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There are a lot of things that I would like to change about wine in America. I'd love to lower the prices, reduce the influence of scores on buying patterns, increase consumption, broaden the varietal mix, and on and on. I've got a long list the next time any omnipotent being comes along and asks my opinion on the situation.
But if I had to choose one thing, above all else, that really needs changing when it comes to America and wine, I would choose to destroy the association between wine and the upper class. The fact that wine continues to be thought of as the beverage of the elite does more damage to the future of the industry in this country than any other phenomenon, in my opinion.
America, it must be said, did not get off on the right foot when it comes to wine. The religious zealots that founded this country were notorious teetotalers, of course. But those who followed the Puritans were Europeans of all stripes and colors, and most had a common familiarity with and appreciation for wine. Indeed, on the face of things, America could very easily have inherited their cultural predisposition for wine on the dinner table.
But it didn't for one primary reason. No one could get the damn grapes to grow right. Attempts were made for years with both imported vines as well as the many various native vines that got the early colonists so excited when they arrived. For a while, America was thought to have the potential to build a wine industry that would flourish by exporting wine back to continental Europe.
But even with the help of the many Huguenots and other wine savvy folks who arrived on American shores with no shortage of expertise in viticulture, very little progress was made. The climate was just all wrong.
Which meant that any real quantity of wine had to be imported, and that meant money, and therefore ensured that for the most part, the upper classes had the means to drink wine, and the masses made do with the products of the bountiful grains and apples that flourished here. In short, most everyone drank a lot of beer, cider, bourbon, and whisky, while the Thomas Jeffersons, Ben Franklins, and other early statesmen of America nursed their imported collections and did their best to encourage local efforts to make wine, but to no avail.
And so, if you'll forgive me squeezing and reducing a lot of complex history into a few sound bites, after about 200 years of this sort of social division, it's no wonder that, for the most part things just stayed that way. The industrial revolution widened the gap between rich and poor, engineering an even greater difference between the consumption habits of the upper classes and the lower classes. There were upswings of interest in wine, especially when people actually started to figure out how and where to grow grapes properly, but by then it was too late. Prohibition (and the rapid recovery of beer and whisky production upon repeal) put the nail in the coffin, and set the stage for people like Robert Mondavi to come along and make the valiant effort to remind everyday Americans that wine belongs on the dinner table every day. And they're still trying.
Meanwhile, wine to many people represents the intimidating, elitist, and snobbish rich. Sarah Palin's quips during the recent campaign about the wine and cocktail drinking elite perfectly illustrate the way that many people think about wine. So too do the many comments on a recent New York Times blog about the words that are used to describe wine. I can't tell you how sad it makes me to see how many people think that attempting to describe the flavors and aromas of wine is an exercise in pretension and snobbery.
But it gets even worse. It's bad enough that the average beer loving American (whoever that is) at best thinks that wine is really just for special occasions, and at worst believes that the people who drink it are rich, stuck-up, pedants. But unfortunately, a lot of wine lovers actually act that way.
In many ways the culture of wine appreciation in America encourages this sense that wine is a luxury for the knowledgeable few. We have the specialized stores. The pomp, ceremony, and mystery that surround wine in conjunction with fine dining. The astronomical prices of top wines in the market. And of course, we have the Big Boys. You know the ones I'm talking about, right? The wine assholes.
Men who feel like they own the province of wine are just the start of our problems. Worse are the ones who also like to reel off the great wines of the world they have drunk with the same gusto as they might bedroom conquests. These are the ones that recoil in horror at the thought of sharing a bottle of 1989 Lafite with their "know-nothing cousins from Des Moines" and instead prefer to save their best bottles for wine dinners that attempt to be the oenological equivalents of an evening with Annabel Chong.
But as much as I sometimes want to punch some of these people in the mouth, I don't see the wine snob as a clear perpetrator of the problem. They're just as much another symptom of the basic travesty -- that somehow we've gotten to the point where wine is far too special. And just as with anything that has cachet, wine in America has become something that many Americans think is only for certain kinds of people. Those wine people.
Of course, this rant of mine paints a rather stark, divided world, which belies the true reality of the marketplace. America is not just a collection of beer drinkers vs. wine drinkers any more than it is a collection of red states vs. blue states. And the country is slowly coming around to wine, thanks to many different factors, not the least of which are the backlash against carbohydrates and the media hype about resveratrol.
But we've got a long way to go to get to an American wine scene that I'll be satisfied with. There are a lot of myths to shatter, a lot of attitudes to adjust, and a lot of evil distribution monopolies to crush before Americans get used to having good wine on their tables every day. But perhaps most importantly, there's a lot of wine that needs to be shared among friends -- a lot of wine that needs to be enjoyed without the trappings of ceremony or status, but instead with the simple appreciation for the fact that we are all so very lucky for what we have.
Go forth and drink without fear, and spread the wine love.
OK folks, here's the deal. Today is the last day of A Menu For Hope charity raffle. You've got until Midnight tonight, Pacific Time, to buy raffle tickets for some seriously awesome prizes. Every raffle ticket increases your chance of winning said prize, and every ticket buys healthy, nutritious lunches for school children in Lesotho. What could be better than that?
It's important to realize that even a single $10 ticket can win you some seriously good loot. One of the most popular prizes last year (and this year), the Meadowood vacation package, was won by someone who bought a single ticket.
It's also important that you know that some of this year's prizes have had slightly less bidding than others, which means the chances of you winning them are QUITE HIGH with just a single ticket, and INCREDIBLY HIGH were you to buy say, 10 tickets.
You may be asking, "Now why would I go and spend $100 on raffle tickets, even though the cause is so good." Here's the answer: because if you did, you'd have a very good chance of winning prizes that are in some cases worth THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS.
Getting the picture? It's like this: if I told you that by spending $100 you'd have a 3 in 5 chance of winning $400 worth of wine and be doing a great thing for charity, I hope that you'd see this as a winning proposition, no?
So here are some prizes that need a little love in the bidding department, and might just be yours for the taking, depending on just how generous you're feeling (or how much Champagne you've already had today). Go bid a little bit (or a little more), and have yourself a very Happy New Year!
Wine and Film Premieres from Wilson Daniels One of the country's most respected wine importers, Wilson Daniels Ltd., is celebrating its 30th anniversary in 2008. The Napa Valley-based company has created a Menu For Hope six-bottle collection of wines from its portfolio of European wine estates, offering bidders an opportunity to taste wines from six different regions spanning three countries -- with a high-definition twist. Winners will receive the following wines:
NV Delamotte Brut Cotes des Blancs Grand Cru 2006 Domaine Marc Kreydenweiss Kritt Gewurztraminer Alsace 2005 Domaine Faiveley Nuits-Saint-Georges 2006 Domaine Philippe & Vincent Jaboulet Crozes-Hermitage Rouge 2004 Castello di Volpaia Chianti Classico Riserva DOCG 1996 Royal Tokaji Nyulászó First Growth Tokaji Aszú 6 Puttonyos
This fall, Wilson Daniels premiered documentary-style films for its French and Hungarian wine estates, which the winning bidder can watch online or download to an iPod at www.wilsondanielsfilms.com to "virtually" tour the vineyards and meet the winemakers before, after, or while they taste the wines. Value: $275. Prize Code: WB04. Courtesy of Wilson Daniels Ltd.
Two World Class Gruner Veltliners and a set of World Class White Wine Glasses This prize includes a set of six Denkart Zalto white wine glasses and the two most highly rated Gruner Veltliners in the Winemonger inventory, the 2006 and 2007 Donabaum Spitzer Point GV Smaragd Gruner Veltliner from Austria. The wines speak for themselves, but you should know about the glasses. 100% lead free and dishwasher safe, these glasses were created for the complexity and refinement of the most expressive white wines. Technical perfection is the basic principle of the Zalto Glass Manufactury. Zalto Glasses have always been produced following a tradition of using only the most highly skilled glass-blowers working with a selection of the best raw materials. The curve of the bowls are tilted at the angles of 24°, 48° and 72°, which are in accordance to the tilt angles of the Earth. This stunning glass has become the standard for many world-class tasting rooms and well-set tables. Shipping within the USA only. Value: more than $415. Prize Code: WB07. More details at Winemonger.
Half Case of Verge Syrah, and a Tour of the Vineyard Join VERGE Winemaker Mike Brunson for a special tour of Bradford Mountain where you will see firsthand what it means to farm on the edge of the wild. At just over 1200 feet elevation, Bradford Mountain is on the far western edge of Dry Creek Valley in Sonoma County. VERGE Wine Cellars produces small lots of block specific Syrah and these organcially grown vineyards are perfect examples of what we call Fringe Vineyards. Mike Brunson has over 15 years winemaking experience and will describe the ins and outs of organic viticulture, mountain farming, and Syrah winemaking. After the hike, you'll enjoy a tasting of Syrahs from Bradford Mountain as well as a selection of other Syrahs from around the world. As a parting gift, you will also recieve 6 bottles of VERGE Wine Cellars' inaugural release, the 2006 VERGE Syrah. Value: $240. Prize code: WB08. Courtesy of Verge Cellars.
Wine Book Bonanza There's only one thing better than drinking wine, and that's drinking wine with a nice wine book on your lap. Here's your chance to add to your library and maybe learn a thing or two in the process. Courtesy of University of California Press, pick any 5 wine books from their current list of titles. Value: approx $150. Prize Code:WB09. Courtesy of University of California Press.
Wine Travel Guide Voucher The main raffle prize on offer from Wine Travel Guides is a gold gift subscription to Wine Travel Guides (worth £49 or approximately $75 or €60) which lasts a whole year from activation. This will give you access to all the travel guides on the site. Today there are 46 comprehensive guides to the wine regions of France. By mid-January there will be a further seven guides covering Tuscany in Italy, Rioja in Spain and Mosel in Germany. Here is your chance to plan that trip to the wine regions of Europe with expert insider advice from 15 top-class wine and travel writers.
The bonus offer: If you can meet author Wink Lorch in either the Jura or Savoie wine regions of France, she will personally drive you around the wine region for a day, meeting and tasting with some of her favourite wine growers and taking you out to lunch. Value: $80 or more. Prize Code:WB10. Courtesy of Wink Lorch.
Inaugural Vintage of Capture's Tin Cross Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc This prize consists of a bottle from the first launch of Capture Winery's 2008 Tin Cross Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc. This wine is the unprecedented, first product of the winemaking team's efforts with Tin Cross being to be released in Spring 2009. Additionally, this wine will arrive paired with an elegantly framed vision of its origin; an image of Tin Cross' upper vineyard, professionally photographed and signed by the renowned Olaf Beckman. The total package is valued at $542. Prize Code:WB14. More details at Our Wine Story.
Port Wine Starter Set from Quevedo If you're a lover of port wine, or think you might be, you'll enjoy this gift: A Port Wine Starter Kit made up of: - port wine tongs - port wine filter - port wine decanter - port wine cups - dark chocolate - a coupon for a bottle of Quevedo 2005 Vintage redeemable at the closest wine shop that carries the wine. Value: $90. Prize Code: WB17. More details at Quevedo Wine.
Exclusive Wine Accessory Set This prize includes four exclusive wine accessories developed by Wine Line:
-Wine Vine 12 bottle stainless steel wine rack -Wine Flyte Carrier--for easily serving 6 glasses of wine, carrying & drying glasses as well-patent pending -Wine Aerator w/single glass adapter-patent pending -Chateau Epernay Handmade Rosewood Corkscrew in gift box
These accessories make fantastic gifts for wine lovers. Value: $200.00. Prize Code: WB18. Courtesy of WineLine
Custom 90 Minute Wine Seminar Bill Wilson, the host and producer of the Wine for Newbies Podcast will offer a 90-minute live wine seminar. The winner of this prize can choose the topic(s) for this wine seminar which he'll broadcast via streaming video at a time and date of the winner's choosing. The winner can have as many people participate as he or she wants! Since the seminar will be live via the Internet, the winner can be anywhere, as long as they understand English. Prize code: WB20. Courtesy of Wine for Newbies.
Wine, Wine and More Wine from Domaine 547 This prize includes a Magnum of 2003 Pax Cellars Kobler Family Vineyard Syrah and a $50 gift certificate to domaine547.com. The prize can be shipped to anywhere that FedEx legally delivers alcohol to, with the exception of New Hampshire. Domaine 547 is also willing to arrange for shipping to other states, on behalf of any bidder who wants to ship the wine via use of their own UPS account. Value: $150. Prize Code: WB27. Courtesy of Domaine 547.
Magnum of wine, tour, and tasting at Tolosa Winery for Six People Join Tolosa winemaker Larry Brooks for a past, present and future tour of the Winery in San Luis Obispo and finish with a artisan wine and cheese pairing. A Magnum of our 10th Anniversary wine will also be given to the winner upon arrival.
PAST: Guests will learn about the origin of our name and the story behind our brand. They will also have the opportunity to taste past vintages from the Tolosa library collection.
PRESENT: After a brief talk about our vineyard and outside production area, guests will be toured through our tank and barrel rooms.
FUTURE: The tour finishes with a futures tasting from select French oak barrels. This intimate tasting will take place in our private barrel designed area with our finest wine selections.
Following the tour you and your guests will be guided through an artisan wine and cheese pairing with Tolosa's wine and cheese educator & sommelier, John Shakley. As you relax in our beautiful private Heritage Room, John will pair five limited production wines with five artisan cheeses from around the world. Value: $400. Prize Code: WB29. Courtesy of Tolosa Winery.
Ernest Hill are a boutique producer from the Hunter Valley. They make several Shiraz wines that typically sell out rather quickly via their mailing list, however they also have some good quality whites and a range of dessert wines. On the white front today we have the Ernest Hill “Rosalie Joan” Verdelho 2008.
Quite aromatic with lime zest, rose petals and hints of lychee. The palate is dry with just a hint of sweetness, showing lemon, lime and fresh pineapple flavours, a little honey and a riesling-like acidic backbone. A serious white wine, decent length too.
Bravo Ernest Hill for showing us that Hunter Verdelho can be more than tropical cordial. The lychee/rose petal aromas remind me of Guwurztraminer, accordingly the wine pairs rather well with a spicy thai curry.
Score: 91/100 Price: $20 Closure: Screwcap Alcohol: 13.1% Other Opinions:Ernest Hill Would I buy this wine again? Yes, we have a couple more bottles to enjoy this summer
Well it’s Wine Blogging Friday for me this month, but hopefully I can sneak into the summary. The theme for Wine Blogging Wednesday this month comes by way of Philly-based wine blogger Joe who goes by 1WineDude online. And it’s a complete departure from our basic formula of wine variety, region or something a bit quirky. In fact, he has challenged us to actually drink madeirized — or intentionally heated and/or oxidized — wines. This style of wine is found in Madeira, Australia?s Rutherglen Tokays and Sherry. But Joe was also mindful that these wines might not be available everywhere so he included all fortified wines including Porto for his “Baked Goods” theme.
I knew at some point there would be an occasion to write about Sherry, a wine I’ve had over the years but didn’t really get into until a visit in June of 2007 to El Puerto de Santa María in the so-called Sherry Triangle. As a guest of Osborne, I visited their winery and tasted Fino literally pulled from the solera. But the most surprising part of this visit was a dinner with only Sherry served. I knew the starter would be easy with a Fino or Amontillado and the dessert course would be matched with a sweet Sherry of some sort but the entree would be a challenge. That’s when I was introduced to Oloroso which was a revelation at the time. But the best wine that night was a sweet Sherry made from a very old solera and the Pedro Ximénez grape. I rated it a 99, the only wine I have ever rated that high.
But before I dig my notes out for that wine let me flash forward to this week when I was looking for a Sherry to review for this tasting. As someone now a bit more educated about Sherry, I know that Fino is best consumed before 6 months from it’s bottling date. Most every Sherry producer has some sort of bottling code that indicates the day and year of bottling. Many times these are cryptic with Roman numerals used for the year but Osborne uses a more understandable code. So while I am continually disappointed in the stores here in the Twin Cities where Fino is “fresh” at 9-10 months past bottling, I was surprised to see a bottle of Osborne Pedro Ximénez “1827″ on the shelf with a bottling date of June 23, 2007… just 5 days before my visit to the winery.
For those not familiar with how Sherry is produced, a quick aside before my tasting notes. The production of Sherry is very old, in it’s current form since the the Moors ruled Spain some 1,200 years ago. Some, according to this piece in Wikipedia, track this style of wine back to the city of Shiraz in modern day Iran, literally the cradle of viticulture in antiquity. The production of Sherry starts with grapes grown in very chalky soils around Jerez, Spain from Palomino or Pedro Ximenez. In the latter case, the grapes are dried for two days before pressing and fermentation begins to concentrate their sugars. After primary fermentation, the wine is fortified with brandy to levels of alcohol determined by the style of the final wine. Fino or Amontillado are fortified to 15 degrees alcohol so that flor yeast can survive to complete the wine. Oloroso is fortified to 17-18 degrees alcohol to prevent the growth of flor and the wine is primarily shaped by oxidation in the solera.
The solera is a system of large barrels between 3 and 9 in number usually stacked in a pyramid shape. This allows for the young wine to be introduced at the top of the solera to fill the lower barrels where the finished wine is drawn for bottling. Sherry is aged in barrel for a minimum of three years but this time in barrel is much longer for more highly prized and rare Sherries. Through reduction and oxidation the resulting wine gains complexity and since all the barrels are neutral, no aromas or flavors from the oak. This is a truly unique and old school style of wine that I hope more wine lovers will try.
Tasting Notes: Bodegas Osborne, Pedro Ximenez “1827″ Sherry ($21) - Mahogany in color with powerful aromas of fig, molasses, espresso, hazelnuts and some heat from the alcohol. Rich and sweet in the mouth with fig, maple syrup, cocoa and caramel flavors finishing very long with enough acidity that balances the luscious sweetness. Decadent, delicious and an excellent value at around $20 a bottle. Also very nice poured over vanilla ice cream as it’s own dessert.
17% ABV Screwtop closure Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Bodegas Osborne, Pedro Ximenez “Viejo” Sherry ($100/sample tasted at the winery) - Almost black in color with very complex aromas of fig, dates, espresso, dark chocolate, molasses and a hint of baked orange. In the mouth, very rich and layered fig, caramel, baked orange, spice and nut flavors mingle with quite a bit of sweetness that is balanced by acidity. This wine has a finish that seems to go on forever. One of the most extraordinary tastings of my life and as close to a perfect wine I have ever encountered. Buy it, if you can afford it.
16% ABV Natural cork closure Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
Thanks to Joe, the 1WineDude, for getting me back into this style of wine. I’m going to continue to explore Sherry both here and on my podcast… and might even post those recordings made in Spain some 17 months ago.
After daylight savings ends, my thoughts turn increasingly to red wine. Once I set the clocks back, it gets dark faster than I expect. I start cooking dinner. The heat comes on. I wonder "is there a red wine in the house?"
And then there are the winter foods that start sounding just perfect right about now: beef stew, chicken chile, and soups made with late fall vegetables.
If this sounds like you right now, I've got a red that will knock your socks off and have you praising the wine gods. It's from Chile, which (like Argentina) produces some excellent value wines. This one is no exception, and it's made by Veramonte, the winery that also makes exceptionally good value Sauvignon Blancs.
The 2005 Veramonte Primus represents the best of what Chile has to offer to people seeking great value and great taste. This excellent QPR red wine drinks like a wine that's two or three times the cost. It's big, bold,a n balanced. Made from a mixture of 51% Merlot, 32% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 17% Carmenere, the first thing that will strike you if you get your own bottle is the beautiful, dark plum color. Then you will be bowled over by heady aromas of plum, blackberry, spice, and plum blossom. I loved the way that the promise of the aromas was delivered in the flavors, which echoed the smells beautifully--although the plummy notes did take center stage. The wine had rich, satiny texture that seemed more opulent than a wine with an under $20 pricetag deserved--but I'm certainly not complaining. Well-integrated tannins and a taste that reminded me of the spicy smell of my mom's cedar chest rounded out this nicely made, well-balanced wine. It's drinking very well now, but if you find some for a good price I think you might want to buy a couple of bottles and put them away for drinking between now and the end of 2009.
I received my bottle as a sample, but you should be able to find bottles of this wine all over the US for between $14 and $26. And they bottled some in 375 ml bottles, as well, which are retailing for $7-$14.
Enjoy the change in seasons. Get some red wine, snuggle with the one you love, and catch up on your movies and TV now that the election is over. Long winter nights can be a good thing, after all.
It's time to talk turkey again--and what wine goes with it. (image from Carolina Morning)
Every year, new visitors come to this site in search of a delicious, affordable, and available bottle of wine to pair with their holiday meal. Old friends visit, too, sometimes to suggest their own picks for the year and sometimes to take issue with something I've picked. It doesn't matter why you're here--I'm glad to see you, and hope that what follows will be helpful to you as you plan for the big dinner.
If you are looking for general advice on Thanksgiving wine and hospitality, I'd encourage you to check out this article I wrote a few years ago on issues facing the host/hostess and the guests. If you are wondering what to drink with your meal, and with leftovers, you're in the right place. Here are my picks for 2008--all of which offer great taste and great value in an easy-to-find package. Clicking on the wine's name will take you to the winery's site where you can find more information about the wine and its makers. Many of the wines I picked this year are made with organic grapes, are farmed with sustainability in mind, and/or are made by families with great stories of how they got in the business of grape-growing and wine-making. Clicking on the range of prices will take you to a list of retailers who stock the wine. Maybe one will be near you.
Sparkling Wines What's a holiday dinner without some bubbles? These two picks are great for toasts, appetizers, brunch the morning after, or drinking with the main meal. Sparkling wine has great acidity, which means it pairs with most foods and there's no doubt that sparklers are festive. NV Roederer Estate Brut ($15-$20). For my money, this is the best value around in domestic sparkling wine. Expect tiny bubbles, aromas of brioche and Meyer lemon, and flavors of apples, toast, and nuts. Just as good with food as without.
NV Domaine Allimant-Laugner Cremant d'Alsace Rose ($16-$19). If you're looking for a pink sparkler, try this one. It' made with 100% Pinot Noir and has knockout fresh strawberry aromas with light berry, mineral, and citrus flavors. Like the Roederer Brut, this wine is as good with food as it is without.
Rosé Wines Rosé wines are perfect for turkey and all the side-dishes that make us groan afterwards. If you feel that rosé wines are too "casual" for a fancy dinner, don't forget the leftovers. Wouldn't a cool rosé be perfect on Saturday with your turkey sandwich? These rosé winesare dry, not sweet, and very refreshing. 2007 Fort Ross Pinot Noir Rosé($12-$16). Fort Ross makes some of the best Pinot Noir out there, and this is the rosé version of their wine. It's a beautiful color, with raspberry and strawberry aromas and flavors and a delicious stony note that keeps it complex and interesting. 2006 Jeriko Estate Rosé ($9-$13). This is a round and full rosé, with aromas and flavors of strawberries and minerals. If you don't like watermelon notes in your wine, you'll like this. Made with organic grapes.
White Wines I'm a fan of white wines for Thanksgiving. I like their freshness, and the way that they pair so beautifully with stuffing, gravy, turkey, cranberries, Waldorf salad--you name it, these whites will go with it. They're versatile and flavorful, but won't overwhelm the food. 2006 Brooks Riesling ($14-$19). This is not a sweet wine. It's dry in style, with aromas of lime, apple, Meyer lemon, petrol, and stone. You will taste lime, slate, currants, and a touch of honey which makes it ideal if you are serving smoked turkey or a turkey made with lots of spices. Exceptionally complex for the price. 2006 Adelsheim Pinot Gris ($14-$20). Delicious aromas of peach, honey, and a kiss of caramelized sugar, but there's lots of bright acidity to keep the peach and apple flavors in balance. This aromatic wine would be perfect if you are serving sausage stuffing, and while it may give a sweet impression it finishes dry. 2006 Mauritson Sauvignon Blanc ($13-$17). One of the best domestic Sauvignon Blancs I've had in a long time, made with no oak and no assertive aromas or flavors. Warm melon, Meyer lemon, and clementine aromas and flavors accompany fresh, grassy notes. 2007 Clif Bar Family Winery The Climber White ($13-$15). This white blend has a core of Sauvignon Blanc with the addition of Pinot Blanc (12%), Chenin Blanc (4%) and Muscat (3%). The result is a wine with good acidity but an impression of softness. Aromas of pink grapefruit and nectarine, and flavors of Meyer lemon, nectarine, and peach. 2007 Cupcake Vineyards Chardonnay ($11-$13; also available in CostPlus World Markets). A new label to me, this wine had clean and fresh apple and citrus aromas and flavors. There is a lovely creaminess to this wine, and a touch of mild oakiness. Very much like a white wine from Burgundy at a fraction of the price.
Red Wines There are a lot of people out there recommending Zinfandel for Thanksgiving. Unless you are very, very careful you may overwhelm your food with a jammy, high-alcohol wine. That's true for many other red wines, too. If you are serving turkey and lots of different sweet and savory dishes, red wines may not be your best bet. However, the ones below will not overwhelm your food--and the flavors may be just right for you if you like dark meat, or are serving something smoked or (gasp!) not serving turkey at all.
2006 Domaine du Vissoux/Pierre-Marie Chermette Vieilles Vignes Cuvee Traditionelle ($12-$16). Gamay is a low-alcohol, high-acid grape that produces fresh, zesty reds. You will smell cherries, berries and some chalk in this wine, and the flavors are pure, juicy Bing cherry with an earthy undertow and some mineral notes. 2006 MacMurray Ranch Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast ($12-$27) A great bargain in Pinot Noirs, this wine has high-toned cherry and raspberry fruit aromas, with a touch of allspice. There are flavors of cherry, raspberry, allspice, and fresh-baked cobbler with a terrific, silky texture.
2004 Quivira Zinfandel Dry Creek Valley ($18-$20). If you must, this is the Zinfandel to get. With aromas of black cherry, allspice, and cedar, and flavors of cherry, baker's chocolate, and pepper it has beautiful acidity and is very food friendly. This Zin feels and tastes more old fashioned and restrained--just the way I like them. The 2005 is also in the market, and while I haven't tasted it, ordinary drinkers on CellarTracker! seem to give it thumbs up, too. 2004 Bodegas Montecillo Rioja Crianza ($7-$12). If you think I'm nuts to suggest Tempranillo with turkey--trust me. I'm not. This is one of the great bargain reds, from Osborne's Bodegas Montecillo. There are aromas of roasted herbs and spicy berries, and nice, high-toned red fruit. Beautiful acidity and some dusty tannins make for a long, juicy aftertaste.
Whatever you serve on Thanksgiving, remember to relax and enjoy your friends and family. That's what the holiday is really all about!
Disclosure: The Adelsheim, MacMurray Ranch, and Clif Bar Family Winery bottlings were samples; I tasted both the Cupcake and Osborne wines at tastings. All other bottles were purchased by me over the last eleven months in a variety of brick-and-mortar and online stores.
I don’t often buy wines from Maison Latour, and whilst I’ve had so-so bottles from them, it has more been due to lack of local availability than quality reasons. Now I’ve found a relatively close merchant, so two or three bottles might appear over the next days. 2005 Louis Latour, Gevrey-Chambertin Medium-plus colour. The [...]
CHICAGO (MarketWatch) -- On a hot, sunny Friday here in September only days after the first Monday market meltdown, two well-heeled wine buyers battled each other at a private auction for the privilege of shattering a world-record price for a single case? of 1982 Chateau? Lafite Rothschild.
A Chinese buyer who flew in from Beijing for the Hart Davis Hart Co. auction won with a final bid of $54,970 -- a whopping $4,580.83 a bottle. At its release in 1984, a single bottle would have sold for roughly $100. A case of 1990 Romanee-Conti Domaine? de la Romanee-Conti that was released at about $500 a bottle sold for $179,250, or $14,937.50 each. A case of 2000 Chateau Petrus was bought for $57,360, or $4,780 a bottle. At its release, the price was $750 a bottle.
Such dramatic price appreciation is not the norm for wine investments, but it does underscore how lucrative and resilient investing in fine wine can be -- particularly so at a time when market volatility is deflating 401(k) accounts and retirement nest eggs, and low interest rates are choking returns on cash and other investments.
Wine Blogging Wednesday rolls around again with a theme from Russ, the Wine Hiker, of “Which wine, which wilderness.” Sounds pretty straightforward… which wine would you bring on a hike near where you live. The only problem is, I don’t hike.
It’s not that I don’t like hiking, I do, but rarely get on the trail these days here in Minnesota. I like walking and it is my exercise of choice but it’s usually done in my suburban neighborhood or around one of the many lakes in the Twin Cities. Rarely have I ventured up north to where the real action is here in the land of 10,000 lakes.
But this theme not only got me to think about where I might hike but also which wine I might take on the journey. Since I’m one to pack lightly, I chose a wine I could enjoy without a corkscrew. That left every wine made here in Minnesota behind but there were several choices left on the shelf. I also assumed I would bring simple water glasses or metal cups and not the usual Riedel stems on my hike so the choice should be something hearty. This got me thinking of the wines of Italy which are often consumed in humble glassware. Alas, I was not able to find a wine in screwcap or other non-corkscrew closure from Italy but my friends in California did not disappoint.
Since part of the task was to match this wine with a hike, I consulted Google to select one of the top 10 hikes in the country right in my backyard, the Superior Hiking Trail. This trail covers over 200 miles from Two Harbors, MN — near Duluth — to the Canadian border. The north shore of Lake Superior is some of the most beautiful country you are likely to see and this time of year it’s awesome due to our long Indian summer and fall colors. At some point, I will make this hike and might just bring along the wine I picked up for the journey, Hey Mambo.
This is one of those “marketing wines” from Don Sebastiani and Sons which I’ve been meaning to try anyway. Great label, interesting premise and the Zork closure all for $12.99. I was also intrigued by the blend of Barbera, Zinfandel, Syrah, Petite Sirah, Carignane and Alicante Bouschet which I thought would be a good choice for my water glass/cup scenario. So I was looking forward to what might be in the glass tonight.
Tasting Notes:
The Other Guys, “Hey Mambo”, Sultry Red 2006 ($13) - Dark purple in color with aromas of blackberry, cranberry, fennel and sage. Bright and juicy in the mouth with blackberry, red cherry, bell pepper and vanilla finishing with moderate tannins. An interesting and satisfying blend in an nice package.
Thanks to Russ for a great theme this time… It will be good to see him again at the upcoming Wine Blogger Conference later this month. Look for the next theme to be announced soon.
Thailand has a much greater wine presence than India. This shouldn't surprise anyone that has visited both countries. Thailand in general is a very modern country, at least around Bangkok and the seaside communities. India is a country struggling to move into the 21st century.
Tourism is a huge driving force in this modernity, and in the proliferation of wine. The Thai locals may not be buying up the $20 bottles of Australian and Chilean wines in the grocery stores, but the European and North American visitors certainly are.
A dozen years ago, after my visit to China, I remarked that one of the things that had to happen before wine was well received in Asia was to start adopting screw tops. This was before the current craze. Many wines now do sport screw tops, in no small measure because the technology of closures has greatly improved.
I bring this up because it is not just the locals that don't own cork screws. Tourists may not have them either. I overheard a couple in a posh wine store asking for bottles with twist offs because they had no way to remove a cork.
There are many reasons to adopt screw tops, chief among them being the danger of cork taint. This interchange points out the most practical of all reasons for screw tops. Ease of use. Keep it Simple Stupid applies everywhere, especially when it comes to packaging and marketing. Make it easy for people to open wine, and you make it easier for them to buy it.
Thailand has a laid back attitude that is perfect for wine lovers, assuming they have a way to get to their favorite quaff. Personally I never travel anywhere without a corkscrew (and a few backups) but for the more occasional wine lover, being able to twist and enjoy is a pleasure.
This weekend, we built a wine rack. When we first moved to Terrassa almost 3 years ago, we were regularly lacking in wine as a result of less income, less samples and less travel. Consequently, we never had a formal wine rack. But when you change any one of these factors, you end up with a lot more wine. Now imagine if you changed all three like we have?! We not only needed to figure out where to store it all, but also how to inventory it. I still have most of my cellar in Cellartracker, though I quit putting in my tasting notes. I like Snooth and Adegga as well, but they both need better cellar management for me to move to them exclusively. Since this past weekend we created the wine rack, maybe next weekend we’ll inventory the wine. Let’s see what happens.
As for building the wine rack, it actually turned out to be much easier than we expected. Odd note though: untreated, uncut, plain wood costs more than planed, beveled whole sheets of wood here in Terrassa. So instead of needing to sand and polish it, we simply bought nice sheets of solid, shelving wood and then cut it to fit. Yet, we still need another. So later today, I’m off to buy some more wood for wine rack number two!
Enough about housing. Next Monday, we’re off to judge wine blogs! It feels a bit odd to mention, after we realized at the EWBC that judging a wine blog is quite subjective once you get past the aggregators and plagiarizers. Once into the meat of the blogging world, where the
Tecnorati
Ernest Hill are a boutique producer from the Hunter Valley. They make several Shiraz wines that typically sell out rather quickly via their mailing list, however they also have some good quality whites and a range of dessert wines. On the white front today we have the Ernest Hill “Rosalie Joan” Verdelho 2008.
I knew at some point there would be an occasion to write about Sherry, a wine I’ve had over the years but didn’t really get into until a visit in June of 2007 to El Puerto de Santa María in the so-called Sherry Triangle. As a guest of 
Since part of the task was to match this wine with a hike, I consulted Google to select one of the top 10 hikes in the country right in my backyard, the 