Why you need to try this Brazilian wine before (or after) the Olympics

Brazil produces a ton of wine, most of it in the temperate south with its four seasons. The fact that Brazil makes wine at all is something that most people in this country probably don’t realize, given how Chile and Argentina, with their marketing muscle, dominate South American imports and sales. I can’t recall being queried about my interest in wines from Brazil -- until this summer with the obvious Olympics tie-in.

You’re not going to find many (or any) bottles from Brazil in your local wine store or in restaurants, unless, of course, they’re serving Brazilian food. I can see that changing, however, if more of them knew about wines like Lidio Carraro’s 2014 “Agnus” Tannat.

Carraro, which, like many Brazilian wineries was founded by Italian immigrants in the late 19th century, notes that tannat is Brazil’s “emblematic” red grape, as it is in neighboring Uruguay. The variety was transplanted years ago from southwest France (think Madiran), producing tamer, less tannic wines across the ocean, much as malbec, also from France (think Cahors), does in Argentina. Did you know that tannat actually means "tannin"?

Carraro’s tannat, which Wine-Searcher lists at seven retailers and is priced, astonishingly, from just under $11 to $13, is a bright and fruit-forward wine marked by smooth tannins, good balancing acidity and minerals (the grapes are grown in granitic soil), all of which enhance a blackberry-blueberry core accented by coffee bean and cocoa notes. Alcohol is a reasonable 13.5 percent. There’s a lot to enjoy here for not much money. Sounds almost medal-worthy, wouldn't you say? (Imported by Winebow, Inc., New York; received as a press sample). 

Sips: From California, Donelan's Kobler Vineyard Syrah

I've been thinking a lot in recent weeks about a growing trend in California winemaking -- a return to more modest and elegant wines that still have great fruit concentration but with lower levels of alcohol. Some of this has to do with weather conditions, some with vineyard location and some with a winemaker's decision on when to harvest grapes (the longer they hang the higher the sugar and resulting alcohol levels).

You may have read about an excellent Dry Creek Valley zinfandel from Dashe Cellars that I reviewed in my column on NBCNews.com. Its alcohol is a modest 13.7 percent. Another superb wine in this more modest style comes from Donelan Family Wines in Sonoma, which produces a line of vineyard designated wines, mostly syrahs, but also a pinot noir, a chardonnay and a rousanne-viognier blend.

One of Donelan's syrahs, the 2010 Kobler Family Vineyard Syrah from the Green Valley of the Russian River Valley, is among the  most beautiful California syrahs I have tasted, a wine of retrained elegance, wonderful balance and gorgeous fruit. And here's the kicker: the alcohol level is a mere 12.8 percent, a function, to some extent, of the cool 2010 vintage.

What does this mean in terms of what you'll experience in the glass? This is a wine that is at once complex and effortless to drink, a wine that easily invites you to take another sip, to pour the next small glass. Sip again and repeat. Aged for two years in French oak, none of it new, the wine is plummy with raspberry and blackberry notes. There's some spice here as well, along with cinnamon and touches of licorice and white pepper.

The wine reminds me more of the northern Rhone than California, but is, hopefully, another sign of a broadening return to leaner times in California winemaking. The suggested price is $45. Recieved as a press sample.

Sips: A classic California cabernet sauvignon, to drink and gift

Beyond Bordeaux, California became synonymous long ago with great cabernet sauvignon. That said, it’s also true that memorable California cabs don’t come inexpensively -- unlike Bordeaux, where it’s still possible to find notable cabernet and merlot blends for $20 or under.

And yet price alone is no guarantee that a California wine (or one from anywhere else) will be interesting, as I discovered the other night when I opened a $60 cabernet wine from a celebrated Napa Valley winery and found it one dimensional. The opulent California fruit was there but not much else.

Fortunately, that wasn't the case with Hanna Winery's 2009 Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. This superb $39 wine made from 100 percent cabernet has beautiful complexity and balance with a delicious blackberry and black cherry core and undertones of fennel seed and even fresh fennel, giving it a nice licorice note. Ripe tannins round out the picture in a wine that, despite its youth, is drinking very well now. It's a natural for steak and lamb, and as a serious wine for a holiday gift that won't completely break the bank. Available on Hanna's website and elsewhere. Received as a press sample.

Pasta with a sauce of yellow tomatoes and hot and sweet sausage

A couple of weeks ago, after I reviewed an excellent Tuscan red made by the tenor Andrea Bocelli in my NBCNews.com column , a number of readers asked if I could provide a recipe for the pasta dish I had with the wine. I use yellow tomatoes when available for this sauce because I like their lower acidity and their sweetness, but I have also enjoyed this dish many times with red tomatoes, both fresh and canned, so feel free to substitute them.

Ingredients:

½ pound sweet Italian pork sausage

½ pound hot Italian pork sausage

2 tbsps olive oil

1 medium onion chopped

1 large garlic clove, finely chopped

Small bunch of Italian parsley chopped

2 pounds of yellow or red tomatoes, cored, broken apart by hand or coarsely chopped

1 pound penne, fusilli or other pasta

Grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Spoon the olive oil into a large, heavy-bottomed sauce pan, preferably cast iron. Add sausage (if sausage is in casings squeeze the meat out). Over low to medium heat, break sausage into small pieces with a wooden spatula and cook for 10 minutes or so, tossing frequently, until nicely browned but not burned. Add onion and cook until translucent. Add garlic and stir with onions and sausage until golden. Add tomatoes and mix thoroughly with other ingredients. Use the spatula to break the tomatoes apart. Cook over a low flame, partially covered, for 15-20 minutes until the tomatoes have softened. Remove cover. Break tomatoes apart more with spatula if needed. Simmer 10-15 minutes more until tomatoes have cooked down and sauce has thickened. Stir in parsley. Toss with penne, fusilli or your favorite pasta and top with grated Parmesan. Serves 4.

Sips: La Quercia’s 2010 Montepulciano d’Abruzzo

I am always on the hunt for juicy, fruit-forward Italian reds, the kind I can pop open on the spur of the moment to enjoy with pasta, pizza or other casual foods. One that really over-delivers for $11 or so is a red from the Abruzzo region, La Quercia’s 2010 Montepulciano d’Abruzzo.

This is a relatively soft, easy-drinking casual wine that’s made from the native montepulciano grape without oak and is all about the fruit – blackberry and blueberry tastes with a hint of unsweetened chocolate on the finish. When you breathe it in, it fills the nose with these dark fruit aromas. It’s delicious on its own and, as I said, is a versatile wine for all kinds of Italian and other dishes at a price that can’t be beat.

Imported by August Wine Group, Seattle, Washington. Received as a press sample.

Sips: An under-$20 Pinot Noir from Oregon rises to the occasion

Finding good, inexpensive pinot noir is one of the bigger challenges in the wine world. But one that passes the test is the 2010 Rainstorm Oregon Pinot Noir, which sells for $15 or so. The fruit  comes from two distinct Oregon regions, the cooler Willamette Valley in the north and the warmer and drier Umpqua Valley in the south.  The 50-50 blend results in a wine that is fruit-forward and accessible and ready to drink now.

That said, it did take a little while for it to open up when I sampled it the other night with a main course of chicken sautéed with mushrooms and white wine that my wife had made. It was enclosed at first with not much dimension. But then, after a half hour or so, a deliciously fruity, balanced and refreshing wine emerged that was perfect with the dish. Beyond its spicy cherry, raspberry and subtle blueberry tastes, just enough tannic structure and a subtle oak treatment give it nice complexity. Alcohol is just 12.5 percent, which makes it easy to drink, served preferably after it is slightly chilled. Wine received as a press sample.

Carla's beef Burgundy

After my NBCNews.com piece last week on a cabernet sauvignon from Argentina matching beautifully with my wife’s beef Burgundy, a number of readers asked for the recipe and I, in turn, asked her.  

Carla’s Beef Burgundy

Ingredients:

2-3 lbs. beef chuck, cut into 1-inch cubes

Olive oil 

3-4 cups roughly chopped onions

2 cloves minced garlic

1 tsp. salt 

4-5 twists fresh pepper

1 tsp. marjoram

4-6 tbsps flour

About 4 cups beef broth

3-4 carrots, sliced lengthwise and cut into 1/2 inch pieces

2-3 cups of red wine, preferably pinot noir

About 4 tbsps cumin seed

2-3 cups sliced mushrooms

Directions:

1. Saute onions and then garlic in a cast iron or heavy-bottomed skillet until semi-transparent. Set aside.

2.Brown meat on all sides at  medium-high heat, taking care not to burn it. Do this in batches, if necessary, in the same heavy skillet.

3.When the last of the meat is done, sprinkle it with the flour, marjoram, salt and pepper and stir until meat is coated and all "white" from the flour is gone. There should be a gooey "sauce” from the flour absorbing all the meat juices.

4. Transfer the meat, sauce, onions and garlic to a large stew pot. 

5. Add the beef broth, red wine, carrots and cumin seed to the meat mixture. The liquid should just cover the ingredients.  

6. Cook over low to medium heat for at least an hour and a half, stirring often enough to prevent anything from sticking to the bottom of the pot. Lower the heat if it boils.

7. Add more salt, pepper, cumin or wine to taste during the cooking process.

8. Add the sliced mushrooms about 15 minutes before serving and cook through. 

Serve over white rice and with a green vegetable such as green beans.

Sips: From Napa, Smith-Madrone’s 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon

Charles and Stuart Smith do something unusual with their Smith-Madrone cabernet sauvignon. They hold it for several years before release, effectively pre-aging the wines. While most Napa and other California wineries are now releasing 2010 and even 2011 cabs, Smith-Madrone is still selling its 2006, which can be held for many more years but is drinking nicely right now.

This is a sophisticated and elegant cab grown in volcanic soils on the steep slopes of Spring Mountain at an elevation of almost 2,000 feet. The vineyard is dry farmed, meaning that it’s not irrigated. All of this is a recipe for complexity, which Smith-Madrone’s 2006 Cabernet is loaded with.

One is struck first by its earthiness, and minerality, which punctuate the dark fruit tastes, especially black currant and black cherry. The fruit is accented by fennel seed, unsweetened chocolate and leather notes and is supported by a good deal of acidity. The $40 wine was aged for 22 months in new American oak barrels. The blend is 85 percent cabernet sauvignon, nine percent cabernet franc and six percent merlot. Alcohol is 14.1 percent. Smith-Madrone also makes two white wines, a chardonnay and a superb riesling, which are also worth seeking out. Wine received as a press sample.

Sips: From Argentina, Susana Balbo’s 2010 “Signature” Cabernet Sauvignon

These days, Argentina is best known for malbec, the country’s most important  red variety, which thrives in the hot, dry climate. But beyond malbec, Argentina has long produced some excellent cabernet sauvignons, including one I enjoyed the other night. Susana Balbo, one of the country’s best-known winemakers, produces a range of wines, and her 2010 “Signature” Cabernet Sauvignon from Mendoza deserves consideration for those looking for interesting, moderately priced cabernets that can be enjoyed now. The wine is 90 percent cab and 10 percent malbec and seemed made for a piece of prime London broil that I seared in a cast-iron skillet. This is classic, New World cabernet sauvignon, more California than Bordeaux, with sweet blackberry fruit and cassis tastes, cedar and a touch of black licorice. The bottle puts alcohol at 14.5 percent, but it didn’t seem that high, probably because of the wine’s balance. In any event, this is a first-rate cab for current drinking and well worth the $25 suggested price. There were 500 cases produced. Imported by Vine Connections, Sausalito, California. Received as a press sample.