To all those who served and sacrificed...thank you.
"A man cannot make him laugh - but that's no marvel; he drinks no wine."
~WM. SHAKESPEARE, Henry IV Part 2
~WM. SHAKESPEARE, Henry IV Part 2
Monday, May 25, 2009
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
LAMENT OF A 40-YEAR OLD MAN
May 19, 1969. That was the day I was born. Today is May 19, 2009. According to the math I learned in elementary school, that makes me 40 years old today. I actually went to sleep last night at around 12:30, so I knew I was 40 before I drifted off. Didn't feel any different. I woke up this morning, still felt the same. There's no mid-life crisis in my future (maybe I'm saving that for 50).
I think 40 is a milestone where people take stock of their lives; looking back as well as looking ahead. Some decide changes are in order. For me, those changes include getting to the gym more often and trying to eat less red meat and potatoes, and more fish and vegetables.
Do I have regrets? Well sure, who doesn't. But one does stick out more than most. And it's not even my fault. I was born in a bad year.
1969 was just a not good vintage across the board. There were a few gems scattered throughout the globe for 1969 but they were few and far between. And, according to what I could find, most of them have long passed their peak. If you were born in 1961, wow...you're golden! What a vintage that was for Bordeaux! And they are drinking marvelously from what I've read. But 1969? Here is esteemed wine critic Robert Parker's review on the 1969 Chateau Lafite Rothschild, a Premiere Cru (First Growth, or the best of the best).
"The 1969 Lafite has been consistently unusual to smell, with a cooked, burnt aroma, short flavors that suggest coffee and herbs, and a hollow framework. This is a poorly made, ungracious wine that is unpalatable. 62 points"
And that was from a top-flight chateau! Now, Beaulieu from Napa Valley made a pretty good private reserve Cabernet in 1969. I even found one in a wine shop in Los Angeles. The fill wasn't too encouraging (the actual amount of wine in the bottle), it didn't quite reach the bottom of the neck of the bottle. But I knew that once upon a time this was supposed to have been a pretty decent wine. It was pretty steep, about $200. Still, I was tempted. I decided to do a little more research before investing in this "birth year" wine. Good thing I did. Several different reviews had this wine long passed its peak. I decided I'd rather drink great wine from any vintage than mediocre to bad wine from mine.
I'm reminded of the story of Robert Mondavi's 70th birthday (as told in Julia Flynn Siler's The House of Mondavi): the managing director of Chateau Mouton Rothschild, Philipe Cottin, gave Mondavi a bottle of Mouton from 1914, who was actually born in 1913. Cottin explained he hadn't given him a bottle from 1913 because it wasn't a good vintage. In a thick French accent he added:
"A man cannot make him laugh - but that's no marvel; he drinks no wine."
~WM. SHAKESPEARE, Henry IV Part 2
I think 40 is a milestone where people take stock of their lives; looking back as well as looking ahead. Some decide changes are in order. For me, those changes include getting to the gym more often and trying to eat less red meat and potatoes, and more fish and vegetables.
Do I have regrets? Well sure, who doesn't. But one does stick out more than most. And it's not even my fault. I was born in a bad year.
1969 was just a not good vintage across the board. There were a few gems scattered throughout the globe for 1969 but they were few and far between. And, according to what I could find, most of them have long passed their peak. If you were born in 1961, wow...you're golden! What a vintage that was for Bordeaux! And they are drinking marvelously from what I've read. But 1969? Here is esteemed wine critic Robert Parker's review on the 1969 Chateau Lafite Rothschild, a Premiere Cru (First Growth, or the best of the best).
"The 1969 Lafite has been consistently unusual to smell, with a cooked, burnt aroma, short flavors that suggest coffee and herbs, and a hollow framework. This is a poorly made, ungracious wine that is unpalatable. 62 points"
And that was from a top-flight chateau! Now, Beaulieu from Napa Valley made a pretty good private reserve Cabernet in 1969. I even found one in a wine shop in Los Angeles. The fill wasn't too encouraging (the actual amount of wine in the bottle), it didn't quite reach the bottom of the neck of the bottle. But I knew that once upon a time this was supposed to have been a pretty decent wine. It was pretty steep, about $200. Still, I was tempted. I decided to do a little more research before investing in this "birth year" wine. Good thing I did. Several different reviews had this wine long passed its peak. I decided I'd rather drink great wine from any vintage than mediocre to bad wine from mine.
I'm reminded of the story of Robert Mondavi's 70th birthday (as told in Julia Flynn Siler's The House of Mondavi): the managing director of Chateau Mouton Rothschild, Philipe Cottin, gave Mondavi a bottle of Mouton from 1914, who was actually born in 1913. Cottin explained he hadn't given him a bottle from 1913 because it wasn't a good vintage. In a thick French accent he added:
"You are proof of an adage we have in France:
God cannot make great wines and great men in the same year!"
Guess I can live with that.
"A man cannot make him laugh - but that's no marvel; he drinks no wine."
~WM. SHAKESPEARE, Henry IV Part 2
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Greetings from London!
Today was the first day of the London International Wine Fair. Two words can best describe it: Exhilarating and exhausting! It was literally sensory overload. I can best describe it as something similar to a huge car show, only with wine. This place is enormous, and there are more wine vendors showing their nectars than I can possibly get to in three days. But I will enjoy trying! Here are some first day highlights.
I attended three seminars today, which will be the bulk of seminars I will be doing. The first was with The Great Wine Estates of Western Australia; a union of the state's top wine marques pulled together under the imprimatur of Langton's (Australia's version of France's classification system). I must confess most of these estates were foreign to me, mainly because very few of them get to the States. I did have a brief moment to visit with Andrew Cailard, the keynote speaker, and he informed me it is possible to find them, and pointed me in the right direction. These were gorgeous Chardonnays, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot blends. The Chardonnays rank up there with top Burgundy, and the Cab/Merlot blends were reminiscent of fine Bordeaux.
Next was a seminar on the Maule Valley in Chile. Most of the Chilean wines I'm familiar with come from the Maipo Valley, but these were an incredibly pleasant surprise. Maule is about 150 miles south of Santiago, and the wines are delicious. Vibrant fruit, robust, concentrated and balanced all the way across the board. I'll have to be on the lookout for these when I get back. They were fun wines to drink.
Last but certainly not least was a seminar on the wines of Trentino. Again, I was unfamiliar with this region, but I relished the opportunity to learn something new. For instance, Trentino produces lovely sparkling wines in the tradition of Champagne. Using Chardonnay and Pinot Nero (Pinot Noir), these were lovely sparklers. Most of what I knew about sparkling wine out of Italy was Prosecco, but these wines had the feel and taste of a Champagne. Their reds come from a grape called Teroldego. It seemed to be a combination of Syrah and Cabernet Franc. These wines were rich, fruity and complex, but weren't over tannic. They showed some spice and graphite notes as well.
More to come, and when I get back I will put some more detailed notes out. That is all for now... Ta!
"A man cannot make him laugh - but that's no marvel; he drinks no wine."
~WM. SHAKESPEARE, Henry IV Part 2
I attended three seminars today, which will be the bulk of seminars I will be doing. The first was with The Great Wine Estates of Western Australia; a union of the state's top wine marques pulled together under the imprimatur of Langton's (Australia's version of France's classification system). I must confess most of these estates were foreign to me, mainly because very few of them get to the States. I did have a brief moment to visit with Andrew Cailard, the keynote speaker, and he informed me it is possible to find them, and pointed me in the right direction. These were gorgeous Chardonnays, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot blends. The Chardonnays rank up there with top Burgundy, and the Cab/Merlot blends were reminiscent of fine Bordeaux.
Next was a seminar on the Maule Valley in Chile. Most of the Chilean wines I'm familiar with come from the Maipo Valley, but these were an incredibly pleasant surprise. Maule is about 150 miles south of Santiago, and the wines are delicious. Vibrant fruit, robust, concentrated and balanced all the way across the board. I'll have to be on the lookout for these when I get back. They were fun wines to drink.
Last but certainly not least was a seminar on the wines of Trentino. Again, I was unfamiliar with this region, but I relished the opportunity to learn something new. For instance, Trentino produces lovely sparkling wines in the tradition of Champagne. Using Chardonnay and Pinot Nero (Pinot Noir), these were lovely sparklers. Most of what I knew about sparkling wine out of Italy was Prosecco, but these wines had the feel and taste of a Champagne. Their reds come from a grape called Teroldego. It seemed to be a combination of Syrah and Cabernet Franc. These wines were rich, fruity and complex, but weren't over tannic. They showed some spice and graphite notes as well.
More to come, and when I get back I will put some more detailed notes out. That is all for now... Ta!
"A man cannot make him laugh - but that's no marvel; he drinks no wine."
~WM. SHAKESPEARE, Henry IV Part 2
Monday, May 4, 2009
MY FRIEND
Last week I was devastated to learn of the unexpected and sudden death of one my closest and dearest friends. Joe Wright was a talented actor, writer and musician, as well as a giving person who was there for me on more than one occasion. Joe was also an avid wine lover. Not because he was an expert, he'd be the first to admit that, but because he loved learning about it.
Whenever we would get together I'd usually have a bottle of wine in tow. Joe would get out his stemware, we'd sit and he would say, "Okay. Tell me about this wine." I quickly learned that when introducing Joe to a new wine I had better be prepared. He loved asking questions, and I have a sneaking suspicion he liked to see if he could trip me up. I hated having to come back with "I don't know".
We usually spent the first glass discussing the wine itself; the color, the various aromas and flavors, and then the finish. By the time we got to the second glass we had moved on to other topics pertinent to our lives. Inevitably, we ended up laughing. What more could one want in an evening? Good wine, good friends and a good laugh.
I will raise a glass of fine wine to my friend Joe tonight...but the laughter will have to wait.
"A man cannot make him laugh - but that's no marvel; he drinks no wine."
~WM. SHAKESPEARE, Henry IV Part 2
Whenever we would get together I'd usually have a bottle of wine in tow. Joe would get out his stemware, we'd sit and he would say, "Okay. Tell me about this wine." I quickly learned that when introducing Joe to a new wine I had better be prepared. He loved asking questions, and I have a sneaking suspicion he liked to see if he could trip me up. I hated having to come back with "I don't know".
We usually spent the first glass discussing the wine itself; the color, the various aromas and flavors, and then the finish. By the time we got to the second glass we had moved on to other topics pertinent to our lives. Inevitably, we ended up laughing. What more could one want in an evening? Good wine, good friends and a good laugh.
I will raise a glass of fine wine to my friend Joe tonight...but the laughter will have to wait.
DEDICATED TO JOSEPH ANTHONY WRIGHT
1970-2009
"A man cannot make him laugh - but that's no marvel; he drinks no wine."
~WM. SHAKESPEARE, Henry IV Part 2
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