The Pickleback

I am definitely going to have to try it. I'll report back when I do.

Apropos of Nothing

If you happen to come by for a wine tasting and you just happen to taste my new favorite summer white wine, don't make a face and declare it "Too sweet". First, it's not sweet, there is hardly any residual sugar at all. Second....it hurts my feelings.

How To Open Wine.

Unscrew the cap. Really. Hear me out on this people. Corks stink. Sometimes literally. It's call cork taint it's caused by a fungus and it makes around 10% of all wine that use a natural cork smell like wet dog. As you can imagine it doesn't do much for the taste either. If only they would invent some sort of closure that wouldn't ruin so much wine. Yeah, well, they did...it's called a screw cap (okay, for wine it's technically called a stelvin closure). The objections come fast an furious, but they usually boil down to two basic ones---aging and aesthetics.

The theory of wine aging is that over the years a little oxygen seep around the cork and slowly oxidizes the wine changing and (if the wine maker knows what they are doing) improving the wine. And if no air can get past a screw cap the wine won't age properly. But really, the theory is actually more of an hypothesis because frankly, no one really knows. We're not even really sure how much, if any, oxygen can get around the cork over the years. After all, for generations now Champagne has been aged while being closed with bottle caps and people still think it's pretty good. And anyway when is the last time you personally aged wine? How a wine will age over the next 10-15 years is nothing but a purely academic exercise for everyone except an exceedingly small number of wine nerds. Personally, when I buy a bottle of wine the only reason it makes home un-opened is that Maryland has strict "open container" laws.

That leaves the aesthetic argument. Oh wait,...before we get to the aesthetics of the whole let just address some of the inchoate free floating hate out their for the screw cap. It all began way back in the twentieth century, most American wine was cheap garbage and I mean garbage, the kind of stuff I would not wash my feet with much less drink (and honestly I'm willing to drink most anything, remember--I'm a connoisseur not a snob). This cheap garbage was always, always closed with a screw cap. Hence everybody who was alive in the 1970's now associate the screw cap with garbage. But times have changed cheap...excuse me, I mean inexpensive american wine has improved tremendously and anyway those wines are always closed with a cork because it's really important that no one associate them with wine from the '70s. Right now, only interesting wine comes in a screw cap now.

But what about the ritual? The history? the tradition? Okay, fine. You got me. I'm as much a traditionalist as anyone. And I suppose the last time I was at a restaurant and had a bone in ribeye (just) medium rare with an awsome bottle of 2007 Caymus Cabernet (I wasn't paying), I would have been a tad disappointed if the sommelier hadn't gone through the whole rigmarole. But really how often does that happen? Wine is a daily drink (at least for me) ritual is not really all that important and why risk buying a bottle of bad wine? (end rant)

Update: I realize I used an excessive amount of italics and parenthesis in this post (but that's just how I roll).

Yasa Macabeo Old Vine Calatayud 2009 $10***+

Have you ever had a Macabeo? I love asking this kind of question because it always starts a great conversation because the answer is invariably, "no". And what that means is I get to talk about a varietal that they have no preconceptions of. Here we have a refreshing Spanish white wine with bright peach pair and melon flavors yet still crisp and dry. The Wine Enthusiast gave it 90 points. Now at this point, I usually receive an unsure look and they say something along the lines of "I didn't really plan spending a lot."

"Ten bucks."

"Oh." their eyes get wide. "I'll take two."

Do You Like Light Beer?

HEY...... you're not supposed to like it, it's light beer. Okay, that too harsh. It's long been my contention that everything has it's place even.....ahem.....light...uh...beer. The pros an cons of light beer go something like this:

Con: It's flavorless.

Pro: It's thirst quenching!

Con: It's flavorless.

Pro: It's low calorie!

Con: It's flavorless.

Pro: You can drink a lot of it without.........oh, heck you get the idea.

The thing is, the pros are right (of course so are the cons)---it is thirst quenching and low calorie and there are time where that actually counts for quite a bit. For instance I love Guinness, but let me tell you after I finish mowing the lawn (or maybe just before) stout is not what I'm aching for. A little extra water in your beer may be just what the bartender recommends. Admittedly, you could just a non light beer and and add some lemonade and make a traditional English shandy. But, really that's a different post, don't you think?

Las Colinas Del Ebro Granacha Blanca $11.99 ***++

The new Granacha Blanca's here! The new Granacha Blanca's here!! The new vintage of Las Colinas is back baby!!! Okay......(deep breath)......chances are you are not quite as excited about this as I am. But you should be. Because this wine ROCKS!!! Wait a moment....(another deep breath)....alright, I'm calm now. Now you may ask what the heck is Granacha Blanca? The short answer is, it's Granache. You know, the grape that makes the red wine? It's the the exact same grape, white and red wine to be made from different grapes. They don't have to be. For the most part, the grapes are the same color it's how the wine is made that changes the wine. In red wine the wine is fermented with the skins in and in white wines the wine is fermented without the grapes skins. Normally Granache is made into red wine but Las Colinas has made it into a white wine and it is wonderful. A very Spanish white dry and austere but full of mineral and tropical fruit flavor a darn near perfect white wine. ***++

Bordeaux is Wasted on the Young

At least according to the New York Times. Actually I think their point is well taken. Almost nobody comes into the store asking for Bordeaux. And nobody is interested in the under thirty dollar Bordeaux. The good stuff is just over $30 and that's that. It's also a problem. Bordeaux is a very specific style of wine. Remember, "Wine is an acquired taste" to quote a great writer about wine*. And learn to appreciate a wine style you need to start somewhere. And no-one wants to start at $30 a bottle that they might not like the the first five or ten times you try it.

*Me.

Husch Chenin Blanc 2009 $13.99***

Have you thought seriously about Chenin Blanc? Don't bother replying, I already know the answer--plus, I can't hear you I'm not blogging live you know. Of course you haven't thought about Chenin Blanc and why should you? It was never one the varietals that dominated new world wines. And when it does show up it becomes obvious the wine makers haven't settled on a style, resulting in someone finally trying a Chenin Blanc and they don't happen to like it that particular bottle they then decide that they don't like the grape. Which is totally unfair to the grape not to mention that it makes my job harder. Because Chenin Blanc can make fantastic wines in a bewildering number of styles. Case in point, Husch Chenin Blanc. it's off-dry which means that they leave in enough sugar to bring out the fruit flavors and give a nice heavy mouth feel but not enough to taste sweet. The lemon zest flavors play with honeydew notes making it a very refreshing and full flavored Summer wine.

Spike Your Juice

That's what it's really called "Spike Your Juice". Basically it's a a few packets of yeast and an airlock. With OJ and a couple of days you have yourself some alcohol. I can't imagine that it tastes particularly good, so frankly I'm not worried about the competition.

Man Tries to Exchange Stolen beer Because it Was Warm

Obviously a beer connoisseur.

Leftover Wine II

Lifehacker has an article about what you can do with leftover wine---other than try and drink it. I've pointed out before that leftover wine is not really an issue for me (an open bottle around me tends to evaporate fairly quickly) but really, I quite like in the idea of making my own vinegar.

We Sold The "Bakon" Vodka

No, we will not be getting in anymore.

Van Ruiten Vineyards, Old Vine Zinfandel 2007 ***++ $15.99

Zinfandel was considered to be unique to the the U.S. and "America's vine and wine" at least until someone figured out that it was in fact the same grape as Italian Primotivo and then they started looking around Croatia and.....look why don't you just read about it on Wikipedia where there is a long article on it that is just fascinating (at least to me). In the mean time we can talk about Van Ruiten "old vine" Zinfandel. Voted best Zinfandel of 2009 by the Wall Street Journal and given 90 pts. by Wine and Spirits Magazine this is a rich and intense blackberry jam with a long lasting black pepper spice finish. perfect for grilled meat or simply sitting and drinking by itself (my favorite way to drink wine).

I'm Back

Did you miss me? No? Well, then..........I'm glad I didn't bring you back any souvenirs.