In honor of the holidays, there will be no Interwined post.
However, it is hard to believe it is even the holiday season as the Rose bushes and fuchsia are blooming on my street.
English Sparkling wine producers say that, in this decade, global warming will give Britain wines that rival France. Indeed, some French vintners are looking at Kent for vineyard property.
Ice wines, which rely on mold to produce the tell-tale honey sweetness, will soon require artificial freezing when there is no frost by January. German producers in the Rhein are preparing for this. Torres, in North Spain is planning to source grapes from places across the border, in France.
Global warming will have us all dreaming of a white Christmas, literally.
But, this is all good news for Bordeaux, which had a spectacular year for 2005. Even early offerings, such as the Chateau Moulin de Beausoleil 2005 Bordeaux, Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot, are very promising at £6 a bottle. Ripe, large and round. Harsh tannin, but mucho berry. Not enough Oak for the Merlot. But a bargain. 8.5
Wait a second, this is turning into a blog entry after all…
DAMMIT!
Merry Christmas.
Monday, December 18, 2006
Monday, December 11, 2006
'Tis the Season
Two Christmas parties. Both for my two-year-old daughter's friends in the hood.
The first, financed by the government. Perhaps in exchange for the enormous taxes levied on English citizens. Despite political backing, the celebration was decidedly not PC. First of all, the party was officially called a "Christmas Party…" not a holiday gathering or a festive celebration… or even a winter warmer.
Also, about one-third of goers were Muslim, BTW. The role of the so-called pagan symbol of Christian authority, Santa, was in fact, played by a Hindu woman. (Zeena did OK, but should Father Christmas really be wearing high heels?)
Who cares? Let's party.
The second party was at the Palace. The Palace is a place where children with learning disabilities can go… to be themselves. And, their parents can feel normal. Having a chid that isn’t 'normal' (the mildest Palace cases are Down's syndrome, Autism -- the worst are, well, the worst) can be hard on a parent. So a little party to blow off some steam, for parent and child, is worth its weight in wiseman gold.
My daughter is 'normal' by said standards, no disabilities, but my production company, Crescent City, donates to the Palace. So we are always welcome. At any rate, it's one of the neatest places on earth.
At the Palace, no one feels special. And that's the point. There are no rules, yet children wait in line, they don’t push or bite. Everything is sorted, by itself. Having no rules at the Palace has made it, strangely, an oasis of playful order.
No wonder its going broke.
But the raffle was fun, even though the kids with OCD ate all the fried shrimp.
I paid £1 for a raffle ticket. There were about ten prizes and some were way flash. The first winner got to choose their prize. A stuffed lion that came in its own suitcase. Easily the pick of the litter.
Other winners came and went. The 'Electroglobe 3000,' was snatched up quickly, followed by a life-sized Galileo thermostat.
Finally, with no hope of winning, yours truly decided to take a seat. A winner was called with two prizes left. She chose the 'Pingu' season two DVD. The gift secretly wanted for my little girl.
One gift left. The last number called.
Bingo!
Went to collect my prize, the one no one else wanted: a bottle of 2005 Italian Job Sangiovese Zinfandel. Yes, a bottle of wine as a raffle prize at a kids party. Obviously meant for me. Even the raffle caller said, "the wine writer won the bottle of wine?"
Italian Job is a grapey table wine from anywhere in Italy. It is bold and expressive, with a touch of tar, but lacks finesse. Drink this table wine now, as it will spoil hours after opening. If won in a raffle, it represents the best value for a wine one could ever hope to have. 'The Italian Job,' £1, 8.0.
Irony, priceless.
Also, 2004 Bonterra Merlot, Mendocino County for £8. Ripe red cherry, with a flair of cherry coke. Maybe too much French oak. Very aromatic, and a stunner for the price. Highly recommended and extremely classy for California at this price range. 8.8
The first, financed by the government. Perhaps in exchange for the enormous taxes levied on English citizens. Despite political backing, the celebration was decidedly not PC. First of all, the party was officially called a "Christmas Party…" not a holiday gathering or a festive celebration… or even a winter warmer.
Also, about one-third of goers were Muslim, BTW. The role of the so-called pagan symbol of Christian authority, Santa, was in fact, played by a Hindu woman. (Zeena did OK, but should Father Christmas really be wearing high heels?)
Who cares? Let's party.
The second party was at the Palace. The Palace is a place where children with learning disabilities can go… to be themselves. And, their parents can feel normal. Having a chid that isn’t 'normal' (the mildest Palace cases are Down's syndrome, Autism -- the worst are, well, the worst) can be hard on a parent. So a little party to blow off some steam, for parent and child, is worth its weight in wiseman gold.
My daughter is 'normal' by said standards, no disabilities, but my production company, Crescent City, donates to the Palace. So we are always welcome. At any rate, it's one of the neatest places on earth.
At the Palace, no one feels special. And that's the point. There are no rules, yet children wait in line, they don’t push or bite. Everything is sorted, by itself. Having no rules at the Palace has made it, strangely, an oasis of playful order.
No wonder its going broke.
But the raffle was fun, even though the kids with OCD ate all the fried shrimp.
I paid £1 for a raffle ticket. There were about ten prizes and some were way flash. The first winner got to choose their prize. A stuffed lion that came in its own suitcase. Easily the pick of the litter.
Other winners came and went. The 'Electroglobe 3000,' was snatched up quickly, followed by a life-sized Galileo thermostat.
Finally, with no hope of winning, yours truly decided to take a seat. A winner was called with two prizes left. She chose the 'Pingu' season two DVD. The gift secretly wanted for my little girl.
One gift left. The last number called.
Bingo!
Went to collect my prize, the one no one else wanted: a bottle of 2005 Italian Job Sangiovese Zinfandel. Yes, a bottle of wine as a raffle prize at a kids party. Obviously meant for me. Even the raffle caller said, "the wine writer won the bottle of wine?"
Italian Job is a grapey table wine from anywhere in Italy. It is bold and expressive, with a touch of tar, but lacks finesse. Drink this table wine now, as it will spoil hours after opening. If won in a raffle, it represents the best value for a wine one could ever hope to have. 'The Italian Job,' £1, 8.0.
Irony, priceless.
Also, 2004 Bonterra Merlot, Mendocino County for £8. Ripe red cherry, with a flair of cherry coke. Maybe too much French oak. Very aromatic, and a stunner for the price. Highly recommended and extremely classy for California at this price range. 8.8
Monday, December 04, 2006
French Frustration
Had some wine with a friend from France, Javier.
Javier doesn’t like that everyone says the French are arrogant. Like Americans living abroad, there is always this feeling that your homeland needs constant defending. But after two bottles of wine, Javier's pleas became impassioned, forceful, tearful and eventually, arrogant.
But arrogant in a cute way.
Feeling bad, I did the only thing Americans know how to do when a foreigner is feeling blue: I offered to get him a job.
Javier will be doing wine-related promotions in no time.
Went to a tasting of Burgundy, hosted by Antonin Rodet. French vintners from the area are a bit frustrated that the 'Sideways' effect – the explosion of Pinot Noir sales because of the movie – has yet to materialise in Le Republic.
Wines from Burgundy are made with Chardonnay for whites and Pinot Noir for reds. But, like many French regions, the struggle has been for a consistent wine at a decent price.
These wines finally do just that. Nine whites and 12 reds were tried. Started with 'regional' wines: grapes source from any vineyard in Burgundy. Then moved to 'village' wines, and finally to 'estate' wines. Follow the 'as the vineyards available decreases, quality increases' thingy? Burgundy baby.
TIP: Don't know which Burgundy is best? Then you fit in the majority category. (It's a big section, with about 99.999999 percent of the earth's population in it.) Pick the one with the most writting on the label. The more 'areas' declared, the better it can get.
Of course, price does a good job telling that tale.
All of the whites came from the 2004 harvest, the reds, some still not in bottle for retail, from the 2005. Remember that. The 2004 Burgundy whites are crisp and clean, metallic, citrus and vanilla. Touch of honey in the grapes infected with mild rot.
The 2005 are uplifting and fresh. Fruit-forward and funky. Tannic but not tart. Memorable. The 'estate' wines can age for at least ten years yet. Both outstanding wines from outstanding vintages.
2004 Burgundy white 9.0
2005 Burgundy red 9.1
Javier doesn’t like that everyone says the French are arrogant. Like Americans living abroad, there is always this feeling that your homeland needs constant defending. But after two bottles of wine, Javier's pleas became impassioned, forceful, tearful and eventually, arrogant.
But arrogant in a cute way.
Feeling bad, I did the only thing Americans know how to do when a foreigner is feeling blue: I offered to get him a job.
Javier will be doing wine-related promotions in no time.
Went to a tasting of Burgundy, hosted by Antonin Rodet. French vintners from the area are a bit frustrated that the 'Sideways' effect – the explosion of Pinot Noir sales because of the movie – has yet to materialise in Le Republic.
Wines from Burgundy are made with Chardonnay for whites and Pinot Noir for reds. But, like many French regions, the struggle has been for a consistent wine at a decent price.
These wines finally do just that. Nine whites and 12 reds were tried. Started with 'regional' wines: grapes source from any vineyard in Burgundy. Then moved to 'village' wines, and finally to 'estate' wines. Follow the 'as the vineyards available decreases, quality increases' thingy? Burgundy baby.
TIP: Don't know which Burgundy is best? Then you fit in the majority category. (It's a big section, with about 99.999999 percent of the earth's population in it.) Pick the one with the most writting on the label. The more 'areas' declared, the better it can get.
Of course, price does a good job telling that tale.
All of the whites came from the 2004 harvest, the reds, some still not in bottle for retail, from the 2005. Remember that. The 2004 Burgundy whites are crisp and clean, metallic, citrus and vanilla. Touch of honey in the grapes infected with mild rot.
The 2005 are uplifting and fresh. Fruit-forward and funky. Tannic but not tart. Memorable. The 'estate' wines can age for at least ten years yet. Both outstanding wines from outstanding vintages.
2004 Burgundy white 9.0
2005 Burgundy red 9.1
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