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Appellation Feiring What am I looking for in wine? I'm looking for the Leon Trotskys, the Philip Roths, the Chaucers and the Edith Whartons of the wine world. I want my wines to tell a good story. I want them natural and most of all, like my dear friends, I want them to speak the truth even if we argue. With this messiah thing going on, I'm trying to swell the ranks of those who love the differences in each vintage, who abhor homogenization, who want wines that make them smile, think, laugh,and feel sexy. For better or worse, it seems as if I am a wine cop traversing the earth, writing and speaking my mind, drinking and recommending wines that are honest. Please check in frequently for news of my latest travels, travel, wine tips and rants. Posts1999 Ploussard Perdu. (Lessons Learned) February 7, 2010 I knew this would be a life changing trip. I'm not willing to spend another ten years in therapy so I have to take those lessons where I get them. Of those I am currently working on? 1) Take the Money and Run 2) Ask for what you need. 3) Be More Positive! 4) Lose the Guilt The Ploussard Perdu was a classic illustration of how and why I need to integrate these life pointers with speed. Not a moment to lose. The Overnoy was a mere 21 euro. That very night would have been my only chance to drink it. Bringing it to dinner at the Cousin's would be perfect. Digging into my euro stash I purchased, I would have bought two if they had taken Amex. I thought of it all the way up to the Cousin's house. Olivier welcomed up with some fresh, snappy Pet Nat. I presented the wine, wrapped in tissue. That was the mistake. I presented it. It was a gift. In no way did I suggest a partager. I expected him to know. Now, you tell me, how many love affairs and marriages have fallen by the wayside because part of the couple...more comment(s) Leave a comment  From 2 Anes to Toulouse February 4, 2010 I should start at the beginning, but I need to tell you about something that happened in the middle. The punishing wind, the sweet asses, Millesime Bio and Domaine des 2 Anes behind us we Jenny, Francois (of the selections) and Kate, the lasagna maker and crack sales chick, took the road for the seven -hour drive up north. One hour into it, I saw the Toulouse signs. "Hey! Anthony said there was a great wine bar around here." I quickly scanned my old texts, and sure enough there it was, Le Temps des Vendange. Francois' iPhone GPS guided us through the most visually unusual French city I'd ever been. I'm used to Frenchly white and yellow and bone tinted cities. Limestone cities. Cement cities. But this one could have been Lowell, Massachussets, with its landscape of oxidized red-colored brick buildings. "All the same labels," Jenny whispered to me. At first blush, yes, but then under more careful scrutiny others popped from the shelves. Neither one of use had seen or or ............ and I was delighted to see ... ....a wine Jenny had pointed out to me at the La Remise tasting a few days back, from the barbated,...more comment(s) Leave a comment GIVE YOUR VALENTINE A BUBBLE BATH IN NOLA February 3, 2010 We now take a commercial break As first in a series of shout outs about an April event in New Orleans, for an amazing debut. Meet the next generation of wine weekends. Never before has any one put together such celebration of bubbles. And if you can't figure out a sweet Valentine Day gift, get yourself a bottle and two tickets and head down to New Orleans on April 15th for an incredibly bubble bath. Yes, I'll be there. THE INDEPENDANT CHAMPAGNE AND SPARKLING WINE INVITATIONAL...more comment(s) Leave a comment Greetings from Montpellier February 1, 2010 more comment(s) Leave a comment La Bataille du Vin et de l'amour January 27, 2010 View image You won't find it on Amazon, either in French bookshops or through Jean Paul Rocher's website. If you have any idea how to get this book into the hands at someone in the mainstream French press, I'd be so grateful....more comment(s) Leave a comment La Remise; Cold and Sunny January 22, 2010 I have no idea how these guys do it . Vignerons working on their feet pouring wines on a marathon, La Remise, Millesime Bio, then the Dive. Renaissance, Salon, night time carousing and more drinking and on top of that usually crawling into bed at 5am only to start again--and some are even older than me! Welcome to tasting season in France, and there are plenty of Italians and Spanish here as well. I stayed with Amy Lillard (after tasting her wines, visiting her vines, eating her cooking--full disclosure all of you ethic cops out there!) and she drove me. Great fun. Stay tuned there will be more on her, but let me tell you, her 2008 blend La Gramiere is elegant and delicious and love the dash of dry wild forest honey. We bought our glass for 5 euro and then we were off. Discoveries? Yes, amongst the same old faces, but welcome ones, Stefano Belotti, Alsseandra Bera, Arianna, etc.etc. the winemaker for La Stoppa had two orange wines, tannic! (Dinavolo)but clear and musical. Andrea Calek, sporting a new coiffure Amy took this one, and it's so funny I'm braving my battle with vanity. .. and looking very...more comment(s) Leave a comment Leon Barral in Flight Entertainment January 21, 2010 Will report from the road! Be good. Drink well. Support random acts of kindness....more comment(s) Leave a comment Me and Grace January 21, 2010 Last Friday night I was lucky to be at Brooklyn Guy's house. A few of us were keeping his toddlers from proper sleep and not wanting to leave, when JR showed up with 2000 Grace Family Vineyards wine. Winemaker on that vintage? Heidi Peterson Barrett and only eleven barrels of wine were produced. "It's really good," said JR. And then, smoothed his silvery hair back from his forehead. Was that a dare? Was that a tell? DId he wink? The moment had to be documented. Okay. Let's go. This was one of the first Cult wines and what makes it lovely is that all proceeds go to charity. 'Hey, do they put a little brett in there for Parker?' I asked, kind of surprised to find a touch of barnyard. Mr. P. and I have that in common, we both like it. I thought, was this going to have something appealing for me? If you want to know my notes, you'll have to ask. Yes, it is from one little acre in Napa, but does that make it special? The wine is available for about $160. Newer vintages are up around $350....more comment(s) Leave a comment Into My Fifth Year as a Wine Blogger? From the Archives January 19, 2010 How did this happen without me seeing it? But out of nostalgia I thought I'd repost my very first before this grew into something else, bigger than myself. First posted December 12, 2004, and I refer to the cataclysmic summer that had just past. That's me this summer in Tain Hermitage. I was roasting in the Rhone, looking upward, wondering just how hot it was going to get in an hour. Or maybe I was thinking about the beautiful blushed apricots that grew all over the region, plump and firm at the same time, utterly sweet with just a dash of luscious tart. I'd come to France to work on several wine stories. The one in the Northern Rhone was about syrah. Later on that day, I would have lunch smack in the vineyard of Hermitage. Later I'd discuss native yeast fermentation with winemakers whom I deeply respected. I'd taste some remarkable older Hermitage and Cornas (which just doesn't get enough respect), get a huge crush on wine maker deity, Thierry Allemand, I'd walk across the river at sunset. I would end up across the street from my dive hotel- until the wee hours of the night with some friends...more comment(s) Leave a comment The Teetotaler @ Table January 17, 2010 I was at a dinner this week, a networking thing. The gathering was extremely pleasant and brought together by so and so to meet so and so and we started with a gorgeous champagne, Marc Hebrat Club Speciale 2004. The star of the evening picked up her water glass to toast. I looked to her glass, the lonely Hebrat. There was no way to save the situation. That glass was doomed for the dump bucket. It soon came out that she didn't like to drink, she also gave up a profound diet soda and caffeine habit and was now turned on to water. There was nothing religious afoot, nor was she a friend of Bill's. At first I thought I should tell her, put yourself in my hands, I'll show you wines you'd love! Then I realized she, on some amimal level, made the right decision for her body chemistry. I also realized there was a situation here to deal with that was perhaps out of my sphere of expertise. I needed someone practiced in finesse to advise me because perfectly lovely wines couldn't be allowed to attract fruit flies in her glass. A second bottle was poured. A...more comment(s) Leave a comment |
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