Last week we visited, in a vinous but otherwise virtual sense, a part of Galicia in North West Spain. This week we are in a region colonised by the Spanish in the early 17th century and so it is likely that there is some historic connection between this week's Monterey and last week's Monterrei.
Our current spelling can be located in California and has throughout its history been Spanish, Mexican and American. It has been home to such notables as Robert Louis Stevenson, John Steinbeck, Clint Eastwood and, the pick of the bunch, Frank Zappa.
Our reason for visiting is that it is home to Jerry Lohr, who has been making wine in the region since the early 1970's.
Week F (2015) Falcon's Perch Pinot Noir, Monterey County. CA. 2011 Constantine Stores £17.75
I first came across the name J.Lohr as a scribbled note on a battered bible, owned by The One, and asked who it was. The answer was that The One had tasted a wine at a church house group (natch) and wanted to make a note of the name for future reference, Good call, as without this I may not have selected this wine for a recent family celebration to mark a significant birthday of the M-in-law. It is rude to discuss a lady's age so I will simply say that had Downton Abbey been a documentary she could have first appeared early in series three and would have been in the same school year as Lady Mary's daughter.
It is always something of a mixed blessing being handed the wine list at a gathering such as we had for, on the one hand, it provides the opportunity to drink something that I can be reasonably confident I will enjoy, but on the other have very little confidence that it may please others to the same degree.
On this occasion, however, I was congratulated for my selection to the point that I that I felt it necessary to remind my companions that I didn't actually make the wine myself and that the real credit should go to Mr Lohr.
Why did it receive such praise? Well, to start with it was as full and rich a Pinot Noir as I can ever remember tasting. The red fruit, cherry and floral or violet notes were all there but there was a depth to the colour and a concentration of flavours that surprised and indeed delighted. Silky and smooth it was a great wine. Now there are probably Burg-hounds out there who would have said it was getting towards jammy, but I wouldn't agree. There was a finesse to it which balanced the unexpectedly big qualities it had.
The producer's website reveals that there is a blend of 76% Pinot Noir (just enough for a US wine to declare a single varietal) and 24% Valdiguie, a variety previously believed to be Gamay, the Beaujolais grape, and this contributes some of the rich colour. The flavours are put down, at least in part to the cool growing season in 2011 which gave the fruit ample opportunity to develop fully before the harvest.
Why 'Falcon's Perch'? Well, it is named after the bird that has made it's home in the trees near to the vineyard and who does s sterling job protecting the grapes from other birds and mammals that could otherwise get there first. And we should be grateful.
Our current spelling can be located in California and has throughout its history been Spanish, Mexican and American. It has been home to such notables as Robert Louis Stevenson, John Steinbeck, Clint Eastwood and, the pick of the bunch, Frank Zappa.
Our reason for visiting is that it is home to Jerry Lohr, who has been making wine in the region since the early 1970's.
Week F (2015) Falcon's Perch Pinot Noir, Monterey County. CA. 2011 Constantine Stores £17.75I first came across the name J.Lohr as a scribbled note on a battered bible, owned by The One, and asked who it was. The answer was that The One had tasted a wine at a church house group (natch) and wanted to make a note of the name for future reference, Good call, as without this I may not have selected this wine for a recent family celebration to mark a significant birthday of the M-in-law. It is rude to discuss a lady's age so I will simply say that had Downton Abbey been a documentary she could have first appeared early in series three and would have been in the same school year as Lady Mary's daughter.
It is always something of a mixed blessing being handed the wine list at a gathering such as we had for, on the one hand, it provides the opportunity to drink something that I can be reasonably confident I will enjoy, but on the other have very little confidence that it may please others to the same degree.
On this occasion, however, I was congratulated for my selection to the point that I that I felt it necessary to remind my companions that I didn't actually make the wine myself and that the real credit should go to Mr Lohr.
Why did it receive such praise? Well, to start with it was as full and rich a Pinot Noir as I can ever remember tasting. The red fruit, cherry and floral or violet notes were all there but there was a depth to the colour and a concentration of flavours that surprised and indeed delighted. Silky and smooth it was a great wine. Now there are probably Burg-hounds out there who would have said it was getting towards jammy, but I wouldn't agree. There was a finesse to it which balanced the unexpectedly big qualities it had.
The producer's website reveals that there is a blend of 76% Pinot Noir (just enough for a US wine to declare a single varietal) and 24% Valdiguie, a variety previously believed to be Gamay, the Beaujolais grape, and this contributes some of the rich colour. The flavours are put down, at least in part to the cool growing season in 2011 which gave the fruit ample opportunity to develop fully before the harvest.
Why 'Falcon's Perch'? Well, it is named after the bird that has made it's home in the trees near to the vineyard and who does s sterling job protecting the grapes from other birds and mammals that could otherwise get there first. And we should be grateful.
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