Sunday, June 23, 2013
Love My Wines: The Miracles of Wine Clubs
Love My Wines: The Miracles of Wine Clubs: There are so many Miracle's awaits a future Wine Club Member and I can start with shipments showing up every month or 3 months whicheve...
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Murder of one of Switzerland’s most notable wine experts (reprint)
Murder of one of Switzerland’s most notable wine experts (update)
Update Monday 22 August ZURICH, SWITZERLAND – It’s with a very heavy heart that I write of the death of Barbara Meier-Dittus, age 47, the former editor of Vinum, European wine magazine based in Zurich. She was murdered Thursday night by her former companion Rui A, 43, a Portuguese chef and owner of the Pagoda Restaurant in Baden Zurzach, who then killed himself.
The deaths took place at her apartment in Baden, canton Aargau. Her three daughters, under age 20, were asleep in the apartment but were awakened by the shots, and they found the bodies.
Aargau police say they had been phoned in the past for domestic violence; the pair had been a couple for several years, but had recently split up.
We all imagine that such “crimes of passion” happen only to people we don’t know, to people who are not in charge of their lives. We don’t think domestic violence will take the lives of women who are smart and savvy, with successful careers. Barbara was very much in charge of her life, or so it appeared to those (and we are many) of us who knew and admired her professionally.
I’ve just spent three days as a judge at the Mondial du Pinot Noir wine competition in Sierre, Valais, to which Barbara had been invited, as a wine taster par excellence. She had declined, saying she wanted to spend more time with her children this summer.
Sunday morning the 50-plus wine experts stood for a minute of silence, for our lost colleague, but she was never far from the minds of the many who knew her, throughout the weekend.
The three girls, in their teens and early twenties, were awakened by the gunshots after midnight and discovered their mother’s body on the veranda of their apartment, according to Blick, which mentions that Barbara was recently known as a writer of a Coop wine column. The daughters are being provided with counseling and care by Aargau police.
Barbara Meier doing what she loved best, talking with an up-and-coming Val d'Aosta winemaker, Didier Gerbelle, in July: Barbara, always keen to know more, asked about his family's history
Barbara was far more than just a wine writer and editor: her knowledge of wine was rich and deep, she had a real passion for sharing her knowledge and she was excited about a number of upcoming projects.
I for one saw her as a fine example of what women can contribute to the wine industry. In addition to her very good understanding of wines, she was chic and elegant at all times, well spoken and she spoke several languages. She trained as a sommelier in France and she frequently served as a judge at international wine competitions.
About a month ago I spent a day with Barbara exploring a couple vineyards in Italy on the fringes of the Cervim European mountain wines) competition in Val d’Aosta, where we were both judges. We had ample opportunity driving around in her car to discuss wine, her resignation from Vinum, her future projects and the balance between motherhood and a professional life. I was particularly struck by her enthusiasm for teaching women more about wine, and for courses she was planning to organize. She talked about working as a wine magazine editor, but also about leaving in order to have time and energy to do more creative work.
We visited a beautiful vineyard in Val d’Aosta and talked at length with the energetic young winemaker whose products we both admired enormously. Her comments on his wines were so astute that I appreciated the day as time spent with a master.
What a great loss she is, to more people than she could ever have realized. My heart goes out to her daughters: may they know all their lives that she would never have chosen to leave them.
Update Monday 22 August ZURICH, SWITZERLAND – It’s with a very heavy heart that I write of the death of Barbara Meier-Dittus, age 47, the former editor of Vinum, European wine magazine based in Zurich. She was murdered Thursday night by her former companion Rui A, 43, a Portuguese chef and owner of the Pagoda Restaurant in Baden Zurzach, who then killed himself.
The deaths took place at her apartment in Baden, canton Aargau. Her three daughters, under age 20, were asleep in the apartment but were awakened by the shots, and they found the bodies.
Aargau police say they had been phoned in the past for domestic violence; the pair had been a couple for several years, but had recently split up.
We all imagine that such “crimes of passion” happen only to people we don’t know, to people who are not in charge of their lives. We don’t think domestic violence will take the lives of women who are smart and savvy, with successful careers. Barbara was very much in charge of her life, or so it appeared to those (and we are many) of us who knew and admired her professionally.
I’ve just spent three days as a judge at the Mondial du Pinot Noir wine competition in Sierre, Valais, to which Barbara had been invited, as a wine taster par excellence. She had declined, saying she wanted to spend more time with her children this summer.
Sunday morning the 50-plus wine experts stood for a minute of silence, for our lost colleague, but she was never far from the minds of the many who knew her, throughout the weekend.
The three girls, in their teens and early twenties, were awakened by the gunshots after midnight and discovered their mother’s body on the veranda of their apartment, according to Blick, which mentions that Barbara was recently known as a writer of a Coop wine column. The daughters are being provided with counseling and care by Aargau police.
Barbara Meier doing what she loved best, talking with an up-and-coming Val d'Aosta winemaker, Didier Gerbelle, in July: Barbara, always keen to know more, asked about his family's history
Barbara was far more than just a wine writer and editor: her knowledge of wine was rich and deep, she had a real passion for sharing her knowledge and she was excited about a number of upcoming projects.
I for one saw her as a fine example of what women can contribute to the wine industry. In addition to her very good understanding of wines, she was chic and elegant at all times, well spoken and she spoke several languages. She trained as a sommelier in France and she frequently served as a judge at international wine competitions.
About a month ago I spent a day with Barbara exploring a couple vineyards in Italy on the fringes of the Cervim European mountain wines) competition in Val d’Aosta, where we were both judges. We had ample opportunity driving around in her car to discuss wine, her resignation from Vinum, her future projects and the balance between motherhood and a professional life. I was particularly struck by her enthusiasm for teaching women more about wine, and for courses she was planning to organize. She talked about working as a wine magazine editor, but also about leaving in order to have time and energy to do more creative work.
We visited a beautiful vineyard in Val d’Aosta and talked at length with the energetic young winemaker whose products we both admired enormously. Her comments on his wines were so astute that I appreciated the day as time spent with a master.
What a great loss she is, to more people than she could ever have realized. My heart goes out to her daughters: may they know all their lives that she would never have chosen to leave them.
Wine Drinkers of the World, Unite- You have nothing to lose but inflated bills and interrupted anecdotes.
The other night, I was having dinner with some friends in a fairly decent restaurant and was at the very peak of my form as a wit and raconteur. But just as, with infinite and exquisite tantalizations, I was approaching my punch line, the most incredible thing happened. A waiter appeared from nowhere, leaned right over my shoulder and into the middle of the conversation, seized my knife and fork, and started to cut up my food for me. Not content with this bizarre behavior, and without so much as a by-your-leave, he proceeded to distribute pieces of my entree onto the plates of the other diners.
No, he didn't, actually. What he did instead was to interrupt the feast of reason and flow of soul that was our chat, lean across me, pick up the bottle of wine that was in the middle of the table, and pour it into everyone's glass. And what I want to know is this: How did such a barbaric custom get itself established, and why on earth do we put up with it?
There are two main ways in which a restaurant can inflict bad service on a customer. The first is to keep you hanging about and make it hard to catch the eye of the staff. ("Why are they called waiters?" inquired my son when he was about 5. "It's we who are doing all the waiting.") The second way is to be too intrusive, with overlong recitations of the "specials" and too many oversolicitous inquiries. A cartoon in The New Yorker once showed a couple getting ready for bed, with the husband taking a call and keeping his hand over the receiver. "It's the maitre d' from the place we had dinner. He wants to know if everything is still all right."
The vile practice of butting in and pouring wine without being asked is the very height of the second kind of bad manners. Not only is it a breathtaking act of rudeness in itself, but it conveys a none-too-subtle and mercenary message: Hurry up and order another bottle. Indeed, so dulled have we become to the shame and disgrace of all this that I have actually seen waiters, having broken into the private conversation and emptied the flagon, ask insolently whether they should now bring another one. Again, imagine this same tactic being applied to the food.
Not everybody likes wine as much as I do. Many females, for example, confine themselves to one glass per meal or even half a glass. It pains me to see good wine being sloshed into the glasses of those who have not asked for it and may not want it and then be left standing there barely tasted when the dinner is over. Mr. Coleman, it was said, made his fortune not from the mustard that was consumed but from the mustard that was left on the plate. Restaurants ought not to inflict waste and extravagance on their patrons for the sake of padding out the bill. This, too, is a very extreme form of rudeness.
The expense of the thing, in other words, is only an aspect of the presumption of it. It completely usurps my prerogative if I am a host. ("Can I refill your glass? Try this wine—I think you may care for it.") It also tends to undermine me as a guest, since at any moment when I try to sing for my supper, I may find an unwanted person lunging carelessly into the middle of my sentence. If this person fills glasses unasked, he is a boor as described above. If he asks permission of each guest in turn—as he really ought to do, when you think about it—then he might as well pull up a chair and join the party. The nerve of it!
To return to the question of why we endure this: I think it must have something to do with the snobbery and insecurity that frequently accompany the wine business. A wine waiter is or can be a bit of a grandee, putting on considerable airs that may intimidate those who know little of the subject. If you go into a liquor store in a poor part of town, you will quite often notice that the wine is surprisingly expensive, because it is vaguely assumed that somehow it ought to cost more. And then there is simple force of custom and habit—people somehow grant restaurants the right to push their customers around in this outrageous way.
Well, all it takes is a bit of resistance. Until relatively recently in Washington, it was the custom at diplomatic and Georgetown dinners for the hostess to invite the ladies to withdraw, leaving the men to port and cigars and high matters of state. And then one evening in the 1970s, at the British Embassy, the late Katharine Graham refused to get up and go. There was nobody who felt like making her, and within a day, the news was all over town. Within a very short time, everybody had abandoned the silly practice. I am perfectly well aware that there are many graver problems facing civilization, and many grosser violations of human rights being perpetrated as we speak. But this is something that we can all change at a stroke. Next time anyone offers to interrupt your conversation and assist in the digestion of your meal and the inflation of your check, be very polite but very firm and say that you would really rather not.
No, he didn't, actually. What he did instead was to interrupt the feast of reason and flow of soul that was our chat, lean across me, pick up the bottle of wine that was in the middle of the table, and pour it into everyone's glass. And what I want to know is this: How did such a barbaric custom get itself established, and why on earth do we put up with it?
There are two main ways in which a restaurant can inflict bad service on a customer. The first is to keep you hanging about and make it hard to catch the eye of the staff. ("Why are they called waiters?" inquired my son when he was about 5. "It's we who are doing all the waiting.") The second way is to be too intrusive, with overlong recitations of the "specials" and too many oversolicitous inquiries. A cartoon in The New Yorker once showed a couple getting ready for bed, with the husband taking a call and keeping his hand over the receiver. "It's the maitre d' from the place we had dinner. He wants to know if everything is still all right."
The vile practice of butting in and pouring wine without being asked is the very height of the second kind of bad manners. Not only is it a breathtaking act of rudeness in itself, but it conveys a none-too-subtle and mercenary message: Hurry up and order another bottle. Indeed, so dulled have we become to the shame and disgrace of all this that I have actually seen waiters, having broken into the private conversation and emptied the flagon, ask insolently whether they should now bring another one. Again, imagine this same tactic being applied to the food.
Not everybody likes wine as much as I do. Many females, for example, confine themselves to one glass per meal or even half a glass. It pains me to see good wine being sloshed into the glasses of those who have not asked for it and may not want it and then be left standing there barely tasted when the dinner is over. Mr. Coleman, it was said, made his fortune not from the mustard that was consumed but from the mustard that was left on the plate. Restaurants ought not to inflict waste and extravagance on their patrons for the sake of padding out the bill. This, too, is a very extreme form of rudeness.
The expense of the thing, in other words, is only an aspect of the presumption of it. It completely usurps my prerogative if I am a host. ("Can I refill your glass? Try this wine—I think you may care for it.") It also tends to undermine me as a guest, since at any moment when I try to sing for my supper, I may find an unwanted person lunging carelessly into the middle of my sentence. If this person fills glasses unasked, he is a boor as described above. If he asks permission of each guest in turn—as he really ought to do, when you think about it—then he might as well pull up a chair and join the party. The nerve of it!
To return to the question of why we endure this: I think it must have something to do with the snobbery and insecurity that frequently accompany the wine business. A wine waiter is or can be a bit of a grandee, putting on considerable airs that may intimidate those who know little of the subject. If you go into a liquor store in a poor part of town, you will quite often notice that the wine is surprisingly expensive, because it is vaguely assumed that somehow it ought to cost more. And then there is simple force of custom and habit—people somehow grant restaurants the right to push their customers around in this outrageous way.
Well, all it takes is a bit of resistance. Until relatively recently in Washington, it was the custom at diplomatic and Georgetown dinners for the hostess to invite the ladies to withdraw, leaving the men to port and cigars and high matters of state. And then one evening in the 1970s, at the British Embassy, the late Katharine Graham refused to get up and go. There was nobody who felt like making her, and within a day, the news was all over town. Within a very short time, everybody had abandoned the silly practice. I am perfectly well aware that there are many graver problems facing civilization, and many grosser violations of human rights being perpetrated as we speak. But this is something that we can all change at a stroke. Next time anyone offers to interrupt your conversation and assist in the digestion of your meal and the inflation of your check, be very polite but very firm and say that you would really rather not.
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Looking for the perfect wine?
There’s a violent debate going on in the wine world about the pros and cons of high alcohol wines.
Some sommeliers berate them for being unwieldy and unmatchable at the table (often true) and some critics and hedonists love them for their rich, powerful flavors, (often true too) whether they play nicely with food or not.
I think the debate is a bit too simplistic and misleading. In my tastings, day after day, I find different wines with the same levels of alcohol, high or low, can taste hot or balanced. Perceived heat and balance in a wine is far too complicated of a sensory/chemical/environmental matrix to reduce down to one factor, namely alcohol.
It’s always best to judge individual wines on their own individual merits, tempered by your own likes and dislikes, and maybe most importantly, how you will be drinking them. Will you be enjoying the wine on its own–as a trophy polishing session with fellow wine buffs, a conversation starter with someone special, or simple sipper on your own–or with food where other factors like acidity and residual sugar may have an even greater role than the alcohol in successfully pairing with a particular dish. I find that context is the key to deciding on the right wine. Once you know the context, its just a matter of finding wines that you like for each context and what distinguishing characteristics that those wines have so that you can search out other wines with similar characteristics.
Having said all that, I do really enjoy wines in the categories we refer to as “summer whites” (riesling, gewürztraminer, pinot gris/grigio, Muscat, etc.) where the level of alcohol is usually well under the “critical” 14% mark. They tend to be a great compliment to carefree warmer weather sipping and spicier, Latin and Asian cuisines–three of my favorite “contexts”. Below are some recently tasted domestic summer whites for you to explore and delight in.
They will help you lighten up this Spring, no debating that.
Some sommeliers berate them for being unwieldy and unmatchable at the table (often true) and some critics and hedonists love them for their rich, powerful flavors, (often true too) whether they play nicely with food or not.
I think the debate is a bit too simplistic and misleading. In my tastings, day after day, I find different wines with the same levels of alcohol, high or low, can taste hot or balanced. Perceived heat and balance in a wine is far too complicated of a sensory/chemical/environmental matrix to reduce down to one factor, namely alcohol.
It’s always best to judge individual wines on their own individual merits, tempered by your own likes and dislikes, and maybe most importantly, how you will be drinking them. Will you be enjoying the wine on its own–as a trophy polishing session with fellow wine buffs, a conversation starter with someone special, or simple sipper on your own–or with food where other factors like acidity and residual sugar may have an even greater role than the alcohol in successfully pairing with a particular dish. I find that context is the key to deciding on the right wine. Once you know the context, its just a matter of finding wines that you like for each context and what distinguishing characteristics that those wines have so that you can search out other wines with similar characteristics.
Having said all that, I do really enjoy wines in the categories we refer to as “summer whites” (riesling, gewürztraminer, pinot gris/grigio, Muscat, etc.) where the level of alcohol is usually well under the “critical” 14% mark. They tend to be a great compliment to carefree warmer weather sipping and spicier, Latin and Asian cuisines–three of my favorite “contexts”. Below are some recently tasted domestic summer whites for you to explore and delight in.
They will help you lighten up this Spring, no debating that.
Monday, April 19, 2010
The Mineral Sexiness of Petit Chablis
I am soaring I tell you, absolutely soaring.
For the last hour I have been immersed in a transcendent, sublime bottle of Petit Chablis. I have got to say- it is moments like this that I treasure my position as a renowned wine critic, judge and collector. I get to taste this: the 2008 Petit Chablis from Jean-Marc Brocard/ Domaine Sainte Claire.
This Chablis, is quite simply the best I have ever had.
This chablis starts out gently and proceeds to embrace with a stronger grip- listing through flavor notes that capture the soul of the soil. This is a complex Chablis with dryness and bite and a firm backbone of acidity. The typically brazen vinters at Domaine St. Claire allowed this wine to age perfectly and develop the characteristic gout de pierre à fusil, the mineral sexiness of stony gunflint. This is an expressive masculine wine, with the shoulders and balls to make you a believer.
Even with all of the fruit highlights: a bit of spring pear, a note lavender- it is the mineral flirtiness that truly bring this bottle to life, and keeps me coming back for more.
A tip of the hat to you Jean- Marc, old friend. You have outdone your self.
Chin- chin!
For the last hour I have been immersed in a transcendent, sublime bottle of Petit Chablis. I have got to say- it is moments like this that I treasure my position as a renowned wine critic, judge and collector. I get to taste this: the 2008 Petit Chablis from Jean-Marc Brocard/ Domaine Sainte Claire.
This Chablis, is quite simply the best I have ever had.
This chablis starts out gently and proceeds to embrace with a stronger grip- listing through flavor notes that capture the soul of the soil. This is a complex Chablis with dryness and bite and a firm backbone of acidity. The typically brazen vinters at Domaine St. Claire allowed this wine to age perfectly and develop the characteristic gout de pierre à fusil, the mineral sexiness of stony gunflint. This is an expressive masculine wine, with the shoulders and balls to make you a believer.
Even with all of the fruit highlights: a bit of spring pear, a note lavender- it is the mineral flirtiness that truly bring this bottle to life, and keeps me coming back for more.
A tip of the hat to you Jean- Marc, old friend. You have outdone your self.
Chin- chin!
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Wines of Biblical Porportions (a look at Isreali wines)
Israel may very well be the land of milk of honey, but I promise you: Israel is truly the land of wines. Say what you will about the people of the middle east but hold your tongue before you disparage their bold and decadent wines. As a tuned-in Jewish mother (and a wine aficionado) might say, "Only good can come from this."
It is almost impossible to speak of wine with out a discussing it in the context of Israel. It a firmly understood as fact that Israel is the birthplace of wine, and one need look no further than the book of Deuteronomy (8:8) to find the proof: "... a land of wheat and barley, of grape vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of olive oil and honey."
The location of Israel along a historic wine trading route between Mesopotamia and Egypt spread winemaking knowledge and influence throughout the area. Wine played a significant role in the religion of the early Israelites with images of grape growing, harvesting and winemaking often being used to illustrate religious ideals.
In Roman times, wine from Israel was exported to Rome with the most sought after wines being vintage dated with the name of the winemaker inscribed on the amphora.
In the 7th century AD, the conquest of the Middle East by Islamic wine hating weirdos virtually wiped out the region's wine industry with wineries closing down and vineyards, planted with now lost indigenous grape varieties, pulled out. f I had a time machine.....
During the Crusades, noble Christian Crusaders and entourages temporarily revived winemaking between 1100 to 1300 AD but the return of Islamic rule and the subsequent Jewish Diaspora extinguished the industry once again.
In 1848, a rabbi in Jerusalem founded the first documented winery in modern times but its establishment was short lived. In 1870, the first Jewish agricultural college, Mikveh Israel, was founded and featured a course on viticulture.
The root of the modern Israeli wine industry can be traced to the late 19th century when the French Baron Edmond de Rothschild, owner of the Bordeaux estate Château Lafite-Rothschild, began importing French grape varieties and technical know how to the region. In 1882, he help establish Mount Carmel Winery with vineyards and wine production facilities in Rishon LeZion and Zikhron Ya'akov near Haifa. Still in operation today, Mount Carmel is the largest producer of Israeli wine and has been at the forefront of many technical and historical advances in both winemaking and Israeli history. One of the first telephones in Israel was installed at Carmel and the country's first Prime Minister, David Ben-Gurion, worked in Carmel's cellars in his youth.
But enough with the history lesson!
The standards of Israeli wines have been on the rise over the years and this particular medium-bodied Pinot Noir from Yarden is no exception.
Expect plenty of fresh cherry fruit and secondary fruit characteristics of strawberry and raspberry, all wrapped up with a veil of vanilla on the palate. A top pick wine for Passover Seder meals and Easter celebrations this weekend.
Another favorite of mine is Karmei Yosef, Cabernet Sauvignon, Bravdo, 2005. This remarkable sauvingnon features dark garnet towards royal purple, is medium- to full-bodied, with generous soft tannins integrating nicely and showing generous but well-proportioned blackberries, currants, lead pencil and sweet herbal aromas and flavors. Intense with the tannins and fruit rising on a long finish.
And in the Kosher variety: one should not pass up Tzora Shoresh. This Dark garnet, medium- to full-bodied, reflecting its 18 months in oak with a sweet cedar nose. Soft tannins integrating nicely with the oak and opens to show a tempting array of currants, wild berries and purple plums, those matched by notes of minerality and cocoa. Approachable and enjoyable now but best 2010-2014.
L'Chaim.
It is almost impossible to speak of wine with out a discussing it in the context of Israel. It a firmly understood as fact that Israel is the birthplace of wine, and one need look no further than the book of Deuteronomy (8:8) to find the proof: "... a land of wheat and barley, of grape vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of olive oil and honey."
The location of Israel along a historic wine trading route between Mesopotamia and Egypt spread winemaking knowledge and influence throughout the area. Wine played a significant role in the religion of the early Israelites with images of grape growing, harvesting and winemaking often being used to illustrate religious ideals.
In Roman times, wine from Israel was exported to Rome with the most sought after wines being vintage dated with the name of the winemaker inscribed on the amphora.
In the 7th century AD, the conquest of the Middle East by Islamic wine hating weirdos virtually wiped out the region's wine industry with wineries closing down and vineyards, planted with now lost indigenous grape varieties, pulled out. f I had a time machine.....
During the Crusades, noble Christian Crusaders and entourages temporarily revived winemaking between 1100 to 1300 AD but the return of Islamic rule and the subsequent Jewish Diaspora extinguished the industry once again.
In 1848, a rabbi in Jerusalem founded the first documented winery in modern times but its establishment was short lived. In 1870, the first Jewish agricultural college, Mikveh Israel, was founded and featured a course on viticulture.
The root of the modern Israeli wine industry can be traced to the late 19th century when the French Baron Edmond de Rothschild, owner of the Bordeaux estate Château Lafite-Rothschild, began importing French grape varieties and technical know how to the region. In 1882, he help establish Mount Carmel Winery with vineyards and wine production facilities in Rishon LeZion and Zikhron Ya'akov near Haifa. Still in operation today, Mount Carmel is the largest producer of Israeli wine and has been at the forefront of many technical and historical advances in both winemaking and Israeli history. One of the first telephones in Israel was installed at Carmel and the country's first Prime Minister, David Ben-Gurion, worked in Carmel's cellars in his youth.
But enough with the history lesson!
The standards of Israeli wines have been on the rise over the years and this particular medium-bodied Pinot Noir from Yarden is no exception.
Expect plenty of fresh cherry fruit and secondary fruit characteristics of strawberry and raspberry, all wrapped up with a veil of vanilla on the palate. A top pick wine for Passover Seder meals and Easter celebrations this weekend.
Another favorite of mine is Karmei Yosef, Cabernet Sauvignon, Bravdo, 2005. This remarkable sauvingnon features dark garnet towards royal purple, is medium- to full-bodied, with generous soft tannins integrating nicely and showing generous but well-proportioned blackberries, currants, lead pencil and sweet herbal aromas and flavors. Intense with the tannins and fruit rising on a long finish.
And in the Kosher variety: one should not pass up Tzora Shoresh. This Dark garnet, medium- to full-bodied, reflecting its 18 months in oak with a sweet cedar nose. Soft tannins integrating nicely with the oak and opens to show a tempting array of currants, wild berries and purple plums, those matched by notes of minerality and cocoa. Approachable and enjoyable now but best 2010-2014.
L'Chaim.
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
5 Excellent Breakfast Wines Just in Time for Spring
Ah, spring. There's something about these warmer airs that really put me in the mood.... for wine with breakfast!
Yes, this is the brunching season, and so too is it a time when pre- noon imbibery becomes the norm. So let’s indulge, shall we?
Here is a list of my 5 favourites to drink with (or in my case, without) your breakfast- but first a few rules.
Rule number one: forgo the Mimosa’s and Champagne- do you really want to be a living breathing cliché? Besides the only people who really enjoy mimosas are closeted republicans and South Americans (neither of whom I’ll be drinking with anytime soon.)
Rule number two: Don’t pussy foot around about when you order. You are an adult, order some god damned wine. And order lots.
Here's what to choose:
If you like a white, go for a 2005 muscadet Domaine Pierre de la Grange from Pierre Luneau-Papin.
Yes, this is the brunching season, and so too is it a time when pre- noon imbibery becomes the norm. So let’s indulge, shall we?
Here is a list of my 5 favourites to drink with (or in my case, without) your breakfast- but first a few rules.
Rule number one: forgo the Mimosa’s and Champagne- do you really want to be a living breathing cliché? Besides the only people who really enjoy mimosas are closeted republicans and South Americans (neither of whom I’ll be drinking with anytime soon.)
Rule number two: Don’t pussy foot around about when you order. You are an adult, order some god damned wine. And order lots.
Here's what to choose:
Prefer a red? Think in the direction of lighter, fruity items such as a Beaujolais, simple Chianti or Spanish Garnacha rather than big, tannic brutes.
Or if you’re like me- try a barbera d’Alba, preferably the 2006 Serra Boella from Paitin, which I had leftover from my recent research on chilled reds, which I wrote about in Harper’s last year. If you like a white, go for a 2005 muscadet Domaine Pierre de la Grange from Pierre Luneau-Papin.
Alternatively, a Sarrazin, or If you want to spend about half, the beaujolais to go for is the tried-and-trusted 2004 Louis Jadot Beaujolais Villages Combe aux Jacques, whose ripe, elegant, cherry fruit is a spring star, with a quarter of the blend made from superior, declassified Régnié and Morgon fruit .
And finally- if you’re daring enough start with a port. As I said, you’re an adult, act like it.
Chin- chin!
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
The sprwaling cellars of Enoteca Pinchiorri
The sun is shining, the view is magical, the hotel suite is large and kindly members of staff, properly trained and immaculately attired, are catering to my every whim. Is there a tiny something to envy here? Possibly, I might grudgingly admit. But, once in the proverbial blue moon, an occasion arises which veers so close to perfection that I have to concede that envy would be entirely justified. Thus it was in Florence. In this city of art and beauty, I sat in a restaurant regarded as one of the finest in the world and ate two of the best dishes ever to enter my mouth. Here was gastronomic rapture. I knew without a scintilla of doubt that I deserved to be envied. I was, of course, at the Enoteca Pinchiorri.
It’s hard to overshadow three Michelin stars, but at Enoteca Pinchiorri, the vast wine collection does just that and more and then some. The three-star meal is really just an excuse to taste from this Florentine institution’s exclusive cellar, which holds 150,000 bottles of 200 types of wine. Hot damn!
Browsing the tome of a wine list can take the better part of a day so amateur oenophiles are advised to rely on what would have to be the world's most knowledgeable sommelier- lucky for you, I'm just that.
To begin: There are two volumes of the wine list. It is one of the most interesting I have ever seen. If you have a couple of weeks to spare, you should study it. Giorgio Pinchiorri has built up a cellar full of liquid treasure.
Of the 150,000 bottles, 50% are Italian, 40% are French and 10% are from the rest of the world. Ponder for a moment the legendary 1945 vintage in Bordeaux. Here you can choose from Pétrus (21,000ε), Mouton-Rothschild (18,000ε) and Lafite (9,500ε). These sorts of riches are repeated on page after page, although it is also possible to spend just 40ε on a bottle of white Lambrusco. To my mind, the pinnacle comes with one of the pages of red burgundy. I blinked at the 17 bottles. These were not the usual bottles, but Methuselahs, each holding the equivalent of eight ordinary bottles. They included the most expensive bottle of wine I have ever encountered in a restaurant – a Methuselah of 1985 Romanée-Conti for 300,000ε.
For my own imbibing, I placed myself in the hands of the sommelier, Massimo Raugi – a smart fellow, wearing a jacket of dark red. His knowledge and expertise led me to some really enjoyable drinking from Tuscany. Into the gleaming glasses – a mixture of Riedel and Spiegelau – he poured the 2006 Poggio Scalette (Richiari - 200ε), a truly delicious chardonnay with an intriguing touch of gewurtztramner – smooth, toasty, creamy and full-bodied. The 2003 red super-Tuscan (a blend of sangiovese, cabernet and syrah) proved a bit stern for my palate, but decanting tempted it to yield up its luscious flavours of damson and blackcurrant (Avvoltore - 300ε).
Truly this is one place where you most certainly can venture off the beaten Carafe!
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Cheongju- Punishing Korean Rice Wine
Thinking about Korea one imagines odd little despots full of hubris stuffed into stiff pant suits along with a terrified public struggling to simply find food. And while that is undoubtedly true of both North and South Korea- there is more than just painful regimery at play here- these two irascible nations sear with a poetic hatred for each other. But blood drunk as they may be, there is one passion they share that may just unite them after all: Cheongju, Korean Rice wine.
Cheongju punishes all who seek it with a hellish burn, and horrible odor. It reeks like mixture of kerosene and horse shit. Each gulp makes your throat clench and stomach buckle. But my good god- if you can hold this toxic brew down you are rewarded with a heady, rich intoxication that borders on sublime. You simply feel better, stronger, more alive.
Behold the brutal mistress:
Rice wine is an alcoholic beverage made from rice. Unlike normal wine, which is made by fermentation of naturally sweet grapes and other fruit, rice "wine" results from the fermentation of rice starch converted to sugars. This process is akin to that used to produce beer; however, beer production employs a mashing process to convert starch to sugars whereas rice wine uses the different process.
Alcoholic beverages distilled from rice were exclusive to East and Southeast Asian countries, with knowledge of the distillation process reaching India and parts of South Asia later through trade.
Rice brew typically has a higher alcohol content (18-25%) than wine (10-20%), which in turn has a higher alcohol content than beer (3-8%).
Cheongju punishes all who seek it with a hellish burn, and horrible odor. It reeks like mixture of kerosene and horse shit. Each gulp makes your throat clench and stomach buckle. But my good god- if you can hold this toxic brew down you are rewarded with a heady, rich intoxication that borders on sublime. You simply feel better, stronger, more alive.
Behold the brutal mistress:
Rice wine is an alcoholic beverage made from rice. Unlike normal wine, which is made by fermentation of naturally sweet grapes and other fruit, rice "wine" results from the fermentation of rice starch converted to sugars. This process is akin to that used to produce beer; however, beer production employs a mashing process to convert starch to sugars whereas rice wine uses the different process.
Alcoholic beverages distilled from rice were exclusive to East and Southeast Asian countries, with knowledge of the distillation process reaching India and parts of South Asia later through trade.
Rice brew typically has a higher alcohol content (18-25%) than wine (10-20%), which in turn has a higher alcohol content than beer (3-8%).
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Giving Thanks: What The Pilgrims Pressed
If you can get your hands on a bottle of pilgrim wine- well, not only are you a certified billionaire, but you are also among the luckiest men to ever live. Sealed within every bottle is the daring, heartiness and sheer reserve of our country's forefathers
Of course, the pilgrims lived brutally harsh and unforgiving lives. Every sort of motherfuckery befell these brave fools- not to mention: tuberculosis, pneumonia, delirium, whooping cough or any of the thousands of diseases that ravaged these early settlers. “To live” as John Baymunth, governor of the fist colony wrote “is to lay in the hands of vile demon, molested.”
But there was a bright side to all the madness: pilgrim “Jim- Jum-” America’s 1st wine. Jim Jum is bastardization of the Indian word Jimmaquam or "grape water." And the name isn’t the only thing that makes these wines special.
Jim Jum wines are so unique because they were made from a wholly new production philosophy in the vineyards. Employing high density planting and low yields, the flavor and bouquet of these early wines was extremely intense but also absolutely delicious. Of course, this was unintentional- the pilgrims planted tight crops not to aid in flavor but to protect them from roaming savages.
But make no mistake one sip of this nectar will savage you!
Of course, the pilgrims lived brutally harsh and unforgiving lives. Every sort of motherfuckery befell these brave fools- not to mention: tuberculosis, pneumonia, delirium, whooping cough or any of the thousands of diseases that ravaged these early settlers. “To live” as John Baymunth, governor of the fist colony wrote “is to lay in the hands of vile demon, molested.”
But there was a bright side to all the madness: pilgrim “Jim- Jum-” America’s 1st wine. Jim Jum is bastardization of the Indian word Jimmaquam or "grape water." And the name isn’t the only thing that makes these wines special.
Jim Jum wines are so unique because they were made from a wholly new production philosophy in the vineyards. Employing high density planting and low yields, the flavor and bouquet of these early wines was extremely intense but also absolutely delicious. Of course, this was unintentional- the pilgrims planted tight crops not to aid in flavor but to protect them from roaming savages.
But make no mistake one sip of this nectar will savage you!
The above bottle of Jim Jum was auctioned at Sothebee's for a whopping $45.7 million Euros to Duke Edmund Eidlesswiess. Worth every "scent."
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Adornment Wines- A restrospective
Wine trends come and go like clientele from a whore’s boudoir: hastily and often with remorse. And for that matter, much like a whore’s clientele, they are often desperate and best forgotten.
There is one trend however, that deserves a second look: the adornment, or decorative wine. More than mere titivation the adornment wine is the true mark of civilized accoutrement.
With its ultimate popularity in mid seventeenth century France, the adornment wine was born out the republican ideal that a nations populace is best served by an educated and wealthy upper class. In the words of poet Nicolas Boileu: “Faites-vous des amis prompts à vous censurer,” or: make friends with those who would be quick to criticize you. But more than mere pandering the adornment wine sought to extend a hand to growling and sweaty masses, if only to share a drink for a fleeting while.
In reality this rarely happened. The upper class would strut about the streets like Roman Generals, their hips swaying to accentuate the bottle often strapped to their belt in an overt display of monetized sexuality, and aristocratic decadence. It was as if they were saying “look at what I have and remember your place," a place most would describe as unrelenting hell.
The above illustration depicts an English meeting of the nine districts constabulary. At the head of the table is Alfred Bettingcock, a famous mid century law man. Notice the large burlap pouch around his waist and the huge bottle of wine in his hand. This is a typical of an everyday, man about town adornment.
The truly well off however had pouches made of finest leather, sewn with golden thread and bestowed with family crests. They are truly a sight to behold.
Alas, unless you take a trip to Fance's Musee du Vin, you never will. Unless of course, we make a concerted effort to bring them back!
AH HA!
There is one trend however, that deserves a second look: the adornment, or decorative wine. More than mere titivation the adornment wine is the true mark of civilized accoutrement.
With its ultimate popularity in mid seventeenth century France, the adornment wine was born out the republican ideal that a nations populace is best served by an educated and wealthy upper class. In the words of poet Nicolas Boileu: “Faites-vous des amis prompts à vous censurer,” or: make friends with those who would be quick to criticize you. But more than mere pandering the adornment wine sought to extend a hand to growling and sweaty masses, if only to share a drink for a fleeting while.
In reality this rarely happened. The upper class would strut about the streets like Roman Generals, their hips swaying to accentuate the bottle often strapped to their belt in an overt display of monetized sexuality, and aristocratic decadence. It was as if they were saying “look at what I have and remember your place," a place most would describe as unrelenting hell.
The above illustration depicts an English meeting of the nine districts constabulary. At the head of the table is Alfred Bettingcock, a famous mid century law man. Notice the large burlap pouch around his waist and the huge bottle of wine in his hand. This is a typical of an everyday, man about town adornment.
The truly well off however had pouches made of finest leather, sewn with golden thread and bestowed with family crests. They are truly a sight to behold.
Alas, unless you take a trip to Fance's Musee du Vin, you never will. Unless of course, we make a concerted effort to bring them back!
AH HA!
Friday, November 6, 2009
A Reisling to believe
It’s gratifying, being a wine critic and competition judge, to have my initial impressions of a winery validated on a subsequent encounter.
I first discovered Newport Vineyards of Rhode Island last year, having taken a detour after one of dearest friends weddings. Recently, a friend brought a bottle of Newport’s 2009 “Tranquility” to an all-girls sex toy party my wife was hosting. Thankfully, my wife put the bottle aside with a last taste until I got home that evening.
When she handed me the glass, I took one sniff and said, “Alsatian. Good quality.” Was it Riesling? There seemed to be some Gewurztraminer, but also a floral/peachy note that disguised the grape content. I was delighted when she showed me the label, because since last year’s contest I hadn’t had the opportunity to taste any other Newport wines.
Tranquility is 47% Gewurztraminer, 35% Muscat Ottonel (that elusive note that eluded me), 11% Pinot Gris and a mere 7% Riesling. It is great stuff, and should delight any fans of Alsace. It sells for $20 at the winery, but if my instinct prove right, and they always do- this one is certianly a keeper.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Port gets its just dessert.
Port wine has long been considered a bastard’s fare. It is looked down upon in most wine circles as unrefined, pedestrian, something to be sipped in the servants chambers while lord and lady bemuse themselves with the "real stuff" in the dining room.
There is a very real and quite vitriolic snobbery aimed squarely at my dear friend port.
And in reply to all of the tongue clucking I have but one simple response: Garrafeira.
To the uninitiated Garraferia port is as innocuous and unsuspecting as any other. All it takes is one sip and the rest, as they say, is history. To imbibe a Garraferia (from Niepoort winery) is to be forever enchanted.
Let me explain…
Garrafeira is an unusual and rare vintage style of Port made from the grapes of a single harvest that combines both the oxidative maturation of years in wood, with further reductive maturation in large glass demijohns.
It is required by the IVDP (Instituto dos Vinhos do Douro e Porto/ The Port and Douro wine Institute) that wines spend some time in wood, usually between three and six years, followed by at least a further eight years in glass, before bottling. In practice the times spent in glass are much longer. At present, only one company, Niepoort, markets Garrafeiras.
Their black demijohns, affectionately known as bon-bons, hold approximately 11 litres of what can only be described as ambrosia.
It has a beautiful copper color that is suprsingly light for a such a robust vintage cycle. It’s Smokey caramel flavor reminds me of a mix between flan and a good scotch. There was a hint of peach in the finish and it was very light on pepper.
Some connoisseurs describe Garrafeira as having a slight taste of bacon, although many people will neither notice nor understand such a description; the reason being that, during the second phase of maturation, certain oils may precipitate, causing a film to form across the surface of the glass that can be tasted by those who are accustomed to the difference between Garrafeira and other forms of port.
This is simply one of the best wines available on the commercial market today.
For purchase and product info: http://www.niepoort-vinhos.com/NiepoortPortWines.html
Port Factoids:
Port is short for Portuguese.
Confusingly, the word Garrafeira may be found on some very old Tawny labels, where the contents of the bottle are of exceptional age.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Why US wine is like fast food..
"Like every other retail industry, wine is dominated by marketing and wholesale companies. Their businesses are based on creating brands that people will buy, and getting those brands into the hands of consumers."
How Wine Became Like Fast Food
by Keith Wallace
Taken from the Daily Beast: November 4th, 2009
The bottle you’ll enjoy with dinner tonight likely wasn’t produced at a winery, or by a winemaker. Instead, most American bottles are little more than grape-based processed food product.
There is a general assumption about wine: it’s made by a winery, and its name will be on the label. One imagines a winemaker in his vineyards, inspecting bunches of grapes. Maybe his dogs are chasing rabbits between the rows of vines. At night, he pops open a bottle of his own creation to share with friends and family.
It is a romantic ideal, but for most bottles sold in the U.S., it’s also untrue. Of the top 30 wine brands in the United States, not a single one of them grows, produces and bottles its own wines. For the brands doing big volume, the formula is: buy tankers of bulk juice, and slap a label on it. Those bottles may look beautiful, implying a bucolic wine-y setting, but the cold hard fact is that the juice within is just a trademark coupled with a savvy marketing plan...
For the full article please visit my dear friend Keith Wallace at The Daily Beast
http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2009-11-03/how-wine-became-like-fast-food/?cid=topic:mainpromo1
How Wine Became Like Fast Food
by Keith Wallace
Taken from the Daily Beast: November 4th, 2009
The bottle you’ll enjoy with dinner tonight likely wasn’t produced at a winery, or by a winemaker. Instead, most American bottles are little more than grape-based processed food product.
There is a general assumption about wine: it’s made by a winery, and its name will be on the label. One imagines a winemaker in his vineyards, inspecting bunches of grapes. Maybe his dogs are chasing rabbits between the rows of vines. At night, he pops open a bottle of his own creation to share with friends and family.
It is a romantic ideal, but for most bottles sold in the U.S., it’s also untrue. Of the top 30 wine brands in the United States, not a single one of them grows, produces and bottles its own wines. For the brands doing big volume, the formula is: buy tankers of bulk juice, and slap a label on it. Those bottles may look beautiful, implying a bucolic wine-y setting, but the cold hard fact is that the juice within is just a trademark coupled with a savvy marketing plan...
For the full article please visit my dear friend Keith Wallace at The Daily Beast
http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2009-11-03/how-wine-became-like-fast-food/?cid=topic:mainpromo1
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Like honey from a bee... Ethiopian Wine
Ethiopia is both deeply complex and devastatingly simple. It is the oldest independent country in Africa and one of the oldest in the world, at least 2,000 years. In fact the earliest recording of the word Ethiopia is in the Bible's book of Genesis- chapter 2. And still, it's cities are some of the most modern in all of Africa.
Some of its other claims to fame include: having Haile Selassie I (AKA Jah Ras Tatafari) as an emperor and being the original source of the coffee bean, (a bean renowned for its distinct rich aromatics and robust flavor.)
But perhaps Ethiopia's greatest accomplishment is Tej.
I had the exquisite pleasure of sampling some Tej (pronounced: T'edge)on a recent trip to the capital city of Addis Ababa. Tej a is mead or wine made from honey. But make no mistake this seemingly simple brew is full of complexity.
My favorite Tej is of course the kind you find brewed in any of the hundreds of thousands of homes throughout the country. However outside of Ethiopia nothing beats a glass of Saba Tej (a honey wine indigenous to Ethiopia with roots going back to the reign of Queen of Sheba (Saba).
Saba is produced from pure wild flower honey and exotic hops imported from the Highlands of Ethiopia. It is produced without any sulfites, preservatives, or artificial coloring. Saba Tej is a semi-sweet wine with 13.5% alcohol content by volume.
Saba has a golden honey color, which of course is consistant with good quality pure honey, and is infused with extract of organic Ethiopian hops. Saba Tej has hints of apricot and citrus,and a a nice aroma reminiscent of wild flowers.
I find that Tej is an autumnal sipper, perfect for an afternoon with your favorite book, or perhaps while sharing some grilled seafod amongst friends.
For more information on Tej: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tej
Monday, November 2, 2009
Prologue to a tasting...
Hello all and welcome to Off The Beaten Carafe - a blog dedicated to taking "the road less tasted.” It is our hope to offer you insight into the unusual, small batch, independent, specialty, collectible and rare wines of the world. Proudly, we are a bunch of wine geeks who want to share our passions, musings and adventures with you.
All that we ask is that you have an open mind as we take you through unfamiliar territory. We will show you world's you never knew existed, after all- the explosion of a star is reserved only for those who seek it's beauty.
In fairness, some of us have literally made wine our business, others, well- just like drinking wine. What we all have in common however is this: we are obsessed, with it’s origins and stories and most of all the joys of having a glass with a few good friends.
So please leave your preconceptions at the door and expect the unexpected!
Bottoms Up!
All that we ask is that you have an open mind as we take you through unfamiliar territory. We will show you world's you never knew existed, after all- the explosion of a star is reserved only for those who seek it's beauty.
In fairness, some of us have literally made wine our business, others, well- just like drinking wine. What we all have in common however is this: we are obsessed, with it’s origins and stories and most of all the joys of having a glass with a few good friends.
So please leave your preconceptions at the door and expect the unexpected!
Bottoms Up!
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