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CtznCane

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  1. CtznCane

    Wine Tag

    I haven't been on here in awhile so how coincidental to stumble across this thread. I bought an Argentine wine today for the first time that I was enjoying while watching MNF. Terrazas d los Andes Reserva Malbec 2003. My first Argentine wine and frankly quite a nice one as well. At $17 per bottle (BevMo) it is a very good wine for the price. Good mouth feel, rich, a bit of cocoa, good fruit and nicely balanced.
  2. The last time I bought top Bordeaux wines was in the Mid 80's. I don't have any illusions of buying any more at the prices they are at now. Certainly the first growths are out of my price range so I guess I have a forced boycott of them. The fact too is that they are not going to come down in price. I sold high end cars for many, many years. I think there is a comparison. With automobiles I remember years ago in the 70's the first time I sold a relatively high end car ($20K plus when most were around 5K) wondering how someone will make the payments. Answer is they don't, the guy paid cash. With cars, the lower the price of the car, the more likely it will be financed. At least as of the late 90's Hyundai was the car most financed. One of the cheapest and I believe the percentage was about 90% plus financed. On the other hand, when people buy a high end Benz, Ferrari, or even a Rolls Royce it is typically a cash deal. The more expensive the car, the more likely they'll pay cash. How does this translate to first growths? Even for those of us with a good amount of disposable income, for us to purchase a $30 dollar bottle of wine puts more of a dent in our cash flow than someone who is spending $10,000 dollars a bottle. Bottom line is, while there are enough people for whom buying a first growth is, cost wise like us buying 2 buck chuck, that we will never again see them at an affordable price. The upside is that other than the name, it leaves us to hunt out the good values and hidden treasures that are available. I think most of us here on this forum try to do that anyhow and that is part of our enjoyment. I must say though that I feel lucky to have been able to have enjoyed as many as I have at a time when they were within the price of at least some reason. Even so, I I find more pleasure in wine now that I have to hunt for than I did then, so I guess I don't miss those first growth wines too much anyhow.
  3. CtznCane

    Oregon Wine Trip

    I agree in part about Sokol Blosser. I found their one Pinot intriguing but the rest of their wines were innocuous at best. We thought about trying to get to Anne Amie but would have needed an appointment. A couple of points I wanted to mention but didn't were in regards to hours and tasting fees. Unlike California wineries many of the Oregon ones are not open during the week. We were very lucky that our second tasting day was Wednesday as Domaine Serene is not open Mon or Tues and only this year (not sure how long ago) did they start even being open on W-F. A great many of the wineries are by appointment only during the week. Without knowing the area well and wanting to hit a certain few we knew were open it sort of nixed our being able to fell comfortable about setting any appointments. Next time I"m sure we will have a better feel for the area, drive times and hopefully set some appointments. Better yet, maybe by then they will be open during the week. A nice point with Oregon wineries was that there were signs for most which really helped. This was true not just in the densely populated regions like the Dundee area but throughout Oregon for their wineries. In this regard it was a great deal easier finding some of the places than it is out here in California. Tasting fees in Oregon seemed to be a bit on the high side and I do not recall any in the McMinnville, Dundee, Newburg and surrounding areas that did not charge a fee. Out here (in Calif) many of those who do charge a fee will waive it if you purchase wine. In Oregon most do not waive the fee even if you purchase wines. I don't have a problem with tastings that are 10 or 15 dollars at a very high end winery. At least Drouhin which is $10 does refund if you spend over 100 I think it was or such. There were however some who for 8 or 9 dollars per person I thought was a bit much, especially when the quality just didn't seem to be there. I guess my peeve about tasting fees is that typically we buy wine and when the fee isn't waived with purchase that cuts into my wine spending budget. I guess I should look at the bright side though. When tasting wines at a place that doesn't charge we will almost always buy at least 1 bottle of wine unless it is just total trash. At least when I pay for a tasting I don't feel motivated or compelled to buy anything so in that regard it is probably a cheaper route to go . At least now I will definitely be on the lookout for more Oregon wines as well as I'll make sure to talk to my local merchant about carrying some of these wines. -- I'll have to make note of the ones you recommend to see if I can get some down here to try.
  4. CtznCane

    Oregon Wine Trip

    We just arrived home tonight after taking an impromptu drive for a week up to Oregon and Washington. The bad news is we didn't go to the Washington wine country due to the heat, but the good news is that we did get to try Oregon wines for the first time. I must say that I have come away from our trip being very impressed by the wines being made in Oregon. Yes, just like in California they have their share of low end wines, they also have a very good amount of fine wine as well. Perhaps we were lucky in finding some of the best wineries or perhaps we just guessed well. Most likely a combination of the two. Our primary focus was on the Willamette Valley (and surrounding area) as well as a stop on the way home in the Rogue River Valley. While I've looked at a few Oregon Wineries before and inquired about them here on EG (without much response) I really didn't know where we were going. On our first day, wandering over from the coast it was only by chance we got headed up in the right direction, on our own Sideways type of journey towards the heart of Oregon's Pinot Noir Region. Our first stop (which we also hit again on our way back home) in 108 degree heat was Benton Lane Winery. Though this was not the best of the Oregon Pinot's we certainly felt it offered some of the best values in Pinot Noir as well as an intriguing Pinot Noir Rose that is much closer to a Pinot Noir than a Rose. Quite interesting and absolutely delightful! What a wonderful introduction to Oregon Pinot's this was. We wound up buying their 2004 Pinot Noir as well as their 2002 'First Class' Pinot, both of which were very nice PInot's at a very attractive price point for what they offered. This was also one of the few wineries that did not charge a tasting fee in Oregon. I don't know how others feel but we invariably will buy at least one bottle of wine from anyone who doesn't charge a fee (though here we bought 5.) From there, last Friday we were also able to stop at Tyee Wine Cellars just south of Corvallis and also Orchard Heights Winery which was off of 18 towards Salem Oregon. The wines at Tyee were pleaasant , nice, but nothing more. Orchard Heights on the other hand was not worth the time. A lovely view, and some of the oddest tasting varietals I've ever run across. Saturday turned out to be one of our two major days for tasting (along with yesterda/Wednesday.) This was the day that we found what is certainly the treasure of Oregon Wines. The Dundee Hills AVA. There is no doubt in my mind that this is Oregon's most hallowed land for Pinot Noir (as well as Chardonnay.) Between Saturday's visit and Wednesday's visit we went to 5 wineries in this area. Archery Summit, Domaine Druhin of Oregon, Domaine Serene, Sokol Blosser, and DePonte Cellars. The only advice we can give among these wineries is that (in regards to Domaine Drouhin of Oregon, Domaine Serene, and Archery Summit) you should go to them last for they will certainly spoil you for wherever else you may go. The Dundee Hills offer a spectacular view of the Willamette Valley as well sitting high up on the hillside. The lowest of the Vineyards was the Sokel Blosser Winery. Speaking only of Pinot's, their 2000 Pinot Noir was very intriguing. It was very light and delicate. Quite understated. Yet all the components were quite harmonious and even for being light bodied had a long lasting finish. DePonte Cellars was a flat out disappointment. Their Melon, white wine was decent (but unspectacular) and their Pinot's really didn't have any qualities to set them apart from the crowd. The other 3 wineries we visited in the Dundee Hills were nothing short of spectacular. Spectacular in terms of their setting, the facilities, and the wines. The tastings are not the cheapest, 15 each at Archery and Serene, and $10 for Domaine Drouhin but well worth it. While we were there for the Pinot Noir, both Domaine Drouhin and Domaine Serene also produce Dijon clone Chardonnays and both are absolutetly top notch. Both of these Chardonnays were reminiscent of the French style Chardonnays. A touch more mineral too than we are use to in California. Quite delightful. We even bought one of the ones from Domaine Serene, there 'Sud Vineyard' Chardonnay. The Pinot Noirs from all 3 of these wineries were absolutely top shelf. Their prices are also top shelf. The best value is Archery Summits Dundee Hills cuvee (04) for $37.50 per bottle. Archery Summitts other 3 Pinot's that we tried were 75, 75, and 150 respectively. Were they worth the price? Yes, I think they were, and for me saying that it says a lot as I am very reticient to think a wine of $150 is worth the price. I must say though, that their Dundee Hills Cuvee seemed like a steal at $37.50 and itself was an excellent Pinot Noir. The Pinot's of Domaine Drouhin and Domaine Serene were also in the same approximate range. For myself, I don't buy that many wines at $50 or above and to do so it better be pretty special. We wound up buying wines at all 3 of these wineries and that should say something. Bottom line is, these 3 wineries do represent the best of the best of what Oregon Pinot Noir has to offer. We look forward to opening these winds with friends and enjoying them to their fullest. If I get the pictures downloaded I"ll try to post some of these 3 vineyards. How would we rate these 3 best of the bests? Probably Archery Summitt, Domaine Serene, and Domaine Drouhin but on any given day that order could be reversed in any combination. You can't go wrong with any of these three. After the highlight of our tasting there is the rest. Yes, not as good as these (for the most part) but still delightful none the less. We visited Agyle Winery as we are quite keen on sparkling wines. We were not disappointed. We tasted all 4 of thier sparklers and all represented good values and and good sparkling wines. The one we decided to buy (like we need any more) was their Brut Rose which was quite appealing. I can't find my notes but they did have one high-end pinot noir as well, I believe it was their "Nuthouse" Pinot Noir that was outstanding and for $45 per bottle was a great value. While we didn't hit numerous wineries, I'll leave off the totally innocuous ones and ones not worth mentioning. We did stop as we headed North (on our first visit) to Rex Hill Vineyards & Winery. This is one of the few Pinot Noirs we've previously expericenced. We had their wine at a lovely restaurant outside of South Lake Tahoe. Nice Pinot Noirs across the board. Nothing spectacular but nothing that wasn't pleasant as well. Certainly we had been spoiled by our earlier visit to the Dundee Hills. Outside of this area, we did, on our way back through, visit the Carlton area. The Carlton Winemakers Studio which features the wines of several different wineries and the Wine Shop in Carlton, which also features several wineries. The Carlton Winemakers Studio featured their own wines as well as wines from Hamacher Winers, Boedecker Cellars, Domanine Meriweather, Lazy River Vineyards, and Andrew Rich Wines. Of their Pinot's we were most impressed with the Boedecker's Pinot Noir which was also attractively priced at $28. Most interesting was that the Andrew Rich Wines are all Stelvin Closures now. I haven't previously seen a $45 bottle of wine with a Stelvin Closure. While I think it is fine, I still think it takes a lot of... well let's just say nerve, to put a stelvin closure on a wine in that price range. Certainly a very nice Pinot to be sure, but perhaps even as open minded as I am I was way-layed by the closure. One note is that the Domanie Merriweather Rose Cuvee sparkiling wine ($30) was absolutely dellightful. The Wine Bar in Carlton has been one of the highest rated wine bars. While we found their selection to be good, we were not impressed overall with their establishment. We did find one good value Pinot Noir ($18), the Freja Cellars to be a very good value. Our next to last stop as we started to head home was Amity Vineyards. Amity Vinearyds is what we'd describe as a Funky little winery up on the hill at the top of a winding gravel road. A littel bit south of the heart of the Willamette Valley but nice all the same. Delightful wines across the board. Good pinot Noirs. Most interesting though is a wine that is made at several Oregon wineries from a grape called "Marechal Foch". This red grape is very earthy, yet full bodied and quite pleasant. It is always nice to find a different varietal that is pleasant. This certainly fits the bill. Appparently several different Oregon winemakers make the variety as well. Amity Vineyards markets their Marechal Foch under the name "Madrona View Vineyard." Lastly on our way out we did stop again at our first winery, the Benton Lane Winery. Again, this was not the best winery, but certainly an excellent winery. Stopping again only supported that judgement. I"d certainly like to see some of their wines down here in our area. We sort of found it ironic that we did our own little Sideways journey and where do we wind up staying last night but at a motel chain called "The Windmill"! Go figure!!! We thought our wine tasting was done, but as we headed down I5 headed home this morning there was a sign for 2 wineries right off the highway at Ashland in Southern Oregon. The two wineries we stopped at were Ashland Vineyards whose wines are all under a "Shakespeare" label for the most part and "Weisingers's of Ashland." These last two were stopped at purely by whim. No expectations whatsoever. The first, Ashland Vineyards was at best what I would describe as funky. Good funky it turned out. They were out of their most popular wine (an innoucuos but pleasant wihte) because the winemaker hadn't bothered to bottle any more. They also ha an organic Merlot that had been (at least according to the lady serving) laying around in oak for 7 years which turned out to be quite nice. Go figure! Hell, at 18 per bottle we figured we'd take a couple home. Strange place. Fun place, but strange. The secnd stop, Weisinger's of Ashland turned out to be an absolute jewell. We tasted 10 wines. All 10 were pleasing. Rarely do we find that to be the case. Unlike the Willamette area, the Rogue River is focused on Merlot. While all were pleasing, the 2 that I liked best were their 2002 Petite Pompadour which was a blend of 46% cab franc, 44% merlot, 8% cab sauv and 2% malbec. Deep, rich, bold, and with a long finish. Delightful. My other faovire there was their Claret. A 62/38% Merlot/Cab Franc which again was delightful. They also had a very interesting light and clean Cab Franc Rose. A few observations overall about Oregon Wines. Unlike California, the Oregon wines strive and concentrate on the wines best suited to their area. In the southern Willamette area that is Pinot Noir and Pinot Gris for the most part. In the Northern Willamette area that is again the Pinot Noir (by far the main focus) and Pinot Gris and some Dijon Clone Chardonnay. In terms of a white wine grape, Reislning tends to do well throught Oregon and there are some very pleasant Reislings offered. A major differnece between California and Oregon is that the ORegon wineries (for the most part) don't try to grow all the different varietals there. Pinot Noir is what works best in the Willamette Valley and that is their focus. They don't hvae any Cabs, no Zins. They have Pinot Noir. Sure, a few places have other varietals though for many of those (another ORegon oddit is) come from Washington State grapes. In the Willamette Valley the focus is Pinot NOir which is what they do best. In the Rogue River it is Merlot and Cab Franc. I feel stongly that Oregon is really keeping a focus to what they do best. I think many California Vineyards could learn from this example. I guess you could say that the bottom line is, for me, that I am now a fan of Oregon State wines as well. Granted I sort of want to steal and plaguarize the Will Rogers Line "I never met a wine I didn't like.." but I am just flat out impressed with what they are doing with wines in Oregon. Most of all I am impressed that they are doing what they do best as opposed to trying to cater to what they think the public wants. I know I've rambled in this post but I have long wanted to try Oregon wines and especially the Pinot Noirs. Their Pinot Noirs are top notch. No doubt. Will they cause me to stop driniking my favorites (J Vineyards and Gloria Ferrer) No. Will they provide others I want to enjoy? Most crtainly!
  5. One place I always enjoyed in the Houston area was The Crazy Cajun on NASA Rd 1/NASA Parkway in Seabrook (Southeastern side of Houston.) Off the beaten path, not fancy, just good down home funk and very tasty food. There is a sampler (not sure if it is listed on the menu) called the "Dolly Parton" which is umpteen courses of everything all done 3 different ways. Sonny's Bread Pudding is also excellent and he claims that his whiskey sauce is made with moonshine. He says "I can't sell it but they can't stop me from cookin' with it." It's been awhile since I've been there but I bet it is still pretty darn good.
  6. Tonight we had guests of my wife over for dinner. A pleasant dinner consisting of crackers and brie cheese follwed by a salad of adovocados stuffed with shrimp, and a main course of New York Steaks with herb butter, baked white potatoes and Broccoli with Hollandaise. Desert was Banana's Foster. Since this wasn't a dinner focused on wines my comments are very general. The 3 wines we had were a '02 Concannon Vineyards Malbec, a '97 Schramsberg Reserve, and a '01 Dover Canyon Winery Menage. We opened the Malbec first along with a snack of Brie Cheese and crackers. The Concannon Malbec is a nice wine. Nothing extrordinary, just nice and pleasant. Nice fruit, plum tones, and just a very pleasant wine. We had the 97 Schramsberg with our salads. We're fan of Schramsberg and the '97 Reserve is a top notch sparkler. Nice almond tones, rich, and very satisfying. Since we were having guests I went ahead and decanted the Dover Canyon Menage about a half-hour before dinner. When I had originally tasted this wine about a year ago at the winery I thought it was pleasant and so I bought a bottle. I don't know if it was the extra year, the pairing, decanting it, or a combination of all three but this wine was totally awesome. Incredbily rich and full. The mouth feel was marvelous and all the subtle and complex flavors just went together wonderfully with the food. When I initially bought this wine at the winery I did so in part because I knew (Mary from e-g here) someone from the winery. I am just totally amazed though at what this wine has become. I sure hope when I phone down to the winery that there will still be a few bottles left as I definitely want to buy some more.
  7. Congratulations, Chris! You'll start out with a following in advance and rightfully so. I think we all hope you'll be focusing on areas where we live or are familiar with (NorCal here.) In honor of your other profession, I'm sure donut shops be included, won't they? Again- conratulations, let's hope this is only the beginning.
  8. I'm sure this writer's opinion of Sauvignon Blanc would probably be the same regardless of where he had the wine. Though I haven't been there in years, Joe's Stone Crabs is a place I've always dearly loved dining at, and traditionally the three things to order (or at least they were) were the Stone Crabs, Hash browns, and cole slaw. As much as I love wine, I'll be damned if I want any wine with that combination. Give me a nice cold beer.
  9. My wife experiences the same sort of variances of taste in red wines. I think one factor for her is that she is diabetic so the current sugar level may have some effect. Another factor can be having something to eat before hand (or along with) that has some fat in it. Cheese is good for this and the fat does help tone down the tannins.
  10. Very poor, emasculated recipes, in my experience. The author is no kind of cook. ← I happened to read this thread today as somewhere on e-g I had seen mention (I think it was by hzrt8w) about Mrs. Chiang's Szechuan Cookbook which I found (and bought) today at a fine used book store I found in Walnut Creek. I'm prompted to respond though by the harsh criticism towards Grace Young. Having had the good fortune to attend a cooking class by Grace Young I can assure you the lady can cook, and quite well. She knows what she's talking about. As to her last book, 'The Breath of a Wok', I've found it to be an excellent book. While I've found the recipes I"ve tried thus far to be quite good, I think the recipes play a supporting role in the book as opposed to being the main focus. Ms.Young is not trying to show the glitzy type of recipes found in fancy restaurants here but more the type of recipes made in the Chinese home and along the way some restarurant style dishes are thrown in as well. Hrzt8w made mention of the mango chicken being something he hadn't encountered or wouldn't expect in Hong Kong. The Mango Chicken recipe was from Susanna Foo's restaurant in Philadelphia. Personally, I like the book and I've enjoyed the recipes and will continue to do so. Beyond that, I think this is an excellent book even without the recipes.
  11. So is the verdict in on the second one yet? Mine has been corning in the fridge for about 11 days now so gonna soak it overnight in the sink and cook it tomorrow.
  12. I only bought a small 6Lb piece of meat to start with and plan to put it in to start corning in the next day or so. One question is, is Kosher Salt okay? As for fifi did you make your cross hatch pattern before corning it or afterwards?
  13. Rain Friday night and Saturday morning forced a delay in my planned fence repair project so we decided to go to a few wineries instead. One region we had not visited was the Foothills of Amador County (around Plymouth) nor have we gone to the El Dorado area either. Since our start was rather late (Noon with a 2 hour drive) we decided to head out with Renwood being our main destination. While I'm a big Zin fan and the foothills are a good Zin region, I had no familiarityfor the most part with any of the wineries in the area with the exception of Renwood. Even with Renwood, the wines I've typically seen of theirs down in the Bay Area is quite limited. The wineries we wound up visiting were Renwood, Shenandoah Vineyards, Dobra Temlja, Sobon Estate, and Villa Toscano. While it is definitely a red wine region and we weren't up there to taste whites, we were very pleased with the wines we tasted. The Zins across the board were nice, I'll hit a few of the highlights. Renwood: While Renwood is known as a top Zin producer, I had previously only had their lowest level Zin and had not been overly impressed. Getting to try more of the spectrum of their Zins really changed my opinion. While all of their zins that I tried were nice, the one I liked best was the 2003 'Grandmere' Zin. The color is a slightly lighter garnet than other zins and the aroma is delicate yet warm and inviting. Very nice fruit yet still well structured with a light pepper/clove quality. I was surprised that this one was 15.5 alcohol as it did not have that big jammy quality often found in the high alcohol Zins. 2004 Zinfandel Amador Ice - We found this desert wine quite delightful. 44 degrees brix at harvest, 10% alchohol and 24% residual sugar by weight, with the grapes frozen after harvest. Blush in color, light yet intense flavor and a sheer delight to drink. Shenandoah Vineyards - Located directly across the street from Renwood Pleasant wines across the board. Of particular note were there ReZerve wines. The Cabernet Sauv, Zinfandel Paul's Vineyard, and Barbera. Particularly nice were the Cab & Zin and at $24 per bottle we felt these were also good values. An even better Value I found there was there 'Amador County Zin'. A pleasant, jammy (yet only 14.4 alcohol) wine, very well rounded and at 9.95 a great every day drinker. Sobon Estate - This is the sister winery to Shenandoah. Nice wines across the board and of particular note was their 2003 ReZerve Primitivo. This is the first time I've encountered this grape and from what I understand there are about 4 wineries up in the Amador area making it. I know this is an Italian grape and apparently a genalogical twin to Zinfandel yet morphologically different. The wine was very nice, very similar to the zins but it seemed to have a bit more finesse to it. How many others are familiar with this grape? My interest has been piqued. Dobra Temlja - While I enjoyed all of their reds, their Milan Ruz and Zin were my favorites. The Milan Ruz, their jug wine is a Zin-Syrah-Sangiovese blend. Nice, bold, and pleasant, just the kind of wine I like to have around for lazy afternoons with sports on tv and a barbecue going. ----- Now their Zin is a big one. The highest alcohol one we encountered. 16.8%. While big and jammy though it still had good structure and was not flabby. One trait we noticed across the board were that the Zins did not have that high alcohol taste/too jammy/flabby quality that many high alcohol ones from other areas have. Villa Toscana - The last stop on our impromptu journey unfortunately was a bit rushed as we caught them right before closing. Again, pleasant wines (for those we tasted.) I liked their Barbera best among the reds though I don't drink enough Barbera to really have a good feel for the varietal overall. One wine we do like very much is Orange Muscat and Villa Toscano's Orange Muscat is among the best we have found anywhere. Absolutely delightful. Our overall impression of the area wine wise was very favorable. Of note too is that out of 5 wineries visited, the only charge was at Renwood ($3) if you wanted to taste their reserve flight of wines and at Shenandoah/Sobon of $4.95 (glass included) for their reserve wines, but if you bought the glass at one you could do the reserve tastings at both wineries. Typically, for us, we plan to buy at least 1 bottle anywhere we visit if there is something we like or unless the people are not friendly. This is definitely an area for Zins and more Italian style wines. Just one more jewell in California's diverse wine country. In fact though this is one of the oldest of the wine areas in California. Now that we've had a taste we look forward to getting back up to this area again soon and venturing even a little further East up into the El Dorado area next time.
  14. Tonight, among other wines, we had the other bottle of Barolo (the Costa di Bussia) which wasn't that highly regarded here, but which we found pleasant once again. Not nearly as nice as the Cab we had (2000 Simi LandSlide Vineyard) but very pleasant. The real difficulty is that at the price range of Barolo's it is an expensive taste to play around with. When it comes to Cabs or Zins or Pinot Noirs and a fair amout of other wines, we've tasted enough wines that (while I still don't enjoy doing it) if we spend 50, 60, or even 100 or more for a wine (and no we don't do it often) we typically have a comfort level with our decision. Spending 50+ though on something we've enjoyed but are not that familiar with becomes a little dicey. Not that it isn't worth it, but the comfort level is just not there. The one wine I"m interested in trying more of now though is the Barbersesco's which look to be a more affordable alternative. I must admit though (as I finish the bottle which had one glass left) if I find a mediocre one to be quite pleasant, how delighted I'll probably be when I bite the bulllet and buy one of the better Barolol's.
  15. If there is one thing I can be sure of in 2006, it is that like in every other year, if the subject gets on to what to call American sparkling wine, or American 'Port' or anything else, is that there will be no agreement. At least that is true for this panel, which is probably more highly opinionated than the rest of the public. Frankly, it is an overblown subject If somebody refers to it as a sparkling wine, American champagne (however distateful some of you find that), or whatever, does it really matter? It is what it is. Tonight I had a bottle of Gloria Ferrer 1987 Late Disgorged Brut. Absolutely delightful. In our opinion (my wife and myself) we prefer American sparkling wines to French sparkling wines. We drink both, but due to our preference we drink far more American sparklers. (Primarily Gloria Ferrer, J, Iron Horse, & Schramsberg.) If they are done well, it doesn't matter if it is an American sparkler, Cava, Sekt, Prosecco, Champagne or whatever, if they are good they are good, if they aren't they aren't. Either you like something or you don't. Let's not forget, it is all subjective.
  16. The more I think about it, the more I start to think the reason Whole Foods will discontinue the lobsters is because with all their organic produce and such a good many of their customers are these half baked nut cases who are complaining about it in the first place. I'm in total agreement that worrying about the lobsters when millions even in America are going hungry is so absurd. What do these same people say about what these animals, in the wild, do to one another? Heloooooooooooo. You think a Lion is going to humanely kill its prey? Get a clue, get a life, get a dose of reality. As to us 'giving them a thought about how they're treated' we do. We give thought as to whether we'll broil them, sautee them, stuff them, and have lots of consideration in just how we will choose to devour them. All we ask is, just because you don't want them dont try to visit and impose your arcane beliefs on the rest of us. If you haven't gathered it by now, we don't care. We want our lobster. Bottom line, these extremists are no different in many regards than many other fanatics. They are obsessed to a point of sheer lunacy. Moreover, in general they are the ones most adamant about not wanting any of their freedoms infringed upon but don't give a damn about the freedom of others. The lesson to the rest of us should be clear, there is no cure for stupid.
  17. Maybe I'm wrong on this but I think it is going to be tougher, and a longer road (if at all) for the Paso area to get the same kind of recoginition simply due to their location. I've never been to Walla Walla nor had any of the wines from that area but I would guess they too may suffer the same fate as Paso in terms of locale. While the wines are certainly worthy of recognition I think it will be hard for many of them to get too much of a following. Napa and Healdsburg/Sonoma Co wineries have both benefitted greatly from their proximity to San Francisco and the Bay Area. Paso Robles (at least according to Mapquest) is damn near equa-distant between L.A. and S.F, with the ride for both being about 4+ hours. Napa and Healdsburg on the other hand are within about 1-2 hours from even the furthest points in the Bay Area. An established winery will do fine (or at least okay) regardless of its location due to publicity. I think a lot of nice smaller wineries though will fall through the cracks, or at the very least have a much more difficult time. Smaller places simply don't get the traffic and are pretty much off the radar. For those visiting or living in the Bay Area (as an example) can have a nice day visiting and exploring the wineries as well as enjoying other aspects of the area and not have it take to long to get there and get back. The same cannot be said for the Paso area. Even from San Jose which is the most southern part of the bay area it is a shorter distance to Healdsburg than to Paso. I feel lucky in the fact that we go to the Paso area a couple of times a year due to having family living there. I enjoy the Paso wines immensely and without going to that area I would certainly not have a clue about several that have become favorites of mine. The ride to Paso from the Bay area, to put it politely, is not the most scenic of trips. It is a far more enjoyable drive from L.A. I'm sure. About the only chance they have of people finding the wineries by accident is if someone is headed across to the coast to go to Hearst Castle or something. Paso Robles itself and the areas south of there are very enjoyable, but they do suffer (I think) from the fact that the ride North from there on 101 is just plain boring for quite a distance. I don't have a clue about Walla Walla, but my guess would be that it can be tougher in that area too since it is a long distance from there to either Portland or Seattle. (While a little longer than from S.F to Paso I find it interesting that it is about the same distance from Walla Walla to Portland or Seattle and even to Boise for that matter.) Perhaps Mary could answer it best in terms of how relelvant it might be for a winery to be accessible to the public or in a well traveled area?
  18. These animal rights activists are a bit too overboard (or maybe that is where they should be cast, overboard that is) on some of the issues like this. They should look at the bright side, shipping them lives lets them live a llittle longer than they would otherwise. Frankly I won't care if Whole Foods stops carrying them as typically when I buy lobster I'll go down to Oakland Chinatown to get them. I'd certainly bet the chineese markets won't cave in to these idiots lobbying for the Lobsters.
  19. For the most part I'm a California wine lover, mostly an ex-French wine drinker, who also adores German wines. When it comes to Italian wines I really don't have much if any knowledge other than occasionally buying a bottle of Chianti Classico a couple times of year just for random drinking around the house. This year for our Christmas dinner we went to an Italian restaurant that I enjoy and ordered a bottle of Barolo. It was a 2000 Costa Di Bussia Barolo. We enjoyed this wine enough to go seek out bottle of it at our local BevMo. At the restaurant the bottle was $52 while at BevMo it was $29 and was still the lowest priced Barolo. OUrbottle at the restaurant had was a beautiful rich garnet color. The nose danced with different nuances and floral tones of roses and violet. Body wise we found it to be very light yet still elegant and with nice smoothe finish. Needless to say we were impressed enough to go buy another bottle and start thinking about buying other Barolo's. I know Barolo is primarily nebbiola and to this point the only other nebbiola I've bought was at Viansa which was decent but nothing special. In terms of Barolo's which ones are reccomended? Which ones are good values? What should one look for in a Barolo?
  20. I feel blessed living in the California wine country. While we did live in Santa Rosa and are now more in the bay area we still are in the heart of the wine country when you consider that within a 4 hour drive we can be anywhere from Santa Barbara to the Anderson Valley with so many withing just an hours drive or less. Not only can we go to the wineries but we can also get wines at the source which they do not sell through stores which is a big plus to us locals. When one consider's locale, we/I don't tend to consider the fact that those in New York or on the East coast probably have as easy an access to French or Spanish wines as they do to California wines. Perhaps I'm wrong in this guesstimation but I'd like to know. How is it in the midwest as far as getting wines? What is the balance of selection between European and California wines? I'm curious too, for those of you who are in Europe, over there how is it for aquiring American wines? It is funny how we can take it for granted being so close to where the wines are from, it would be nice to hear from those who aren't near the source.
  21. As to whether American sparkling wines are as good as Champagne's sparkling wine, I think the answer is yes. Does this mean that at the highest end American sparklers are as good as their Champagne counterparts? No, though even that I can't say for certain as I think the high end French wines have become ridiculously overpriced, for some that may not be a concern but for most I think it is. As a senior in high school/freshman in college I worked at a couple of the better wine stores in Berkeley and got a little introduction into Champagne. That was in 70/71 though I didn't relly get interested in wines and champagne till about 1980. At that time there was very little in the way of quality American sparkiling wine. I remember in that time period going to Narsais with my best friend and having a bottle of Vueve Ciquot Royal Celebration Cuvee the night after my son was born. Back then champagne was reasonable. One champange I enjoyed a lot (at reasonable prices then) was Alfred Gratien which out here even I"ve only found once in the last 10 years or so. Back then though even the top notch champagnes, while high, were not outrageously priced. However opinionated you may be, I think you'd agree there is no comparison to the American sparkling wines of the 70's and 80's and what they are now. Not only are there a number of American sparklers of good quality but they are priced reasonably as well. Personally, I think much (not all but a good deal) of the French champagne hype is pompous hogwash trying to impress people. Truth of the matter is, both make fine sparkling wines. Both different, both similar. One question I would pose, especially to those who are so adamant about the French sparkling wine is this: If California were not a top notch area for sparkling wines, why would Mumm, Moet-Chandon, Roederer, Tattinger, and Freixenet all have properties here producing sparkling wines? Which by the way, of those wineries our favorite is Gloria Ferrer who in addition to putting out some fine sparkling wines has some wonderful pinot noirs. I would say gone our the days of the French Colombard in California but that is still a primary grape in Korbel's Sec (I must be a perv as we actually like that for brunches and mimosa's but at 5.99 a bottle by the case it is hard to beat) though thank goodness we don't see it anyhwhere else. One side question I have deals with the geographic situation. Living in California and in the wine region, we (Californians) have a much easier time with California sparkling wine. I would think that those of you on the East Coast would have more of a toss-up situation as to choices since importing from France is damn near as convenient as best coast to lest coast transport. As for Brad, being stuck darn near in the middle (and knowing he prefers the French) I give his opinion a bit more weight on impariality than I do to some. As for NYE, we finished off the last bit of a bottle of Korbel Rose (not bad for the price, pleasant and non-descript) and then Iron Horse Blanc de Blanc and are working on a bottle of Schramsberg Cremant at the moment. A happy new years to all, and I hope there is more spriited (friendly but with an attitude) posting on this forum in the new year. ----- Cheers to all
  22. CtznCane

    Christmas Wines

    Cooking dinner for a few friends here the wines were: 99 Paradise Ridge 'Inspirations' Ladi's Vineyard (a cab/syrah blend) which I had while cooking dinner Before dinner: 96 Gloria Ferrer Royal Cuvee With dinner 01 Sanford Pinot Noir Santa Rita Hills 01 Silver Oak Alexander Valley Cab after dinner 03 Zin Alley Zinfandel Port Paso Robles
  23. CtznCane

    The Vineyard Challenge

    I wound up a very successful grape grower with 125 gold pieces, a well known zin, a decent chardonnay, a decent semillon, and 2 cabernet vineyards
  24. CtznCane

    Dover Canyon

    I'd have to agree that their Dusi Old Vine Zin's are absolutely top shelf. Don't overlook their Syrah's either, they do a very nice job with them. In fact across the board their wines are nice, though the Zins and Syrah I think are their best. I also have a bottle of their Rousanne I think I'll open quite soon as well.
  25. I saw it at Costco the other day (Califorinia) for $22.95. I didn't get it then but think I'll stop back in tomorrow and pick-up a copy.
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