| 12/27/06 SHH, WHAT'S THAT SUCKING SOUND
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11/19/06 AND PROUD OF IT...
Why I hate wine snobs. Observer Food Monthly, Sunday November 19, 2006. Peter Mayle may paint an idyllic picture of life in Provence in his books, but he has no patience with pretentious wine talk. Perhaps because I work every day with words, I have for a long time been fascinated by the elaborate terminology used by wine experts when they're telling us what to drink and why. Other subjects, of course, from opera to stamp collecting to golf, have their own languages, but none of them is quite so ornamental, so inventive, so delightfully imprecise or, on occasion, so self-consciously silly as the vocabulary of the grape. My introduction to winespeak took place many years ago, one damp evening in London, when I was invited to my first formal tasting. Half a dozen of us - enthusiastic drinkers to a man, but by no means connoisseurs - had gathered in a set of dignified chambers in St James's, central London, the headquarters of a long-established firm of shippers. Here, amid the spittoons and flickering candles, beneath portraits of the bewhiskered gentlemen who had founded the firm, we were to sample wines from a few of the lesser-known châteaux in Bordeaux, and one or two promising upstarts from the New World. As wine merchants go, our host Michael was young. He had been taken into the firm when his more elderly colleagues had realised that their equally elderly customers were buying less wine, often as a result of natural causes (or, as we would say, death). Michael's job was to find younger, thirstier clients with a good 30 or 40 years of drinking ahead of them, to educate them and, naturally, to make them faithful clients. We were the first batch, eager but ignorant, and Michael started the proceedings by demonstrating the basic steps of tasting. Watch closely, he told us, and do as I do. We were rather puzzled to see that the first part of the ritual involved Michael's tie, an ornamental polka-dot creation made of thick silk. He very carefully tucked the end into the waistband of his trousers, and buttoned his jacket, advising us to do the same. Next, he picked up his glass; not as we would have done, with a nonchalant grab, but delicately, holding the base of the glass between the thumb and the first two fingers. We stood in a line in front of him, ties tucked in, glasses cocked but as yet unfilled, waiting for further instructions. Swirling, said Michael. You must learn to swirl, to let the air in and allow the wine to breathe. We imitated as best we could the small circular movements of his hand, swirling make-believe wine in our empty glasses and beginning to feel faintly ridiculous. It was to get worse before it got better. We held our empty glasses up to the candlelight, to appreciate the imaginary subtleties of colour in our imaginary wine. We applied noses to our empty glasses, breathing in the imaginary bouquet. We took an imaginary mouthful and had an imaginary spit, thankful that our ties were out of the way of any imaginary drops. By this time we were ready for a large Scotch, but it was not to be. As Michael finally poured the first of the wines to be tasted, he moved on to part two of wine appreciation for beginners, which was more like an anatomy lesson. Wine had a nose, we were told. Wine had body, wine had legs. Wine had a robe, a bouquet, a personality, an essence. And it was not enough, according to Michael, merely to go through the motions of tasting; one must also know how to describe what one has just tasted. So, as we dutifully sipped and spat, Michael provided a running commentary on the wines under review. The first wine, so he informed us, was vigorous and well-constructed, even a little bosomy. The second was an iron fist in a velvet glove. The third was earthy, but generous. The fourth was a little young to be up so late. And so it went on. As we worked our way through the bottles, the descriptions became more and more outlandish - oak, truffles, hyacinths, hay, wet leather, wet dogs, weasels, a hare's belly, faded tulips, old carpet, vintage socks. Music made a brief appearance, with one wine being compared in its finish to a Bach fugue. Innocent youth that I was in those days, I was surprised that there was never a mention of the main ingredient. I now know that grapes, honest and worthy and indeed essential though they may be, are not considered sufficiently exotic to gain a place in the wine-lover's lexicon. Over the years, I have been to many other tastings, in the course of which I've been exposed to a dizzying range of verbal acrobatics: often imaginative, sometimes ludicrous, occasionally elegant ('a wine that should be drunk kneeling, in the position of prayer' was one of my favourites). But, so far as I am concerned, none of them has succeeded in the impossible task of describing the indescribable; not, at least, with any degree of precision. Never mind. Whenever words fail us, as they so often do, we can always fall back on body language, which opens up an exciting new world of opportunities for expression. The hand-assisted sniff, for instance, when one comes across a particularly complex bouquet. It works like this: holding the glass in the right hand, nose to the rim, the left hand performs graceful waving motions which waft the scented air towards the waiting nostrils. In exceptional cases, eyes can be closed; a discreet 'mmm' of appreciation is also permitted before the more intrusive sound effects of gargling and spitting take over. In fact, almost every part of the upper body can be called upon to register degrees of approval or disapproval. Facial expressions, obviously, are extremely useful: the connoisseur's thoughtful frown, his elevated eyebrows, his wrinkled nose, his pursed lips. Shoulders hunched in concentration, the left hand clapped to the forehead in thought, eyes raised to heaven, even the uncontrollable quivering of an over-excited leg - I've seen them all. But I thought I would never see the ear used as an instrument to assess a wine's quality. I was wrong. I was at a champagne tasting. How I came to be there I'm not quite sure, since it is not something I drink more than two or three times a year. But there I was, surrounded by people of some distinction (and, I have to say, considerable pretension) who were tasting six different marques of champagne. One of the tasters, a man with an impressively tinted nose that suggested a long and close relationship with the grape, suddenly held up his hand for silence. He raised his glass to his ear, tilted his head, and listened. 'One can always tell Krug from Roederer,' he said, 'by the sound of the bubbles. 'I know when I'm out of my depth. I left the tasting and headed for the nearest bar. Main DBB | | |
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| 11/13/06 CICCONE VINEYARDS, WAIT I RECOGNIZE THAT NAME...
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| 09/15/06 NAPA MEETS CUPERTINO VIA YOUR KITCHEN
Consider this, I've been spending valuble hours coding, learning, reverse engineering, and producing three Apple published Widgets. Come to find out all my brain twisting labour will be simplified and part of Leopard, the next Mac OSX rev in Spring 2007. Dooh. As you might have read, I am a wine enthusiast so much so I installed my own vineyard to make my own wine. Its been 4 years and I have yet to squeeze one drop of my Cabernet Sauvignon grapes into one drop of wine. In the ironic tradition of Leopard and its Dashboard/Dashcode simplicities, I introduce the WinePod. Please read below and take note, its compatible with Mac OSX.
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| 08/01/06 IPOD WINE GUIDE
Every once and a while I've seen some dude on PBS teaching regular people how to appreciate wine and not become a snob. The guy is Author Mark Phillips and what I've seen of his PBS shows is he has a way of explaining the complexities of wine appreciation which many more can understand. Phillips has released a Wine Guide exclusively for the iPod. Although extremely overpriced, this new use of the iPod is actually a novel way of bring wine comprehension to the silhouetted iPod dancing masses. BTW, many wine related Podcast are available for free download on the iTunes Music Store. Grape Radio, Winecast and Wine Spectator being the best. Main DBB | | |
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| 05/28/06 THEREFORE HEAR NOW THIS, THOU AFFLICTED, AND DRUKEN, BUT NOT WITH WINE. ISAIAH 51:21
Catching up on the world of wine I could post different articles about the latest releases and the best buys. That's boring. So in the tradition of DBB, below are the real interesting stories in the world of wine. Main DBB | | |
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| 03/27/06 LETS GET ONE THING PERFECTLY CLEAR...
I've been toying with the idea of posting a couple of articles highlighting women in wine. I've run across some interesting articles on women winemakers, women winery owners and wineries marketing wines for women. I've wrestled how I could post a series of articles without being classified as a perv or a horndog. The other day while reviewing an article about this particular women who is in the entertaiment business and has fullfilled her dream of producing her own wine. I found the article to be quite an interesting read. Oh did I mention she's a Porn Star. Lets get one thing perfectly clear. I was notified of this article through my Google News Alerts on "wine", I swear... Read Here Main DBB | | |
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02/15/06 IT'S ALL ZIN THE NAME, PART 2 Proposal to make zinfandel California state wine sparks grape debate. 02/11/06. AP. BERKELEY – In a move that could bring a merlot low – and make a chardonnay shudder – a state lawmaker is proposing making zinfandel the official wine of California. State Sen. Carole Migden introduced the bill this week, saying the heady varietal is a “quintessential” California wine dating back to Gold Rush days and versatile enough to stand up to the spicy diversity of California cuisine. “It's about time we give it the recognition it deserves,” Migden, D-San Francisco, said in a news release. But others say singling out just one varietal would be a cardinal zin. “What's the basis?” said Doug Shafer, president of Shafer Vineyards, makers of highly prized cabernet sauvignon and merlot. “There's some wonderful wines, lots of different varietals, from all over California that are all great, including zinfandel.” Preliminary figures for the 2005 grape harvest put zinfandel at 10.4 percent of the crop, behind cabernet sauvignon's 12.5 percent. Chardonnay was the harvest heavy at about 17 percent. “Growing wine grapes in this state is a beautiful thing,” said Shafer. “Look what you get to pick from.” The bill is headed to committee and could be heard next month. Being the state wine would be a symbolic honor, giving producers a boost of prestige and publicity and putting zinfandel in such august company as the official state color, a combination of blue and gold, and the state insect, the dogfaced butterfly. Carlos Machado, Migden's legislative director, said the intent is to benefit more than just zin. “I think it brings recognition to all California wines when you do this. It's like a rising tide,” he said. The bill got a big thumbs up from winemaker Van “the Vanimal” Williamson, who specializes in single-vineyard zins at Edmeades Winery in Mendocino County. Zinfandel may not have the biggest numbers, says Williamson, but it's uniquely Californian in that it's been grown in the state for generations by small, independent farmers, many of them immigrants. “It embodies a lot of the spirit of America,” he said. Williamson sees zinfinadel as the democrat of wines, full-flavored enough to go with lots of different types of food, pizza and burgers included. “There's not a better wine to drink out of the bottle, in my opinion,” he said.“You don't need fancy stemware. Red zinfandels pack a punch, with some edging up to 15 percent alcohol and beyond. Lower alcohol levels are found in white zinfandel – often sniffed at by critics but popular nonetheless – which is made from the same grape but with less juice-to-grape-skin contact, resulting in a pale pink color. Williamson doesn't make white zinfandel, but he does not despise it either, saying the '70s boom in the sweet pink wine helped save a lot of old zinfandel vines. Eric Potashner, Migden's deputy chief of staff, said any issues between red and white zin factions will be “flushed out” in the legislative process. Main DBB | | |
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| 02/10/06 THAT EQUALS 32,026 TWO BUCK CHUCKS
Cheers! Vintage wine fetches £55,000, 2/10/2006, ITN. A wine connoisseur has splashed out £55,000 on what is thought to be the most expensive bottle of white in the world. The 1787 vintage Sauternes from Chateau d'Yquem was snapped up by a US-based collector. It was sold through the Antique Wine Company of London which acquired from a private collector in France. Managing director Stephen Williams said: "We have been working for some time on this commission and the purchaser is a long standing customer of ours. "Even though we regularly work on commissions to source rare wines this one has been particularly gratifying. "This is really a very rare wine and our client, a US based collector of fine wines, will treasure this prize to add to an already impressive collection." Chateau d'Yquem is a sweet wine made in Bordeaux from completely shrivelled up, late harvested grapes. It has the concentration that enables it to mature for many years, even centuries. Mr Williams said: "When these grapes were picked, Marie Antoinette was sitting in Versailles waiting to have her head chopped off, James Watt was developing or inventing the steam engine, and George Washington had just been nominated the first president of the United States of America." Main DBB | | |
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| 02/03/06 IT'S ALL IN THE NAME, YOU FAT BASTARD Wine buffs can now say, 'I'd rather be drinking cat pee'. Market for crudely named products no joke, just big business. CanWest News Service. 01/31/2006, OTTAWA - The story goes that winemaker Thierry Boudinard and his dear old friend Guy Anderson were on their second day of sampling from hundreds of barrels of unspectacular wine, circa 1996, when they came across one they both found remarkable. Boudinard, his French accent thick, remarked to his pal, "Now zat iz what you call eh phat bastard," borrowing an expression of Anderson's to signify something great. When Boudinard put the wine into production, apparently only one name was considered: Fat Bastard. Adding a hippopotamus as its mascot, born that day was a wine with instant attitude -- not to mention plenty of merchandising, including, with the hippo emblazoned on the crotch surrounded by the words "Kiss My Fat Bastard," boxer shorts. One-upping Fat Bastard in the product-naming department, New Zealand's Coopers Creek Vineyard markets a Sauvignon called Cat's Pee on a Gooseberry Bush: the label on the screw-top white wine promises "strong gooseberry aromas and gentle hints of cat." These are not the unintentionally humorous product names that we associate with either poor translations or serendipitous English meanings -- the Greek soft drink Zit; Ghana's Shitto pepper sauce; or the "blood-nourishing paste" from China called Ass Glue. Nor are these the result of foreign surnames that fit ever so awkwardly into the English idiom; we can perhaps charitably assume that late 19th-century Czech brewmaster Josef Bierbitzch -- if in fact he ever really existed -- failed to look far enough ahead when he lent his name to the Icelandic-style pilsner he concocted, his imagination too limited to envision a customer one day imploring his barmaid to "give me a Bierbitzch." Then again, maybe Josef knew exactly what he was doing. Why a vineyard would name a wine Fat Bastard is understandable. In its 1998 inaugural year, a little more than 2,000 cases of Fat Bastard were bought by consumers. Six years later, in 2004, more than 400,000 cases were sold, inspiring numerous imitators to follow, including a sparkling number known as Old Fart, which originated in Britain as Old Git, and its sister wine, Old Tart; a California line of Big Ass wines, which, oddly perhaps, has yet to replace cognac as the rapper's drink of choice. But why we seem compelled to buy wines that invoke a feline urinary tract is another question. If brands with such names as Scraping the Barrel, The Dog's Bollocks, Rude Boy (and Rude Girl, both of which, when chilled, reveal what's underneath the clothes of the characters depicted on the bottles), are so popular, what does that say about us? What drives us to abandon old favourites such as Tim Hortons for Invermere, B.C.'s Kick Ass coffee? It would be nice to think we're emancipating ourselves from the shackles of staid, conservative consumerism, but the truth is probably far less noble than that. More likely, product manufacturers have simply learned that many adults are titillated by things coarse, much in the same way that children's author Robert Munsch tapped into the kids' equivalent when he published Good Families Don't, a picture book about farts. How else to explain radio spots in the U.S. for Click Wine Group, which markets Fat Bastard, in which a woman declares she loves to "climb into the tub with a little Fat Bastard," an ad some stations refused to air for fear of reprisals from the FCC? What's next? Loblaw's replaces its President's Choice line with Porn Star Produce? Or might the producers of extra virgin olive oil find a market cache for products with a little more experience? © The Edmonton Journal 2006 Main DBB | | |
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| 01/23/06 CALLING DIBBS FOR REAL
Man gets life for wine-cask brawl. (AAP). January 23, 2006. A man has been sentenced to life in jail after a jury found him guilty of murdering a boarding-house flatmate during a fight over a cask of wine. Brisbane man Ismet Alagic, 26, pleaded not guilty in the Queensland Supreme Court last week to the murder of James Kay, 23. He had pleaded guilty to manslaughter, which meant if the jury was not convinced he killed Mr Kay intentionally, they could find him guilty of the lesser charge. But after deliberating today for only two hours, the jury delivered the guilty verdict to murder. Justice George Fryberg immediately sentenced Alagic to life in jail and told him this would be an opportunity to reform his ways. In his opening trial address, prosecutor David Meredith told the jury that on August 25, 2003, a fight broke out between Mr Kay and Alagic at the boarding house in inner-city Bowen Hills. The fight was believed to have started over a cask of wine and who should drink it, Mr Meredith said. It was alleged the pair scuffled but Alagic submitted and they hugged and made up. The court was told that moments later Alagic, who was drunk at the time, armed himself with a kitchen knife and fatally stabbed Mr Kay 11 times. As Mr Kay's family sobbed in the back of the courtroom, Justice Fryberg read out a statement of remorse by Alagic. "I think it's horrible what I have done," he said in the statement. "Initially I had a lot of trouble accepting that I was the one who stabbed James. "I feel very sorry for James' family and I know that they would be devastated." Main DBB | | |
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| 01/21/06 DO ZINGERS COUNT?
Study says wine drinkers buy healthier food items. 1/21/2006. PARIS (Bloomberg News) - Wine lovers tend to have healthier diets than beer drinkers because they favor foods such as olives, fruit and vegetables, a new study found. People who buy wine at supermarkets also snatch up lean meat, cooking oil and low-fat dairy, researchers found in a study published online Friday by the British Medical Journal. The beer buyers favor sugar, sausages, butter and soft drinks, they said. Scientists in Denmark, intrigued by studies showing wine had a more beneficial effect on people's health than beer, reviewed 3.5 million transactions at two supermarket chains to determine whether there was a link between the drinks bought and the food consumed. "The study shows people who buy wine purchase a greater number of healthy food items," the researchers wrote. Main DBB | | |
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| 01/11/06 CAVA CATALÀ I POLÍTICA
Catalan Sparkling Wine Demand Goes Flat on Spanish Boycott. 01/11/06 (Bloomberg) -- Demand for cava, Catalonia's sparkling wine, is falling as Spaniards boycott products from a region that is seeking greater autonomy. ``Nobody is consuming Catalan cava,'' said Daniel Manzano, 43, who started working at a wine shop in Madrid three decades ago. He said this is the first year clients haven't bought cava from Catalonia to toast the holidays. ``We don't like it.'' Cava from the northeastern corner of Spain is the latest casualty of what has become one of the most contentious issues in Spanish politics. Catalonia, which is among the wealthiest of the country's 17 regions and accounts for about 20 percent of the $1 trillion economy, wants to be a ``nation'' within Spain. The region's biggest cava makers, Freixenet SA and Cordoniu SA, reported a drop in Spanish sales in the year to April. Lists of Catalonian products to be boycotted are circulating on the Internet, with non-Catalan alternatives to everything from doughnuts and sausages to insecticides. The revolt may hit Catalonia's trade with the rest of Spain, which according to the regional government, was 44 billion euros ($53 billion) in 2004. ``It's something that has happened spontaneously, and it affects cava more than other products, because it's the one that is most identified with the region,'' Andres Rodriguez-Pose, a London School of Economics professor said in an interview. Cava producers ``are the innocent sufferers,'' he said. Main DBB | | |
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| 01/02/06 TOROS Y VINO, QUE MAS QUIERES?
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| 12/27/05 CAN'T BEAR TO EAT GRAPES
Bears and grape growers prove a bad mix in wine country. AP 12/26/05. NAPA, Calif. - Grape-munching bears have caused bunches of trouble in Northern California wine country. Some winery owners have summoned authorities to trap and shoot black bears - as well as wild pigs, deer, turkeys and mountain lions - that plundered their vineyards. The killings have sparked debate over the future of wildlife in the nation's most famous wine-growing region. "Certainly for areas like Sonoma, Mendocino and Napa counties, vineyards are our largest group that is requesting depredation permits," said Eric Larson, deputy regional manager for the California Department of Fish and Game. With premium Cabernet grapes that can be produced only in mountainous regions selling for $5,000 to $7,000 a ton, vineyards have sprouted on slopes and ridgetops where animals make their homes. The state is required to issue extermination permits if property owners show evidence of damage caused by wildlife, Larson said. Earlier this year, animal control officers caught and killed four black bears - two males and two females - at the Aetna Springs Vineyard in the rugged Pope Valley. Winery owner Paul Maroon said he had tried scaring off the bears, but resorted to getting rid of them for good because he feared they might hurt his field workers. "They damage the fences on a daily basis almost faster than we can repair them," Maroon said. "The damaged fences allow the deer to enter. The bear eat the grapes, as do the deer, and they both damage the vines, sometimes killing ... old vines." But some of Maroon's neighbors are outraged by the trappings. Ann Curtis, who runs a golf course down the road from the winery, called the controversy "wine for blood, life versus profit." "To come into a wildlife area and then kill off the wildlife is wrong," said Curtis, who has lived in Pope Valley for 34 years. "I don't see much difference between throwing a sandwich out the window for bears in Yosemite (National) Park and inviting them to dinner here by putting grapes out for them to eat." Jerre Sears, owner of Black Sears Vineyards on Napa County's Howell Mountain, said all the growers he knows on the 1,800-foot peak shrug off the grapes they lose to bears and other wildlife as a kind of tax for doing business in hillside territory. "We've had our vineyard for 20 years and we've had a bear in our vineyard every year," Sears said. "We feel it's just part of life, of nature, so we share." Main DBB | | |
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| 12/12/05 KATRINA, YOU BITCH
Katrina Destroys Once Great Wine Cellar. NEW ORLEANS (AP) 12/10/2005. - In the dark, dank recesses of what was once one of the great wine cellars of the world, the fabled bottles sit. The 1870 Lafite Rothschild, the Chateau Moutons, Chateau Magaux - fine wines with enormous price tags, or at least they were. The wine cellar at Brennan's Restaurant, winner since 1983 of Wine Spectator magazine's Grand Award as one of the 85 top cellars in the world, has 35,000 bottles that since Hurricane Katrina have gone from vintage to vinegar. "They may be drinkable, but they're probably better for salads,'' said Ted Brennan, whose brother Jimmy spent 35 years building the collection. The Brennan's wine cellar covers two floors in what was once the carriage house of the 1795 French Quarter mansion-turned-restaurant. Domestic wines are stacked to the ceiling on the first floor, European vintages on the second floor. Behind a locked gate is the private collection - dusty bottles of fine wines so costly they have waited for years for someone to taste them. The collection, which was insured for $1 million, was ruined when the electricity went off after the hurricane. The wine cellar, normally kept at 58 degrees year-round, was suddenly at the mercy of the broiling sun and heat wave that followed the storm. "It got so hot those few weeks, I know it easily got to 120 degrees in there,'' Brennan said. "The wine was literally cooked.'' Wine lovers made regular pilgrimages to Brennan's to sample what cellar master Harry Hill believes was the biggest and best cellar between Florida and Texas and the Gulf of Mexico and Chicago. Diners could easily add hundreds, even thousands of dollars to their tab by ordering wine. Hill sadly showed off a magnum of 1997 Opus One that the restaurant bought several years ago for $400, now worth $1,000. "It was one of those years when God bent over and kissed California,'' Hill said of the wine, its bottle now covered with mold spots. "Some of the youngest wines might be drinkable for someone who doesn't really know what to expect,'' he said. "But even they have lost their finish.'' For older vintages, the heat's effect was worse. There was also damage when cases of wine fell during the storm, exploding and spewing their contents over other bottles. Before rebuilding the cellar, the Brennans will send the remaining bottles to a man in California who bought them from the insurance company, Ted Brennan said. The man plans to auction them off. "Someone might want to buy a special bottle to commemorate an occasion,'' Brennan said. "Or someone might want to roll the dice and hope to get a rare vintage cheap and be able to drink it.'' One bottle will be a special bargain. That 1870 Lafite Rothschild. The Brennans bought it a decade ago for $14,000. Main DBB | | |
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12/06/05 ERRANDS ON A SUNDAY, SHAME ON YOU
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| 12/3/05 FOR THEY EAT THE BREAD OF WICKEDNESS, AND DRINK THE WINE OF VIOLENCE. PROVERBS 4:17
The wine world has taken a violent turn in the past month. Read below: Main DBB | | |
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| 11/28/05 THE SIDEWAY(S) TO SAN JOSE
We celebrated Thanksgiving 2005 by visiting family in San Jose, California. We of course took advantage of the drive up from Chula Vista by stopping by some wineries for tastings. We actually had planned to drive up to the Days Inn Windmill in Buellton and trace the steps of Miles and Jack from Sideways. Kinda geeky, but that was the plan at least. An unexpected flat tire delayed our arrival, but we finally made our way to some of the wineries featured in the film. We visited the overrated and quite snobbish Sanford Winery and Vineyard. The employees were not to friendly and the wine was pretty forgetful. A real disappointment considering how much Miles raved in the movie about Sanford. We then visited Kalyra Winery. In the movie, Jack pours on his boyish charm toward the wine pourer, Stephanie. Kalyra's Australian theme is a distraction and was as equally unspectacular as the wines and the barking resident dogs. We were pressed for time with a van full of kids, luggage and the suegra. We had lunch at the Solvang Restaurant on Copenhagen Drive where Jack vows to Miles he will get laid. The Split Pea Soup and Danish Sausage hit the spot. After lunch we managed to get lost trying to locate Andrew Murray Vineyards, and ended up outside of Lompoc. We than stumbled upon Curtis Winery. Curtis specializes in Rhone style wines. The 2003 Grenache was by far the best wine of the day. They also had a 2002 Mourvèdre which was a little light in flavor but good, and a nice 2003 Roussanne. We finished up rushing to Melville, but arrived just has they closed. Bummer. In conclusion, with more time we could have visited more wineries but overall we were disappointed by the wineries we did visit. We are always willing to giving it another try in the future. By night fall, we continued onto San Jose where we spent a nice Holiday with family.
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| 11/21/05 EN BAJA CALIFORNIA, EL VINO TE ESPERA
Mexico's small industry sees rebound, luring consumers with award-winning varieties - UNION-TRIBUNE 11/21/05 VALLE DE GUADALUPE – When the market for Mexican wines plummeted 20 years ago, growers in this valley northeast of Ensenada started ripping out their grapevines. But now a new breed of vintner has arrived, and the distinctive wines they're creating are capturing international medals, drawing aficionados and boosting tourism. "They're planting grapes that produce a high-quality product," said Michael Farres, co-owner of downtown San Diego's Wine Bank. "People are coming in asking for them. I can't get enough."A few years ago, there were only a handful of wineries in the area's three wine valleys 65 miles south of San Diego. Now there are 20, and more are starting all the time. Cabernet sauvignon, grenache, tempanillo, merlot, and an array of other grapes are being planted and vines are being grafted onto stock that survived. Hot and dry days, cool Pacific breezes at night and several microclimates are helping the vintners create varietals and blends with intriguing, complex personalities. Instead of the cheap, bulk wines that used to be associated with Mexico, the new wines are upscale, averaging $20 to $50 per bottle. The wine resurrection has touched the entire Valle de Guadalupe, which is home to most of the region's wineries. Over the past few years, Mexican and foreign investment has poured into the area. While most of the money has gone into tourism and hospitality operations, equestrian enterprises and production of honey, olives and olive oil are all experiencing an uptick. As a result, area residents and newcomers alike have more job opportunities. Mexican federal and Baja California state officials, who once encouraged industrial development in the valley, have reversed themselves and now are protecting and promoting the local wine industry. The state government hopes to make it easier to visit the area by expanding to four lanes from two the Ensenada-Tecate highway that leads into the valley. It already has hardtopped a portion of one of the area's dusty, washboard arteries, and it has erected signs marking a Ruta de Vino to many of the wineries. Nowadays, visitors arrive every weekend for tastings. Several companies offer bus tours from San Diego. Two inns have opened and more are planned. The annual three-week Fiestas de la Vendimia – which means festivals of the grape harvest – in late summer draws 20,000 people, including some from as far away as Europe and Asia. The event offers samplings from area restaurants and wineries along with classical, jazz and Latin music performances. "It's more than the grape and the bottle of wine. It's important to have the combination with tourism and art and culture," said Christoph Gaertner, who is the winemaker at Vinisterra, a Valle de Guadalupe winery that opened in 2002 and produces 5,000 cases annually. "A lot of people are saying that Guadalupe looks like Napa Valley 30 years ago. "The Valle de Guadalupe cannot claim the stature and size of the well-known California winemaking regions, but it accounts for more than 90 percent of Mexican wines. It is increasingly recognized as an up-and-coming wine area, along with regions in Eastern Europe, New Zealand, India, Thailand and China, says Matt Skinner, a London sommelier who spent two years traveling the globe to research and write the book "Thirsty Work. "The fact they're making good product is amazing – and in a very short period of time as well," he said. The area's viniculture reaches back centuries to the grapes that priests in the Spanish missions planted to make wine for religious services. Some of the newest winemakers are resurrecting Mission grapes from vines descended from those planted during that era. Baja California's first commercial operation was Santo Tomás, which opened in 1888 and remains the area's biggest winery. To upgrade its own products, the business has relocated its winemaking from downtown Ensenada to a sophisticated facility in the Santo Tomás Valley south of town. Santo Tomás, along with San Vicente and Guadalupe, are the three wine-growing valleys in the region. Several of the new wineries sprouted from the Santo Tomás operation. But many credit vintner Hans Backhoff with inspiring the area's boutique winery boom. Backhoff, an Ensenada native who holds a doctorate in food science, and his partners started the Monte Xanic winery in late 1980, just after Mexico joined the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, which regulates global business. The deal opened Mexico to foreign competitors, whose superior products soon forced Baja California wine producers out of operation. "People thought we were crazy," Backhoff said. He persevered, adopting grape varieties and winemaking techniques, such as aging in French oak barrels, to produce higher-grade products. The wines have become so popular that some years Backhoff can't produce enough to meet demand. The shed where he began has been replaced with a two-story winemaking structure and tasting room. He makes 50,000 cases a year, including four white wines, six reds and a rosé. Backhoff has blasted a massive cave into the mountain behind the winery to store 4,000 barrels of wine. And he plans to add a restaurant on land atop the cave that will overlook a small lake on the property. Backhoff's success – and that of Chateau Camou, which followed shortly after – inspired others to undertake similar ventures. "It took quite a while to convince people you could make quality wines," Backhoff said. "Now I can't count the number of people coming."Most of the new vintners are Mexican. In fact, Vinisterra owner Abelardo Rodriguez's grandfather, Gen. L. Abelardo Rodriguez, who owned Santo Tomás from the late-1920s to the mid-1960s, served as the country's interim president from 1932 to 1934. There's also a strong European influence. Some trace their ancestry to Italy, Germany, France, Switzerland or Spain. Others have been educated or trained in Europe. Camou operations director Victor Torres Alegre, for instance, studied in Bordeaux, France, and serves as an international wine jurist. "I go to France every two years to learn the new techniques. And we all use these techniques in the wineries," he said. Still others are coming from across the Atlantic and the Pacific to work in the valley's wine-related activities. The wineries employ about 200 people in full-time, permanent jobs. Several thousand more are hired temporarily during the growing and harvesting seasons. Don Miller, a former California banker who built and operates the six-room Adobe Guadalupe inn, winery and stables, is the only U.S. vintner. His wife, Tru, is Dutch. Many people are joining the industry under the tutelage of Hugo D'Acosta, who once was the winemaker at Santo Tomás. He now works as winemaker at Adobe Guadalupe and owns the Casa de Piedra Winery. A few years ago, friends persuaded D'Acosta to teach them winemaking. The endeavor has since turned into a full-fledged school in the town of Porvenir that is churning out as many vintners as it is wines. This year there were 100 students, each paying $100 for a term that ran through the growing and harvest season. "The most important thing we've learned is we're able to make wines that have a taste that's distinctive to Baja California," D'Acosta said. "We need more producers to have a very strong subject. We want to show different styles." J.C. Bravo, Tres Valles and La Farga – all micro-boutiques – are among the operations that got their start in D'Acosta's school. A dedicated promoter of the region's development, D'Acosta recently spearheaded a deal in which European and U.S. investors will back the development of more Baja California wines.The right market Baja California vintners are encountering numerous market challenges. Their strategy of big quality, small quantity limits where the product can be sold. Monte Xanic's output of 50,000 cases per year makes it about the largest of the boutique wineries. Most turn out about 1,000 to 5,000 cases. That means most don't have the volume to sell to big retailers such as Costco, Wal-Mart and Trader Joe's. Nor do they want to. Miller, whose Adobe Guadalupe winery produces between 2,000 and 5,000 cases a year, said he has decided to suspend sales to Costco because his products are better suited to restaurants and specialty wine shops. "We're a winery where people come who know about wine and want to know more," said his wife, Tru. Mexico represents the vintners' biggest growth potential but also their biggest obstacle. It's a market more accustomed to beer, tequila, whiskey, rum and kahlua. If Mexicans drink wine at all, it's most likely French or Chilean. A 25 percent tax rate on their businesses and a 15 percent sales tax in most of the country elevates the cost of a product that once was inexpensive. Nevertheless, Baja California wines are becoming more popular with Mexicans, said Gaertner, the Vinisterra winemaker. "We see the Mexican market is growing. It's expanded five times in 10 years," he said. "Now people are willing to pay the price for Baja California wines. "That goes for U.S. visitors as well, although customs rules limit them to bringing one bottle per person back across the border. Most of Valle de Guadalupe's vintners are more concerned that the success and attention they are enjoying might undermine the area's unique character. While locals are enjoying the recent increase in visitors, they don't want to see the valley overrun by tourists, particularly those unappreciative of their products' nuances. A saying commonly repeated these days reflects this attitude: "Bad roads bring good tourists. Good roads bring bad tourists. "What I would like to see and what I see are different," D'Acosta said. "I would like to see more wineries focused on good wines. I would like to have visitors, but visitors who understand the wines. "When the region becomes more famous than the wines, that's scary," he said. "We need to be very careful about that." - Diane Lindquist Main DBB | | |
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11/13/05 WINE IN THE AFTERNOON On Saturday 11/12/05, we attended the San Diego Bay Food & Wine Festival at the Embarcadero. It was a fine San Diego day to be out in the sun and trying many different wines. Although billed to offer "100 wineries, pouring 500 wines", it was obvious the organizers fell way short of that goal. Of the notable wineries which did attend, the best wines were the 2000 Mon Rouge from Clautiere Vineyards and 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon from Peju Province. Some old favorites were there such as Bonny Doon, Peachy Canyon, Palumbo and Tobin James. I tried to concentrate on lesser known wineries such as Salerno Winery from Ramona CA. Temecula and Valle de Guadalupe wineries were well represented too. All in all it was fun, but way to much wine to sample in such a short time. Check out some pix. Main DBB | | |
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| 11/12/05 WHAT'S NEXT, SHAQ SYRAH? Winery to produce Larry Bird wine. BOSTON (AP) - You might not be able to play a little one-on-one with Larry Bird. But you will soon be able to drink with him. A California winery is teaming with the Boston Celtics Hall of Famer to produce a line of wines called "Legends". Cosentino Signature Wineries plans to roll out the line beginning next month. Winery founder Mitch Cosentino says prices will range from about $20 to $70 a bottle. Bird's spokeswoman says the basketball great has been dabbling in growing grapes since retiring from the Celtics. Bird is the president of basketball operations for the Indiana Pacers. Main DBB | | |
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| 10/19/05 NAPA, SAN DIEGO COUNTY STYLE?
Vineyards pop up in southeastern part of county. San Diego Union-Tribune. 9/27/2005 DULZURA – The grapes are not yet planted, but Greg Buckner has big plans for the wine he'll produce once his 30 acres of land become a vineyard. The La Mesa resident wondered for 20 years what to do with his family's Dulzura acreage. Looking to get out of the bail-bond business, he intends to establish a vineyard, winery and tasting room starting early next year. He aims to "work with my hands and then drink good wine," he said. "The best way to learn is to dive right in." Not far south, Mexico's Guadalupe Valley is a respected winemaking region. To the north, serious vintners and growers set up shop around Temecula and Escondido. Growers like Buckner think southeastern San Diego County – known more for its ranches and campgrounds – is a viable area for grapes, too. Acre by acre, they are joining what some call a surge in small vineyards around the county. The rocky, arid terrain here makes planting miles of vines difficult, but the hot days and cool, misty nights are considered favorable for growing certain varieties. Winemaker Lum Eisenman advises growers Bob Carson of Potrero and Sam Dawson of Dulzura. Both raise inky-purple Syrah grapes, which are thick-skinned and spicy sweet. About one-third of Carson's 2.5-acre crop is delicate Viognier white wine grapes. "Both grape varieties are from the Rhone River Valley region in France, and that tends to be a warmer area," Eisenman said. "So those grapes are acclimated to warmer climate. "Finding grapes hearty enough to withstand the southeast swelter can be a process of trial and error. Potrero resident Janet Wright, 55, planted two acres of Cabernet Sauvignon, Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay grapes about two years ago. The Chardonnay plants wilted in the heat. Because of the rugged landscape, many vineyards here are only a few acres. But that doesn't stop some growers from aspiring to create a local breeding ground for boutique wines. "When people come up on Highway 94 . . . they can come out and sample wine and purchase wine," Wright said. "Eventually, that would be nice. "The border towns are hot spots for growing grapes because there is open space to be had, allowing property owners to visualize snaking vines and dangling fruit among the mounds of dirt and chaparral. "We're hearing now in our trade association more about southeast San Diego County and I'm real glad that's happening," said Alex McGeary, president of the San Diego County Vintners Association. Countywide, profits from the sale of wine grapes increased from just over $240,000 in 2003 to $378,000 in 2004, according to the San Diego County Department of Agriculture's 2004 crop report. The report noted no increase in acreage or tonnage of wine grapes produced. Eric Larson, executive director of the San Diego County Farm Bureau, said that could be due to increasing output from small grape growers, who are not necessarily required to report their crops to the county. Potrero's Carson, 75, picked his grapes in late August with help from his son, Kim, 49, and daughter Anna-Maria, 58. The Carsons planted their crop almost six years ago and plan to lay 10 to 20 more acres of vines in the spring. Carson Vineyard wines, which Eisenman processes in his Del Mar garage, won gold and silver medals at the Orange County Fair this summer. Carson plans to bottle the wine himself next year and eventually sell his product to local restaurants and merchants – a goal he shares with Dawson. Dawson, 74, harvested and began fermenting his crop Labor Day weekend. He bottles Samuel Givens Winery wine (Givens is his middle name) in what resembles a mini airplane hangar near his vineyard. "There's room for the niche marketer, especially those that grow a small, local label," said Larson of the Farm Bureau. Buckner, on the other hand, yearns for Gallo-like domination. He expects to sink $175,000 into his project during the first year. His sons, Sean, 22, and Chris, 24, are to help run the operation. "I'm looking to have the biggest (vineyard) . . . down near the border," he said. "This just seems like something that's not only profitable, but is good for that land, instead of building more houses. "He is now testing soil and selecting grape varieties and does not expect to get wine from his crop for at least three years. He will need a grape de-stemmer, crusher, press and casks to make the wine, and land-use permits to sell it and operate a tasting room. It's a change of pace from bail bonds, but Buckner is jumping in with both feet. Eisenman used to make a wine he called "Cote de Freeway" from grapes that grew along a freeway in Cucamonga. He hopes to see more vineyards dotting the land where Highway 94 winds its way east. "I think the best thing that could happen to the wine industry in San Diego is to have two or three dozen more small wineries open up," he said. Main DBB | | |
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| 10/14/05 TSUNAMI, KATRINA AND NOW THIS... OUCH
Millions of dollars in wine destroyed in fire. 10/14/2005 (Scripps Howard News Service). Tens of millions of dollars' worth of vintage wine were believed to have been destroyed by a fire Wednesday at a huge Vallejo, Calif., warehouse that was considered one of the most secure places for wineries and individuals to store prized collections. The three-alarm fire at Wines Central sent plumes of smoke more than 700 feet high that could be seen for miles. Firefighters' efforts were hindered because the Mare Island building -- a 1942 structure that once housed Navy torpedoes -- had steel doors and 3-foot-thick concrete walls and a concrete roof that could not be penetrated. Wines Central converted the old military fortress three years ago into a 240,000-square-foot specialty warehouse that stored more than 500,000 cases of rare vintages believed to be worth up to $100 million, officials said. Clients included wineries, private collectors and some other businesses. One firefighter was taken to the hospital for heat exhaustion, but no other injuries were reported in the blaze, which depleted the resources of Solano County's fire departments. Main DBB | | |
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| 09/19/05 THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS
Chelsea Boss Ponders Italian Wine |
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| 08/19/05 JUST LEAVE ME THE GOOD STUFF
Wine edges beer as Americans' libation of choice. Main DBB | | |
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| 08/16/05 AN OLD FAVORITE ON THE BRINK
Grant's brewery faces eviction again Main DBB | | |
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| 08/14/05 NO DBB VINTAGE 2005
There will be no harvest, blessing, crush, fermenting, bottling or drinking of darkbrownbucket's Hacienda Valdez 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon or Zinfandel. It seems we've lost the fight against Powdery Mildew in a big way. I've heard the Coastal Southern California Region was difficult to grow grapes but this is ridiculous. Yes I have contributed to the failure of this years harvest by installing a lawn under the vineyard. It looks awesome, but it ain't good for the grapes. I can't blame it all on the sod though. The Zinfandel had the same issues this year with no sod under them. It started out to be promising, but too many overcast days have contributed to a lost crop. Back to the drawing board it is. Heck, I'm even toying with the idea of wacking all the tops off and grafting all Zins for next year. If so, watch out neighbors because the chemicals will be flying. I will not be defeated two years in a row!
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| 06/17/05 WINE WACKOS
I've been following an interesting exchange between a Winemakers Discussion Group saboteur and the Wine Geek "Sideways" level responses. Enjoy Tristan Beeline, Jun 14, 8:48 pm Main DBB | | |
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| 05/10/05 WHY WINE STINKS PRETTY
Have you ever wondered why wine smells the way it does? A Molecular Biologist down under has been awarded a grant to study the origins of the different aromatics of wine. Lucky. Click here for the audio story. Main DBB | | |
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| 05/09/05 OKAAAAY...
Woman murdered for drinking partner's wine Main DBB | | |
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| 04/21/05 NOUVEAU FILM AU SUJET DE VIN
On May 20th, the Ken Theater in San Diego will show the French film Mondovino. This film is making waves around the wine world for uncovering wine conclomerates efforts to squeez out the small time wineries. Filmed over a three year period and across the globe from France to Napa, filmaker Jonathan Nossiter gets under the skin of such wine legends as Robert Mondavi, Robert Parker, Michael Broadbent in his own Michael Mooresque manner. Parlez-vous français?, Check out the trailer. Main DBB | | |
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| 04/20/05 NOT EXACTLY WINES OF THE MONTH
I wanted to back track and review some wines we've tried in the past couple of months. These wines are not exactly wines of the month, but in some cases they are worth the price. DBB's point scale is a 5 point grade system (*****). This is important stuff... Main DBB | | |
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04/05/05 "WEST OF PASO, I FELL IN LOVE WITH A MEXICAN... TACO, CON TODO" Not that everybody wants to hear about our wine tasting trips abroad, but the following is a review of our trip to Paso Robles and a rating of the wineries we visited. Last time we made a wine excursion, we flew. We decided we'd drive the next time to maximize the bring back potential. It's a 5 1/2 hour drive from San Diego to Paso Robles. On Friday we drove into Paso just in time to visit the Tobin James Winery. It's a winery with a western theme. OK, fun place, but a little less than memorable wines, except for the Port style dessert wine "Liquid Love". An unfairly rich wine which the ladies can't resist. Hence the two bottles we left with. Our first full day started at Justin. Overrated in Wine Spectator, the wine is OK. After Justine, we headed to Tablas Creek Vineyard and Nursery. I bought some Grenache and Mourvèrde vines to add to my backyard vineyard, and a bottle of Côtes de Tablas Blanc. The best white wine of the weekend. We then stopped by Adelaida, Wild Coyote, and Zenaida wineries with no great wines to mention. We finished the day visiting Castoro Cellars and Peachy Canyon Winery. Castoro is a very fine winery specializing in Italian varietals. Peachey Canyon was good, but kinda anti-climatic to Castoro. By the end of the day our pallets were fried. A midday trip into town for lunch helped the metabolization effort. The second day started at Martin & Weyrich. No one showed up to open at 10AM (time change), so we left. We then drove up to Sylvester Winery, but no one was up there to open as well. It was 10:45 AM, we were thirsty, so we settled for J. Lohr. Just as expected, not good. I was impressed with the 2004 J. Lohr Estates Wildflower Valdiguié. A very interesting French varietal. Floral, magenta colored wine as light as Pinot, almost Grenache-ish. After J. Lohr we drove to Robert Hall Winery. "That's what I'm talking 'bout". Good Zinfandels, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon. On to Eberle, the best winery in Paso Robles. Wow. Great Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel. We snatched up a 2003 Remo Belli Zinfandel, some Full Red Boar Table Wine they make with Chardonnay and did the cave tour. Before leaving town finished up at Wild Horse Winery. The 100% Grenache stood out. All in all, we had a great time and we recommend the trip to anyone interested.
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| 03/29/05 FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, DOES ANYONE HAVE A STRAW
SONOMA (KRON) March 28, 2005 -- About 5,500 gallons of wine splashed onto state Highway 12 near Sonoma on Monday morning when a big-rig truck overturned, according to California Highway Patrol Officer Steven Bard. The big rig blocked traffic in the northbound lane of Highway 12 near the intersection of Highway 121, Bard said. A tow truck was dispatched to remove the big rig. The road was expected to open around 6 p.m. Monday and would already have been open, were it not for environmental damage surrounding the road, Brewer said The California Department of Fish and Game is cleaning the areas around the road, he added. The California Department of Transportation was prevented from opening the afflicted portion of Highway 12 because there is so much clean up equipment in the vicinity, Brewer said. The northbound lane of Highway 12 near the intersection of Highway 121 has been closed since about 11:30 a.m. Monday. The clean up process involves pumping wine out of a nearby creek, said CHP officer Steven Bard. Bay City News contributed to this report. (Copyright 2005, KRON 4. All rights reserved.) Main DBB | | |
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| 03/15/05 SIDEWAYS, OVER YOUR HEAD, AND UP YOUR @#&%!!
A couple of weeks back, I was actually reading the 02/27/05 online version of the consevative rag, The San Diego Union/Tribune (SignOn San Diego). I never do this. Anywho, I ran across an article written by Nina Garin about the movie "Sideways". Garin basically dogs the movie for being too realistic. I couldn't help but respond. My e-mailed letter was published on 03/13/05. Read it below. From: bsvaldez@cox.net Now check out the online published version and the other dumb shit letters who which supported Garins views. Needless to say I was pissed Paul Giamatti was not even nominated for an Oscar. He won a Golden Globe for Best Actor for his portrayal of a depressed, divorced, out of luck writer. It was the best portrayal of a head trip I had ever seen on screen. You could see the voices in his head. The Wine Speak was absolutley accurate, and pretty damn funny. The humor was sutble. Reading all the negative feedback which supported Garin's opinion, basically made me realize the differences between people who go to the Theater to see a movie, as opposed to the one's who go to see a film. Cris Rock really nailed it on Oscar Night when he was interviewing movie goers at the Magic Johnson Theaters. That cross section of patrons would never see the humor in Sideways. You know, just as I typed that last sentance, I realized, why would I expect anything more from them, Nina Garin, and all her silly ass supporters. Main DBB | | |
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| 03/08/05 HABLANDO DE TEQUILA Y TEMECULA...
If you enjoy a good Tequila every once in awhile, I think I found some interesting reading for you. Have you ever noticed all Tequila is Mexican. Daah. Mexican Tequila is protected by Mexican Laws. It is illegal to export the "Agave Tequilana" plant used its production, and to use the label "Tequila" unless certified by the Mexican government. These are items incorporated in the Revolutionary Principles which use to protect the Mexican Oil Industry. Priorities right? A guy in Temecula, California has produced a product to take on the Aztec Nation! Please read. Main DBB | | |
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| 03/07/05 "OH, YOU WANT MEXICAN WINE. IT"S CALLED TEQUILA"
I can see it now. A black and white Mexican cinema classic. Pedro Infante and his sidekick, Piporro sitting in a cantina, washing away their sorrows with a Chateauneuf-du-Pape. ¿Que dices? When one thinks of Mexico, and what Mexicans drink, wine is considered. Mexico is synonymous with Tequila, Mezcal, Cerveza, Pulque, and even Brandy. When talking wine though, many other countries are acknowledged before Mexico. Canada, South Africa, Germany, Greece, and even New Zealand are noted for their wine much more than Mexico. Did you know Mexico is the oldest wine producing country in the Americas? San Diego, California has the good fortune of being smack in the middle of 2 wine producing regions. Everyone knows of Temecula 60 miles to the north. The Guadalupe Valley some 60 miles to the south in Baja California is an up and coming wine producing region. I've tasted both L.A. Cetto's and Monte Xanic's Cabernet Sauvignon. They share a characteristic which is unique to Baja California wines, and at the same time thier main criticism, saltiness. The Los Angeles Times ran an interesting article on the Mexican wine industry. It's a nice introduction into the background and state of Mexican Wine. If you live in San Diego, the best source for these wines is the Wine Bank. I urge you to stop by. |
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02/23/05 CRANKING IT UP
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| 02/22/05 WAITER, THERE'S A LABORER IN MY SHIRAZ
Man killed in wine tank blast |
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| 02/06/05 NOT JUST ANY SUNDAY
As I sit here and listen to my new iPod Shuffle, and watch a game on the new Fox Soccer Channel, I review the kind of day it was. Super Bowl Sunday saw the favorite Patriots beat the Eagles in a mediocre game with mediocre commercials. Janet's boob really had a lasting effect. I used this balmy Super Sunday to hobble around my kitchen with my bum ass knee and brew a batch of beer. This time around its a hoppy English Red Ale which should end up with 3.5% Alcohol. Although way outta date, I named it "Cranky English Red Ale", in honor of the great Silver Screen legend. Not a bad day... Main DBB | | |
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| 10/13/04 SEE MA, I TOLD YOU SO
[Health India]: Sydney, Oct 13 : Not brushing their teeth is the best way for professional wine tasters to prevent their teeth from rotting, claims Diane Hunt, an Australian Dentist. Diane Hunt, a senior lecturer in restorative dentistry at the University of Adelaide has advised wine tasters to not to brush their teeth the morning before a testing session, as this would remove plaque that would otherwise prevent acidic wine from eroding the tooth enamel... Hunt conducted a survey of 74 professional wine tasters, aged between 20 and 60,and found that almost half of them had sensitive teeth, despite no variance in their exposure to wine.(ANI) Main DBB | | |
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| 09/28/04 SNOBBERY
I like to think I'm a wine snob in training. Eva and I are making the most of our free time to go on wine tastings and trips so I can soak in the most information I can about wine, for future projects. Of course while doing so, we have run across some fooffy people who seem to think you'll be impressed with their wine knowledge. Woopdy Doo I say. As I learn more about wine, its hard not to look at wine troglodytes and not snicker. Surfing the other day, I ran across this soon to be released movie about wine. It's a story of a wine snob who takes his soon to be married wine dork friend wine tasting and golfing as a last bachelor hurrah. Check out the trailer. Oh yes, wine snob training is going well. We had a Peju Province 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon the other night. Thumbs up on 'dat. |
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| 08/25/04 SONOMA RECAP
We spent our 15th Wedding Anniversary wine tasting in Sonoma. It was pretty cool. Four days was not enough to see all the wineries we wanted to visit. Here is a short once over of our Top Five Wineries we visted: 5. Suncé - A very small winery, only 2700 barrels. We really enjoyed their Zinfandel and Pinot Noir. All Estate grown wines, we joined this wine club. |
Home Winemaking Made Easy. Tina Caputo, Special to The San Francisco Chronicle. April 27, 2006. If you're like most wine lovers, you've fantasized about making your own wine. At the winery inside your head, you live among picturesque vineyards and spend peaceful hours crafting marvelous wines that inspire praise from friends and wine critics alike. Then reality sets in. You can't keep a Chia Pet alive, let alone 50 acres of grapevines; you barely passed high school chemistry and the thought of spending 12-hour days hosing down tanks is about as enticing as dropping a wine barrel on your foot. The good news is you don't need a green thumb, an enology degree or a penchant for tedious manual labor to become a winemaker: All you need, according to one Bay Area company, is a WinePod. If the name conjures images of "The Jetsons," the reality isn't far off. Styled to look like a sleek, stainless steel egg, the WinePod is a high-tech home winemaking machine that promises to turn enophiles into instant winemakers -- just add grapes. Set for release in July, the reusable, all-in-one device handles everything from grape crushing to fermentation to acting as a personal winemaking coach. And at $1,999, it's much cheaper than buying a winery. According to Greg Snell, founder of Provina, Inc., the San Jose wine technology company that developed the WinePod, the idea came to him a few years ago, when he was working in the semiconductor industry. Though he loved visiting wineries and dreamed of someday owning a winery, Snell realized that it would not be financially feasible or practical. "So I had an idea," he says. "What if I could make it possible for other people like me to enjoy the wine lifestyle, without owning a vineyard, living in Napa and being a gazillionaire?" Expert input The first step in developing the WinePod, Snell says, was to get input from wine industry insiders. He reached out to the Sangiacomo family -- well-known Sonoma County grape growers and longtime family friends. "The Sangiacomos introduced me to the best winemakers they knew, and I introduced the winemakers to the best scientists from the Silicon Valley," Snell says. Winemaker Greg La Follette of Tandem Winery and DeLoach Vineyards in the Russian River Valley tested the first prototype of the WinePod during the 2004 crush and provided Snell with feedback. "It made decent wine without a lot of input from the winemaker," La Follette says. "It kept good temperature control, gave nice extraction, good color -- essentially by itself, or at least without me having to babysit such a small lot." In 2005, Snell met T.J. Rodgers, co-owner of San Mateo County's Clos de la Tech winery and the CEO of Cypress Semiconductor. After discovering their mutual interests in winemaking and technology, they decided to collaborate on the 2005 crush. "Together, we created inexpensive wireless controllers, sensors and software to monitor and control fermentations with incredible precision," Snell says. "T.J. is an expert winemaker and a brilliant technologist. Together with my team of scientists and engineers, we were able to solve a number of problems very quickly." Snell also consulted with Roger Boulton, professor of enology and chemical engineering at UC Davis, who helped with alternative measurement approaches, analyzing fermentation curves and tweaking some of the recommendations in the pod's advice-giving function. The result of all that research and development is a high-tech mini-winery that uses the Internet, overnight shipping and sophisticated technology to help amateurs become competent winemakers. So how does it work? First, the WinePod establishes a wireless link to the user's home computer. Then, the home winemaker goes to Provina's Web site, personalwinemaking.com, and orders grapes -- Beckstoffer Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, for example. Prices start at $2 per pound; it takes about 160 pounds to make 60 to 70 bottles of wine. A predicted harvest date for the grapes is posted on Provina's Web site. A week or two before the grapes are picked, the company sends a "notice of harvest" e-mail to the customer, followed by a "grape shipment notice" that lets the winemaker know the grapes will arrive in three days. The whole-cluster, crushed or whole-berry grapes are shipped to the customer, ready to go into the pod. Step-by-step guide. The pod then guides the user step-by-step, from pressing the grapes through fermentation. An alarm lets the user know if adjustments need to be made (for example, if the wine's pH level is too high). Winemaking instructions and recommendations are offered through the interactive software on the winemaker's home computer. Pod users have two options for oak aging. They can add oak chips or staves to the pod, or they can transfer the wine to a 50-liter barrel. French, Hungarian and American oak barrels at various toast levels can be purchased through Provina's Web site, along with anything else the winemaker might need, from corks to chemicals. When it comes time to bottle, the user can buy a hand-cranked machine from Provina for about $100, or rent an automatic bottling machine from a home winemaking or brewing supply store, such as Napa Fermentation Supplies in Napa (napafermentation.com). "The WinePod is more sophisticated than 99 percent of all wineries in the world," Snell says. "It virtually eliminates winemaking mistakes." Tool or toy? But will buyers use it more than once? "This machine could easily fit in that dark, out of the way corner in the house along with the bread machine, your slicer-dicer and the hula hoop collection wrapped around your old Nehru jackets," cracks Andy Cutter of Duxoup Wine Works, who runs a two-person artisan winemaking operation in Sonoma County's Dry Creek Valley. "People will have fun with it, and it may drive them nuts at the same time. One thing is for sure, they will really learn to appreciate a good bottle of wine." Bonny Doon Vineyard's Randall Grahm says he doesn't believe the WinePod will change people's buying habits, though it may reinforce their inclination to take the easy road. "On the one hand, it does seem like a fun gizmo for people to play around with," he says. "But I think that I feel about the device more or less the same way I feel about the recent phenomenon of 'wine camp,' where very wealthy dilettantes can play at being winemakers. Everyone wants to think of himself or herself as a creator, an artiste, but few are willing to put in the real blood, sweat and tears to make it happen in any sort of profound way." Winemaker Kris Curran, who produces small amounts of premium Santa Ynez Valley wines under the Curran Wines label, has a more positive view of the WinePod concept. "I hope this works," she says. "I can't comment on whether this is viable, but I think it's a very cool idea, and I think it will be very popular." Curran's main concern is that the device -- which Snell says requires minimal assembly and is made mostly of stainless steel for the parts that come into contact with the juice and wine -- may require more attention than users realize, especially since flaws are more noticeable in small lots of wine than in larger ones. "The smaller the container of wine you make, the greater the ability to screw it up," she says. "I'm a professional winemaker, and if I tried to make a 5-gallon jug of wine, I would have a much greater propensity for having that wine be flawed." Tapping the grapevine. Whether or not the WinePod is sound from a winemaking standpoint remains to be seen, yet its popularity has already been established. In February, Snell leaked information about the WinePod to wine industry public relations agent Tom Wark, who wrote a teaser about the device for his wine blog, fermentation.typepad.com. According to Snell, news of the home winery spread over the Internet at an astonishing rate, resulting in a long waiting list of wine lovers eager to purchase WinePods. At just 4 feet tall, the stylish mini-wineries should fit nicely in the average high-end kitchen, somewhere between the Viking range and Sub-Zero refrigerator. "We eliminate about two-thirds of the cleaning steps of a normal winemaking operation," he adds, "because most of the lab work is automated, and most of the winemaking steps occur in the WinePod rather than in separate devices like a press and fermenter." Snell won't say how many WinePods have been pre-sold, yet says the number is more than the company's capacity for the 2006 crush, based on available grapes. He says he hopes to have more WinePods available by the 2006 holidays.
