May
17
As owners of a wine label, we get asked to give to a lot of different organizations – a surprisingly large number of them, many of which we have no direct tie to whatsoever. I wish that we could assist all of them, but we simply cannot.
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Feb
4
Have you ever opened up a bottle of wine only to have it not live up to the expectations you had about this wine based on previous bottles?
This happens far too often as far as I’m concerned, especially when it may – and I stress may – be avoidable.
There are many factors that can lead to bottle variation – some of which are controlled by the winemaker, some by the closure chosen, and some that are ‘controlled’ by travel and storage conditions.
When wines are bottled, they generally contain a ‘decent’ amount of free SO2 which aids in combating oxygenation of the wine in the bottle. Most times, winemakers add SO2 at bottling to ensure that, based on the pH of the wine, this coverage is adequate. But what if winemakers decide not to add and SO2 and the wine is bottled with lower amounts than are ‘suggested’? Or what if the wine has a very high pH and you cannot add enough to make the coverage ‘adequate’? In both of these cases, the wine will be subject to ‘premature oxidation’, thus leading to a wine that ages much faster than it should . . .
At bottling, winemakers also can choose to filter their wines or not. This decision is somewhat determined by quality, somewhat determined by marketing, and somewhat determined by ‘tradition; Many winemakers believe the filtering ‘strips’ a wine of some of its character and flavor; this is mainly based on ‘old-school’ forms of filtration that ‘beat the wine up’ and truly did change the wine fairly drastically. Newer forms of filtration, borrowed from the pharmaceutical industry, are now being used, though, that do not strip the wines of anything.
Why is filtration done at all? To make a wine microbiologically ‘clean’ to ensure that no further ‘growth’ of bacteria or yeast cells continues in the bottle after bottling..
Should a wine NOT be filtered AND if the wine contains even trace amounts of residual sugar, there is a very good chance that, given the right conditions, ‘growth’ will take place in the bottle, leading to a wine that is quite different than the one the winemaker intended it to be. And thus leading to many cases of ‘bottle variation’ . . .
The closure chosen can also lead to bottle variation. Synthetic closures have certainly been improved since they were release nearly two decades ago, but they still tend to allow in more oxygen than all other closures, thus leading to a faster aging of the wine. Therefore, the young wine will be much ‘fresher’ than the same wine a few years down the line . . .
Natural corks have proven to be ‘reliable’ closures for centuries, but not without their problems as well. Forgetting about TCA and other common problems with corks, the fact that these are ‘all natural’ means that each cork is unique with a unique set of pore sizes, thus leading to different amounts of oxygen getting in. Therefore, an argument can be made that no two wines under cork will be exactly the same as the wine ages.
Screwcaps have become more popular, but also pose some potential problems. Some believe that wines bottled under these do not see enough oxygen, leading to the potential of ‘reduced’ aromas such as rotten eggs. Others note that since these are ‘man made’, problems can arise in manufacturing that can lead to more oxygen getting in than the winemaker intended.
Last but not least are the issues of travel and storage. Wines are sensitive to changes in temperature, especially very cold or very warm temperatures. Therefore, if a wine travels in the heat of summer in a warm car or on the back of a warm delivery truck, chemical reactions can occur in the bottle that will change the wine and how it smells and tastes. Likewise, if a wine is stored in a warm kitchen for long periods of time, the same can happen.
What’s the point of all of this information?!?!?? Just to educate many that ‘bottle variation’ is a reality and to help to understand what may cause it.
PLEASE join in the discussion and let us know examples you’ve had of bottle variation – AND let me know if you have any further questions . . .
Cheers!
Feb
1
I am proud to say that I have recently been asked to sit on the Board of Directors for Rhone Rangers, the preeminent organization for Rhone varieties produced in the US. I am honored and humbled by the invitation, but above all, I am psyched to lend an ‘alternative’ voice to the leadership of this group.
There are challenges for ALL of us in the wine industry and for all organizations like Rhone Rangers, especially in the light of the current economic situation. This particular organization has an even greater challenge of elevating into the consumer spotlight the varieties that its constituents produce – from the ‘known’ ones such as syrah, Grenache, mourvedre, viognier, Marsanne, and Rousanne to others such as Rolle (otherwise known as Vermentino), Picpoul Blanc, and Terret Noir (who knew?!?!?). A complete list of the 22 varieties can be found here.
As I prepare to ‘make my mark’ on this organization, I have a few ideas I’d like to look into in the near term. They are as follows:
• Truly ‘branding’ of the Rhone Rangers name, ensuring that any time a domestic producer or one of the 22 varieties is noted ‘in the news’, Rhone Rangers are quoted as well
• ‘Changing the playing field’ as it relates to some of the more popular varieties covered, starting with Syrah. I’m tired of hearing about how tough a sell this variety is – I LOVE syrah and continue to feel that it is the best red QPR on the market these days . . . . period.
So I thought I’d ask you for your ideas of things I should address in my new role . . .Anyone out there want to give it a shot?
Cheers!
Oct
5
I am simply amazed at the lack of decorum some have shown recently on blogs and on bulletin boards that I frequent. The fact that it is becoming commonplace to go well beyond ‘constructive criticism’ and get downright nasty is just a sign of how far this medium still has to go . . .
I’m a true believer in free speech and have been for quite some time, having been in a nice tussle in high school over an underground newspaper a few of us put together – and had the ACLU come to our defense to try to keep publishing it . . .
But free speech without boundaries simply causes chaos. And many feel that there is a sense of ‘anonymity’ on the web and therefore can say whatever comes to their mind – no matter how hurtful and potentially slanderous it may be . . .
Where, might you ask, am I seeing this behavior? No, not on political blogs and bulletin boards where one might think that tempers would flare and people would be at each other’s throats. No, this behavior is taking place on wine blogs and boards – windbreaker and erobertparker to name just two.
This type of behavior simply makes me want to stop frequenting those boards and taking part in the discussion. It’s sad because I really do enjoy the give and take of many of the discussions that take place, but all it takes is one or two folks, and one or two discussions, to sour the whole vibe. . . .
I’m hoping this is a temporary ‘thing’ but I’m not so sure . . .
Have you also seen an uptick in rude web behavior in the past few months? Share your thoughts and comments please.
Cheers!
Sep
30
What in the heck am I talking about? Can it be that wine is not simply an all-natural alcoholic beverage that is the result of no human intervention whatsoever?!?!?!?
Many wineries obviously want you to think that this is the case! When reading ads or perusing websites of many wineries, their message is that their wines are all handmade; that they are minimalists when it comes to the production of their wines; and your experience will be better because of the aforementioned reasons.
So at what point would a winery /winemaker be considered ‘intervening’ in the winemaking process?!?!?
There are some that believe that if you add water to your vines (versus ‘dry farming’ – depending only upon rainwater for irrigation), you are ‘manipulating’ the grapes and therefore creating a ‘spoofilated’ wine . . .
There are some that believe that if you use commercial yeast to inoculate your grapes, you are ‘manipulating’ your wine versus allowing ‘natural’ yeasts to control the process.
And the list goes on and on – do you add any acid to your crushed grapes should the wine need some? Do you use dry ice to cool down your crushed red grapes and allow for a ‘cold soak’ prior to fermentation beginning? Do you use glycol jackets on your tanks to control fermentation temperatures? Once the fermentation is complete, do you use new oak on your wines? Heavy toasty oak that will impart its own flavors or ‘neutral’ oak that will not? Do you use ‘200% new oak’ – use new oak for the first six months to a year, and then transfer into brand new barrels again at that point?
There are, of course, much newer ‘technologies’ that have perhaps changed perceptions about manipulation. How about a ‘spinning cone’ to reduce the alcohol levels of a wine? Or adding ‘mega purple’, made from grape concentrate, to increase the color of your lighter reds?
I guess my main questions are:
a)Is it the final product that matters, regardless of how it gets there?
b)Should wineries be required to tell you everything they do with the wine to get it to its final point?
I’ll be curious to hear your thoughts . . .
Cheers!
Sep
28
Brix is a measure of sugar levels in grapes in the wine industry. It roughly translates as follows: a grape sample showing a reading of 20 brix means that that sample has approximately 200 grams of sugar per liter of solution . . .or almost 2 lbs. of sugar per gallon! Yikes! It also means that should you ferment this wine to dryness without any ‘manipulation’, the subsequent wine would have an alcohol level of between 11 and 12 percent.
Many in the wine industry use this as the main determining factor for when to pick grapes. It used to be ‘back in the day’ that many grapes were picked at 22-23 brix so that the finished wine would be in the 12.5 -13.5 alcohol range . . .and there are some that still feel this is the ‘ideal’ area to pick in.
This measurement, as I’ve spoken about before, is simply one of many factors to help determine when to pick. More importantly, this measurement is heavily influenced by weather patterns, watering patterns in the vineyard, crop loads, and a few other variables.
There are some varieties that simply do not ‘come into their own’ until their sugar levels rise to much higher levels. Grenache, my favorite variety, is a prime example. Here are a few reasons for this:
* Grenache clusters are relatively large compared with other varieties, and in order to get complete ripening of the entire cluster, it is necessary to hang them out longer
* Grenache skins are very thick and tannin-filled; if picked too early, the resultant juice and wine will end up being less than stellar – thinner in body, full of tannin, and lacking the beautiful fruit character that draws me to these grapes
* The grapes simply do not produce ‘a harmonic balance’ in the subsequent juice until they are much riper than other varieties – this comes from tasting and tasting and tasting – you just KNOW when it’s time to pick them . . .and it tends to be at higher brix.
What does this all mean? I’m not really sure I know . . . I just felt like sharing this information this morning!
Cheers!!!
Sep
24
A few weeks back, I walked into our tasting room to find 4 customers arguing with each other. I stayed back and listened as best as I could to try to understand what was going on, and this is what I heard . . .
No.1: I smell citrus and spice from this wine.
No. 2: Well, I get peaches and cinnamon.
No. 3: You are both wrong! This wine smells floral and spicy!
No. 4: Are you crazy? This wine has the essence of grapefruit and the sea . . .
Not only were each of these customers telling the others what they smelled, but they were insistent that they were ‘right’ and everyone else was ‘wrong’!
So who was right here? The fact is – they ALL were. One person’s ‘citrus’ may very well be another’s ‘stone fruit’ and one’s ‘spice’ may be another’s ‘cardamom and cinnamon’ . . .
The bottom line is that each of us has a unique sense of smell and taste that is based upon a number of factors unique to us, including the foods we were exposed to throughout our lives, the places we’ve visited and the aromas we’ve noticed at each of these places, the recency of when we last smelled a particular smell or tasted a specific item, and much more.
And not only that, but each of us has different’ thresholds’ for detecting senses as well. For instance, there are some, including some well known wine reviewers, that can detect TCA, the chemical responsible for the ‘wet cardboard’ smell caused mainly by bad corks, at 1 or 2 parts per BILLION! Others may not be able to detect this defect unless it is 20 to 30 TIMES that level!
What similar situations have YOU been a part of? I’m looking forward to your comments!
Cheers!
Sep
18
There are many many books, blogs, and articles written every year about matching wine with food. There have been a handful of scientific studies on the matter as well (See Hildegarde Heyman’s study from UC Davis a few years back debunking wine and cheese pairings).
That said, I have rarely had ‘epiphany’ moments when matching wines with specific foods. Sure, I’ve had some great steaks with cabs, and some wonderful fish dishes with pinots . . . and even a few wonderful pasta with white sauce dishes with mineral and acid driven Chablis. But these are exceptions, not rules, in my experiences . . .
I had a great experience a few weeks back while pouring at the Malibu Wine Classic, though. I was pouring my wine next to a station that was serving a Hamachi Sashimi with a touch of avocado and a splash of a spicy green sauce. On a hunch, I went over and got a piece and tried it with my 2008 The Outlier, a dry Gewurztaminer with about .25% residual sugar . . and VOILA! The ever-so-slight sweetness on the finish of the wine tamed the slight spiciness of the dish; the fullness of the wine blended perfectly with the mildish flavors of the Hamachi. I recommended the pairing to dozens of people that day, and in every case, they came back with big smiles on their faces! A true success!
What magical pairings have you experienced recently? I’d love to hear about them – and have you share them with others!!!!!!!
Cheers!
Sep
11
All of us have a ‘comfort zone’ in many aspects of our lives. For some, it’s with our finances, avoiding ‘risky’ ventures at all costs. For some, it’s their clothes, knowing what they like and avoiding ‘new’ or ‘trendy’ pants or shirts. And many of these ‘issues’ have to do with generalizations we build up in our own minds – THAT’s too risky because the TYPE of investment has been shown to be too risky in the past, not necessarily this specific investment, for instance.
The same could be said about wine drinkers and what they like to drink. There are always exceptions to any rule, but in general, people tend to like to drink what they are familiar with OR what others have told them they will like OR what a reviewer has ‘recommended’ they would like based on their ratings. ‘I only drink red wines’ is a common phrase I hear at tastings, with the person in front of me initially refusing to even TRY the white wines I am trying to pour . . . Or ‘I don’t drink roses’ because the person had tried one some time ago, found it sweet, and does not want to relive that experience!
On a wine board that I frequent, some readers took offense to a reviewer who said that some may not try a wine because they were ‘incapable of thinking outside the box’ . . .The wine in question is one that is barrel aged for a number of years – and sports an alcohol level north of 18%. Now this is certainly not a ‘wine for everyone’, but my read of the reviewer was that he was simply saying that this wine, because of its stated alcohol level, was outside most wine drinkers’ comfort zones . . .
I readily admit that I have my ‘go to’ wines depending upon my mood and the situation, At specific times, if someone offers me something else, I may not want to try it . . . simply because it’s outside my ‘comfort zone’ at that time . . .
That said, I really try my hardest to keep my eyes, ears, and mind wide open when it comes to wine. I tend to try things many others choose not to. For instance, I attended a wine dinner recently where someone opened up a bottle of pinot that had experienced a secondary fermentation in the bottle. It did not smell pretty – band aid, vinyl siding . . . not the type of descriptors I want in a wine. That said, I HAD to try it – when else might I ever experience such a wine??!??!?!
What’s my point here? I guess it’s that we should all strive to ‘maximize’ our comfort zone from time to time, venturing outside of its normal boundaries to explore things we might not otherwise. Try not to ‘predict’ that you will not like a wine because of what is printed on the label – alcohol levels, variety. where the grapes came from, etc . . . My bet is that with wine, as with most other things in life, our comfort zones might be wider than we think they are . . .
I’d love to hear your thoughts on this as well . . .
Cheers!
Sep
4
As many of you know, I actively post and share my thoughts on wine and other things on many wine boards across the Net. I really enjoy doing so and feel it is a great way for me to not only share my knowledge but increase my knowledge by interacting with those that either a) have a lot more experience with wine than me and/or b) discuss concepts with those that may share differing viewpoints.
This latter group is an incredibly important section of the wine world I love to interact with. I am not an island in this wine world – I have developed my own thoughts and beliefs based on my education and my own experiences, but I am the first to admit that I am in no way an ‘expert’ about ANYTHING in the wine world. I have a LOT to learn , and cherish every day, as it gives me opportunities to do so.
That said, it has come to my attention that a handful of wineries have yielded their ‘powers’ to knock folks off their mailing lists / allocation lists based on what these folks have written about the winery on wine boards. On the surface, I am appalled that any business in this day and age would kick someone out simply because they had a bad experience with a wine, and I need to be careful to make generalizations here.
IF someone simply did not like a wine they had purchased or shared with friends and wrote about it in a non-inflammatory manner, there should be no repercussions in my mind. This is simply a situation of someone stating their opinion, and it’s okay to not like a wine – heck, I’ve had PLENTY of folks take issues with some of my wines!!!
That said, if someone not only has something negative to say, but does it either a) in an inflammatory mode or b) takes personal potshots, then the winery is put in a much more difficult situation. The winery could do one of the following: a) kick the person off the list without any notice (which has happened recently); b) Contact the person directly and discuss the matter and then decide what to do; c) Go on the wine board themselves and get in a ‘discussion’ with the person and see if a resolution can be reached; or d) ignore it entirely.
Just remember that you are visible on wine boards, and what you say is read by a lot of different people both within and outside the wine industry. Therefore, I always use caution before posting anything . . .and I hope all of you do as well!
I’m curious as to what YOU would do if you owned a winery and someone went on to erobertparker.com., wineberserkers.com., winespectator.com, wine.woot.com, or one of the many other wine boards or wine blogs out there and dissed your wine/company . . .
Looking forward to hearing your responses . . .
Cheers!
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Larry | 
05 17th, 2010| 
