Sangiovese Mulled Wine Recipe with Ledger David Sangiovese
Sangiovese Mulled Wine Recipe with Ledger David Sangiovese
1 bottle (750ml) Ledger David Sangiovese
1 whole cinnamon stick
1 tsp. whole allspice
1 whole nutmeg
¼-1/2 c. sugar (add to taste)
Zest ½ small orange
Harvest Winemaker Dinner November 11 at Liquid Assets Wine Bar
Join Winemaker Kiley Evans of Ledger David Cellars for a special harvest dinner at Liquid Assets Wine Bar in Ashland on Tuesday, November 11 at 6:30pm. The event features seasonal gourmet menu items paired with a selection of Ledger David wines including the latest release of our signature Primoris Chenin Blanc and our exclusive 2010 Tempranillo Reserve.
MENU
First Course
Vanilla butter poached halibut cheeks, preserved lemon and chive crème fraîche
dressing, live bibb lettuce and Brioche croutons
Paired with 2013 Primoris Chenin Blanc
Second Course
Vin Santo glazed duck leg, farro and roasted squash risotto, braised rapini with
amarena cherry jus
Paired with 2011 Sangiovese
Third Course
Moroccan spiced teres major steak, fingerling potatoes, eggplant and piquillo pepper
pisto with valdeon espuma
Paired with 2010 Tempranillo Reserve
Fourth Course
Chèvre Cheesecake, pear and honey compote
Paired with 2012 Encore Chenin Blanc
Local menu items subject to change
No substitutions please
$70 per person (plus tax & 18 percent gratuity). Reservations Required. Limited Seating.
For more info or to make a reservation, call (541) 482-9463 or email [email protected].
New Sammy’s Cowboy Bistro in Talent Features Ledger David Wines
New Sammy’s Cowboy Bistro located in Talent, Oregon is said to have transformed America’s dining. This roadside restaurant between Ashland and Talent uses organic ingredients, many of which come from the garden beside the restaurant and offer a seasonally exclusive menu.
Owner Charlene Rollins heads the tiny kitchen, turning out refined organic dishes, while her husband, Vernon, handles the astounding 3,000-plus-bottle wine list which includes Ledger David’s Sangiovese Rosé. Make a reservation today for an affordable and unique experience.
“Our Gnocchi is my go to pairing for Ledger David Sangiovese Rose,” says Vernon, owner of New Sammy’s.
Open Wednesday – Saturday: 12:00 – 1:30pm, 5:00 – 9:00pm.
2210 S Pacific Highway
Talent, OR 97540
541-535-2779
The Rogue Valley AVA: A Cool Spot in a Warm Climate
By Kiley Evans, Winemaker
Winemakers read. Some of us read fiction, some read biographies, but invariably we all read about wine in some way at some time. People, really smart people, all over the world write on Grape Growing, Wine Production, Wine Branding, Wine Marketing, Wine Sales, Wine Inventory, Wine and Climatology, Wine and Geology, Wine and Soil Science, you get the idea. I read about wine and the wine industry more that I probably should, but it’s almost an escape for me at times. A few months ago I was reading about the Aesthetics of Wine and ran across a great line that provoked me. “Many of the world’s most profound places for growing wine can be filtered down to two ideals, a warm spot in a cool climate or a cool spot in a warm climate.” Remember, in the Northern Hemisphere the south- to west-facing slopes are hottest while north- to east-facing slopes are cooler than flat land (in the Southern Hemisphere the north-facing slopes are warmest).
I started thinking. Where are the world’s great places for wine? For argument’s sake let’s take a look at Germany. Riesling is the grape, of course, but where in Germany exactly? Germany has the world’s most northerly vineyards, but take a close look at a map of Germany’s greatest vineyards, its Grand Crus. Practically all of them lie along a river, the Rhine and Mosel, on steep, south-facing slopes with slate soils. Why? What makes those places so special? The answer lies in a unique combination of factors. The rivers moderate the temperature. The slopes intercept more sunlight and thus heat that the surrounding flat lands. The slate soils warm rapidly and then radiate that heat back into the vines as the temperature falls after the sun goes down. In other words, it’s a warm spot in a cool climate. Check out the Doctor vineyard above the town of Bernkastel along the Mosel River.
Now take a look at our own Rogue Valley. We have what most would consider a moderately warm area. In such areas the cooler spots tend to be at higher elevations, shaded, such as at the base of a cliff, and/or oriented away from intense direct sunlight.
So here we are at a time of year that would normally be the middle of harvest, but this has been one of the hottest years on record for the Rogue. As a result, nearly all of the valley’s wine grapes have been harvested. But not at Ledger David Cellars. What? Everyone else has picked but us? What are we doing wrong? What is happening? Well…our estate vineyard ranges from 1,844 to over 1,975 feet elevation and enjoys eastern and northeastern exposures. The result? We are quite a bit cooler than most other vineyards and that results in a much slower, more even ripening of the fruit. Our site also allows us to achieve maximum “hang time”, a term in grape growing and winemaking that describes the seasonally late time frame in which the grapes ripen enzymatically without increasing in sugar content. Essentially the grapes develop aromatic complexity while the flavor compounds intensify. Late season ripening doesn’t happen very easily, if at all, if the grapes are exposed to the direct sun. They tend to raisin and take on a cooked fruit quality that isn’t necessarily desirable in wine. But on our elevated slopes the vines are gently warmed by the morning sun and caressed by afternoon shade. In other words, it’s a cool spot in a warm climate, and that is one of the things that makes it so special.
Roasted Leg of Lamb with 2011 Dark Night Red Blend
By Guest Blogger & Wine Club Member Sean Preston
The calendar has indicated the last day of summer has come and gone. The hot temperatures and dry conditions should now wane to cool evenings, foggy mornings, and yards full of morning dew. To the eye, the changing season is in full effect, with the slow turn of fall colors in the trees. However, the temperature, the fog, and morning dew have not gotten the message it seems here in Southern Oregon, as we are still in the throes of 90-degree days, with the lingering smoke from summer forest fires in the air.
As a person who loves fall, and all the majesty the season brings, something had to be done. I could not sit idly by with the air conditioning running, simply surviving a fall day disguised as a day in August. It was time to perform a rain dance…a culinary rain dance.
I was armed with the hearty, earthy flavors of lamb, white beans, and vanilla. Along with an arsenal of some of the best wines the Rogue Valley has to offer, I was now prepared for this season changing ritual.
The dance would be done in three parts:
The first part would begin with a boneless leg of lamb, rubbed inside and out with lemon, garlic, shallot, and rosemary and destined for a slow and low roasting in the oven. Then it was finished off with a sauce made with drippings from the lamb and the 2011 Dark Night red blend from Ledger David.
The second part would have white beans, joining some 2011 Ledger David Sauvignon Blanc, a mirepoix, chicken broth, and herbs to simmer and cook into a creamy side dish with all the flavors of fall.
The final part of this rain dance is dessert. Whole vanilla bean is split and seeded, and joined with custard to be transformed into gelato. A whole bottle of 2010 Tempranillo Port from Ledger David is emptied and reduced over low heat to create a syrup flavor bomb of mass destruction, which is drizzled over the vanilla gelato.
The end result is a house full of amazing fall aromas, and a meal that would convince the ever-fickle Mother Nature that fall is indeed here, and to herald in this glorious season.
Did it work? Well, the weather forecast is for rain and cooler temperatures so, you be the judge.
Roasted Leg of Lamb
Ingredients:
2 Tbsp. of extra-virgin olive oil
3 medium garlic cloves, minced
2 medium shallots, minced
2 Tbsp. fresh rosemary chopped
Zest of one lemon
½ tsp of red pepper flakes
2 Tbsp. of kosher salt
½ tsp of freshly ground black pepper
3-4 large carrots
1 whole boneless leg of lamb 3-5lbs.
Place oven rack on lower middle position, and preheat oven to 275 degrees. While oven is heating up, heat olive oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic, shallot, rosemary, lemon zest, and red pepper flakes. Cook, stirring occasionally, until shallots and garlic are softened, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a small bowl, add salt and pepper and mix to combine.
Rub half of mixture into inside of butterflied lamb leg. Roll leg and tie securely with butcher’s twine. Rub remaining mixture over exterior of lamb. Cook immediately or let rest uncovered in the refrigerator for up to one night for best flavor and texture.
When ready to cook, place lamb on top of large carrots in the bottom of a heavy enameled cast iron French oven, or Dutch oven. Placing lamb on top of the carrots keeps meat from burning on the bottom, and keeps meet out of the rendering fat. Transfer to oven and roast until an instant read thermometer inserted into coolest section of lamb registers 125° to 130°F for medium-rare, or 130° to 135°F for medium, about 3 hours. Remove from oven and let rest for 40 minutes.
While lamb is resting, increase oven temperature to 500°F. Place lamb on a wire rack or directly on oven rack with a rimmed baking sheet underneath to catch any drippings. Return lamb to oven and roast until exterior is deep brown and crisp, about 15 minutes. Remove from oven and let rest 5 minutes. Remove twine with kitchen shears, transfer lamb to cutting board, slice into 1/4 inch slices, and serve, along with a glass of 2010 Dark Night.
Dark Night wine sauce
Ingredients:
1 cup of Dark Night
All drippings from cooked lamb
1-2 Tbsp. of unsalted butter
1 tsp of corn starch
Salt and Pepper to taste.
Gather all drippings from lamb and separate fat by using a fat separator or letting cool and spooning the fat off the top. Return drippings (minus fat) to small sauce pan and bring to a boil. Once boiling add Dark Night, reduce heat and simmer for 2 minutes to remove alcohol. Take corn starch and dissolve in a small amount of water or wine, and add to sauce stirring constantly. Once sauce has simmered, and has reached a thicker consistency but not too thick, add butter and salt pepper to taste. Pour over lamb slices.
White Beans with Ledger David Sauvignon Blanc
Ingredients:
½ cup Ledger David Sauvignon Blanc
2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
2 small onions, chopped fine
2 small carrots, chopped fine
2 celery ribs, chopped fine
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups cooked white beans (preferably Great Northern or navy)
2 to 2 1/2 cups chicken broth
2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
1 bay leaf
In a saucepan, heat oil over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking and cook onions, carrots, celery, and garlic, stirring, 2 or 3 minutes, or until softened. Add white and bring to a boil for 2 minutes, or until the wine is reduced by half. Add beans, 2 cups broth, butter, and bay leaf and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally and adding enough remaining broth to keep beans moist and to reach a creamy consistency, about 30 minutes. Discard bay leaf, salt and pepper to taste.
Ledger David Tempranillo Port sauce:
Ingredients:
1 bottle of 2010 Tempranillo Port
Homemade vanilla ice cream or Gelato or your favorite store bought French vanilla ice cream.
(I am skipping the Gelato recipe, as most people don’t have a gelato machine in their home…however, you can make equally good ice cream with a home ice cream maker.)
Pour entire bottle of port into a small sauce pan. Simmer port under low heat until reduced to roughly ¼ cup, stirring occasionally. This will take about an hour. Keep your eye on this, especially as you get close to the end, as you can burn the sauce, if it gets too hot. Serve warm, drizzled over ice cream, with a small glass of the port.
Enjoy!
Sean
Winemaker Dinner October 17 at Déjà Vu Bistro & Wine Bar
Join Winemaker Kiley Evans of Ledger David Cellars for a special winemaker dinner at Jacksonville’s Déjà Vu Bistro & Wine Bar on October 17 at 6:30pm. The event features seasonal gourmet menu items paired with a selection of Ledger David wines including the latest release of our signature Primoris Chenin Blanc.
MENU
First Course
Piri Piri Prawns, Cous Cous Salad with Honey Lemon Crema
Paired with 2013 Primoris Chenin Blanc
Second Course
Red Kuri Squash, Oak Leaf Creamery Mazama, Dungeness Crab & Radish Salad
Paired with 2012 Viognier
Third Course
Smoked Duck Breast, Chanterelles, Corncakes, Fireball Cherry Pepper & Huckleberry Gastrique
Paired with 2011 Malbec
Fourth Course
Grilled Center Cut Rib Eye, Roast Cipollini Onion, Fingerling Potatoes, Chilies & Chocolate
Paired with 2011 Dark Night
Fifth Course
Special Seasonal Dessert
Paired with 2010 Tempranillo Port
$65 per person (plus tax & gratuity). Reservations Required. Limited Seating.
For more info or to make a reservation, call (541) 899-1942 or email [email protected]
240 E California St, Jacksonville, OR 97530
Fall Wine Club Pick Up Party
With harvest in full swing, this is sure to be the most exciting wine club pick up of the year! Join Ledger David Cellars for our fall Primoris Wine Club pick up party September 27 & 28 from noon-5pm at Le Petit Tasting Room. Celebrate the long-awaited release of our 2011 Orion’s Nebula red blend. With only 98 cases produced, this is a limited production wine.
Also, enjoy the pre-release of our 2013 Primoris Chenin Blanc to pair with your holiday fare and our always-popular 2011 Sangiovese – just in time for our seasonal Sangiovese Mulled Wine recipe. Of course, we’ll have grapes from the vineyard for guests to sample.
Event Hours: Sat & Sun | Noon-5pm
BILLING INFO:
Please let us know if your billing information has changed. Call Heather Hamlin at (541) 664-2218 or email [email protected] and she would be delighted to update your payment information before processing your wine club order.
WINE CLUB DISCOUNTS:
We will be processing orders on Monday, September 22. As a reminder, 3-bottle members receive a 15% discount, 6-bottle members 20% and 12-bottle members 25% discount on all wine club selections.
OTHER PICK UP OPTIONS:
If you are unable to join us during this event weekend, your wine club selections will be available after Monday, September 29 at the tasting room in Central Point (next to the Rogue Creamery) any time during regular hours.
Kiley Evans Joins Ledger David Cellars as its First In-House Winemaker
Kiley Evans Joins Ledger David Cellars as its First In-House Winemaker
Evans Produced Highest-Scoring Southern Oregon Wine by Wine Enthusiast
The Ledger David Cellars Family is delighted to announce the addition of winemaker Kiley Evans to our team of talented professionals! We seized the opportunity to hire Kiley, and bring him back to the West Coast as our first in-house winemaker. Kiley comes to us with more than 15 years of wine industry experience. Most recently, he worked at Raffaldini in North Carolina – a winery with European origins that specializes in Italian wines.
We first met Kiley at World of Wine in 2010, had him come to our vineyard to inspect our 3rd leaf Tempranillo and then ended up taking the fruit to Agate Ridge as custom crush clients. It was there that he made Ledger David’s San Francisco Chronicle award-winning 2010 Tempranillo, which was celebrated in Sunset Magazine’s October 2013 issue as one of the editor’s top “Wines to Try.” He also produced Ledger David’s wine club and event exclusive Tempranillo Port-style wine and its first reserve wine of the same varietal.
Originally from the South, Evans moved to North Carolina in 2011 to be closer to family – but his winemaking roots actually began on the West Coast. After graduating in 2002 from U.C. Davis’s prestigious winemaking program as a Winkler scholar with a double major in viticulture and enology, Evans accepted a position with Abacela Winery in Roseburg. It was there that he made a name for himself producing award-winning Tempranillo and Syrah for the internationally recognized southern Oregon winery.
“We have a great respect for Kiley who initially earned his reputation with the Tempranillo grape at Abacela,” says owner Lena Varner. “Beyond Tempranillo, Kiley has continually demonstrated his prowess in producing excellent wines from a variety of wine grapes, including Rhone blends and Italian varietals.”
And he has the accolades to prove it. Among them is a World of Wine ‘Best of Show’ for Daisy Creek’s 2009 Triple Play – a Rhone-style blend of Viognier, Marsanne and Roussanne; a San Francisco Chronicle International Wine Competition ‘Best in Class’ for Raffaldini’s 2011 Montepulciano Rerserva; and, a Wine Enthusiast score of 95 points for Abacela’s 2005 Syrah Reserve – the highest score a southern Oregon wine has ever received by the influential wine review publication.
“His reputation in hand-crafting the highest quality wines with a range of varietals is a key attribute that makes Kiley a great fit for Ledger David, “ says owner David Traul. “We have 11 varietals and 22 different clone/rootstock combinations at our vineyard in Talent, many of them less widely planted varietals in southern Oregon including Chenin Blanc and Sangiovese. That could prove challenging for any winemaker, but Kiley embraces the diversity.”
When Kiley expressed an interest in returning to southern Oregon, Ledger David trusted our inner compass and brought him back to discuss details, including vision and winery plans. Hiring Kiley marks the intro into the next leg of the Ledger David journey.
Having lived in southern Oregon for several years, he’s happy to be back to where he says is “the best place in the world to live.”
“I’m thrilled to be working with Ledger David Cellars,” says Evans. “It’s a winery committed to producing the highest quality estate wines that can compete on an international level. Most recently, the winery earned a 93-point Gold for their Premier vintage 2011 Malbec at the 2014 Los Angeles International Wine competition. That’s where I’m setting my sights. Quality is my number one priority.”
For Evans, quality assurance starts in the vineyard. He uses his background in viticulture, enology and his time spent as a sommelier to handcraft the grapes into wine that ultimately best expresses the terroir of the vineyard.
“After working with many reputable southern Oregon winemakers, we’ve found that the best winemakers are often the ones who want to be involved in the vineyard,” says Varner. “From harvest to winemaking to bottling, Kiley will be intimately involved in the entire process to ensure that what goes into the bottle is of the highest quality.”
Ledger David is in the final planning stages of its gravity-fed, estate winery – which is expected to be complete by the fall of 2015. The owners have been working diligently on winery plans since 2010 with Brian Westerhout of Ron Grimes Architect, PC.
“As with winemaking – all good things take time,” says Varner. “And all great things take a little longer.”
The Ledger David team is committed to staying the course.
Ledger David will continue to operate its Le Petit Tasting Room in Central Point with an expansion project underway to accommodate its growing number of patrons.
Meet the Winemaker: Save the Date
August 29 & 30, 5:30-8:30pm
Talent Vineyard
Wine Club Members: Meet the Winemaker August 29 & 30 at the Vineyard in Talent. Reserve your spot at 5:30, 6:30 or 7:30pm. Event is open to wine club members and one guest. Seating is limited. Separate invite to follow later this month. Reservations required.
September 14, Noon-5pm
Le Petit Tasting room
Wine Club Members, Friends and Guests: Meet the Winemaker September 14 from noon-5pm at Le Petit Tasting Room.
Primoris Wine Club Members Get 10 Percent Off This Year’s World of Wine
Join Ledger David Cellars at the 2014 World of Wine event set for August 19-23 at the historic Bigham Knoll campus in Jacksonville, Oregon. The annual festival boasts wines from more than 50 southern Oregon wineries. and offers attendees a rare opportunity to meet local winemakers. “The World of Wine festival is a rare opportunity for a person to taste the broad selection of award winning wines from the region while connecting with vintners, vineyard owners and winemakers,” says Lena Varner, owner of Ledger David. Participants also have the opportunity to partake in events throughout the weekend which consist of a wine competition, sensory classes, and a medal dinner and auction. The medal dinner is your opportunity to be the first to hear who the winners are from this year’s wine competition as well as a chance to meet judges; Dilek Caner, Amy Christine, and Mike Dunne. 
Chef, Jeremiah Herzig will be preparing a five-course meal for the Gold Medal Dinner on Friday, August 22, which will be paired with the Best of Show and Gold Medal wines. Don’t miss out—seating is limited and reservations are required. On August 23, at the Grand Tasting, sample all the wines entered in this year’s competition.
Events
The event schedule is as follows:
• Tuesday, August 19 – Sponsor Meet & Greet Wineries Cocktail Party, Bigham Knoll
• Wednesday, August 20 – Friday, August 22 Sensory Classes in the Big Tent at Bigham Knoll
o Cost: $39 – $75
• Friday, August 22 – Medal Dinner & Auction where the wine competition winners will be announced and their wines will be paired with spectacular food
o $250 per person
• Saturday, August 23 – World of Wine Grand Tasting & Silent Auction
o $100 per person
New this year, event organizers have teamed up with Asante Foundation and funds raised during the Southern Oregon World of Wine will go to Children’s Miracle Network and other programs supported by Asante Foundation. For more information about the Foundation, click here.
Grand Tasting Tickets are available to purchase at Ledger David Cellars Le Petit Tasting Room in Central Point (limited availability). Wine club members will receive 10% off tickets to the Grand Tasting on August 23.
Visit http://worldofwinefestival.com/ for more information.
Alchemy Restaurant & Bar in Ashland Features Ledger David Wines
Alchemy Restaurant & Bar, located at the Winchester Inn in Ashland, Oregon strives to take fresh local ingredients and transform them into stunning cuisine. The idea extends to the wines they select and the cocktails they craft. “Everything works together to create something greater than itself,” says Drew Gibbs, owner of Alchemy.
Ledger David Cellars is happy to share some of our most popular wines with the restaurants famed food pairings:
Our 2011 Malbec pairs nicely with their pomegranate marinated flank steak with grilled prosciutto wrapped peach, citrus Parmesan risotto and mixed green salad with maple and raspberry vinaigrette.
The 2011 Cabernet Franc pairs well with the half rack of lamb stuffed with sweetbreads and ground veal, corn and fava bean succotash with mint chimichurri.
To pair the 2010 Tempranillo Reserve, they suggest the Sous Vide rib eye with Foie gras potato apple hash, truffle butter, sunny side up egg and smoked sea salt.
The 2012 Sangiovese Rose´ pairs beautifully with the endives stuffed with garlic roasted beets, candied sunflower seeds, Rogue Creamery blue cheese and shallot tarragon vinaigrette.
Our 2011 Chardonnay pairs with the crab salad: fresh Dungeness crab, orange supreme, baby arugula, house made mustard aioli, and walnut oil.
