More shops and general info added to the Japan wine guide.

Let me also add a quick plug for a superb wine I enjoy this week, the Maison Abbotts Cordis (2002). This award-winning Minervois is made from 100% Carignan (!) and has won a number of awards. Carignan has never tasted this good. Highly recommended!

Easily the best 本格的な和食 (authentic Japanese food) in Miyamasu-zaka-ue (宮益坂上) is to be found at local lunch favorite Honoji. I’ve been going there once every week or two for two years, and the consistently high quality and service make it one of may favorites lunch spots here in Shibuya.

The fare is standard-issue 定食 (set menu) Japanese, but the quality is a cut above the rest. The miso soup (or tonjiru, depending on the day) is always flavorful and piping hot, and the rice cooked to fluffy perfection. The lunch menu consists of four choices: hamburger steak, 生姜焼き (ginger pork), and then a fish item and a “honoji special” that change every 3-4 days each. Everything is good, all the time.

If there has been any staff turnover in the time I’ve been going I haven’t noticed it, and this surely one of the reasons why they do such a great job. The staff is friendly, attentive and professional. If you’re in the area here for lunch one day and looking for great 日本食 you should definitely give this place a try. (Menus and communication in Japanese only.)

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ムールヴェードル、あるいは原産地スペインでは「マタロー」と呼ばれているこの赤ブドウは果皮が厚く、熟成が遅いブドウ品種で、最近まではあまり目立つこ とのない存在でした。むしろ品種としてはメジャーなカベルネソヴィニョンやピノ・ノワールが不足した際に、端役をやるといったワイン醸造の過程では補助的 な役割をしていました。グルナッシュやシラーなどの品種とブレンドされる時、ムールヴェードルのその濃く深い色合いとしっかりとしたタンニン、濃縮された 獣臭がワインの構造やボディを見事なまでに調和させるからです。

このようなコンビネーションのワインはシャトーヌフ デュパプ （Châteauneuf-du-Pape） などに代表されるアペラシオンのある南ローヌ渓谷によく見られますが、最近では、作り手が次々にローヌスタイルである「GMS」ワイン（グルナッシュ、シ ラー、ムールヴェードル）を生産しているオーストラリアなどでも見かけるようになりました。ローヌ渓谷のシャトー・ド・ボーカステ（Château de Beaucastel）　は30％のムールヴェードルを使用するシャトーヌフデュパプとして有名です。

一方、ムールヴェードルの 土っぽい、やや匂いのきついという特徴は作り手がしばしば単一品種のワインを生産するのを断念させておりましたが、プロヴァンス地方のアペラシオン、バン ドールではムールヴェードル100％またはそれに限りなく近い割合でのワインが生産されています。ムールヴェードルはプロヴァンスのテロワールと非常に相 性が良く、バンドールは未だ正しく評価されていないこの品種のよき理解者といったとこでしょう。

アメリカでは優れた作り手が実験的にムー ベールドールを中心としたワインを生産し始めました。ワシントン州では、マクレアセラーズ（McCrea Cellars）がムールヴェードル90％、シラー10％の割合で生産したワインが批評家に称賛されています。カルフォルニアの有名なワイナリー、リッジ ヴィンヤード（Ridge Vineyards）でもまた95％の割合でムールヴェードルを使用した「マタロー（Mataro）」というワインを生産しました。

オンラインワインショップでは、ムールヴェードル種の色々なワインを購入できなす。次のは僕のおすすめです！

シャトー・ブロ　シャトー・レ・ムーレール 2005
シラー60% ムールヴェードル30% グルナッシュ10%

レ・ヴィニョロン・ドゥ・テラッツ　レ・ピエール・プラッツ・ルージュ 2006
シラー44% ムールヴェードル38% カリニャン18%

シャトー・ヴァニエール・ルージュ 2004
ムールヴェードル90% グルナッシュ10%

Just discovered this and hot damn is it ever sweet! WPtouch is a theme package/plugin for WordPress that optimizes them for mobile devices like the iPhone and Android. Very fast, clean and cool. Rich control over look-and-feel and other options via a custom Settings screen. Easy to install and activate. What, other than, say, 1980 pop music videos, could be finer?

Mourvedre, or “Mataro” as it is known in its native Spain, is a thick-skinned, slow-ripening red grape that has until recently languished in relative obscurity. Lacking the star power of varietals like Cabernet Sauvignon or Pinot Noir, it has typically played a minor, supporting role in the winemaking process. When blended with other grapes such as Grenache and Syrah, Mourvedre’s dark color, strong tannins and a reductive, “animal” character add structure and body.

This combination is often found in the Southern Rhone valley in appellations such as Châteauneuf-du-Pape, but is also beginning to appear elsewhere as well, such as in Australia, where winemakers are producing more and more “GSM” (Grenache, Syrah/Shiraz, Mourvedre) wines in the “Rhone-style.” In the Rhone Valley Château de Beaucastel is well known for producing excellent Châteauneuf with as much as 30% Mourvedre.

While Mourvedre’s earthy, gamey character has dissuaded some winemakers from producing single-varietal wines with it, the Bandol appellation in Provence is home to wines made from all or almost-all Mourvedre grapes.  Mourvedre does very well in the Provençal terroir, and Bandol wines are seen as one of the best expressions of this underappreciated varietal.

In the US as well producers are starting to experiment with using Mourvedre in a more central role. In Washington State, McCrea Cellars is producing a blend of 90% Mourvedre and 10% Syrah to much critical acclaim. Well-known Ridge Vineyards in California also produces a “Mataro” made with 95% Mourvedre.

As a huge fan of Rhone-style wines I’ve had a growing interest in Mourvedre, and have been trying it in a wide variety of styles and proportions. Finding Mourvedre wines in Japan isn’t difficult, and I’ve included some links to some of the wines I know and like below. Give them a try and see what you think!

Château Belot Château Les Mouleyres 2005
Syrah 60%, Mourvèdre 30%, Grenache noir 10%

Les Vignerons de Terrats Les Pierre Plates Rouge 2006
Syrah 44%, Mourvèdre 38%, Carignan 18%

Château Vannières Rouge 2004
Mourvèdre 90%, Grenache 10%

McCrea Mourvedre 2006
84% Mourvèdre, 16% Syrah

Tour du Bon Bandol 2005
55% Mourvèdre, 35% Grenache, 10% Cinsault

Good article summarizing why The Economist is the best of the English-language news weeklies.　I’ve been a subscriber for a couple of years now and know of no other “newspaper” (as they refer to themselves) that offers the same breadth and depth of bias-free, well-researched and beautifully articulated reporting. Very few ads, and virtually nothing related to fashion, pop stars or gadgets. It’s simply the best out there.

The wine dinner Wednesday evening at Le Petit Tonneau’s Azabu-juban location was a great success and enjoyed by all who attended (and perhaps especially by yours truly). I go to a lot of these wine dinners, and this one was hands-down the best value-for-money of any I’ve joined.

For a surprisingly-low 8,000 yen we enjoyed five great wines from the Roussillon region of France, each paired perfectly with a dish conceived by Petit Tonneau chef Philippe Batton. (Full menu details.) Each wine was served in the “correct” glass for the grape and refilled as necessary throughout each course by the attentive and professional Petit Tonneau staff.

My favorite of the evening was the exceptional Domaine Seguela Planete, a sumptuous and refined wine made from equal parts Syrah and Carignan. The food, of course, was superb, and made all the better by the wonderful wines with which it was paired.

Panfried Seabass filet with almond topping served with dried fruit couscous
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The next one will likely be held in June, and if you’re interested in joining please drop me a line and I’ll let you know how to get on the list. The wines from this week’s dinner can all be purchased online at the Petit Tonneau online wine boutique.

According to the Google Analytics Blog, Google today launched a new Application Programming Interface (API) for Google Analytics, their free service for tracking and analyzing website traffic and usage. We use Google Analytics extensively at Google Analytics, their free service for tracking and analyzing website traffic and usage. We use Google Analytics extensively at Netwise, of course, and are thrilled about the things that will be possible now thanks to the API. Google says:

The API will allow developers to extend Google Analytics in new and creative ways that benefit developers, organizations and end users. Large organizations and agencies now have a standardized platform for integrating Analytics data with their own business data. Developers can integrate Google Analytics into their existing products and create standalone applications that they sell. Users could see snapshots of their Analytics data in developer created dashboards and gadgets. Individuals and business owners will have opportunities to access their Google Analytics information in a variety of new ways.

The exciting possibilities? Positively endless! One obvious one is to create mashups of selected GA data and your own internal business intelligence, thus making the jump from from where GA effectively ends (e.g. - an online quote request “conversion”) to the final business outcome (e.g. - estimate approved or rejected). This ability to “close the loop” in terms of business intelligence means more accurate monitoring of ROI and the ability to more effectively refine and improve marketing campaigns.

Data collected via the API can also be used for automatically generate reports that are sent via email or displayed on mobile devices, or stored in your own database to be comingled with your other business intelligence. Simpler still, the API also makes it possible to extract selected metrics and plug them in to your own website or Intranet, with the look-and-feel  completely up to you! We’re positively giddy just thinking about it.