Taking the world one wine at a time.
Grapes 34% Chardonnay, 33% Renski Riesling, 33% Pinot Gris Facts Ahhh yes! There’s nothing better than getting home from a hard day’s graft ( after staring at a computer for most of the day) than to kick off my shoes, and reaching for a bottle of Kupljen “Spirit of Svetinje” from the Jeruzalemsko-Svetinjske hills of north-eastern Slovenia… Ok, so that’s a lie. Firstly, I mainly work out of my house, so my shoes…
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I hadn’t actually intended for this to be a “true pairing,” at least, not on the scale of the pairings I usually post. This one is short and sweet. I’m a firm believer that food and wine pairings don’t need to be these hugely well thought-out, extravagant and time-consuming affairs. If I’m going to be completely honest, the time it takes to cook the meal for my regular pairings, photograph it (usually taking around 50…
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One group of Riesling enthusiasts has set out to change the perception that all Riesling wines are sweet.In 2007, Dan Berger, Coke Roth and Jim Trezise assembled at a wine event and began to talk about the problem with Riesling. “Consumers walk into a store,” said Berger, a wine writer in Santa Rosa, Calif. “They liked the last Riesling they had, so they pick up a bottle, wondering if it’s dry or sweet. They can’t…
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My original plans were for a red wine with this dish, but I must have been out of my tiny little English mind when I thought that pairing up. The only way is white for this dish, so don’t even THINK about getting creative and going the red-route. It won’t work, mainly for the reason of the complexity of flavors in the short rib marinade. When was the last time you ate a pear? I…
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Grape 100% Riesling Facts I’ve been slowly working my way through the Charles Smith portfolio of wines for the last few years – with the only hindrance to my progress being their limited-availability. It’s quite a wonder why more restaurants/retailers don’t carry this line. I would challenge anyone to find a better value coming out of Washington State right now. It certainly beats the generic-tasting-juice that some of the “big boys” are churning out!…
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Yesterday, when I mentioned to the Mrs. that I was going to make crab cakes for dinner, the first words out of her mouth were “Make them like my Mom makes them! They’re the BEST!!!” It’s probably worth pointing out that the main 2 tricks behind how “Mom makes them” is to use zero bread filling, and to shape them roughly the size of baseballs. Delicious, no doubt; but if she were the chef in…
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Grape 100% RieslingHistorical references to the Riesling grape can be traced back to Germany in the 15th century. Facts I’ve been a fan of Willamette Valley Vineyards (“WVV” for the cool kids) for quite a while now. Yes, they’re certainly one of the largest Oregon producers (70,400 cases in 2010), but I feel WVV maintain a consistently favorable quality to price ratio. An attribute which I personally note is lacking in a number of…
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This recipe is my attempt at killing four birds with one stone; and by “birds” I mean my crockpot, chicken, my bottle of Palmaz 2007 Napa Valley Riesling, and my wife. What do the three have in common, and why do you want to kill your wife with a stone? Well… My slow cooker has been looking kind of sad lately. All lonely, stuffed away in a dark-corner of my pantry, covered in dust, giving…
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It’s not very often that Riesling gets the chance to be opened in my house. The Mrs. hasn’t always had the biggest affinity for the little German grape, as she (like most others), thinks all their wines are sweet. This was the pairing that would change her mind! The winemaking family history of Dr. Pauly Bergweiler, can be traced back to the 16th century in the Mosel. Therefore, they’ve had plenty of time to…
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Grape 100% Riesling Facts If German Riesling conjures up images of Blue Nuns and Black Katz, you’re forgiven! I’ve been saying for quite some time now that Riesling is one of the most misunderstood grapes there is; but sometimes it’s like banging your head against a brick wall! The perception of the “average” consumer is that all Rieslings are sugar-water, in the form of wine. But who can blame them!?!? The market is dominated…
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