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Home > Blogs > Uncorked > Archives > 2007 > January
January 2007
Has anybody else dined out for Restaurant Week?
I know most folks wait until toward the end of the week to go out to eat, but hey, it’s Restaurant Week, and I know some of you have taken full advantage already of the $20.07 price on three-course meals at more than 40 local eateries.
How was it? Which choice of entree did you like best? The rest of us would like to hear. Don’t make me beg …
I visited Jay’s Restaurant on Monday night …
… to kick off Restaurant Week in style, in part because Amy Haverstick, Jay’s daughter and the restaurant’s general manager, is the chair of the Miami Valley Restaurant Association’s Restaurant Week committee, which means she helped organize the event that benefits a local charity (this time, it’s Cox Arboretum). Being committee chair I think means she cajoled and begged and browbeat her fellow restaurant owners and managers to participate — but of course, I could be wrong about that. In any event, my Greek salad, perfectly cooked salmon filet and Baklava were indeed a bargain at twenty bucks, and the restaurant always knocks 25 percent off its wine list prices for bottles of wine sold on Monday nights. Heck, it was almost like stealin’ a meal. Almost.
So what have you liked? Where are you going next?
Thanks and cheers!
Mark Fisher
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‘Wine is finally entering the mainstream of American life’
That’s the conclusion of a wine-industry consultant as Decanter.com reports this morning that Americans consumed a record 300 million cases of wine in 2006. Despite the fact that per-capita consumption is still lower in the U.S. than in many other countries, the surge in sales last year prove that wine is “a rapidly growing trend” across America.
Do you agree?
Cheers!
Mark Fisher
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Would you be willing to pay more than $20.07 for Restaurant Week?
Restaurant Week is officially underway, with 41 Dayton-area restaurants inviting YOU to dine on a three-course meal for just $20.07 through Friday, Feb. 2.
I’d like to hear about your experiences with restaurant week — the food, the service, the atmosphere, the leftover wine — whatever strikes your fancy. Short and sweet or detailed and comprehensive, your comments are important both to Uncorked and to the restaurants that are trying to showcase their best (and to persuade you to come back).
But for the moment, let’s take this step further by delving into an issue that the Miami Valley Restaurant Association has been grappling with: cost. So far, the gimmick behind Restaurant Week has been the price, which rises by a penny each year ($20.07). But some restaurant owners would like to be able to charge more if they wish, saying they’re making very little, if any, money on the three-course-meal promotion. Some cities that have similar promotions do set a higher price than the challenging twenty-bucks-and-change.
Would you be willing to pay more for Restaurant Week? Click on “post your comment” to let us know your thoughts.
A few more important details and insider tips on Restaurant Week:
Restaurant Week starts Sunday 1-28-07 and runs through next Friday, Feb. 2.
One important thing to remember: In most cases, reservations are required, and Miami Valley Restaurant Association folks and restaurant owners strongly recommend calling to check on availability and hours.
For every Restaurant Week meal served, each participating restaurant will donate $1 to Cox Arboretum.
The MVRA promotion has been gaining momentum. Last summer’s restaurant week resulted in a record 6,189 meals served and generated $6,189 for Children’s Medical Center of Dayton, and restaurant officials say judging from the volume of phone calls and Web site traffic, interest is continuing to grow.
MVRA President Lisa Grigsby expects 6,500 meals to be served this week.
Some restaurants are finding ways to get some additional mileage out of the special offer: The Blue Moon Restaurant in Centerville (formerly called Eclipse), which recently began serving lunches, will offer a lunch portion of its Restaurant Week three-course meal for $12.07. The Bistro at l’Auberge will extend its dinner promotion a week, through Feb. 10.
And the Dayton Racquet Club, which is generally not open to the public, makes an exception for Restaurant Week. The club in the Kettering Tower at Second and Main streets in downtown Dayton will serve a three-course meal Tuesday through Friday evenings. Reservations for the special dinner will be available to nonmembers at 7 p.m. or later, or on a waiting-list basis for those who want to dine earlier, said Charlene Thatcher, the club’s receptionist. Dress code is business casual — no denim or team-logo-type sportswear.
One new wrinkle this year: diners who fill out a survey card will be entered into a contest and could win a three-day cruise (I wonder whether they’ll ask about the pricing issue?). Second and third prizes consisting of dining-out gift certificates also will be awarded, Grigsby said.
And remember that tax, tip and beverages are not included in the $20.07 price. Also, this is the first Restaurant Week in which you should be able to take leftover wine home in a sealed bottle, assuming the restaurant is taking advantage of the new state law that allows the practice.
To see which restaurants are planning to serve — as well as WHAT they’re going to serve — go to www.dineoutdayton.com.
Then, log onto Uncorked and let us know how things went!
Thanks for reading, and cheers!
Mark Fisher
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Opportunity comes a-knockin’ on wine lovers’ doors
Dee-LISH-us opportunities abound this weekend for you to sample some intriguing and delightful wines, including two that were at the center of a little Uncorked brouhaha a week ago. At the very least, Dorothy Lane Market Oakwood’s offering of the Kendall-Jackson Vintners Reserve and Grand Reserve chardonnays gives you the chance to see why KJ is the top-selling chardonnay in the country. By the way, Kendall-Jackson made some headlines of a different sort yesterday, both for its aggressive pricing policies and its boffo sales and marketing efforts.
So, like, come taste what all the hubbub is all about. But don’t stop there. Take note of the two events featuring Napa Valley winery owner/winemaker Dick Steltzner at Arrow’s south store and at Jay’s, and do my eyes deceive, or is DLM Washington Square popping the cork on a bottle of Australia’s flagship wine, the Penfolds Grange? Yowzah …
AND on top of it all, don’t forget about Restaurant Week kicking off on Sunday. This time around, we’re going to give you and other DDN readers the chance to share your Restaurant Week experiences right here on Uncorked.
Like I said — opportunities abound. Seize the day!
(Click on “continue reading” below to view the wine-tastings list…)
Cheers!
Mark Fisher
Jays Kitchen Door Friday, January 26, 2007 4-8 pm NV Pierre Peters Brut 2003 Domaine Charvin Cote du Rhone 2003 Domaine Arlaud Gevrey Chambertin, Aux Combottes 2002 Tentu Crognalo 2002 Picheon Longueville
Saturday, January 27, 2007 1-6 pm NV Bollinger Brut 2003 Calon Segur 2002 Silverado Cabernet 2003 Lewelling Cabernet
Call 222-2892 for reservations to any of the following wine events!
Steltzner Dinner with Winemaker Dick Steltzner Tuesday, January 30, 2007 7pm $60 Warm Rabbit Salad with Foie Gras, White Asparagus and Tarragon-Riesling Sauce, Lobster Broth with Crispy Dumplings, Mushroom Cannelloni with Chantrelle Cream Sauce and Smoked Ham, Potato-Encrusted Lamb Loin with Rosemary Sauce and Vegetables, Tangerine Cake with Huckleberry Sauce and Sour Cream Sorbet 2004 Steltzner Chardonnay, 2004 Steltzner Malbec, Steltzner Claret, 2003 Steltzner Cabernet
Anniversary Luncheon - Bordeaux Saturday, February 17, 2007 12:30 pm - $75 Thursday, March 1, 2007 Frescobaldi Wine Dinner - $65 Thursday, March 22, 2007 Chateau St Jean Wine Dinner $60
Arrow - Kettering Saturday, January 27, 2007 11-4 pm 1) 2004 vega sindoa cabernet sauvignon/tempranillo 2) 2004 domaine serene pinot noir, yamhill cuvee 3) 2005 clos de los siete 4) 2005 boglietti barbera d’alba 5) 2005 joel gott chardonnay 6) nv heredias ruby porto, special reserve
Doug Simon’s Music Schedule - Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2007, 7-11 pm Pacchia , Saturday, March 3, 2007, 8-12 pm Pacchia
Dorothy Lane Market (DLM)
DLM Oakwood Friday, January 26, 2007 5-8pm Jacobs Creek Brut Rose NV Napa Cellars Sauvignon Blanc 2005 Elio Altare Barbera d’Asti 2004 D’Arenberg Dead Arm Shiraz 2004 Heitz Bella Oaks Cabernet 2001 Brown Bag!
Saturday, January 27, 2007 1-6 pm Kendall Jackson Vintners Chardonnay 2005 Kendall Jackson Vintners Grand Reserve Chardonnay 2005 Robert Sinsky Carneros Pinot Noir 2005 Hey Mambo Marquis Phillips S9 Shiraz 2005 Le Dieux Donjon Chateuneuf-du-Pape 2004 Beer: Stone Old Guardian Barley Wine Style Redbach Flemish Sour Ale and Cherry Juice
DLM Washington Square Thursday, January 25, 2007 5-8 pm 2005 Robert Sinskey Pinot Blanc 2005 Petraio Primitivo 2005 Tres Picos Garnacha 2004 Le Deveze “66” Cotes du Roussillon-Villages 2003 Chateau La Lagune Haut-Medoc Mystery Wine!
Saturday, January 27, 2007 12-5 pm Fifi’s “Outback Adventure” Tasting 2004 Yarraman “Barn Buster” Semillon/Verdelho 2004 Rockbare Chardonnay 2005 First Love Shiraz/Grenache/Sangiovese 2005 Marquis Philips “S2” Cabernet Sauvignon (very limited supply) 2004 Torbreck “The Struie” Shiraz (very limited supply) 2001 Penfold’s “Grange” Shiraz (very limited supply) Mystery Wine!
Beers: Cooper’s Sparkling Ale Cooper’s Extra Stout James Boag’s Tasmanian Premium Lager Steinlager
Dorothy Lane Springboro Friday, January 26, 2007 3-7pm 04 St Supery Sauvignon Blanc 05 Sonoma-Cutrer Chardonnay 03 Peachy Canyon Zinfan del 00 Godwin Red Wine
Saturday, January 27, 2007 12-5 pm 05 Le Caprice Cotes de Provence 03 Chateau de Saint Cosme Gigondas 04 Gibson Shiraz 03 Philip Togni Cabernet
Cuvee Wine Bar and Cellar, 4457 State Route 725 Bellbrook Tuesday - Thursday 11:30 - 7 pm Friday and Saturday 11:30 - 8 pm www.cuveewinebar.net Wine Tasting Menu Friday, January 26-Thursday, February 1,, 2007 Le Roc de Anges 2003 white table wine Zuani Bianco 2005 white table wine Casa Lapostolle 2004 Chardonnay Valley Home Syrah Sharecroppers 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon Kaesler 2005 Stonehorse Shiraz
On Tap: Wooden Shoe Lager
Saturday Snacks: TBA
Market Wine Imports 2nd Street Public Market Saturday, January 27
DiSalvos Deli and Italian Store Wine Tasting - every third Wednesday of the month in conjunction with their Meal of the Month! www.disalvosdeli.com. The Delis Feature Wines: Ecco Domani Merlot, Chianti, Pinot Grigio, Sangiovese
Arrow Centerville 615 Lyons Rd Saturday, January 27, 2007 11 am - 5 pm 2005 Dr. L Riesling… 2006 Wishing Tree Chardonnay… 2002 Villa Puccini Chianti Superiore… 2004 Wishing Tree Merlot/Cabernet… 2004 Wishing Tree Shiraz… 2004 Brancaia “Tre”
Richard Steltzner, owner/winemaker of Steltzner Vineyards, will be at the Centerville store on Tuesday, January 30 from 5:30-7:30 pm. He will be pouring his current releases: 2005 Sauvignon Blanc, Napa & Lake County 2005 “Allison”, Rose of Syrah 2004 Chardonnay, Oak Knoll Estate 2003 Claret, Napa Valley 2002 Merlot, Stags Leap District 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon, Stags Leap District 2002 Reserve Barrel Select Cabernet Sauvignon, SLD
Trader Joes, Town & Country Kettering Tastings Sunday 4-7 and Tuesday 6-8. This week - all new wines from France! Sebastien Roux (2005) AOC Pouilly-Fuisse; Sainte-Croix La Bergerie Viognier (2005) VdP Pays d’Oc; Sainte-Croix La Bergerie Syrah-Merlot (2005) VdP Pays d’Oc.
LAuberge LAuberge’s next Tuesday night tasting, will be in February at 7 pm. The Châteauneuf-du-Pape wines tasted on Tuesday were wonderful - a white, two reds and a special cuvee! The information provided helped develop an appreciation for the wines.
Pacchia Wine Tasting Every Thursday will feature at least 6 wines for to taste, discuss, and enjoy from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm. When your your tasting is finished, you will receive a credit for the $10 fee applied to the purchase of any dinner entrée in Pacchia Prima or any bill of $20 or more in the café. Live music! Thursday, January 25, 2007 6 pm - 8 pm selection of Heidelberg’s wines!
Little Sonoma, 6078 West Chester Road, West Chester, OH 45069. 513-942-9463. Located two blocks north of Union Centre Blvd. at the corner of Muhlhauser and West Chester Roads www.LittleSonomaWines.com Thursday, January 25th, 7 pm Mitchells Fish Market Wine Dinner Friday, January 26th, The Road to Riesling, 7 pm Saturday, January 27th, Winter Reds Revisited, 3-6 pm
Winds Café Yellow Springs Call 937-767-9441 to make reservations for events. Australian Wine Tasting - Friday February 2nd, 7 pm Wine Classes Saturday, January 27, 2007 and February 3, 2007 3 pm Wine 101 Saturday, March 3, 2007 and March 10, 2007 3 pm Wine 201
El Meson “A Taste of the World” at El Meson, 903 East Dixie Drive, West Carrollton, Ohio 45449 (937) 859-8229, Fax (937) 859-8220, www.ElMeson.Net Tapas and wine pairings will resume on Tuesday, January 30th.
El Meson is having a wine dinner Mon. Jan 29 with Ceja wines. Amelia will not be there but her son Navek will. He is working for the winery now. The dinner is at 7pm, 5 wines will be featured, $65.00 a person including tax and tip.
The Wine Gallery & Cafe 424 East Third Street Dayton, Ohio 45402 937-224-WINE
Thursday, January 25th from 6PM to 9PM ITALIAN WINE NIGHT 2005 Cantrutti Pinot Grigio Collio Orientale Scagliola Moscato d’Asti Primo Bacio Tarantino Primitivo Curatolo Nero d’Avola-Syrah Blend 2002 Poggio Amorelli Chianti Classico 2003 Sant Appiano Chianti
Saturday, January 27th from 7PM to 10PM LIVE MUSIC PRESENTED by MIKE SEDMAK, guitarist and vocalist
Wednesday, January 31 from 6PM to 9PM 2005 ST. SUPERY MOSCATO 2005 ST. SUPERY SAUVIGNON BLANC 2005 ST. SUPERY VIRTU WHITE MERITAGE 2000 ST. SUPERY CABERNET SAUVIGNON SPECIAL EDITION 2001 ST. SUPERY MERLOT 2002 ST. SUPERY ELU RED
TomKatz Wine Tasting Wednesdays Time: 5:00 - 7:00 p.m. Phone: 937-743-8111 Address: S.R. 73 just East of I75
Villa di Giovanni Wednesday, January 31, 2007, 1100 E. Dayton Yellow Springs Rd. 5-7 p.m. 2001 Big Horn Cellars Cabernet 2004 Moscato di Asti “Bug Juice” 2005 Stone Wolf Pinot Noir 2005 Barbera d’Asti “Baby Barb” 2000 Rosso di Montalcino
La Petite France 3177 Glendate-Milford Road Cincinnati, Ohio www.lapetitefrance.biz Call 513-733-8383
Beginning Friday, January 26th, the restaurant will present a “Taste of France” featuring gourmet specialties from seven different regions of France. On the last Friday of each month, they will offer a special three course dinner from the Alsace, Bordeaux, Brittany, Dijon, Normandy, Provence, and Toulouse regions of France. The first featured region will be Toulouse and the main course will be cassoulet! The price for these special dinners which will also include an aperitif is $40.
On Friday evening, February 9th at 6:30 pm, a wine dinner tasting entitled “European Wine Experience”.
Wednesday, February 14th, A very elegant four course dinner. Ladies will receive a red rose! There is an “Early Seating Special” from 4 to 6pm.
The Winery at Versailles (937) 526-3232 www.wineryatversailles.com Valentine Dinner on Feb 17th Wine and Chocolate Night on March 30th
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Self-professed ‘wine slob’ launches new wine column
Mike Needs, formerly the public editor (think ombudsman-in-residence) for The Beacon Journal in Akron, has launched a new wine column for the newspaper.
Here’s how Mike describes himself in his introductory column, linked to above:
No wine snob. You could even call me a wine slob. Won’t even pretend to be an expert. No connoisseur. Can’t even spell it.
First wine Mike mentions is a $3.99 Crane Lake Syrah, which he says drinks just fine with a sub sandwich. His first column is a fun read.
Welcome to the print/online wine world, Mike, and cheers!
Mark Fisher
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New wine marketing scheme tough to swallow
I’ve got to admit, I don’t know what to make of this story in BrandWeek entitled “Design: Old Wine, New Bottles: Who Will Swallow It?”
Would you swallow this?
Next month, a New York company that calls itself “The Amazing Food Wine Co.” will launch “Wine That Loves,” a new wine brand that claims it “takes the guesswork out of pairing wine with food,” according to BrandWeek. That’s because the front labels will say things like “Wine That Loves Pizza” or “Wine That Loves Roasted Chicken,” etc.
The wines’ back label will rate tannins, flavor and acidity, but nowhere on the labels, apparently, will be be any information on trifling little things like the vintage, grape varietal or even where the grapes came from.
The magazine calls the new marketing initiative “another example of the trend of introducing the masses to experiences typically reserved for the wealthy. In this case, the job of the white-table cloth sommelier is done for you.”
Huh?
(Sigh) I must be a total wine geek to actually think those pesky little details such as grape, vintage, and place of birth actually matter. And about this “wealthy” crack — have these clowns taken a look at my bank account?
But hey, talk about total freedom for the winemakers: They could put ANY kind of grape juice from ANY vintage from ANYplace in the world, and no worries, mate — it’s all good.
Or at least, it all loves pizza.
Cheers!
Mark Fisher
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Kendall-Jackson post triggers ‘a tsunami’
If you read blogs the same way I do, you don’t go back and read posts that are several days old, because you’ve been there, done that.
But my post of last last week entitled A Kendall-Jackson wine-tasting experience took on a whole new life — and I do mean a whole new life — on Monday when it was featured and linked to on WineBusiness.com, a newsy and influential web site read by many folks in the California wine industry.
That link, in turn, triggered a second wave of feedback and comments on the entry about the subtle (or, to some palates, not-so-subtle) changes in the style and taste of America’s best-selling chardonnay.
The number of comments has reached 24 as of this writing, some speculating whether K-J was doing things like adding sugar to the juice before fermenting or tossing in as much as 24 percent non-chardonnay grapes. Such speculation obviously caught the attention of Kendall-Jackson’s vice president for communications, George Rose, whose email quotes were included in the original post. Here are the first two sentences of his reaction, contained in the 22nd comment the entry generated, in which he flatly denies any such manipulation to K-J’s huge-selling flagship white:
This has been quite an interesting experience, or shall I say tsunami. I had no idea your tasting of Kendall-Jackson Chardonnays in Ohio would reverberate all the way back to California and around the country. It’s obviously a testament to the power of the Internet and your newspaper’s commitment to a syndicated wine blog column.
I’ve written before about how mind-boggling it is to see how the Internet has shrunk the world, especially for a li’l ol’ wine blogger geek here in flyover country of Dayton, Ohio.
After yesterday, consider my mind further boggled.
It’s you, the readers of Uncorked (which is not syndicated, by the way. The ‘net is my “syndicate,” in a sense — but it doesn’t pay cash.) who make this community a vibrant and lively and entertaining place.
So let’s raise a glass — of K-J chard, if you’ve got a bottle handy — to that vibrant community. And click here to read the entire brouhaha (you may need to top off your glass first).
Thanks for reading, and cheers!
Mark Fisher
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World’s best wine cartoon
Ever wonder why there are at least five to 10 “vintages of the century” every, well, century?
Well, I feel the same way about cartoons. When I see a great one, I declare it the world’s best. Until I discover the next really great one.
In any event, how did this Paul Noth cartoon in The New Yorker slip by me back in May? In any event, enjoy!
Mark Fisher
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Are you drinking better — and more expensive — wines?
Americans are drinking better wines — or at least they’re spending more on them, according to this San Francisco Chronicle story.
Sales of wines priced $15 and above grew 41 percent between January 2004 and October 2006, while sales of wines priced below $6 are dropping. In particular, sales of wines priced under $3 fell 15 percent between January 2004 and October 2006.
I wonder whether part of the explanation for this is that some wines rose in price over that peiod — in other words, there was less cheap wine available to buy, and plenty of other wines that rose in price from $14 to $16 during that time period. Just a thought.
Can’t say that I’m singlehandedly driving this trend. Not with one son in his first year of college and the other about to enter. But I DID just buy a case of 2005 Kurt Darting Durkheimer Michelsberg Kabinett, a wine my wife and her family have taken quite a liking to (as have I). It costs just a smidge over the $15 threshold per bottle. So maybe I AM contributing a bit.
What about your wine-buying habits? You drinking better stuff these days? And why?
Cheers!
Mark Fisher
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Cork wars heat up again even as Bordeaux Second-Growth puts wine under screwcap
Cork producers reveled in a bit of good news in their battle against screwcaps and other alternative enclosures with a British report summarized in TimesOnline.com that one in 50 screwcap wines have off sulfury smells.
But their victory dance may have been dampened by details such as this one from the TimesOnline piece, and by even more recent news out of Bordeaux:
Tests last autumn on 9,000 screwcap wines by the International Wine Challenge found that 2.2 per cent of bottles were affected by sulphidisation … . Problems with wine bottles with traditional corks, including plastic stoppers, were found in 4.4 per cent of the wines.
Then there’s this morning’s news that a a Bordeaux second growth will be putting wine under screwcap. Bordeaux is considered a bit of a bastion of cork tradition, and cork producers don’t want to see screwcaps gain any sort of foothold, however small, on the Right Bank, Left Bank — or their own bank.
Funny thing is, I’ve experienced that rotten-egg, burnt-match smell on many a cork-finished wine over the years — it usually blows off in a few minutes — but I don’t recall ever experiencing it with a screwcap wine. Maybe I haven’t tried enough screwcaps, or I didn’t keep the screwcapped wines long enough for the problem to present itself.
What about you?
In any event, more salvos for the Cork Wars …
Cheers!
Mark Fisher
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Another weekend wine-tasting list to stimulate your salivary glands
You asked for it. We deliver. Click on the “continue reading” link to view yet another amazing wine-tastings list, which comes to Uncorked via the heroic efforts of a Dayton-based wine listserv. And cheers!
Jay’s Kitchen Door Friday, January 19, 2007 4-8 pm Villa Antinori Toscana White Villa Antinori Toscana Red Ctuado Al Tasso 2003 E. Guigal Cotes du Rhone
Saturday, January 20, 2007 1-6 pm NV Henriot Champagne 2002 Dark Horse Syrah 1999 Saint Francis Nun’s Vineyard Cabernet 2003 Chateau Las Combes
Call 222-2892 for reservations to any of the following wine events!
Steltzner Dinner with Winemaker Dick Steltzner Tuesday, January 30, 2007 7pm $60 Warm Rabbit Salad with Foie Gras, White Asparagus and Tarragon-Riesling Sauce, Lobster Broth with Crispy Dumplings, Mushroom Cannelloni with Chantrelle Cream Sauce and Smoked Ham, Potato-Encrusted Lamb Loin with Rosemary Sauce and Vegetables, Tangerine Cake with Huckleberry Sauce and Sour Cream Sorbet 2004 Steltzner Chardonnay, 2004 Steltzner Malbec, Steltzner Claret, 2003 Steltzner Cabernet
Anniversary Luncheon - Bordeaux Saturday, February 17, 2007 12:30 pm - $75 Thursday, March 1, 2007 Frescobaldi Wine Dinner - $65 Thursday, March 22, 2007 Chateau St Jean Wine Dinner $60
Arrow - Kettering Saturday, January 20, 2007 11-4 pm 2002 Beckman Sauvignon Blanc 2006 Old Coach Unoaked Chardonnay 2003 Lancatay Mendoza Cabernet 2002 Clos De Latour Bordeaux 2003 Whitehall Lane Napa Cabernet Sauvignon 2003 Lagier Meredith Syrah
Doug Simon’s Music Schedule - Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2007, 7-11 pm Pacchia, Saturday, March 3, 2007, 8-12 pm Pacchia
Dorothy Lane Market (DLM)
DLM Oakwood Friday, January 19, 2007 5-8pm Chateau Chamirey Mercury 2004 Golden Eye Pinot Noir 2003 St Francis Merlot 2001 Judd Petite Sirah 2002 Solar De Sael Crianza 2001 Brown Fuzzy Bag!
Saturday, January 20, 2007 1-6 pm Kruger Rump Kabinett Riesling 2003 Domaine Herve Azo Chablis 2005 ICI La-Bas Pinot Noir 2001 Muga Reserve Rioja 2002 Chateau LeBoscq Bordeaux 2003 Chateau Fortia Chateauneuf-du-Pape 2004 Bonus Bottle!
Beer: Hoppin Frog IPA Hoppin Frog Oatmeal Imperial Stout
DLM Washington Square Thursday, January 18, 2007 5-8 pm 2004 Dorado Alvarinho 2004 Hey Mambo Malbec 2004 Le Fonti Chianti Classico 2004 Chateau Fortia Chateauneuf du Pape 2002 Judd’s Hill Judd Petite Sirah Mystery Wine!
Saturday, January 20, 2007 12-5 pm Fifi’s Escape to the Pacific Northwest Tasting 2005 A to Z Pinot Gris 2005 Argyle Pinot Noir 2002 Fiddlehead Cellars Oldsville Pinot Noir 2002 Covey Run Winemaker’s Selection Merlot 2004 Chateau Ste. Michelle Indian Wells Cabernet Sauvignon Mystery Wine!
Dorothy Lane Springboro Friday, January 19, 2007 3-7pm 05 JJ Vincent Chardonnay 04 Joseph Voillot Bourgogne 03 Chateau Reysson Haut-Medoc 04 Clos duMont-Olivet CDP
Saturday, January 20, 2007 12-5 pm 01 Leeuwin Estate Chardonnay 04 Colonial Estate Cabernet 03 Penfolds RWT 03 Two Hands Brave Faces
Cuvee Wine Bar and Cellar, 4457 State Route 725 Bellbrook Tuesday - Thursday 11:30 - 7 pm Friday and Saturday 11:30 - 8 pm www.cuveewinebar.net Wine Tasting Menu Friday, January 19-Thursday, January 25,, 2007 Kerpen 2005 Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Spatlese* Artist Label Dino Torti 2005 Pinot Nero(Pinot Noir) -white wine- Hitching Post Pink Pinot Bride of Black Bart 2005 Simply Red Director’s Cut Zinfandel Tikal Patriota
On Tap: Wooden Shoe Lager
Saturday Snacks Asian Salmon, Spanish Ham Baguette
Market Wine Imports 2nd Street Public Market Saturday, January 20
DiSalvos Deli and Italian Store Wine Tasting - every third Wednesday of the month in conjunction with their Meal of the Month! www.disalvosdeli.com. The Delis Feature Wines: Ecco Domani Merlot, Chianti, Pinot Grigio, Sangiovese
Arrow Centerville 615 Lyons Rd Saturday, January 20, 2007 11 am - 5 pm 2005 Aresti Gewurtztraminer 2005 Montinore Winemaker’s Reserve Pinot Noir 2003 Waterstone Merlot 2004 Finca Flichman Barrancas 2004 Finca Flichman Tupangato
Richard Steltzner, owner/winemaker of Steltzner Vineyards, will be at the Centerville store on Tuesday, January 30 from 5:30-7:30 pm. He will be pouring his current releases: 2005 Sauvignon Blanc, Napa & Lake County 2005 “Allison”, Rose of Syrah 2004 Chardonnay, Oak Knoll Estate 2003 Claret, Napa Valley 2002 Merlot, Stags Leap District 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon, Stags Leap District 2002 Reserve Barrel Select Cabernet Sauvignon, SLD
Trader Joe’s, Town & Country Kettering Tastings Sunday 4-7 and Tuesday 6-8. This week - 3 new Bordeaux! Frontera Chardonnay (2005) Chile; Chateau de Seguin (2004) AOC Bordeaux Superieur; Reserve de l’Estey (2003) AOC Medoc; Chateau Coucy (2000) AOC Montaigne-St-Emilion.
L’Auberge LAuberge will begin Tuesday night tasting, January 23, 2007 at 7 pm with a selection of Châteauneuf-du-Pape wines.
Pacchia Wine Tasting Every Thursday will feature at least 6 wines for to taste, discuss, and enjoy from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm. When your your tasting is finished, you will receive a credit for the $10 fee applied to the purchase of any dinner entrée in Pacchia Prima or any bill of $20 or more in the café. Live music! Thursday, January 18, 2007 6 pm 1)05’ Labbe Abymes 2)05’ Omrah Pinot Noir 3)04’ L’Oratoire St.Martin, Carianne Seigner 4)02’ Clevico Arte 5)03’ Apex II Late Harvest Semillion
Little Sonoma, 6078 West Chester Road, West Chester, OH 45069. 513-942-9463. Located two blocks north of Union Centre Blvd. at the corner of Muhlhauser and West Chester Roads www.LittleSonomaWines.com Friday, January 19th, 7 pm Australian Wines Saturday, January 20th, 3-6 pm Out-of-the-Ordinary Australians Thursday, January 25th, 7 pm Mitchells Fish Market Wine Dinner
Winds Café Yellow Springs Call 937-767-9441 to make reservations for events. Australian Wine Tasting - Friday February 2nd, 7 pm Wine Classes Saturday, January 27, 2007 and February 3, 2007 3 pm Wine 101 Saturday, March 3, 2007 and March 10, 2007 3 pm Wine 201
El Meson “A Taste of the World” at El Meson, 903 East Dixie Drive, West Carrollton, Ohio 45449 (937) 859-8229, Fax (937) 859-8220, www.ElMeson.Net Tapas and wine pairings will resume on Tuesday, January 16th.
The Wine Gallery & Cafe 424 East Third Street Dayton, Ohio 45402 937-224-WINE
Wednesday, January 24th from 6PM to 9PM 2001 Martin Weyrich Etrusco Cabernet Sauvignon 2002 Spann Cabernet Sauvignon 2003 Waterstone Cabernet Sauvignon 2001 Midnight Cellars Nebula Cabernet Sauvignon 1999 Aresti Family Collection Cabernet Sauvignon
Thursday, January 25th from 6PM to 9PM ITALIAN WINE NIGHT 2005 Cantrutti Pinot Grigio Collio Orientale Scagliola Moscato d’Asti Primo Bacio Tarantino Primitivo Curatolo Nero d’Avola-Syrah Blend 2002 Poggio Amorelli Chianti Classico 2003 Sant Appiano Chianti
Saturday, January 27th from 7PM to 10PM LIVE MUSIC PRESENTED by MIKE SEDMAK, guitarist and vocalist
TomKatz Wine Tasting Wednesdays Time: 5:00 - 7:00 p.m. Phone: 937-743-8111 Address: S.R. 73 just East of I75
Villa di Giovanni will begin a Wednesday night wine tasting 24 Jan 2007, 1100 E. Dayton Yellow Springs Rd. 5-7 p.m.
La Petite France 3177 Glendate-Milford Road Cincinnati, Ohio www.lapetitefrance.biz Call 513-733-8383
Beginning Friday, January 26th, the restaurant will present a “Taste of France” featuring gourmet specialties from seven different regions of France. On the last Friday of each month, they will offer a special three course dinner from the Alsace, Bordeaux, Brittany, Dijon, Normandy, Provence, and Toulouse regions of France. The first featured region will be Toulouse and the main course will be cassoulet! The price for these special dinners which will also include an aperitif is $40.
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A Kendall-Jackson wine tasting experience
When my just-retired executive editor, Jeff Bruce, sent me an e-mail a few weeks back suggesting he thought his favorite wine tasted less appealing than it used to, and asking whether it was being made differently, I sat up and took notice — and not just because he was my boss’ boss’ boss.
Rather, it was because Jeff’s favorite wine happens to be one of America’s favorite wines: Kendall-Jackson Vintner’s Reserve, this country’s best-selling chardonnay. And if there’s been a sudden shift in winemaking style in this wine, well … that would be news.
So I went to the source and asked. And that triggered quite a circuitous adventure culminating in a smackdown taste-test that produced some rather surprising results. It didn’t answer all our questions — in fact, it raised new ones — but the experience certainly offered a glimpse behind the curtain of how such a wildly popular wine is made — and how it has evolved.
In this case, “the source,” is George Rose, vice president of communications and chief spokesman for Kendall-Jackson, to whom I directed the initial email outlining my editor’s observations and essentially asking, “What’s up with that?” Here was his reply:
“I’m happy to report that there have been no significant changes in the style of Kendall-Jackson Vintner’s Reserve Chardonnay. It’s being made by the same winemaker for the past 14 years: Randy Ullom. Though the wine is ‘slightly drier’ than in years past, it still features the tropical fruit flavor that has made it America’s best-selling premium chardonnay.”
Hmm. “No significant changes,” yet, “slightly drier.” What’s that mean? A couple of go-rounds later, Rose addressed that question:
“We are also making Vintner’s Reserve Chardonnay with a slightly lower alcohol level than in years past, which does affect the mouthfeel. Higher alcohols can make a wine seem ‘lush.’ One of the raps years ago was that Vintner’s Reserve Chardonnay was a sweet fruit bomb. It is now more ‘refined’ with a hint of residual sugar.”
Hmm again. So no sudden significant change in style, but a potentially very significant change in style that has occurred over time?
Rose wondered whether we were encountering some damaged wines that had been adversely affected in transport by heat or cold or some other factor, so he offered to send sample bottles directly from the winery to taste alongside those bottles purchased from the shelves of Dayton-area wine shops and grocers. And he offered to throw in a bottle of Kendall-Jackson Grand Reserve Chardonnay — which costs a few dollars more than the Vintner Reserve —in for comparative purposes. Bruce took the K-J vice president up on his offer, and a taste test was arranged.
To say things didn’t go as planned is an understatement. Jeff and I and five other taste-testers sampled the wines “blind” without knowing which was which, and most of us thought the store-bought wines tasted fresher than the bottles sent directly from the winery. And Jeff’s eureka moment came when he tasted the K-J Grand Reserve wine, proclaiming that, “This is what K-J Vintner Reserve is supposed to taste like. It has all the original buttery, oaky flavors that made K-J so popular in the first place.”
I asked Rose to help me interpret these unexpected results, and my editor’s impressions.
“I think you may have inadvertently discovered why wine can be such a mysterious and confounding beverage. … Like a piano concerto with full orchestra, a bottle of wine will never be exactly the same experience at every opening. At Kendall-Jackson, we make every effort to produce a consistent wine from vintage to vintage. And yet, each bottle can provide a unique experience with each tasting. Go figure, your editor liked the more expensive Grand Reserve.”
Later, he added:
“Your editor’s sense memory may be playing tricks on him. The Grand Reserve chardonnay is indeed pulled from the very best lots of Vintner’s Reserve Chardonnay. … The big difference in Vintner’s Reserve from the current and past versions of Vintner’s Reserve chardonnays is that the 2005 Vintner’s Reserve is slightly sweet and the 2005 Grand Reserve is bone dry. In other words, there is no residual sugar in the Grand Reserve you just tasted. This may be what is tricking your editor’s memory and giving an impression of a ‘thin’ wine.”
Let’s give Bruce, whose query launched this little wine adventure, the last word. “Spinning wine is an acceptable part of the tasting process. Spinning the wine’s story is another thing altogether. It is clear through this email exchange that K-J has, indeed, changed how it makes its chardonnay. Perhaps some prefer it; I do not. On the other hand, the Grand Reserve, to my palate, tastes like the K-J of old. I like it that way.”
So THERE you have … a Kendall-Jackson tasting experience.
What to make of this?
Cheers!
Mark Fisher
Label image courtesy of www.KJ.com.
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We Ohioans love our booze, too: Liquor sales hit record high
Ohioans enjoyed a very spirited 2006.
The Ohio Department of Commerce Division of Liquor Control has announced 2006 liquor sales reached record levels, both in terms of dollars spent — $655.7 million in calendar year 2006, up 7.2 percent from 2005 — and in volume: an even 10 million gallons, up 3.13 percent from last year.
And we’re remarkably consistent about our booze, too. The top 10-selling liquor brands showed very little change from last year.
Here are Ohioans’ favorites and the amounts we guzzled:
Kamchatka Vodka - 367,511 gallons
Jack Daniels #7 Black Label Tennessee Whiskey - 362,170 gallons
Bacardi Superior Light Rum - 334,452 gallons
Jagermeister - 298,087 gallons
Captain Morgan Spiced Rum - 275,918 gallons
Absolut Vodka - 269,797 gallons
Black Velvet Canadian Whiskey - 254,180 gallons
Jim Beam Straight Bourbon - 249,999 gallons
Crown Royal Canadian Whiskey - 249,570 gallons
Smirnoff No. 21 Vodka - 242,256 gallons
The only changes in the top 10 list from last year appear to be Captain Morgan Spiced Rum jumping one notch (they launched a hip new television advertising campaign in late 2006, I seem to recall) and Smirnoff Vodka $11.35 a bottle) replacing the cheaper Korski Vodka ($6.85 a bottle) in the top 10 list (News flash: Ohioans go highbrow!).
The liquor-control agency took some of the credit for the sales increase:
“Ohio has seen a steady increase in liquor dollar sales over the past eight years mostly due to increases in product prices, a continuation of the trend of consumers buying more premium-priced products, and a rise in the level of consumption,” said Rae Ann Estep, Ohio’s liquor-control superintendent. “Other factors that contributed to the record sales include better inventory management and product selection, better management of contract liquor agency locations, and the opening of stores in underserved and economically viable areas,” Estep said.
Here’s a prediction — I’m going to go way out on a limb here — liquor sales in 2007 will reach another new record high. And the liquor control agency will again claim that its excellent management played a role in the increase.
When in fact we all know the real reason.
We Buckeye fans switched to the hard stuff after the Jan. 8 game, and we haven’t switched back.
Cheers!
Mark Fisher
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When it comes to enjoying wine, image is everything
There are two sentences nestled deep in this Pittsburgh Post-Gazette story written by a Wall Street Journal reporter about mindless eating that leave me absolutely flummoxed:
In one study, diners drank the same wine but were told it was either from California or North Dakota. Those who thought they were drinking California wine ate 11 percent more food.
A little internet searching uncovered even more. An ABC News book excerpt on “Mindless Eating” said the diners who were told they were drinking North Dakota wine had a completely different — and far less enjoyable — dining experience than those who were told they were drinking California wine — even though the wines were exactly the same! They ate less, felt the food didn’t taste as good and did not linger at the table as long. Here’s how the ABC News book excerpt summed it up:
… people who thought they were drinking North Dakota wine had such low expectations, they rated the wine as tasting bad and their food as less tasty. If a California wine label can give a glowing halo to an entire meal, a North Dakota wine label casts a shadow onto everything it touches.
Good heavens, what does this say about us? Have we abandoned our free will and good sense — not to mention our taste buds — to marketers and advertisers?
Thanks to my colleague Scott Elliott, author of the excellent education blog Get On The Bus, for tipping me off to this story.
Cheers!
Mark Fisher
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Is your wine cellar safe from thieves? What about teenagers?
They were thieves — but they were also wine connoisseurs.
They picked through the cellar, rejected lesser-known bottles and stole only the best: a magnum of 1959 Petrus valued at $6,000, a 20-year vertical of Bordeaux. In all, they took 150 bottles — twelve-and-a-half cases — worth an estimated half-million dollars.
The heist occurred in Atherton, Ca., south of San Francisco, and is detailed in this Associated Press story that was published in the San Jose Mercury News.
Now, I can hear some of you saying, “Cellar? What wine cellar? My ‘cellar’ consists of one bottle on the kitchen counter — and it’s half empty.” But an insurance company, Fireman’s Fund, estimates at least 1 million Americans own wine collections of significant value.
I’m not sure where the company drew the line for “significant value.” I’ve got a few bottles in a room in my basement, including a vertical collection of Bordeaux. (It begins with an “M,” but I suspect thieves would be mightily disappointed: I don’t think any of the big auction houses are going to confuse my Meyney for Mouton.)
I keep the room locked for security reasons — not from connoisseur thieves but from the hordes of teenagers who regularly pass through my basement.
Still, this story should give pause to those who do have extensive and potentially valuable cellars. No one wants to wake up in the middle of the night and hear a voice inside your head saying, “It’s 2 a.m. Do you know where your Lafite magnums are?”
So when they catch these connoisseur thieves, what do you think the appropriate punishment would be for them?
Cheers!
Mark Fisher
PS If you didn’t see the story in this morning’s Dayton Daily News, click here to read about two more Beavercreeek restaurants closing.
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Fish guts in wine? Who knew? You will soon, if feds have their way
Winemakers are having their own allergic reaction to warning-label proposal by the federal government that could force wine bottles to carry warnings such as “This wine contains fish” or “This wine contains eggs.”
That’s according to this story from the Santa Rosa Press Democrat.
Wine industry folks aren’t too keen on the idea, as you might imagine.
From the Press Democrat story:
“If people read, ‘This wine contains milk, fish and eggs,’ they are not going to know what hit them,” said Wendell Lee, legal counsel for the Wine Institute, the San Francisco-based trade group that opposes the new rules. But that’s exactly what the federal government, which is responsible for approving the labels on alcoholic beverages, is proposing. It has drafted new rules that require wine labels to state if the wines are made with one of eight major food allergens …
Apparently, substances drawn from milk, eggs and fish — three potential food allergens — are used fairly commonly as fining agents to “clarify” wine by removing some of the solids floating in it. But to say the wines “contain” those millk, egg or fish products is wrong because fining agents are filtered out before bottling, the Wine Institute and other opponents of the proposed rules told the newspaper.
So …. I’ve got some questions.
— What impact would it have on your wine consumption if bottles contained such a warning?
— Perhaps more importantly, what impact do you think it would have on those just starting to drink wine?
— And finally, which fish tastes best in wine? Um, I mean, with wine …
Cheers!
Mark Fisher
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The very first wine tastings
If you haven’t checked out the Seen & Overheard item I wrote about former Arrow Wine maven Karen Davis on page D4 of today’s Dayton Daily News (1-13-06), by all means, you should. (I cannot find an electronic link to the newspaper piece.) And if you have memories of Dayton’s first wine tastings back in the mid and late 1970s, drop me an email at mfisher@daytondailynews.com for a story I intend to write on the subject. And keep an eye on Uncorked for more.
As today’s piece says, Karen and the owners of Arrow blazed a trail for all to follow in their efforts at forming informal, drop-in wine tastings in the Dayton area, and as a result, we have a unique culture here that no other city matches. It’s worth exploring in more depth — and it’s worth celebrating.
Cheers!
Mark Fisher
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Fairborn restaurant steps up to fill wine-tasting void
Villa di Giovanni in Fairborn (that’s the one at I-675 and Dayton-Yellow Springs Road) has stepped up to fill the wine-tasting void left by the sudden closing of BR Scotese’s.
Giovanni’s will launch a Wednesday night wine tasting starting this coming Wednesday from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. in part to accommodate the former Fairfield Wine customers who had been meeting Wednesday nights at Scotese’s (but this is no private party — I’m sure Giovannni’s and the former Fairfield Wine group will welcome newcomers, too, so why not check it or some other local wine tasting out?).
Scotese’s, you’ll recall, closed last week just as it was about to face a seven-week suspension of its food-service license by the Greene County Board of Health. (The story about Scotese’s closing, by the way, attracted several interesting comments on the Uncorked story and an even more robust exchange on the daytondailiynews.com version of the story. People do have strong opinions about such things, don’t they?)
And in case you haven’t seen this morning’s Go! section, check out the newest and hippest place in town, a gelato and espresso shop called Dolcessa operated by a husband-and-wife team in Dayton’s Oregon Historic District. The husband part of the team, a Dayton native, survived the World Trade Center bombing on 9-11. Click on the link in this paragraph to read the story.
But to see what they’re tasting at Giovanni’s on Wednesday night (the list sounds VERY intriguing) — and at other wine-tasting locations all over the Miami Valley — take a look at the list that comes to Uncorked via a local wine listserv. And what’s up with all the wonderful Rhone wines this weekend? Mmmmmm …. (Please click on “continue reading” below to access the list).
Cheers!
Mark Fisher
Jays Kitchen Door
Friday, January 12, 2007 4-8 pm 2005 Burgans Albarino 2005 Biezo Petalos 2004 Gerard Raphat Geoffrey Chambertin 2001 Marquis de Calon 2001 Penuta II Poggine Brunello
Saturday, January 13, 2007 1-6 pm 2004 Domaine Puisson Mersault 2004 Wildhorse Pinot 2003 Domaine Arlaud Gevrey Chambertin 1999 Chateau Monbousquet
Call 222-2892 for reservations to any of the following wine/food events!
Antinori Dinner January 17, 2007 7 pm - $60 Risotto Sausage Cake with Wilted Spinach, Poached Pears and a Balsamic Reduction, Veal Meatballs Tossed with Pappardelle Pasta with Wild Mushrooms and Garlic Truffle Oil, Rolled Herbed Beef Tenderloin Stuffed with Fresh Mozzarella, Roasted Peppers, Porcini Mushrooms and Creamy Polenta and a Frozen Cappuccino Soufflé and Biscotti.
Steltzner Dinner with Winemaker Dick Steltzner Tuesday, January 30, 2007 7pm $60
Anniversary Luncheon - Bordeaux Saturday, February 17, 2007 12:30 pm - $75
Arrow Wine & Spirits - Kettering
Saturday, January 13, 2007 11-4 pm 1) 2005 quarterback 2) 2004 juan gil 3) 2002 tatiara cabernet sauvignon 4) 2004 oasis merlot 5) 2005 crocker starr sauvignon blanc 6) 2003 leasingham riesling “magnus”
Doug Simon’s Schedule - Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2007, 7-11 pm Pacchia , Saturday, March 3, 2007, 8-12 pm Pacchia
Arrow Centerville
615 Lyons Rd Saturday, January 13, 2007 11 am - 5 pm Please join us in welcoming local author, Dr. Peter Carusone, for a Book Signing at our Centerville Store on Saturday, January 13 from 2-5 pm. Dr Carusone will be signing his book “Where’s the Minestrone?” an Italian American’s Misadventures in Italy. We will be pouring the following Italian wines:
2005 Vignetti Del Sole Pinot Grigio 2004 La Cala Vermintino 2004 Cecchi Chianti Classico 2004 Morellino Di Scansano 1999 Carpazo Brunello di Montalcino
Dorothy Lane Market (DLM)
DLM Oakwood Friday, January 12, 2007 5-8pm Mumm Blanc De Noir NV Walter Hanzel North Slope Chardonnay 2003 Ken Wright McCrone Vineyard Pinot Noir 2005 J. L. Chave St. Joesph 2002 Domaine de Replagnes Chateauneuf-du-Pape 2004 Brown Fuzzy Bag!
Saturday, January 13, 2007 1-6 pm White Star NV Champagne Aforado Rosal 2005 Ken Wright Savoya Vineyard Pinot Noir 2005 Elyse Zinfandel 2004 Bosquet des Papes Chateau-Neuf-du-Pape 2001 Ribas de Cabrera 2000 Bonus Bottle!
Beer: Bison Farmhouse Ale Moylan’s Double IPA
DLM Washington SquareThursday, January 11, 2007 5-8 pm 2004 Sauvignon Republic Cellars Sauvignon Blanc 2004 Anne Gros Hautes-Cotes de Nuits Bourgogne Blanc 2001 Tor Calvano Vino Nobile di Montepulciano 2004 House Wine 2004 Clos du Mont Olivet Chateauneuf du Pape Mystery Wine!
Saturday, January 13, 2007 12-5 pm Fifi’s Mucho Mambo Tasting Marques de Gelida Cava Brut 2005 Morande Chardonnay 2001 Calera Mill’s Pinot Noir 2004 Razon 2003 Marques de Casa Concha Cabernet Sauvignon 2003 J. Palacios Corullon Bierzo Mystery Wine!
Dorothy Lane Springboro Friday, January 12, 2007 3-7pm 02 Drouhin Clos des Mouches 03 Chateau La Garde Pessac-Leognan 03 Chateau Le Bosco Saint-Estephe 01 Bosquet des Papes CDP
Saturday, January 13, 2007 12-5 pm 03 Kongsgaard Chardonnay 01 Hanzell Pinot Noir J C Cellars PourQuoi Pas 98 Dominus
Cuvee Wine Bar and Cellar, 4457 State Route 725 Bellbrook Tuesday - Thursday 11:30 - 7 pm Friday and Saturday 11:30 - 8 pm www.cuveewinebar.net Wine Tasting Menu Friday, January 12-Thursday, January 18,, 2007 Dancing Coyote Verdelho Backsberg BabylonTorens Viognier Neyers 2004 Carneros Chardonna Arger Martucci Atlas Peak 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon 2004 Black Bart Syrah Stagecoach Vineyard Saint Cosme 2002 Cote Rotie
On Tap: Wooden Shoe Lager
— Market Wine Imports 2nd Street Public Market Saturday, January 13
— DiSalvos Deli and Italian Store Wine Tasting - every third Wednesday of the month in conjunction with their Meal of the Month! www.disalvosdeli.com. The Delis Feature Wines: Ecco Domani Merlot, Chianti, Pinot Grigio, Sangiovese
Trader Joe’s, Town & Country Kettering Tastings Sunday 4-7 and Tuesday 6-8. Losen-Bockstanz Kabinett Riesling (2005) QmP Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, Germany. Le Vignate (2005) DOC Castelli Romani, Italy. Stonehedge Cabernet Sauvignon (2005) California.
l’Auberge LAuberge will begin Tuesday night tasting, January 23, 2007 at 7 pm with a selection of Châteauneuf-du-Pape wines.
Pacchia Wine Tasting Every Thursday will feature at least 6 wines for to taste, discuss, and enjoy from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm. When your your tasting is finished, you will receive a credit for the $10 fee applied to the purchase of any dinner entrée in Pacchia Prima or any bill of $20 or more in the café. Live music!
Thursday, January 11, 2007 6 pm 1)Jewel Viognier 2)Guenoc Pinot Grigio 3)Valentine Bianchi Famiglia malbec 4)Valentine Bianchi Famiglia Cabernet 5)Marquis Phillips Shiraz 6)7 Deadly Zins
Little Sonoma, 6078 West Chester Road, West Chester, OH 45069. 513-942-9463. Located two blocks north of Union Centre Blvd. at the corner of Muhlhauser and West Chester Roads www.LittleSonomaWines.com Friday, January 12th, 6:00 pm-7:30 ~ $15 per person Wines with Homemade Paella Six wines and Hector Esteve of Paella at Your Place preparing fresh, hot Paella. Please call for reservations for this tasting.
Sat, Jan. 13th, 3-6 pm ~ Don Sebastiani & Sons Wines Voted as Wine Enthusiast’s “Winery of the Year” in 2005, Don Sebastiani & Sons posts some unusual wine labels to its ever increasing portfolio.
Winds Cafe Yellow Springs Call 937-767-9441 to make reservations for events.
Wine Classes Saturday, January 27, 2007 and February 3, 2007 3 pm Wine 101 Saturday, March 3, 2007 and March 10, 2007 3 pm Wine 201
El Meson “A Taste of the World” at El Meson, 903 East Dixie Drive, West Carrollton, Ohio 45449 (937) 859-8229, Fax (937) 859-8220, www.ElMeson.Net El Meson will be closed January 1- 11th, re-opening on Friday January 12, 2007. Tapa and wine pairings will resume on Tuesday, January 16th.
The Wine Gallery & Cafe424 East Third Street Dayton, Ohio 45402 937-224-WINE Wine tasting on Wednesday the 24th. Also planning to have a tasting on the 25th with an Italian wine maker.
TomKatz Wine Tasting Wednesdays Time: 5:00 - 7:00 p.m. Phone: 937-743-8111 Address: S.R. 73 just East of I75
Inn at Versailles Friday, January 12, 2007 5:30 pm - 8:00 pm featuring BV, Sterling, Graham Beck, Alexander Valley Vineyards, Murphy Goode, Provenance, and Domaine Chandon wines
Villa di Giovanni will begin a Wednesday night wine tasting starting on 17 Jan 2007, 1100 E. Dayton Yellow Springs Rd. 5-7 p.m. 2005 Colle Dei Venti Pecovino 2002 Cesari Mara Vino di Ripasso Valpolicella 1999 Vinet La Lelvane;;a Chianti Classico Reservia 1997 Cantina di Montalcino chainti Reservia 1995 Pasolini dall Ondu Chianti Riserva Sicelle
La Petite France 3177 Glendate-Milford Road Cincinnati, Ohio www.lapetitefrance.biz Call 513-733-8383
On Friday evening, January 12th at 6:30 pm, there will be a wine dinner tasting entitled “Journey through Australia and New Zealand”. Following is our gourmet menu. Aperitif - Lindauer Brut NZ 1st. Course - Millsreef Sauvignon Blanc NZ Roasted salmon with French lentils and saffron sauce 2nd. Course - McWilliams Merlot Australia Creamy watercress soup 3rd. Course - Rosemount GSM Australia Braised lamb chops with asparagus risotto 4th. Course - Rosemount Tawny Port Australia Gooey chocolate cup with creme fraiche
The price is $60 per person. Aperitifs will be served at 6:30 pm. Bon Appetit! Reservations are required!
To unsubscribe, send email to “wine-request@mercury.wright.edu” and put “unsubscribe” (without quotes) as the message. For information, send “info” as message.
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Chicago’s ‘largest wine auction ever’ offers glimpse of heaven
A company by the name of Hart Davis Hart Wine Co. has put together what it calls the “largest value wine auction in Chicago history,” to be held Feb. 3 at Chicago’s Tru Restaurant.
The auction will be preceded by two days worth of tastings and events, including a Feb. 1 comparative tasting of 1989 and 1990 Bordeaux — you know, humble little wines such as Haut-Brion, Lafite-Rothschild, Latour, Margaux, Mouton-Rothschild, La Mission-Haut-Brion, Pichon-Lalande, Lynch Bages, Cheval Blanc …. (Yawn.) NEXT!
Well, NEXT would be a Feb. 2 five-course dinner at Tru, featuring a vertical tasting of legendary California super-red Harlan Estates, 1990-2002.
The dinner costs a nifty $1,250, the previous night’s Bordeaux tasting a scant $250.
As for the auction. well … how would a 20-vintage, 240-bottle vertical of Chateau Lafleur look beneath your Chirstmas tree? I mean, if you still had one …. or plenty of Domaine de la Romanee Conti, or a vertical collection of Colgin in 18-liter bottles or 15 vintages of Chambertin from Armand Rousseau between 1949 and 1978.
You get the idea.
Is heaven’s wine list this good?
Cheers!
Mark Fisher
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It’s not just Ohio winemakers cryin’ the global-warming blues
Remember the piece from last week about Ohio ice wine makers being frustrated by the warm temperatures? Well, they’re not alone. The phenomenon is happening worldwide, according to this Decanter.com news story.
Good heavens, what next?
Cheers!
Mark Fisher
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Wine blogging captures the spotlight
My friend and former Wine Sediments colleague Tom Wark, author of the wine blog entitled Fermentation, has launched the American Wine Blog Awards.
Wark notes in his press release that the number of wine blogs on the web has simply exploded — from 40 to 400 in just two years. Uncorked was part of that explosion, making its debut in September 2005. Many more have jumped into the blogging pool since then, and the more the merrier. (Heck, why aren’t YOU writing one?)
“Today the array of wine blogs offers something for everybody, whether they are hard core wine geeks, casual wine drinkers looking for recommendations, members of the wine business or just those who like to read a little Wine Haiku,” Wark says.
Well said.
Which reminds me: I am long, long, LONG overdue for an overhaul to the “sidebar links” to Uncorked. The “favorite posts” haven’t been updated in almost a year, nor have the links to other wine blogs. I’ll undertake that effort in the days that follow, but I need your help. If you know of a wine blog or bulletin board or web page that is not mentioned on the right-hand side of Uncorked and you think is worthy, please suggest it by posting a comment here.
Meanwhile, thank you, Tom, for organizing the recognition of your fellow bloggers, many of whom you’ve mentored and encouraged — including me.
I may even forgive Wark for failing to warn me that my fingers would turn to bloody nubs after all these daily posts. Who needs fingers, anyway? They’re overrated.
As long as there is a screwcap bottle and a long straw around ….
Cheers!
Mark Fisher
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Become a wine expert in 28 short days
Become a wine expert in 28 days: that’s the promise of this article in Food & Wine magazine.
The story’s author suggests starting Feb. 1 with these 28 easy steps, so that by March 1, voila! — you will be a certified enophile. Some of the suggestions are quite helpful, even if some of the specific wines recommended are a pit puzzling (wine novices are supposed to start with a $140 Taittinger Champagne?)
Nonetheless, here’s one daily entry from the piece that I particularly liked: “3: Take advantage of one of the many free in-store Saturday wine tastings.”
Dayton was a national trend-setter in this regard, and sometimes I suspect we take our plethora of informal, drop-in tastings for granted. We shouldn’t. They are marvelous opportunities to learn more about wine in a relaxed, non-intimidating atmosphere.
Here’s a New Year’s resolution you should have made: bring a friend to a wine tasting to check it out what the local wine scene is all about. You’ll be welcomed, and you’ll be treated well. Look to Uncorked on Fridays for a list of who’s tasting what each weekend (the list is compiled by a local wine listserv). Then … enjoy!
Cheers!
Mark Fisher
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BR Scotese’s restaurant in Beavercreek closes
Uncorked readers: Here’s a story I just filed for the DaytonDailyNews.com … There will be more details in tomorrow’s edition of the newspaper. This is sad for all involved.
I had just started attending Scotese’s Wednesday evening wine tastings, in the restaurant’s bar. They were doing a fine job with the tastings, which were frequented by quite a few customers of the former Fairfield Wine retail wine shop down the street.
Here’s the story (please click on “Continue reading”):
BEAVERCREEK — BR Scotese’s has closed in the face of a Greene County Board of Health suspension of the restaurant’s food service license through March 1.
The restaurant’s owner, Christopher Taylor, said his decision to close the restaurant was financial, the result of slow business and pressure from health officials to make expensive repairs and upgrades to an aging building. Taylor said he closed the restaurant before Greene County officials posted its suspension.
A printed notice on the restaurant’s front door signed by Greene County Health Commissioner Mark McDonnell states: “This restaurant is CLOSED by order of the Greene County Board of Health, effective Jan. 5, 2007 to March 1, 2007.”
Taylor said he has no current plans to reopen the restaurant after the suspension.
Deborah Leopold, director of environmental health for the Greene County Combined Health District, said this morning that the board of health took action late last week following 36 inspections over a four-year period that found numerous violations of health codes, including several repeat violations, at the restaurant. Repeat violations included unclean dishes and pans, improper dating of refrigerated food, and structural shortcomings, Leopold said.
Taylor acknowledged he has had issues with health department inspections, but the aging building caused many of the repeat problems. “I just couldn’t afford to repair it,” he said.
Taylor said he did not blame The Greene’s new chain restaurants for BR Scotese’s closure. He began noticing a slowdown in business last summer, before The Greene’s restaurants opened, Taylor said. But the slowdown worsened in the fall.
“We definitely saw some drdop in business after The Greene opened,” Taylor said. “But I’m not going to point a finger just at The Greene. Restaurants have been opening elsewhere … competition has increased substantially.”
BR Scotese’s opened in November 1997 with Taylor and former Peasant Stock owner David Glynn as owners. Taylor said he has been sole proprietor for about three years.
Mark Fisher
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Ohio governor-elect pledges Ohio wine as part of high-stakes bet on BCS championship
Gov.-elect Ted Strickland has chosen to include Ohio wines in his customary gentleman’s bet with Florida’s governor on the outcome of Monday night’s BCS championship game between the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Florida Gators, according to this FloridaToday.com story.
And all we Ohioans get in return are some citrus fruit? Puh-LEEZ. Let’s hope the newly elected Democrat hones his negotiating skills a bit before he tackles the state’s thorniest issues (and the Repoublican-dominated Ohio legislature). He could have at least demanded some Scuppermong. Wait, on second thought …
Actually, this very public recognition and plug from Ohio’s incoming governor bodes quite well for Ohio’s wine producers, who were never quite sure where they stood with Gov. Bob Taft and his wife, Hope Taft. Some Ohio winemakers perceived a bit of an anti-alcohol attitude from the Tafts.
From the looks of things, that’s about to change.
Of course, let’s hope Strickland doesn’t have to make good on his bet — that would mean the Buckeyes would lose. Perhaps he’ll send some Ohio wines down to Florida anyway, so those Gator fans can find something to drown their sorrows in besides swamp water.
Cheers, and Go Bucks!
Mark Fisher (OSU class of ‘81)
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Not to say I told you so, but, well …I told you so!
A month ago, I recommended a wine book to you in a post entitled The Best Wine Book of the Year. I don’t review a large number of wine books on Uncorked, but this one stood out above the crowd for me.
Looks like I wasn’t alone in that opinion.
Turns out that two days after my post, Natalie MacLean’s Red, White, and Drunk All Over: A Wine Soaked Journey From Grape to Glass (Bloomsbury, $23.95), was chosen “Best Wine Literature Book” of 2006 at the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards, which are considered the Oscars of the food and wine world.
So maybe I get one right once in a while, eh?
Cheers!
Mark Fisher
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Open mouth, insert wine
Why yes, there IS a plethora of wine tastings scheduled this weekend around the Miami Valley, including some from folks who had abandoned their tastings during the holiday crunch. Welcome back! Click on “continue reading” to access the wine events list, which comes to Uncorked courtesy of a local wine listserv …. Cheers! Mark Fisher
Jays Kitchen Door Friday, January 5, 2007 4-8 pm Saturday, January 6, 2007 1-6 pm
Arrow Wine & Spirits – KetteringSaturday, January 6, 2007 11-4 pm 2004 Villa Simone Frescati 2005 La Noble Chardonnay 2005 Altos Malbec 2005 Trumps Shiraz 2005 Dilisio Grenache 2003 Cloudview Napa Valley Red
Arrow Centerville 615 Lyons Rd Saturday, January 6, 2007 11 am – 5 pm 2002 Calera Central Coast Chardonnay… 2002 Columbia Crest Grand Estates Shiraz… 2004 Graziano Mendocino Zinfandel… 2004 Houghton Cabernet/Shiraz/Merlot… 2000 Marques de Cacéras Riojs Reserva… 2004 Babcock Cabernet Sauvignon
Dorothy Lane Market (DLM)
DLM OakwoodFriday, January 5, 2007 5-8pm Handley Gewurztraminer 2005 Rene Geoffroy Brut Rose ZD Carneros Pinot Noir 2005 Neyers Merlot 2002 Lefonti Chianti Classico 2004 Cent 2003 Brown Fuzzy Bag!
Saturday, January 6, 2007 1-6 pm Pine Ridge Chenin/Viognier 2005 Jean Lallement Brut Penner Ash Pinot Noir 2005 LaGerla Rosso Montalcino 2003 Villa Calcinia Rosso 2000 Louis Bernard Chateau-Neuf-du-Pape 2003
Beer: Barrel House Red Legg Ale Barrel House Belgian Style Winter Ale
DLM Washington Square Thursday, January 4, 2007 5-8 pm 2004 Chateau St. Jean Fume Blanc 1989 Richter Veldenzer Elisenberg Riesling Spatlese 2003 Guigal Cotes du Rhone 2001 La Bastide Blanche Bandol Rouge 2005 Los Vascos Cabernet Sauvignon Mystery Wine!
Saturday, January 6, 2007 12-5 pm “Fifi’s Really Revin’ for 2007 Tasting” 2003 Robert Mondavi Napa Chardonnay 2004 Zenner Nero d’Avola 2004 Three Rings Shiraz 2002 Gran Feudo Crianza 2004 Henry’s Drive Cabernet Sauvignon Mystery Wine!
Dorothy Lane Springboro Friday, January 5, 2007 3-7pm 04 Four Sisters Sauvignon Blanc 02 Craneford Granache 03 Kaesler Shiraz 03 Langmeil Cabernet
Saturday, January 6, 2007 12-5 pm 05 Duckhorn Sauvignon Blanc 05 Fess Parker Santa Barbara Pinot 02 Grgich Hills Zinfandel 02 Volker Eisele Red Wine
Cuvee Wine Bar and Cellar, 4457 State Route 725 Bellbrook Tuesday – Thursday 11:30 – 7 pm Friday and Saturday 11:30 – 8 pm www.cuveewinebar.net Wine Tasting Menu Friday, January 5-Thursday, January 3, 2007 Gainey Riesling Ca’Montini Pinot Grigio Murphy Goode Sauvignon Blanc Campus Oaks Old Vine Zin Silver Cabernet Franc Tandem Sangiovese Camelia Cellars Petite Sirah
On Tap: St Bernardus ABT 12
Market Wine Imports 2nd Street Public Market Saturday, January 6
B. R. Scotese Wednesday, January 10, 2007 4:30 pm
DiSalvos Deli and Italian Store Wine Tasting – every third Wednesday of the month in conjunction with their Meal of the Month! www.disalvosdeli.com. The Delis Feature Wines: Ecco Domani Merlot, Chianti, Pinot Grigio, Sangiovese
Trader Joe’s, Town & Country Kettering Tastings Sunday 4-7 and Tuesday 6-8. Ulrich Langguth Riesling (2005) QbA Hessische Bergstrasse, Germany. Edition Maximillien Pinot Noir (2005) QbA Rheingau, Germany. Red Diamond Merlot (2003) Washington
LAuberge No tastings until January 9, 2007
Pacchia Wine Tasting Every Thursday will feature at least 6 wines for to taste, discuss, and enjoy from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm. When your your tasting is finished, you will receive a credit for the $10 fee applied to the purchase of any dinner entrée in Pacchia Prima or any bill of $20 or more in the café. Live music!
Thursday, January 4, 2007 6 pm 05’Montes “Cherub” Rose 05’Montes Cabernet/Carmenere blend 04’Kaiken Malbec 04’Kaiken Cabernet 03’Kaiken Malbec Ultra
Little Sonoma, 6078 West Chester Road, West Chester, OH 45069. 513-942-9463. Located two blocks north of Union Centre Blvd. at the corner of Muhlhauser and West Chester Roads www.LittleSonomaWines.com Friday, January 5, 5-7:30 pm Undercover. Incognito. ALIAS. An interesting selection of wines that aren’t quite what they seem to be. These wines do a stellar job of “impersonating” wines of a different type, region, or country. This is a “drop-in” tasting from 5-7:30 pm, light appetizers will be served. Marquis~Philips Holly’s Blend Michel~David Incognito White Fairview Vineyards Goat do Roam Michel-Schlumberger Maison Rouge Morgan Cotes do Crow’s Paringa Sparkling Shiraz
Saturday, January 6, 3-6 pm ~ Sauvignons Cabernet Sauvignona & Sauvignon Blanca. No reservations needed.
Winds Café Yellow Springs Call 937-767-9441 to make reservations for events.
Wine Classes Saturday, January 27, 2007 and February 3, 2007 3 pm Wine 101 Saturday, March 3, 2007 and March 10, 2007 3 pm Wine 201
El Meson “A Taste of the World” at El Meson, 903 East Dixie Drive, West Carrollton, Ohio 45449 (937) 859-8229, Fax (937) 859-8220, www.ElMeson.Net El Meson will be closed January 1- 11th, re-opening on Friday January 12, 2007. Tapa and wine pairings will resume on Tuesday, January 16th.
The Wine Gallery & Cafe 424 East Third Street Dayton, Ohio 45402 937-224-WINE
TomKatz Wine Tasting Wednesdays Time: 5:00 - 7:00 p.m. Phone: 937-743-8111 Address: S.R. 73 just East of I75
La Petite France 3177 Glendate-Milford Road Cincinnati, Ohio www.lapetitefrance.biz Call 513-733-8383
On Friday evening, January 12th at 6:30 pm, we will host a wine dinner tasting entitled “Journey through Australia and New Zealand”.
Aperitif – Lindauer Brut NZ
1st. Course – Millsreef Sauvignon Blanc NZ Roasted salmon with French lentils and saffron sauce
2nd. Course – McWilliams Merlot Australia Creamy watercress soup
3rd. Course – Rosemount GSM Australia Braised lamb chops with asparagus risotto
4th. Course - Rosemount Tawny Port Australia Gooey chocolate cup with creme fraiche
The price is $60 per person. Aperitifs will be served at 6:30 pm. Bon Appetit! Reservations are required for this fine dining event!
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The female wine-buying experience: ‘Here, honey, why don’t you try this nice white zin?’
Have you encountered gender bias when you buy wine?
Research has consistently shown that women buy more than half of the wine sold in America, yet I’ve already talked with some wine-savvy women who — when they walk into a wine shop where they’re not known — are essentially told, “Here, honey, why don’t you try this nice white zin?” Or the time a group of women sent back the first two bottles of unopened wine they were served at a local restaurant for perfectly valid reasons — the wrong vintage, the wrong producer — and when their server brought the third bottle that still wasn’t right, he refused to take it back, essentially saying, “Ladies, it’s that or nothing.”
I’ve got a story fermenting about this, and I’d like your help to put the finishing touches on it. If you or someone you know have ever experienced this kind of patronizing attitude, let me know about it, either by posting a comment here on Uncorked, or if you’d prefer, email me offline at mfisher@daytondailynews.com …
Thanks in advance, and cheers!
Mark Fisher
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Winemakers’ lament: First the weather’s too lousy, now it’s not lousy enough
Ohio winemakers have hit plenty of home runs this year, but now Mother Nature has sent in her ace relief pitcher — the weather — to try to quell the rally.
First, she threw a curve ball to the state’s vineyards with some cold, wet, nasty weather at harvest time, making it highly improbable that the 2006 vintage in Ohio (and in many other Great Lakes and eastern states) will produce stellar ‘06 wines, at least for those varietals that benefit most from long, warm growing seasons.
Now, following that curve ball comes a beanball aimed squarely at the heads of those wineries that attempt to make ice wine. Again, the cuprit is the weather, but instead of being too cold, this time, it’s too darn warm, according to the Associated Press.
Ohio has carved a niche for itself in the dessert-wine category with some luscious ice wines, made from the nectar that is squeezed out of very ripe grapes when they hit just the right temperature: when the water inside the grape begins to freeze, but the syrupy juice can still be expressed. The results can be stunning and can rival the best dessert wines in the world.
Winemakers who suffered through the late-summer deluge held out hope their grape crop earmarked for ice wine would help save the day for the ‘06 vintage. And maybe it still will. But the wacky weather sure isn’t helping.
Call it what you will: Insult to injury. Salt in the wound. A double-whammy.
Or: just another day in the life of a winemaker.
Cheers!
Mark Fisher
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The top wine stories of 2006 — and a look ahead to 2007
Wine Enthusiast magazine has come up with its list of Top Ten Wine Stories of 2006. Click on the link and see whether you agree.
Hard to argue with the inclusion of “Wine and Health” on that top-stories list. Seems like every time we turned around in 2006, another study was touting the potential health benefits tied to moderate consumption of alcohol, and often, wine in particular. I think I’d move that story to the top of the list.
What do you think the top wine stories of 2007 will be?
It’ll be interesting to see what trends will emerge or build momentum this year:
— Will winemakers move toward lower-alcohol, lesser-oaked wines?
— Will consumers turn their backs on the wines of France, Italy, Spain and Germany in favor of “New World” wines from Australia, New Zealand, Argentina and Chile?
— Will screwcaps and other alternative closures continue to supplant natural corks in premium wines?
— Will Ohio wine producers and other American winemakers outside of the Pacific west sustain their momentum and capture the attention of the country’s wine drinkers?
— Will restaurants move even more toward wines-by-the-glass and upgrade the quality of their house wines while giving customers more choices in ordering?
Sounds like we won’t have a shortage of things to talk about — or to drink. Here’s to a fine 2007!
Mark Fisher
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