Debbie Miller Nelson's Trip to France, Part 14

All of our managers and wine staff travel at least once a year to a wine-growing region somewhere throughout the world. Traveling is one of the many aspects of Joe Canal’s that sets us apart from other wine shops. We know that by meeting the winemakers, walking the vineyards and tasting new wine from the barrel, we can see first-hand the passion that goes into each bottle. We can then convey this commitment to quality to our customers. Rather than having you just looking at a label and a score, we believe it is our responsibility to bring you closer to how the wine was made and the people who made it. We'll be sharing their trip reports with you here on the BottleBlog.

In June 2011, Debbie Miller Nelson, Wine Manager of the Iselin store had the privilege of traveling to France and immersing herself in French food, culture, and most importantly, wine! Here is the 14th installment and conclusion of Debbie’s trip.

Saturday, June 16th

Off to Paris! This is it! Our last full day in France. We leave bright and early Sunday morning for home. It was exciting. It was exhilarating. Except it rained all day. John, our host has parents who have an apartment in France so he suggested we go to the market, get lunch and go up to the apartment.

The market was HUGE. If you have ever been to the Union Square Farmers' Market in New York City, multiply that by 30. In this market, there are cheese vendors, vegetable vendors, vendors making whole rotisserie chickens, vendors selling foie gras and pate, etc. It was enough to make your head spin. Everyone was assigned an item to purchase and we split up, purchased, met back up and headed to the apartment for our feast.


Outside the apartment on the balcony, I saw the Eiffel Tower. Ok, I can say that I saw it. Good enough!


We all ate a great meal with John’s parents, a retired surgeon and a retired scientist, took turns napping, sang to 80s music and drank until dinner. During the afternoon, one of the Sommeliers opened a bottle of Champagne and sent the cork flying over the balcony.

As we headed to dinner, it finally stopped raining and we walked to the restaurant while John pointed out some landmarks. The same Sommelier mentioned earlier knew the Sommelier at a restaurant named Il Vino that had an interesting theme to it.


Either you could pick your meal and the Sommelier would pair wines or you could pick the wines and the chef would pair the food. Or, you can just do the whole thing blind. And, we did!

It is here that I achieved victory. I bested the current best Sommelier in the US by guessing the Barbaresco that no one else could. Happy dance!

One of John’s friends joined us and she arranged to go to a private, members only club for dancing after dinner. The crazy Americans set the stage for a fun night of Moet Champagne toasts and clubbing. Only the aforementioned Sommelier, me and John with his friend went out and boy, did the others miss a good time! We left the club at 2am and arrived at our hotel near the airport around 3:30. A few hours of sleep and then off to the airport to get back to reality.

As you can see, this was a who’s who of Burgundy and it was the single most exciting trip I’ve ever been on. If you see me in the store, I’ll be happy to tell you more about my trip and pick out a great selection of wine from this adventure for you to enjoy at home. Viva la France!

Deb’s Spotlight

Since Champagne was a common demoninator among all the Burgundy producers, I wanted to highlight a wonderful Champagne from Pol Roger.

Pol Roger Extra Cuvee de Reserve NV
This is one of the best Champagnes for the buck. Try this Champagne with sushi or Thai food or even to kick back with on a lazy Sunday afternoon. Dry, zesty, tangy and citrusy, this wine is even fun to drink! Champagne is not just for special occasions anymore and this one is too tasty to wait for! Enjoy it today!

Joe Canal's Presents Cantine Volpetti Campo Alle Rose Cesanese Del Lazio

Joe Canal's is excited to announce the arrival of Cantine Volpetti Campo Alle Rose Cesanese Del Lazio!

The Cantine Volpetti winemakers are situated in the heart of the Colli Albani vineyards which lie on the gentle slopes of the volcanic hills in the south of Rome. Wine production in this area dates back to the Roman Empire , as reported by Catone and Orazio. It is since 1958 that the Volpetti family is involved in the making of its own wines and the quest for quality wines has produced not only excellent Malvasia del Lazio, Cesanese and Trebbiano from autochthonous grapes but also Sangiovese and Montepulciano from domestic grapes and Syrah and Chardonnay from international grapes, which grow well in this volcanic soil. Today their products represent a blend of vineyards and territory which characterizes its image of elegance and prestige in a mixture of tradition and innovation in the art of wine making.

100% Cesanese Del Lazio (also known, simply, as "Cesanese") A delightful new treasure from the hills just south of Rome; this local variety produces a ruby red with round tannins and rich flavors. 50% of the juice is aged in small barrels, yielding additional layers of light smoke and oak to the spicy fruit. Very full bodied, mouth filling cherry and berry elements linger in the long persistent finish. Ideal accompaniment to grilled red meats.

Regular Price $12.99
BottleClub Price $10.96

Debbie Miller Nelson's Trip to France, Part 13

All of our managers and wine staff travel at least once a year to a wine-growing region somewhere throughout the world. Traveling is one of the many aspects of Joe Canal’s that sets us apart from other wine shops. We know that by meeting the winemakers, walking the vineyards and tasting new wine from the barrel, we can see first-hand the passion that goes into each bottle. We can then convey this commitment to quality to our customers. Rather than having you just looking at a label and a score, we believe it is our responsibility to bring you closer to how the wine was made and the people who made it. We'll be sharing their trip reports with you here on the BottleBlog.

In June 2011, Debbie Miller Nelson, Wine Manager of the Iselin store had the privilege of traveling to France and immersing herself in French food, culture, and most importantly, wine! Here is the 13th installment of Debbie’s trip.

After leaving Domaine Faiveley, we drive to Chablis while I take a much needed nap for most of the 4 hour trip.

Upon arriving in the quaint hamlet of Chablis, we check into our hotel Hostellerie des Clos (that has no ac – yikes!) we head over to Christian Moreau’s winery down the street. We meet Christian himself and his son Fabian. I should mention that I did get a bottle of Grand Cru Valmur in my room that made it back home safely. Yay me!

The Moreaus own 11.5 hectares of vineyards. Christian said that Chablis is NOT Burgundy. It is the golden gate! They gave us a tour of the vines in the rain but I don’t think anyone really cared about getting a little wet. As we talked about the vines, we stood at the top of the hill overlooking the town of Chablis.


It’s interesting to note how close a forest of pine trees is to the vines as that flavor profile really stands out in their wines. I grabbed Fabian’s ear about the US misconceptions of Chablis thanks to California jug and box wine bearing the wines and how we can change that. He said, look, Chablis is a village in France making Chardonnay. That’s it. Well, ok, then!



We head back to the winery to sit at a table in the main part of the winery to taste samples.


During the tasting I notice that Christian has the most pimped out phone with the most apps I’ve ever seen. He took pictures and videos of US. Oh yeah, he’s on Facebook and he even has a device in the vineyards that calls him when the humidity or temperature is in a danger zone. How can I get a vineyard to call me? As we were tasting one wine, I wrote in my notes that this wine had more finesse. Then Christian said, this wine has more finesse.


I said, “I just wrote that down!” He high-fived me! This guy rocks. Although he claims to be officially retired, Fabian now runs the operation, but Fabian says his dad still annoys him, er, I mean, is involved in the operation.

We have dinner at the hotel and Christian and Fabian join us. Christian told us his history over cocktails He left France at an early age because he had no direction and didn’t want to work for his father in the vineyards. He lived in Canada where he met his wife. He refused many times to go back, but finally did to run the operation. He was a bit of a wild child and still quite sassy today.

Dinner consisted of Magnums -6 of them all compliments of the Moreaus.


After dinner, Christian invited us back to his house, walking distance to hang out in his personal wine cellar. How could we refuse?


He cracked open vintage Chablis for us and we all sat together enjoying his wine.



Remember when I said the French love California wine? Opus One here, too!


When he kicked us out around 2am, he gave us the leftover wine and we all went singing and dancing down the street back to the hotel. We drank the leftovers of the vintage and the magnums until the wee hours of the morning. Life is good!

Tomorrow we head to Paris for our last day!

Deb’s Spotlight
Christian Moreau Chablis 2009
This Chardonnay from Moreau is classic to the core - clean, crisp, great minerality and some zesty acidity with loads of citrus aromas and flavors. Drink straight on a hot day or while cracking crabs.

Also Available:
Christian Moreau Vaudesir Grand Cru Chablis 2008 $66.99
Christian Moreau Les Clos Grand Cru Chablis 2009 $67.49

Fork and Gobble It: Crab Chronicles - "Live Crabs!"

I've sung the praises of the seafood department at Hmart in Edison many times. Their live fish section is something you rarely see and they usually have a large bin of very lively blue crabs for sale by the pound. This has caught my eye more than once and last week I picked up a few pounds (they usually run about 5 – 6 to the pound) to turn into dinner. Steamed crabs for dinner requires serious devotion, blues have a lot of flavor, a lot of shell to work through, and not a lot of meat for all that work. I decided to take a different tack and turn all that flavor into a tomato sauce for pasta. This still would be a lot of work but my return would be much greater for the effort.

I got the crabs home and started to work cleaning them.


This requires removing the "apron" from the bottom shell of the crab, pulling off the top shell, pulling out the feathery lungs from either side of the interior, and removing the mouth, face, and stomach from the little critter, all while it's still alive. A well placed grip on the back of the shell keeps your fingers out of reach of those claws and then it's quick and nimble work to get it done without being pinched. Cut the remaining body into two halves and they are good to go. It is possible to buy the crabs already cleaned and frozen, but I find the freshness is just not the same.

From here it is simply a matter of building a tomato sauce over the sauteed crab bodies. For 1 ½ pounds of crab use the following recipe:

-1 ½ pounds of cleaned blue crabs
-8 cloves of garlic peeled and sliced
-1 cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
-2 Tbsp Kosher or sea salt
-¾ Tbsp crushed red pepper

In a pot 8qts or larger, heat the olive oil and saute the garlic, red pepper, and salt, until the garlic colors golden. Add in the crabs and saute over high heat until they have turned bright red.


Once the crabs have turned red and are fully cooked through add:

-1 cup dry red wine

Bring the liquid to a boil and keep it there for a minute to cook off the alcohol.

Add:
-4 ~ 28 oz cans of crushed tomatoes plus one full can of water.

Bring this to a simmer and keep it there for about 90 minutes. This will allow extraction of flavor from the shells and meat inside the crabs. This sauce has a very intense flavor derived from those shells and unlike the crab cakes in my previous story, can stand up to stronger flavors like tomato, pepper, basil, etc..


At this point I remove the crab bodies with tongs, (reserve them if you like) get a pot of salted water going and cook the pasta of my choice. Reserve a little of the pasta water during the final minutes of cooking. It will get added back to the sauce to give it body. Put the drained pasta into a sufficiently large saute pan and add an appropriate amount of sauce. I like to undercook my pasta by a couple of minutes in the water and finish that cooking in the sauce so the pasta picks up more flavor from the sauce.

For example, if the specified cooking time is 8 minutes, I cook the pasta in the boiling water for 6 minutes, reserve pasta water before draining, and finish those 2 minutes cooking the pasta in the sauce thinned with a little water. At this point I would add:

-½ cup of fresh basil leaves torn into large shreds
-1 -2 ounces of good Extra Virgin Olive Oil
-8 ounces of jumbo lump Crab meat (optional)

I didn't add the lump crab this time, but served the cooked crab bodies on the side to pick on and suck on as they still have a lot of flavor.

Traditionally grated cheese would not be added here as seafood and dairy aren't usually mixed in Italian cooking, but I say do as you wish.


Since this is a tomato/crab based dish, my wine choice would be something both acidic and medium bodied. I went with a 2008 Rex Hill Willamette Valley Pinot Noir from Oregon. The bright cherry/red currant flavors and spice met very well with this dish. 2008 was an excellent vintage for Willamette Valley and this versatile wine deserves a hearty recommendation.

The yield on this recipe makes more sauce than you need for one meal and it freezes very well so that the effort exerted once can provide several great meals afterwards. Although I'll probably regret making this comment........ That is nothing to be crabby about. (Ugggh!)

See What You've Been Missing!

Manager Steve Wernick reports on a very special tasting we had in Lawrenceville on August 13th:

Joe Canal’s weekend wine-tasting took something of a bullish turn on August 13. We did taste three outstanding Spanish wines, but we also had a special guest appearance ... from a real Longhorn.


The Longhorn was staged in a portable pen in the parking lot of the Lawrenceville store, to help draw attention to the day’s great wines. That gave our visitors – and their children- the chance to see a truly massive animal up close. The bull also made an appearance at our Woodbridge location on August 6th, so our Woodbridge customers didn't miss out on the fun!


Inside, we offered the adults samples of Martin Codax Albariño, and two different styles of Las Rocas Garnacha. The basic Las Rocas Garnacha is produced from vines that are forty to fifty years old. Las Rocas Vinas Viejas (Old Vines) is produced from vines that are 100 years old – or older! All three wines pair exceptionally well with food, so we were able to include crackers and Manchego cheese, also from Spain, in the tasting.


It does seem like all wine tastings at Joe Canal’s are a lot of fun for everyone. We were happy be able to offer an even more enjoyable tasting event this past weekend.

Tasting Notes
Martin Codax 2010 Albariño: A refreshing, food-friendly white wine, Martin Codax Albariño is crisp, elegant and dry and has aromas and flavors of pear, passion fruit and apple with bright acidity.

Las Rocas de San Alejandro Garnacha 2008: A deep ruby color, with a gorgeous nose of kirsch, raspberries, pepper and melted licorice. This is a full-flavored wine with a supple texture and no hard edges. Experience its medium- to full-bodied, fruit-driven sumptuous texture and long finish.

* * * * * * * *
If that wasn't exciting enough, on Friday, August 19th, a familiar face showed up at Joe Canal's in Lawrenceville - "Tattoo Tony" Gonzalez!

After touring the country and appearing on Bret Michaels VH1 reality show "Life As I Know It", Tony's tribal tattooed face has become recognizable everywhere! In an episode where Tattoo Tony "tattoos" Bret's kids with a marker, America was drawn into the magnetism that is Tattoo Tony. Tattoo Tony showed America that he is a fun and caring man and not just an artist.

We were lucky enough to have Tony appear in our store, meet his fans, and offer samples of his awesome new line of Sweet Hard Iced Teas!

We thank both Tony and our "bullish" friend for paying us a visit!

Make sure you check the events page at jcanals.com and keep an eye on your BottleClub newsletters to stay up to date on all the exciting things going on at Joe Canal's Woodbridge and Lawrenceville!

Debbie Miller Nelson's Trip to France, Part 12

All of our managers and wine staff travel at least once a year to a wine-growing region somewhere throughout the world. Traveling is one of the many aspects of Joe Canal’s that sets us apart from other wine shops. We know that by meeting the winemakers, walking the vineyards and tasting new wine from the barrel, we can see first-hand the passion that goes into each bottle. We can then convey this commitment to quality to our customers. Rather than having you just looking at a label and a score, we believe it is our responsibility to bring you closer to how the wine was made and the people who made it. We'll be sharing their trip reports with you here on the BottleBlog.

In June 2011, Debbie Miller Nelson, Wine Manager of the Iselin store had the privilege of traveling to France and immersing herself in French food, culture, and most importantly, wine! Here is the 12th installment of Debbie’s trip.


Domaine Faiveley is a huge operation that started in 1825. This was the only place we visited that had a modern office not run by family and not connected to a home.

We were met by Vincent Avenel, the Export Director. He gave us the cellar tour and operations tour.


Along the way, I even saw a wrapped pallet of wine that was heading to northern NJ!

Domaine Failveley is one of the largest land owners in Burgundy and one of the biggest companies. During the tour, we saw a state of the art grape crushing machine. When we asked Vincent why they had that, he said, “because we can.” That’s money talking!


We are led to a modern tasting room, not in a cellar, not cold and damp and we even get to sit down. They even provided us a tasting sheet! What luxury!


Here we meet the youngest CEO in Burgundy, Erwan Faiveley.


Erwanis a Columbia MBA business graduate, has GQ good looks and is one of the largest land owners in all of Burgundy (120 hectares across 100 different appellations). Quite the good catch! He should probably be in Wine Spectator’s next issue of Burgundy’s most available bachelors if that issue is ever made! Erwan has started what they call the next generation of wines – a new approach starting with 2007 to make their wines softer and more approachable.

The men in my group were amused that every office workedrwas female, about a dozen in all and they even have a female oenologist. Gotta love the French men! They have 50 employees in all and 8 monoples (vineyards in areas that no one else owns).

After the tasting, we walk through a maze of cellars where the back vintages are.


There is a reason why both Vincent and Erwan escort us – one up front and one in the back. Did I mention I have my back pack and those wines would fit nicely in them? We walk for what seems like 30 minutes through endless hallways and underground cellars until we finally enter into a beautiful, cellar room for lunch where Erwan regales us about stories of his family and of course, NYC comes up as Erwan has lived there during college.


We say goodbye to Erwan and Burgundy, pile into the van and head to Chablis.

Deb’s Spotlight
Domaine Faiveley Mercurey 2007
A perfumed nose of raisin, stewed fruit, cherry and strawberry. The 2007 vintage marks the current owner, Erwan Faiveley's first vintage as CEO and a move to make the wines softer. He has succeeded. The wine is elegant with cola flavors and a much softer vintage. Enjoy with a roast pork with green beans.

Also Available:
Domaine Faiveley Pinot Noir 2007 BC $14.99
Domaine Faiveley Chardonnay 2008 BC $14.99
Domaine Faiveley Gevrey-Chambertin 2009 $53.99
Domaine Faiveley Gevrey-Chambertin 2005 BC $49.99

Joe Canal's Presents Bacardi Oakheart Spiced Rum - Coming Soon!

Bacardi is rounding out its lineup of awesome rums with a spiced offering!

Bacardi Oakheart is a bold, spiced rum straight from the heart of charred oak barrels with an amber hue, a hint of smokiness and unique velvet-like smoothness. Rich and oaky on the nose, with hints of smoke and dried fruit, this exceptional spiced rum has a robust flavor that stands up to any challenge. Slightly sweet and peppery with a noticeable rum-kick, Bacardi Oakheart tastes great straight or combined with cola and served over ice in a chilled stein glass.

Bacardi Oakheart will be arriving at the end of the month, so keep your eyes peeled and pick up a bottle to try!

Try this exciting new product at the great price of $20.99/750ML
or buy more and save - $25.09/1.5L!

Debbie Miller Nelson's Trip to France, Part 11

All of our managers and wine staff travel at least once a year to a wine-growing region somewhere throughout the world. Traveling is one of the many aspects of Joe Canal’s that sets us apart from other wine shops. We know that by meeting the winemakers, walking the vineyards and tasting new wine from the barrel, we can see first-hand the passion that goes into each bottle. We can then convey this commitment to quality to our customers. Rather than having you just looking at a label and a score, we believe it is our responsibility to bring you closer to how the wine was made and the people who made it. We'll be sharing their trip reports with you here on the BottleBlog.

In June 2011, Debbie Miller Nelson, Wine Manager of the Iselin store had the privilege of traveling to France and immersing herself in French food, culture, and most importantly, wine! Here is the 11th installment of Debbie’s trip.

After leaving Alain and his puppy, we drove back to Vosnee-Romanee to meet John-Nicolas Meo at Meo-Camuzet. John-Nicolas was at our dinner the previous night, but he was not at my table and I was really excited about this tasting as I am a big fan of his wines. There is no tour. We move straight to the cellar to start tasting. It is here that my travel companion does the unthinkable –she breaks an empty glass in the cellar. If looks could kill – John-Nicolas gave one.


As we tasted 2009 barrel samples, John-Nicolas gave us his philosophy about the youth of France. That they have no ambition, no drive, no focus on their future, but take it day by day. He brought this up as he gestured towards some of his staff. He must have been having a bad day. None-the-less, his wines are amazing, exciting and I’ll definitely look forward to their release.


He cheered up for the picture.


Our last stop of this intense day was in upper Vosnee-Romanee was with Sylvain Cathiard. Sylvain recently upgraded all of his equipment to modern everything. He saw how much our group was interested and appreciated it and he warmed right up to us.


He even built a new state-of the art cellar where we tasted 2010 samples.



At the end of our tasting, we thanked him. But it was Sylvain, who wanted to thank us. He choked up and shed a few tears as he explained (in French) how exciting and humbling it was for him to see his wines on a NYC wine list or in a US retail store and see how much other people really enjoyed his wines. It was very emotional for him to tell us this and touching and humbling for us – a nice way to end a really intense day of tasting. For Americans who say that the French do not like Americans, they have never met anyone from Burgundy. They opened their homes, their wines and their hearts to us – perfect American strangers who shared a love for wine.

Dinner is at the home of importer Becky Wasserman and her English husband Russell Hone in Bouilland. They love to throw dinner parties judging by the 300 empty bottles on their front lawn including some DRC large formats.



There were about 15 people there for dinner including Alain Burguet, my 2nd boyfriend in France. He told our host John that I needed to sit next to him to so he could “chat me up.” Ah, those French!


Dinner was a huge buffet of pork, salad, potato salad, greens, cheese and an English pudding. I learned that I liked chinato from Italy and a good French style potato salad. Alain asked me to tell my customers about our love affair. So, now you know!


Life is good!

Next stop is our last day in Burgundy before driving to Chablis!

Available at Joe Canal’s:
Meo-Camuzet Marsannay Rouge 2008 $40.99/bottle
Meo-Camuzet Clos Vougeot 2004 BC$139.99
Meo-Camuzet Nuits St George Murger 2004 $106.99
Meo-Camuzet Nuits St George Les Perrieres 2005 BC $117.99
Meo-Camuzet Chambolle Musigny 2004 BC $52.94
Cathiard Bourgogno Rouge 2006 $39.99
Cathiard Romanee St Vivant 2006 BC $479.99
Cathiard Vosnee Romanee Les Suchots 2006 BC $164.99