Callaghan Me Another Glass…Cheers to Arizona Wine!

I was a little nervous about writing this post, because I wasn’t sure if I could do this winery justice – particularly this wine maker, Kent Callaghan. First, a little background on Kent and his award-winning wines…

Let’s take a look at all of the raves and reviews he’s received over the years. Hailed as:

“An iconic winemaker”

“Well on his way to becoming a winemaking legend”

“Callaghan is a pioneer”

“One of the best kept secrets in America”

You name it. The credits and accolades go on and on, and the sources are no slouches. Even though I’m not sure how much I buy into the opinions of the upper echelon of the wine world, like Robert Parker and the gang, they’re pretty dead on with their assessment of Callaghan.

For anyone who has been following Arizona wine for any length of time, you’ll agree with this statement. While the emergence of Tool’s Maynard Keenan and Dick Erath’s impact and showmanship surrounding Arizona wine has been a tremendous help, Kent Callaghan has been the constant. His wines have been the ones that have made enthusiasts stop and take notice for years. 

I’ve had the pleasure of visiting the Callaghan’s tasting room, and have run into Kent and his family at myriad wine events in the state. He’s a very quiet guy. One of those types that doesn’t say a lot, but when he does, you listen, and you listen intently.

So, now that I’ve painted a picture of Callaghan wines, and the many associated accomplishments, let’s get back to my conundrum. How do I review this man and his wines in a way that…well, let’s be frank – doesn’t suck. So here’s my take. I’m a noob. I’m going to talk about a LOT of great wines and winemakers, and there are going to be concepts that are way over my head, and well beyond the grasp of my adolescent palate. But like SNL’s king of daily affirmations, Stuart Smalley would say, “That’s…okay.”

So I thought, why take this on myself? I’ll invite over a gaggle of wine-loving geeks and we can tackle this beast together. And make no mistakes. I was the biggest geek of them all. I decided to get super official, and printed out tasting notes on each of the wines, and downloaded and modified tasting sheet templates for each of the guests to scribble their thoughts about what they were tasting.

Some of my guests impressed me, while others (as expected) made me laugh. I knew inviting my buddy Shannon would result in some awesome observational nuggets like this one:


 

Or this one:

 


Clearly, we had a pretty fun night, thanks in part to Shannon and lots in part to Callaghan wines. Our tasting list for the night included Ann’s Selection, Lisa’s Selection, Wayne’s Grenache, Buena Suerte and Padres.

A few thoughts on each from the Peanut Gallery:

Ann’s Selection – 45% Grenache Blanc, 35% Verdelho and 20% Symphony (A UC Davis cross of Muscat and Grenache Blanc)

·      Color/Appearance: very light, pale yellow

·      Nose/Aroma: lime, apple, smells sweet

·      Mouthfeel/Flavors: clean, mineraly, spiced apple on the finish, tasted much different than nose would indicate, apple, grainy, pear and oak, “great summer wine!”

Lisa’s Selection – 55% Viognier, 45% Riesling

·      Color/Appearance: very light, golden tone

·      Nose/Aroma: subtle apple smell, peachy, grapefruity (yeah, we made up lots of words that night), buttery

·      Mouthfeel/Flavors: Tingly on the tongue, slightly oaky, not too sweet, slightly buttery, semi-dry

Wayne’s Grenache – 100% Grenache ***By far the favorite of the night

·      Color/Appearance: deep red, “purply” (again…made-up words can be fun)

·      Nose/Aroma: Very berry-like, raspberries, strawberries and cherries

·      Mouthfeel/Flavors: “Mmmm so friggin’ good!”, “OMG I heart this wine!” “Did you just make a nummy noise?”…our intelligent vocabulary began to escape us at this point in the night…

Buena Suerte – 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Petit Verdot and 8% Merlot

NOTE TO READERS: All of the smelling and writing became a bit too much for this group of amateur winos. We stopped writing and started drinking. It got sloppy. It got giggly. It got REAL fun. Here are the official notes, though.

**FUN FACT! This is one of three wines that earned Callaghan some serious street cred, if you consider The White House a valid source of doling type of “cred” out…

Padres – 35% Tempranillo, 23% Petite Verdot, 18% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Sauvignon and 8% Cabernet Franc

Umm…again, at this point we were just drinking like ravenous youth busting into mom and dad’s liquor cabinet, circa junior year of high school.  Needless to say, we loved the wines. We loved them a little too much.

Now don’t get me wrong, we started the evening in a very civilized, sophisticated-ish sort of way. My talented friend Lacey even brought her super fancy camera and snapped this photo of the spread. Take a look!

So, all in all, it was a ridiculously fun night, jam-packed with good friends, good nosh and some pretty incredible Arizona wines.

A few questions for you to ponder as you prepare to comment liberally, below (hint, hint). Have you ever tasted Callaghan wines? Thoughts? Favorites? Have you ever hosted a party like this of your own? Any ridiculous, fun stories to share? Tips to offer to others wanting to do the same?

And P.S. If you’re interested in taking a trip to the tasting room in Elgin, it’s WELL worth it. Lots of great family wineries in the area.  Speaking of great family wineries in the area…

Next week: Dos Cabezas Winewoks! Stay tuned.

Arizona Wine Country - Part One

They say the best way to learn about wine is to pick a wine growing region and really explore it. Oh how I love drinking exploring! It’s the best way to identify the area (or AVA) that most delights your palate.

That said, loving local the way I do, and being an Arizonan, why not start at home? So, that’s exactly what we did.

According to the Arizona Wine Grower’s Association, “…The modern state of Arizona wine started in 1973 in Sonoita at the southern end of the state. There are now 45 licensed and bonded wineries throughout Arizona.” Pretty impressive for a state that many would never guess was a bonafide producer of not only wine, but really great wine!

And so we set out on our journey to partake in the best this state could offer, starting in Willcox, and then Sonoita. We decided to hit four wineries, and rather than cramming them all into one frighteningly long blog post, each winery will receive a little extra TLC (because they work hard and deserve it). This post will dive into Keeling-Schaefer Vineyards, but keep your eyes peeled in future posts for a deeper look at Carlson Creek Vineyard, Callaghan Vineyards and Dos Cabezas Wineworks.

SIDE NOTE: Part two (The Verde Valley) will come at a later, undisclosed date – pretty much whenever I can scrounge up another group of devoted winos.

There are certain realities we must face when discussing Arizona wine, or any Southwestern wine for that matter. Chances of encountering a rootin’ tootin’ Wild West shoot out en route to the tasting room are, well…high.

But don’t let that folksy attempt at solidifying kitschy stereotypes fool you. The wine speaks for itself, and it speaks REAL good. When I saw this sign, I knew all was right in the world:


Our first stop was at Keeling-Schaefer Vineyards tasting room. The tasting room itself is ridiculously cool. Owners, Rod and Jan, have transformed the tasting room from a historic 1917 Willcox Bank & Trust building. I think filling an old bank with delicious wine is always a fantastic idea.  Take a look:


One of the reasons I like Keeling-Schaefer wines so much is because based on their wine-making style, they always want to let the fruit shine. Meaning, each drink is going to be incredibly fruit-forward and juicy. And, well…I likes me some juice.

While tasting at Keeling-Schaefer, we were pretty spoiled. TIP: If you’re in a tasting room and are lucky enough to be there while the winemakers are pouring, (and only do this if you’re serious…no faking it, people) ask them lots of questions. This is their passion and they pour their hearts (pun intended) into everything they do. If you’re eager to learn, and are genuinely interested in what they have to say, they might just “accidentally” pour you a little more than the standard tasting pour. Just sayin.’ 

Here are a few of the wines we tried, along with their tasting notes. (I’ve starred my favorites) As I get better at this, I’ll provide my own notes, but for now, I’m going to do us all a favor and leave it to the experts.

*2007 Partners GSM Blend, 264 cases produced: Ripe, fleshy and smoky, with mulled fig, plum sauce and spice bread notes liberally laced with black tea and vanilla bean. Rated “88” Wine Spectator. Ohh Emm Gee. Loved, loved loved this one!

2008 Three Sisters Syrah, 306 cases produced: Ultra dark, rich with boysenberry notes and a hint of licorice at the end

2007 Keeling Brothers Shiraz, limited release 72 cases: Dark and toasty, with raisin, roasted plum and fig jam flavors liberally coated with a roasted vanilla note. Rated “87” Wine Spectator.

*2006 Home Place Reserve Syrah, limited release 72 cases: Mature, with soft raisin, cinnamon, baked plum and licorice notes held together by a toasty frame. Rated “86” Wine Spectator. Son of a Nutcracker I could bathe in this stuff it’s so good. Inappropriate? Perhaps. Truthful? Indeed.

Now don’t get me wrong. I love drinking wine because it’s such a sensory experience. It’s not just a drink. I may joke about drinking it quite often, but I really respect wine for the art of it, and the care and meticulous management of every element that goes into the winemaking process.

Which leads me to the second reason I really love wine. It’s about the people. The people behind the wine, and the passion they bring to the table. In addition to being lucky enough to meet Rod and Jan, I was able to converse with their good friend and tasting room manager, Rosanna. Let me just say…I love Rosanna. She is one of the sweetest people I’ve ever come across, and I’m beginning to realize that much of the Arizona wine community fits this profile. I’ll save my gushing over the Dos Cabezas crew for the last Arizona post of this series.

Now, back to Rosanna. She’s a retired school teacher, and she started working in the tasting room because she wanted to learn more about wine. More evidence that the people you encounter in tasting rooms really care about the craft of wine making, and connecting with others who love it. I hope Rosanna won’t take offense to this if she ever reads it, but…Rosanna is one hip, seasoned lady. She’s also taken on handling all social media efforts for Keeling-Schaefer and is doing a pretty bang-up job of it. Go on… Fan their page!

And if she had anything to do with the website, I’m sending more kudos her way.  Do yourself a favor, and check out this page. It’s chalk-full of deliciously good content for anyone interested in learning more about the winemaking process, like me.

Are you ready to venture out to Arizona Wine Country?! (Willcox specifically) Keeling-Schaefer is a MUST. Put it on your to-do list. You will not be sorry. Serious.

Have you had any Keeling-Schaeffer wines? Have you tasted an AZ wine? I want to know about it. Give me some comment love, kids! J

FUN FACT: (courtesy of Rod Keeling) “There are 7 or 8 wineries in Arizona now that are consistently submitting to Wine Spectator. There are 9 labels with 56 wines that have been ranked - just in the past couple years - above 85. That’s pretty impressive.” I concur, Rod. Tip it for Arizona wine!