Look, very busy time now. Still no excuse for late bloggin'… Doing my best and hope to get back on track next week.
Said sorry, now get off my back. You're not the boss of me.
Remember, you're getting this info for free, and as I tell my wife ALL the time, you're not being appreciative enough.
Went to meet a friend at a Wine Bar in Covent Garden, Central London to pick up some Bonny Doon wine, rare in these parts. Stopped at a Portuguese wine bar, after he gave me the bottles, maybe one of the few true wine bars in, well, the UNITED KINGDOM. It's that bad here.
A few tables upstairs, a few downstairs, about five reds by the glass, about five whites. All Portuguese wines and a few snack foods. The way a wine bar should be: simple, but with a distinctive identity.
Would've remembered the name if I knew it was so good.
My last tasting of Portuguese wines came at a wine fair a few months ago. Tried 12, that's right, 12 different wines from one producer in the Douro.
And they were all bad. Real bad. Skinny and tart. Rusty and way-too-rugged. Hey who wants a big bottle of muddy water? Gimme that corkscrew cause here's some Portuguese wine! Ok, so that is way overboard.
But seriously, this guy's wine stank.
The wine bar, however, was right on the mark. We had two glasses, but didn't intend to blog them.
As remembered:
2003 Sanguinhal Estremadura. Ripe and bold. With black fruit and moist tobacco. Smooth tannin and a solid structure. Finish non-existent, giving the wine one, big great flaw. Other than that, feeling turned around on Portugal. 8.7 points.
2004 Lusitano Alentejo. Plumy and bubble-gummy. Black cherry aroma, with a tad too much oak. Real old world style and surprisingly daring and rich. Also died in the aftertaste department. 8.8 points.
Dying to hear some comments on Portuguese wine from readers.
It was off to eat dim sum after that, accompanied by Sake. Drink it cold, people. Hot Sake is for suckers. Will explain in the future.
Later that night, got home and had some work to do. Decided to try the Bonny Doon, 'ancient vine,' Carignan, 2004. This wine brings with it a reputation larger than its label. Compared to the Portuguese wines, it was thin. Not unpleasant, but lacked the minerality and earth of the other two (just remembered the two Portuguese wines had that). That's what you get when you stick ancient vines in fertile earth, though. No true identity. Just another California wine.
Drank the rest of the bottle the next evening, with no apparent oxygen evolution. 8.5 points.
Some people out there, especially the guy who bought it for me, will probably be upset by this review. Probably have some sort of problem with that – and apologies for that.
Now, get off my back.
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
Serenity Calling
Ended up on the set of a new movie Monday night, so a new post was delayed again. The movie is called "A Mighty Heart" and stars Angelina Jolie, as the wife of slain Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl. The film is being produced by Brad Pitt's production house and is being directed by Michael Winterbottom, the same man who put together The Road to Guantanamo.
Once filming was wrapped I asked Michael about the wines they had in India, while on set. He refused to elaborate, saying Paramount is iffy about any info coming off their sets. Got to respect that. The cool thing is there was no casting involved. The studio just called my agent and said "Agent, is Jacob free Monday night?"
But, to be sure, Winterbottom loved the wines in India. Oops, shouldn't have said that.
Will say that the new episode is encountering problems, delays, etc. Hopefully we will have some footage online soon. Pray for calm.
Wine reviews next time.
Once filming was wrapped I asked Michael about the wines they had in India, while on set. He refused to elaborate, saying Paramount is iffy about any info coming off their sets. Got to respect that. The cool thing is there was no casting involved. The studio just called my agent and said "Agent, is Jacob free Monday night?"
But, to be sure, Winterbottom loved the wines in India. Oops, shouldn't have said that.
Will say that the new episode is encountering problems, delays, etc. Hopefully we will have some footage online soon. Pray for calm.
Wine reviews next time.
Wednesday, January 17, 2007
Late Update
Sorry, went to a German wine tasting Monday night and was nursing a banged-up elbow injury last night. Truth be told, both were kinda bad. The elbow, well, that's needed for the physical act of drinking, as for the German wine tasting, well that was just physical. The tasting, which in itself was comprised of fabulous wines, was held at the home of the German Ambassador in London, who thanked the press for promoting German wines. The wineries were provided by Iris Ellmann of the Wine Barn, who was quick to correct me on the correct pronunciation of her name.
As you know, I'm a big fan of German wines, but tastings open to the public are always going to get physical. Lots of pushing, lots of shoving, winemakers getting irritable as people grab at bottles and pour themselves whatever and how much. Women coated in perfume, men puffing on cigars. Some of the worst places to taste wines are at public tastings, where no one is really serious and no one takes you seriously.
The worst part for me came when the financial director of my company hit me over the head with his tasting notebook in front of Friedrich Becker, of Winery Friedrich Becker, arguably one of the more exciting producers from Germany.
Public humiliation 8.0.
Several tasting notes from many producers, but what's the point? Germany is filled with independent-house producers who make fine, elegant wines with low yield harvests and small batches. Everything in that formula works until you see the price. Some you could say, are well worth it, others you can't be so sure. The nature of German wines are arguable by nature and no matter how fine a setting, things will always get physical when push comes to shove.
More tasting notes next time.
As you know, I'm a big fan of German wines, but tastings open to the public are always going to get physical. Lots of pushing, lots of shoving, winemakers getting irritable as people grab at bottles and pour themselves whatever and how much. Women coated in perfume, men puffing on cigars. Some of the worst places to taste wines are at public tastings, where no one is really serious and no one takes you seriously.
The worst part for me came when the financial director of my company hit me over the head with his tasting notebook in front of Friedrich Becker, of Winery Friedrich Becker, arguably one of the more exciting producers from Germany.
Public humiliation 8.0.
Several tasting notes from many producers, but what's the point? Germany is filled with independent-house producers who make fine, elegant wines with low yield harvests and small batches. Everything in that formula works until you see the price. Some you could say, are well worth it, others you can't be so sure. The nature of German wines are arguable by nature and no matter how fine a setting, things will always get physical when push comes to shove.
More tasting notes next time.
Monday, January 08, 2007
A New Year
The Holidays have come and gone, during a period better referred to as, "The Widening." Over the course of the last two weeks, many wines have also come and gone. These are the most memorable.
IDEA: Next year try to keep in mind the multi-cultural nature of Christmas. Hell, who would have thought that everyone LOVES Jesus around here?
It started with a Christmas greeting from the Hindu family that owns the local curry house. That part of the story ends there, cause they don't have a liquor license. However, a few nights ago, a meeting with an old friend from college brings us back to India. We tried a bottle of 2005 Grover Estates from Bangalore, India. Perhaps a Cabernet Sauvignon blend. Once opened, the aroma of wine had to immediately compete with the stink of the charming basement bar we we're drinking in. So my guess is that the opulent bouquet of (second hand) smoke probably did not come from the Grover.
The wine was nominally forgettable except for one thing. Now my friend, let's call him Sean… probably best cause it's actually his name… Sean is what can-be-called a wine critic tester. See wine critics, like yours truly, are wine testers. But others, who try the wines of wine critics and look for inaccuracies, are wine critic testers. Sean has continued to remind me that there was no mention of "vanilla" in the review of Heartland Petite Verdot in this column ages ago. Either it was missed, or Sean's just being a jerk. Chances are, both are true to an extent.
At any rate, we both agreed that the wine had one odour in common: it smells kinda like elephants. No, not those two bit, performing elephants at the Zoo. But proper, 'free range' elephants. For real. Could write about what the rest of the wine was like… bulky and juicy, full-bodied and such. But why? The friggin' vino smells of pachyderm.
And it's not from Tuskany.
IDEA: Begin the New Year by laying off the awful wine word play.
Went to a Muslim household for a Christmas tea. No tree, of course, but we exchanged gifts. My gift from them was a bottle of wine. The 2005 Four Crossing Australian Chardonnay is zippy and full of bursting citrus. The throat burn suggests a price tag around the £5 mark but still very versatile with food. Half a bottle used for a superior turkey stock on the BIG day. Gets extra points for coming from a family that never touches the stuff. 8.5 points.
Finally went to the flat of the director who works on Interwined projects. We had to cut a 26 minute piece with new footage. Came in a put a bottle of wine on the counter. It was for the owner of the flat, whom I wish to keep happy for logistical reasons. The director came in and said, "Hey, who's the gift for?"
"Mel." (His name isn't Mel) "Do Jews give gifts for Christmas, because I didn't get you anything." (He is Jewish)
Exit DIRECTOR. Re-enter DIRECTOR with carefully wrapped GIFT bearing the tag: To: Jacob, From: Father Christmas.
Send GIFT flying across room, smacking into chest of TALENT.
TALENT opens GIFT, finds two extra large wine glasses, each capable of holding the contents of one BOTTLE of wine.
Open CARD.
Read CARD: 'Merry Christmas Gaffney family, to our future. Salud.'
Exit DIRECTOR with the line:
DIRECTOR: Merry Christmas, Jerk.
Indeed. And Merry Christmas to all of you, you thoughtful Jews, Muslims and Hindus.
Now for you cheap Christians who didn't get me anything… Merry Christmas, Jerks.
* New Year's Eve. 2000 Heidsick Monopole Silver Label Champagne. Nutty, biscotti trim. Fresh orange scent. Small, lovely bubbles. A real value at £20 per bottle at Oddbins. 8.8 points.
IDEA: Next year try to keep in mind the multi-cultural nature of Christmas. Hell, who would have thought that everyone LOVES Jesus around here?
It started with a Christmas greeting from the Hindu family that owns the local curry house. That part of the story ends there, cause they don't have a liquor license. However, a few nights ago, a meeting with an old friend from college brings us back to India. We tried a bottle of 2005 Grover Estates from Bangalore, India. Perhaps a Cabernet Sauvignon blend. Once opened, the aroma of wine had to immediately compete with the stink of the charming basement bar we we're drinking in. So my guess is that the opulent bouquet of (second hand) smoke probably did not come from the Grover.
The wine was nominally forgettable except for one thing. Now my friend, let's call him Sean… probably best cause it's actually his name… Sean is what can-be-called a wine critic tester. See wine critics, like yours truly, are wine testers. But others, who try the wines of wine critics and look for inaccuracies, are wine critic testers. Sean has continued to remind me that there was no mention of "vanilla" in the review of Heartland Petite Verdot in this column ages ago. Either it was missed, or Sean's just being a jerk. Chances are, both are true to an extent.
At any rate, we both agreed that the wine had one odour in common: it smells kinda like elephants. No, not those two bit, performing elephants at the Zoo. But proper, 'free range' elephants. For real. Could write about what the rest of the wine was like… bulky and juicy, full-bodied and such. But why? The friggin' vino smells of pachyderm.
And it's not from Tuskany.
IDEA: Begin the New Year by laying off the awful wine word play.
Went to a Muslim household for a Christmas tea. No tree, of course, but we exchanged gifts. My gift from them was a bottle of wine. The 2005 Four Crossing Australian Chardonnay is zippy and full of bursting citrus. The throat burn suggests a price tag around the £5 mark but still very versatile with food. Half a bottle used for a superior turkey stock on the BIG day. Gets extra points for coming from a family that never touches the stuff. 8.5 points.
Finally went to the flat of the director who works on Interwined projects. We had to cut a 26 minute piece with new footage. Came in a put a bottle of wine on the counter. It was for the owner of the flat, whom I wish to keep happy for logistical reasons. The director came in and said, "Hey, who's the gift for?"
"Mel." (His name isn't Mel) "Do Jews give gifts for Christmas, because I didn't get you anything." (He is Jewish)
Exit DIRECTOR. Re-enter DIRECTOR with carefully wrapped GIFT bearing the tag: To: Jacob, From: Father Christmas.
Send GIFT flying across room, smacking into chest of TALENT.
TALENT opens GIFT, finds two extra large wine glasses, each capable of holding the contents of one BOTTLE of wine.
Open CARD.
Read CARD: 'Merry Christmas Gaffney family, to our future. Salud.'
Exit DIRECTOR with the line:
DIRECTOR: Merry Christmas, Jerk.
Indeed. And Merry Christmas to all of you, you thoughtful Jews, Muslims and Hindus.
Now for you cheap Christians who didn't get me anything… Merry Christmas, Jerks.
* New Year's Eve. 2000 Heidsick Monopole Silver Label Champagne. Nutty, biscotti trim. Fresh orange scent. Small, lovely bubbles. A real value at £20 per bottle at Oddbins. 8.8 points.
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