Nat Decants...and pours

I just finished Natalie MacLean's book "Red, White and Drunk All Over". Ms. MacLean, a Canadian from Ottawa, has a web site full of useful information for beginner oenophiles. The book distills all of this knowledge and experience into 274 pages and its a good read. Much of the book feels familiar, but Natalie takes you on a tour of the wine world with a palpable excitement. I could feel myself talking with her on several occasions, and as she is a certified Sommelier, this is a great experience.

The feeling, in my early wine experience is that I felt I could talk to her seriously about the subject. She gallops (no other word to use here) from vineyard to vineyard, through grapes, styles and regions, writing, glassware, wine stores, and other wine fans. I really enjoyed the exposure to Seghesio winery as it happens be one of my favorite Zins. And then there is the controversy of Pavie; Robert Parker, Jr. and Jancis Robinson's feud about scoring and taste. There is no right and wrong here, only the luxury of influencing millions of wine enthusiasts. While there seemed to be a slight tilt toward Ms. Robinson's perspective the two sides of the argument seemed well represented. The whole question of scoring always comes up when Parker's name is mentioned, and it's mentioned frequently in this book, but there is no one on the planet that has done more to provide wine with an accessible route to picking up the evening vino. Walking into a wine store and seeing hundreds of bottles of Cabernet or Bordeaux, his scoring provides a immediate shortcut. Make no mistake, I've read that he wants you to discover your tastes and read the tasting notes, but because the system rang familiar with the American audience this 100 point scale became a quick hit. Mr. Parker's scoring provides many (maybe, too many) people with a short hand for discovering wine.

Ms. MacLean is a descriptive and enthusiastic writer with the pop and fizz of a soda. Almost like reading a description from the kid entering the candy store, finally; excited and fascinated all at once. She gives you good information on various subjects enticing you can dig into these areas, but you need to be careful not to miss them.

For the beginner this is a definite read, for those who are not quite beginners, it feels familiar, but definitely enjoyable. Experienced folk will like it because there will be a match in experience or because they can appreciate that Ms. MacLean has opened up new territory for a new class of wine drinkers. Enjoy this book like the first glass that opened your eyes to a world beyond a label.

Cheers.

Comment from the Employees

Well I received this reply from an employee at one of the state stores. While I'm not sure I can agree with everything this person says I can sympathize with his (her?) situation. State employees are limited in what they can do while working. They are limited by the state and by the union. Wine knowledge is probably very low on the priority list for the day's tasks.

I'm not blaming the employees. These are honest, hard working folks who are doing a job. They sometimes get reprimanded when they are not stocking and shelves and are, in fact, helping customers (I've seen this happen). If the boss isn't around then you may have a better chance at a conversation.

The simple fact is that the state has no business selling any kind of liquor. They claim that this is to prevent under aged drinking yet they allow citizens to own liquor licenses to sell alcohol to the public through restaurants, beer distributors (another rant!) and other qualifying establishments. I don't see that going away any time soon.

A simple answer would be to licenses the state stores to independent folks just like they do restaurants, and to enforce the liquor laws. Then the stores could stock inventory that made sense for that market and stock more variety. Heaven forbid restaurants have wine lists they want instead of what they can get in through the state store system. Customers patronizing stores based service and selection and not hand cuffed by some bureaucrat in Harrisburg.

Wait, I can hear it now: but we hired a wine expert to help us!! Yes ONE wine expert for the entire state. I not sure but it may be possible there are different markets in the state. Markets better served by locally owned stores and independent merchants. I've seen stocks on the website of fine wine that sit for months in a store in north central PA and I can't get it because the stores can't (won't??) ship between stores.

As for my friend who responded - I'm up to 4 very friendly wine savvy employees who risk getting reprimanded every time they stop and talk to a customer. Best of luck, pal.

Cheers -d

Visit to the Wine Store

Stopped in a lunch today to "window shop" and came across a fairly talkative state employee. My experience in the PLCB stores has been that people are people, just not wine people. Some are terse, some are friendly and I've run into 2, exactly 2, who know anything about the subject. I have talked to twice that (yes, four!) who don't even drink wine. Aren't there other jobs they can do in the state?

Anyway, the nice man gave me a few thoughts and I picked up a few on my own.
- Hahn Estates Meritage, 2005: $15.99
- Adelsheim 2006, Pinot Noir $33.
- Alderbrook 2003 Dry Creek Zinfandel, $10.99
- Trilogie, 2006, Argentina, $10

Now, the Hahn, as far as I can tell, is more expensive in PA than other places but the reviews are good so it might be worth the few bucks more. He gave the thumbs up on the Trilogie as it has been selling well.

Also, I noticed the 2003 Larose-Trintaudon is in. If you like Bordeaux blends and don't know which to try, you really can't go wrong with either this or Greysac. Both of these are regulars at the state store and are about the same price point ($18) so you may find different vintages in your store.

Back to pick up a few...

Herding Cats, 2005 - Redux and Rant

In August I picked up a bottle of Herding Cats, a South African wine, in Delaware and wrote that the PLCB would be well advised to stock this. And now, here it is. I could take credit for it, but I suppose that, given the complete random nature of the PLCB offerings, taking a suggestion would make too much sense. Either way a great deal from the state stores.

But this, brings up a topic near and dear and sore to my heart. The Pennsylvania Liquor Control board. Like the guns laws here, a complete and utter throw back to a previous era. Union employees who don't care what they are selling as long as they get pension benefits for stocking shelves and working cash registers. Know about wine - forget about it. Though that's not completely fair (I'll leave that to another post).

There are few redeeming qualities to this system, and if you spend hours scanning the website and locating the elusive bottles at a local store then you might find a few bargains. We the people of Pennsylvania are forced to be come scofflaws, sneaking across the border to Delaware or New Jersey to find someone who gives a .... well you know.

Wine Spectator 250 under $20

Wine Spectator has come out with their list of top values for under $20. Of course you need to subscribe or buy the magazine. However, just to prove a point, I am doing a little research to find these value wines at the State Store - sorry - PA Wine and Spirits. While I did find a few of these, availablity is still limited to a few stores.

Here are a few I've found:
- Bodega Norton, Malbec Lujan de Cuyo Reserva, 2005
- J&F Lurton Malbec Uco Valley Reserva, 2005 (Berwyn)
- Mollydooker Shiraz South Austrlial The Boxer 2005
- Mollydooker Two Left Feet South Australia, 2006
- Chateau St. Jean Fume Blanc Sonoma County 2005 (Widely available)
- Seghesio Sonoma County Zinfandel, 2005
- Cline Zinfandel, 2005 (Widely available)
- Jean-Louis Chave Selection Cotes du Rhone Mon Coeur, 2005
- Erath Pinot Noir Oregon 2005

In my brief bit of research, I noticed that the wines that are not widely available seem to be more available in the Pittsburgh area. I would love to go on about my disdain for this unbelievably archaic system, so maybe in a later post I will.

Wine Spectator

Thought this was interesting...there are a bunch of video podcasts available on the Wine Spectator website, free of charge. This is such a great time to live in; there are so many resources available on the web - free - to learn about this great subject. I have included a few on the side here.

Opened the Simi Zinfandel tonight. Found it very enjoyable, smooth and rich with the right touch of spice.