With the exception of sommeliers and vintners, for most of us who love wine, no matter how many bottles you drink in your lifetime, and no matter how delicious, you rarely think of the terroir, the grape, or the growing process as you drink it.

That&rsquo;s all about to change. Listening to Chris Phelps talk about his first foray into making wine makes you appreciate his deep knowledge and consideration for the grape and the land.

In Episode 283 of CorkRules, Robert Tas talks to Chris about his background in wine, how his son encouraged him to start making wine, and origin story of&nbsp; <a href="https://www.advivumcellars.com/">Ad Vivum,</a> but throughout this interesting conversation, one thing is clear: Chris has an immense passion for the land, the grape, and, of course, the alchemy that happens when you bring the grape through fruition, fermentation, and finally wine.

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Wine for Body, Mind and Soul

Like so many passionate vintner&rsquo;s Chris&rsquo; path into the vineyard was shaped by fate. Originally enrolled in pre-med at Davis University, he spent a summer firefighting where he encouraged a friend, a passionate wine geek, to join him at Davis where they ran a viticulture/enology program. The tables turned when the friend later encouraged Chris to jump from medicine to wine.

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Fast forward a few years of studying and working in France and at various vineyards, including a wine ch&acirc;teau within the village of Puisseguin-Saint-&Eacute;milion in Bordeaux, and Chris is now a consultant for wineries, including Inglenook in Napa Valley, and Grounded Wine Company.

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For Chris, the joy of selecting a varietal that produces exceptional and original fruit is just the beginning. He talks passionately about finding those unique grapes, picking them at the right time, not an hour later or earlier, and how the moment of tasting the raw, as yet unfermented fruit, a few days after cold soaking, reveals the aromatics and top notes.

&nbsp;

Today, Chris produces small productions of select wines, usually just several hundred cases each year. The wines are selectively and directly distributed locally at wine shops and restaurants. He is the winemaker, and his son runs the business side of sales and promotion. The father-son team also run Coil Wines where they produce a Mendocino County Pinot Noir and a rare old-vine Napa Valley Chenin Blanc.

&nbsp;

Chris believes the secret to good wine lies in the love of the land. He spends time in the vines, getting to know them, watching how they grow so he knows when they should be harvested. Timing is key when picking grapes, the sugar content and ripe factor play a major role in the final product. And of course, good vintners know that the vitality of the terroir is, well, vital for the health, growth, and taste of the grape. He pays attention to which grapes do well in which area of the land. He takes note of the sun, water, wind, and minerals in the soil all of which play a role in the magical science that turns vine into wine.

&nbsp;

However, Chris also believes that wine is about more than selective wine tasting and the snobbery that may be encountered within the industry. Wine is about life, and his philosophy rings true with many wine lovers across the globe for whom the love of the juice reaches far beyond tasting notes: it&rsquo;s about sharing and pairing; it&rsquo;s about long conversations and enjoying an evening of&nbsp; convivial company.

&nbsp;

As Chris so eloquently states, &ldquo;Ad Vivum was the first single-vineyard wine to emerge from a unique name: Ad infers movement toward a goal with intention. Vivum is the synthesis of two Latin words &mdash; vivere (to live) and vinum (wine). Ad Vivum, is, therefore, where wine and life meet.&rdquo;

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Cheers to that, Chris, and may your wine glass be always half full.

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With the exception of sommeliers and vintners, for most of us who love wine, no matter how many bottles you drink in your lifetime, and no matter how delicious, you rarely think of the terroir, the grape, or the growing process as you drink it.

Chris Phelps on Wine and Life

Love me some Paso! Located in the heart of California's Central Coast wine region, Paso Robles is a hidden gem for wine enthusiasts and food lovers alike. With its diverse array of wineries and charming tasting rooms, this scenic destination offers an unforgettable experience for visitors.

Come discover Paso Robles hidden gems for Wine and Food Enthusiasts

A lot of things go into the price tag of a wine and not all of them relate to quality.

Shopping for Value and How to Find It

The most important things to consider while aging wine is temperature and angle. So, please, no storing wine vertically on top of the fridge in the hot sun!

How to Age Wine

noreetuh

Alexis Rogers

Noreetuh

Noreetuh

RT: Hello and Welcome to CorkRrules!

A podcast where (in each episode) we will review a wine list from your favorite restaurants. I&rsquo;m your host Robert Tas along with Alexis Rogers, Wine Educator and&nbsp; Restuarant Sommelier

Hello Alexis, it&rsquo;s great to have you on this episode.

AR: Hi Robert! Excited to be here and talking about the menu and wine list at Noreetuh! We&#39;ve reviewed a lot of very cool restaurants but this one has probably caught my personal interest the most!

RT: Well, then I&rsquo;m glad we&rsquo;re talking about it! CorkRules was created to demystify and simply ordering wine at restaurants - an experience that can be intimidating for most people, even those that drink a lot of wine.

Our aim is to help prepare you to navigate that list, find those hidden gems, or value wines or that special bottle that will take your dining experience over the top.

Today we are discussing Noreetuh - a modern Hawaiian spot in the East Village co-owned by Chef Chung Chow and General Manager (and creator of this fascinating wine list) Jin Ahn.

So Alexis, tell me why this one sparked your interest in particular&hellip;

AR: Noreetuh means &ldquo;playground&rdquo; in Korean and that is exactly how I would describe these offerings - a playground for wine nerds and serious wine drinkers with an international palate. Despite being somewhat non-traditionally organized, this list is very approachable.

RT : Non traditionally organized in what way?

AR: We HAVE to start with Riesling here - German Riesling in particular. Noreetuh&rsquo;s list has 6 subsections of German Riesling - off-dry and sweet younger than 25 years, off-dry and sweet over 25 years old, dry styles, and then 3 subsections dedicated solely to some of the best producers in that country - JJ Prum, Donnhoff, and Keller. I looked at the wine list before the food menu and just figured the Wine Director was a German wine enthusiast! But seeing what&rsquo;s on offer on the culinary side, it makes perfect sense. The intense tropical flavors of Hawaiian food call for a wine with equally intense and tropical flavors. These wines run the gamut from Bone-Dry to Lusciously Sweet.

RT: With so many to choose from, how can you tell which will be sweet and which will be dry?&nbsp;

AR: In German wine law, there are always some key words to look for to help us there. We talked about GGs on a previous episode - bottlings from recognized superior sites that are always dry, the actual word &ldquo;Trocken&rdquo; which translates to dry in German, and then the Pradikat system. The Pradikatswein system is a classification system that actually measures grape sugar ripeness at harvest but can help clue us into sweetness level. From bottom to top we have Kabinett (drier to off dry), Spatlese (med dry to med sweet), Auslese (med sweet to sweet) and then Beerenauslese and Trockenbeerenauslese which are fully sweet dessert wines. Pairing tip - the spicer the food, the sweeter your wine should be!

RT: Say those 3x fast! Who knew Rieslings could be so complex? I really like how they have highlighted the wines from one specific country so well!

AR : I do too! I personally love German wine and think it&rsquo;s very undervalued - which often translates to great bargains for amazing wines. Same with another country featured prominently here - Lebanon, especially the wines of producer Chateau Musar from the Bekka Valley. Whites are made from native Lebanese grapes that I won&#39;t even venture a guess at how to pronounce. They are rich, lush, tropical and intensely aromatic. Order up some coconut shrimp and tuna belly katsu and dig in! Reds are powerhouse blends of Cab Sauv, Carignan, and Cinsault. Be careful with these and other big tannin red with this menu as high tannins can increase the perception of fishiness and eviscerate the bright flavors here.

RT: So THAT&rsquo;s why they say to do white with fish. Good to know and an important consideration with this menu. But I DO see a 30-day dry-aged porterhouse&hellip;

AR: Yes! Here is where those full-bodied, tannic reds come in! My pick here is the Pax Obsidian Syrah from Knight&#39;s Valley in Sonoma County, California. Intensely colored and concentrated, we get big jammy blackberry and blueberry, black licorice, dried sage, smoked meat and black peppercorn notes here. The dark Obsidian soils it takes its name from help to trap heat so these grapes get super ripe. The` super ripeness is what&rsquo;s to thank for the full body and lush palate on this wine. This bad boy absolutely needs some time in bottle to mellow so this 2003 vintage is going to be perfect right now,

RT: A great producer and a tempting pairing! I can&#39;t wait to visit Noreetuh and dive into the beautiful flavors of Hawaiian cuisine! Alexis, thank you so much for being here and explaining the complexities of German Wine Law to us! To our audience, Thank you all for joining us here on CorkRules.

If you would like us to review one of your favorite restaurants, please send us email to: info@corkrules.com or visit our web website where

we have a request form available and we will do our best to get it in the queue as quickly as possible.

We are looking forward to being with you on another CorkRules episode soon. In the meantime, please check out our website for other episodes of your favorite restaurant wine lists.

And finally, drink what you love and please make sure you drink responsibly.

Wally's

Bartholomew Broadbent

Buddy V's

Krasi

Sandbar

Hav & Mar

Yardbird

Mirabelle Restaurant & Tavern

Mirabelle at Three Village Inn

Sazon

Watering hole with brews, TVs for sports & a menu of American eats such as burgers, wings & steaks.

Dante

Geronimo

La Mercerie

Bar Primi

Kirby’s Steakhouse

The Grill

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Join us each week as we pour a glass and share top restaurant ‘wine list’ picks, providing you with the knowledge to confidently navigate the ‘wine list’ through somm recommendations, suggested food pairings and masterclass insights.

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