Best. Job. Ever.

The San Francisco Chronicle has a story running on their site detailing what amounts to most oenophiles DREAM JOB. The position, dubbed officially as "wine country correspondent," will entail knowing a lot about wine, really enjoying it, and having some background in social media like Twitter, blogging and other mediums. All things considered . . . maybe I'll apply. Follow the link to read the piece in the Chronicle. Excerpt from the article is below.

From the Chronicle:

On Tuesday, hundreds of wine-loving, social-media-savvy types showed up in downtown San Francisco to apply for a "Really Goode Job," with Murphy-Goode Winery in Sonoma County. Part publicity stunt, part oldfashioned meet-and-greet, the event marked the start of a two-month process expected to draw as many as 10,000 applications for the position of "Wine Country correspondent." Murphy-Goode winemaker Dave Ready Jr., a poker enthusiast, former Deadhead and onetime aspiring rock star, knows the nuances of when to plant and when to pick. He is clear on fermenting and bottling and most things in between.

The Godfather

If you don't know, you should know - Francis Ford Coppola makes great wine. His films aren't bad either. Over the last thirty years, Coppola has taken his passion for wine and turned it into a tangible, profitable and enjoyable business venture. He bought a plot of land in California, turned it into a successful vineyard and now sells thousands of bottles that contain some of the best reds, whites and bubblies at almost every price point. This article in the Chicago Tribune gives an excellent run-down of Coppola's progress in the world of wine. It also highlights how with success has come innovation, giving him the room to try out some new ideas and inventive packaging. If you're not familiar with the Coppola brand, read the article, buy a bottle (or a single serving!) and enjoy.

From the Tribune:

Coppola is the idea man in developing wine products. Why, he wondered, couldn't a person go into a convenience store and buy a glass of wine to go with lunch without the hassle of bottles, glasses and corkscrews? Out of that came "Wine by the Glass," a 187-milliliter (just over 6 ounces) portion of red or white wine in a bistro-style glass with a peel-off foil lid. It costs about $1. . . "We want them to have quality, authenticity and pleasure," Coppola said of the public. "Above all, quality, because we know wine, in certain areas, has gotten expensive and we really want to give something worth what you pay."

The Best of Budget Wine

If you're looking for some new, affordable wines to drink this summer - this article & video on LAist.com is the place to go. Budget drinking has become somewhat of an obsession with wine writers in recent months (thanks mostly to our lovely economic recession), and I have to say that a handful of those articles have turned me on to a number of really great, really cheap varietals. This particular piece, titled How to be a Budget Wino, gives a rundown of a few more wines that will surely make that list. LAist spoke with some experts from Fresh and Easy Neighborhood market to get down to brass tax about budget wine.

From LAist:

The folks at F&E work with wine producers from all over the world, including New Zealand, Argentina, Australia, Spain, and Italy, as well as on the West Coast of the US in Washington and here in California. They've got 65 specially-selected wines available exclusively at their stores, and many of them have won awards, and can be had for under $11. The folks at F&E floated some samples our way, and we've been sipping our way through a $4.99 Ogio Primotivo, a $3.99 Northwood Cabernet Sauvingnon, a $1.99 Vista Point Chardonnay, and a $4.99 Pink Flamingo Rose. (Our fave pick of the four is, hands down, the Primotivo; also, read about LAist's Caroline on Crack's Wine Smackdown taste test.)

Top Five US Wine Schools

Feel like getting really serious about wine? Sommelier school is the place to do it. And if master sommelier is your goal, Food and Wine Magazine has a list of the top five wine schools in the United States to help you discern where to hone your knowledge. As you might expect, the schools tend to be located near large cities (one in NYC, DC and Chicago), or in wine country (Napa), but the fifth location is in Colorado. They're all great schools, but keep in mind that these are really for the most serious of the serious students. If you're just in it to impress some friends, the local wine class is a better bet.

Here's the F&W List:


Chicago Wine School; Chicago

Proprietor Patrick W. Fegan has taught classes in and around Chicago for over 30 years. His five-week introductory session is a good overview.

International Wine Center; New York City

Founded in 1982 and run by Master of Wine Mary Ewing-Mulligan, the center instructs students at all levels. Basic classes are on Saturdays.

International Wine Guild; Denver

This school, based at the Metropolitan State College of Denver, has sent several graduates on to high-profile wine careers.

Rudd Center for Professional Wine Studies, Culinary Institute of America; Napa

The Rudd center holds its four-day-long Discovering the Professional World of Wine class five times a year, often with Jeff Morgan as the instructor; the next session begins in mid-June.

Washington Wine Academy; Alexandria, Virginia

This suburban-DC school, staffed by top local wine writers and sommeliers, offers professional-certification classes as well as tours of local wineries and weekly wine-and-movie nights.

Wine and Technology Converge at Clo

Want to go to a really, really cool wine bar? Try Clo in Manhattan. There's an article on the new-ish NYC wine spot on MSNBC's website today, but that's only the first reason why you should stand up and take notice. For me, it strikes a nearly perfect blend of traditional, sommelier knowledge (the bar was started, after all, by well-known oenophile Andrew Bradbury) and new age digital technology that's become so commonplace with the advent of BlackBerrys and the iPhone.

I won't go into too much detail, since you can get the rundown from the MSNBC piece. But, I will say that it involves an awesome selection of wines by the bottle or the glass. Clo has also turned their bar into a digital touch screen, allowing you to scroll through their catalogue, look at pictures and even read about the characteristics of each varietal. If you love wine and you live in New York, this is a must-see destination.

Sustainable Wines for Earth Day

It's Earth Day! To celebrate, The Washington Post wine writer Dave McIntyre has a great article out discussing the benefits of green, sustainable vineyards and the wines which they make. He breaks down the "three shades" of green wine making into Sustainable, Organic & Bio-dynamic. For my money, I think he does a pretty good job explaining what goes into all three of those categories. But, I think the real appeal of this article is the passion driving it. McIntyre has a real love for grapes that are grown in this fashion, and in turn is impressed with the wine that results from that process. For the sake of Earth Day you should follow the link and check out the article, but I've provided one of the more enthusiastic passages to give you a taste below.

From The Post:

Are wines better if they are produced in an Earth-friendly manner? I think so, but I cannot prove it. I believe wines taste more vibrant when they are grown without pesticides and herbicides; they express a sense of place, an individuality that cannot be conveyed by a simple label of "Cabernet" or "Merlot." I'll admit I want to believe that, but it makes sense. Earth-friendly farming should produce a better crop, whether it's local lettuce or Carneros chardonnay.

Fine Wine Sales Up Again

Even though prices of fine wines is down from the same time last year, the sales rate is actually up. Major auction houses like Sotheby's and Christies are surpassing their expected sales numbers on a regular basis. It also appears that more folks are showing up at the auctions than expected. This, I think, is probably a result of those oenophiles with some cash to burn using fine wine as an investment.

Sure it's amazing to drink a Bordeaux aged to perfection, but it can also be profitable to by a relatively young wine (by auction standards, anyway), then to sell it at a profit years down the line. It's a long-term investment strategy that more and more people seem to be taking to heart. I for one wish that I had the type of funds to make these sort of investments, but then again . . . I'd probably cave in and drink some of these bottles before I sold them anyway. Reuters has an excellent story on the trend which can be found here.

From Reuters:

Lower wine prices have brought out the buyers. Sotheby's auction on Saturday fetched more than $2.9 million, above its presale estimate of $1.8 million to $2.6 million. Two weeks earlier, Chicago's Hart Davis Hart's sale brought in just under $2.7 million, also surpassing its presale estimates of up to $2.4 million. "What I look for are fair market values for wine," Beardsall said, adding that lower prices are a good time to buy younger vintages. Beardsall has more than 200 lots from one client going under the hammer in the Christie's sale. She said her client, whom she described only as a wealthy New York family that has been collecting for more than 20 years, is entertaining less.

Finding What's Affordable

The economy is in recession, and not a lot of us have extra cash to burn on expensive bottles of wine. Thankfully, with the right knowledge at your disposal buying cheaper wine doesn't mean that you have to totally sacrifice quality. There are literally thousands of varietals that are delicious, unexpected and affordable . . . you just need to know how to find them.

Today's edition of The Buffalo News wants to help you take a step in that direction, providing a number of great hints for how to select a bottle that will be pleasing to both your palate and your wallet. Their writer even rounds out the article with a list of 16 "sure things" that you should be able to find in New York for less than $15. If you're serious about wine, this is an article you'll most definitely be interested in.

From The Buffalo News:

Does saying the words “cheap” and “wine” in the same sentence bring to mind the weird uncle who lives in your grandma’s basement? Well then, when we talk about digging up wine deals, let’s call it “maximizing the value-to-dollar ratio.” That’s what my husband, a local wine wiz and beverage blogger, calls finding the best vino bang for your buck—and he’s all fancy. Believe it or not, wine doesn’t have to taste like vinegar and come in a gallon jug to be inexpensive. With hubby’s help, here are some tips for scoring keen-o vino at a great price.

Wine Taxes on the Rise

Starting May 1st, the tax on wine, beer and spirits is set to rise here in New York. As part of the new budget, the NY Times is reporting today that the excise tax on beer sold or made in New York rises to 14 cents per gallon from 11 cents, while the tax on wine sold or made in New York goes to 30 cents a gallon from 18.9 cents a gallon. But don't worry too much. This rise in taxes is actually to be paid by the distributor, brewer or winemaker - meaning that the price you pay for a bottle of vino isn't going to rise that much.

From The Times:

“The way it translates for your average bottle of wine is about two cents a bottle,’’ said Matt Anderson, a spokesman for the New York State Budget Division. “Same for a six-pack of beer, about one or one-and-a-half cents. These are relatively modest increases that won’t have much of an impact on consumers.’’

Singing the Praises of Sancerre

Ah, Sancerre. It's light, it's complex and it's one of the more perfect summer wines. And to hear NY Times wine writer Eric Asimov tell it, it's almost downright magical. In yesterday's Times, one of our favorite wine writers spent several paragraphs expounding on the finer points of the region, going as far as noting that - "The soft sibilance, the internal alliteration, the smooth completion, whether you give it the clipped French pronunciation or simply ease off the word American-style — it’s a beautiful sound, suggestive of beautiful wines."

That's certainly high praises, but praises that are pretty accurate. The Sancerre region produces some of my favorite wines for the summer months, and they seem to be consistent from year to year. Asimov has a particular affinity for the saugvinon blanc's of the region. If you're in the market for something new and refreshing when it finally starts to warm up in New York, Sancerre is a great region to start.

Jay McInernery Reading

This announcement doesn't make for a large post, but it's an important one if you're living in New York City. One of my favorite wine writers and novelists, Jay McInernery, is scheduled to give a reading at the Barnes and Noble on Greenwich this evening. He's promoting a new book of fiction, but the subject of wine is likely to come up. Go to the reading, listen to the words and learn a little about wine. He's got a wonderful ability to break down wine into easily understandable terms for novices like me.

All the information can be found in the listing provided by New York Magazine.

Cheap Wines that Don't Suck

I just stumbled across a great blog series and invaluable resource hosted by SanFranciscoWeekly.com. The blog series, which is titled Cheap Wines that Don't Suck, is fairly self explanatory. The author runs features twice every month or so that highlights a cheap wine he's recently tried that's actually pretty good. He's covered the gambit so far, highlighting delightful cheap vinho verdes, rosé champagne , reds and whites. The post that went live today discusses a Veuve du Vernay Brut rosé, which is an excellent bubbly for any occasion. Below I've provided an excerpt from that post, but you should follow the link to check out all of his choices. There's some really good ones there.

From SF Weekly;


Finding a cheap bottle of sparkling wine easy: lots of Spanish cavas and Italian Proseccos cost under $8, as do many domestic sparkling wines. However, most of these wines aren't that great--some are bland, some too sweet, some downright nasty-tasting. Finding a delicious one in that price range is a challenge. Veuve du Vernay Brut Rosé is the best cheap bubbly I've come across in a while. It has a nice strawberry nose, toasty, creamy, floral flavors with a hint of white pepper and rose petals, and a long, dry finish. Though quite fruity, it's not sweet at all, and has bracing acidity.

BYOB is on the Rise

The mark-up on wine in restaurants is the bane of oenophiles everywhere. 200%, 300% mark-ups are common in major cities, and when you're ordering nicer wines to begin with, we're talking about some serious cash for a single bottle. But, thankfully, it looks like there's an old idea that's making a big comeback as of late . . . the BYOB phenomenon. Restaurants in cities across the country are opening up to the idea of carry in booze, mostly as a result of poor sales numbers and a majority of their clientele not ordering wine anyway. It's an interesting way to bolster business, and great news for wine lovers who enjoy eating out every once and a while. The AP released a great article on the subject, which you can find in full on The Baltimore Sun's Website.

From the article:

With sales and traffic dwindling, many restaurants are either offering BYOB nights or chopping the "corkage" fee to open bottles bought elsewhere, to entice more wine-drinking diners to pay for a meal out. "My fiance and I are wine freaks, so we have been going to more BYOBs as a way to continue to drink great wine while not blowing our budget," said Christopher McGrath, a 26-year old money market trader and liability manager who lives in Montclair, N.J. -- where BYOB restaurants thrive since state law restricts the number of liquor licenses available. The signs that bringing your own is on the rise are still largely anecdotal. Christina Preiss, a 27-year-old Chicago resident, said wait times at her favorite haunts that let customers bring their own are on the rise. More restaurants are also advertising special BYOB nights and more aggressively promoting the fee cuts.

Long Island Wine Weekend

If you're thinking about an oeno-centric vacation this summer but don't have the time or finances to travel to France, Italy, Spain or Napa . . . you might want to consider Long Island. I know, I know, it certainly doesn't have that glamorous ring to it, but the wine being produced at a lot of these vineyards is actually pretty good. There are dozens of vineyards open for visits that offer tours and even bed and breakfasts. Located only a short hop away from NYC, you won't find a more convenient weekend of wine filled relaxation.

That being said, Food and Wine writer Lettie Teague has an excellent account of a visit to Long Island wine country from last year available on the F & W website. It contains a detailed account of visits and tastings at a number of the more prolific vineyards, and could serve as a pretty good guide for how to plan a weekend trip. It might not be exotic, but it could be a whole lot of fun.

From Food and Wine:

As the stereotype goes, great wine is made in glamorous locations (e.g., Napa or Tuscany) synonymous with money and prestige. And then there’s the contradiction that is Long Island: It’s the target of jokes (and the inspiration of many Billy Joel songs), but it’s also the home of the glamorous Hamptons, and lately, the source of some very good wines. Until recently, this last fact was more a rumor than a reality to me. While I’d heard that Long Island wines had improved, and some had even earned impressive critical scores, I still wasn’t convinced they had really gotten dramatically better.

Eight Rosés That Shouldn't be Missed

Springtime means the rebirth of white wines, as well as another varietal favorite of mine - the Rosé. Gourmet Magazine (and especially their website as of late) is a great resource for all things foodie friendly, and I think their feature today on eight great Rosés is a perfect example of that fact. Sadly, a number of people picture that all-too-sweet low brow White Zinfandel when they hear rose, but its not even in the same league as the choices listed by Gourmet. If you're throwing an Easter gathering and looking for some refreshing, amazing wines that will turn heads . . . this is a great place to start.

From Gourmet:

When you live in the north, the longest season isn’t winter; it’s the bridge between winter and spring, when our chlorophyll reserves have fallen perilously low and we begin to exhibit hypothermia-like symptoms of peeling off clothes even when it’s not actually warm enough to do so. To hasten the arrival of warmer, brighter days (inside, at any rate), assemble an array of rosés. Their cheery pink hue puts the fridge in a party mood, damn the lack of green vegetables; their flavors are just rich enough with red fruit to take the edge off a cool night while they have the bright, sense-awakening snap of spring’s first sunny days.

Kosher Wine for Passover Time

It's Passover, which means that a whole lot of New Yorkers are venturing out in search of a good kosher wine. Thankfully, New York Magazine has an interview with City Winery's Michael Dorf available on their website that gives a rundown on some of the very best options in town. Most people think of kosher wine and immediately remember some awful variety of Manischewitz, but Dorf points out that kosher vino has come a long way in recent years. If you're hosting Seder at your place this year, this is a must read to help with the preparations.

From New York:


Kosher wine gets a bad rap, since the ubiquitous Manischewitz is essentially alcoholic syrup. There’s no need for kosher wine to be any worse than its treyf brethren, however. (To be certified as kosher, wine must be handled only by Orthodox Jews from the blending stage onward.) We sat down with City Winery’s Michael Dorf to learn about some of the best kosher wines for Passover — “the first primitive wine pairing,” he observes. His suggestions include when in the meal to drink the wine, but note that they all pair well with brisket.

Labeling French Wine

Ever wonder what makes French wines so different from American ones? No, it's not the hundreds of years of added experience or the steady, old-world style of cultivation on some of the most amazing soil in the world . . . really it's all about the label. OK, maybe not exactly, but this article from mLive.com has an interesting assessment of the different practices used by the French when creating labels for their bottles. The main departure from the American labeling system is that French wines are recognized by region first, type of grape second. The interesting bit from the mLive piece, however, is that a handful of vintners are bottling for straight-to-America sales and flipping the switch.

From mLive.com:

Most French wine labels carry the region where the wines were made as an indication of the grapes used for the wines. The French government allows certain grapes to be grown in certain areas. French wine drinkers, therefore, must learn what grapes are grown in the various regions of France. Growers can't plant Chardonnay grapes in Bordeaux, for instance, or grow Cabernet Sauvignon grapes in Burgundy. Bordeaux yields Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot grapes. Burgundy yields Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Gamay grapes.

Marsala

Marsala wine has always been a mystery to me. It's one of the first varietals that I became familiar with thanks to it being used in cooking so much, but I can honestly say I don't think I've ever drank a bottle of the stuff. Cooked with it? Sure. But sipped it . . . not so much. That being said, I found this article from TeatroNaturale to be extremely interesting and enlightening. Providing both a historical context for the wine, as well as how it's made and labeled, this piece works like an "everything you need to know about Marsala wine in ten minutes or less" guide. If you're interested in impressing friends with some oenophile themed trivia, this is a must read.

From the article:

The area around the city of Trapani is made up of what wine lovers call the Province of Marsala wine. Only here Marsala wine can be produced, aged, and bottled. Here, the sun shines two hundred and fifty days a year, with gentle sea breezes from the south constantly tempering the island’s prolific heat. The temperature range is critical for this vine that produces grapes with rich and strong fragrances and sugars, all thanks to its deep roots in the fertile red Sicilian soil. Sweet, semi-dry and dry are its tastes. Gold, amber and ruby are its colours: a question of taste.

The Tougher the Better

There's a really interesting article running on Business Week today about how the very best of wine has a tendency to be produced by vineyards planted on challenging terrain. The phenomenon of rocky hillsides with low yields producing high quality grapes and products certainly isn't news to serious oenophiles, but it may be a surprise for newcomers to the world of wine. There are a lot of factors that contribute to these ideas. Rocky soil, higher elevations and lower evening temperatures all tend to have a positive impact on the quality of grapes produced, but the real magic is in the growers themselves. It takes a really dedicated hand to cultivate grapes in the rougher terrain, and it's the dedication these vintners put into their horticultural work that produces really fantastic product.

From Business Week:

Most of Napa Valley's pioneers planted their vineyards on the valley floor, where the soil was fertile, the land easy to work, and yields high. However, while these are conditions than can produce good wine, they rarely result in the best wine. By contrast, all over the world, you often find this wine, the very best wine, wine with what I call the WOW! factor, that ability to amaze as well as please, comes not from the flat easy plains but the more challenging hill- or mountainside elevations.

2008 Bordeaux's Debut

Around this time every year, the vintners in the Bordeaux region of Southern France open their doors to big name buyers and wine aficionados to debut the most recent vintage of their trade. Similar to (or at least on a par with) film festivals, the visiting oenophiles are given the red carpet treatment. The real star, however, is the wine. This week marked the unveiling of the 2008 vintage, and nearly 5,000 guests arrived in the region to smell, taste, spit and the wine makers hope - buy.

The Associated Press released an article yesterday detailing the fanfare, and apparently the buyers were fairly impressed. According to world-renowned wine genius Michel Rolland, the 2008's are probably the best out of the region since 2005. This might not seem like much praise, but a thumbs up for quality from a guy like Michel can contribute to a huge upswing in sales among the high-class buyers spread out over the world. The whole week is an interesting aspect of the wine world that not a whole lot of drinkers are familiar with. If you're looking to learn something new, I suggest following the link and checking out complete coverage from the AP.

Springtime Brings Refreshing Wine

A good German Riesling is - without a doubt - one of my favorite parts of Spring. As the weather warms and the sun hangs in the sky a bit longer everyday, nothing beats sitting outside and sipping a nice, refreshing glass of the stuff. For most of my life I was never much of a white wine drinker, often thinking it was too sweet or too simple, but since discovering the wonders of Germany's fruit of the vine, my opinion has changed. And after a particularly brutal winter here in New York, I'm chomping at the bit for a little sunshine and white wine.

NY Times writer Eric Asimov seems to share my sentiment, publishing an excellent rundown on the finer points of Riesling in this morning's paper. They can be dry or sweet. They're versatile. They can be paired with almost anything. And on and on and on. He's got a lot of praises to sing and he sings them well. If you're interested in learning more about why you should run out and buy a bottle to celebrate the first weekend of spring, I highly suggest following the link and checking it out.