Sommelier Selection   2008 Seghesio Zinfandel, Sonoma Seghesio Zinfandel instantly distinguishes itself from most other Zins. What do I mean? Well, here's how most Zins serve it up...here's some fruit, here's some more fruit, then maybe some dried fruit, with a nice alcohol finish. Yuck. And with food, a disaster. Seghesio certainly shines with its Sonoma fruit (and a mad fruit palette it is, with everything from raspberries and blueberries to plums and fig), but retains a balanced alcohol level and a bit of acidity and tannin on the finish. This means you can enjoy it as an easy sipper by itself or put it up against a meat dish like NY strip or grilled sausage. Seghesio Zin is certainly dollar for dollar one of the best values on Park Avenue's list. Sure it's not Turley but it's heads above most other California Zins.       Steve Berry Certified Sommelier and Owner Park Avenue Wine Bar | Restaurant Sommelier Selection   Fleur du Cap Chardonnay, Western Cape, South Africa This barrel-fermented Chardonnay erupts with Granny Smith apple and citrus on the nose. Its slightly tart finish makes it a perfect food wine, from oysters to cream sauce to salmon (I love it with our Rock Shrimp Spring Rolls!) South Africa is certainly on the cutting edge of New World wines, but Fleur du Cap does a marvellous job of imbuing New World fruitiness with Old World charm; think Russian River Chard meets Pouilly-Fuisse.       Steve Berry Certified Sommelier and Owner Park Avenue Wine Bar | Restaurant Sommelier Selection   The Best of 2010 Tom and I had a chance to think about some of our favorite wines from 2010: Tom's Top 3 Shea Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley - the best Pinot outside of Burgundy...ever DeLoach OFS, Russian River Valley - wonderful, full bodied winter Chardonnay, but what does OFS mean? Ferrari Carano Black Muscat, Russian River Valley - perfect for after dinner...I actually gave Port a hiatus to enjoy more Muscat Steve's Top 3 Joel Falmet Brut "Tradition" Champagne - grower Champagne at its finest Quivira Mourvedre, Dry Creek Valley - organic, sustainable and simply kick butt...if you're tired of Pinot, try this! Kubler Absinthe, Switzerland - "something from the bar"...perfect before or after dinner       Steve Berry Certified Sommelier and Owner Park Avenue Wine Bar | Restaurant Sommelier Selection   Substance Riesling, Washington State Tasty Rieslings are a real joy with food or as a cocktail wine. Substance Riesling from Washington State is a super-focused mix of pear, lychee and honeysuckle flavors. Just a touch sweet, Substance Riesling has a backbone of food-friendly acidity that makes it my "go to" wine with spicy fish dishes. Even the packaging is cool, featuring a tall German style bottle and a so-nerdy-it's-hip periodic table of the elements logo (each Substance varietal has an appropriate periodic table symbol - Riesling's symbol is "Re"). What chemistry!       Steve Berry Certified Sommelier and Owner Park Avenue Wine Bar | Restaurant Sommelier Selection     This week's featured wine is the 2008 Pétalos from Bierzo, Spain. Produced by Decendientes de J. Palacios (the same family as Alvaro Palacios wines), this wine stars the Mencia grape. Mencia is an indigenous Spanish varietal, rarely seen in a wine of this quality. The fruit here shines, with lots of plum and blackberry. Sure, there's plenty of structure and backbone but this 2008 drinks beautifully right now, with a slightly tart finish that cleanses the palate. Some really fine wines are coming out of Bierzo these days, which is near Léon in northwest Spain.       Steve Berry Certified Sommelier and Owner Park Avenue Wine Bar | Restaurant Sommelier Selection   Proprieta Sperino, Rosa del Rosa 2009, Lessona, Piedmont, Italy   A last taste of Summer...   As the seasons change, and Summer's fleeting promise falls away in the rearview mirror, here is a chance to allow our gaze to linger a bit on Summer's retreating form. Its color evokes the soft, red glow of sunsets viewed from over the top of the grill. Light, soothing, and enormously inviting, one feels refreshed just looking at the glass in hand. Supermodel legs show off the substance that this light bodied wine has to offer. On the nose, she exhibits a raciness that frames the lushness of fruit that late summer provides, but also a surprising meatiness that belies one's typical expectations of Rose as a weak and pallid cousin to more “manly” reds. The floral component is equally full, bringing this rather bold girl an elegance that is simply tantalizing.   Upon striking the palate, the wine shows itself to indeed be a breed apart. This is certainly not a weakling! Forget any notions of white Zinfandel, this is 100% Nebbiolo! Her profile is complex and bold, with a nice bright tone, and plenty of verve. Imminently quaffable, this wine has an ability to instantly refresh while at once making available a wildly varied topography for one to sip, sniff and contemplate.       Frederic Krohmer Sommelier and Manager Park Avenue Wine Bar | Restaurant Sommelier Selection   McKinley Springs Chenin Blanc 2008, Horse Heaven Hills, Washington   Chenin, what an inherently versatile varietal, (wistful sigh...) Why it is that so many people have never had the opportunity to taste a really decent one is absolutely beyond me. In any event, if you, dear reader, have not as yet had the opportunity to do so, here it is.   The color is a splendid white Gold, bordering on straw. Impeccably clean and star bright, what I see before me is not so much a glass of wine as a glass of molten treasure! The nose is gorgeously floral and has a heft to it reminiscent of beeswax, and is complimented with tones of bitter almond, mandarin orange and musk melon. The palate is in fair agreement, perhaps a bit more spice than expected, but wholly pleasant.       Frederic Krohmer Sommelier and Manager Park Avenue Wine Bar | Restaurant Sommelier Selection   Abbaye de Saint-Ferme “Les Vignes du Soir” 2005, Bordeaux, France   A lovely representation of right bank Bordeaux by the glass. Essentially declassified St. Emilion grapes, we have a blend of Merlot (70%), Cabernet Sauvignon (20%) and Cabernet Franc (10%). The resulting juice is light in body, elegant in style, and definitively old world in character. At first look we have a delicate garnet hue with just the beginnings of some color variation towards the rim. The alcohol weighs in at 13.5%, slender legs give away this fact and the weight on the palate is at once light and vibrant. The nose is ethereal, and more tending to delicate floral notes and red fruit with just a light almond tone. On the palate things change a bit. Subtle blue fruit, balanced acidity, soft tannins and well tilled earth round out the flavor profile to my great satisfaction.   It is a pure and sublime enjoyment to have access to wines of this caliber at such a laughable low price point. Furthermore, it is deeply reassuring that such loveliness is offered up by the universe at large, proving there is yet a base kindness woven into the fabric of creation itself. If enjoying a bottle home, allow 10 minutes for it to fully express itself, enjoy!       Frederic Krohmer Sommelier and Manager Park Avenue Wine Bar | Restaurant   Park Avenue Wine Bar | Restaurant Eat | Drink | Be Social 205 Park Avenue Barrington, Illinois 847.382.3900 Email Park Avenue