The Feiring Line

Showing up in Connecticut

After showing up to claim my rental car without a license, quickly thinking: don't panic, it's got to be in the mess of your apartment...somewhere! there were no other glitches. Taxi's showed up at my feet, easy, to ferry me back and from the apartment where I knew exactly to find the forgotten document. There was no traffic. There was no stress. I thought. I solved the world's problems in my head. A great big, public thank you to Ted and Barabara who were responsible for bringing me out to the New Jewish Book Festival, Farmington Valley Jewish Congregation-Emek Shalom. The event was terrific, at least for me. I need to get out into the hinterlands a little bit more often because it is all too easy to sit here in the comfort of the shtettle where I can find everything I want. I get spoiled. I forget that not everyone knows who P***** is. And mostly I forget that not everyone deeply cares about wine. No wonder wine books are such a hard sell. Few people care. People were curious whether natural wines aged (I talked about some of my favorite older wines that predated much technology and aged beautifully: yes, I'd bet money they age and the others don't. Can they tell which wines have additives on the label? No, but you can read between the lines. Organic or sustainable or biodynamic grapes most probably means conventional wine. Look for Organic or Biodynamic WINE. Are these wines more expensive? No, mostly cheaper and taste better. But Ted, the organizer cared, as does his wife and a few of the people who showed up, One man actually drived up from New Jersey. One woman came because she and her partner wanted to grow/make wine biodynamically on a Napa mountain. Most gratifying was seeing people cozy up to the Cot and the Fleurie-- little too warm but still lovely. The more conventional wines were not overoaked monsters but every single one of them were cloyingly sweet in comparison. The difference between natural and non were dramatic, yet not clunky.

Showing up in Connecticut

After showing up to claim my rental car without a license, quickly thinking: don't panic, it's got to be in the mess of your apartment...somewhere! there were no other glitches. Taxi's showed up at my feet, easy, to ferry me back and from the apartment where I knew exactly to find the forgotten document. There was no traffic. There was no stress. I thought. I solved the world's problems in my head. A great big, public thank you to Ted and Barabara who were responsible for bringing me out to the New Jewish Book Festival, Farmington Valley Jewish Congregation-Emek Shalom. The event was terrific, at least for me. I need to get out into the hinterlands a little bit more often because it is all too easy to sit here in the comfort of the shtettle where I can find everything I want. I get spoiled. I forget that not everyone knows who P***** is. And mostly I forget that not everyone deeply cares about wine. No wonder wine books are such a hard sell. Few people care. People were curious whether natural wines aged (I talked about some of my favorite older wines that predated much technology and aged beautifully: yes, I'd bet money they age and the others don't. Can they tell which wines have additives on the label? No, but you can read between the lines. Organic or sustainable or biodynamic grapes most probably means conventional wine. Look for Organic or Biodynamic WINE. Are these wines more expensive? No, mostly cheaper and taste better. But Ted, the organizer cared, as does his wife and a few of the people who showed up, One man actually drived up from New Jersey. One woman came because she and her partner wanted to grow/make wine biodynamically on a Napa mountain. Most gratifying was seeing people cozy up to the Cot and the Fleurie-- little too warm but still lovely. The more conventional wines were not overoaked monsters but every single one of them were cloyingly sweet in comparison. The difference between natural and non were dramatic, yet not clunky.

Biodynamic Wine and Song and Events and Bad Behavior

(Bad Behavior) While all hell is breaking loose over at Dr.Vino's site--about a situation I know plenty about, having been kicked off of the P***** Board because I was ---ahem--at issue with a Barolo thread which cited a poorly researched but held up as gospel piece in Food & Wine magazine and myself received two very snarky emails from Master Mao Squires, and as we know, my name cannot even be mentioned on the Parker board....I have had my own little drama. I am supposed to be doing a talk and wine presentation this weekend in West Hartford. The wines were supposed to be natural. You know, AF Approved wines. (Biodynamic) I received an email from Brigitte Armenier (who's husband, Philippe is one of the strongest, strictest BioDynamic tutors in this country, and according to Philipps, it is his wife who is HIS teacher) asking me if we could sell her CD at my event. This is a total non-sequiter, but--hang in there. Brigitte has put together fabulous CD of Brahms/Schubert, Analogos or "Between Music and Biodynamic Agriculture." An accomplished pianist, besides the soulful interpretation, there is a pithy, often intriguing interview with her on the link of Biodynamic, science and art. No matter where you stand on BioD, it's a thought provoking, creativity inducing piece.

Biodynamic Wine and Song and Events and Bad Behavior

(Bad Behavior) While all hell is breaking loose over at Dr.Vino's site--about a situation I know plenty about, having been kicked off of the P***** Board because I was ---ahem--at issue with a Barolo thread which cited a poorly researched but held up as gospel piece in Food & Wine magazine and myself received two very snarky emails from Master Mao Squires, and as we know, my name cannot even be mentioned on the Parker board....I have had my own little drama. I am supposed to be doing a talk and wine presentation this weekend in West Hartford. The wines were supposed to be natural. You know, AF Approved wines. (Biodynamic) I received an email from Brigitte Armenier (who's husband, Philippe is one of the strongest, strictest BioDynamic tutors in this country, and according to Philipps, it is his wife who is HIS teacher) asking me if we could sell her CD at my event. This is a total non-sequiter, but--hang in there. Brigitte has put together fabulous CD of Brahms/Schubert, Analogos or "Between Music and Biodynamic Agriculture." An accomplished pianist, besides the soulful interpretation, there is a pithy, often intriguing interview with her on the link of Biodynamic, science and art. No matter where you stand on BioD, it's a thought provoking, creativity inducing piece.

Alice Blind Tastes Pinot

This is an experiment. Unedited. And sometimes less than articulate. And I am absolutely not giving the standard 'wine tasting' assessment. Chalk it up to stage fright. But here's the deal: I received an email from the distributor Terlato. A 'very high profile' story on pinot noir declared pinot to be more drinkable, less dense and more pinot-like. And yes, that might be true but the writer didn't allow for vintage variation. And would I be willing to participate in a blind tasting to illustrate how sometimes vintage does indeed make a darker, more concentrated wine? And so, I did. After I made the video --on my FLIP--in one take, I had more thoughts. Such as--why was the more "European" year--the 2005 the darkest and the most reduced? Could it be an attempt at concentrating the wine? The wine was the most unpinot-like, yet other's I had from that vintage that weren't tampered with were MOST pinot like. And what was that buttered popcorn aftertaste--on all of the wines. Normally I would think terroir, but I do know that to be a winemaking effort and not terroir. As the wines were open, the wood, at first lurking in the background became more profound. The wines tasted much hotter than the 14% advertised, And actually according to the label, now that I look again, 2005 & 2007 are 14% and the 2006 14.5! All gave me acid and heat burns to the roof of my mouth. The balance on all of these wines were to the front and the took a wong turn on the back palate. However they did win points for not being the sweet, candied California pinot that scared me away in the first place. The Clos de la Roilette 2006 Fleurie afterwards was a joy of an antidote. Balance. Wonderful winemaking. Great blend of wild forest fruit and earth, danced on the tongue. No burn, but just a fun jig in the mouth. Thanks to Sarah Norris for her camera work!

Alice Blind Tastes Pinot

This is an experiment. Unedited. And sometimes less than articulate. And I am absolutely not giving the standard 'wine tasting' assessment. Chalk it up to stage fright. But here's the deal: I received an email from the distributor Terlato. A 'very high profile' story on pinot noir declared pinot to be more drinkable, less dense and more pinot-like. And yes, that might be true but the writer didn't allow for vintage variation. And would I be willing to participate in a blind tasting to illustrate how sometimes vintage does indeed make a darker, more concentrated wine? And so, I did. After I made the video --on my FLIP--in one take, I had more thoughts. Such as--why was the more "European" year--the 2005 the darkest and the most reduced? Could it be an attempt at concentrating the wine? The wine was the most unpinot-like, yet other's I had from that vintage that weren't tampered with were MOST pinot like. And what was that buttered popcorn aftertaste--on all of the wines. Normally I would think terroir, but I do know that to be a winemaking effort and not terroir. As the wines were open, the wood, at first lurking in the background became more profound. The wines tasted much hotter than the 14% advertised, And actually according to the label, now that I look again, 2005 & 2007 are 14% and the 2006 14.5! All gave me acid and heat burns to the roof of my mouth. The balance on all of these wines were to the front and the took a wong turn on the back palate. However they did win points for not being the sweet, candied California pinot that scared me away in the first place. The Clos de la Roilette 2006 Fleurie afterwards was a joy of an antidote. Balance. Wonderful winemaking. Great blend of wild forest fruit and earth, danced on the tongue. No burn, but just a fun jig in the mouth. Thanks to Sarah Norris for her camera work!

Drinking Wine In Spain

Now we're at the good stuff. Drinking wine in San Sebastian. After the conference I contemplated staying around the area to visit bodegas but I was after old Rioja at a cheap price because I wanted to go back and revisit a memory. Years ago I was in the Pyrenees with Ms. Clark. We were in the lobby, opened up the wine list with low expectations and there was Muga. I think we had the 1980 and it was 35 euro? Ever since I've been on a mission. I adore old Rioja and when it's cheap it tastes like I robbed a bank and no one got hurt. So, when I asked people where I could hit up an old cellar, where I could drink fine old Rioja at a steal, they said Rekondo in San Sebastian. I did a little research and almost everyone else who wrote about the place talked about the Burgundy or Bordeaux at great prices, never the less, I trusted I would find Tempranillo heaven if I went North to the sea. Tom Perry, the ex-export director of Rioja---check out his new blog and then a quick lunch at an unexpected highlight, Bar Ganbara to sustain me through a Hongo fix. Along with the marzipan perfect porcini-esque mushrooms (set off by a brilliant saffron egg yolk for extra dipping pleasure) I knocked back an inch of shockingly good Txacoli--yes acidic, assertive, slightly fizzy. What was shocking about it? All of the Txacoli I've had stateside has been aromatically yeasted, and you know how that goes down with me. Down the drain. This one, and I did not get its name, was not. It was austere and lively. Yum. Those hongos-- fatty and as pure as lardo. Ah, funghi are magic and miraculous, don't you think? Who needed more heaven than this? Me. A bonus for this journey was a visit with my friend Linda MV, past sommelier of Charlie Trotter present sommelier/wine director at Mugaritz (molecular cooking anyone? it was great as long as I stayed with vegetable. (and as a bonus that has nothing to do with anything) James Blachley (morris dancer, early musician) John Dexter (in the corner) Morris Dancer, Violist, great man. Ian Robb, Morris Dancer (Thames Valley) folk singer and concertinist, and John Roberts--singer, musician. The song is English (or is it Scottish) but not Irish. Who knew salsify could be delicious? and one of the sweetest white potatoes I've had in a long time. And also got to taste the gelatinous cod necks cooked, like creme catalan of the sea. ) Sunday, after a spin at the Guggenheim, lunch at the Guggenheim (quite delicious) Linda and I bussed back to San Sebastian to work up another stomach for dinner. First more Pinxtos (not as successful, I'll never go anywhere else but Ganbara every again--then a long walk to the other side of the clamshell shaped beach. We got lost. Called a cab. And finally wound up at this old fashioned place, not hip, not molecular but full of pride. The wine list is 87 pages long. Rekondo. And it is as mythic as it sounds. The place was opened up in by 1964 by Txomin Rekondo, a former matador with a jonesing for wine. Now his daughters Lourdes and Edurna help to buy the restaurant over 100,000 bottles in its cellar Let's just call this the Manducatti's of Spain. And it is still not picked over. You know the feeling when you're at a flea market and there are still wonderful, vintage pieces? Right. Exactly. I could have been happy with the evenings specials. Get that? 18 euros for a 1986 Muga? Muga. Poor Muga. I miss Muga. Why did Muga get cleaned up! What was the matter with the old Muga! And I really wanted to try that 86 but it was not meant to be. Linda and her friends, also from Mugaritz, beat me down. If it was going to be Muga, it had to be Prado Enea. As we ordered the 1968 Tondonia Blanco, (110 euro) we stayed with the 60's, ordered the 1969 Enea at 60 Euro. While the 1969 Prado was lovely, it did not thrill, (but it had that chicken soup, tamari of authentic Rioja and that made me nostalgic yet happy. HOWEVER! The 1968 Tondonia was on par with the 1986 Le Montrachet DRC I had years ago. It was juicy. It was ethereal and it was sexy. The only hint of wrinkles in its youthful face was caramel. And honey nectar and melon and still not beginning to evolve. I just wanted to move into that glass and smell it for days. I am still in shock that we only ordered two bottles of wine. A travesty. I should have insisted. Bar Ganbara 21 Calle de San Jerónim San Sebastián, Spain 34-94-342-2575 Rekondo Paseo Igueldo 57 San Sebastian Phone, 94-321-29-07.

Drinking Wine In Spain

Now we're at the good stuff. Drinking wine in San Sebastian. After the conference I contemplated staying around the area to visit bodegas but I was after old Rioja at a cheap price because I wanted to go back and revisit a memory. Years ago I was in the Pyrenees with Ms. Clark. We were in the lobby, opened up the wine list with low expectations and there was Muga. I think we had the 1980 and it was 35 euro? Ever since I've been on a mission. I adore old Rioja and when it's cheap it tastes like I robbed a bank and no one got hurt. So, when I asked people where I could hit up an old cellar, where I could drink fine old Rioja at a steal, they said Rekondo in San Sebastian. I did a little research and almost everyone else who wrote about the place talked about the Burgundy or Bordeaux at great prices, never the less, I trusted I would find Tempranillo heaven if I went North to the sea. Tom Perry, the ex-export director of Rioja---check out his new blog and then a quick lunch at an unexpected highlight, Bar Ganbara to sustain me through a Hongo fix. Along with the marzipan perfect porcini-esque mushrooms (set off by a brilliant saffron egg yolk for extra dipping pleasure) I knocked back an inch of shockingly good Txacoli--yes acidic, assertive, slightly fizzy. What was shocking about it? All of the Txacoli I've had stateside has been aromatically yeasted, and you know how that goes down with me. Down the drain. This one, and I did not get its name, was not. It was austere and lively. Yum. Those hongos-- fatty and as pure as lardo. Ah, funghi are magic and miraculous, don't you think? Who needed more heaven than this? Me. A bonus for this journey was a visit with my friend Linda MV, past sommelier of Charlie Trotter present sommelier/wine director at Mugaritz (molecular cooking anyone? it was great as long as I stayed with vegetable. (and as a bonus that has nothing to do with anything) James Blachley (morris dancer, early musician) John Dexter (in the corner) Morris Dancer, Violist, great man. Ian Robb, Morris Dancer (Thames Valley) folk singer and concertinist, and John Roberts--singer, musician. The song is English (or is it Scottish) but not Irish. Who knew salsify could be delicious? and one of the sweetest white potatoes I've had in a long time. And also got to taste the gelatinous cod necks cooked, like creme catalan of the sea. ) Sunday, after a spin at the Guggenheim, lunch at the Guggenheim (quite delicious) Linda and I bussed back to San Sebastian to work up another stomach for dinner. First more Pinxtos (not as successful, I'll never go anywhere else but Ganbara every again--then a long walk to the other side of the clamshell shaped beach. We got lost. Called a cab. And finally wound up at this old fashioned place, not hip, not molecular but full of pride. The wine list is 87 pages long. Rekondo. And it is as mythic as it sounds. The place was opened up in by 1964 by Txomin Rekondo, a former matador with a jonesing for wine. Now his daughters Lourdes and Edurna help to buy the restaurant over 100,000 bottles in its cellar Let's just call this the Manducatti's of Spain. And it is still not picked over. You know the feeling when you're at a flea market and there are still wonderful, vintage pieces? Right. Exactly. I could have been happy with the evenings specials. Get that? 18 euros for a 1986 Muga? Muga. Poor Muga. I miss Muga. Why did Muga get cleaned up! What was the matter with the old Muga! And I really wanted to try that 86 but it was not meant to be. Linda and her friends, also from Mugaritz, beat me down. If it was going to be Muga, it had to be Prado Enea. As we ordered the 1968 Tondonia Blanco, (110 euro) we stayed with the 60's, ordered the 1969 Enea at 60 Euro. While the 1969 Prado was lovely, it did not thrill, (but it had that chicken soup, tamari of authentic Rioja and that made me nostalgic yet happy. HOWEVER! The 1968 Tondonia was on par with the 1986 Le Montrachet DRC I had years ago. It was juicy. It was ethereal and it was sexy. The only hint of wrinkles in its youthful face was caramel. And honey nectar and melon and still not beginning to evolve. I just wanted to move into that glass and smell it for days. I am still in shock that we only ordered two bottles of wine. A travesty. I should have insisted. Bar Ganbara 21 Calle de San Jerónim San Sebastián, Spain 34-94-342-2575 Rekondo Paseo Igueldo 57 San Sebastian Phone, 94-321-29-07.

The Paperback is Coming, and come to see me in Farmington!

Download file I just fished my first copy out from the mailbox. Synchronicity was working to keep me humble and not enjoy the event too much, because almost in the same moment I received a note from an Ontarioan lacerating me for the mistakes in the Francais. I know. I know. Some were mine (in the book I do confess my French is awful) the ones that aren't mine are more embarrassing. In fact they are terribly embarrassing. Fingers and toes crossed that all are corrected in this version of the book. The recession-priced book will hit the book stores the first week in May. ALSO, LIVE IN THE WEST HARTFORD VICINITY? Come and shmooze with me at the Farmington Valley Jewish Center as part of the JCC book festival. +++Join us on Sunday, April 19 from 4-6 p.m., for a fascinating talk from Alice Feiring, New York Times Best-Selling Author of "The Battle for Love and Wine." The book documents her journey to discover biodynamic wines. Feiring makes an argument for wine authenticity through adherence to old techniques. She's against what she calls Big Wine—viticulture as business and technology—and blames the shrinking appreciation for hand-vinified, long-aged Old World wines on, among other things, the UC–Davis School of Enology and Viticulture and the wine writings of critic Robert M. Parker Jr. Organic and biodynamic wines will be available for tasting. They will be accompanied by good food, including dessert from Mozzicato's, Harvest, and others. Tickets are only $18 each before April 18, or $120 for a Table of 8. For more information, click here, or contact Barbara and Ted Fichtenholtz (FVJC.FeiringEvent@gmail.com, 658-0304) or Daryl Worobow (drwor@aol.com, 404-0579).++++

The Paperback is Coming, and come to see me in Farmington!

Download file I just fished my first copy out from the mailbox. Synchronicity was working to keep me humble and not enjoy the event too much, because almost in the same moment I received a note from an Ontarioan lacerating me for the mistakes in the Francais. I know. I know. Some were mine (in the book I do confess my French is awful) the ones that aren't mine are more embarrassing. In fact they are terribly embarrassing. Fingers and toes crossed that all are corrected in this version of the book. The recession-priced book will hit the book stores the first week in May. ALSO, LIVE IN THE WEST HARTFORD VICINITY? Come and shmooze with me at the Farmington Valley Jewish Center as part of the JCC book festival. +++Join us on Sunday, April 19 from 4-6 p.m., for a fascinating talk from Alice Feiring, New York Times Best-Selling Author of "The Battle for Love and Wine." The book documents her journey to discover biodynamic wines. Feiring makes an argument for wine authenticity through adherence to old techniques. She's against what she calls Big Wine—viticulture as business and technology—and blames the shrinking appreciation for hand-vinified, long-aged Old World wines on, among other things, the UC–Davis School of Enology and Viticulture and the wine writings of critic Robert M. Parker Jr. Organic and biodynamic wines will be available for tasting. They will be accompanied by good food, including dessert from Mozzicato's, Harvest, and others. Tickets are only $18 each before April 18, or $120 for a Table of 8. For more information, click here, or contact Barbara and Ted Fichtenholtz (FVJC.FeiringEvent@gmail.com, 658-0304) or Daryl Worobow (drwor@aol.com, 404-0579).++++