Uncorked

Go Fo(u)rth and Taste Wine

By Mark Fisher | Friday, July 3, 2009, 06:16 AM

The fact that July 4 falls on a Saturday wreaks havoc on the wine-tasting schedule this weekend, so as the folks who operate the Dayton-based wine listserv and who compile the following list of wine tasting and dinners point out, it would be a good idea to call ahead this weekend before heading out to your favorite wine spot.

But there’s still so much great stuff going on that it makes us proud to be Americans …

Have a great Independence Day weekend!

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San Francisco Wine Competition awards announced

By Mark Fisher | Thursday, July 2, 2009, 03:07 PM

The 29th annual San Francisco International Wine Competition results have been announced.

Anything you find surprising?

And does anybody else besides me remember those little gold-medal, silver-medal stickers that wine retailers slapped onto bottles as selling points? I specifically remember Arrow Far Hills doing this. And, as I recall, it worked.

Of course, that was BPS — before Parker scores.

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Drinking habits hold steady despite recession

By Mark Fisher | Thursday, July 2, 2009, 11:59 AM

There are some interesting tidbits embedded in this Gallup Poll story about Americans’ drinking habits.

The anecdotal stories that we occasionally hear about folks drinking more alcohol because of the tough economic times apparently aren’t borne out by the Gallup survey.

Wine — which enjoyed a brief, shining moment in the sun when it overtook beer as the alcoholic drink of choice a few years back, then slipped behind beer again in the following year’s survey — seemed to narrow the gap with beer in the most recent poll, although with margins or error and the volatility of those numbers, I suspect it’s a tad early to proclaim a trend, even for us wishful-thinking wine enthusiasts.

Here are some of the Gallup folks’ analysis of the wine numbers, quoting from the report:

When Gallup first asked Americans about their drinking preferences in 1992, beer was the runaway leader, named by 47%; just 27% named wine. Since then, the prevalence of beer drinkers has contracted somewhat, while the percentage of wine fans has grown. The sizable gender gap evident for many years in alcoholic-beverage preferences continues today. The majority of men say they most often drink beer; half of women choose wine. There is also a significant generational difference in preferences, with younger adults favoring beer and older adults favoring wine. As a result, there is a particularly wide gulf between younger men and older women, in terms of drink preferences. Geographically, beer enjoys its greatest popularity in the Midwest. On the basis of education, wine is far more popular among people with at least some college background than it is among those who have not attended college.

Your analysis — preferably, your sober analysis — is welcome. What do you make of these numbers?

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New wine bar on Far Hills to open this month

By Mark Fisher | Wednesday, July 1, 2009, 01:01 PM

The new Rumble Seat Wine bar and retail shop that we told you about back in May is scheduled to open later this month at 5853 Far Hills Ave. next to Caribou Coffee in Washington Twp.

And it has hired a familiar face as manager: Chris Holloway, who worked for several years at Arrow Wine & Spirits’ Centerville store and more recently for the Cork & Vine wine bar and retail shop off of Miller Lane.

Chris Holloway in the new Rumble Seat Wine

Holloway spend part of this morning taking a wine shipment and is in the process of installing cable TV and phone lines.

“If there’s one thing I’ve learned in wine retail, you’ve got to have the Buckeye games on TV on Saturday afternoon,” Holloway said.

The new shop is scheduled to open in late July, and will have a “soft” opening for a short period before scheduling grand-opening events around the first of August, Holloway said.

It’s a spacious facility, with one side devoted to case stacks of wine that will give it a “retail warehouse” feel, and another side reserved for the wine bar, with a tasting bar and a handful of high-top tables, and wine racks for more eclectic wines, Holloway said. There will be a wine room devoted to premium wines, and another devoted to wines that cost $10 or less.

Holloway, who has taught wine classes for the city of Kettering, wants Rumble Seat to host wine classes as well. And the wine bar itself will have wines available to taste all day, every day, whenever the shop is open. Hours will be 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

“I understand there are a lot of different wine shops around here, so I’ve got to find my niche,” Holloway said.

Rumble Seat Wines has the license to serve spirits and mixed drinks as well as beer and wine, and it plans to offer beer samples alongside the wine samples, the new manager said.

The new wine bar and retail shop is owned by Thomas E. Smith of Washington Twp.

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Dayton-area wine shops pop their corks

By Mark Fisher | Friday, June 26, 2009, 07:16 AM

Many fine wine events on tap for this weekend and beyond, and you can read about them here thanks to the Dayton-based wine listserv that compiles the region’s tastings and dinners into one glorious list. Check out the appearance tonight (Friday, June 26) by Charles and Molly Meeker at Taste of Wine in Miamisburg and David Winch’s unveiling of wines from Sun Wine Imports tomorrow afternoon (6-27) at Arrow Wine & Spirits Far Hills Avenue store.

Continuing evidence that it’s great to be a wine lover in Dayton, don’t you think?

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Oakwood exec launches second career — in Italian wines

By Mark Fisher | Wednesday, June 24, 2009, 08:09 AM

David Winch already has one career: he is part of the fifth generation of his family to operate The Minster Machine Co., which sells metal stamping presses from its Auglaize County headquarters.

Yet the 44-year-old Oakwood resident also has decided the wine business would be “a great business to be in.”

Now, it’s probably no coincidence that Winch reached that conclusion while he was sitting in a trattoria in Northern Italy having long, leisurely lunch and a glass of fine Barbaresco with an Italian friend with whom he had done business.

That friend suggested they form a partnership to import Italian wine into the United States. And from that lunch, Sun Wine Imports was born, with Winch and his wife Julie as co-owners. For Winch, the new venture is a win-win: It will give him a good excuse to get together and do business more often with two men he considers good friends — his business partners Mario Sangalli and Pietro Pellegrini — while also introducing Dayton-area wine enthusiasts to what Winch calls “small, high-quality, estate-grown wines and to the families that grow them.”

Winch said he first traveled to Italy when he was a student at the University of Dayton enrolled in a one-month study-abroad program in Rome. “That’s when I fell in love with the country,” he said. So much so that when he married Julie — whom he met at UD — the couple honeymooned in Italy. In recent years, he has sold some metal stamping presses to Italian companies, necessitating — of course — even more business trips there.

So far, the portfolio of the fledgling wine-importing company consists of a grand total of nine wines — mostly Prosecco and other sparklers, along with a Tuscan cabernet sauvignon and a Chianti — but the portfolio is expected to grow, starting with a Barbaresco (nebbiolo-based red wine grown in one of Italy’s most prestigious wine-producing regions) this fall.

Winch’s Italian partners are in town this week for a handful of events to officially launch Sun Wine Imports’ offerings. They’ll pour several of those wines from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. tomorrow (Thursday, June 25) at the Cork & Vine Wine Market & Lounge on York Commons Blvd. near Miller Lane, and again from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, June 27 at Arrow Wine & Spirits’ Far Hills Avenue store in Kettering, including the 2007 Alice Prosecco Extra Dry, 2007 Petrognano Bianco, 2003 Petrognano Vigna Santa Chianti Reserva, 2003 Petrognano Monte Vago and 2006 Petrognano Chianti.

For more information, go to www.sunwineimports.com.

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Indy International Wine Competition announces medal-winners

By Mark Fisher | Monday, June 22, 2009, 10:53 AM

The 2009 Indy International Wine Competition, which drew 3,000 entries and was held June 16-18 at the Indiana State Fairgrounds, has announced the winners. Here’s an excerpt sent by the Indiana Wine Grape Council:

Rancho Zabaco Winery of Healdsburg, California was awarded the Wine of the Year award for its 2007 Reserve Zinfandel. White Wine of the Year honors went to Stone Hill Winery of Hermann, Missouri for their 2008 Vignoles. Barrel Oak Winery of Delaplane, Virginia won Red Wine of the Year for their 2008 Norton. Rosé Wine of the Year was awarded to Butler Winery of Bloomington, Indiana for their 2008 Chambourcin Rose.

The Sparkling Wine of the Year was awarded to Chateau Frank of New York for their 2002 Brut and Gehringer Brothers Estate Winery of Canada took the Dessert Wine of the Year honors for their 2007 Minus Nine Icewine.

Ertel Cellars of Batesville, Indiana won Fruit Wine of the Year for their Strawberry. The last two categories, Honey Wine of the Year and Honey Wine Blend of the Year were awarded to Winehaven Winery & Vineyard of Minnesota and to Oliver Winery of Bloomington, Indiana, respectively.

E&J Gallo Winery of Modesto, California was awarded the Winery of the Year Trophy, sponsored by the Leisure Family. The Pacesetter Trophy honors the Best International Brand of the entire competition. E&J Gallo Winery won two double gold, 17 gold, 38 silver and 32 bronze medals.

Huber Orchard & Winery of Starlight, Indiana won the Winemaker of the Year Trophy, honoring the winery that wins the most gold medals by brand at the competition.

The Indiana State Fair Wine Competition began in 1973 as an Indiana-only event. The competition began admitting entries from across the world in 1992 …

I am not as familiar with Indiana wines as I should be. Do any of my fellow Ohioans have any Indiana favorites?

And as for Gallo: They have always known how to make great zinfandel, haven’t they? I can recall enjoying their zins in the mid-1980s … great bargains.

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