Wine Club Insider coming at you from on the road this week!

Yup… actually had to go out of town to do some work for a living… I pride myself on being one of the busiest unemployed people I know, but every once in a while, I have to do something at least mildly productive, even if just to keep my wife happy.

With that in mind, I had to make the trip to Bend, Or. to teach a small clinic. I drove down Sunday, and it was an awesome day… mid 80s (warmest day this year around here!), sunny… perfect! By the looks of it, the wine industry isn’t suffering quite as mush as the rest of us in these troubled times… people will always keep sipping their vino, I guess. It was great to see all of the new wineries dotting the Columbia River and Oregon hillsides as I made the trip. I’m planning in hitting a few of them on the way home - strictly for educational purposes, of course!

On a side note, the unsettled weather seems to be following me; the drive down was perfect, it was 86 yesterday, and today, after giving it a chance to catch up, it’s 66 and raining - in the high desert. Oh well… just seems to be my luck this spring. I did get a great run in this morning before the clouds rolled in, though, so no worries!

The folks I’m staying with in Bend are also foodie/winos, so we manage to always find something to drink, eat and chat about, even if it’s just a simple salad, watermelon and cheese like we had Sunday night, accompanied by a very pleasant surprise that I dragged out of my cellar and brought along for the ride…

We opened a 2002 A Mano Puglia, which is made from 100% Primitivo (Basically Zinfandel, or at least modern Zin’s grandfather). It was huge! Rich, full, but not over done. Yup… Zin is my current favorite red grape… it’s been working toward it for a year, and over the past 3 or 4 months, I don’t think I’ve had a bad Zin!

Last night, friends came over for lasagna, salad and bread, and brought, of all things, a Ravenswood Zin. A great coincidence! The Ravenswood was excellent, as usual, but lacked some of the fruit of the A Mano, to my mind. Still a terrific wine, though.

Tonight, I’m facing off against one of the chefs here in town in an Iron Chef-meets-Chopped contest, with pride and a good bottle on the line… I’ll let you know how it goes on Thursday!

(I think I have an edge, because I also brought the fabulous 2003 Borra “Fusion,” the Syrah-Cab Sauv-Merlot-Zin blend from from Lodi for the entree, and with my dessert, I’m serving one of the last 6 remaining bottles of Renaissance 1982 Late Harvest Sauv Blanc in a 750… it’s the color of dark caramel, and will carry the evening for me, I’m sure, no matter what I make!) Almost a shame to have to throw in work in the middle of all of it, but it keeps me in vino, laptops and mountain bikes, so it’s all good!

Have a great week!

Cheers,

Wine Club Insider out.

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Wine Club Insider back again!

Have you ever got to the point, in late March-early April, where the snow is still coming down, blowing sideways, that you’re almost ready for spring? My wimpy, (smart?) warm-climate friends are playing golf, wearing shorts, sitting on the back deck while we’re still shoveling snow… hmmm… might have to consider this situation… anyone have a condo to rent in Phoenix?

Ah, well… it is what it is, so to make the best of it, I stopped in at one of my favorite local watering holes, “Bardenay,” which is a nautical term used by sailors to announce the arrival of cocktail hour - “Bardenay Time,” which means I like the place already!

Now, Bardenay - www.bardenay.com- which has three locations in Idaho, is a great place with a terrific menu (today they had red bean and chorizo stew and Mojito “small batch” ice cream on the specials list), and a really top notch wine list!

They have 30 wines by the glass, and another couple hundred in bottles, ranging from Uber-affordable, to Classy big names such as Gaja, Caymus, Krug etc. They also have a very nice port selection, with almost a dozen choices between Ports, Madieras and Sherrys.

However, I have to tell you that the reason I like it is they are the nation’s first distillery-restaurant, with the distillery right here on premises, so they make their own rum, gin and vodka, and it’s pretty tasty, I have to say!

My favorite cocktail of choice right now is the Mojito, and in the middle of winter, they aren’t always that easy to get, but Bardenay never disappoints, with fresh mint on hand, rum from right here, and just the right touch of sweetness…

They also hand squeeze all of their juices, and have a terrific atmosphere with a patio, fireplace, and happy, talented servers… ahhh, maybe summer isn’t so far away after all!

Cheers,

Wine Club Insider out!

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Wine Club Insider back.

We just hosted our biggest event of the year this past weekend, and one of my dearest friends, Scott, came to town to help out. Now Scott is a big time wine guy, and we have had many a conversation of bottles of good wine, ranging from some of Napa’s best to Italy’s finest… Scott and his lovely wife Marci (some folks think we all pretend to like Scott just so we can be around Marci!) take a yearly trip to Italy, and have developed quite a respectable cellar, except for the fact that Scott drinks it faster than he can collect it!

Anyway, we were lucky enough to be able to stay in the penthouse suites of the world famous Coeur d’ Alene Resort, and let me tell you, ladies and gentlemen, THIS is a hotel room! Their main restaurant, Beverley’s, also has one of the top wine lists anywhere.

Of course, to be a good host, i had to take a few bottles for the evenings, and I must say that choosing through your cellar for special treats to share with friends is amazingly enjoyable!

Since Scott and Marci live in Dallas, my choices were a bit biased toward highlighting the northwest, with a nod toward Napa and Italy, in honor of my friends:

I decided on 6 bottles,as well as port style wine, and a dessert wine. Here were my choices:

1) 2003 Stag’s Leap Artemis. Stag’s Leap’s “second” label, this is still a very respectable wine, though not as deep as the Cask 23 or Fay offerings.

2) Buty Winery’s 2003 Rediviva of the Stones, an award winning Syrah/Cab release from Caleb and Nina Foster. Their wine club is called “Friends of the Beast.”  www.butywinery.com.

3) Pend O’reille Winery’s famous L’Ouevre, of which I’ve spoken highly of.

4) Caterina’s 1999 WIllard Family Vineyard Cab

5) Renaissaince Vineyard’s 1983 Founder’s Reserve Cab - one of the finest wines I’ve ever tasted, bar none. 26 years old, and still has to be decanted for a few hours!

6) Altesino Brunello de Montalcino - One of Italy’s best wines, and one of Scott’s favorites.

For my port, I actually chose a port style wine, the 1995 vintage port from St. Amant vineyards near Lodi - awesome!

For the dessert wine, I went back to Renaissance for their 1989 Late Harvest Sauvignon Blanc. Deep amber, rich, sweet - an amazing end to a great weekend of work, comradeship and wine drinking with dear friends… it doesn’t get much better!

Cheers!

Wine Club Insider out.

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Wine Club Insider back!

Got a chance to get out and do a great five hour long snowshoe trip up Boulder Basin today with a couple of friends. There was over 10 feet of snow at the top of the peak as we stopped for a quick Jet Boil meal. On one of our real mountain climbs last summer, we took wine up in Nalgene bottles for dinner, but I forgot today, so I had to wait until I got home… there’s not much better than a nice glass of wine after a great day outside in the snow!

Well, to business…

We’ve talked about dozens of wine clubs, several different wines and wineries, but we haven’t really taken much time to talk about the specific wine varietals and grapes that make up our favorite beverage!

For the next few days, I’d love to chat a bit about some specific grapes, and the wines made from them, but today, just some basic grape info…

All red wine is made from red grapes (which can be black or purple as well). White wines can also be made from red wine grapes, though there are plenty of good white grapes to choose from.

In all, there are more than 400(!) varieties of wine grapes grown around the world. Who knew? Yup… I bet if I polled 100 people, the majority couldn’t name twenty… A couple of years ago, I probably couldn’t have, though I’m getting better.

One good site to look at for info on the various “cultivars” (the correct name, though “varietals” has taken on such everyday familiarity that it’s unlikely to change anytime soon) is:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_grape_varieties#Red_grapes

Now, the Bordeaux grapes that everyone has heard about are Merlot (the number one red grape in France, and likely the number one red grape world wide by the end of the year, no matter what “Sideways” says), Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Petite Verdot, Malbec and Carmenere. Almost all Bordeaux wines are blends of these six grapes, usually with Merlot or Cab Sauv as the majority. There are none that I could find that use all six, though several used four.

There are also several popular “New World” grapes, such as Zinfandel, which is also named “Primitivo,” Syrah (or Shiraz, if you’re from Down Under), Petite Sirah, which isn’t related to Syrah, Sangiovese and Temperanillo, big Mediterranean grapes (ever hear of Chianti or Rioja?)

On top of that, we’ve got to look at the labels, and the (sometimes silly!) laws and rules that govern our passion!

Okay… we’re off and running! I’ll see you tomorrow!

Cheers,

Wine Club Insider out.

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Wine Club Insider back!

One of the cool web sites I frequent on at least a weekly basis is www.winezap.com.

Winezap is kind of like a little community where you can actually get to “know” your online “neighbors” as you rate/discuss/argue about wine.

So, every week or so, I get an email in my regular box about the latest wines that have been rated by their distinguished panel of experts…

I think that having a few folks with respected, or at least educated palates can give us a basic groundwork to at least discuss wine, so I appreciate their efforts.

Some of the wines I received reviews on tonight were (and the reviewer):

Bordeaux, Burgundy, California Wine, Chardonnay, Fine Wine, French Wine, International Wine, Italian Wine, Pinot Noir, Red Wine, Shiraz, Sparkling Wine, USA Wine, Vintage Wine, White Wine, Wine Cellar, Wine Club, Wine Club Gift, Wine Education, Wine Lovers, Wine Reviews, Wine Tasting Wine Club, Wine Club Gift, Wine Reviews, winezap.com

Wine Club Insider back.

As the snow/slush/sleet continues to fall here in the Northwest, adding to the five feet we’ve already accumulated, I’m sitting in front of a fire, sipping on a glass of Corbett Canyon Reserve left over from New Years Eve… I’ve got to tell you that for an inexpensive wine, it’s pretty tasty! It’s a Central Valley product from Ripon, California, and as is becoming the norm, it’s hard to get a bad bottle of wine from California…

I think that the vintners from California have gotten so smart and do such a good job with their properties, and with their actual crafting of the wine that even “cheap” California wine is darn good, especially when compared with the product from a decade ago, or with similar priced wines from many other regions and nations. Go Left Coast!

Here are a couple of other wine clubs for you to consider:

The Wine Insiders (hey, I like the name!) at www.wineinsiders.com offers three choices of level (pretty normal) but also offer 3, 6 & 12 month options, with wine club gifts starting at $89, and ranging up to over $500 for a 12 month Connoisseur’s Club membership.

Their top level club is pretty substantial, with great options, including some nice Barolos and California Pinot Noirs.

www.winegiftclub.comis another online provider with a great selection of services. While their actual wine clubs are a bit limited, they make up for it by providing a great choice of seasonal gifts, including champagne, wine gift baskets, wine and food baskets, etc. You can choose your price, as well as your products, and they custom build your basket for you and ship them out. Right now, they’re getting geared up for Valentine’s Day, so check them out and be ready for the big day! (C’mon… don’t miss this one, guys… even if she says she doesn’t want anything, we know better… you’ll seldom go wrong from being too romantic, or spoiling her too much!)

Hope it helps, and I’ll be back tomorrow.

Cheers,

Wine Club Insider out.

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Wine Club Insider here, yet again!

We’re already six days into 2009! Where’s the time going? It was a funny holiday season with Christmas and New Years on Thursdays… it seems like we haven’t been able to get anything done for two weeks, but it has seemed to extend the holiday out a bit, that’s for sure!

I’d love to introduce you to K&L Wine Merchants. www.klwines.com.

They are a longstanding operation, having been in the wine business since 1976. One of the advantages of that kind of longevity is that you can develop some great relationships with wineries, wine brokers and negociants world wide, enabling them to offer some great wines at good deals.

Because of this, K&L offer five different wine clubs for you to choose from, and they certainly offer an above average selection of wines.

They’ve been well regarded by the media, including the Wall Street Journal, and even Food and Wine Magazine:

“Serious wine lovers have been turning to this California retailer for more than 30 years. K&L’s wine buyers not only hunt down the best from nearly every region in the world, but also sell hundreds of direct-import wines at great prices. The Web site shows real-time inventory of just how many bottles of, say, 2004 Domaines Schlumberger Saering Grand CruRiesling ($20) are still available. Tip: Direct-import sparkling wines include terrific bargains such as Tarlant Brut Zéro Champagne”
Food & Wine (June 2007)

At first glance, their wine clubs have the standardish levels, such as “Best Buy,” “Premium” and “Signature,” but the selections are pretty amazing… here are some of the choices from recent Signature shipments:

• 2005 Castello di Monsanto Chianti Classico Riserva

• Blanquette de Limoux, Antech “Cuvée Francoise”

• 2000 Coufran, Haut-Médoc

• 2006 Antinori Vermentino Guado al Tasso

• 2005 Châteauneuf-du-Pape Chante Cigale “Vieilles Vignes”

• 1994 Burgess Cellars “Vintage Selection” Cabernet Sauvignon

• 1995 Burgess Cellars “Vintage Selection” Cabernet Sauvignon

Now, they also offer a couple of non-standard options, including a Champagne club for $69.95/shipment, and a “Club Italiano,” which offers a nice selection of Italian wines.

Lastly, the thing that really sets K&L apart is their “Personal Sommelier” service, which allows you talk to an expert, and custom design your wine club experience. If you want three, four bottles, and you want to spend a certain amount, they’ll hook you up and custom fit a package for you.

They’re based out of California, so if you’re out of CA you don’t pay tax either. Check them out!

Cheers,

Wine Club Insider out!

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Wine Club Insider back, with only two days left in 2008!

First I would like to apologize to any of you who have written comments to us. It appears we have been “hijacked” by spammers, and are getting literally hundreds of spam emails daily. We hope to get this sorted out very shortly, so we can answer your comments. Again, our apologies, so please bear with us.

I’d like to share a great online wine club with you today.

Vinopolis is a great wine shop right in downtown Portland, Oregon, and their wine club is excellent! They are at www.vinopoliswineshop.com, and unlike a normal club, they send you a monthly newsletter with the specials and sales they have, and you can order directly by replying to the email!

They have a great pipeline to tons of French, Italian, Hungarian, South American and other international wines as well as the best from the USA. Here are some of the selections from their most recent offering:

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WCI back again!

Having recovered from my weekend with Don Townshend, I’d like to detour slightly today, and talk about a very cool wine site on the web.

Hooked on Wine (hookedonwine.net) is one of the best wine purveyors on the web. Actually, Michael Shemali is a wine re-buyer, I guess. He buys entire cellars of wine from folks, buys on consignment, buys from the wineries, and then offers the great deals he finds to those on his mailing list, and through his on-line store. Folks can also consign wine through his store or through auctions he runs.

One of the coolest things is that he really focuses on fine wines, and offers some great deals that you just won’t find in many places.

For example, today in my emailing, he had verticals of Opus and Silver Oak on, going back more than twenty years!

His site is attractive to look at, and is well set up and easy to navigate. He has it broken down by Favorites, by Region, by Rating, by Bottle size and by Vintage.

The Region section is extensive, covering most of the main wine growing areas of the world, and many of the minor ones. It also breaks them down by varietals.

The Ratings section has wines from 85 - 100 points, broken down in small increments.

The Bottle size section has wines up to 18 liters (!), and the vintages go back to the 50’s. He also has a section on new wines, and one for his favorites, which has some interesting choices. Some of the lots have one bottle, some have several cases… you never know, which is why it’s so fun to keep up with what’s new.

They will also ship wines as a gift, and some of these bottle will make GREAT gifts! D’you have someone who really likes wine on your list? How about shipping them an 18 liter  (That’s equal to two full cases, BTW!) bottle of 1999 La Petite Cheval Bordeaux for only $3900… Now THAT’S a Wine Club Gift that I’d like to see under my tree!

Cheers,

WCI

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WCI here again!

I was doing a little surfing, and I came upon this interesting little gem… I haven’t been a member (yet!) personally, but the premise looks pretty cool!

The site is Flying Noodle Wine Club, and it’s at www.flyingnoodle.com.

From what it looks like, they have four different gift packages, ranging from a three month wine club gift, a six month wine club gift, a one year wine club gift and a “seasonal” wine club gift that comes four times a year with seasonal wines included. You can choose from two reds, or a white and a red, and the list of wines they have shipped is pretty good. One of the other neat perks is they offer free shipping, too.

The cost if pretty reasonable for the quality of the wines at around $34 per month average, but the neat thing is the other things they offer…

Besides Wine Club Gifts, the Flying Noodle has twenty six other gift clubs that you can add on, or choose special gifts from. Some of the choices include the Steak of the Month club, Lobster club, flower club, chocolate club, pasta, cheesecake, dessert, ice cream, coffee, olive oil… you getting the idea?

How about the salsa of the month club? The tea of the month club? Cigar of the month? Peanut Butter (!) of the month club?

Yup.

It’s kind of a one stop shop for gifts… Choose your wine club gift, and then add on a 3 month supply of lobster to go with it…

A couple of the other neat ones are the dinner and a movie of the month club, which includes a gourmet pasta dinner, popcorn, and a Block Buster movie card… perfect to go with the wine of the month gift!

Tomorrow, we’ll be taking a look at another cool find, just in time for Christmas!

Until then,

Cheers!

WCI

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