Blogs and Books

Well, you pushed me far enough. A little prod from Phil, a push from my in-laws, and a big shove from my parents. I started writing my book. Are you happy now? I won't give much details though. It's a novel that involves wine. Maybe I'll drop some hints here and there, but I kind of want to keep it wrapped up while I work from now on. In other news, we had dinner at Up River Cafe again the other night. This time with my parents. A nice little Duckhorn Sauvignon Blanc batted lead off. Crisp, refreshing, and a real palate pleaser. With entrees came a 2004 Williams Seylam Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir. Oh how tasty! Medium to light bodied with hints of cherry. Not overly fruity like some Sonoma Pinots, specifically Russian River Valley. The food was great, as always. I also picked up some wine the other day. The first is a second label Bordeaux from the famed millennium vintage of 2000. I also got two cans of Niebaum-Coppola's Sofia Blanc de Blancs. Yes, I said cans. They are small, pink, aluminum cans that are labeled as "Carbonated White Wine." They come with cute little expandable straws. Our verdict, the can ruins the elegance of sparkling wine, and the flavors just didn't seem right. Big thumbs down. I also ordered two bottles of our new favorite, Alexis (see two posts down). Katie and I are going to be trying a little experiment with bottle aging. That's all for now. Till next time..."Good wine is a necessity of life for me."--Thomas Jefferson

Playing the Numbers Game

Over this past weekend, I wrapped up Robert M. Parker Jr.'s biography,The Emperor of Wine by Elin McCoy. It turned out to be a very entertaining read. For those unfamiliar with Parker, he's the guy who decides if a wine is good or bad. Not you, not your friend, not even the chef at your favorite restaurant. Parker is the be all and end all of wine. At least, that's what his followers would have you believe. This book was a trip back in time to the earlier days of wine tasting. When tasting notes were just that, notes. No numbers involved, strictly words. A handful of people tried scoring wines with a 1 to 20 point scale, but it wasn't very effective at conveying a wine's worth. Parker knew the numbers could be useful if they were presented appropiately, especially in America. He knew we all craved things that were perfect. And what score always meant perfection on that 4th grade spelling test, 100. Parker adopted a hundred point scale that became the standard in today's wine industry. Yes, Parker has an amazing ability to deconstruct a wine's scent and flavors. Yes, the wines he scores highly tend to be good wines. But are you seriously telling me, that if Parker gives it higher than 90 points I am going to like it? Or anyone else will for that fact. Parker understood that Americans crave numbers. We eat them up on CNN, The Today Show, and especially ESPN. Now people started eating up high scoring wines. If Parker gave a wine 92 points in the latest issue of his Wine Advocate, that wine was like Tickle Me Elmo at Christmas. Gone. I have always advocated that people not read to much into this numbers game. Yes, its nice to brag about a high scoring wine that you own. And I even subscribe to Wine Spectator, I like to read the articles. But please use the ratings as a guideline. You need to try and find what wines you like with your palate, not Parker's. And what better place to learn about what you like then our inaugural Wine from A to Zin Night on November 3rd. Flyers will be appearing soon! Till next time..."Where there is no wine there is no love."--Greek Proverb

Open Season

It's that time of year. The air gets a little bit more crisp. The leaves lose their luster. And a stiff breeze swiftly blows through the trees. That's right, deer hunting season! Nah, just playing with you. It's wine season. Of course summer is a nice time to enjoy some chilled Riesling, but for me, wine consumption really picks up in the fall. We started of the season last night at The Up River Cafe. Where else would I be on Wednesday? Katie and I dined with our good friend Phil. We started out with a solid bottle of 2005 St. Supery Sauvignon Blanc. This wine gets me every time. From the intense grapefruit aroma, to the crisp finish, it is truly delightful. For an appetizer we had the Asian Fried Calamari, my all time favorite. Speaking of which, Dad, how are those roasted red peppers? For entrees, Katie had the Grilled Atlantic Salmon and Phil had the special, a Center Cut Pork Chop. I indulged on the 10 oz. Coulette Steak. This cut had all the flavor of a filet but with a different texture. It didn't really melt in my mouth like a filet. We paired these dishes with a bottle of 2001 Swanson "Alexis" from Oakville. This wine was made to impress. Unlike traditional blended wines that echo Bordeaux with a majority of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, or the Rhone Valley with Syrah and Grenache, the good folks at Swanson decided to mix it up a bit. They started with a majority of Cabernet, but then blended it with Syrah. This would be a travesty to traditional wine drinkers, much like using a screwtop. They then put in a bit of Cab Franc and Merlot to finish the blend. Simply put, a fantastic wine. It was silky smooth like a well done Rhone wine, but still had the cedar and blackberry flavors that are consistent with a Cabernet. Katie felt it was drinkable now and might only benefit from another year in the bottle, but I believe you could still age it another five years and it would only improve. That of course led to a heated debate that Phil feeling like none other than Dr. Phil during a heavy counseling session. That's all for today. I am off to Martha's Vineyard this weekend, but will be posting on glassware early next week. Till next time..."I wanna say something. I'm gonna put it out there; if you like it, you can take it, if you don't, send it right back."--Ron Burgundy, dedicated to Phil

P.S. Mark your calendars-Friday November 3rd-Inaugural Wine from A to Zin night in Ashaway, RI. More details to follow!

Too Long

It's been way to long since my last post. I need to get better at posting less words but more often. So here's a quick run down of what's new in my world of wine. I checked stock on my cellar the other day. It's dwindled down to around 45 bottles or so. I know, I know you're all thinking, "45 bottles is dwindling, what a wine snob!" I prefer you use term wine geek from now on. I am halfway through a nice biography of Robert Parker, Jr. and his successful Wine Advocate magazine. It's providing a lot of insight into the world of ratings and points in the wine industry. My dear friend Mike is off seeing the world of wine first hand for the first time. Thanks to an unbelievable scholarship, he is currently in California, visiting Napa, Sonoma, and Santa Barbara, before jet-setting to Italy and France. Needless to say, my jealousy boils in my stomach like a well aged scotch. Nonetheless, I am extremely proud of him. Other than that, the wine consumption front has been slow, hopefully it will pick up into the fall and winter months, I feel they are the best for drinking, and more importantly, admiring fine wine. Next post, should be the conclusion of the Parker book, or some quick notes on what stock is left in my cellar. Till next time..."Wine is one thing; drunkenness another."--Latin Proverb