Rebel Rose

I had an embarrassing pinot moment . . . that doesn't sound quite right. But nevertheless, I was at Artisan recently with friends and we all ordered versions of fish and shellfish, with a cheese fondue. My friends asked me to pick the wine and I picked a pinot from a local producer that I adore (as in I love to hug him). Unfortunately, the pinot turned out to be very cabalicious. It was awful with our food. And I was embarrassed. Point is . . . a claret-style zinfandel would have been better than that particular pinot. Euro selections aside, as I always try to order local dishes and local wines, zin would have been a much better choice for our fish than that particular pinot noir. Go figure.

Is this a suggestion, an exhortation, or a commentary on your evening drinking habits? I just wanted to point you to some interesting nuggets of information to be found at Full Glass Research, where wine industry opinion analyst Christian Miller posts some excerpts from his industry studies with commentary. I recently went over Christian's presentation notes on his zinfandel study, which he delivered in Paso Robles this spring. I was unable to attend, and he was kind enough to hand deliver a copy of his presentation. It makes for thought-provoking reading. As I understand it, only 17% of hard core wine geeks would drink zinfandel with a "gourmet dinner at home," but 51% of the same group agree that zinfandel "complements a wide variety of food." Zin winemakers reported that direct-to-consumer sales were the most important part of their marketing. But according to the study, consumers want to see more zinfandel in restaurants. One of the significant findings of the study was a difference in trade perception vs. consumer perception. In other words, wine drinkers are not seeing what they want on restaurant lists—versatile, food-friendly zinfandels. From Miller’s report, "Many who said they preferred ‘bold,’ ‘rich’ and ‘ripe' wines, in other questions nonetheless picked middle or lower alcohol as their preference." But what is really telling is that in the winegeek crowd (cab freaks, burgheads, etc.) 63% "would like to see more and better Zinfandels available by the glass" in restaurants and in wine bars. (Among HFZ* members 89% agreed, but that’s sort of a given . . . ) In addition, 66% of HFZ drinkers and 52% of core wine drinkers agreed that "restaurants rarely have a good Zinfandel selection." On the other hand, the cabfreak/burghound/core buying crowd would only order zinfandel in an "exceptional restaurant" 15% of the time—although they would choose a zinfandel for barbecue and grilling 29% of the time. (* HFZ = high frequency zin) Of the core wine drinkers (not the HFZ fans), 51% felt that "a good Zin is just as fine a wine as a good Cabernet, Bordeaux or Pinot Noir." So, if zinfandel is generally thought of as high in alcohol, generally uber-ripe, supposedly doesn’t age well, and is not a wine to be paired with gourmet meals or deserving of critical attention, why are so many people—including core wine consumers who have no preference for zinfandel—clamoring to see more zinfandel in restaurants? Should zinfandel be more readily available—but only in Bubba-style rib joints and Basque family-style restaurants? Will zinfandel ever be a democratic choice of wine in fine dining?

Christian Miller at Full Glass Research has published some excerpts of his industry research findings, along with his comments. There are plenty of interesting nuggets on this site, although you may have to really dig in to discover them. Christian's site does not, unfortunately, offer specific URL's for each essay. Click on "Article Archives" and scroll about halfway down to find the comments quoted below, along with hard statistics. But if you're not in a hurry, you may want to take the time to read his other essays as well. Very enlightening and balanced--and grounded in professionally-conducted studies. One of the things I found particularly evocative in his recent report on zinfandel is that 17% of hard core wine geeks would drink zinfandel with a "gourmet dinner at home," but 51% of the same group agree that zinfandel "complements a wide variety of food."

Congratulations, Max. I see your well made points made the Chronicle's short list of interesting letters.

No better way to use up that half-drunk bottle of red wine on a hot day than in a refreshing sangria! I prefer Bordeaux grapes . . . cabernet and merlot, or blends. The cherry flavors just go so well with that zip from some sliced citrus. For me, the zins and sangioveses taste a little weird when made into an iced drink, but maybe that's just me. We do not use hard liquor or sweeteners in our rendition. Just leftover wine, sliced oranges, limes and lemons, ice, and sparkling water. If I don't think we'll be drinking a whole pitcher at once, I save the ice to add later. What's your version?

If you are planning to take the scenic, but very winding, Coast Highway 1 to Los Gatos, you should plan on it taking about 4 hours from the junction of Hwy 46 West and Hwy 1, plus a stop for lunch at Nepenthe. It will take half of your Thursday just to get there, but the coast highway is a sight not to be missed. You may also enjoy a morning tour at the Hearst Castle in San Simeon before you hit the road . . . it's right on Hwy. 1. If you spend the night at the Cavalier in San Simeon you can get an early start on your day. Otherwsie, from Paso to Carmel is only 2 hours on Highway 101, which parallels the coast but is farther inland. Santa Barbara and Paso Robles are 2 hours apart on Hwy. 101, so you and your friend will want to decide if you prefer to visit pinot noir and chardonnay producers in Sideways country, or do zins and Rhones in Paso Robles . . .

Ah, thank you! The quality of waiter's corkscrews (wine keys) will vary. Plus, the worm will get dull after 50-100 openings and just grind into the cork. Some of them are dull to begin with. You will want to make sure you a) have a good quality screw with a sharp point b) haven't overused it, and c) be sure to lever the cork straight up I find the butterfly style to be even more treacherous. The gears are prone to slipping or catching. Personally, I prefer an Ahso-style, two prong opener. They do sometimes bend, but if you can master an Ahso, you will be able to open any bottle, anytime, without grinding the cork into dust. . . . . Except for Nomacorks and other plastic corks. They don't have the "give" of natural cork and they practically DARE you to extract them. If you are dealing with Nomacork style closure . . . use a saber and just behead the bottle.

What's a 'wine key'? And a butterfly? Pics would help?

Crushpad, a custom crush facility in California is now offering a related site called CrushNet. At CrushNet you read winemaking blogs written by the various clients. You can hook up with other interested parties to produce a barrel or two of wine . . . currently one customer is looking for partners in 2 barrels of Tokalon cabernet. You can sign up for allocations of future pinot releases from popular pro-am wine divas. They're even starting an Enowiki to which interested individuals can contribute. What do you think?

Sure, that's fine! We're pretty democratic about that here.

This is something that gave me pause for thought. I don't suppose the critics who use the 100-point score would really want to complicate their lives further by considering price into the equation, but really now . . . when wines cost $200-$300 on release, shouldn't they be scrutinized for more than 30 seconds? Not necessarily held to a higher standard, but . . . well yes, maybe they should. I think if a winery is charging more than $100 per bottle, then perhaps critics should be expected to do year 3,5,7 and 10 followups. And a new Napa winery with no track record should have each release reviewed again each year 1-5. I bet that if wineries which get a 94-95 on release start getting 86's in following years, that all wineries will take note and vanity pricing will be reined in. I'm sure the market apologists will say, "yes, but these wineries charge what customers are willing to pay and that will never change." My argument is that it can change if critics really revisit their techniques in the light of modern pricing that critics.

Hmm, well I'm not sure how that works. I do know that he made a BIG point to me in private correspondence that he is the OWNER and ADMINISTRATOR of the wine forum. I will PM you with the juicy details.

Paso Robles/Templeton has a Trader Joe's now. Yay! You have no idea how happy this makes me unless you too live in a tiny backwater town with two chain groceries with expansive floor space and dismal produce. Anyhoo . . . as I was perusing the aisles on my last visit I noticed a lot of really low priced wines. Are they good? Would they make good Saturday night hamburger-on-the-grill wines? Any good Sauvignon Blancs for that impromptu girlfriends-over-cheese-and-wine moment? Anything exceptional? Think of all the small towns and suburbs that don't have a decent wine shop, but might have a Trader Joe's. I think it is our duty as American consumers to support our shopping brethren and college students by posting reviews! Besides, we might have as much fun as Mark Fisher did . . . see wine columnist Mark Fisher's article for the Dayton Daily News: A Trader Joe’s Wine-Buying Experience So on Saturday, I'm off to the little farmer's market in Templeton, and then a quick stop at Trader Joe's for wine and raviolis. What should I buy?

I'm a little confused by your stand on this, John. Lots of wine producers who are rated by the Wine Advocate post on the eBob forums. (Which, by the way, are not owned or managed by Robert Parker. The forum site is owned and administrated by Mark Squires.)

Okay, it's a bizarre thought. But just think . . . what if Zagat published a winery tasting room guide? What would they include in their reviews? * Ambience * Bathroom cleanliness * Notes on savory snacks and cheeses * Service * Menu selection What else? Can you write a Zagat-style review of a winery tasting room?

Among my favorites are award-winning wine bloggers like Alder Yarrow at Vinography and Craig Camp at Wine Camp. But I would have to also include as one of my all time favorites our own Jim Cowen (aka Florida Jim). His recent post on de Villaine's wines is the kind of wine writing that I take very seriously. I trust Jim's reviews. I also like the way he takes price into consideration as an important factor in wine enjoyment, and provides thoughtful commentary on the price to quality ratio. Of course, the wines we produce at Dover Canyon would blow Jim's socks off with alcohols well over 12.5% but I also enjoy more delicate alcohol levels and I use Jim's reviews as a good source for wines packed with flavor, not punch. In fact, I find myself gravitating more and more to independent, unpaid reviewers for interesting material and refreshing tasting notes. Another favorite 'wine critic' of mine is Romeo ('Meo) Zuech of tiny Piedra Creek Winery. He doesn't publish online, but he walks into the winery occasionally, a graceful Italian grandfather leaning on a cane, to study our wines and he brings some others as well. Meo will say cryptic things like, "This is an honest wine!" or "This wine is trying to tell me a story. I can hear the beginning, and the end, but not the middle." It would be funny if it weren't for the fact that he's always right. Who is your favorite wine-critic-on-the-street, wine mentor, go-to wine person?

I shudder to think what a 98-pt. pinotage would taste like! I thought it was a very well done article. The good, the bad, the past, the future, a few industry people, and the man on the street. Good coverage of an evolving topic.

The San Francisco Chronicle takes on the 100-point system. Is it good for customers? Bad for diversity? Does it still work? Does anybody really care? First, Blake Gray presents a very clear and complete synopsis of how the rating system works today, for better and for worse. Are Ratings Pointless? One of the issues that Gray tackles is grade inflation: But Grey also quotes Tanzer as remarking that competition between 100-point publications has also driven up scores. In a description of the Chronicle's 4-star rating system, Jon Bonne (aka eG member jbonne) brings up an interesting point: Wine Opinions has just released a market survey, as reported on The Wine Collector, and this one demonstrates that the larger wine market is not really score-driven. The Chronicle also asked for some opinions from the man on the street: 2 cents: Does the wine scale influence your purchases?

We'll be having locally raised, organic Angus ribeyes, with grilled portabella mushrooms stuffed with gorgonzola, grilled sweet peppers, caramelized sweet onions, and grilled asaparagus seasoned with orange Pasolivo olive oil and garlic-lemon salt. The wines will be: 2004 Copain Zinfandel, Arrowhead Mountain, Sonoma 2005 Grey Wolf Zinfandel, Paso Robles 2004 Turley, Pesenti Vineyard, Paso Robles

Just thought I would mention here: We have confirmed appointments at Saxum and Four Vines for private tours and tastings. Saxum, Saturday at 2 pm, with owner/winemaker Justin Smith, maximum 10 people. Four Vines, with cellarmaster Colin Baker, probably Sunday am

That's true. Some pinot noir based rose's have an orange-ish, or amber, hue.

In defense of plonk, there have been times in my life when I've had a long day on my feet, a visit to the gym after work, nothing to drink in 3-4 days, and I'm taking a bunch of kids out to dinner at a chain or, even worse, Chuckie Cheese. I will gladly order a glass of red plonk in a klutzy little wine glass, and nurse it with my super-cheesy pizza while watching TV in a corner and hoping the kids don't lose their pants or shoes (or little brother) in the ball fort. But Yellowtail Shiraz? ::shudder::

Ah hah. Po-Faced. I shall have to practice this!

Long in the planning, Wine Television will launch in September. Just over a year ago, WTV planners sent questionnaires and press releases out requesting suggestions for programming ideas. But according to this press release, it looks to me to be pretty much the same stuff that is offered by FoodTV, Fine Living, and H&G Channel:

British columnists have been protesting EU restrictions, label warnings, and taxes on wine for a while now, but the opinion pieces are getting really fun to read now as tempers rise . . . The Nanny state should put a cork in it over drinking Who thought of health warnings on wine? Squiffy, I can guess from the context, but what does po-faced mean?