Lamb on the Grill!!! Top Shelf BBQ with friends...

What do lamb, butter, soy sauce, garlic and blue cheese have in common? Nothing, except that when you throw them all on the grill together (after some marinating) it's ridiculously, preposterously good! This dish has been nicknamed "Crack Lamb" and I'm tending to agree. What looked like an insurmountably large leg of lamb for five people was demolished before I had the chance to take a decent picture...

I'll post the recipe below- but the concept is as follows- the leg of lamb is butterflied and marinated in the garlic, soy, red wine (always a good idea in this writer's book) and olive oil, then grilled- then literally slathered with butter and blue cheese mixture and broiled to finish... the lamb was tender, amazingly flavored and melt in your mouth cooked to perfection...with some simply grilled zucchini and broccolini and a quinoa salad...the perfect backyard dinner.

Dinner started with a delightful surprise from our hosts:
2004 Domaine Laurens "Clos des Demoiselles" Cremant de Limoux ($20 +/-) A surprisingly bright, dry and elegant way to start the evening. Crisp and floral with vibrant acidity. A perfect apertif!!! (I'll be finding some of this for the house)
89 points.
Not knowing what to bring to dinner, I fell back on the standard pairing for lamb; Chateauneuf du Pape.
In this case, the always spot-on 1999 Le Vieux Donjon Chateauneuf du Pape. Showed marvelously with layers of bright kirsch and dusty berry fruit, elegantly developed garrigue and spice. Medium bodied and elegant on the palate with bright acidity and well developed tannin and a minute plus finish with hints of cedar and smoke. This was great with the lamb itself, but the blue cheese overpowered it just a bit. $35 at retail (current release is most likely a bit more)
92 points

The hosts also provided two zins for the main course:
The utterly black colored and super extracted 2002 Biale "Black Chicken" Napa Zinfandel...I tend to like softer zins with good acidity, but this might be my favorite zin on planet earth. Helena and Key broke this out after a discussion about zins a few weeks ago (thanks guys). Exuberant and expressive with loads of bombastic fruit and spice. Starting to come together after a few years in bottle, this showed more refinement and elegance than my last tasting. Seamlessly textured and focused on the palate, with broad and rich mouthfeel. Chock full of mixed berry fruit and hints of black pepper, cocoa, toffee and black licorice. It was bordering on perfect with the lamb/bluecheese combo... 94 points
A more subdued, classic style zin was the 1999 Limerick Lane "Collins Vineyard" Russian River Valley Zinfandel. This has developed nicely in the bottle, taking on some claret-like hints of tobacco and cedar on the nose along with softer red fruits. On the palate the wine is starting to develop nicely with velvety textured tannins and great balancing acidity. I was reminded of something almost like a fruitier version of a mature rioja. Much like the Vieux Donjon, this was delightful with the lamb itself, but was slightly overpowered by the intensity of the blue cheese. Current vintage is $26 from the winery.
91 points
After a few nips from their prodigious scotch collection and a hotly contested "battle-of-the-sexes" game of Cranium, we all enjoyed a rather un-athletic, netless version of backyard barbeque badminton (to work off the lamb), that is until yours truly launched the last of the birdie things onto the roof (Key gets points for bravery for retrieving)...
next one's at our place guys- Thanks again...
TRC
P.S. The Recipe for the lamb if anyone wants to duplicate (I highly recommend it...)

"Crack Lamb" courtesy of Helena Chaye and Key Shin
butterflied leg of lamb
Marinade:
garlic (2-3 cloves)
brown sugar (2 tbsp)
olive oil (1/2c)
red wine (1/2 c - I used more)
soy sauce (I use light low sodium) (1/2c - I used slightly less)
2 tsp ginger powder
- marinate for 48 hours
- grill

Cheese mix:
butter (4oz - but I used half of that)
blue cheese (4 oz)
lemon juice (1 lemon)
green onions (4)
- smother with the mix and then put it under broiler for 2-4 minutes until the mixture bubbles
Sante-
TRC

Ken Wright Cellars Pinot Tasting at Wine Spectrum Bar and Shop

It's always fantastic when you get a chance to try some of the best pinots out of Oregon, it's even better when the maestro of Pacific Northwest pinot is there to discuss them with you...
Ken Wright is legendary for his work with both Panther Creek and Domaine Serene before he started his self-named label, where he has taken the concept of site specific pinot noir to a new level, offering eleven single vineyard pinots from all over the state. We had a chance to taste five of the pinots, plus two new wines from his Tyrus Evan line (named for his two sons, this is the label he uses for "non-pinot" wines), a syrah and a claret.
The wines were tremendous as I have come to expect, showing balance and elegance without lacking depth or purity of fruit. I don't think anyone in Oregon is as dialed in as Ken is right now.

1) Ken Wright "Nysa" Dundee Hills Pinot Noir 2005
The brightest and most acidic of the bunch, the Nysa shows super intense sour cherry and blackberry fruit with hints of baking spice and pepper. This begs for roasted duck with some sweetness. Juicy and fun. $55 at retail
90 points

2) Ken Wright "Savoya" Yamhill-Carlton Pinot Noir 2005
The Savoya is the first vineyard actually owned by Ken Wright. Planted in 1999 to 777 and 115 Dijon clones, the Savoya shows loads of richness and intensity for such a young vineyard. Dark fruit and spicy cola tones dominate the nose, and it develops some hints of clove and anise as it begins to open. Lingering finish with hints of cedar and smoke. Very intense and dramatic! Less than 300 cases produced. $55 at retail
91 points

3) Ken Wright "Guadalupe" Yamhill-Carlton Pinot Noir 2005
There are 400 cases of the "Guadalupe" Pinot this year, but really, is there ever enough. The Guadalupe is a great example of Ken's ability to allow the vineyard to make the wine. This wine literally reeks of its place... Black cherry and strawberry on the nose with massive earth and spicy cocoa/coffee tones. Fat and exotic on the palate with a mountain of dusty, earthy dark fruit. $55 at retail
92 points

4) Ken Wright "Carter" Amity-Eola Hills Pinot Noir 2005
My favorite of the bunch, the Carter was unusually open and lively right from the start (this vineyard usually rewards patience...). Still big and earthy with Bright cherry fruit and scents of fresh loam and smoky tobacco. Truly massive on the palate, rich, viscous and intense with a minute long finish with hints of anise, black pepper, coffee and cocoa. Made me want some duck confit... $55 at retail.
93 points

5) Ken Wright "Shea" Yamhill-Carlton Pinot Noir 2005
Powerful, spicy and intense, the Shea vineyard is one of Oregon's best known pinot sites and in the hands of Ken Wright, the potential is truly fulfilled. Exotic and lively on the nose, the aromatics shifted with each swirl of the glass. Shifting from cherry to black and blueberry, and from earth and mushroom to musk and spice. Typically dense and rich on the palate, with loads of fruit and earthy spice on the finish. This will certainly reward patience over the next few years. $55 at retail
91 points
Cheers
TRC

Tandem Winery at Wine Spectrum, Santa Rosa

Tandem Winery Tasting
Greg La Follette is no stranger to those who know great Chard and Pinot. The former winemaker at Flowers and Hartford Court is THE guru for truly burgundian style wines in Sonoma. It's always a treat to taste a lineup of his wines and last tuesday's tasting of new Tandem wines was no exception. La Follette sources fruit from various locations in Sonoma, from Russian River out to the coast. His relationships with growers get him the finest grapes available and allow him to produce some of the best wines in Sonoma county. Greg is a man who speaks with both knowledge and passion when discussing wine, you can tell instantly that he lives to make great wine and with every accolade, his pride in his craft grows.
1) Tandem "Ritchie" Chardonnay, Russian River Valley, 2004
The Ritchie Vineyard is one of Sonoma's most revered for Chardonnay, and Tandem's version does not dissappoint. Mildly toasty with 1/3 new french barrels, the Ritchie chard is all finesse with nary a rough edge in sight. Loads of tropical and stone fruit with hints of caramel, baking spice and citrus. The texture is luxurious and plush with a minute long finish. Around $45 at retail.
93 points
2) Tandem "Sangiacomo" Chardonnay, Sonoma Coast, 2005
When I tasted this last year, I was shocked by it's intense perfume, happily, it was no fluke and it is even more striking now that it has been in bottle for a while. A crazy nose of flowers, spice, and musk gives way to fat and exotic tropical fruits, guava and papaya, as well as super ripe pear and fuji apple. On the palate, the fruit is lavish and expressive, giving more than a mouthful of intense juicy pear. The texture, like the Ritchie, is what got me though. Creamy and broad without being over oaked (also 1/3 new french), the Sangiacomo show's La Follette's mastery of burgundian style Chards. Around $45
92 points

3) Tandem "Sangiacomo" Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast 2004
The aromatics of the Sangiacomo pinot are breathtaking, carrying the musk and spice notes present in the chard to a completely different level. La Follette calls it "Animale et Sauvage" and I'm tempted to agree, adding on sweet tobacco, cola and coffee for good measure. Loaded with ripe, dark berry fruit ranging from cherry to blueberry and a hint of sour cranberry. Fat and viscous on the palate with firm acidity and a minute-plus finish. Tremendous. Around $55 at retail.
93 points
4) Tandem "Silver Pines" Pinot Noir, Sonoma Mountain, 2005
A mere 227 cases of the Silver Pines was produced this year. Which sucks, because this stuff is truly breathtaking. Exotic and enticing with a mess of berry fruit and hints of cocoa and licorice. Less aromatic, but fatter and broader texturally than the Sangiacomo, I couldn't decide which I preferred. The Silver Pines give the impression of a pinot ready to burst from the inside out- juicy and firmly acidic and just plain fun to drink. I'll use the same word...tremendous. Around $55
93 points