A breakdown of sparkling, white and red wine from the annual Texas Sommelier Conference.
Story and photos by Matt McGinnis
It’s easy to feel overwhelmed when walking through the vast canyons of wines at the store. Faced with that immense selection, it’s tempting just to pick the same wine we know. On the flip side, the thousands of different wines present a fantastic opportunity to continually explore new things.
ATX Man made its annual pilgrimage to the world’s premier wine-education conference to get some fresh ideas about what to drink right now. The 10th anniversary of the Texas Sommelier Conference, aka TEXSOM, held in Dallas, drew 900 wine enthusiasts to participate in educational seminars and wine tastings conducted by 39 master sommeliers, 10 certified wine educators and six masters of wine. It was a perfect place to discover wine.
Here are outstanding wine recommendations from some of the top wine professionals in Austin.
Dazzling Sparkling Wine
Two renowned areas for producing the world’s finest sparkling wine are, of course Champagne, France, and Lombardy, Italy, which is 30 miles east of Milan. The sparkling wine from this part of Northern Italy is called Franciacorta and it’s made in the same way as Champagne. Here are two fine choices of Franciacorta.
Ca’ del Bosco Cuvée Annamaria Clementi 2004: This Franciacorta from Northern Italy is gorgeous, bright and focused, with incredible precision, a pervasive minerality and acidity for days. The weight and breadth of the wine sits just perfectly on the palate, balanced by the right amount of toast and a clean, fine perlage. It is Franciacorta at its best, simply and utterly perfect. It is splurge-worthy at $85.
– Lexey Davis Johnson, certified sommelier, Vino Vino
Ca’ del Bosco Vintage Collection Dosage Zero 2009: Powerful, rich and dry as a bone, this gorgeous bubbly is made with 65 percent chardonnay, 13 percent pinot bianco and 22 percent pinot nero grown on old vine. Italy had a slightly warmer growing season in 2009, resulting in lush, softer wines. This wine is fermented in small, new oak and aged for 40 months on the lees, giving it great concentration, with lemon meringue and hazelnut flavors with a crisp finish. It’s great before dinner or paired with just about any food. It runs about $70.
– Matt McGinnis, certified sommelier and food and beverage columnist for ATX Man
Elegant White Wine
There were so many amazing white wines from throughout the world poured at TEXSOM. It’s hard to pick favorites, but here are a few standouts.
Selbach-Oster Zeltinger Schlossberg Riesling Spätlese, Mosel 2012: Though there’s a major shift in German riesling toward a drier style, sometimes you just can’t mess with a classic, like this Mosel Spätlese, which sings with bright honeysuckle, ripe pear, lychee and jasmine on the nose. Its delicate sweetness is balanced with racy acidity that puts this relatively young wine at the pinnacle sweet spot for a benchmark riesling. As we have moved into hatch-chili season, drink this wine with grilled shrimp and roasted hatch peppers. The Austin Wine Merchant has this for less than $30.
– Jessica Dupuy, certified sommelier, certified specialist of wine and wine columnist for Texas Monthly
Marcel Deiss Burg Premier Cru 2010, Alsace: I love this wine for its ability to showcase the terroir of this premier cru vineyard site. Its composition as a true field blend of the several varieties in the vineyard including riesling and gewurztraminer provides the wine with incredible complexity of rich tropical and stone-fruit elements and fragrant florals. Its distinctly Alsatian mineral backbone carries through the wine from start to finish. It sells for about $50 a bottle.
– Joelle Cousins, certified sommelier, 2014 Texas’ Best Sommelier and general manager and sommelier for the Red Room Lounge
Louis Latour Corton Charlemagne 2010: Yes, grand cru! I know, I know, going big. Louis Latour is an iconic producer making a classic example of Corton Charlemagne. This 2010 is singing wonderfully with high-toned citrusy fruit and mouthwatering acidity. Yummy! It will set you back about $100 at Spec’s, but it’s worth it.
– June Rodil, advanced sommelier and beverage director for Jeffrey’s, Josephine House, Clark’s, Lamberts, Perla’s and Elizabeth Street Café
Seductive Red Wine
Gallons upon gallons of amazing red wine were poured at TEXSOM. It was difficult to pass up the hard-to-find Portuguese reds, the graceful Burgundy grand cru, or the quintessentially bold cabernet sauvignons from Napa Valley, but here are some must-try wines featured at the conference.
2011 Arpepe Rosso di Valtellina: I love almost anything Italian, and Nebbiolo is a standout for me. This wine is from the Valtellina region of Lombardy, where the Nebbiolo goes by its synonym, Chiavennasca. Nebbiolo can be hard as nails at times but this is a soft, approachable wine with dried strawberry, rose petals and a defined organic minerality, making this a great way to dip your toes in the sea of Northern Italian reds! It is available at East End Wines for about $34.
– Craig Collins, master sommelier and beverage director at ELM Restaurant Group
Pedernales Cellars Texas Tempranillo 2012: Texas wines have come a long way in the past decade, and the award-winning wines from Pedernales Cellars show what the state is capable of producing. Made with grapes grown in the Reddy and Bingham vineyards of the High Plains region, this bold tempranillo has racy cherry and raspberry flavors with soft vanilla and oak on the finish. It’s great served with grilled lamb or Texas barbecue. Pick it up for $22 at Whole Foods Market.
– Matt McGinnis, certified sommelier and food and beverage columnist for ATX Man
Viña Falernia Syrah Reserva DO Elqui Valley Chile 2010: The vineyard was founded in the arid far north of Chile in 1951 by an Italian family. The cool Pacific breezes, high altitude and intense sun make ideal growing conditions for syrah. The Viña Falernia Reserva has the complexity and finesse of a much more expensive wine from the Northern Rhone Valley of France, with delicate plum, raspberry, bacon, smoke and olive flavors and a peppery finish. Grill a thick steak and enjoy. It is a beautiful wine and an absolute bargain for $14 at Whole Foods Market.
– Matt McGinnis, certified sommelier and food and beverage columnist for ATX Man
