San Diego Unseen: An Urban Portrait
I usually shy away from blends in favor of single-vintage wines. I’m not sure why, exactly, but maybe it’s because a blend can be unpredictable, or perhaps I’m suspicious that someone is trying to make a mediocre grape taste less mediocre. But sometimes you’ve got to take a leap, so I’ve decided to dip my toe in the purple pool.
Rather than going down the standard route of a Super Tuscan or a Bordeaux, I kicked things off closer to home with Minassian-Young’s 2006 GSMV. Out of Paso Robles, the bottle is a combination of four different grapes: Grenache, Syrah, Viognier and the lion’s share made up of Mourvedre. The wine is something of a lion, actually—big and bold, ripe with strong flavors of berries and smoke that linger into the finish.
We opened the bottle a little too late in the evening, I believe, because on its own the wine was almost overpowering. So we had the rest with dinner the next night, and this was the way to go. The various flavors—and there are a lot of them, what with all those varietals—accented different aspects of the meal, and by the time the last drop had been poured, I wished we’d saved the previous night’s glasses for the table. I’m still a sucker for a powerful Syrah or a sharp Sauvignon Blanc, but change is good, and I’ll keep experimenting with the mixed bag that a blend can be.
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The San Diego Italian Film Festival knows how to throw a fundraiser. On Sunday, Oct. 9, the festival will hold a Wine Tasting at Splash (3043 University Ave. in North Park). Tony Tiso, who makes wine at La Serenessima in warner Springs, will be on hand. There will also be aperitivi for nibbling, and if you buy a ticket ($45, or $40 if you’re already an SDIFF supporter), you’ll also get a $10 card for Splash. You can drink through that during the course of the evening or come back later for another splash. The film festival itself kicks off on Oct. 29. sandiegoitalianfilmfestival.com
Write to anders@sdcitybeat.com and editor@sdcitybeat.com. You can follow Anders on Twitter at @anderswright.
