Trail, and Sonoma’s Healdsburg while on day trips tasting wines.

During the week the Valley(s) were much quieter. You could find Jack Cakebread offering his extraordinary Chardonnay in a modest Rutherford tasting room and you could talk music and wine with Bruce Cohn while tasting his Olive Hill Estate Cabernet in another modest Sonoma space fronted by a gravel driveway lined with exquisite olive trees.

Things have changed in Napa and Sonoma. Wine tourism has become a big business, and the struggle between development and sustainability is reaching a critical juncture. These are concerns for discussion another day. Napa/Sonoma generate nearly $60 billion yearly to the California economy (by way of comparison, Disneyland generates $5.7 billion). The economic issues are important to understanding the future of the region.
Things are different in the Willamette Valley. Although within a half hour of Portland, the Willamette Valley has not been discovered by, or yet infected by, the wine tourism of Northern California. However, there is evidence that changes are coming. The town of Dundee is routing trucks around the quaint downtown. Wineries are opening tasting rooms along the former truck route, and there are plans for new hotels/motels. However, the Willamette Valley is not yet a battleground between restaurants and wineries for your attention and dollars.

The Willamette vistas are stunning, and wineries are dispersed across the valley with working farms as neighbors and buffers. Winemakers talk glowingly of their neighbor’s wines and encourage you to visit them.

Virtually every wine is Pinot Noir (with a few Chards and other whites for variety). The tasting room conversation focuses on terroir and farming technique. The experience is reminiscent of an older and a more user-friendly Napa and Sonoma. There are both wine ‘corporations’ and farmer-winemakers peacefully coexisting.

It is inevitable that the region will be discovered. The craft brewers of Portland are, as noted, just a half hour north, and Seattle (with their own set of brewers and vintners) just three hours north of Portland. Between Portland and Seattle there is plenty of non-wine options (in Seattle, the Art Museum, Pike’s Market, and Pioneer Square, and the Japanese Garden in Portland are worth your time).

However, this is not a travel blog, this is a wine and spirit’s blog. Wine discussion will follow shortly.

Charleston is a region strongly devoted to both craft beer and cocktails. And, it is an area devoted to ‘spirits’ – although not of the liquid environment. Should you choose to visit Charleston, I would strongly encourage you to take a Ghost Tour. There are many of them, and you will find excellent recommendations on-line.

Prohibition and The Gin Joint (don’t look for vodka here) have award winning mixologists. And, virtually every place with a liquor license has a list of specialty cocktails. Many of these cocktails rely on South Carolina spirits as a base alcohol.

Let’s talk about some of those South Carolina spirits. And, let’s start with Six and Twenty.

Stephen Bates, the wine director at Tavern Wine and Spirits on East Bay Street in Charleston, strongly recommended the Six and Twenty Carolina Rouge during a visit to this small, but fascinating shop. The original Tavern was established in 1686 (yep, 1686 – it is considered the oldest liquor store in the country), and is the location you head to if you are looking for South Carolina spirits.

Six and Twenty is located near the original Native American village of Keowee. The old village is now under Lake Keowee, a manmade 18,000-acre lake. It came to be known as Six and Twenty, according to legend, when a Choctaw maiden, Issaqueena, escaped from her Cherokee captures, and saved her British boyfriend from attack. She named landmarks by distance, Six Mile, Ninty Six, etc. And, not surprisingly, this distillery is located 26 miles from what was thought to be the original location of the village of Keowee.
Founded by Robert Redmond, a great-great-nephew of Major Lewis Redmond, a noted moonshiner, Six and Twenty was first bottled in 2013 from a custom still designed by Artisan Still Designs.

I have tried three of their products. The 5-Grain Bourbon is produced entirely from South Carolina grains (upstate corn and Soft Red Winter Wheat, Midlands Barley and Rye, and rice from the low country). It is a whiskey that is aged for two years in new American Oak, and offers light smoke on the nose and a touch of sweetness on the palate. There are prominent notes of vanilla and cinnamon. The Old Money is a product of Soft Winter Wheat and Barley, and is also aged for two years. Look for vanilla and maple on the nose, and velvet on the palate. Finally, Carolina Rouge. Very few bottles of this whiskey are released each year. Aged for two years in Guigal Cote Rotie French Barrels, and is distilled from Soft Winter Wheat and Barley. Another nose of vanilla, but with the addition of some hints of cherry. This is a very smooth and sweet whiskey with tones of plum added to the vanilla and cherry. Enjoy the excellent and lingering finish.

More South Carolina produced options in future posts.

Having spent many years connected to the retail wine world, I continue to be amazed at the number of people who stand in front of a shelve of wine as if they expect a bottle to speak to them and thus make the process of selection much easier. In my long experience, bottles have yet to utter a syllable. So why do people do this?

Adults are afraid to ask questions – it makes them appear less in control of the situation. And, for the successful adult (and we all prefer to see ourselves as successful adults) asking questions risks making us appear as if we are not in command of the situation. And, adults like to appear in charge. And, they do not want to appear foolish.

Moreover, wine is (or should be) and adult beverage, and thus, adults should know. But, they do not …

So, let’s start with what you know. You know from past experiences what you like in beverages. Do you drink your coffee or tea without sugar? Do you use a lot of sugar? Have you tried a wine that you liked? , Was that wine red? Was it white? Are you buying a gift? Are you buying a wine to serve with dinner? Do you want a wine simply to sip? Have you read an article that suggests that wine is good for your health? And, perhaps most critically, what is your budget? These are easy questions. Go to your wine shop armed with answers to these questions.

Now for the really tough question. How willing are you to venture outside your comfort zone?

There are more than 9,000 winemakers in the U.S., and the U.S. trails both France and Italy in production. Have you tried South African, Swiss, or Slovenian wines? Do you know if your local (or any nearby) wine shops offers weekend tastings? And, most importantly, do you trust your retailer? Do you believe that they understand your palate? And, how far you would be willing to move beyond your comfort zone?

California produces wines from more than 300 varietals (grapes that can produce wine), and there are more than 10,000 grapes worldwide that can produce wine. Do you only drink Chardonnay? Cabernet? Do you only eat hamburgers? And, even if you do, do you know how many wines would work wonderfully with that burger? You will never know the answer to that question until you ask (or are asked) the right questions?

Let’s assume that the questions are asked, the answers are given, and a recommendation is made for a wine with which you are unfamiliar. If the wine is intriguing, ask the retailer if they have a bottle of a similar wine open that you might sample it. And, please do not commit more money to the first bottle with a new flavor profile than you would for a wine within your comfort zone. Be sure to ask the retailer for an appropriately priced bottle (you need to determine what constitutes ‘appropriate’) that will give you a good example of the new profile. If you like the representative bottle, then you may want to try the same grape produced in another region. Maybe you will decide to increase the bottle price to determine if a more expensive bottle offers a wine with greater depth or finish. You can check on-line sources, such as the Wine Spectator, seeking a review that piques your interest. Or, simply return to your retailer and ask what other wine they would recommend (at a slightly higher price or from another region).

Last weekend I was required to take my own advice. My wife, Joy and I joined two New York friends who had also relocated to Charleston for dinner at a new Greek restaurant, Stella’s. Unfamiliar with many indigenous Greek grapes we relied on advice from the server (who already had taken our food order). Try the Lazaridis Oenodea Red Blend (reasonable and smooth). Both the wine and food were excellent.

To conclude, the simple question for you to ask the retailer or sommelier is … What do you think would go with…? It then becomes the responsibility of the retailer to ask the rest of the important questions? You simply need to have answers.

A few thoughts on following the blog and adding comments. I should have done this sooner, but only recently realized that the process was unclear.

I have added a simplified subscription link to the bottom of the sidebar. You simply need to enter your address, and click subscribe. You will receive (in short order, I hope) an email that will ask you to confirm your subscription, and shortly thereafter you should be notified of any new posts.

If you should wish to leave a general comment (once you have subscribed and confirmed the subscription), you simply click the comment link at the bottom of the page, and create your comment in the space provided. If you wish to comment on a specific post just click the comment link directly below the post title and leave your thoughts.

I have (thus far) created very liberal comment policies. However, there is always an expectation that comments would be both appropriate and inoffensive (in terms of language and content). Constructive criticisms of my posts is always welcome.

Hi,

I would guess that you may have been wondering where I went. The short answer is to Summerville, South Carolina (just 25 min west of Charleston), the longer answer is found below.

Joy and I have spent the year since our arrival in the Low Country exploring the region, adapting to a winter without snow (not difficult), and adjusting to a relaxed approach to wine. And, of course, there was selling our home in New York, moving three times, carefully watching the completion of our new house in Summerville (just outside of Charleston), and then organizing that house. The moves are done, and the house is now largely organized. We are adjusting to very warm summers, and have experienced that first winter with no snow. We have found an excellent wine bar, a fine local Italian restaurant, and discovered that the Charleston area offers excellent food at reasonable prices. However, we are still seeking bagels that are satisfactory and matzos ball soup that approximates New York standards. Despite these two failings, and missing our New York friends, we are blessed to have relocated to an area that is rich in history and populated by wonderful people and excellent restaurants.

Moreover, having spent more than 30 years in the New York, and thus very conversant with the New York embrace of wine (seeking both good value and unique flavor packages), it is fascinating to find ourselves in a region where wine is often the third option after unique cocktails and craft beer. And, while there are excellent wine bars and eateries with wonderful wine lists, it is much more common to find a long list of available craft beers and mixologists creations.

Thus, the question I have been asking myself over the past 13 months is ‘What should be the focus of a blog discussing wine and spirits emanating from the Low Country?’.

The decision – this blog will off personal reflection of restaurants, wine bars, distilleries, and wineries (as well as an occasional brewery) located in the Charleston area (or wherever our travels should take us), and to share with our friends in South Carolina, New York and elsewhere, wines that we have discovered that are worth seeking in your neighborhood, and food pairings for dishes with a Low Country flavor package.

I will also continue to study the technical, political, and economic aspects of the wine and spirits industry. And, unlike my previous publications, this blog will offer the reader a chance to respond. Wine and spirits are best enjoyed in the company of friends, and this blog is an opportunity for me to remain connected to friends made over the past 20 years in the business, and with new friends made through our move to the Charleston area.

Some posts may be short and some long. The advantage of blogging vs. writing column is that the topic will dictate the length of the article rather than the space allocated to it.

Finally, as I become more comfortable with the process of blogging, and experiment with the many options and add-ons available through this software and the hosting agent, you should anticipate that this will become a more robust and interactive site.

It is time to start writing again …..

Check back often, and encourage friends to join the conversation.

By way of introduction (especially for those who did not know me from my previous incarnations in the world of wine and spirits), my name is Greg, and I have been connected to wine as a writer, web developer, retail salesperson, and importer. I have assisted with wine dinners and tastings, and with my wife, Joy, have visited many of the world’s extraordinary wine regions.

Moreover, the recent emergence of spirits (particularly the ‘brown spirits’) has sparked an enormous interest amongst consumers, and while these spirits have required a ‘broader’ approach to both gathering and disseminating information, it has been fascinating. And, as we have discovered, wine drinkers are very willing to experiment with new drinks and flavors.

I spent most of my ‘wine life’ in the northeast, but have recently relocated to the southeast (better weather – especially November through March). I have initiated this blog as a means of remaining connected to both the wine and spirits world, and to the many people who have been reading my weekly ramblings in a retail newsletter. Both Joy and I look forward to exploring regional wineries; reviewing the wine lists of local restaurants; experimenting with regional food and wine pairings, and, sharing those experiences.

I am also excited to continuing my esoteric discussions on the politics and science of beverage options as we explore the always evolving world of wine and spirits. And, because these ‘ramblings’ will not be limited to either a specific day or a specific length, I encourage you to check back regularly.

The appearance of this blog will change (hopefully with a more sophisticatedlook) over the next couple of months….Welcome.