There is a great Saturday/Sunday event at the Indiana State Fairgrounds this weekend. It’s the Indiana Artisan Marketplace which features more than 150 juried Indiana Artisans.

There will be chocolatiers, photographers, wine makers, painters, sculptors and much more – all with Indiana roots. Check out the details here. I’m going Sunday, will try to have some photos up Sunday night!

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I’ve written a couple of times lately about Indiana’s Jim Pfieffer of Turtle Run Winery in the southern part of the state, not far from Corydon and Louisville.

Jim is a “try everything” kind of guy. We all know someone like Jim. Except his ‘try everything’ approach is with wine. He added a very unique “noble rot” style wine to his lineup this year and named it after his daughter – or, Catherine’s Blend.

“The Catherine’s Blend is a combination of botryticized (noble rot) vignoles and chardonel at a 76 percent – 24 perent ratio,” Jim said. “No sugar added, just like all of my wines…today! It really makes sweet wines taste superior to ones in which sugar is added. Customers are noticing and are appreciating how we are setting a new standard in Midwest wine. Nothing like going to the traditional and much harder methods in wine making.”

Here’s more from Jim in a short video I recorded down at the winery in late February.

I poured the Catherine’s blend for my wine buddies – the Dudes on the Porch. They admit to not being big white fans but loved Jim’s effort. “This would be nice with Chinese pork,” said Alex, our former wine shop guy and food pairing expert.

Mike gave it a big “Mmmm!”

Patrick, as usual, had a little more to say. “This is nice and crisp,” he said. “It has a little apricot before the finish.”

I loved the mouthfeel and the richness. If you’re anywhere near I-64 in Southern Indiana, find Turtle Run. You’ll taste some combinations that are part Picaso and part mad scientist.

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I’m trying to stick to this Monday night routine of reviewing my recently consumed wines. It’s much easier than doing a review here and there. I make some notes for myself, do a little research, and then save it on computer.

I have four wines in this group that all rate Recommended or Highly recommended. The fourth wine will be at the top of my scale, but will be a little tougher to find.

Left Foot Charley 2009 Pinot Blanc – Simply, the best white wine I’ve had in weeks, maybe months. I picked this bottle up during a summer 2010 trip to Michigan. Left Foot Charley is a funky urban winery set in an old mental institution at Traverse City. Could I make this stuff up?

They make a rockin Pinot Blanc. I was blown away when I tasted it and again this weekend when I opened the bottle I brought home with me.

It was pears and green apples and beautifully made dry white wine. I love the balance of mild fruit and bold but still balanced acidity. It also has a beautiful nose for a dry white wine.

A 2006 version of this wine won Michigan Wine and Spirits’ competition best dry white wine award. The grapes come from the penninsula and are often narrowed down to just one acre for this wine. It comes in at a low 12 percent alcohol.

Only 200 cases of this was produced. Michigan wines are distributed in most surrounding states. Look for Left Foot Charley Pinot Blanc and their beautiful Rieslings. If you can’t find LFC, take a chance on any Michigan Riesling. Michigan has been one of the most exciting discoveries during my three years of wine writing.

Gulliver 2008 Bordeaux – This very direct, simple Bordeaux wine is quite quaffable. It drinks easy and smooth.

The fruit is barely discernable and the finish is pretty short. But dont’ get me wrong, it’s very drinkable. It’s probably a great choice to serve new wine drinkers. And the bonus is that you can tell them they’re drinking Bordeaux. It’s inexpensive, very balanced, and pleasant.

But if you’re looking for much more you won’t find it in the Gulliver. This is good table wine.

(Gulliver 2008 Bordeaux, $11-$13, Recommended)

Clautiere 2004 Estate Mon Rouge – Wow! Clautiere Vineyards and Winery delivers a gorgeous Rhone blend of 52 percent Syrah, 25 percent Counoise, 18 percent Grenache, and 5 percent Mourvedre.

Clautiere is known for its crazy tasting room – wigs provided for everyone who enters and a purple decor. But Terry Brady’s winemaking is what really will turn visitor’s heads.

This wine had a rich dark cherry flavor that was classically smooth. The richness from the blend made it drinkable alone and with some beef I’d prepared. Clautiere is a small-production winery and you wont’ find the wines easily. When I first opened this bottle I noticed the alcohol, at 15.3 percent. But as it opened up the burn went away.

Paso Robles is making a name for itself in the Rhone varietals. This is a fabulous example. Look for Clautiere, if you can find it. Don’t hesitate to pick up any Paso Robles Rhone blend.

(Clautiere 2004 Estate Mon Rouge, $25, Highly Recommended)

Powers Cabernet Sauvignon 2007 Reserve – Washington State wines seem to get more pub by the moment. But if you haven’t tried big reds from the great Northwest, you are really missing out.

Powers is one of the state’s oldest producers. This is classic Cabernet that gets 26 months in oak and has huge rich flavor. This is beautiful dark fruit with maybe a hint of floral characteristics. You will not believe this spent two years in oak.

It’s a big, strong, beautiful Cabernet. Powers also makes a Columbia Valley Cab in the $12 range. If you haven’t explored Washington’s reds, this is a great place to start.

(Powers 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon, $19.99-$25, Highly Recommended)

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I have a couple of really great wines for review this week. One is a little harder to find than the other but both are worth the effort.

Tikal 2008 Patriota – Bonarda and Malbec have long been the foundation of Argentina’s winemaking. Winemaker Ernesto Catena is the son of a legendary Argentinian winemaker and he’s doing some awesome wines under the Tikal label.

I’ve been a huge fan of Bonarda since I first discovered it in 2006 in a small wine bar on a side street in downtown San Francisco. This blend is one of the best bottles I’ve ever had – particularly as a blend.

It has cherry, raspberry and it’s a big, supple wine. This wine would work with grilled or smoked meats. The second the juice hits your palate you’ll know the richness of this wine is something special. It’s one of my favorite wines in recent months. It’s widely available in better wine shops.

Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate gave the blend 92 points. (Tikal 2008 Patriota, $19.99, Highly Recommended)

Claudia Springs 2007 Zinfandel – I visited the winemaking operation of Claudia Springs in January and met winemaker Bob Klindt and his wife Claudia. I came away really impressed with the Claudia Springs Pinot Noir and Zinfandel. This wine is a blend from three different Zin vineyards. There is a wonderful black pepper finish to this wine that you expect but don’t always find.

On the front of the palate it has cedar, cranberry, and currant. I like the dusty feel in the mouth. They only made 292 cases of this wine so it’s not going to be easy to find. They do have several single vineyard bottlings as well.

Bob and Claudia don’t make a lot of wine, but if you see Claudia Springs – buy some! (Claudia Springs 2007 Zinfandel, Mendocino County, $24 Highly Recommended)

Here is a link to some material from my January trip. It includes a video with Bob talking about his winemaking.

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I’ve written several times lately about Indiana’s signature grape Traminette. Just three weeks ago I was visiting family and ran down to Turtle Run Winery and Huber Winery and Orchard.

Jim Pfeiffer was busy pouring for customers at his Turtle Run winery but he took a few minutes to talk about his latest “Picaso-like” concoctions. That actually dates back a couple of years. I once called Jim a mad scientist, he said “I actually think of myself more of a Picaso.” And that was followed by hearty laughter.

Nonetheless, the man doesn’t rest on any laurels. He is always trying new things, tinkering with wines and such. And his 2009 Traminettes is a great example. He makes a standard stainless steel aged Traminette with nice lime and grapefruit hints. But as he puts it in the video below, had just a littel too much Traminette on his hands.

Kick in the mad scientist. Watch Jim explain:

Both Traminettes sell for $12. And Pfeiffer remains one of few, if not only, Indiana wine makers with a truly dry Traminette. It’s great stuff.

I poured Jim’s traditional Traminette for my wine drinking buddies – the Dudes on The Porch. “This is really pleasant, reminds me a little bit of Semillion,” said Alex, who used to run a wine shop in Denver, Co. Patrick and Mike both found pear on the palate and a little bit of sour finish that worked nice with the salty crackers we were snacking on that night.

His other great recent experiment is even a bit more shocking for Indiana winemakers. I’ll put up that video up in the next day or two.

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There are many things happening in the wine world every day readers may not read but could find interesting. As a wine writer, I get e-mail updates of all types from various wine industry publications and newsletters.

U.S. House Legislation on Wine Shipping.
Wholesale wine and beer distributors stop at nothing to build and sustain their empires. There have been two bills introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives in the last year that would be disastrous for wine consumers.

The New York Times published a story Oct. 18, 2010 concerning H.R. 5034 that demonstrates how passage of this law not only hurts wineries looking to serve their customers, but also dramatically effects retailers of wine too: “The bill, though, which is unlikely to come up for a vote until next year, would clearly mean a narrowing of choices for consumers.

Readers can find a wealth of information on H.R. 5034 online. Suffice it to say that wine consumers and wineries are strongly opposed to this contemptible legislation.

There was no real action on H.R. 5034 so the National Beer Wholesalers Association came back with H.R. 1161 this year. The details are slightly different but with the same effect. These stifling direct shipping laws and all of the efforts made to limit shipping prevent consumers from legally buying the wine of their choice and having it shipped to their home. Such legislation destroys free commerce and is job killing.

It’s impossible to go into detail here, but if you attend a local legislative breakfast let your U.S. Representative know you oppose any efforts to restrict direct shipping of wine.

The Silly Argument of Underage Drinking
The arguments about underage drinking and laws like the one above just don’t hold water. Proponents of laws like the ones mentioned consistently spread the fallacy they are trying to protect underage consumers.

Think about that for a second. I borrowed the following list from a fellow wine blogger. For an underage person to order wine online, and get it shipped to their door they must: 1. Obtain a credit card; 2. Obtain fake identification; 2. Order online and get past age verification services; 4. Wait a week or so for their booze to arrive; 5. Be at home when the delivery is made; 6. Convince the delivery person they are over 21; 7. Have a snappy answer ready when the parents find that cardboard box labeled “Contains Alcohol.”

Give the Lady a Drink
According to the Wine Market Council female wine drinkers have surpassed men for the first time since such data has been recorded. The report said 53 percent of ‘core wine drinkers’ are now women. Core wine drinkers are those defined as drinking wine at least once a week.

Future columns
I had the chance to visit with some of the top Paso Robles winemakers in October and ask some questions about Syrah. They have some strong opinions about why the grape never took off to be the “next Cabernet.”

Later this spring I’m planning to travel to Madison, Wisconsin to visit some of that state’s wineries. I did such a trip last summer in Michigan and really got a lot of material and learned about that state’s great cool climate wines.

I also have a tentative trip set for late July to Oregon’s Willamette Valley – home of some of the best Pinot Noir in the world.

Thanks for reading Grape Sense!

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The small number of wines I enjoyed over the past week were largely wines previously reviewed. So this week’s reviews come down to one wine.

I did have a bottle of Durigutti 100 percent Bonarda. I’ve reviewed that wine before and this past week’s bottle was just as good as the previous.

I also opened a bottle of Winderlea Pinot Noir over the weekend. Winderlea makes fabulous Pinot at the $40-$50 price range. A couple weeks ago I opened one that had been in my basement for a couple of years and it was beautiful. The one this past weekend, a 2006, had gone past its prime. I think that was accelerated by time in the basement.

Winderlea is a great bottle and I’d urge you to try it if you are anywhere that carries their premium lable. Here is a story I wrote in 2009 about Winderlea’s owners and winemaking.

But let’s get to this week’s one wine for review because it was a really nice white wine choice.

Helfrich 2009 Riesling – I started drinking Riesling when I started drinking wine. My interest in Riesling slowly disappeared as I drifted more and more to big red wines. But a trip to Michigan last summer, and tasting so many beautiful cool climate white wines, re-ignited my interest in this old noble grape.

The Helfrich name is one of France’s Alsace region icons. These wines are grown near the Vosges Mountains.

I had tasted a lot of American, and a few German Rieslings, lately and struggled with the sweetness in many. What I liked about the Helfrich was the nice crisp feel in the mouth with really nicely balanced minerality and acidity and hint of green apple. This wine is really a nice balance between dry and semi-dry. The nice balance of the long finish minimizes the bright fruit. What you end up with is a “not too sweet, not too dry” white wine.

The winemaker notes suggests trying Sushi, Asian foods, white meats, and smoked salmon with this wine. I think those are all fine suggestions. I had it this evening with some nice shrimp and pasta, gently seasoned with garlic and orange. The wine paired beautifully with food. It’s not so dry you couldn’t enjoy a glass alone.

(Helfrich 2008 Noble Varieties Riesling, SRP $14.99, Trade Sample, Highly Recommended)

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One of the challenging things in introducing wine drinkers to great value wine is directing them to find specific bottles of juice.

I review a lot of wine on this blog but not all are available where my Grape Sense newspaper column is published. And I do review wines on the blog at a higher price point.

So a few times a year I try to list a handful of wines that are widely distributed that I can confidently recommend.

Veramonte Pinot Noir – It’s very difficult to find an under-$15 Pinot. This Chilean Pinot out-performs most Pinot in the category. It has nice Pinot flavor with good dark fruit. I didn’t get much of the ‘dirt’ or earthiness found in higher-priced Pinot but this is very drinkable wine.

Veramonte is in many shops around the Midwest. But if you don’t find it, try a different Chilean Pinot. Many wine people believe the small South American country is the next ‘big thing.’ The Pinot vines are young but they’re only going to get better. Right now a lot of Chilean Pinot is finding its way into the U.S below $15. This one generally retails at $14.

flipflop wines – I’ll lump these wines together for a qualified recommendation. This is a value line of wines featuring a Pinot Noir, Pinot Grigio, Riesling, Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Moscato. They sell for $7, or less, and you might have already seen them in your supermarket. At the under-$10 price point, you just won’t find any better choices.

The company is also working with Soles4Souls, an organization that raises money to distribute shoes to needy children around the world. A portion of the proceeds from each bottle benefits the cause.

I tasted the Pinot Noir and Pinot Grigio and was very pleasantly surprised. Remember to judge them for what they are – $7 wine. Not bad at all for the cost of a decent six-pack of beer!

Brassfield Estate ‘Serenity’ – This is a white wine blend from Northern California. The wine is a combination of Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio, Gewurtztraminer, and Semillon. Wine drinkers shy away from blends but they should not. This is one of the most drinkable whites I’ve picked up in months. It has lovely pineapple, honey dew melon, and apple notes. The acidity is really quite mild. You can find it in wine shops at $10-$14.

Ortman Cuvee Eddy – Here is a red wine blend that is just making its way into Midwestern stores. I’ve become a big fan of Ortman wines because of the food-friendly style. This wine is fashioned, somewhat, as a French Cotes du Rhone. It’s a blend of Syrah, Grenache, Mourvedre, and Petite Syrah.

This wine has a jam-like blackberry flavor with a bit of chocolate. I like the spice. It is tremendous wine with food. It comes from California’s Central Coast region, specifically the Paso Robles region. It has a suggested retail price of $20.

7 Deadly Zins – Michael David winery’s Zinfandel should be very easy to find and even easier to drink. It’s definitely for the big red wine drinkers or a good introduction to bigger wines for the beginner. It offers up berry, pepper, spice and some earthiness that is just perfect at the $15 price point.

This producer also makes Zins which are much more powerful at a higher price. If you want a big Zin, try Michael David’s ‘Earthquake’ which retails for just over $20.

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Monday is quickly becoming my wine review day. I like lumping all of these together on one day with a “recommended – or not” style rating.

I have two whites and a red for consideration at $14, $16 and $29.

E. Guigal Cotes du Rhone Blanc – I have been experimenting with Cotes du Rhone region whites and continue to find the wines just delightful alternatives to Sauvignon Blanc (I’m a big fan!) and Chardonnay (I’m not!)

The 2009 Guigal white is 60 percent Viognier, so you get all the lovely floral notes, with several other lesser-know Rhone white grapes. The strong floral characteristics would allow the adventerous cook to try something crazy like pair this wine with spicy food. (E. Guigal Cotes du Rhone Blanc, $12-$14, Recommended)

Thierry Germain Soliterre Samur – This 2006 Chenin Blanc just rocks! The wine is Chenin Blanc from the Loire Valley in France. I got a deal on this wine and bought four bottles. It retails normally around $17.

The Chenin Blanc has really nice acidity with mineral, lime, pear, and floral notes. This is a wine that is better not chilled as much as you might other whites. I think the acidity and flavor profile of the wine would work nicely with rich or fatty foods.

One of the great glasses of wine I had in Italy – of all places – was a Vouvray. That’s also a Chenin Blanc from the Loire Valley. That was a 1997 bottle I tasted in very early 2010. I put one bottle of the Samur in wine storage at home and decided to keep that one a few years to see how it ages!(Thierry Germain Soliterre Samur, $16,95 Highly Recommended!)

Eberle Cabernet Sauvignon/Syrah – The 50-50 blend of 2007 Cab and Syrah is a big glass of beautiful wine. You get the big plum of Syrah in a full bodied wine. I picked up hints of vanilla. I’d call the mouth feel on this big Paso red ‘plush.’ The marriage is a perfect blend of the Cab characteristics with the juicy fruit of a Syrah.

Eberle, the first to plant Syrah in the Californa Central coast region, is a Paso Robles icon. This wine won Best of Class at the New World International Wine Competition, Double Gold at the Lodi International Wine Awards, and a “best buy” designation, along with 90 points, from Wine & Spirits. (Eberle 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon/Syrah, $29, Highly Recommended.)

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Ron Rawlinson, Ortman wines national sales manager, introduced Ortman Family Vineyard wines in Indianapolis Saturday night at Mass Ave Wine Shop.

Ron poured Chardonnay, Cuvee Eddy, and an unreleased ’09 Sangiovese. The Saturday night group seemed to enjoy the humor, education, and the juice. Several bottles of Cuvee Eddy came off the wall after the formal tasting.

Here are a few photos I took during the evening.

The Cuvee Eddy, a near-Rhone blend, is exclusive to Mass Ave but the Chardonnay and other Ortman wines will turn up in other Indiana locations. Ortman is distributed in several midwestern states, including Indiana by Graybull wines.

It was great of Ron to pour the Sangiovese. I had tasted, and loved, the ’08 Italian grape but it’s sold out nationally. (Though, I have a couple of bottles in my private stash left.) Winemaker Matt Ortman bottled up some ’09 barrel samples that were just as good or better than the ’08.

I picked up and built the foundation of my wine knowledge by going to tastings like the Saturday night event. It’s really a great way to expand your wine knowledge and palate. Jill Ditmire, Mass Ave Shop owner, hosts regular tastings every Tuesday.

In photo: Jill and Ron with Ortman wines.

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