Just in case^? you were wondering; Matt Kramer (winespectator.com) writes:

You've probably been in this situation yourself. You're the one choosing the wines for a dinner with friends. You look at the menu and perform the usual mental matchups about what goes with what. But then, much more subtly?even furtively?you also do a mental matchup about which wines go with, ahem, the guests.
 
If you're a lover of Italian wines, especially traditional-style^? versions, you might find yourself in this situation more often than most.
 
This subject is not much discussed because it makes you feel like, sound like, or realize that you actually are, a snob. Nevertheless, most people who know their way around wine pay as much attention to the "who's drinking" as to the "which dish."
 
This lesson is often first (painfully) learned at the family Thanksgiving table. You trot out some of the treasures you've been hoarding for that special moment. Big^? mistake. Emergency wards are filled with wine lovers traumatized by watching guests guzzle their prized bottles like elephants at a watering hole.
 
I thought about this when deciding recently which wines to bring to a high-end Italian restaurant. A good host, by definition, wants his or her guests to feel comfortable. Our guests were, thankfully, wine lovers. However, that's not the same as wine savvy. No crime there, of course. But when the time came to reach for Barolo or even Barbera, my hand hovered over those bottles and then, Ouija board-like, moved to red Burgundy and California Pinot Noir.
 
Now, maybe it was timidity on my part. Perhaps I've lost my belief in the redemptive, even transformative, power of fine wine?never mind the grape variety^? or region^?. Surely a traditional Barolo can move not merely the uninitiated but even the unreceptive, especially when served with the right food.
 
I used to think so. Ask any of my long-suffering friends who have been subjected to my evangelical enthusiasm for, say, Gattinara. Or Recioto^? della Valpolicella. Or more bizarrely yet, the caramel-colored, sediment^?-rich delights of Italy's new-wave/old-way whites, fermented with skin contact^?, from Radikon, Massa Vecchia, Castello^? di Lispida or Josko Gravner, among others.
 
But now I find myself hesitating. I've come to the conclusion that really characterful wines?none more so than traditionally made Italian wines?often require a certain receptivity, maybe even a little study. That you can't just spring upon an unsuspecting, not-especially-interested-in-Italian-wines guest the magnificently traditional likes of, say, Giuseppe Rinaldi Barolo or even the easier to understand but still true-to-its-old-school Brunello di Montalcino from Tenuta^? Il Poggione.
 
This flies in the face of today's wine democratization?a belief that anybody should be able to understand, without any fuss, any wine put in front of them. And if they don't, well then, it's the wine's fault, not theirs.
 
This, of course, is why so many Italian reds today are so modernistic, slathered with the creamy^? vanilla^? toastiness of new French oak^??, miscegenated with Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah and practically hot-waxed to a tannin^?-free smoothness. Do they sell? They sure do. They're easy to understand, familiar-tasting, and?here it comes?you can serve them to anybody.
 
Do these wines represent the best of Italy? For me, they do not. But they are ambassadors of Italian wines, and for that reason alone they're worthwhile. Italian wines at their best?the reds especially?are different from all others. And this difference, which lies at the very root of Italian wine greatness, is not an instantly seductive one.
 
The taste^? of France is rich and smooth^? in the mouth (think foie gras) while that of Italy?classically anyway?is about a slight, mouthwatering bitterness (think Campari). It's easy to see why France's seductive model has become universal, including in Italy. The rigors of traditional Barolo, Brunello, Barbera and Aglianico, among others, are formidable and not immediately come-hither.
 
So that's why I stayed my hand in choosing the traditional Italian reds I've come to love when deciding what to serve my guests. They're not instantly likable (the wines, not the guests). Of course, I could have chosen modern-style Italian reds, wines that I know are made for just this very easygoingness. You can use instant polenta^? these days, too.
 
Maybe I didn't give my guests enough credit. Or maybe?just maybe?it's fair to say that some people just aren't ready for some wines. Is that snobbish? Or is it a fair reality?

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... brilliantly written article, which is why I had to reproduce it in its entirety. You understand.

Tags: melgab, wine, choice, taste, italian, south-africa, South Africa

Are you the Mac-daddy/-mommie when it comes to creativity? 

Have you ever looked at all the blasé wine labels out there and thought, "I could do so much better."? 

Well, here's a chance to explore your creative side and score a case of a soon-to-be classic red wine - Juice Crew Red.

So far, the J.Crew has nicknamed our maturing vino, "The Mighty Brick."  I think we'd like the label to reflect her personality (perhaps listening to a little Rick James could inspire potential label designers out there):

"So all and all, the blend has resulted in what we wanted - a rich rhone style wine with some backbone. The different varietals playing nicely in the sandbox. Great dark color, long sexy legs and built to party"

Here's the deal - submit a label design, which reflects our sexy Rhone brickhouse and you could win...1 case of JC Red.  Now that's what I call a case for creativity!

Details: Submit* your design entry by November 15, 2007.  The editor will select 3 designs to be voted on by Juice Crew members and Basic Juice readers.  The winning designer will receive the case of Juice Crew Red when it's released (we award no wine before its time).

*by submitting a design, designer retains no rights to design, but will be credited by name

Gentlepeople, start your creative engines..

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Regular readers of Winewaves have noticed the slowing pace of new pieces in 2007. For the first 2 years I tried to keep a daily pace of providing new pictures and reviews here. Winewaves began in February of 2005, but it's over. At least for now.

Like many other well-intentioned bloggers, I simply cannot afford to provide the quality of content that I would like to. Other paying work occupies my time. The opportunity cost of the effort I've invested in Winewaves has been great and the benefits have been scarce. My balance sheet unfortunately fits on a Post-It note. Being that I don't have deep pockets, something had to give.

Thank you to those who tuned in, found themselves checking out Winewaves, and especially to those who have sent me supportive e-mails over the past 3 years.

And go figure. No other wine created the stir that Bitch Barossa Grenache has over the last 3 years. For all those who are looking for it, I DON'T KNOW where you can find it. Which brings to my mind a pet peeve. When there is an ocean of Grenache (or at least red wine) in Australia, and when so many people are looking for "Bitch" in America, and when the people who want it are not expecting the highest standard of gustatory excellence, why don't they bottle more of it? What's wrong with giving the people what they want?

Of all the lessons learned from Winewaves, the foremost one is that I wish I could be selling wine. That's because most people who have come here thought that was the point of the site. It's so frustrating that Tennessee state laws prevent a would-be entrepreneur like myself to add value to a marketplace. Most people don't see the value of great wine label pictures, except as a way of merchandising, which I am prohibited from doing. At least for now.

Lastly, if anyone has any ideas as to how to revive Winewaves, I'm all ears.

Well I popped up to the Hunter the other week and of course no visit is complete without a quick hop in to the Boutique Wine Centre. As usual big Garth Eather got me in an ear-lock but before I escaped he slipped a bottle of this into my box. I don’t generally keep many tasters at home but this one was handy..and as the old saying goes..’If you can’t be handsome, be handy’…although of course everyone knows that I am very handsome so this does not apply to me.

Aromas of blackcurrant, blackberry, BBQ sauce, mint, toasted coconut, lemon, cedar and tobacco. A curious smelling wine but most certainly an attractive and engaging one. On the palate medium to full bodied with blackcurrant, blackberry, spicy BBQ sauce and more earthy tobacco flavours. Tannins are fine, dry and lightly grainy and there is a slight citric acidity that adds freshness. Finishes with spicy tangy blackcurrant flavours. Packed full of flavour and interest. This is a highly slurpable and very tasty wine.

When you spend more than $20 for a bottle of Napa Valley chardonnay, no one can blame you for having high expectations. via Fond du Lac Reporter

Well it has been a few weeks since my last entry and although I could tell you all about   the Rhône and Burgundy en primeur campaigns, the New Wave Spanish wines I've    been trying, or the South African Reds to match the last entry of South African Whites that my father has been religiously clicking on to, only to discover nothing of what his daughter has been up to in the Big Smoke, I won't.

I am very tempted to tell you about having to pay an Australian, let's say friend, in wine for a lost - no, thoroughly thrashed - bet over the Ashes (this was his first return to England since that sorry episode). A fairly painful experience for both wallet and liver BUT let's move on to the future.

Wine Relief is upon us www.rednoseday.com/partners/wine-relief/ and there are several different bottles widely available to buy from which retailers are donating some of the profit to      Comic Relief. How easy is it to open a bottle of wine and make a difference?

For my part I have been enthusiastically working my way through the offerings and on March 3rd, this Saturday in fact, I will be a guest panellist on the Virtual Wine online tasting of the 6 best on offer. The team at Virtual Wine have also studiously tasted and deliberated to come up with the finalists which will be tasted by a select (!) panel live from 7.30 pm.

The idea is that you at home can order the taster packs of 6 wines from Virtual Wine (10% still going to Comic Relief) or buy them from the various retailers, and taste the wines at the same time. You can then send belligerent, loving or simply drunken messages to us via email and your concerns will be addressed immediately. What a laugh...

So get some friends round, you must have some, put on some nibbles and sharpen your tongues. Take a look here www.virtualwine.co.uk to download instructions and tasting notes.

These people like wine and have a laugh with it, their contribution to the cork vs screwcap debate was to race bottles down river to see which was fastest, the loser then wrestled the winner to the ground in an unscripted, but thrilling, finale.