Sunday, 30 September 2012
Crisis: Hamptons nearing rosé drought!
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/GuSC/~3/0zHurhZdrIg/
Blogging can’t die
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheWineConversation/~3/1q83xbmmM_0/
Indonesian Luxury at Four Seasons Sayan Bali
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/vagablond/ysSN/~3/5pR-iiFF3E8/
There’s no future for wine
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheWineConversation/~3/6-feNK_xsaI/
September 28 – 2012 – Florida Jim Cowan’s 2012 Tasting Notes Archive
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/gangofpour/uncZ/~3/nUQeMMr7YtY/jim-cowan%e2%80%99s-2012-tasting-notes
Review of the 3Divas White Wine Blend from Montemaggiore winery
Source: http://www.beyondnapavalley.com/blog/review-of-the-3divas-white-blend-from-montemaggiore-winery/
Landon Winery Wine Club pick up for Aug 2012
Source: http://thegrapesaroundtexas.com/2012/08/19/landon-winery-wine-club-pick-up-for-aug-2012/
Saturday, 29 September 2012
A Wine for Tonight: NV Sokol Blosser Evolution White Wine
A Wine for Tonight: NV Sokol Blosser Evolution White Wine was originally posted on Wine Peeps. Wine Peeps - Your link to great QPR wines from Washington State and beyond.
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WinePeeps/~3/APstgCTil70/
Thank Goodness Wine is Gluten Free
Thank Goodness Wine is Gluten Free was originally posted on Wine Peeps. Wine Peeps - Your link to great QPR wines from Washington State and beyond.
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WinePeeps/~3/vcXfqTojKhE/
Wine Gift Baskets
New York Wine Retailers Dealing Aces Lately
And subscribe to The Wellesley Wine Press if you like hearing about wine deals.
The Real Reason Wine Bloggers Are Not Relevant To Advertisers
The Real Reason Wine Bloggers Are Not Relevant To Advertisers originally appeared on Winecast. Licensed under Creative Commons.
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Napa Valley bashing at the Wine Bloggers Conference
Continue reading
Source: http://www.winecountrygetaways.com/napablog/napa-valley-bashing-at-the-wine-bloggers-conference/
Musha Cay – Romantic Getaway For Honeymooners
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/vagablond/ysSN/~3/wpovV2TUKjM/
Friday, 28 September 2012
Wine Word of the Week: Capsule
Wine Word of the Week: Capsule was originally posted on Wine Peeps. Wine Peeps - Your link to great QPR wines from Washington State and beyond.
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WinePeeps/~3/yrWcnZ_Gf_g/
Last Chance for Massachusetts Direct Wine Shipment Bill
A bill that would enable wineries to ship directly to Massachusetts residents appears to be down to its last out with nobody on in the bottom of the 9th inning. And 2 strikes against it with nobody interested in coming to the plate. With the end of the 2012 legislative season coming soon and lawmakers are focused on other action.
Sound bleak? It is.
From Free the Grapes:
HB 1029, a positive direct shipping bill, was put on a second “extension order” in May for consideration later in the year. But industry representatives warn that the bill will be shelved unless it moves by the end of this month. There appears to be support for the bill if it can get a vote in the Assembly and Senate. But a squabble over unrelated bills stymies progress.This situation should sound familiar to Massachusetts wine enthusiasts. It's the same thing that happened to HB 4497 in 2010 which would have similarly enabled direct shipments.
It's getting a little comical (in a tragic way) that the state still isn't in compliance with a 2010 Federal Court ruling that the state's current laws, which restrict shipments from any winery producing more than 30,000 gallons, were unconstitutional.
HB 1029 would bring the state into compliance with that court order, but more importantly it would bring common sense to a situation that's currently non-sensical.
The bill would address onerous restrictions currently in place that make it cost-prohibitive for carriers like FedEx and UPS to ship wine into the state. It would also outline how wineries obtain a license to ship directly and how they remit taxes to the state.
But most importantly, to me, it would prioritize the interests of the citizens of the state over wholesalers.
The tension in this situation lies between Massachusetts wholesalers, out of state wineries, and Massachusetts wine enthusiasts. But every citizen of the Commonwealth would benefit from direct shipments. Here's why...
When a wine enthusiast in Massachusetts wants to buy a specific wine directly from an out of state winery it's because that wine isn't available at retail in Massachusetts. Every bottle of wine sold in Massachusetts, whether it be at retailer or in restaurants, needs to pass through a Massachusetts distributor.
When a wine isn't available, the consumer doesn't substitute that wine with a similar bottle which is available from in-state retailers. The consumer usually decides to go to great lengths to have the wine shipped to a neighboring state with more sensible direct shipment laws.
Like New Hampshire. Which famously doesn't have sales tax, but shrewdly (and aggressively) collects 8% tax on direct wine shipments on top of charging wineries hefty annual fees for the right to ship to the state.
Did you catch what happened there? Our laws generated a nice bump of revenue for a neighboring state and inconvenienced Massachusetts residents. And every Massachusetts citizen lost revenue.
Making matters worse, Massachusetts retailers aren't allowed to ship wine out of state. Thanks to this restriction, state wholesalers are missing what could be a healthy boost in business. And every citizen is missing out on collecting excise tax as wine passes through the distributor.
All of this fighting is just about winery direct shipments. It doesn't cover retailer direct shipments which would be even more advantageous to Massachusetts wine enthusiasts, and an even larger source of revenue for the state.
Look at Virgina for an example of how this should be done. Since changing their laws to allow direct shipments they now enjoy a revenue stream of over $3 million dollars a year. Next time someone mentions a state budget deficit I suggest they consider this opportunity.
On his Fermentation wine blog, Tom Wark points out this retailer restriction:
The bill is in fact not a very good one. Under its provisions, consumers in the state would be prohibited from having imported wines shipped to them from out of state. That means no French, Italian, German, Austrian, Spanish or any other imported wines could be ordered by consumers since the bill does not allow out of state retailers to ship into the state. Rather, only out-of-state wineries would have the privilege.I agree the bill doesn't go far enough. But it's a step in the right direction and one that Governor Patrick said he would sign if it came to his desk.
So let's do the right thing and get this bill passed.
Right now it's stuck in the Committee on Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure. When the committee heard arguments on it two years ago I was in attendance. This bill was just one item of many related to alcohol the committee was considering, and the speakers were primarily lobbyists from both sides.
I stopped by and talked to Representative Theodore Speliotis after the hearing. I think he was surprised to see a consumer at the meeting. I was disappointed there was no decisions or even meaningful discussion for the most part at the meeting. I explained to him my interest in receiving direct shipments of wine and asked him what I could do. He recommended I send him and others a message of support for this bill.
Our representatives needs to hear directly from us. So here's your call to action:
Visit the Free the Grapes website to send an email to Representative Speliotis and others explaining why you favor the direct shipment of wine.
Do it now. Thank you.
Wine Bloggers’ Wines from Oddbins
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Thoughts from the AccessZone
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A Spitacular Competition!
Bordeaux says no to American “chateaux”
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/GuSC/~3/m5hLlpXbYqI/
Delaney Vineyard 1995 Cabernet Vintner’s Reserve
Source: http://thegrapesaroundtexas.com/2012/08/14/delaney-vineyard-1995-cabernet-vintners-reserve/
Wine Bloggers’ Wines from Oddbins
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Thursday, 27 September 2012
Field Notes from a Wine Life – Power Structure Edition
Odds and ends from a life lived through the prism of the wine glass…
Naked Wine and Occupy Wall Street
It’s not hard to notice the parallels between the natural wine movement and Occupy Wall Street - both are valid causes sorely lacking coherence and a rallying point that would move them from fringe head-scratcher to mainstream momentum.
• Natural wine is about purity of wine expression—shepherding grapes grown without chemicals to the bottle with as little human manipulation as possible, representing the place where they came from in the process.
• Occupy Wall Street is about re-calibrating the world’s best economic system – capitalism—to preserve the middle-class, the labor force that has allowed the U.S. to create the most productive economy in the world.
Neither movement represents fringe radicalism as some would have you believe. I look at both as being valid inflection points and, at their core, about keeping a balance between big and small, allowing every man and woman an equal opportunity at pursuing success around their particular truth.
What reasonable person would deny the validity of either if not clouded by confusion?
One idea well-conceived and well-communicated can change the world, but, unfortunately, both the natural wine movement and Occupy Wall Street are prevaricating from their essential truth, rendering them both toothless and feckless.
No need to crib from Che Guevara, but appealing to base logic and the common denominator would do both movements some good.
Just one man’s opinion…
On the Aussies, Redux
A few weeks back, I noted how the Australian wine industry was poised for a rebound in public perception due in part to two things happening in concert – public backlash to Yellow Tail wine, what I call the, “Derision Decision,” and an unspoken coalition of influencers recognizing Australia’s artisanal wine production – the antithesis of Yellow Tail. I cited recent sympathetic mentions from Jay McInerney in the Wall Street Journal and Dan Berger, wine writing’s current patriarch, as proof points.
You can add to the list of sympathetic mentions about artisanal Australia with recent mentions from Jancis Robinson and James Suckling.
Don’t sleep on Australia. It’s making a comeback slowly, but surely in public perception.
Tim Mondavi and Wine Spectator
Thomas Matthews, the Executive Editor for Wine Spectator magazine (WS), has commented on my site a few times. Each of these instances has been to protect or project Wine Spectator around its editorial goals.
Good on Thomas for not being afraid to get in the ring. Certainly, WS takes its fair share of shots from the wine chatterati, mostly with grace and aplomb.
Lest I cast myself as anything but objective, I should note that James Laube’s article on Tim Mondavi and Continuum in the current issue of WS (November 15th issue) is everything right about what mainstream wine media can offer wine consumers that online wine writing (mostly) doesn’t –long-form, depth, first-person access and an effort that takes weeks and not hours.
Laube’s piece is excellent - well-written and balanced; acknowledgement thereof is in order.
Besides the Wine
Jordan winery has two wines – a Cabernet and Chardonnay, but they really have a triumvirate in terms of things to buy. Jordan focuses on food and wine as being partners at the table and, to that end, any purchase from Jordan should also include their olive oil. Wow!
The Jordan olive oil makes Trader Joe’s EVOO seem like Two Buck Chuck, comparatively speaking. A little whole wheat Barilla pasta, some homemade pesto using the Jordan olive oil and some artisan bread in five minutes a day and you’re assuredly living the good life. The rub is I wouldn’t pour the round Jordan Chard with the pesto, probably a Sauvignon Blanc, but don’t let that dissuade you from picking up their olive oil – it’s good stuff.
Source: http://goodgrape.com/index.php/site/field_notes_from_a_wine_life_power_structure_edition/
Tasting Report: 2010 Saint Cosme Gigondas
Side note: It was a full-on 90F degrees the day I had it shipped. I missed the shipment and it was redelivered the next day. I popped the wine open the day after that and you know what? It was totally fine. Maybe we're getting excessively cranked up about shipping wine when it's slightly warm? I mean - this is Massachusetts, not Arizona.
Another thing - people sometimes ask how Wine.com can ship to Massachusetts with all of the shipping restrictions in place here. Wine.com is the only national wine retailer I'm aware of that's taken the time to obtain a Massachusetts retailer license and buys all of their wine they ship to Massachusetts residents from Massachusetts wholesalers. I hope that also helps explain why Wine.com inventory and pricing varies from state to state.
Here are my thoughts on the wine:
2010 Château de Saint-Cosme Gigondas
$41
3,330 Cases Produced
Pretty magenta/ruby in the glass. About 70% opaque. Aromatically, I get ripe raspberry, rose petals, black pepper, and other typical Rhone notes. Really pretty. Shines on the palate with a silky mouth feel up front followed by a nice tannic bite at this stage in its youth. Good dose of acidity too. So elegant and powerful at the same time. Beautifully balanced. Very nice stuff. Tremendous value. Molesworth nailed this one.
93/100 WWP: Outstanding
Further Reading:
- Check out Wine Spectator Insider (online subscription required)
- Search for this wine at retail on Wine-Searcher.com
Posted with Blogsy
American Trousseau back on the table
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/GuSC/~3/-K0774OEXzM/
Review of the 3Divas White Wine Blend from Montemaggiore winery
Source: http://www.beyondnapavalley.com/blog/review-of-the-3divas-white-blend-from-montemaggiore-winery/
Tasting Leelanau 2012 – Tandem Ciders & Left Foot Charley
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/gangofpour/uncZ/~3/twGS3RjkOME/tandem-lfc
Tasting notes - Berlin Tasting
No. 1 - 2005 Chateau Mouton-Rothschild (Bordeaux)
Dark colour with intense smell of pencil, cigar, currant and spicy wood. It’s full-bodied, rich and concentrated but also with an upfront softness. 96/100.
No. 2 - 2004 Sassicaia (Tuscany)
Not so intense in the nose - a little cherry. The [...]
Source: http://www.wine4freaks.com/40/tasting-notes-berlin-tasting/
Wednesday, 26 September 2012
Joel Robuchon At The Mansion
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/vagablond/ysSN/~3/a3m32xKXYV8/
Wine of the Month Club
7 Reliably Outstanding Fruit-Forward California Pinot Noir Producers
I thought it would be interesting to share a list of producers, mostly ones I'd consider to be at least somewhat fruit-forward stylistically, who when I open a bottle of their wines I have full confidence the wine is going to be outstanding.
Here are 7 reliably outstanding California Pinot Noir producers I've discovered:
Kosta Browne
A benchmark, bold, fruit-forward producer. Their appellation wines (Russian River, Sonoma Coast and recently added Santa Lucia Highlands) go for $58 and their single vineyard wines fetch $78. After a string of favorable ratings, their 2009 Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir was named Wine Spectator's Wine of the Year. Rarely seen at retail, this one is mostly mailing list only with some availability in restaurants. A tough mailing list to crack but get on it and have patience. It's worth it. Sign up at http://kostabrowne.com
Sojourn
Some of their wines are rightfully described as "a Cab drinker's Pinot Noir" (Ridgetop, Gap's Crown) but others let the site speak beautifully for itself (Rodgers, Alder Springs). Their appellation wines sell for $39-$42 and they're fantastic. Their single vineyards go for $48-$59. One of the most favorable mailing lists on the planet. Sign up now at http://sojourncellars.com
Radio-Coteau
Gorgeous stuff that shows diversity from vineyard to vineyard. La Neblina and the newly-introduced Laguna are my favorites, Alberigi is leaner in style. You'll see some availability retail but rarely at a price better than what's available winery direct. That these spectacular wines are available in the high $40s is an example of why California Pinot Noir is one of the most exciting categories in wine today.
Dehlinger
Three years ago I'd never heard of Dehlinger. But after a friend introduced me to their wines and I've had a chance to try a number of their bottles and I've been blown away. An old school Pinot Noir producer, they show strength across a number of varieties. Prices are extremely reasonably considering the quality. Their Pinots sell for between $45 and $60. http://dehlingerwinery.com
Sea Smoke
They ruffled some feathers when they labeled their 2009s "Grand Cru", but they're undeniably one of the finest California Pinot Noir producers. There's quite a price gap between their Southing bottling (around $50) and the $100+ "Ten". I say go for the Southing. It ages nicely and can exhibit gorgeous earthy characteristics with just a bit of age. Their 2004 Southing was my wine of the year. Sea Smoke is always a nice bottle to break out for a special occasion. http://seasmoke.com
Belle Glos
Their appelation "Meiomi" bottling ($22 release and available for less at retail if you look around) provides a beautiful window into what they do with their single vineyard bottlings. Las Alturas and Taylor Lane are my favorites for their cherry pipe tobacco notes and polished, effortless richness. Beautifully packaged in wax dipped bottles with scripted lettering, these wines are a great value at $44. And even better when you find them for less at select retailers. So reliably delicious. Search for these at retail on Wine-Searcher.com
Black Kite
A relatively new producer from the Anderson Valley, Black Kite's Kite's Rest bottling has impressed me across a number of vintages. I tasted the 2008 blind against alongside a couple of nice Burgundies and thought to myself: "Now this is what Pinot Noir should taste like". What can I say - I love California Pinot Noir. I usually try to catch this one at specialty retailers due to tough shipping terms winery direct to the Northeast.
Question of the Day: Who did I miss? Who are the California Pinot Noir producers who, when you open a bottle, you're fairly certain it's going to be an outstanding, fruit-forward, enjoyable bottle?
Check back soon for a similar list of leaner, more terroir-driven producers. I'd love it if you subscribed to The Wellesley Wine Press to get new posts sent to your inbox.
No Go on Massachusetts Direct Wine Shipment in 2012
A 2010 federal court ruling determined the state's current laws were unconstitutional because they discriminated against large wineries. HB 1029 would have lifted this large winery restriction, established mechanisms for licensing out of state wineries, provided a means for excise tax collection, and perhaps most importantly, defined a reasonable fee structure for FedEx and UPS to ship wine within the state.
What Happens Now?
It's back to the drawing board. Expect a new bill to be introduced in 2013. The legislative session in Massachusetts runs for two years so let's hope a new bill can be introduced that provides not only for winery direct shipments but for retailer shipments as well.
What Can I Do To Help?
In talking with my state representative about this issue, I learned that they're not hearing from a lot of consumers about their support of direct shipment of wine. Send your representative a sincere email asking where they stand on the issue and ask them to help push the issue along at every opportunity. Don't know who your representative is? A list can be found here.
Also consider dropping Representative Theodore Speliotis an email expressing your displeasure with the fact that committee he chairs failed to act on this bill for two years. Ironically, the committee is named the Joint Committee on Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure. As a consumer I hardly feel protected by the lack of passage of this bill. In fact I feel like my rights as a consumer are being trampled upon in favor of a few who want to keep Massachusetts in the dark ages of commerce.
Further Reading
Why every Massachusetts resident should be in favor of the direct shipment of wine
Subscribe to the Wellesley Wine Press for updates on this issue
Yao Ming Retires
In South Africa for #CapeWine2012
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Protected: The Zinfandel Festival 2012: A new AVA to be reckoned with
Source: http://www.beyondnapavalley.com/blog/the-zinfandel-festival-2012-a-new-ava-to-be-reckoned-with/
Tuesday, 25 September 2012
2010 Calera Central Coast Pinot Noir: QPR Alert?
The 2009 vintage was rated 92 points by the Wine Advocate, and combined with its modest $24 release price and relatively high production levels (around 10,000 cases) the wine seems destined to join the likes of Siduri and Loring as perennial Pinot value plays.
I was just browsing through the Wine Spectator rating database and man...I had a hard time finding a 93 point California Pinot Noir for $25 or less. I had to go back into the early '90s to a time when Pinot was in its infancy in California and producers were just getting started with the grape to find a Pinot this affordable and highly rated.
But when you're buying by the numbers you're hanging your hopes on one person's palate. In the case of Wine Spectator that's James Laube who has a reputation with some for preferring ripe wines - and he states as much in his tasting notes for the wine: "very ripe but still complex". [Spectator online subscription required]
If we consult the wisdom of the masses we currently see a Cellar Tracker community rating for the 2009 at 89.1 and the 2010 is currently averaging 90.3.
If we run these metrics through the WWP QPR Calculator (what's that?) we get a 2.5: A Very Good value.
The wine is also referred to as the 35th Anniversary Vintage - and there's some confusion and duplicate entries on Cellar Tracker for sure. But there's no special bottling to seek out. If you're buying the 2010 Calera Central Coast Pinot Noir you're getting the wine that Spectator rated 93 points. Here are my thoughts on the wine:
2010 Calera Central Coast Pinot Noir [35th Anniversary Vintage]
$24 Release Price
14.9% Alcohol
7,688 Cases Produced
Primary [very] ripe plum notes mug the otherwise nice Pinot characteristics lurking in the background. 14.9% alcohol (up from 14.2% in 2009) and it shows. The wine clings heavily to the glass and there's heat at the backend of every sip. An instantaneous aerator the first night and an evening of rest under stopper didn't help accelerate the aging process. Will this be better with time? I wouldn't count on it. But for $24 retail it's a decent wine I guess. I just can't see my way to 92 or 93 points.
88/100 WWP: Very Good
Where to Buy
In Massachusetts:
- TerraVino in Brookline
- Wine Cellar of Stoneham
Question of the Day: Have you had this wine? If so, what did you think?
Bordeaux says no to American “chateaux”
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/GuSC/~3/m5hLlpXbYqI/
Age Verification Comes to Twitter
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheWineConversation/~3/TxMx5Vsz_Eo/
Wine In The ‘Shark Tank’
Wine In The ‘Shark Tank’ originally appeared on Winecast. Licensed under Creative Commons.
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Event Report: 2012 Wine Spectator Grand Tour Las Vegas
Being an avid reader of the WWP and a fan of Robert on Cellar Tracker, I offered up to write a few notes for him on the recent Cinco de Mayo Wine Spectator Grand Tasting event held in Las Vegas at The Mirage. My wife and I attended the event with 2 other couples (one from Connecticut and one from California) who are all wine enthusiasts. We approached this event with 2 objectives:
- Taste wines that are not available or that are too expensive for our budget (I am a big fan of the WWP QPR tool)
- Taste wines that are either vertical extensions or from a winery whose products we like or may want to purchase.
Pre-Tasting
Because our group decided wine was our focus and food was secondary, we chose not to rely on the food at the tasting. This decision was also influenced by the unknown of how The Mirage would handle the event, given that this was a new venue. There were also some comments written on Cellar Tracker that made us wonder how crowded the event would be.
The information provided by Wine Spectator was very limited before the tasting. The only real information available was a list of participating wineries, with the actual wines being poured not disclosed before the event. Given that this was the third (and final) Grand Tasting event, some of the wines being poured were disclosed in other blogs, but the information was sketchy at best. This severely limited our ability to plan specific wines to taste. Personally, I view this lack of information as the only significant opportunity for improvement for the event.
The Wait and Entry
We arrived about 35 minutes before the event started and were approximately 400 people behind the front of the line. Although the ventilation was lacking, we survived the wait and entered the tasting hall with no issues. The entrance was actually rather speedy, considering the logistics involved. We were given a pen, a handy notebook with all the wineries and wines being served, and a souvenir Riedel glass upon entrance.
If you have ever been to a trade show, you know how this event was set up. Two hundred 8x10 booths set up in 8 aisles. A very logical organization by region and varietal made it simple to understand and find wines. Food and tables were at the one end of the enormous hall. Other than the entrance wait, the only real crowd to be found the rest of the night was for the 1999 Ch. Margaux being poured. I am sure it is delicious; however, we skipped that line for the entire evening.
We quickly discovered that there was plenty of time to taste whatever wines you wanted, so there was really no need to hurry. The food was set up as a buffet, and was rather generous with carving stations, pasta stations, etc., set up in a logical perimeter around the tables. There was no need to eat beforehand and the quality of the food seemed rather excellent.
The Wines
After a quick review of the notebook, we found at least 6 wines for our “must taste” list:
2009 Ch. Pontet-Canet Pauillac (WS 96 $180)
Very nice young Bordeaux. Lots of complexity and fruit. I would give this a 92 (interesting to me, this is the same as I rated the 2009 Ch. Lillian Ladouys at $24/bottle).
2009 Caymus Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley Special Select (WS 93 $130)
I was very excited to see this wine as I bought a few bottles of it, but had not tried it. Wow, what a fruit bomb. Rather shocking for a Caymus Special Select – I hope the fruit fades and other flavors develop over time. Hardly even tasted like a cab blend to me.
Editor's Note: This aligns almost exactly with my notes on this vintage from a recent retrospective tasting of Caymus Special Selection.
2008 BV Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley Georges Latour Private Reserve (WS 93 $125)
I have tried these in the past and always thought them to be over-oaked. Same with this vintage. Pass. Maybe after 10 years in the cellar.....
2008 Merus Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 2008 (WS 93 $135)
I had read good things about Merus and wanted to try their cabernet. This wine did not disappoint. Complexity, depth, finish - what a cabernet. This was the first wine I tasted that I would have rated higher than WS. My WOTN. A 95 in my book and worth seeking out.
2010 Kosta Browne Russian River Valley Pinot Noir (Not yet rated)
This was the only wine I noticed that had not been rated yet by WS. I'll forgive WS, given that KB produced their WOTY last year. Nice pinot noir, full bodied and relatively complex. I would buy some if it were available under $50...but would probably pass on it at a higher price and would definitely not stock up on it. I'd rate it a 92.
2008 Joseph Phelps Insignia (WS 94 $225)
Way too young to drink yet. Some complexity and the finish was pleasant, but the fruit was overwhelmed by oak. Would not drink for at least 8-10 years.
Other Wines that Caught my Eye
2007 Casanova di Neri Brunello di Montalcino (WS 94 $110)
I have a bottle of this in my basement. Now I know why I wrote a 2020 on the bottle tag. Perhaps I should change that to 2030 or save it in my will for one of my children....talk about tannic. I could not drink it.
As a matter of fact, I tried numerous tannic oak bombs that are just not my style (2009 Ornellaia, 2005 La Poderina, 2009 Setti Ponti Oreno, et al. These are just way too young to taste...I really do not understand how people can rate these wines in their youth and I found them generally undrinkable at this point. Bummer.
Being a pinot noir fan, I think I tried all of the pinots at the tasting. A couple that stood out for me were:
2010 Siduri Santa Lucia Highlands Rosella's Vinyard - in my book as good as the Kosta Browne served in the booth next door.
2008 Domaine Drouhin Laurene - my favorite Oregon wine of the night
2008 Domaine Serene Evanstad Reserve - I have a few bottles of the 07, and the 08 is still a little rough at this point.
2009 Elk Cove Willamette Valley - quite nice, but pretty standard.
2008 King Estate Eola-Amity Hills Roserock Vineyard - I really liked this one, but found it odd that only three hundred 6 packs were produced...why would you feature this at a WS Grand Tasting? FYI, WS rated this one a 95.
Other Wines I Thought were Very Good
2008 Chateau St Jean Cinq Cepages
2008 DeLille Doyene
2005 Yalumba Shiraz Barossa The Octavius
2009 Hall Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley Jack's Masterpiece - this was my #2 WOTN. We learned it actually comes from the Sacrashe Vineyard in Napa Valley. We have enjoyed many cabernets from that vineyard in the past.
2009 Two Hands Lily's Garden McLaren Vale Shiraz Delicious. Personally, I would probably still go for the 09 Angel’s Share and Gnarly Dudes from Two Hands. Those 2 are both delicious and very drinkable right now.
We did not try many white wines (one of our friends did love the 2010 Vina Nora Rias Baixas Nora de Neve), but did manage a few trips over to the Champagne and dessert wines rows and tried a few of these as well. The favorites of the night were the Schramsberg Reserve North Coast 2004, Luis Roederer Brut Champagne Premier NV, Veuve Clicquot Brut Champagne 2004, and the Moet & Chandon Brut Champagne Imperial NV.
Conclusions and Recommendations
Although we tried to pace ourselves, spit when possible, and utilized the full 3 hours, we still only tried about half of the wines we would have liked. It was a little frustrating to think of the many, many highly rated wines that we just could not taste. Perhaps next year, our goal will be to try 30 wines we know nothing about...
A lot of the WS staff attended and were fun to talk with. Tim Fish, Thomas Matthews, and James Laube were all there and chatting it up with attendees. We met a lot of interesting people and winemakers.
Overall, the opportunity to try many different styles of high scoring wines was pretty amazing. The venue was very comfortable and I would recommend attending - the $200 was money well spent.
Further Reading: 2011 Wine Spectator Grand Tour Boston Event Report
Editor's Note: My sincere thanks for this guest post! I think a lot of you will agree - it's hard to tell his writing style from mine and this provided excellent insight into an event we all would have enjoyed.
Question of the Day: Did you attend any of the Wine Spectator Grand Tour events this year? They were also held in New York City and Washington DC. If so, what did you think? If not, where do you think Spectator should visit next year?
Field Notes from a Wine Life – Story Edition
Odds and ends from a life lived through the prism of the wine glass…
Words aren’t enough
I give to thee…the worst wine ad of all-time and that’s without delving into the ponderous name of the wine or, why, inexplicably, the back of the laptop in the photo has a big sticker for Ass Kisser ales…
…In the main visual, three people are huddled around the boss giving him “Ass Kisser” wine…Isn’t the point of being a brown-noser to do it subtly? Who randomly gifts their boss right before their employee review?
Even if you view this ad as schlocky hipster irony, it’s still bad and makes you wonder if the advertising sales guy at Wine Enthusiast couldn’t do a solid for his client and suggest creative that, well, actually makes sense.
Or, maybe being horrible was the plan – like a movie that becomes a cult hit a decade hence…so bad that it becomes a lofty ideal for bad, enjoying a following because of its campy nature.
Bad Week for Eric Asimov?
On both Tuesday and Wednesday of this week, Eric Asimov, the New York Times chief wine critic was taken to task for different reasons by Matt Kramer at Winespectator.com and Steve Heimoff at his blog of the same name.
This is interesting because wine writers of a certain stature very carefully call their shots amongst their peers.
Normally the shots are fired up (Parker) or down (bloggers), but usually never sideways amongst writers in the same strata.
To watch Asimov, as seemingly decent of a guy as you’ll find, called onto the rug by two notable wine writers, to me, speaks to something much bigger.
With Parker stepping aside and Antonio Galloni receiving glancing admiration for hitting a stand-up triple by dint of his current position at the Wine Advocate, at the same time that the wheat and chaff are separating with wine bloggers, somebody has to step into the fray as a public foil for other wine writers to target.
Unwittingly, it might be Asimov for reasons entirely opposite of Parker’s hegemony. Asimov’s palate for wine seems food-friendly and balanced; he takes an egalitarian approach to wine for the people without pretense and he doesn’t score wines.
In other words, Asimov is bizarro Superman to Parker’s swashbuckling empiricism and, perhaps, even a greater danger to the Ivory Tower of legacy wine media than the mere jealousy that passed for poking at Parker.
Just a thought…
It’s all about the story
The wine business has always been excellent at storytelling. Virtually every winery has their origin story and that of their dirt down pat, even if not very compelling.
So, it is with interest that I’ve been watching Facebook’s recent changes keeping in mind that founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg has emphasized emotional resonance, narrative and storytelling – factors that extend well beyond consumers using Facebook to “Tell the story of their life,” as Zuckerberg noted. This will be inclusive of the brands that use Facebook for engagement, as well.
I was further intrigued after reading parallel news reports that Randall Rothenberg, President and CEO of the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), is singing the same song.
He notes in an article in Advertising Age, “Technology innovations are irrelevant to the future of advertising and marketing unless a more fundamental activity is understood, honored and advanced: the craft of storytelling.”
A quick Google search for “Mark Zuckerberg F8 Keynote” and “Randall Rothenberg MIXX Keynote” will yield a number of stories all occurring in September. There’s no question about Facebook’s influence and the IAB is the thought-leader for digital advertising. Between the two of them, they present an imposing shadow of influence on digital marketing.
If I were a winery with an understanding that digital marketing is a tsunami of change that is important, I might start revisiting my winery story for some fine-tuning…
Two books that I recommend to bone-up on the elements of good business storytelling are: The Story Factor and Made to Stick.
On Sweet Wines
In an article this week from the San Francisco Chronicle called “Beginner drinkers get a crush on sweet red wines,” E.&J. Gallo VP of Marketing, Stephanie Gallo, noted: “There is a major shift going on in the U.S. wine drinking culture. First, we noticed that regional sweet red blends were doing particularly well in Indiana, Texas and North Carolina. Second, our consumers were asking if we produced a sweet red wine after tasting our Moscato at events.”
Good Grape readers had the scoop on this months ago when I wrote:
How Sweet it is – The Growing Sweet Wine Trend in early October, 2010
And
Move over Moscato and Make Way for Sweet Reds in February of this year
Just saying…
Source: http://goodgrape.com/index.php/site/field_notes_from_a_wine_life_story_edition/
Monday, 24 September 2012
Wine Bloggers’ Wines from Oddbins
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheWineConversation/~3/0KjB-LdU1U0/