"Ladies Who Shoot Their Lunch" Shiraz
— Fowles Wines (Strathbogie, Victoria, Australia)
A blast from the past. During a 'tasting' at Twisted Vines, a wine bar and shop in Arlington, Virginia, USA, winemaker Matt Fowles poured his eponymous wines for patrons. 12 February 2014.
Not in 'perfect' focus by any means, but the shot may serendipitously have captured the inviting mood of the scene. Now, it's only a memory. The wine shop closed in 2018. Fowles Winery, however, remains strong.
On parle de la conversion de l’eau en vin, à la nôce de Cana, comme d’un miracle. Mais cette conversion est faite tous les jours par la bonté de Dieu, sous nos yeux. Voilà l’eau qui tombe des cieux sur nos vignobles, et alors elle entre dans les racines des vignes pour-être changée en vin. Preuve constante que Dieu nous aime, et qu’il aime à nous voir heureux.
Translated into English, this reads:
We hear of the conversion of water into wine at the marriage in Cana, as of a miracle. But this conversion is, through the goodness of God, made every day before our eyes. Behold the rain which descends from heaven upon our vineyards, and which incorporates itself with the grapes to be changed into wine; a constant proof that God loves us, and loves to see us happy!
Sorry, cerevisaphile. Contrary to your myth, Mr. Franklin did NOT write, "Beer is proof that God loves us." But we can forgive him his trespass.
As to the photo itself: residents of the Oakhurst neighborhood of Atlanta, Georgia, USA, have installed various whimsical found-art sculptures in their front yards and on the median of their street. I snapped the photo on 19 September 2018.
According to the Nielsen Company, Americans purchased $648 million dollars of "domestic premium beer" and $248 million of 'craft' beer in "off-premise channels" (in non-jargon, that's "in stores") during the two weeks around the 2017 Fourth of July holiday (from 25 June through 8 July 2017).
In fact, the four-week period surrounding Independence Day in accounted for 8% of the beer industry’s overall annual sales for 2017. It is unclear whether this figure includes package sales in independent shops and at breweries...and what Nielsen considers 'craft' to be. And the total amount of beer sold and drunk would be much higher if on-the-premises sales (aka restaurants, pubs, and breweries) are added in.
According to WalletHub, Americans will spend $5.3 billion on food (partly for the 150 billion hot dogs they will purchase), $1 billion on beer, and $568 million on wine.
The National Retail Federation has a higher figure. They forecast that Americans will spend $6.9 billion on food for the 4th (down from a record $7.1 billion in 2017).
I'll be trying to do my part. Happy Independence Day.
It's a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc: stored in a keg, pushed through a draught system, poured from a tap ... at a brewpub.
American restaurants —'white-tablecloth' or pub, 'hip' or 'neighborhoody'— have begun pouring wine from kegs; and wineries are offering them greater choice in draught wines, better than generic 'red or white.'
Wine on tap flows through a 304 grade stainless draft system —very similar to that used for beer— pushed out of kegs using a blended mixture of gasses, usually 75% nitrogen and 25% carbon dioxide. This blend preserves wine quality and freshness, without adding bubbles. (Using a higher concentration of carbon dioxide would carbonate the wine, inappropriate, unless, of course, the wine were a sparkling wine.) The equipment installation cost for a restaurant is not that great, especially if a beer-dispense system is already in place.
The standard keg size for wine is 5.16 gallons, which, in wine-measurement, is 19.5 liters (the equivalent of twenty-six 750-ml wine bottles: two cases plus two bottles). * White and red wine kegs should be served from different refrigerated compartments: the white wine at or about 42 °F; red wine at or about 55 °F. (Room temperature red wine, draught or bottle, is not a refreshing beverage. Chill it slightly.)
At present, it's mostly California wineries that are kegging their wines. They ferment and age their wines as usual, and ship the results in bulk containers to facilities which package the wine for them. (Of course, there's no reason, except cost, for a winery, like a brewery, to install its own kegger.)
At the restaurant, there's no waste, no corks to un-cork, no bottles (and corks or screwtops) to dispose of, and little to no spoilage. It's clean, green, 'cool'; and usually at or just below the equivalent per-ounce cost of a bottle, depending on the wine poured.
It’s common to hear wine professionals comment on the size of bubbles as being some indication of quality. A good quality Champagne has a steady stream of fine bubbles, while an inexpensive Prosecco has much larger bubbles. That’s how the received wisdom goes.
But it’s a myth.
How many bubbles does a bottle of Champagne have in it? Zero. The same goes for a bottle of Prosecco, or Cava, or English sparkling wine. They all have carbon dioxide dissolved in them, up to pressures of 6 atmospheres. It’s only when they are poured into a glass that the bubbles appear, and the nature of the bubble largely depends on the characteristics of the glass.
It’s also a myth that the way that the carbon dioxide gets into the wine determines the bubble size. Once carbon dioxide is in the wine it doesn’t matter whether it was produced by yeasts or pumped in from a cylinder. It’s the same gas.
So how do glasses affect bubble size? Bubbles are formed from what is known as nucleation sites in the glass. Typically these will be small bits of cellulose fibre (for example, from cleaning cloths) or other imperfections. As the glass is filled, these will harbour microscopic air bubbles that are then able to initiate bubble formation in the wine. The dissolved carbon dioxide comes out of solution at these sites and a stream of bubbles is released. Some glasses are deliberately etched at the bottom to create nucleation sites that will cause a pretty stream of bubbles to flow upwards.
If you were to clean a glass perfectly, for example by using phosphoric acid, then there would be no nucleation sites and no bubbles.
But why exactly does that fine-mousse of a Champagne dissipate so rapidly, whereas the foamy head of a well-made beer lingers on? Here, Charles Bamforth, at the University of California, Davis, educator to 'craft' brewers, explains:
Foam is an inherently unstable phenomenon because of the huge increase in surface area within an aqueous system that is counter to the force of surface tension. That beer foam is stable, unlike that in richly carbonated beverages such as champagne and sodas [and cider], is due to the presence of surface-active agents in beer. The main foam-stabilizing agents in beer are hydrophobic polypeptides derived from grain. These molecules cross-link with the bitter iso-alpha-acids derived from hops to render the foam more rigid and not only more stable but also adhere to the side of the glass as the beer is consumed.
In other words, beer has proteins from barley and wheat, and compounds from hops. Wine, from grapes, does not.
Long-lasting bubbles or not, the quality of the wine inside a bottle of Champagne does make a difference. The yeasty, toasty, elegant, well-acidified flavor of a French Champagne is a thing of beauty.
In France, Champagne and sparkling wine are drinks enjoyed everyday, not only reserved for special occasions.
Bill St. John has written his final column on wine for the Chicago Tribune. And, it's a doozy. In a valediction, he distills (wrong verb?) his experiences and what he's gained from them. Beer-makers and beer-drinkers and beer 'experts' and, ahem, beer-writers might see their reflections.
The most important thing that I learned is that wine is no big deal, that it's a part of the everyday life of millions of people — a condiment on their table, equal to salt or salsa.
By and large, we take wine and especially winemaking way too seriously. We've made of winemakers what we've made of chefs — superstars and entertainers. As Julia Child once told me, "We've let cooking get in the way of our food." We've let winemaking and so much folderol about wine — buying, storing, collecting and bloviating — get in the way of our wine.
I've learned that too many winemakers — American, French, Italian, it doesn't matter — can't keep their egos out of the bottle. They tinker with it, putting their stamp on it — too much wood, say, or a lot of phenolic extraction — because they want to make a statement with their wine about their prowess, such as it is.
Contrariwise, I've also learned that the best wines, the great wines of the world, speak of their place of origin. They have what wine writer Matt Kramer calls "somewhereness."
I've learned that, all over the globe (and in many new wild and woolly winemaking places), grape growers and winemakers have learned, to great effect, new ways of growing in the vineyard and working in the cellar. More good wine flows today than has ever before in our history as drinkers of it.
I've learned that wine is less an alcoholic beverage and more a food, and that its proper, perhaps indispensable, place is at the table with other foods. Even a little bit of it enhances a meal in a manner disproportionate to its volume.
For better or for worse, beer has crowd-judging; wine has experts-judging. Two of wine's more prominent 'expert' groups are the Wine Spectator magazine —whose most renowned writer, until recently, was James Suckling— and the Wine Advocate newsletter, published by wine critic Robert Parker (who lives north of Baltimore, Maryland).
For better or for worse, Parker popularized the 100-point rating scale, twenty years ago or so. Folk publicly pooh-pooh it, but privately use it.
This time of year, every year, the Wine Spectator releases its choices for the top 100 wines of the year. For 2014, a port, Dow 2011 vintage, took top honors, receiving 99 points.
Powerful, refined, and luscious, with a surplus of dark plum, kirsch and cassis flavors that are unctuous and long. Shows plenty of grip, presenting a long full finish, filled with Asian spice and raspberry tart accents. Rich and chocolaty. One for the ages. Best from 2030 through 2060. 5,00 cases made.
With that best-by, I don't know if I'll be sufficiently chronologically blessed to taste all those "unctuous and long" flavors at their best. The magazine says that the average retail cost is $82 per bottle. I'd expect something a bit (!) higher, now, if you can find a bottle.
At the 100th spot is Saint Clair Pinot Noir Marlborough Pioneer Block 16 Awatere, from Australia, assigned 92 points, retailing for $31.
This offers a good mix of fresh, ripe raspberry and cherry flavors, with details of forest floor, black tea, cigar box and nutmeg, finishing with nuances of warm baking spices and a touch of firmness. Drink now through 2025. 1,000 cases made.
Looking at all one-hundred wines, the suggested retail price ranges from $240 for Ornellaia Bolgheri Superiore, a 'Super-Tuscan' from Italy at the 65th position, to $10 for Bodegas Montecillo Rioja Viña Cumbrero Crianza, a Spanish Tempranillo, at the the 62nd spot. And, in confusing fashion, some wines with lower scores finish higher in the ranking than those with greater scores, and vice versa, although all are scored in the 90s. Must be those je ne sais quoi intangibles.
Each year, Wine Spectator editors survey the wines reviewed over the previous 12 months and select our Top 100, based on quality [based on score], value [based on price], availability [based on the volume of cases either made or imported], and excitement. These criteria were applied to determine the Top 100 from among the more than 5,400 wines that rated outstanding (90 points or higher on Wine Spectator’s 100-point scale) this year. Overall, the average score of the wines in this year’s list is 93 points and the average price $47—an excellent quality/price ratio and a slightly lower average price than the 2013 list.
Here's the entire list. For all the scores, tasting notes, and retail pricing, go to the Wine Spectator website itself.
1
Dow Vintage Port +
2011
99
$82
2
Mollydooker Shiraz McLaren Vale Carnival of Love +
2012
95
$75
3
Prats & Symington Douro Chryseia +
2011
97
$55
4
Quinta do Vale Meão Douro +
2011
97
$76
5
Leeuwin Chardonnay Margaret River Art Series +
2011
96
$89
6
Castello di Ama Chianti Classico San Lorenzo Gran Selezione +
2010
95
$52
7
Clos des Papes Châteauneuf-du-Pape +
2012
97
$135
8
Brewer-Clifton Pinot Noir Sta. Rita Hills +
2012
94
$40
9
Concha y Toro Cabernet Sauvignon Puente Alto Don Melchor +
2010
95
$125
10
Château Léoville Las Cases St.-Julien +
2011
95
$165
11
Mount Eden Vineyards Chardonnay Santa Cruz Mountains +
2011
95
$60
12
Château Guiraud Sauternes +
2011
97
$50
13
Fonseca Vintage Port +
2011
98
$116
14
Fontodi Colli della Toscana Centrale Flaccianello +
2011
95
$120
15
Bedrock The Bedrock Heritage Sonoma Valley +
2012
95
$42
16
Two Hands Shiraz Barossa Valley Bella's Garden +
2012
95
$69
17
Soter Pinot Noir Yamhill-Carlton District Mineral Springs Ranch +
2012
95
$60
18
Château Doisy-Védrines Barsac +
2011
95
$35 / 375ml
19
Luca Malbec Uco Valley +
2012
93
$32
20
Peter Michael Chardonnay Knights Valley Ma Belle-Fille +
2012
95
$90
21
Castello di Volpaia Chianti Classico Riserva +
2010
93
$29
22
Podere Sapaio Bolgheri Volpolo +
2011
93
$35
23
St.-Cosme Châteauneuf-du-Pape +
2010
96
$59
24
Massolino Barolo +
2009
95
$60
25
Bodegas y Viñedos O. Fournier Malbec Uco Valley Alfa Crux +
2010
94
$54
26
Emeritus Pinot Noir Russian River Valley Hallberg Ranch +
2011
93
$42
27
Quinta do Portal Douro Colheita +
2011
92
$15
28
Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape +
2011
94
$97
29
Hamilton Russell Pinot Noir Hemel-en-Aarde Valley +
2012
93
$46
30
DuMOL Syrah Russian River Valley +
2012
94
$55
31
Tommasi Sangiovese-Cabernet Sauvignon Toscana Poggio al Tufo Rompicollo +
2011
92
$18
32
Hidden Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon Sonoma County 55% Slope +
