Taking the world one wine at a time.
#5 Poor Glassware Anyone who knows me knows that I remain very down-to-earth when it comes to wine. With that being said, if I’m out at a restaurant (normally the inexpensive kind); and I see they are using some kind of crappy generic Costco-style wine glasses, I’m going to forego the wine and stick with beer. I don’t for one second believe a restaurant should carry a different wine glass for every single style of…
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#10 Poor Lighting What could be viewed as a seemingly minor point, but I personally like to be able to appreciate the color of a wine before tasting it! The color of a wine can give away a lot of clues to its age, possible grape, and other keys elements such as fining or filtration. If the room is too dark, you are left, well, left in the dark as to all these elements!…
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Alcohol is the only item in wine that can be tasted (sweet or bitter), felt (heat), and smelled (strong pungent odor).
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This is a featured post from Gary Vaynerchuk’s Daily Grape Newsletter Grape 100% Pinot Noir Rating 91 Points Price $68 MSRP Gary’s explanation: California Pinot Noir producers have one man to thank for the ability to routinely price their wines over $50: Rex Pickett. The author of the book-made-movie, Sideways, single handedly skyrocketed the popularity of Pinot Noir almost overnight with his $71 million grossing blockbuster. Yet so much of the…
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Grapes A blend of Corvina, Rondinella and Molinara (don’t worry if you haven’t heard of them before, these grapes are generally only used in Italy in the wines of Valpolicella). Facts Read that title again! What a mouthful…….and that’s why your “average” wine buyer normally misses out on these awesome wines! The labels are no doubt very confusing, and the wines even more so; however if you’re feeling adventurous, the red wines from the Veneto…
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Oops! Forklift smashes $1M worth of Australia wine A malfunctioning forklift dropped 462 cases of wine in Australia on Thursday, a spill with a price tag of more than $1 million. The 5,544 bottles of 2010 Mollydooker Velvet Glove shiraz, with a price tag of $185 a bottle, fell almost 20 feet to ground of a wharf in Port Adelaide as the forklift was loading it for shipment abroad, according to media reports….
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As you more or may not know, for the last few days I’ve been at the Wine Bloggers Conference in Charlottesville. An awesome experience overall; sampled lots of great wines (some crappy ones as well), met tons of great people (most of whom I’ve been talking to over the last couple of years on Twitter/Facebook), and enjoyed the company of a number of wine bloggers / marketers I happened upon for the first time. …
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Grape 100% Montepulciano [Mawn-teh-pool-CHA-noh] It’s a fun grape to say, especially if you do so with a really bad Italian accent. Say it with me: “Montepulciano!!!” Facts I hope you’re paying attention, because this is going to get tricky for a second! This wine is made from the Montepulciano grape; however there is ALSO a town called Montepulciano in Tuscany, which as it happens is nowhere near the Abruzzo region where this wine hails from….
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Probably about the same time that you are reading this, I will have started my short journey from Jacksonville up to Charlottesville, Virginia; the destination for this years Wine Bloggers Conference. This is the first time the conference has been held on the East Coast, and I’m psyched that I can finally manage to make it! I’ve attended countless wine tastings in my time “in the industry” but never anything on the scale of…
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Grapes 83% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Syrah, 3% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot Facts Good God I love this stuff! Probably my favorite all time Merlot, and not just due to the cool bottle! It’s also probably my most recommended wine for someone looking to give a bottle as a gift. The Handprint Merlot can really be considered the signature wine out of the whole Meeker lineup. Each bottle is touched…
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Following on from my previous post, this is the second part of my Virginia Viognier tasting. Barboursville Vineyards Viognier General Tasting Notes: No oak, but they leave this one in contact with the lees (dead yeast cells) in order to give the wine added complexity. Medium in body, the standard Viognier notes of peach and apricot are certainly there, backed a little sourdough and a decent amount of acidity; to give the Barboursville…
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Gallo’s Growing Barefoot Brand Is No. 1 Sutter Home is No. 2, while total domestic retail wine sales increased 7% in June. E. & J. Gallo Winery’s fast-growing Barefoot brand remained No. 1 in retail sales for the 52 weeks ending June 13, with $255 million in sales. With Carlo Rossi ranking seventh in sales and Gallo Family Vineyards ninth, the Gallo company owns three of the top 10 brands. Two other Gallo…
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