The Wine Commonsewer

2007 Terrazas de los Andes Malbec

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

There is an optimal point at which the price of a given wine will result in the highest marginal profit for an upscale eatery with the fancy wine list. Not an economist, but TWC is pretty sure that a lower markup will move more wine than marking up a ten dollar wine to thirty six bucks (US).

Our ten dollar wine that cost thirty-six dollars was excellent and is  a good buy at $10.00. It is deep reddish going-to-purple in the glass, medium bodied with dark fruit. This is an easy drinking red wine that was perfect with the stunning Lasagna and delightful Eggplant Parmesan that came courtesy of Maggianos in Denver.

TWC reviewed the 2003 Reserva here.

Now, off to the wedding......

UPDATE: Ben makes a good point about markups in the comments.....case in point is The Wine Club in Ca, a company whose philosophy is to markup all wine by the exact same percentage, which I believe is 13% over cost.  Coupled with knowledgeable staff and good selection, this model has proven itself over the last two decades.

As Ever,

TWC

Would You Like A Little Cheese With That Whine?

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

Used to ask that of The Boy and The House Blond with some frequency. Not sure it made any sense to them but they took my point.

Lady C said.....

Saw this and thought of you, Mike :-)

Buy one at the American Nostalgia store, which has a nice selection of reproductions, some of which are reproductions of stuff that never existed. :-)

As Ever,

TWC

Two Glasses of Wine (or Two More Bottles of Wine?)

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

A perfect twist on a familiar story.....

A philosophy professor stood quietly before his class with some items laid out on the desk in front of him.

When the class began, he picked up a very large and very empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded wordlessly to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was, though more reluctantly.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students,having figured out the joke, responded with a unanimous Yes!

The professor then produced two glasses of wine from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

As the laughter subsided, the professor said

I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things; your family, your children, your health, your friends, and your favorite passions; things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house, and your car. The sand is everything else; the small stuff. If you put the sand into the jar first there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness; get the golf balls in first. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take the love of your life out to dinner. Play another 18 holes. Do one more run down the ski slope. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the garbage disposal. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the wine represented. The professor quietly smiled.....

I'm glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of glasses of wine with a friend.

Bonus:

As Always,

The Wine Commonsewer

Ever See Wine Bottled?

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

Now is your chance to get back stage and see how wine is bottled. 

On Saturday, June 6, at noon PDT, my friends at Sunset Ridge are bottling their 2007 estate grown Petite Sirah and you can be a voyeur.

Go here then click on crushpad cam, then pick remote control cam one (it's on the bar just below the banner to the right)

You'll be able to IM and the crew can talk to you live.

As Ever,

TWC

Tennessee Legalizes Direct Shipment of Wine to Consumers

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

Effective July 1, 2009, Tennessee legalizes direct shipments of wine to consumers.

The governor is expected to sign the direct-shipping bill into law. If he does, it goes into effect July 1.

The measure, SB0166, passed the House early last week and was approved by the Senate last month.

The Greenest State in the Land of the Free has some of the most restrictive laws in the nation. Laws that brand ordinary citizens daring to smuggle a five liter bag of Beringer White Zin into the commonwealth as odious felons. Okay, maybe not odious felons, but criminal types, nonetheless. It *IS* illegal to drive across the Kentucky border with a box of wine in your trunk. 

They don't teach that part in high school civics. The part where the politically well-connected ensure that their good friends in the legislature will restrict free trade in the name of consumer protection.

The new law doesn't exactly create a free market in wine sales. However, it allows direct shipment from in-state and out-of-state entities to Tennessee consumers, who may purchase up to three cases of wine per year, per winery. While you can only purchase three cases a year from my friends at Sunset Ridge, (the 2006 Estate Petit Sirah is muy bueno Señor), you can also purchase three cases of wine per year from every other winery on the planet. Provided they have paid the registration fees to the state, of course.

The bill permits out-of-state wineries to register with the Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission for a $300 initial application fee and a $150 annual license and, if approved, sell and ship wine directly to Tennessee residents.

That should keep you Vols in resvaritrol in perpetuity. Might get you a buzz, too.

Bonus:

Whole thing here.

As Ever,

TWC

Tip of the glass to J.C.

California Legalizes Tasting Room Sales of Wine by the Glass Oak Mountain Cabernet Franc Renzoni Old Vine Zinfandel

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

On a quintessentially lazy-warm spring morning here in the Southland, TWC and The Boy piled into Milton's Winemobile, with the intent of sampling the latest offerings to come out of the Temecula Valley wine country.

It's unusual to find Cabernet Franc as a stand alone wine. Even less expected in Temecula, but Oak Mountain Winery served up a tantalizing, intriguing, and delicious Cabernet Franc. Consequently, it was my first, second, and third taste. I didn't even get bellied up to the wine bar for pour number four (that rhymes) before she flashed me a shy smile.....

Let me guess? Cabernet Franc?

Had the proprietor* or I been aware of a welcome change in the law, we could have saved a lot of trouble. Just gimme a glass of that there Cabernet Franc, Ma'am. Thankee. 

As of January 1, 2009, California wineries may sell wine by the glass for consumption on the winery premises or in the winery picnic areas. In addition,  consumers may also purchase bottles of wine for consumption on the premises of the winery, including the picnic areas.

Ran into that again at Renzoni. The Old Vine Zinfandel was muy bueno and, if memory serves, was sourced from one of the few remaining vineyards that once blanketed the stony alluvial plains of Cucamonga. 

Yep, Cucamonga isn't just Jack Benny schtick, it's a real place, 'cept it's Rancho Cucamonga now.

It's traditional in California to always name stuff according to what used to be there. Plow down the citrus groves with a D-10 Cat and then call the finished subdivision Orange Crest or Mission Grove. No ranchos in Cucamonga anymore, just concrete tilt-ups and subdivisions so let's change the name to.....Rancho Cucamonga. Sounds all upscale and inviting, and, in fact, the city got a nice little shout out for being a decent place to live. 

How the new wine-by-the-glass law will flesh out remains to be seen. The public  is simply unaware of the extent of government micro-managed minutiae that business owners contend with, particularly if it is remotely connected to alcohol.

In this instance, it isn't just a simple matter of pouring a glass of wine. If the picnic area isn't mapped on the application for the ABC license, than the winery must apply for a modification, which is almost as tedious as getting the license in the first place.

Additionally, in many areas, adding a picnic area means dealing with the city or county and is just as exhausting as adding a structure. How many cars? What about parking? Number of visitors expected per day? Accessibility requirements? Bathroom facilities? The local health department also may come into play because in many jurisdictions, wine served by the glass is considered to be food service and requires a whole new license and inspection process.

It has always struck me as bordering on the absurd that one couldn't purchase a glass of wine at a tasting room. Given that there was little opposition to the law change, I'm hoping that cavalier attitude may filter down to the localities resulting in the simple pleasure of enjoying a glass of Cabernet Franc at the winery.

As Ever,

TWC

Can't see the video? Look here. Come on, it's only 34 seconds.

*the proprietor may well be aware of the law, TWC hasn't asked.

Cucamonga Beauty image appears courtesy of Rhoda Stewart, author of A Zinfandel Odyssey.

2007 Doña Paula Malbec

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

It is no secret that TWC enjoys a good Argentine Malbec now and again. This as truly a sleeper. The Doña Paula is a dang good Malbec for under ten bucks U.S. (that's California money, it costs more elsewhere I suppose). I liked it well enough to pop for an entire case, all of which seems to have been misplaced (except for one bottle).

Excellent now, but drinking well for the next decade. Parker and Spectator both lavished a 90 and I found that to be on the conservative side.

Wine Spectator.....

Dark and winey, with warm currant paste, cocoa powder and Turkish coffee notes backed by solid grip on the fleshy finish. Nice hint of grilled sage adds dimension too. Drink now through 2009.

Wine Advocate.....

The opaque purple 2007 Malbec reveals a brooding black fruit bouquet, ripe flavors, excellent depth and grip, and 2-3 years of aging potential. Drink this outstanding value from 2010 to 2018.

Belying its ten dollar price tag, you'll find this wine is elegant and complex, deep violet  in the glass, with an aroma of raspberries and cassis (black currants).  It is a rich, sturdy, bone dry wine with notes of minerals and smoke  and a smooth, lingering finish.   

A certain contingent of my tin-foil-hat wearing friends are agitating for a move to Argentina, a gorgeous country in the throes of economic recovery, where everything is inexpensive including the marvelous wines and fabulous cuisine.

Book me a ticket.

As Ever,

TWC

Thyme in Bloom

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

ordinary culinary thyme in bloom

That's a baby blue salvia in behind the thyme.

As Ever,

TWC

More Cork Blasphemy: Maestro Champagne Bottle Closure (The Cul-de-Sac of Corks)

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

Ain't no love lost between my lips and a champagne bottle but with this bit of news there is cause for alarm.

.....this week came news that a new kind of champagne stopper has been unveiled in Paris. The Maestro cap, which we must note sounds disturbingly like some kind of fiddly contraceptive device, is made of aluminum and plastic and operates via a small gold lever. There's still a pop, still a fizz, but, alas, no cork hurtling giddily across the room.

Along with the delights of (a) bubbles and (b) alcohol, the traditional champagne stopper also offered (c) the delicious lick of danger as the cork popped skyward and risked smashing lampshades, windows, the family china, or indeed taking someone's eye out. The Maestro, by comparison, goes nowhere. It is the cul-de-sac of corks.

Whole sordid tale at the Guardian here.

Can't see the Maestro cork demo? Try here.

This is how it's supposed to be done:

No argument in favor of artificial closures for wine bottles will sway TWC. It just isn't done. If God intended cork fakery, He certainly wouldn't have planted all those gorgeous Cork Oaks in Portugal.

As Ever,

TWC

Tip of the glass to Mariam R

Ziggy on the Perils of House Wine

Tip of the glass to Mrs TWC