Category Archives: Wine Education

WINE LIST FAUX PAUX

Restaurant, Wine Education, , , , , ,

Last night, my wife and I were treated to dinner at the Salt Creek Grill (LINK) near Princeton, NJ. We had a very nice meal and wonderful conversation, part of which was about an issue with the wine list.

The restaurant is known for having one of the better local wine lists, and they do. Lots of great choices from California, France, Italy, Argentina and other locales. There was also a seasonal supplemental list that included a listing for a 2008 Bruno Giacosa Falletto, Nebbiolo from Piedmont, Italy. Here is the (LINK), which I looked up after the bottle came. The wine was listed for $46.00. The 2008 Bruno Giacosa Falletto, Nebbiolo lists at $250.00+.

Now, I am no expert in Barolos, but I have never seen one for under $80+ on a wine list. The waitress came and I ordered a bottle, figuring, what the hell?

Here is the bottle that was delivered:

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Not the wine or the winery listed on the wine list. Instead, a 2008 Giacosa Fratelli Bussia Barolo (LINK), which retails at about $50.00. Still, we got a very good price on the wine.

I told the waitress that the wine being served was not the wine listed on the wine list. She went and told a manager, who came over to the table after a few minutes. He told me that I was not getting “a Falletto” and I responded that I knew that. I told him that I thought he would want to know that the wine on the list was not what they were serving. He thanked me and asked if I would like a different wine. I said that this one would do.

So pay attention to the wine served – I did not pick it up right away before it was opened. As it turned out, all was well and we did get a very good price on the wine served.

DOES SIZE REALLY MATTER? HALF-SIZE CAN BE BETTER! (do we have your attention?)

Wine Education, Wine Opinion, , , ,

From The Wine Wanker – the advantages of 1/2 (350ml) bottles of wine. I agree, they can be great to have on hand, and for some people, the 1/2 bottle is the go-to size for everyday drinking. Read the excellent article below.

LINK: Does size really matter? Half size can be better (do we have your attention?).

HIGH END WINE TOO EXPENSIVE, SAYS ROBERT PARKER, WHO IS PART OF THE PROBLEM

Wine Education, Wine Opinion, , , , ,

In an article by Patrick Schmidt on The Drinks Business blog, Robert Parker talks about the rapid escalation in the price of high end wine. Parker notes that he is “part of the problem” as his high scores often help to inflate prices even higher. He says that there is a “caste system” developing because of wine prices.

From the article: “Parker told db, ‘I think this is a problem; it means a lot are shut out because basically we have a caste system of wine – at the really desirable high end, whether the wines are Burgundy or Bordeaux, or from California, they have become so expensive that people just can’t afford them, so they look elsewhere.’”

Wine prices seem to be expanding like the Universe – the farther apart they are, the more quickly they speed away from each other.

(LINK TO THE ARTICLE)

Wine - Bordeaux Beauties

LIFE’S TOO SHORT TO DRINK CHEAP WINE – LAWSUIT OVER ARSENIC IN WINE

Wine Education, , , , ,

A lawsuit has been filed in California over illegal levels of arsenic found in inexpensive wines sold there. Here is a (Link to the list of wines) Here is a (Link to a news story) The lack of labeliWine - Arsenicng regarding wine additives is coming to a head in California, which is where you would expect it to happen in the U.S. The use of many additives has been addressed on this blog before via two well-researched articles from Joey Casco at TheWineStalker.net – (Link to that post). The pressure to take bulk fruit and make it uniform in the wine making process for these inexpensive wines leads many of them to use additives that rang from undesirable to unsafe. Perhaps this lawsuit, brought by four individuals, may lead the way to more open reporting of what is going into wine.

UPDATE: This article (LINK) from Vinography is worth reading – giving another perspective on the matter. I still say, there are many reasons not to drink cheap wine. The arsenic thing may not even be the most compelling.

SPANISH WINE AND WINE CULTURE

Wine Education, , ,

Spain is a very interesting country when it comes to wine. While wine is literally just about everywhere, there does not appear to be the kind of wine culture that you see in the United States, especially in California. I mean a culture where you strive to be aware of as much information about wine, wine regions, wine makers, and the various aspects of the wines that you drink, or aspire to drink, as possible.

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Here, from what I have seen, people just drink the wine. You see very few expensive wines in stores and restaurants – about 65 euros is the max that I have seen, and that price point only one time – and there is little, if any, discussion about this wine versus that wine, or this region versus that.

It is both refreshing and disconcerting. When I tell people in tapas bars that I want to learn about Spanish wines, I usually get a response like, “Do you line blanco or tinto?” That is, red or white. That’s about it.

Everywhere you go, you see people, young and old, drinking wine – very cheaply compared to prices in the US. For 3 or 4 euros, you can get both a glass of wine and a plate of tapas in most places. Today, at a very nice tapas place, Dorianne and I had three large plates of tapas and two glasses of vino blanco for 18 euros.

That being said, I know that there is both a rich tradition of fine winemaking here and a culture that appreciates the results of good winemaking. I look forward to further explorations during the next month plus of our visit.

Next week, we will begin to tour some of the Sherry wine country of Andalusia, the southwest portion of Spain.

What is your experience with the wines of Spain?