Wine 101
Ok. So I've decided to teach some of the things I've learned about wine to you here. I'm not an intructor by trade so forgive me if I ramble from time to time. I usually end up teaching someone about wine over a bottle. But since we can't really do that here I will give you some basics and work from the broad down to the specific. Fielding your questions as I can along the way. Sound good? Didn't think so but there it is.Dispelling wine myths:
1: First the old adage that you can only have certain wines with certain foods is FALSE. It may have been true in the past with "old world style" wines that didn't have a lot of subtle nuiances, but with the explosion of winemakers around the world doing wild and wonderful things with grapes, trying to force every food and wine pairing into a mold is no longer facile.
No wine snob is going to tell me that I can't have nice Vouvray (french white) with the bloody rare T-bone I just ordered. Bring it here, it will be fine, and stick that snobby nose right up your backside please.
BUT...if it helps you to get your start down the path of wine and matching it with food, follow the old standards of big reds with red meat and whites for fish, fowl and chicken for a while until you get your feet under you. Then start branching out.
2: If it doesn't cost $35-3000, it won't be fantastic. Wrong. I have access to some of the best wines in the world, and that is not an understatement. Very often, big-monied wine collectors will come into the shop, buy a very expensive bottle of wine, and share it with the staff (which is only 5 people, but still, a generous offer). It may be only because they don't want to "waste it" on someone who doesn't appreciate wine or know it very well.
But, I don't buy and drink those bottles myself. Hell no!!! Usually, the outside I am willing to spend on a wine that is not for a very special occasion or that I am not going to cellar is about $30, and that doesn't happen all that often...basically because I drink too much wine.
I hover around the $9.99-24.99 per bottle, average, most of the time. At present, sitting in my glass is a $13.99 bottle.
Now you too can spend in the neighborhood of 9.99-16.99 and stay blissfully happy as long as you know what it is you are looking for and have at least a reasonably knowledgeable winemonger. That being said, stay the hell away from Yellow Tail. It's garbage. It is actually over-priced if you can believe it. We will get into specfic choices later in a separate discussion. This is just an over view.
3: "I've never liked any blah blah blah wine I've ever had so I hate all whites/reds." Saying you don't like a color of wine based on the more than likely two or three low-grade bottles you've had is like saying I don't like pasta fagioli so I hate italian food. It's just plain silly. There may very well be certain aspects of certain types of wine that you do not care for, hell there are for me, but don't throw the baby out with the bath water.
Ok more later have errands to run and wine to drink. More to come in a couple of days.
posted by Chef @ 4/17/2006 01:18:00 PM
8 Comments:
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I really love that you are doing this and look forward to more!
Here, here! I lift my glass, I couldn't agree more. Terrific post on wine.
I'm a huge fan of New World wines, but I haven't posted much about wine on my own blog. I'm not working in the biz right now so it's been tough to keep current. I know I'm going to enjoy reading what you ahve to say - especially we share the same views on price/quality and snobbery.
I came over from Trouble's Blog - this is my first visit to your site, and just gotta say I'm a huge Trogdor the Burninator fan. You picked a really great name. I'll be back!
Thanks Chef. I'd go out and buy a bottle, but it's 11:16 at night...and I'm decidedly not at my parents house where I could possibly hunt for some wine at the grocery store.
I said possibly. I don't really think I could find a good bottle of wine, but hey, I've been wrong before.
Yay! Wine!! My favorite... :)
Thank you Chef. Great article.
Well said!
Trogdor...
Good content. On the inexpensive wine front, wanted to put a good word in for Bulgaria, where I spent considerable time a couple of years ago. You can get some excellent and CHEAP Bulgarian reds in many states (but not here in PA, due to those LCB pricks).
I lived the 'big bottle' life for awhile... and as most of it was consumed a bit past peak, it was a horrible waste of money (he says, stubbornly holding onto the last 87 Silver Oak Bonny Vineyard).
These days it's just easier to email a broker in Syndney, fill 3-4 cases with respectable stuff and have them ship it over here as electronics ;0
Anyway, great stuff, look forward to learning a lot over here.
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