TagCloud:


Link to us:



  Wine Ebooks:
 The Complete Grape Growers Guide.
A Complete Guide For Growing Grapes. Converts Very Well At A Reasonable Price! Growing Grapes And Making Wine Is A Very Popular Topic Right Now.
 Fool-Proof Wine Values.
Learn How To Easily Find Wines Of $50 Quality For $10 Or Less. Impress Friends With Your Expanded Wine Knowledge. Eliminate Your Dependence On Wine Salespeople. And Take The Hassle Out Of Buying Wine.
 Build Your Own Wine Cellar.
How To Build Your Own Home Wine Cellar To Store Your Wine In Optimum Condition ... 100% Guaranteed.
 Secret Wine Making Recipes.
First Time Revealed: Discover Now Secrets Of Perfect Self Made Wines.
 Make Wines & Spirits From The Comfort Of Your Own Home.
Earn $6.17 / Sale! %75 Commission! The Ultimate Resource For Anyone Who Wants To Learn How To Make Outstanding Wines & Spirits From Their Very Own Home!
 Making Wine From Home.
A Fun And Very Informative Book On Home Wine Making. The De Facto Standard For All Home Wine Enthusiasts With Recipes, Advice And Tricks.
 Tips And Secrets To Making Great Wine.
Learn How To Make Great-tasting, Crystal-clear Wine At Home!


ChateauOnline-Europes leading online wine merchant

  Blogs & Sites:


Tecnorati


 










[04/18/2008, 11:50] Château Tonnelles, 2004, Fronsac, France
hanna hiltonMore banging on from me about how we should look to the independent merchant for the more interesting wines - small producers, interesting flavours, unknown grapes etc etc but such purchases do not have to be the idiosyncratic, often you just need something decent and mainstream but still retaining that small producer mentality...

hanna hiltonWine Tasting Note: Château Les Tonnelles, 2004, Fronsac, France.
Available from Bordeaux-Undiscovered [more] for £7.99 (normally £11.99).
Very French (for which read Bordeaux) in style and structure - the aroma has a lovely fruity edge that needs a little teasing (swirl/decant) to really reveal itself - don't forget that aroma offers so much to the overall enjoyment of wine - is that blackcurrant, blackberry, leaves, undergrowth?

The Bordeaux Undiscovered website states that this 'drinks well on it's own' but I disagree - it's a classic French food wine - unless you enjoy hearty tannins - and in that regard is highly recommended with a simple roasted game bird. In this case it is stuffed with herby sausage and served with a potato-parsley-garlic mash and a broad bean puree (the latter left over from the Pappardelle with Broad Beans and Rocket dish).

The wine is 100% Merlot. Alcohol 13.5%.
Scribblings Rating - 90/100 [3.75 out of 5]


hanna hilton hanna hilton hanna hilton hanna hilton hanna hilton hanna hilton
hanna hilton


[04/26/2008, 02:42] An Exciting Blend from Mendoza that isn?t Malbec/Cab: 2006 Crios de Susana Balbo Syrah-Bonarda
hanna hiltonIn terms of export trends, it seem as though higher-end Argentine Malbec/Cab types of blends imported to the North American and UK markets have garnered better consumer reception than single varieties. Don?t get me wrong, I have enjoyed many of these and will continue to do so, though recently I must confess that I?ve been feeling a bit bored. This is precisely when I need to turn to a winemaker who can think outside the box and take me somewhere different than the usual Cab/Malbec blends. Who could I turn to?

Susana helped me think outside the box?Susana Balbo, that is. One of Argentina?s premier winemakers, her Syrah-Bonarda blend is one of various compelling examples of her brilliance. It?s an intelligent value steal and as a bonus, it is meant to be consumed more or less young. Argentine Syrah as a whole doesn?t get all of the credit that it deserves?combined with the second most planted red, Bonarda, you get this beauty, with meaty tannins and lots of dark fruit/red fruit complexity. My favorite aspect of this one revolved around the irresistible, concentrated plum, cherry and black raspberry flavors, with the Bonarda contributing the nice red berry acidity. The oak and warm spices are a great, subtle backbone that won?t overwhelm with one of those cheap death-by-vanilla finishes. As with a great deal of grapes harvested from the Andean foothills (elev. about 2300ft), both components of this 50/50 blend were hand-harvested from vines in Mendoza?s Rivadavia department that are on average, 40 years old.

What a wonderful blend to try with grilled meats now that the weather is improving. Yet another excellent example that shows what finesse Mendoza blends can have without Malbec involvement.

Susana Balbo?s Crios wines are made available by Vine Connections, the premier boutique Argentine wine importer out of San Francisco. If you?re having trouble finding it in your area, try Wine-Searcher or the importers themselves.

[08/11/2006, 06:59] Hook and Ladder - The Tillerman White

The best kinds of cheap wines are the kinds that have a rich story behind them. Well, The Tillerman White wine brought to you by the Hook & Ladder Winery certainly fits the bill. At first glance this wine label made no sense to me… Hook & Ladder? The Tillerman? After doing some research, I feel enlightened knowing the origins of this fine cheap wine, so I’ll share:

The owner of the family-run Hook & Ladder, Cecil De Loach used to be a firefighter! “Hook and Ladder” is just another name for a firetruck. And The Tillerman is guy who drives the back end of a firetruck. A firefighter and a wine-maker! What a life!

hanna hilton

I sampled several bottles of The Tillerman White, and I am glad I did. Not being a fan of white blends with a lot of oak, I enjoyed everything about this wine. The peach/apricot aroma was the most prominent feature of this wine as it approached my nose. The wine was very dry, tasty, had an awesome finish. Just a perfect all-around table wine. For about 16 bucks or less, this Sonoma County wine is a steal. If you see it in your supermarket, snatch it up! I look forward to trying some of their many other varietals. This same vineyard, the Russian River Valley produces Chardonay, Gewurztraminer, White Zin, Pinot Noir, Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon, and the “Third Alarm” Reserve Chardonnay. Oh, how I would love to visit the vineyard one day.

Rating: 9/10 - Excellent!
The only reason I’m not giving it 10 is because I promised my readers “cheap wines less than 15 dollars” and this wine retails for 16. Look around though, I’m sure you can find a good deal! Even if you can’t, it is worth the extra dollar.

Extra Info: Hook & Ladder - Founded in 2004
2027 Olivet Road
Santa Rosa, CA 95401
phone: 707-546-5712

pH: 3.3
Acidity: .73
Alcohol: 13.8%
Winemaker: Cecil De Loach
Cases Produced: 2,400

[03/01/2007, 09:32] JaJa Barossa Shiraz 2004

hanna hiltonThis is from Stonewell in the sub-region of Marananga. The winemaker is Barossa superstar Troy Kalleske and the executive producers are brothers Pierre and Bert Werden. The name JaJa is an acronym derived from the names of their four children - Jake, Andrew, Jordan and Alana. Bert has had another kiddy called Tara since so maybe they should call future releases JaJaTa…which sounds a bit like a cracker and could be wholly appropriate based on the quality of this first release.

Aromas of blackberry, plum, raspberry, aniseed and meaty malty coffee oak with just a suggestion of fresh mint. On the palate full bodied and packed with an array of lush blackberry, dark cherry and raspberry fruit backed with savoury meaty toasty oak. Beautiful ripe textural tannins here. The mouthfeel is outstanding. Finishes long with blackberry/raspberry and toasty espresso flavours. This is a classic Barossa shiraz offering deep yet vibrant fruit and altogether too much value for money.

[05/07/2008, 10:22] 2005 Joseph Drouhin Chablis
hanna hiltonAs part of my desire to enjoy better white wines, here's the 2005 Joseph Drouhin Chablis from the Chablis region of France near Burgundy. Around $20.

A nose that is slightly reminiscent of buttered popcorn, but not overly so. Overall a very bright, sunny wine, with flavors of crisp pears and green apples, with a touch of citrus on the finish.

I served this with another preparation of whole rainbow trout roasted in aluminum foil, this time with red bell peppers and pineapple. The touch of sweetness and caramelized sugars was quite nice. In the past I've used chayote squash and other ingredients, but the pineapple is a great pairing.
[05/01/2008, 18:01] Quattro Mani Montepulciano 2006
hanna hiltonBig, mouthfilling, smooth and satisfying describe the Quattro Mani Montepulciano 2006.

This easy-to-drink Italian starts off with dark berry, leather and smoke on the nose. The dark berries continue on the palate and are joined by dried cherries and a little more smokiness.

This robust, full-bodied wine is enjoyable by itself, and its smoky component would make it a good match for burgers, barbecue and grilled meats. Its price is a very reasonable $10 per bottle.
[04/14/2008, 20:48] Among the Stones - The Wines of Cayuse
Welcome to our video podcast of the Among the Stones - The Wines of Cayuse - Video Show #30.

Click the Image Below to Play the Video:

hanna hilton

Click Here to Download File

Some might say Christophe Baron had rocks in his head to plant Syrah in 1997 in Washington’s Walla Walla Valley. But actually, it is the vineyards of Cayuse that are loaded with rocks. As with most of his colleagues, Christophe feels the answer to great wines is to work hard work in the vineyard. But, the weather is a tough variable here in Southeastern Washington. To keep the vines from freezing during the harsh winter, Christophe must bury the vines with rocks and dirt. And, since grafting is a problem because of the cold winters (grafts would have difficulty surviving), all of his vines are all on their own rootstalks.

Join us as we listen to this fascinating vigneron, and his take on working among the stones to make great wines from the Walla Walla Valley.

[03/30/2008, 12:06] March 30, 2008. Small New Zealand Wineries Part 5. Himmelsfeld Vineyard
hanna hiltonIn this final part of this series, I would like to introduce readers to an extremely small winery which pays serious attention to their vines. Himmelsfeld vineyard began in 1991 when owner Elizabeth(Beth) Eggars decided to try something else besides nursing. Nestled on a gentle hill in Upper Moutere, the 10.5ha property has about 1.5ha dedicated to growing Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc (roughly equal split). The rest of the land is still home to an apple orchard and many sheep!

Total production for all wines is roughly about 600+ cases so odds are you will not see this too often overseas. In fact, don't think we saw it in shops while in New Zealand either.

Of the many wineries visited - Beth struck me as one who puts emphasis on the Vineyard first and wine making second. She is adamant that "great wines are made in the vineyard", something which I hear echoed in the most zealous ( and coincidentally top notch) Burgundy producers. Her vineyard is the first one I have seen in New Zealand which does not "irrigate" - yes you heard it right - no irrigation. It was deemed that a deeper vine root system was preferable over "immediate results" and irrigation did not encourage this.


hanna hilton

2002 Himmelsfeld Moutere Chardonnay

Hints of citrus fruits and what is the beginning of some secondary aromas coming from the oak. Defintely French oak and probably not new oak either. Not as tight in terms of acidity which I suspect means it should be consumed within 3-5 years. 90 points.

2002 Himmelsfeld Moutere Cabernet
Already achieving some secondary aromas, black and red fruits, not an inky black monster by any measures & soft smooth tannins. The core of the mid palate however shows some lightness in density indicating perhaps rain - grape bloat? Other than that a very nice wine but do not expect this to get much better and should be consumed within 3 perhaps 5 years. 90 points.

2003 Himmelsfeld Mouter Noble Chardonnay
Of the wines offered for tasting this is probably the got me excited the most. I am thinking this is comparable to top level Alsace SGN's but it also has that acidity which lifts the whole thing up. Defintely something I would be very curious to try again in 10-15 years - think this will be a knockout. 96+ points

[04/09/2008, 02:08] Wood Winery 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon

hanna hilton The Award-Winning Wine:

Wood Winery 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon

Reason for Reviewing:

Wood Winery 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon is...

[01/01/1970, 02:00] Saludas Rose 2006
[04/12/2008, 19:40] Best Wine Blog Posts for April 7th through April 11th

Best of the wine blogosphere for April 7th through April 11th:

hanna hilton hanna hilton hanna hilton hanna hilton
[01/01/1970, 02:00] Italian Wine & Food Gala
Thu Feb 24th, 2005, New York City
Italian Wine & Food Gala Thursday, Februrary 24, 2005 New York City The Italian Wine & Food Gala, to be held from 3:00 to 9:00 p.m., will showcase more than 60 producers and over 400 of Italy's premium wines and will offer a panoramic view of Italy's diverse wine regions and a rare opportunity to discuss wines with the experts who produce them.
[05/12/2008, 17:00] Stocking up on Salon 1996

hanna hiltonRob Rosania, a 38 year-old collector aka “Big Boy,” sold off around $5 million of his champagne and still wines at auction a couple of weeks ago. And yet he still remains one of the biggest collectors of champagne around.

This factoid from a recent Bloomberg article piqued my interest: Rosania owns 400 cases of the excellent champagne Salon 1996 (minus the five he sold at auction) out of a total of 5,000 produced. Poking around on the web revealed other sources saying that there were 8,000 cases produced. And these are six-bottle cases that we’re talking about. The champagne retails for $250 - $300 (search for the Salon 1996).

It’s a fascinating strategy for investing in wine. Rosania has somewhere between five and eight percent of this blue chip wine outstanding–and that percentage rises every time a cork of it is popped elsewhere. That’s probably a good percentage of the production to have to really benefit from a future price move yet not control the market entirely. It would be hard to take an equivalent percentage of a first growth Bordeaux wine since the production volumes are higher. All it takes is a big cellar and a cool $700k or so.

Even if the economy stagnates, wine such as this will probably always have buyers. Could it double in value in ten years? Even if it doesn’t Rosania can always have fun popping open the bottles of this fine wine with his saber.

I’ve tried a tasting-sized-pour of the 96 Salon and it is a brilliant champagne. In a wine investing video game, I might be tempted to adopt a similar strategy. If, in some fantasy world, you were going to take ten percent of a wine, which would it be?

hanna hilton hanna hilton hanna hilton hanna hilton hanna hilton hanna hilton hanna hilton
[02/01/2008, 01:38] Vinarija Ivanovi? - Tamjanika 2005

hanna hiltonThis is a dry, slightly sparkling wine, with a pleasent, rich, complex aroma. A pleasure to sniff and taste, there’s a fruity note and there’s quite an undefined spicy note, definitely requires another bottle of researching hanna hilton . The producer specifies it as a wine “with characteristic Muscat taste and smell carrying combination of spicy tones of incense, cinnamon, basil and fruit tones of pine apple and strawberry”.

Although it does have the muscaty taste it’s a dry wine, but still does go well with desserts such as nutty cakes. Also goes well with lighter meat dishes and on it’s own.

The Ivanovi? winery is a winery with a long tradition, one of those where the younger generation has embraced it’s ancestry recipes and combined it with modern trends. Some of the details are available online. It is located in the ?upa region in southern Serbia.

Score: 8/10
Price: 500 RSD (?6)
Retailer: Chardak, ?ika Ljubina 7, Belgrade

Technorati Tags: ,

WorldWine Tags: Serbian Wines, Tamjanika,
[11/01/2006, 20:00] Mark it on the calendar
Hmm. I wonder if anyone even bothers to stop by any more, even if it's just to note my conspicuous absence.

Lots going on, folks.

Thanks to all who wished the Chef and me well last month on the anniversary of our wedding.

On a similar note, best wishes to Scott and Jill on their nuptials last weekend. Such a beautiful party.

And, of course, there's the wine goings on. Much to do here in Northeast Ohio, especially this weekend. If you felt let down by the Tribe's oh-so-typical performance this year, you can return to Jacobs Field in Cleveland this weekend, Nov. 2-4, for a much happier occasion. It's the Heinen's/WVIZ World Series of Wine , a perennial joy for wine novices and aficionados alike. It really doesn't get much better than the grand tastings ($70-$75 a person; purchase tickets in advance). More than 400 wines, 100-plus producers, stellar munchies, unparalleled people watching. You'll find lots of opportunities to speak with winery and distributor representatives to get the real dirt on what you're tasting.

It's hard not to over imbibe with so many wines to try, so take a cab or a limo or book a hotel room. Some downtown Cleveland hotels are offering packages specifically for the occasion.

This is easily the biggest wine event of the year for Northeast Ohio. Oh, and it benefits public broadcasting, as if you needed another reason to go.
[05/15/2008, 11:19] The Wine Cellar: Earthy South African reds evoke the Old World

After a long time in swill purgatory, South Africa finally has established itself as a legitimate producer of quality wines. via Courier News Online

[04/26/2008, 19:39] Gold Medal Cabs from 2008 Dallas Competition

Of hundreds entered, just 27 Cabernet Sauvignons earned top-honor Gold Medals at the recently completed 2008 Dallas Morning News Wine Competition,...

[01/01/1970, 02:00] Gevalia Coffee - Free Shipping with $50 purchase
Free Shipping with $50 purchase
[04/10/2008, 01:45] Wine and Technology Survey
Hello,

I've been a member of this group for awhile, but haven't posted much.  I've ended up doing my senior project for a possible internet wine recommendation service, and would appreciate it if you could take the survey. It's not personally identifable, and it should be pretty quick to take.

Thanks a lot!

http://seniorproject.bma452.sgizmo.com
[04/28/2008, 12:00] The Wines of Marqués de Murrieta

T

If you are into Spanish wine, it is likely you are aware of the oldest Bodega in the Rioja. Founded in 1852, Marqués de Murrieta concentrates on making Reserva and Gran Reserva, each spending multiple years in large oak barrels. The Castillo de Ygay is their Gran Reserva, and is produced only in exceptional years. Incredibly, the current release of this wine is 30 years old! The 1978 vintage was not bottled until 1998, after spending 212 months in oak!

Join us as we sit with Vicente Dalmau, President of Marqués de Murrieta winery. Vicente (who is also the Conde de Creixell) discusses Tempranillo, La Rioja, and an exciting new property in the Rias Baixas area of Galicia, where they are producing Alberiño.

Sponsor: Pinpoint Tech, Your Mailing List Source: www.pinpoint-tech.com

Click Below to Play the Show:

Show #198
(48:43 min 35 MB)
[04/21/2008, 23:13] Why Italian Wines Are Different

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?

» Full Story

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

Tags: , , , , , ,

WorldWine Tags: melgab, wine, choice, taste, italian, south-africa, South Africa,
[01/01/1970, 02:00] Post Slackage
[01/01/1970, 02:00]