In our house, the concept of a simple Halloween party for a few children has a way of morphing into a full-blown dinner party for a couple of dozen grownups. While the theme this year was the Far East, I found myself wearing an apron for much of the evening, while doubling, of course, in the role of wine director. How could I really complain?
For me, it was a chance to try a number of wines in the hope of finding one or two that stood out. The centerpiece of the dinner was a marvelous beef Burgundy — my wife’s recipe from her mother, in all fairness — cooked slowly with generous amounts of red wine, onions, carrots, mushrooms and cumin seed.
The wine, on the other hand, was more of a potluck affair with a little of this and a little of that, more of them tricks, it turned out, than treats. There was the werewolf Zinfandel, so brawny that you could almost imagine hair growing on it; the Franken-red from southern France, so rustic it would have been perfect for a late-night stroll through a misty graveyard; haunted Chardonnays with enough wood for, say, a coffin or two.
The thing is, when you have lots of people and lots of wines, just about everyone finds something to like, and almost no one is as fussy as the resident wine guy. While he will never stop searching for The Wine, others are rightly focused on the food and friends.
And so it went on Saturday night, across at least four continents and numerous price zones, until I opened a bottle of the 2003 Pinot Noir from Praxis Cellars in California. At $15, it’s as pretty as it is reasonable. Made from fruit sourced, or purchased, from vineyards in Monterey County, it is relatively light, both in color and texture. Its bright acidity makes it immediately refreshing and an able partner to food, in this case our beef stew. The match was seamless.
The wine drinks beautifully now and the style reminds me of a lighter Burgundy (we had a similarly priced Oregon Pinot Noir that was a bit ponderous for my taste). The flavors invoke cherry and blueberry, with orange notes on the finish. Hints of cedar, vanilla and spice come from seven months of aging in French oak.
Praxis is a second label of Arbios Cellars, which produces Cabernet Sauvignon and is owned and run by Bill and Susan Arbios in Santa Rosa in Sonoma County. Bill Arbios, who has been making wine under his and other labels for three decades, explained to me that Praxis is his vehicle for “exploring different varieties and terroirs.” There is also a Merlot from the Dry Creek appellation, a Sauvignon Blanc from Sonoma and a Viognier from Lodi.
Arbios likes Monterey for its cool climate, which is conducive to delicate Pinot Noir, noting that some are trying to make “Cabernet out of Pinot Noir” with too much extraction, concentration and alcohol. Talk about monster wines! When that happens, he says, “you begin to lose some of the elegance and finesse.” With his Praxis Pinot Noir, on the other hand, there is nothing to be afraid of.
Edward Deitch's wine column appears Thursdays. Write to him at @hotmail.com.