As noted in my earlier post (prior to this), this is the introduction column I lead with at the other website, edited for content and updated with some new commentary at the end.
DW
Introduction (or apologies in advance for the information overload)
The premise: In these hallowed pages, we will discover
together, or rather I will discover and then write about it and you will have
it available to read about later, worthy wines. I shall endeavor to spotlight a
new wine every-other-weekly (twice per month). This will enable you to try some
fascinating and perhaps undersung wines and potentially build your own wine
list that won’t bust your budget.
The criteria: All wines appearing here must be below $20,
whether by regular price or on SPA at the Utah liquor stores. Through great,
mighty, fearless and exhaustive (sorta) research, I’ve determined that Utah is
either slightly higher or similar to pricing in most cities, excluding anything
in North Dakota, as that state is largely insane. So, if you happen to be in North
Dakota, my apologies and condolences, but for everyone else, you should be safe
considering any of these wines here to be had somewhere at a liquor outlet (or
grocery store shelf, if you happen to be in one of the “cool” states – you know
who you are) for under a $20 bill. These wines must also specifically NOT result in me getting a consequential headache the following day from consuming them. Many any otherwise acceptable wine has been rejected for that effect.
The usage: We don’t, as a general rule, indulge in wine
with our food, so the usage here is restricted mainly to hanging out and
sipping while watching movies or chatting or whatever (hence the name of this
column), unless specified otherwise (you’ll see what I mean along the way).
That is not to say that several or perhaps all of these wines wouldn’t be good
companions with food; indeed, many, if not most, would. However, that is not
the primary purpose of this column and you won’t find things such as pairings
with food or cheeses for instance. My wife
tends to favor heavier reds, such as the dense cabs, especially those
with a high cherry taste while I prefer somewhat lighter ones such as Syrahs, Bordeauxs,
Malbecs or Blends. We tend also to keep a bottle of a white on hand for cooking
(usually a Chardonnay) and those will probably wind up here as well (though
they will not be subject to the classification schedule listed in “The Format”
section below). I have personally researched and bought hundreds of bottles for
testing and there are perhaps upwards of 50 and counting on the actual wine list I keep.
The brief (but
necessary) educational bit: Some of
the terminology is important, some is not. Terms like Varietal and most of
those listed in the preceding paragraph refers to grape types or names.
Sometimes they may refer to regions (especially with French wines). A handy
reference to flavoring can be found here and I commend it wholeheartedly to
you: http://winefolly.com/review/different-types-of-wine/
The aim: Wine can be a tricky business and too often I
hear someone say that they find the entire world too baffling, with ratings
points and things like “nose” and “mouth feel” constantly showing up in blurbs
with no actual meaning behind them for the lay person, who just wants a bottle
of something decent without a lot of wine snobbery rigmarole. They may want it
just to be able to crack open and enjoy or to use in cooking. Too often, the
people wind up mired in which year is a good vintage from which vineyard and is
this one that has to be stored and matured or can it be cracked open and
enjoyed right then like a beer. I’m no wine expert, subscribe to no wine rags
at all and this series, if nothing else, will cut through all of that (unless
some aspect of the wine is so pronounced it bears mentioning). I’m generally
looking for very specific characteristics and when I find it, it will often be
a wine that is that so-called diamond-in-the-rough hidden gem that you can rest
comfortably purchasing.
The process: White grape wines, if they are to be
drunk, are always chilled. This includes all of the bubbly variations,
including Champagne, Prosecco, Moscatos,
Rieslings and Astis. Also chilled are wines such as Ports and Lambruscos,
though it is unlikely too many, if any, of those will be showing up here. Mead
is also chilled, though I may one day bring myself to tempt fate and possibly
wreck the batch by mulling it. Sake is
generally heated up to at least lukewarm temperature before consuming. I
largely use this strictly as a cough medicine, unless I’m at a Japanese
restaurant and won’t be driving later. The process for Reds is a bit different.
I dislike those served at room temperature (or outright cold) and prefer just a
bare bit of chill, say when it’s not cold outright, but right at that
temperature before it hits room temperature. I feel like that’s the sweet spot
for Reds in general, so there will be nothing like worrying about specific
temperatures depending on the varietal or any of that business.
The methodology: All of the Reds are targeted for the same
temperature as described above. This generally means chilling them in the
fridge and letting them sit at room temperature for a bit until they come back
to the right temperature. I use this process rather than the inverse because it
tends to me to be more accurate in getting the level I want. After that, I
generally pour them into white wine glasses (this is more for handling
convenience than anything else) and let them sit, depending on if I use an
aerator gadget, anywhere from 15 – 30 minutes before consuming. By keeping the
process identical, this keeps the testing consistent. I am also not afraid to buy
based on a wine having an attractive label, nor should you be either. Even the
mistakes I consider worthwhile for educational purposes. I'm not saying I'm right or wrong for the chill, just saying that is what I do.
The format: In my personal wine list, I have it broken
down by varietal/region, country of origin and if it meets my criteria to be a
Standard. This is important to develop this sort of benchmark list, because we
typically have wine nights on Fridays and Saturdays (and any day preceding a
holiday). Usually one of those days will be testing and the other day will be
enjoying a past favorite, as there is little point in having a wine list of
trusted names if you’re not able to drop the pressure of testing and just savor
and enjoy the wine itself. Thus, the format of this will be the name of the
wine, the type of grape and vineyard (if not in the name of the wine), country
of origin (using the country designators the Olympics use or the two digit
state code if domestics) and where it falls in one of 3 categories: Standard (highest level, tried and true,
always consistent, never fails, would buy whether on SPA or not), Mixed (worthy
of being on the list, but a step down, may or may not buy if not on SPA) or
SPA-Only, which is probably self-explanatory, but is notable enough to be on
the list, but would not buy if off SPA. All of this information may also be
scattered across the entire article, but it will all be there.
The disclaimer: Unlike several wine sites where the bottles
come free for the purposes of reviews, we pay 100% for everything you see here
in this column. In this way, you can be assured there is no undue influence in
what you see here, just pure, unfiltered commentary on some wines that we have
found delectable enough to be not only on our own personal wine list, but that
we purchase regularly, which is perhaps the greatest endorsement of all.
The antithesis: What this column will not be is a booze
column. The design of this is not to
tell you which bottles to get to sit back and slug to get plowed, though
several of these would also work well in that setting and I may or may not
mention it if some of them do. If I don’t specifically say they do, assume they
don’t, but if you’re into that, go here: http://wineallthetime.tumblr.com/
and enjoy. In point of fact, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to go there anyway. Back
to the point, though I could tell you about the various joys and wonders of
bourbon (and email me if you have questions or want recommendations) and have
in the past been known to sit down with a beer mug of it and enjoy the eve,
that will not be showing up here, either. The preceding sentence also applies
to beer and even though barley wine may have an element of its name that seems
fitting, it is frankly just a high strength beer and not a true wine and thus
does not belong. This is also not a wine-testing blog, so the only wines that
appear here will be those that have passed the stringent criteria, though I may
reference some of the other wines by a particular vineyard in the course of
this.
The conclusion: If it ever becomes necessary, I will consider doing Q & A posts, so if you have any questions, do leave a comment.
As always, cheers to you!
