Wine For Novices

Wine and Chocolate

by Dan Perkins

When you think of having a nice glass of wine outside of the context of a meal, what’s the first thing that comes to mind in the food category as something to munch on? Cheese, right?  Wine and cheese, wine and cheese... everybody loves wine and cheese. Well, not everyone. I like cheese but given the opportunity to have a chunk of cheddar with my Zinfandel or a piece of bittersweet chocolate; I’ll go with the chocolate every time! In fact I love chocolate chip cookies with my wine and at this time of year I utilize several good bottles to help polish off all those boxes of See’s Chocolates I got at Christmas.

Now for years we’ve been hearing about the wonderful antioxidant properties of both red wine and dark chocolate, that in itself should be good enough reason to experiment with the combination but truly it is the flavor profiles of both that actually work. Mind you, I do prefer dark chocolate over milk chocolate but the combination of sweet and bitter, fat and acidic makes for a hand in glove fit. The other thing is for those who are already on the chocolate bandwagon, with glass in hand, is to not over look the benefits of chocolate with white wines. Most people tend to think chocolate is a partner to red wines only because chocolate can be part of a red wine flavor profile (just read any notes on a well made cabernet sauvignon and you’ll often see chocolate as a descriptor). But look at what often is found as part of the flavor profiles of white wines, vanilla caramel, honey and butter just to name a few(because vanilla ice cream is white and chocolate ice cream is brown we subliminally think they’re opposites... let me be clear; vanilla is not the opposite of chocolate!). All of these descriptions used for white wines are flavors that either directly compliment or are ingredients for chocolate.

So let’s talk chocolate!

Are You Really Drinking Champagne?

by Dan Perkins

New Year’s Eve is arguably the biggest event of the year when you’ll hear a familiar pop and then the fizz sound of bubbles being released in small glasses, which will clink together before a collective, “Cheers!” is chanted. Yes, champagne is the drink of choice for celebration... but is it?

To understand where I’m going with this you need to know French wines, Italian wines or American wines are not described or understood in the same way (this is true basically from country to country but I’ll use these three as the best example). You see here in America a wine is known by its variety. In other words we drink chardonnays and pinot noirs. But in France they drink those two wines as burgundies. Yep! You read that correctly; a white wine in France is called a burgundy but not all white wine is Burgundy.  They also have white Bordeaux. Why is this? Well in France a wine is determined by its region. Same is true for Italy but also is determined by its grape such as a Brunello di Montalcino (I promise not to get into explaining Italian wines just now... there’s not enough or time or space to do it justice).  So, check this out... Cognac is not a better made brandy or distilled liquor in its own right; cognac is a brandy made in the region of Cognac. This is why champagne is a sparkling wine made in the region of... Champagne, France.

Years ago, the French government actually sued the US wine industry for labeling and advertising some of their wines as champagne. This is why today you’ll see American made bubblies as, “sparkling wine.” So now that you know this snotty information you can act like a true Frenchmen this New Year’s Eve and say, “No, no, no you silly person! You are not drinking champagne (use a silly french accent), you are drinking premium sparkling wine made right here in the good ol’ US of A (I know, you just can’t use that silly accent and say ‘good ol’ US of A’ at the same time).”

So, what to drink since the “good ol’ US of A dollar” isn’t doing so well abroad? Well, here are a few of my favorites. And before I go completely California on ya... here’s a surprise.

NV (non-vintage) Veuve Ambal "Blanc de Blancs  Yes, it’s French but not from Champagne and it’s a steal at around 12 bucks! If you can find it; it will be a crowd pleaser!

NV Roederer Estate (from the Champagne producer States side) Brut Rose. Usually around $20 and always consistent! Lots of strawberry fruit and clean palate at the finish.

Domain Chandon Etoile (Moet’s American counterpart) Rich, yeasty and tastes more expensive than it is... around $30 will begin to compete for that complex champagne for twice the cost.

J Shram 2000 Brut (no French connection!) Schramsberg, known as America’s first house of sparkling wine, produces this as their premier bottling and it’s only the best of best vintages. Yeasty, with layers of caramel, vanilla and butter; yet not syrupy at the finish which these types can tend to be. My all around favorite sparkler - period! Forget Dom P. and get the J. Schram.

So, perhaps that can help you as you select a celebration wine (yes, champagne for all you Euro-snobs is still a wine) to ring in the New Year. And in case you get into battle with some wanna-be sophisticates; let them know you enjoy quality and value and raise your American, sparkling wine in an Austrian, crystal glass!

Cheers!

Curbing the Curse

by Dan Perkins WFN Guest Blogger

If you’re reading this blog hoping to gain more wine knowledge and how you might enhance your wine drinking experience let me share this little secret with you: It’s not always about the wine. Much of what you’ll learn and what you’ll gain is in what I refer to as the accessories. These are bits of knowledge and shortcuts to making wine a passion and also making wine accessible to everyday living. Unfortunately, this leads to the “curse.”

What is the curse? Well, remember back when you enjoyed that first glass of Sutter Home White Zinfandel? You really liked it. But later you begin to notice that sugary taste and residual headache and before long you were pining for something a bit drier... then sometime after finding Kendall Jackson Vintner’s Reserve Chardonnay you started to find the wine was a bit flabby with an all too familiar sweetness that caused you to look for a shade of pink in the glass...

So, then you decided a couple of dollars more for a bottle of “nice” chardonnay really wouldn’t make much of an impact on the wallet so you began to regularly purchase Mondavi, Markham or Franciscan... but then white wine just wasn’t cutting it anymore so you decided to make that leap over to the “red” side and before you knew it you were buying wines by the case for four and six hundred dollars a pop! 

Yes, my friends... that is the curse.

Your taste in wine will evolve and as it evolves you’ll notice the differences in why some wines...

Glasses Can Help You Drink Better

by Dan Perkins (My friend and now to be regular guest blogger)

It happens often, you order a glass of wine with your dinner and the server brings you a glass filled to the brim hoping to keep each precious drop contained within until it finally rests on the table in front of you. You may be thinking, "€œGood, they gave me a full glass of wine!" And I say... "€œBad... bad, bad, bad!"

Several years ago winery tasting rooms were pouring their varietal samples in simple inexpensive 6 ounce glasses. At the same time glass companies began to market their specialty glasses in these same tasting rooms as the wineries began expanding their business into retail sales of accessories such as clothing to help further their brand. These glasses were much larger and elegant than the glasses used at the tasting bar and they packed a hefty punch at the cash register too.

The first time I tasted wine from one of these glasses was at a small boutique winery in Santa Barbara County. The tasting room attendant had just poured their flagship wine in the usual, $.95, mass produced, glass-glass with their logo etched into the bowl. She then said, "€œYou want to try something amazing?" I thought she was going to pull out a special bottle from under the counter (which, if you'€™re on your good behavior... usually happens, but more on that at another time).

Instead she grabbed a Riedel, Bordeaux Vinum glass and poured the same wine in it that was in the glass I was already drinking from. "Side by side, can you tell a difference?" She was smiling with a smug gleam in her eye like she had been keeping a secret... I couldn'€™t believe it! Was I drinking the same wine? I asked to look at the bottle to be sure. Yep, same wine but it was much better in the big glass... That day I plunked down $25 for my first Riedel glass. My wife thought I was crazy, but today we only drink from Riedel and Spiegelau stemware.

What made the difference?

Several years ago, I was fortunate...