Tasting Panel Tour 2010 – Los Angeles
The San Francisco International Wine Competition took place June 18-2010. The competition was founded in 1981 by the State of California and is now owned by Anthony Dias Blue, James Beard Award Winner and Editor-in-Chief of The Tasting Panel Magazine.
Subsequent to the competition, the Tasting Panel takes a selection of the double-gold winners on tour of the United States. I attended the event when it came to Los Angeles.
Before I get to the wines, I must comment on the food that accompanied the wine.
The event took place at Waterloo & City http://www.waterlooandcity.com in Culver City, which bills itself as a traditional gastropub, which according to their website means “our place has the relaxed, easy atmosphere of an English pub while serving extraordinary gastronomic cuisine.”
I can’t comment on the accuracy of their definition of gastropub, but definitely agree with the “extraordinary” comment. We were treated to some delicious food, including chicken liver pate, sliders, gazpacho, and more. I must admit that I probably ate more than I was entitled to and definitely plan a return visit to this restaurant.
Now, on to the wines…
This was a walk-around, pour-your-own tasting, and there were a lot of great wines to try. The ones that stood out for me were:
Summers Estate Wines, 2008 Charbono, Villa Andriana Vineyards, Napa Valley
Zonte’s Footsteps, 2008 Sangiovese/Barbera, Canto di Lago, Langhorne Creek, Australia
Quinta de Roriz, 2007 Prazo de Roriz, DOC, Douro River Valley, Portugal
Paradise Vineyards, 2006 Malbec, Sonoma Coast
Kavaklidere 2009 Vin-Art Kalecik Karasi, Syrah, Central Anatolia / Aegean, Turkey
Bella Costa, 2008 Corvina-Ripasso, IGT, Veneto, Italy
Quinta do Vesuvio, 2007 Vintage Port, Douro, Portugal
I would be remiss if I did not point out that there were also samples being offered of the double gold winners of The San Francisco World Spirits Competition. I sampled a few of these, but knew that if I delved into this area too deeply I would never be able to get onto the 405 and head back to the Santa Clarita Valley.
Michael Perlis provides outsourced controller services to businesses that do not need a full-time controller. He balances this with his interest in wine: reading and writing about it and, of course, drinking it. He is still trying to figure out how to combine these two pursuits. Feel free to contact him about either at mcpfinancial@aol.com or michaelthezinfan@aol.com.
