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Brad Ballinger

eGullet Society staff emeritus
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Everything posted by Brad Ballinger

  1. Awwww. I thought perhaps you might have been inspired by those of us in the Wine Forum drinking through the alphabet -- Wine Tag, A to Z.
  2. What???!!! My one meal there three years ago was very memorable! How sad! Is the bread company also folding? ← The complete story is that Levain closed down on December 31. The reason given was lack of diners during the week. Weekends did well, but couldn't support the lighter turnouts during weeknights. This is a typical problem, and gets compounded a bit more during the winter months. Turtle Bread Company is still in business. The space formerly occupied by Levain will reopen as a more casual neighborhood restaurant. Perhaps not the level of cuisine as Levain, but not the prices of Levain either, which supposedly contributed to lack of weeknight diners.
  3. Well, we've had a couple of easy letters if one has a liberal approach to consider wines from Europe, France, or Germany. But I would wager not too many have wines from Hungary at the ready, or want to drop the money for a bottle of one of that country's more-exported wines, Tokaji. But maybe you're waiting for "T" or plan to go back to "F" since that wine is made from furmint grapes. But I digress. So what to do about H? Well, there is the German village of Hochheim, and the German vineyards of Himmelreich and Hermannshole, not to mention the grape huxelrebe and halbtrocken wines. In France, there are the regions of Haut Medoc, Hautes Cotes de Beaune, Hautes Cotes de Nuits, and Hermitage (we'll even give you Crozes-Hermitage). And, speaking of Haut, in additiona to Chateau Haut Brion, there's Haut Marbuzet, Haut Bages Liberal, Haut Batailley, and Haut Bailly. California has producers named Hanna, Heitz, Hanzell, Hess, Hogue, and Husch. It also has a vineyard named Hirsch, and a growing region named Howell Mountain. Australia has Hunter Valley and Henschke. Maybe you'll open a half bottle. Or maybe let us know what you pour for House Wine. 2003 Heinrich Zweigelt, Burgenland (Austria). Zweigelt is a cross between Blaufrankisch and St. Laurent. This wine is fermented in stainless steel, and aged in large oak vats and twice-used barriques. I expected the wine to be good, but it even surpassed those expectations. The nose is inviting with cherries, violets, and a bit of smoke. In the mouth the wine is juicy, but bright with acidity and layered with spice and smoke. Every whiff and sip revealed more complexity. The finish is long-lasting and fruit-driven. It's a wine to pour for your wine-loving friends to watch them do a double-take. But this bottle was enjoyed by just my wife and me.
  4. It seems to me a point is being missed here. Not to be overly snobbish, but I think you have to lower your standards when the word buffet is involved, and quantity usually trumps quality in those instances.
  5. Another good experience (and an extra comped dessert). It may be 3-4 months before I'm back again, and I'll probably have to poke my nose in the wine bar at that time.
  6. I'm sure several of us will have different impressions of the wine. At events such as that one, it's hard to take any notes with confidence. You're drinking such a tiny bit, and impressions are influenced on what you had prior and after. As we both know. I would guess the 94 Beaucastel was an off bottle.
  7. Without going into a dissertation on customer service, it's pretty much knowing your customer/market segments, knowing what each segment requires, meeting those requirements consistently, recovering when mistakes are made, and doing something to build loyalty and positive referrals. Oh, and having a way to tell you how well you're doing at all those things (call it measurement). That's at the macro level, and you've addressed some of that. At the micro level, it's how is the customer treated. Usually making sure they talk more than you do is a good sign. So asking, listening, recommending without telling, getting to know them. I'd also suggest some way to keep track of what your repeat customers purchased. And if your memory is as good as mine (which means not very), you'll probably need some sort of system for that. And when you know that customer's name on his or her second visit, you've done a good job. That is going to make you great instead of just good.
  8. Looks fine. But I'd do a Moscato d'Asti with the sorbets instead.
  9. This is a tough question for me to answer. Of course, you already know this, but you are challenged with appealing to a broad range of tastes, interests, knowledge levels, "luxury budgets," and so forth. One of the best wine shops I've been to is Chambers Street Wines in New York City. They stock out-of-the-way, hard-to-find, reasonably-priced gems. And -- this is a critical point -- the staff are very knowledgeable. Does nothing for me. But may hold a great degree of relevance for current and potential customers in your market. I'm surprised that the opinion of "hand crafted and artisan wines" is restricted to everyday needs. When it comes right down to it, though, wine is approaching commodity status (if it's not there already). If I want a certain bottle badly enough, there may be plenty of places I can get it -- especially if my state allows me to receive shipments. So how your place (and many others) will differeniate from competitors is in terms of the service you provide your one-time and repeat customers. I'd much rather hear about what your shop does in that regard insteadd of what I find on your shelves. How knowledgeable is your staff? How skilled are they at determine the customer's unarticulated needs? Are they moving product or building relationships? What ancillary services (delivery, storage, education, etc) do you provide? If you carry wines in your market that I can't get anywhere else, but I have to endure poor service to purchase them, it won't be long before I find another source outside your market, or just decide it isn't worth it.
  10. Some of the Twin Cities wine-obsessed crowd gathered to drink wine. The theme was Old World Reds, which is usually the theme even when no theme is announced. In the order I drank them… 1986 Trevisiol Prosecco Spumante. The person who brought this said, “I bet you’ve never had a 20-year old Prosecco before.” “Still or spumante?” I replied, just to be difficult. Anyway, there was plenty of fizz and activity in the wine. To my palate it was like drinking liquid yeast. There was a faint nutty flavor, but not much else. I think I’ll continue to drink prosecco sumpanti young. 1989 Trimbach “Cuvee Frederic Emile” Riesling, Vendange Tardive. Nose of mandarins and limes. Lackluster acidity, and fat in the mouth. Revisited at the end of the evening, there was more emerging minerality, but texturally the wine left me wanting. 2004 Glatzer Blaufrankisch, Carnuntum. Young, grapey nose that also gave off a bit too much alcohol for me. Tart, crushed berry flavors and plenty of acidity. Not showing much depth or complexity. 2000 Bernard Moreau Chassagne-Montrachet, Morgeot la Cardeuse Premier Cru (Monopole). With how lovely this wine is drinking now, I can’t imagine how much joy it will provide with some more age on it. Nose that reveals nettles and freshly turned earth, a bit of smoke. Harmony and balance in the mouth – nearly seamless. Mout Rainier cherries, some spice, fine tannins. A complete package. 1997 Michel Gros Vosne-Romanee, Clos des Reas Premier Cru (Monopole). En magnum. Cloudy appearance (but it spent one hour on a bus prior to opening). To use a cliché, it smelled like Burgundy (whatever that’s supposed to mean). Nice acidity level, and a good “snap” to the fruit. Some earthy undercurrent. 2000 Tenuta di Capezzana “Villa di Capezzana” Carmignano. Carmignano is a small DOCG west of Florence, and was given special designation because it is one of the few places (only?) in Tuscany where the cabernet sauvignon vines have been there centuries before Antinori and others ever conceived of anything Super Tuscan-like. 80% sangiovese, 20% cabernet sauvignon. Tank fermented. Botti and bottle aged. No barrique. Anise, smoke, and spice swirl around blackberries on the nose. Ripe, juicy, lush black fruits in the mouth. Sweet tannins. Mouth-watering acidity. A nice discovery. 1998 Canon Saint-Michel, Canon Fronsac. Corked. 1996 Haut Marbuzet, Saint Estephe. Yet another in a string of Left Bank 96s that doesn’t even come close to disappointing. Probably my wine of the night (with the Chassagne and Brunello close behind). Currants, spice, coffee, vanilla on the nose. Wonderful textural harmony with integrated, resolving tannins. Lacks the edge and coarseness of some other Saint Estephe wines I’ve had. Luscious cassis core. Easy transition to a long and pleasant finish. 1992 Lafite Rothschild, Pauillac. A fleeting musty whiff gives way to a menthol-dominated nose. Fading fruit. Unraveling texture. Probably showed better a few years ago. 1997 Biondi Santi “Villa Poggio Salvi” Brunello di Montalcino. Powerfully mineral-driven nose that shows graphite, smoke, and finally ripe cherries. Still fairly tight, giving glimpses of the complexity that will reward patience. Balanced now. A sleeping giant. 1994 Beaucastel Chateauneuf-du-Pape. Smells like citrus and iodine. Thin tart fruit. Moving on. 1995 Beaucastel Chateauneuf-du-Pape. Much more like it. Has a peppery, spicey, olive-y nose, and a much more developed flavor profile that includes blueberry, cherry, and a bit of smoke. But appears to be in a mid-developing stage. Still needs some air, and probably more cellar time. Thank you to the person who brought it because I have only one in the cellar, and I’ll let it sleep. 1989 Chateau de la Font du Loup Chateauneuf-du-Pape. The most “CdP-like” nose of the three CdP wines. Black olives, black pepper. Alas, more fun to smell than drink. Watery fruit and lack of structure. 1997 Guy Breton Morgon Vieilles Vignes. Tasting it at this time because the person who brought it was a late arrival. Vegetal, with tart plummy fruit. Can’t really say how it would’ve been five or so years ago when I’d want to drink it. 1991 Taylor Fladgate Quinta de Vargellas. This is a single-quinta Port Taylor made in 1991. When many other houses declared 1991 a vintage year, Taylor showed restraint and release the Quinta de Vargellas instead. I wasn’t sure if I was going to open this wine or not, but the corked Canon Saint-Michel was mine, and I felt some guilt about that, so… A nose of chocolate and the blackest blackberries that makes me want to shrink and dive into the glass. Luscious fruit in the mouth with gripping, teeth-staining tannins. I’ve not had much vintage port in my life, so I’m not sure about the following comment, but it appears as if this wine’s drinking window is just starting to open, and I could see giving it at least a couple more years. There was also a bottle of something called Domaine la France Cidre de Glace, Cuvee Speciale – an “ice cider” from Quebec. Tasted like baked apples in applesauce.
  11. Oky, all of you out there in eG land who've been blustering about being "too matchy" (or not) or about challenging food and wine pairing lore, tradition, or conventional wisdom, here's your opportunity to put your philosophies into action. . . Keep in mind two points Martin mentions -- 1) his guests are people who enjoy wine but don't know much about it, and 2) he's limited to whatever the Kingston, Ontario, LCBO decides to stock.
  12. For anyone interested in this topic, a must background read is just about anything by Tim Hanni. He wrote a chapter several years back in an out-of-print book titled "The Wine Brats Guide to Living with Wine." While much of the chapter, and Tim's focus now, is about maintaining balance in both food and wine in terms of flavor profiles (sweet, sour, umami, etc.), he does address some of the issue brought up so far. Did food and wine grow in harmony together? No. Maybe food is prepared now to better match certain wines of a region, but I'm not buying much into that. For centuries the Italians considered tomatoes poisionous. So it had to be only in recent decades that the barbera-tomato sauce (or, according to some, sangioves-tomato sauce) "classic" pairing surfaced. People drink what they drink because it's available. Almost certainly. In Germany's Black Forest, where a traditional dish is vension with cherry sauce, people pair it with Riesling. Yet I douby many of us would make that our first choice. I've conducted an experiement that originated with Tim. I served some people spaghetti with a store-bought sauce (think something with ridiculously high amounts of sugar), and served a Chianti with it. The wine appeared too "strong" (tannic, harsh, etc) when paired with the food. That's because sweetness will make most wine appear that way. I then had my guests add some red wine vinegar to the sauce and then try the wine again. They were surprised how the wine had mellowed. But the wine didn't change. Instead, the food was simply borugt back into balance and paired well with a balanced wine. Where we get into food and wine pairing issues is when either is out of balance in terms of flavor profiles. Sauternes "tastes" sweeter with blue cheese than with creme brulee. Sauvignong Blanc "shows" more citrus with chevre than with vinaigrette. And so on. When I've traveled in Champagne, the restaurants have mainly Champagne on their wine lists, but serve a variety of cuisine. At the high end places you can get Bordeaux, for example, tor example to have with beef, but most diners with be having Champagne with their beef. When I stayed along Italy's Amalfi Coast, the local wines (about $2 U.S.) were joyous matches with balanced dishes. In the Pfalz region, I dined in a couiple's house where they preferred to put an Italian spin on their cuisine, and had many Italian wines. For fun, I ordered a Riesling and one of the Italian wine (can't recall the name offhand). The Riesling was a better food match that night. And In Spain, I just ordered sangria because my wife loves the stuff.
  13. This is tough to answer. I'm one of those people who is more interested in trying as much as I can and learning from all of that than someone who wants to curl up with a handful of ol' reliables. I rarely purchase wine by the case. When I do, I always split it with at least one other person, sometime more. Leading up to an answer, though, the region from which I've consumed more wine than any other is Champagne. The producer from whom I've consumed more wine than any other is Climens. The individual wine I've consumed the most of is 1996 Pierre Peters "Cuvee Speciale" Brut Blanc de Blancs (and I'm not done yet!). Ask me this question in 15 years or so, and the answer may change to 1995 Ducru Beaucaillou, of which I have a case (purchased long before Spectator drove up its price with a WOTY recognition). As far as knowing a wine well, my try-as-much-as-you-can approach lends itself to a Jack of All Trades, Master of None comparison. I probably "know" Champagne better than I "know" any other wine or type of wine, but don't nearly know enough to really crow about. I feel most confident writing tasting notes for Champagne and other sparkling wines, for whatever that's worth. I prefer Champagne to many other wines because I think it's one of the best (and underrated) food wines, guests always appreciate being poured a glass or more, it never seems to be in a "dumb" stage, and there is great variety in style from producer to producer.
  14. Working our way through the alphabet we come to the letter "G." Tell us about wines made from gamay, grenache (garnacha), grignolino, gruner veltliner, greco, grechetto, grauburgunder, or gewurztraminer. Tell us about wine from the villages of Graach, Givry, or Gevrey-Chambertin. Tell us about wines from the vineyards of Goldtropfchen, Les Genevrieres, Grands-Echezeaux or Griotte-Chambertin. Tell us about the Bordeaux chateaux of Giscours, Gloria, Grand-Puy-Lacoste, or Gruaud Larose. Tell us about wine from the Italian DOCs of Greco di Tufo or Gavi. Tell us about grand crus, grand cru classes, first second thrid fourth or fifth growths. Tell us about grapey wines and gamey wines. Tell us about anything made from grapes. 2002 Domaine Barmes Buecher Rosenberg Silice Pinot Gris. This is a stony, smoky, spicy, orangey, smooth mouthful of delight. The nose took a while to open up. Showed some beeswax-like aroma, with smoke, and orange peel. Quite mineral-driven on the palate, with spice and rich citrus flavors. Moderate acidity and a somewhat lush texture, but not even close to flabby. This is nowhere near an "in your face" Alsatian pinot gris, and is quite lovely in its understated presentation. 1995 Domaine Santa Duc "Prestige de Hautes Garrigues" Gigondas. Anything but subtle -- at first. The first several tastes of this wine showed an angry monster that had been rudely awaken from a restful slumber. It also appeared slightly reductive. After an hour of aeration, it had transformed into a rich textured, multi-layered wine that gave off rich earthy minerals, black pepper, spice, olives, and blackberry. Gripping, ripe tannins. Finishes strong and goes on for well over a minute. I had been sitting on this wine, looking at it from time to time, wondering is it ready, beyond ready, what. Anyone with some can leave it alone for a while yet.
  15. I notice you are in San Francisco. I'm guessing there are plenty of classes available to you. I'd for sure check out theCopia web site to see what they are scheduled to offer. If there are any classes being taught by Tim Hanni (pronouced han-EYE), take one of those. I think that will be what you are looking for.
  16. My first recommendation is no wine with soup. My second recommendation (and it's a very distant second) isn't white, but barbera or sangiovese.
  17. Steven, I'll support you in this. I'll also add that the Europeans (and let's clarify that we're mainly talking continental Europeans) have been living with wine for centuries. In the United States, with the exception of those who had access to imported wines (and there weren't many), we've only "lived with" wine for decades -- and not very many of them at that. The Europeans, in general, don't risk an ayneurism when it comes to food and wine pairings. They eat the foods they like with the wines they like. And if the food is balanced in terms of flavors -- sweet, salty, savory, sour, etc., then most balanced wines will go well. We also need to factor in price. If I'm in Italy, and can buy any number of serviceable wines at the supermarket for the equivalent of $3 American (and less in many instances), or I can order a glass of wine in a restaurant that will cost me less than a bottle of Coca Cola, I'm not predisposed to agonize over whether or not it's going to go perfectly with the food. But for many Americans, $10 is the minimum price for a "good" bottle of wine. And for even more Europeans, paying the equivalent of $10 U.S. for a bottle of wine is laughable.
  18. Okay, at the risk of incurring wrath from fellow oenophiles, yes we are too matchy. Similarly, we are also too foody. That's why this entire web site exists. I think just about anything can be taken to the extreme, and the extremists support doing so while others scratch their heads. We need to realize that those of us who come to this web site, this forum, and others like it elsewhere in cyberspace are an incredibly small part of the poplulation. I'm sure plenty of people think we're over the edge just because we have this site bookmarked. And within this Society, we're going to get even more statrified in terms of geekiness with whatever topic -- wine, beer, pastry cooking, cookware, etc. Edited to add: There are plenty who would comment that the fact we're devoting 50+ replies to this topic is nuts. But now to the particular topic realizing where we are. Personally, I do think we agonize too much over just the right wine with just the right food. I do not think there are perfect pairings, and the only way to get close is to taste the food first, and then see what wines work better than others. But from a word-only description of menu items, and a word-only description of either general characteristics of a certain type of wine or tasting notes open to subjectivity of the person writing them, I'm happy if a pairing is simply in the ballpark. I can enjoy both the food and the wine if I don't over-analyze it and put pressure on myself to be perfect. I can understand a perspective, though, that factors in how much we pay for certain wines. I can understand not wanting to pay restaurant markups and then have a wine and food mismatch. Even so, there is still plenty of room to make safe choices. And with places like Alinea (disclaimer -- haven't been there), I'll bet the cellar that the selected wine with a selected course wouldn't be evaluated as the best pairing by 100% of diners if they were also given other wine options for comparison.
  19. Thank you for mentioning that. Pinot is not supposed to taste like syrah and vice versa. Do we really need to turn all varieties into the same wine? ← Well, that depends what kind of score you want (running for cover. . .)
  20. Well, like their other wines, it goes by a different name depending on the vintage. The fruit comes from the Shea Vineyard in Oregon's Willamette Valley. Great source of fruit that goes through an abomination at the winery. I swear the 1999 Ox stained my wine glass.
  21. One person's opinon (I've changed the order of some course). . . Fritter - Prosecco is fine Tuna sashimi - Rose bubbly Scallops - Savennieres Artichoke Risotto - any white, doesn't matter (artichoke is a wine nightmare) Sorbet - nothing Mushroom Ravioli - Pinot Noir is fine Steak - Cab is fine, or Cab-based SuperTuscan Bok Choy - nothing Cheeses - free for all of what is still hanging around Dessert - Moscato (it will go well enough with chocolate, and will go with fruit)
  22. Sine Qua Non ← I agree, that's why I asked the question. I didn't bring up that subject matter, another poster did. ← In case there is any confusion, Sine Qua Non is a producer, and was not typed by me to mean anything else related to the defintion of the phrase (such as delicacy is a sine qua non for good Pinot Noir wines).
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