Vintages. Can't live with `em... pass the beer nuts!
The question of whether or not wine vintages (the year printed on the label, which is almost always the year when the wine's grapes were harvested) matter is one that often perplexes the budding wine enthusiast.
The questions that the Dude here regularly fields regarding wine vintages generally come in this variety:
Is it a "born on" date? Or an indicator of quality? Or a deciding factor in how long (or if) a wine can be aged?
The answer is "Yes."
Sort of.
In this post, I'm going to try to clear up some of this vintage mess for ya. Mostly because I genuinely want to help. And, to be totally honest, because I get asked about wine vintages a lot, so I want to have a place to send people for more info. (read: I am lazy and don't feel like answering the question anymore... hey, so sue me, I've got a newborn in the house!)....
Here's the honest truth (well, the truth according to the 1WineDude, that is) about wine vintages: For the most part, the wine vintages printed on the label don't matter all that much.
The reason that wine vintages (mostly) don't matter is two-fold:
So when does a vintage really matter?
99% of wine sold today is not meant to be aged. Most of the wine that you encounter is meant to be enjoyed within 6 to 18 months of the vintage. In this sense, the vintage year functions more like a "born on" date - if someone is trying to sell you a really inexpensive older vintage wine, it's probably because they want to pawn off their remaining stock of that vino that's won't otherwise sell because it's past its prime.
Does this mean that the wine will magically turn into vinegar at the stroke of midnight 18 months after the vintage date, Cinderella-style? No - but thanks to the miracle of chemistry, there's a good chance that the fruit characteristics of the wine will start to dissipate after that time. For the majority of everyday drinking wine that you might buy, you can set a mental note to enjoy it before its second harvest birthday. That way, you will get a chance to sample those tasty fruit flavors before they disappear.For the most part, the wine vintages printed on the label don't matter all that much.
While this is still true today to some extent, the stability of most of the world's major winemaking areas, coupled with ultra-modern winemaking techniques and technologies means that consistent producers can churn out decent everyday drinking wine even in poor harvest years. In my experience, this has even been true for some fine wine in "bad" vintage years from regions with consistent weather (like California - Opus One's 1998 blend is a good example of this).
Vintages do matter when you're splurging on a fine wine purchase from a region that has a variable climate year to year.
The most famous example of this being red Burgundy, the fickle Pinot Noir areas of France that can produce wine tasting like sublime berry seduction one year, and rotten cabbage the next. If you're going to shell out the coin for something special (either for drinking now or laying down for a special occasion later), it can't hurt to do a little vintage homework. I recommend using the mobile vintage chart from BBR.com, which you can reference right from your web-enabled cell phone while at your local wine shop. This can help you to gauge the relative quality of a vintage for a fine wine purchase.
BUT... don't steer clear of a vintage entirely just because it's been deemed of lesser quality than a previous year. Why? You can miss some amazing bargains that way - these vintages are like a lower stock value; it's time to buy. In an "off-year" you might have access to quality wines that might normally be out of your comfortable price range, and it's a chance for you to explore the winemaking styles of great producers without totally breaking the bank.Vintages do matter when you're splurging on a fine wine purchase from a region that has a variable climate year to year. The most famous example of this being red Burgundy, the fickle Pinot Noir from France that can taste like sublime berry seduction one year, and rotten cabbage the next.
The majority of my fine wine purchases have been in "bad" vintages - I scoop that up like a day-trading stock hunter! The bottom line is that a passionate producer with talented staff and a history of great winemaking will still make impressive wine in an off year. They may not be wines of sublime perfection, but they sure as hell won't be bad, and they have the potential to totally knock your socks off.
Cheers!
(images: globalbeautes.com [modified by the 1WineDude], art.com, weimax.com)
The Trouble with Vintages (When You Should Care - and When You Shouldn't)
How to Fix the Broken U.S. Wine Shipping System
I know what you're thinking, after reading the title of this post.
"Is the Dude about to go on yet another tirade about the PLCB? Okay, okay, they suck - we get it already..."
Well... the answer is "Yes." Sort of. I'm about to go on a bit of a tirade about the wine shipping laws not just of Pennsylvania, but also of WA, ID, AZ, CO, KS, MN, IA, WI, MI, IN, KY, GA, FL, SC, NC, NY, VT, CT, RI, and IL (pending review of currently proposed legislation).
The state of affairs of wine shipping laws in those states is almost hopelessly broken. Notice I say "almost hopelessly." That's because I've thought of a way to fix it. Let's break it down...
I say broken because those states have laws on the books that restrict the free trade of inter-state wine sales - a practice deemed unconstitutional at the federal (and for some also at the state) level. For the most part, these states are trying to protect state-run monopoly businesses that would be handed their own jock straps in the free market if, say, a big buyer like 
Costco were permitted to sell and ship wines directly to consumers in those states. The state run operations add extra cost while limiting value and selection - because they are monopolies, they don't need to compete on the basis of price or service. If individual consumer rights, or the best interests of local state wineries get in the way of their monopoly profits, those citizens are simply disregarded - even if the states' supreme courts have ruled against those practices. So, they make billions, pay big bucks to lobbyists to protect their position, and the state governments (for the most part) turn a blind eye to it all (probably because of the huge windfall).
How to fix this mess? Simple. Here's a 2-step process of playing politics that could turn the tide. The thing to keep in mind is that politics is almost always a numbers game. And it almost always involves you (the people getting screwed) getting off your keesters and getting active.
Maybe this sounds unreasonable, overly-simplistic and ridiculous to you.
Disclaimer: I'm not advocating you breaking the law - and to be honest, your state's liquor laws are so convoluted you probably violated them already if you took any cough medicine this year. Anyway, I don't care where you get your wine, as long as it's not from a state-run monopoly. If you are lucky enough to live near a bordering state that does sell wine through the free market economy... well, I'm just saying that you might have alternatives.
Fortunately, writing your state legislators is very easy. Head on over to FreeTheGrapes.org - they will find your legislators e-mail addresses for you, and give you a handy form-letter to send them (don't forget to add the re-election support part - politicians usually don't like losing their jobs).
But ask yourself this:
Is it any more ridiculous than a business with cripplingly poor business models, that can't compete on the basis of service, selection, and price, making in excess of $1.5 billion dollars a year by hiding behind antiquated laws and charging you artificially high prices?
What if your state controlled your cell phone service that way? Or forced you to buy milk only from the state, even though it was stored improperly and cost 35% more than what your cousin, who lives in the next state over, pays for his family's milk (which he can buy from wherever he feels offers the best milk at the lowest price)? Or limited your selection of underwear to a handful of brands and sizes?
Or treated women's designer shoes the same way? (scary... that one might have the potential to drive Mrs. Dudette to kill)...
Sure, there's a big difference between "essential" goods like bread and luxury goods like designer fashions. But before you write off wine as an item that is fair play for regulation by the "pleasure police" (Robert Parker's term for the alcohol regulators in his home state of MD), don't forget that two of our founding fathers (the two widely regarded to have had the most raw intellectual horsepower, by the way) - Jefferson and Franklin - viewed wine as an essential life good, equal to water and bread in terms of necessity.
So... who's being unreasonable?
Cheers!
(images: blog.whathappensnow.com, wine.appellationamerica.com, ronalfy.com)
So You Want To Get Into the Wine Business? (How to Be a Wine Geek, Part IV: Interview with a Wine Retailer)
Welcome to the next installment in the "How to Be a Wine Geek" series here at www.1Winedude.com!
Many wine lovers have toyed with the idea of one day breaking into the wine biz. That's not just trying to jump into perceived (and relatively false) romantic cache factor of workin' the vineyard and making wine. Some would like to take a different approach to turning their hobby into their livelihood - in a way that doesn't involve the potential to run into farm animals on a daily basis.
I thought it would be enlightening to get a view on what it's like to turn wine passion into wine profession. So I asked someone who has done it. Jill Bernheimer, owner of the on-line wine store and blog Domaine547, kindly agreed to give us her thoughts on 'life behind the bottle'.
Jill has been featured in Entrepreneur magazine, and has garnered a reputation among the wine blogging community as someone who is not afraid to speak her mind. Another way of putting it, is that she's not afraid to say publicly what the rest of us are thinking provately (thanks, Jill!).
Jill recently advised her customers to buy one of her wines from a competitor because it was able to offer a lower price than she could - an act that earned her mad props in the on-line community (and no doubt increased customer loyalty).
The interview results are a great insight into life in the wine industry. Enjoy...
1WD: Tell us a bit about your business. How did you get started? What made you chose to get into the wine biz?
Jill: I run a little wine shop that happens to be online only. It's called domaine547, and the focus is on...well, on wines I like. I personally taste 98% of the wines that I bring in, and that way I can sell them without any hesitation.
The website itself is a bit curious, because the way you enter the store is through a blog... some people may not even realize there's a store, but that's intentional. I'm a soft-sell kind of gal, and I don't want anybody to feel like anything is being forced upon them. If people discover the store, and if people want to shop there... then great.
1WD: What's the most rewarding aspect of your business?
Jill: When I started the business just over a year ago, I wouldn't have considered myself an expert on wine. That's not to say I was without qualifications - I had my Intermediate certificate from the WSET, and lots of experience traveling, reading and drinking wine (and a moonlighting gig at a local wine shop). But my attitude and approach was as an enthusiast discovering wine alongside my customers and my readers.
I think the most rewarding thing is that, even with hundreds of more wines tasted, and much more knowledge about wine and experience in the wine business, my attitude has stayed pretty much the same: I'm like a kid in a candy store, just as excited about wine as I was when I made the transition from hobbyist to working in the trade. Of course, getting to taste wine everyday and meeting producers is great as well.
1WD: What's the biggest P.I.T.A. about your business?
Jill: Shipping. On all levels...my hands are riddled with paper cuts from packing orders, and my head hurts from the intricacies of interstate alcohol shipping restrictions.
1WD: How do inter/intra-state wine laws impact your business?
Ugh. How do they NOT impact my business? There are lots of folks who say they'd order from me if it were legal, so I'd have to say that my volume is affected directly. Whether or not they're just saying that? Well, I guess I won't know until the laws change...
1WD: Beatles or Stones?
Jill: Hmmm, that's a bit of a narrow world view. [Editors note: well, it is my blog, after all!]. But I'd have to go with Beatles more often than not, with the occasional Ruby Tuesday moment.
1WD: What's the best wine & food combo that you've come across?
Jill: Sottocenere cheese with a Barbera d'Alba. This is going to sound pretentious, but they taste like they have some terroir in common. The cheese is a semi-hard cow's milk cheese infused with truffles and with an ash rind containing cinnamon and nutmeg spices. [Editors note: drooling is permitted.]
1WD: What's your favorite wine in your portfolio?
Jill: Without a doubt, the Rafael Palacios "As Sortes" Godello. It's steep for a Spanish white - it crept up from about $32 in the 2005 vintage to $46 for the 2006. But it's so good. A hint of lemon, nutiness, some wet stones, ever so slight oak, and some tingle on the tongue without the acidity hitting you over the head. Really delicious. I'd compare it to a Grand Cru Chablis, and from that perspective it's much more reasonably priced. Funny thing is, I'm much more of a red wine drinker than a white wine drinker, but there is no hesitation with this response.
1WD: How many times gave you seen the film The Big Lebowski?
Jill: I've seen it from start to finish only a couple of times, but I've seen it in snippets many more. Favorite quote is definitely "I don't roll on Shabbas."
1WD: Where do you turn for help and inspiration? Any Trade publications, Blogs, web resources, support groups or Therapists you find particularly helpful?
Jill: I have RSS feeds to more than fifty wine blogs, but I've been falling behind on my reading lately. I have learned a tremendous amount from blogs like yours, Good Wine Under $20, Catavino, Good Grape, Wannabewino, Catie at Walla Walla...too many to really mention. I do enjoy Twitter more than other community web resources as it offers me a chance to talk with all of the aforementioned (except Jeff who refuses to tweet) in a more Instant Message, conversational mode.
1WD: Exactly how much does the band Rush totally rock?
Jill: Would you believe me if I told you I got "Exit, Stage Left" [Editor's note: Dude's all-time favorite album!!!] as my Afikomen prize when I was in the 3rd grade or so? I loved Tom Sawyer. But it pretty much started and ended there (and with the Geddy Lee collaboration with Bob and Doug McKenzie) [Editor's note: "Hey, 10 bucks is 10 bucks..."].
1WD: Any advice for budding wine enthusiasts?
Jill: Taste early and taste often.
1WD: Thanks for agreeing to the interview, Jill! One final question - Do these pants make me look fat?
Jill: There's pretty much no right answer to this one! [Editor's note: I'm sorry... that answer is incorrect. The correct answer is "No, you look great! Did you cut your bangs?" But thanks for playing!]
Cheers!
So You Want To Own Your Own Vineyard? (How to Be a Wine Geek, Part III: Winemaker Interview)
(images: delawaretoday.com, gophila.com, vinology.com, newdaleville.com)
"It is my life's work to identify and bring out colors, smells and flavors that not only typify my region but are also delicious." - Eric Miller, Chaddsford Winery
A few months ago, I started a mini-series of posts about how to become a 'wine geek' (see Part I and Part II for more background). This post is the (long overdue) third installment of that series.
The ultimate wine geek is probably the winemaker - what budding wine geek hasn't (at least for a minute or two) entertained the thought of growing their own grapes, and making and selling their own wine?
I went to the source to get an insight into what it's like to run your own winemaking operation. Following is a short interview with winemaker Eric Miller, proprietor of PA's most celebrated winery, Chaddsford.
I asked Eric to reflect on winemaking after celebrating Chaddsford's 25th year. The result is a fascinating look into what it really takes - passion, know-how, and a fair amount of luck - to make and sell your own wine...
From the point of view of an experienced Winemaker: what resources do you feel give wine lovers the most 'bang for their buck' as beginners just exploring wine, and then as more experienced wine consumers?
The best resources for a new wine drinker: avoid tight-assed views stuck on old world rules and regs. I teach a twice annual class on what wines taste like, the words to describe them with an international selction under the primary headings of: light fresh fruity dry (white annd red), light fresh fruity sweet (iIonly show a white), med to full body dry white, med to full body red usually a cab, pinot, syrah or shiraz, and a fortified sweet red like lbv porto.My suggestion would be to get the terms down in an environment like that. If that is not available just go to the myriad of shops that do tastings and begin to get vocabulary in tune with taste. If that is not available throw a series of parties and have a hell of a range of wines for friends and you to taste. The important thing is to taste like a banshee.
"There are few printed publications or blogs that are tuned to the beginning wine drinker, unless you want to begin with prejudice or excess info."Or if the new-be is really bold go as close to the source as you can. Winelovers like me will talk eagerly to someone truely interested. (you get a dozen newbes together and iI will speak). There are few printed publications or blogs that are tuned to the beginning wine drinker, unless you want to begin with prejudice or excess info.
What are the most essential resources for you as a Winemaker (excluding your own know-how and expertise)? I.e., the top 3 or 5 resources that you could not live without, and to which you find yourself returning on a regular basis?
What I do to learn is to formulate questions. That is so hard. Then what I do is put it on paper, see how it looks and put together a budget. Then I contact industry friends to see who is working on those topics and send my agenda. When the serious know someone is serious he or she will find time to chat.
To learn about the restaurant industry I read "restaurant wine review". To learn about production I scan "practical winemaker", "the american society of enology and viticulture" and "vineyard and winery management". To understand what it means I make a date with our enologist and she gets excited or answers and shuts me down. Or I call our state viticulturalist, and he either answers me or sends me on down the line. It is never easy.
After 25+ years of successful winemaking, what advice would you give to wine lovers that want to expand their knowledge of wine? What advice would you give to those that may want to someday enter the wine trade?
I do not have 25 years of succesful winemaking. I have 25 years of trials and some successes. I would say to those who want to learn wine to make the hard decisions about what they want: is it sales or production? One needs to know a bit about either but the disciplines require a life time to get good at. Especially in this varying east coast climate."Climate trumps all but judgment."
Here we are faced with climate change for most vintages and to produce wines typical of the region (and not colored by infections) the first critical thing is to know the effects of site, soil and climate on the development of non-terroir affectations. Climate trumps all but judgment. Being an east coast winemaker today is a commitment to research. I need to be bled dry of information by someone with a depth of technical understanding of the chemistry of our soils, the effects of our climate on what the vine uptakes and how a vineyard should be established so controls are limited. I have limited interest in how to sell. My simple mind says that in today's world of wines we have simple divisions. Superstars that have cult status to carry them, mass marketed products and regional wines with only local interest to carry them.
The future of a successful marketer is to move a lot of wine off the shelf. That's a matter of money and marketing. My future is as a local product with regional identity. It is my life's work to identify and bring out colors, smells and flavors that not only typify my region but are also delicious.
In the course of time I have made wines that a) do not taste like California wines or are from California, Australia, Italy or cost less than 12 bucks a bottle and so are rejected by a significant number of wine drinkers b) suck and I will never be forgiven or tried again c) are exemplary examples of this region and fit the wine-model of only the most broad-minded or uninitiated wine drinker.
"Any good winemaker, if you want my recommendations for someone thinking of getting into the biz, has gotta love delayed gratification. Be bold. And never, never, never, never never, never quit."What that means to those who want to sell wine might be to avoid anything that is new and not-yet-established. Or it might mean that those who see the next big thing will become recognized clairvoyants. How can i make recommendations?
I have been revising my thinking about how best to handle tannins and acidity and fruit character in terms of soil amendments and cultural practices and pressing and timing of malo-lactic fermentations and frankly my attention is gravitating to '08 and '09 releases and analysis of tissue and soils from this growing season in terms of the '08 vintage.
Any good east coast winemaker, if you want my recommendations for someone thinking of getting into the biz, has gotta love delayed gratification. Be bold. Find other winemakers who will talk and keep on trying. And to quote my new friend, Patrick Feury, and Winston Churchill - never, never, never, (Churchill has a tommy gun in this photo) never never, never quit.
How about you ask me the same questions in 10 years?
How 1+1 Can Equal 3: Making Every Wine Experience Exceptional (Guest Post)
The following is a guest post from Jason Whiteside. Jason was previously a Sommelier & Wine Consultant on the Dutch/French Island of St. Martin, and was the original Wine Director of Cosimo Wine Bar in Malvern, PA. He is part of the Wine Educator staff at ChaddsFord Winery, and holds the Level 3 Advanced Certificate in Wine & Spirits (with Distinction) from the Wine & Spirit Education Trust. He is also a member of the Society of Wine Educators, holding their Certified Specialist of Wine qualification. Most importantly, he is Joe's partner in crime over at 2WineDudes!
(images: jupiterimages.com, www.csc.gov.sg)
HOW 1+1 CAN EQUAL 3
In my business, I field a lot of questions about wine. The hardest questions to answer are the ones that start like this: “I was in
The reason, in other words, is that a glass of wine is an experience, not just a taste...
I believe that any extraordinary wine experience is usually a combination of a few different contextual factors: the food that accompanies it, the people with whom you drink it, and the atmosphere in which this all takes place. For example, maybe it was a decent bottle of wine you had on vacation, but it lacked that special quality it had in
So, the question becomes, how do we make a good bottle of wine taste extraordinary at home? This starts with finding a quality wine. An example of an exceptional bargain is Rolf Binder’s 2004 Fetish The Watcher Australian
Now that you have the right wine, add the right surroundings, have the right food. Leave the frozen food in the freezer and make some hamburgers by hand, working some fresh flavors into your ground beef. Slice fresh tomatoes, lettuce, maybe sauté fresh mushrooms. Choose gruyere cheese instead of using those Kraft Singles. Invite over a few friends, fire up your grill, and open up that bottle of
And everyone will see how one plus one can equal three.
How To Navigate Wine on the Web (3 ways to Keep Up With Wine Online & Still Stay Sane)
(images: epicurious.blogs.com, i.ivillage.com, chungkiddo.blogspot.com)
In a recent post on her blog, the venerable Dr. Debs wrote about a recent survey commissioned by Constellation Wine Brands (a big, big conglomerate that own dozens of wineries, including Mondavi). The study concluded that more and more wine consumers are overly confused when it comes to what wine they should buy - enough so that Constellation cited increasing consumption by "Overwhelmed" wine consumers as their (Constellation's, that is!) biggest opportunity.
This finding isn't surprising. There are over 7,000 wine brands available to consumers in the U.S. That's a sh*t-load of wine choices, and even the most over-educated wine geeks among us can get overwhelmed (especially if we're trying to understand German wine labels). In fact, it's one of the main reasons that I got "seriously" into wine in the first place - I sat the WSET Intermediate Certificate exam so I'd be better able to buy wine at my local store!
Dr. Debs (quite rightly) points out that there's already an easily-accessible vehicle to help the Overwhelmed wine consumers out there:
So is there a way to help the Overwhelmed, send them armed and ready into Wine Warehouse to face the Sauvignon Blanc aisle, and point them in the direction of wine enthusiasm rather than wine frustration? Yes. It's called the Internet...
It's likely that companies like Constellation have uber-smart Marketing-types, but it's unlikely that those Marketing-types are going to help clear up anything for us Overwhelmed wine consumers unless it has the added benefit of further lining their pockets with more of the shiny gold stuff. Sure, you can use points to help make buying decisions, but who the heck talks in points about, well, anything (other than cholesterol numbers, I mean)?
(Imagine this conversation: "Hey - did you see Rothlisberger pass all over the Bengals last night? He totally deserves a 111.4 QB passer rating." "No way, man - he's not a tenth of a point over 99.7. Puh-leeeeeze!" Not gonna happen. Plus, people can't speak in hyperlinks - though that would be cool....).
While it's true that the Internet is an amazing resource for Overwhelmed wine consumers, it can itself be a bit, well, daunting. I don't know about you, but I liken whittling through the vast array of info. on the Internet to find anything useful to trying to reach into a narrow rats' nest to pick up a nugget of gold.And sometimes the rats' next is full of hungry, nasty rodents. With razor-sharp teeth. And surly dispositions.
It doesn't help that by taking one or two days off from your on-line life, it feels more like an eternity when you return only to find that you've missed 375 twitter updates, 900 blog posts, 250 news stories, 30 "friend requests" and god-knows-how-many e-mail messages. And I'm an IT geek - I can only imagine how the "Internet? Is that the one with the e-mail?" crowd feels.
How can you make sense of it all? My advice is to follow the same Zen-centric approach to handling wine info. on the Internet as you would handle any stream of information overload. Here are three tips that have served me (and my sanity) well in my on-line wine life...
1) Minimize & de-clutter your blog Inbox.
Humans are just not set up to suck in multiple streams of information and retain it all. We're more built for trying to quickly decide whether or not something is gonna eat us and deciding when we should run like hell, etc. There are oodles of articles on-line that offer great advice on how to approach absorbing information (see this great post at Lifehack.org for an example). But the first trick is to limit the information coming at you.To do this, you need to get a bit ruthless about the wine blogs and the wine websites that you follow. This won't be easy - there are quite a bit of good ones out there. You need to find the ones that work best for you, and follow those. This doesn't mean that you can't read a great post on a blog that you don't normally follow - it just means that you need to set a cap on the amount of websites that you do follow on a regular basis, and be very selective about the ones that make the cut to get a piece of your increasingly-precious time.
This of course can help you for any topics that you follow on-line (not just wine). For other tips on time and information management, I recommend getting the ZenHabits.net eBook.
2) Bring the Mountain to Mohammad.Once you've got a firm cap on the number of wine blogs and websites that you follow, then you can stop following them!
What I mean is, get yourself a good RSS reader, and make those updates come to you. I'm a total Netvibes convert. IT geekiness aside, Netvibes allows you to customize and gadgetize the hell out of your on-line life. I'm not sure if I could get by without it at this point (click on the inset pic for a screenshot example of my Netvibes home page). I log in, and can quickly check for interesting blog posts in my day job / music / wine "lives" - minimizing the time I have to spend looking for that information, because it comes to me.
If your tastes are a bit more Spartan, at the other end of the spectrum is the pared-down-to-basics Google Reader. Just be careful, as it's also easy to go overboard with these RSS tools (for an example of this itself can get overwhelming, check out friendfeed.com). Stick to the program!
3) Trust yourself.
This piece of advice is the most wine-specific. Nothing that anyone writes on-line should influence your own personal preferences and tastes. Your experience trumps all. Trust it, and trust yourself.If anything, we in the wine blogging community should be educating you, entertaining you, and (most importantly) opening your mind to wine possibilities that you may not have otherwise known about. We should not be trying to convince you that what you like isn't "correct" or "proper."
(Warning: Shameless plug): For more about learning how to determine what you do (and don't) like in the wine that you drink, check out my eBook.
Cheers (and happy surfing)!
Wine Appreciation and Alcohol Abuse: How to Avoid Personal Disaster
(images: brainboomer.com, jamieq.blogspot.com)
I work in two professions - Wine Consulting and Playing Rock Music - that pretty much guarantee that I am in close proximity to alcohol (and its potential abuse) a good portion of the time.
I love to drink. Specifically, I love to savor excellent wine (and beer), and admire the nuances, flavors, aromas, and overall artistic craftsmanship that a good drink can deliver. Most of all, I love sharing that experience with others. Wine connects us to a particular place and time, and connects us with each other - not just the place, time, and people that made it, but also the place, time and people with whom we enjoy it when we pop the cork.
And once in a blue moon, I like to overdo it a bit. Because getting buzzed with friends is, well, it's just plain fun.
Notice I wrote "once in a blue moon" and not "every weekend." In the rock-&-roll context of my life, I've seen first-hand what alcohol abuse can do to individuals, families, and even total strangers that come into unfortunate (and sometimes, in the case of drunk driving, catastrophic and tragic) contact with an abuser.
Genetics and personality traits are very important in determining anyone's individual predilection towards abuse of alcohol, but it doesn't help that cultural, and peer pressures (at least in the U.S. and the U.K.) tend to ridicule the appreciation of wine as snobbish, while at the same time aggrandizing inebriation as the height of fun in a social context.
That approach is completely ass-backward. I don't have any pithy humorous sayings on that topic. It's just so sad, stupid, and heartbreaking that I can't make it funny and still respect myself.
Alcohol-related liver diseases (which are notoriously difficult to diagnose until they are advanced) have been on the rise in countries like Britain for years. Whether you drink or not, the rising abuse of alcohol (in the U.S. or the U.K. for example) is expensive for taxpayers and health insurance recipients who all help to fund health care systems that are having trouble keeping up without breaking their banks.
I'm not the first person to touch on how these dangers impact those of us in the wine consulting biz (check out this great series in Men's Vogue for an example). But I thought I'd add to the on-line discussion by listing the tips that have helped me (so far) to successfully navigate the waters of wine appreciation while minimizing the damage to my liver (and my relationships)...
Abuse Is NOT 'One-Size-Fits-All.' Safe levels of drinking can only ever be approximate. While you may read that having 2 drinks per day is the safe average level of consumption for someone of your weight and gender, these generalized figures don't take into account your race, family history, or personality type. You can't treat these as hard-and-fast rules - your safe levels may differ.
All Things In Moderation. If 2 drinks per day is a safe limit for you, that doesn't mean that abstaining from drinking for one week means that you can safely consume 14 drinks over the weekend. If you are unsure if your current alcohol consumption levels are safe, consult alcoholism.about.com (or, better yet, talk to your doctor).
Treat Professional Settings Professionally. I've written before about the perils of industry tastings, so I won't repeat all of that advice here. Bear in mind that just because free alcohol is available to you doesn't mean that you are obligated to drink it. When you're at industry tastings, don't forget to spit, and don't use it as an excuse to catch up on drinking that you think you've "missed out on" in the past.
Don't Punish Yourself. If you're not an abuser, drinking too much once in a long while shouldn't upset you (unless it's caused you to do something that you regret). Nobody's perfect. Just make a mental note to improve the next time. If needed, ask your friends for support. (If you are an abuser, or concerned that you might be headed in that direction, then falling off the wagon is a big deal and might need the help of a professional).
Never, Ever, Under Any Circumstances Drink & Drive. This one should be obvious but amazingly I still know people who do this. This is never, ever safe under any circumstances. If you suspect that you're going to have more than your normally safe level of alcohol, get someone else to drive - no excuses.
Cheers!
How To Become a Wine Geek Part II: "Taste Like a Banshee"
This post is the second in a multi-part series where Dude will give you a 'wine insider's' take on how to seriously up your 'wine geek' knowledge (and hone your overall wine-tasting skills along with your "impress your party goers" wine profile).
Some of you may recall my recent post on the first step to wine geekdom - reading about wine. If you're new to this blog, it might be a good idea to review that post first. This post will explore the second (and most important) thing you need to do in order to up your wine IQ - Taste.
To know wine, you need to taste wine. There are no shortcuts, and it's pretty much impossible to overstate the importance of building up your tasting vocabulary and knowledge via the simple act of tasting a glass of wine. Don't just take my word for it - to underscore the importance of this, I asked Eric Miller, owner and winemaker of one of the largest and most successful PA wineries (Chaddsford), for his views on how wannabe wine geeks can best increase their wine knowledge. His response: "The important thing is to taste like a banshee."...
Eric also added - "Go to the myriad of shops that do tastings and begin to get vocabulary in tune with taste. If that is not available, throw a series of parties and have a hell of a range of wines for friends and you to taste." Throwing a wine tasting party is probably the most fun way to gain wine knowledge and is easier than you'd think - it's actually tough to find people who *aren't* interested in learning more about wine. There are great free resources on the web that can guide you through this (Jancis Robinson's How to Taste offers some primers on hosting tastings, but you gotta pay for it). If you don't taste, you won't know what you like, and you won't know how to describe it if you do like it!
Be consciously in the moment. Dude is not trying to get too Zen on you here - just make sure you taste and not gulp. If you want to get to know wine, you need to spend a little time with it. You do NOT need to become a snob, put on airs, or hold a wine glass up to a special light bulb for 15 minutes pretending to examine its contents. You only need to give it a sniff and really concentrate on tasting what's in front of you. How to Taste also offers amazingly good, practical advice on this.
Experience before judging. Keep an open mind - you won't learn 
much about wine if you enter into a tasting with preconceived notions of what you will and won't like. Wine will surprise you and it will open up new worlds of delight to you - you just have to let it! Wine reviews are great for starters, but your own experience should always be the final determinant in setting your wine views. Eric Miller offered this advice urging wine newbies to taste and gain their own experience: "Avoid tight-assed views stuck on old world rules and regs. I teach a twice annual class on what wines taste like, the words to describe them with an international selection under the primary headings of: light fresh fruity dry (white and red), light fresh fruity sweet (I only show a white), med to full body dry white, med to full body red usually a Cabernet, Pinot, Syrah or Shiraz, and a fortified sweet red like LBV Porto. My suggestion would be to get the terms down in an environment like that."
Record what you taste. Admittedly this is usually a pain in the ass (try not looking like a geek when sipping a glass at a nice downtown bar and then whipping out your journal and scribbling notes furiously), but it's essential for upping your Wine IQ. Find a nice journal and record your tasting experiences. Don't worry if only you can understand them - the important thing is to build a vocabulary that helps you identify what you're tasting in a way that works for you. Over time, you will go back to these notes, if only to dig up information on a bottle you had a few weeks back that you really enjoyed and can't remember the name of (this is how wine geekdom begins!).
Don't Be Shy. Good things come to those who ask. If you really want to get to know wine, it doesn't hurt to be bold. Most of what I learned about enjoying wine, I learned while talking informally to winemakers - and none of them have been unapproachable. "Go as close to the source as you can," offers Eric, "Wine lovers like me will talk eagerly to someone truly interested. (You get a dozen newbies together and i will speak)."
Thanks, Eric! Anyone out there in the Philly region willing to take him up on that?
Cheers!
Calling All Wine Bloggers!
Calling All Wine Bloggers! 
As some of you may know, I'm currently in the midst of a multi-part blog post detailing my experiences and recommendations of how wine consumers can 'up their Wine IQ'. The first of these posts focused on Reading About Wine, and listed books and references that I have found the most helpful through the years in increasing my own knowledge about wine. Subsequent posts will tackle experience-building through Tasting, and finally I will interview a local winemaker about How the Boldest of wine lovers can work their way into the wine industry.
I'd like to extend this series to include input from YOU, the wine blogging community, on your own experiences and advice for others wishing to increase their wine knowledge....
I am pretty sure that the wine blogging world, and wine blog readers everywhere, would appreciate having the thoughts of experienced tasters, distributors, buyers, sellers, winemakers, critics, and passionate wine lovers on the joys and trials of life-long devotion to our favorite beverage.
So - if you're interested in contributing, please send me a link to a post of your thoughts and experiences on building wine knowledge.
This could be a link to a similarly-themed article that you've posted in the past, or a brand new post on your Blog. Either way, send me the link - either via comment to this post, or via email to twowinedudes (at) yahoo (dot) com - and I will summarize in a post, linking to all of your indvidual posts from here. (If you don't have a Blog but would like to contribute, I will publish your input in the post).
I'm a firm believer that nothing ever really gets done without having some kind of target date. So please send your input to me by December 31st, and I will post the results during the first week of the new year.
Thanks for your time, attention, and (in advance) thanks for helping the wine consumers of the world!
Cheers!
-Joe (the 1WineDude)
The Top 10 Wine Books You Really Need (How To Become a Wine Geek - Part I)
This post is the first in a three-part series where Dude will give you a 'wine insider's' take on how to seriously up your 'wine geek' knowledge (and hone your overall wine-tasting skills along with your "impress your party goers" wine profile).
When this Dude gives in-home wine tastings, probably the most frequently asked question is "How can I learn more about wine?" As Lao-tzu once said, "The Great Way is Easy" and he may have well been talking about obtaining wine knowledge, because Dude has been there and he can tell you that all it takes is three things:
- An open mind
- Patience
- More Patience
I usually recommend a three-step program, which I will cover individually in three posts (counting this as #1, with the others to follow relatively shortly):
- Read (see below)
- Taste
- Be Bold
The Top 10 Wine Books You Really Need
For Beginners
1. Oldman's Guide to Outsmarting Wine by Mark Oldman
The book I wish I'd had as budding a wine novice. Mark Oldman provides what might be the best and most well-paced (not to mention most practical) wine introduction book on the market. As a beginner, you will not be disappointed.2. Wine for Dummies by Ed McCarthy & Mary Ewing-Mulligan
THE starting point for your induction into the world of wine. I know the brother of one of the authors, both of whom really, really, really know their stuff.3. How To Taste by Jancis Robinson
Great reading for the beginner who wants to learn more about how to enjoy wine, all done in an open and not-so-stuffy style. The important thing about this book is the emphasis on how to taste wine, which (as we will explore in Dude's next post), is the single most important skill you can build to up your wine IQ.Intermediate
4. The Wine Bible by Karen MacNeil
A mighty tome of accessible wine knowledge, with excellent primers on the wine regions of the world for the beginner wine enthusiast, but also with tons of detail for the advancing wine geek as well. A fantastic achievement and a book that will prove to be a valuable resource for years to come (I still refer back to my tattered copy).5. Hugh Johnson's Pocket Wine Book
Updated every year, this book packs a ridiculous amount of handy wine information into an impossibly small amount of space. The abbreviations take some getting used to, but once you have them down you will wonder how you even wandered into a wine store without the handy reviews. It's also a great reference to have in the kitchen when trying to match up wine styles with dinner.6. The New Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia by Tom Stevenson
A reference that is so handy, I destroyed the binding on my copy within weeks from overuse! I know both wine fans and wine industry pros that use this book, and it's handy - and accessible enough - for both. Plus, Tom does not hold back his opinions on developments in the world's wine regions and in the progress towards top quality from each area's most important wines - not watered-down, and therefore entertaining as well as informative.Advanced
7. The World Atlas of Wine by Hugh Johnson & Jancis Robinson
A beautiful coffee-table sized book for the budding wine geek, it's an essential reference for those interested in increasing their detailed knowledge of where their favorites wines come from and why that plays such an important part in why those wines taste they way that they do.8. The Oxford Companion to Wine by Jancis Robinson
This weighty tome is *the* wine reference book for the wine geek and wine professional. Not exactly easy to read in bed, but when you find yourself absolutely needing to know what terms like Recioto mean, you need this book. Also handy for finding interesting wine blog topics (and by the time you're ready for this book, you will probably have your own wine blog...).9. Wine Report (Annual) by Tom Stevenson
Another reference updated annually, this one is for the wine professional (or only the most serious of wine geeks). A great read for finding out what's new and noteworthy in the world's major wine regions and the industry in general.Essential at Every Level
10. Your Very Own Wine Journal
You need your own wine journal to capture your reactions to wines that you taste, build an understanding of what you like (and dislike), and sharpen up your wine tasting vocabulary. The importance of this will get explored in my next post - but for now, just trust the Dude and get yourself a wine journal! (dude recommends the Little Black Wine Book).
The bad news - The whole kit & kaboodle will set you back about $150 - $175. So buy 'em in stages (don't worry, none of these are likely to go out of print anytime too soon).
The very good news is that the general state of wine writing - much like the general state of wine itself - has never been better, so you will get your moolah's worth. Long-time, prolific, and talented writers like Jancis Robinson, as well as a multitude of fine bloggers, are contributing accessible and well-written wine knowledge. Come on in - the water is fine!
How To (Not) Go Green (Organic Wines Still Suck)
Dude has seen quite a bit of press regarding organic and biodynamic wines, which are understandably riding the marketing wave of increased consumer demand for healthier, more naturally-made food products.
At industry wine-tasting events, organic and biodynamic viticulture is touted at nearly every distributor's and/or winery's boot,h in order to get a edge over their adjacent competition for eyes, mouths, and wine orders.
Anyone who has had local, organically grown produce, or tasted a fresh hunk of free-range chicken right off the grill, knows firsthand that these products often taste better, are healthier for you, and are superior in quality to their mass-manufactured counterparts.
The story is a bit different when it comes to wines.
That's because most organic wines suck.
It's not just this dude's opinion - in 2005, Tom Stevenson (noted wine writer and critic, and the driving force behind the brilliant Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia and the indispensable annual industry Wine Report) wrote the following regarding the state of organic wines:
- "When great winemakers... "go green" they produce great organic or biodynamic wines. However, it is quite another matter when others less passionate about the quality of wine are organic. While they may well have a true passion for the environment, the majority of the world's organic producers clearly have no idea how to make a superior quality wine."
As consumers, we're also confused about exactly what organic and biodynamic really mean. In summary, they are both government-regulated terms, meaning if you follow the production standards laid out by the government, then you're allowed to use those terms on the label. At a high level, this is what's required for winemakers to "go green":
- Organic: the wine is made with the minimum amount of sulfer dioxide, using grapes that have been grown without using chemically-based pesticides/herbicides and fertilizers.
- Biodynamic: the grapes are grown without using chemical or synthetic fertilizers & sprays; natural yeasts are used for fermentation of the wine, with minimal use of sulfer dioxide, filtration, and chapatalization (the addition of sugars to raise the potential alcohol in the finished wine - which happens much more often then you really want to know about...).
So, how have things fared in terms of quality standards for organic wines since the dire outlook penned by Mr. Steven in 2005? Not too good.
Most organic wines still suck.
A great example comes from the Organic Wine section of the 2007 Wine Report: according to the report, Chile (an ever-expanding hotbed of quality wine production) is becoming "a graveyard for failed organic projects" because in order to make quality wine some producers are running organic and non-organic wine growing systems in parallel - a total nightmare in terms of vineyard management.
The problem is that it's much easier to market organic than it is to make great organic wines. And if producers had figured out how to make top quality wine organically, they wouldn't need parallel systems - and certainly would have more certified organic acreage under vine.
Europe has, by far, the largest amount of certified-organic vineyard areas - just under 82,000 hectares, which sounds impressive but is only a "whopping" 2.2% of the total vineyard acreage. Half of that 2.2% is concentrated in just one country - Italy, whose farmers were subsidized heavily by the government to convert to organic! In the U.S., biodynamic conversions are on the rise, but the numbers are equally paltry - 1.7% in California (though Oregon is leading with just under 10%).
The moral of the story, at least for this dude, is not to jump too fast onto the organic bandwagon when it comes to wine. While there are some organic producers making top-notch stuff, if you don't know the producer and it says organic on the label, then it could (in fact, is likely to be) "green" plonk.
How To: Select-A-Wine
Executive summary: Leave me a comment on this post with your special event / dinner / what-have-you, and I will respond back with a wine suggestion to match, no strings attached. If you like it, spread the word...
"Will this red really go with Aunt Martha's roast chicken and cloves...?"
Have you ever been in a pinch for selecting the right bottle of wine for a given occasion? Or just been frustrated by walking the isles in a supermarket or wine store, staring at the seemingly endless rows of bottles and wondering "what the hell is all of this stuff... I just want to know what goes with [insert dinner menu here]??!?"
I certainly have - in fact, it's moments like those that sent me on the path to 'wine geekdom'. One day long ago, while staring down the intimidating rows of French and CA wines, I made a pact with myself - I was determined that I would "lick this wine thing" and turn it into something that I enjoyed, instead of something that made me feel like running timidly out of the liquor store door.
There are hundreds of tools and articles to help match food & wine, but these can only take you so far, and rarely (if ever) describe the exact situation you may have when you're facing a a tough food & wine match, or one of those hot-date-night-gotta-get-right scenarios.
So... I've been thinking that it would be fun to help others on their quest for the right wine pairings for their given situation, and to use my newfound wine powers for the purpose of good, justice league style (just without the cape & tights).
So - I invite any of who stumble onto this blog to drop me a comment describing your situation/event/meal plan/etc., and I will respond back my recommendations on the style of wine (and, if possible, specific wines that have served me well in similar situations in the past).
Who knows - together we might build an impressive mini-library of real-world wine pairing experiences! And the worst-case scenario is that you get to try something new while tapping into my wine experience and knowledge (at no expense to you, and without having to take all of those damn certifications!).
Cheers, and happy pairing!
