Drink Eat Love

Monday Night Wines: Drinking a Classic

It is always a pleasure to be poured a glass of wine that from the first moment you know you are in safe hands. I may taste and drink more wine than most, I generally taste mediocre or boring wines, I accept that to get to the good stuff you have to wade through a ton of crap. This week's wine is a true gem, beautiful, sexy, and stop you in mid-sentence wine, Le Macioche Rosso di Montalcino 2007. Last week I received an email from a guest looking for a few Rosso's that he had seen in the Wall Street Journal. I pulled up all the Rosso's that we sell and I was depressed to see that we only had a few and I was not pleased by the quality we had, so I made a phone call. The next day four Rossos, plus one Texan and the owner of a wine company were at my desk pouring a line up of wine that made the rest of my meetings that day seem horrible.

Exploring an Obsession

Using the word obsession in the realms of alcohol may seem like a red flag to most, but the obsession is not (all) in the drinking but the beauty of the place, grape, and history. The past month I have posted more about one grape than I really should, but I am so captivated by Nebbiolo I cannot help help explore the varital every which way I can. 

Monday Night Wines: A surprise

The past weeks hiking and family time in Sequoia National Forest was much needed and an amazing experience. I was apprehensive about being away from all forms of technology, but I realized how much fun it is do actually talk, play card/board games and watch the stars. Once back, it did not take me long to taste great wine and get back into the groove of sharing what is out there. This Monday I shared wine with a group of "serious" winos and brought a wine I knew nothing about, Black Cap Pinot Noir. Well, the boys enjoyed it and so did I!

Monday Night Wines: New Friends get my favorite

As I rush to pack the car and get out of town for a few days of R & R, I wanted to make sure I got in this past weeks top wine. As a good friend commented on Facebook, I have a "Barolo problem". I fully admit that the region of Barolo has me 100% hooked and I could not be happier. My passion for this tiny region in Piedmont began early in my wine career at Central Market in Austin, Texas. Since then I have been on a never ending quest to drink as much Barolo as I can get my hands on. This past Friday I had a "man-date" with a new friend and we went total "wine geek" at La Ciccia. We started with a few glasses of Passerina, a beautifully textured and aromatic grape from the Marche. We then launched into a bottle of Asprinio d' Aversa DOC, followed by a bottle of Ciro DOC from Calabria. Now for most, that should be enough but I could not control myself and we went for the Barolo, a 2001 Mauro Veglio Castelletto 2001. It was surreal!

Getting outta Dodge

On Tuesday I am heading out of town for four days and I could not be happier. No, this is not a wine trip, it is a real vacation: no cell phone coverage, no internet, and no TV. I am headed to Sequoia National Forest with my wife and her family. There will be twelve of us hiking, relaxing and cooking each night. I have packed two cases of wine, a case of beer and a mixed bag of some spirits...it will be a good week. Cheers!

 

Monday Night Wines: Taking a second sip

We are always told that the first impression is the only impression that we get. If you apply this mantra to wine you may miss out on some really great juice. In tasting wine there are times that I put my nose in the glass and I know that the wine is flawed or just plum gross, but there are times when a wine sneaks up on me. I'll put my nose in and it is not flawed nor is it bad, it is just shy and not ready to play yet. This week was the perfect example of a wine that on first sniff was simple, pleasant but did not speak to me. Fast forward a few hours and the wine was radiant. Martinborough Vineyard is one of the pioneers of the New Zealand wine industry and for over twenty-five has produced beautiful and classic wines from the very start.

OCD about "Natural Wines"

 

(Garnacha vines in Rioja own their own rootstock)
I have been going nuts for the pass three months about "Natural Wines", for some reason I am obsessed with the idea of what "naturall wine" means. Since there is no true definition nor singular practice of it there are many answers. There are arguments raging in the press, on blogs, and between winemakers as to what "naturall wine making" is or is not. I whole heartily believe in minimalism when it comes to producing wine but what makes it "natural". Randall Grahm of Bonny Doon believes that wine labels should have ingredients list just like a can of soda, I agree (Link to The Pour's article on Grahm). Since 2007 he has put labels on his wines detailing exactly what is in his wines. To some, including himself, Mr. Grahm's wines are "natural", to others they are not...why? 

Monday Day Wines: Lemons in to Lemonade

Yesterday I was all geared up to go to the Domaine Serene 20th anniversary tasting and lunch at RN74. I got to work super early, plugged away at my desk until it was time to leave, hopped across the Bay Bridge, spent thirty minutes searching for parking (the best I found was $15 flat rate) and headed to the restaurant exactly at 11:30 A.M. Upon entering I noticed that there was no one there. I walked up to the host and said, "Umm, I'm here for a tasting?", the response, "It is tomorrow!" Oh crap! Well, I had two choices: 1. Go back to the office and have a crap lunch 2. Stay for lunch and then go back to the office. I went with the later and was thankful for it.