Corkage vs. bottle vs. half-bottle vs. by-the-glass

Amongst many of my wine drinking friends and family, when we decide to go out to dinner, I am often left with the ongoing dilemma...bring a bottle and suffer the corkage fee or rely on the random offerings on the 'by the glass' (BTG) list which I know will be a limited version of what I really want or like. There are several factors that play in to this scenario and I'd like to lay out a few things to consider when faced with this potential quandary.

1) First and foremost, what IS the corkage fee or the stipulations of bringing your own wine? Many places have policies in place that waive corkage for every bottle purchased or the fees are such that it just does not make sense for the bottle your bringing. Sometimes, you can even order just a 'split' of wine to start and the corkage is waived. Obviously, you do not want to pay $20-$25 for a $30 bottle of wine or the like or if they charge full price for half-bottles.

2) Who and/or how many are you dining with? When you have a larger group or more than 4-6, you know there will be various dining decisions being made that greatly affect what you may want to bring if any. If everyone will agree to absorb the corkage fee, then bring something nice everyone will want to at least try and then let the rest order as they wish. Trying to please a lot of palates is challenging to say the least.

3) Do you have a good idea of the menu or style of food? I'm not hard-line fan of exact wines wine and food pairings, but I think it is an important consideration to overlook. For instance, if you are going to traditional French, strictly seafood or steak, or say a northern Italian type restaurants, you will want to pair appropriately. When I know I am going for that big fat traditional rib-eye steak dinner, I know exactly what type of wine I want to enjoy and the price-point is usually such that it warrants bringing my own even with the corkage fee.

4) Is the wine list available to view online? Many times you can preview what the current BTG list offers and see if it is something you can live with. I recently brought a half-bottle to new restaurant and the BTG glass list was quite good and had no reason to open what I brought...saved me the $15 on the half and was quite pleased with the wine along with trying something new that I really enjoyed.

5) How much will you be drinking? When my wife and I go out, sometimes she'll only have one glass and prefers to just order off the list for convenience sake. In addition, her tastes are different and may want the flexibility to order per the tastes of the evening. Here in CA you can re-cork and take it with you, but again, is it worth a couple of glasses on yourself? Also, if you are going somewhere afterward, you don't want to be lugging a bottle around or have an open bottle in the car.

6) Do you want to explore and try some new wines? When ordering BTG, you are almost assured you will be getting the latest from the industry. I have discovered some great wines that I would have not otherwise know about or tried. By committing to BTG, you will have the opportunity to "wing it" and try something new. Don't go for the 'ol standby that you know and like...experiment with something new or what the server recommends.

I may be over-thinking this scenario for most, but here in wine country, it is an ongoing saga. Plus, these days, I am trying to drink more from my cellar to save money and it gives me an opportunity (OK, excuse...) to break out some gems that just need to be drunk by now.

Until the next sip, swirl ya' later!

James
Chief Wino

Wine and...Poker?

I've written about many things directly involving wine subjects and the wine industry. I've even dabbled around the fringes of wine and included subjects like golf, travel, cruises, equipment, and tools to enjoy the trade. So, am I REALLY reaching this time to include a subject such as poker?

I don't think so, and here's why...

1. Good wines while playing poker. Whether at someone's house or at the local poker room, I've been know to uncork a nice bottle during the game and have a more relaxed session of the 'sport'. Quite frankly, there is a lot of down-time during the game and it helps pass the time while you're observing when out of the hands.

2. Dom Perignon and poker. A couple of years ago, I'm watching a taped version of the World Series of Poker (WSOP) and a couple of old friends that ended up at the same table were getting reacquainted sharing "war stories" about their travels having a grand old time down memory lane. Not five minutes in to their banter, they order up a vintage bottle of Dom and toast to their reuniting and then share it with the entire table. Fine champagne and WSOP poker...now THAT is what I call a perfect pairing.

3. 2005 Caymus pre-release. A while back, a friend and I decided to meet up for an evening of poker at the card room. It was the first time we were playing together and I decided to have each of us bring a bottle of wine to enjoy while playing. At the time, he happened to be working at Caymus here in Napa and low-and-behold he shows up with an '05 Special Selection Cab ($175) from the tasting room that opened for a pre-release tasting. So here I am playing cards drinking one of the best wines from Napa before the general public even sees the wine. Plus, I ended up winning a couple hundred bucks...lucky me.

4. Michael Mondavi and Oberon wines. Premiere Napa Valley during February is one of the area's biggest overall weeks. It brings in (trade) people from all over the country to try Napa's finest concoctions especially produced from this event. It is a showcase week for the valley on all fronts. During this time, Michael Mondavi puts on a BBQ and poker event called "The Oberon Poker Challenge" at his Folio Wine Studio in Carneros. He limits the players to 100 and has sold out two years running. As I arrived to the scene to get my seat, I noticed several familiar faces both from the industry and the local cards games...all the usual suspects. Uhem, I finished 2nd outlasting all of my poker buddies and walked away with a few nice gift certificates along with a magnum of Oberon's premium Hillside Select Cab. Book me for next year.

5. Poker and wine tasting night. For a while, we had a group that was regularly meeting monthly where we would throw together a poker game and have everyone bring a certain varietal or vintage of wines. It included a nice variety of industry sales people, sommeliers, winemakers and retailers. We'd line the wines up on the counter, pop all the corks, doll out the chips and duke it out all night long in to the wee hours. It was a great way to try 10-12 different wines/styles that I would otherwise maybe miss while having a great time talking 'shop'. "Shuffle up and deal" never sounded or tasted so good.

6. Masters week and the Pittsburgh Steelers. Huh? Ok, bear with me here. Twice a year I like to combine a few of my favorite things collectively in one night. In April, it is my absolute favorite week, Masters Golf week. In the fall, it is when the Steelers play on Monday night football. Each of these occasions, I cook up my world famous (well, maybe only slightly regionally famous...) 'five-alarm' chili and have everyone bring wines that work well with spicy food/chili (we tend to lean heavy on the Zins here) while throwing down a poker game in the midst of it all. Golf, football, chili, wine and poker...the girls can't get away fast enough from these annual events.

7. The WSOP. The World Series of Poker is the penultimate poker event. I have been trying to qualify for the main event for over three years only to fall short by either a card or two or a bad beat or so at the wrong time. I have told myself that if I cannot qualify on my own volition, I do not deserve to play in the 'big show' plunking down the $10k it costs for a seat. I have vowed though that if (when) I make it to the main event (I have played in a couple of the early WSOP prelim events) I will break open something from cellar that is quite special and share it with my table. I do not normally drink while playing serious poker, but here just enough to calm the nerves and salute the moment.

8. Murphy-Goode Winery. Some of you might be aware of the new correspondent position/PR drive that this winery is doing dubbed "A Really Goode Job". M-G has done a great job in making this a widely talked about 'dream job' for a "Lifestyle Correspondent". When the article was published in the SF Chronicle a few weeks ago outlining the qualifications that they are looking for, oddly enough they included poker and liar's dice as a preference. Apparently their winemaker has quite the affinity for these games and is a seasoned poker player himself. Who knew!

♠ ♥ ♣ ♦

Being in Napa now for while, my ultimate goal is to put together a huge weekend event that involves a celebrity golf tournament, casino night, poker tournament, wine auction and charity fund raiser that will be known as the valley's "event of the year" to look forward to. I am in the process of putting all the 'players' together to make this happen for 2010.

In the meantime, I'll be exploring more ways to combine all of my passions surrounding wine and bringing together the people and places to make it happen.

Until the next sip, swirl ya' later!

James
Chief Wino

Food & Wine Pairing Extraordinaire

Living here in Napa (Yountville) there are certain extreme luxuries that are abound that you realize you will either rarely or never be able to experience. Whether it be the Napa Valley Wine Auction, Mustard Festival private winemaker dinners, Auberge du Soleil, CIA/Greystone, Screaming Eagle wine, etc., or, for purposes of this post, the French Laundry (FL) restaurant.

When we first rolled in to Yountville a year ago, home of several great restaurants including the aforementioned, my wife had always heard how amazing this experience was. Given the nature of fine French dining, I was not overwhelmingly excited about it at many levels. My response to her was always the same, "OK, when we win the lottery, I'll take you there." FYI, dinners there regularly run $500+ per person and a $50 per bottle corkage fee. Little did I know, one of the benefits of living in Yountville was that once a year, they hold a 'lottery' for all residents to be able to dine at the FL at the original opening (1989) prices of $49 per person and waived corkage fees for your own wines. Cut to the chase...we won the drawing and went to our scheduled locals' night this past Monday night.

For any of those that have either had the experience there or know much about it, it is ranked as one of the top-10 restaurants in the world and under the guidance of renowned chef Thomas Keller. It's been known for several innovations in food presentation along with as many as 22 courses or more in a single seating lasting over 4 hours. Although, from its subdued exterior, it is quite the unassuming place tucked in the northern part of town in an old wooden 'house' of sorts. Ours was an abbreviated night with only a dozen courses or so lasting about 3 hours total. I came prepared and was going to "milk" it for all its worth even at the $49 price.

I began, of course, by planning my series of wines for the night. Not knowing the exact items being served or when, I took a bit of logical approach in how French dining of this sort usually plays out. I decided to go with safe bets in this order - Rose Champagne, Dry Riesling, and a vintage Bordeaux. This built in enough flexibility for various dishes while at the same time giving me the range I wanted to have a fulfilling night of wines.

Here's my reasoning: Bubbles always work to begin the night sipping as an appertif to get the taste buds going and with most intro-type leading appetizers. Riesling is most versatile with French foods that are rich, creamy or savory and/or with shellfish. And, Bordeaux would be perfect if they serve some sort of lamb or savory pork dish as the main. If fish was one of the mains, the Riesling would sub very well also.

So here's the brief summary of how it went down:

Overall, the place is quite small and fairly unassuming. The grounds are pleasant and nicely landscaped with a quaint courtyard area that is a good place to start with the Champagne. Nothing fancy to sit on either...older cushioned wooden chairs. There is no bar area inside and they do not serve hard alcohol at all. We had our Rose Champagne as our appertif and waited for our table. Couldn't help but think I should be 'twittering' the moment.

Once inside, I was surprised once again at the simplicity of the decor and the surroundings. One small room of 6-7 tables for the main dining and a couple of smaller rooms upstairs. It quickly became clear that this was going to be about the service experience and the food presentations.

The Rose Champagne took us through the first couple of courses before we opened a dry Alsace Riesling with one of their signature dishes - the truffle custard egg. This is an egg (gutted shell) that is cut open at the top 1/4 and filled with some of the most decadent infused truffle custard drizzled with truffle oil that rivaled (OK, exceeded) any Foie Gras I've ever had.

Then we had their version of a "caesar salad" that was a small lobster tail with a lemon infused butter cream along side a compressed seared romaine lettuce bundle (all of 2 inches big). Luckily, our neighbor table was friends of ours and they shared their own sauvignon blanc with us that made a perfect pair for the dish. On to the main courses...

By this time, we had gotten to red wine territory and the '85 Lynch Bages Bordeaux I brought was finally unveiled. It had been decanting in the back room for over two hours by now and it has been a while since I was that excited about a wine from my cellar. With the upcoming pork and lamb dishes, I knew I had made the right choice.

The most appropriate pairing was the lamb as they had orchestrated it in to 4 'bite-size' styles (loin, shank, chop & braised) within one plate. All worked harmoniously with the Bordeaux which definitely came alive with the food. Not sure if I know of too many better pairings all things considered.

The night ended with a concoction of cheeses and desserts that culminated in to an incredible selection of decadent chocolates and truffles to go with our 20-year tawny ports.

A total of almost four hours from our arrival not only was it "check please", but the proverbial wheel barrel was needed to get us out of there as we closed the place down. Not so much from the amount of food by any means, but just the overall saturation of the night. Needless to say, the next day was a bit rough.

Kudos to the entire Laundry team and their ability to make a normal setting outrageously special. Whatever you've heard, it is truly an experience of a lifetime. Now, at full prices...I'll get back to you on that.

Until the next sip...swirl ya' later.

James
Chief Wino

What Are You Drinking Now...?

Now that we have the first quarter of the year behind us, the new president completing his first 100 days, the stock market making a slight comeback, and general consensus easing back in to the hope for the not too distant future, where have your wine dollars gone and where are the headed?

I'd like to present a few concepts and options for both the casual drinker and the dabbling collector that now is the time to spread your wings within the world of wine.

♦ Exploration of alternative domestically produced varietals. This is a great time look at not only more economic types of wines, but to expand beyond the mainstream or comfort zone of what you have always drunk. Instead of typical Chardonnay, Merlot, Zins & Cabs that most are used to, expand your horizons. Look at different wines such as various types of Rose's or whites like Pinot Gris, Chenin Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc/Semillon and reds such as Carmenere, Mourvedre, Malbec, Barbera, Sangiovese, Syrah, Cab Franc and general red blends that are done quite well here. Not only are they generally cheaper, but provide for delicious alternatives for your buds and are great food or seasonal wines.

♦ Discovery of new wine regions. Spain, Portugal, Chile, Argentina, South Africa and Australia are doing a fine job of not only the classic varietals, but some of the above mentioned as well. You get a much better "bang for the buck" overall without sacrificing quality. And these days, they are quite readily available at your local wine shop or grocer.

♦ Buying by the case. When you find either a wine you love or one of your favorite wines on sale, buy a case as your everyday go-to wine. Saves on gas to the store and makes those decisions just that much easier day-to-day.

♦ Join a wine club. When you know a producer that makes several styles of wines you like at reasonable prices, join their club and enjoy the benefits of membership. You generally get 20-30% off most wines and often can be presented additional deals that cover most of the extra shipping costs.

♦ Make good friends with a local wine shop owner. Nothing more valuable than personal relationship with someone that can turn you on to the wines you love, but can also secure good deals for you to buy in bulk if needed. Often times you can also have the opportunity to 'try before you buy' with regular local wine tasting events. Plus, they get special promotions or overstock wines on the cheap that they can give you the inside scoop on.

♦ Make your own wine. Believe it or not, this process has been made much more available at reasonable costs to do right out of your garage. And, I have to tell you, if you have some good sources and/or creativity, you can make some decent wine. it may not be the wine you wine a gold medal with, but can be comparable to what you'd spend in $7-$15 range for at the store.

♦ Drink your cellar. Let's face it, if you are a collector of any decent size, you will not drink all of your wines and you probably have several wines that are past their peak. I highly suggest looking at any CA cabs or Merlots past 7 years old and popping the cork. There are a few exceptions, but if you're like me, I have dozens of wines that need to be opened asap.

So, leap out of your comfort zone and get moving. Next time you're tempted to buy that Chardonnay or Cab off the shelf, explore the other regions of the store with some help and you'll be pleasantly surprised about the myriad of options before you.

Until the next sip, swirl ya' later!

James
Chief Wino

Wine Marketing 2.0

I recently attended a wine industry "Direct to Consumer" (DTC) symposium conducted by a consulting group here in Napa for wineries and tasting rooms. It was the first of its kind here for me and I believe only the second or third year that they have conducted such an event. The marketers came out in droves all very eager to find the next big thing in direct marketing (DM) for their brands or wine clubs to consumers. I was curious to rate the 'state of the union' of DM within this industry. I learned a few things and had a few surprises...but it was mostly a review of things I had been practicing for years and additions to my to-do list. But even still, all good stuff.

Now, keep in mind, I enter in a bit cynical in that I come from some of the most sophisticated and long-standing DMers of all, the catalog industry. I spent almost 15 years running my own catalog company and then consulting for some premium brand catalogers from back in the early 90's till recent (ooooh, I'm dating/aging myself here aren't I...?). However, this is what drew me to Napa and the wine industry...the opportunity to make a big difference AND introduce some of these tools to a trade category I love. It is wrought with opportunities.

Here is a summary of the most outstanding observation items from the show:

1. Social Networking. If you not in this space, you better get there quickly or it will blow right by you. Wine individuals, wine groups, sales websites, restaurants and wineries are all jumping in head first...some more diligently than others. This isn't new by any means, but the urgency to have a real presence here and the level in which you participate is. The clear message was also that you either enter this space and keep it current/relevant or don't enter at all.

2. Customer Data. Whether data capture or data-mining, you better have a good handle of what to do with the customers in your database or wine club. This is probably the most glaring distance from the catalog industry as few wineries know exactly what to do with their customer files to both maximize their communication channels with them or keep it current and updated/clean. There was some talk of a wine data alliance of sorts (which has been prolifically used in the catalog industry for well over a decade), but there were mostly "deer in the headlights" reactions to such a thing for the wine industry. Share names...? We wouldn't dare... our cusomters are unique and ONLY buy my wine for sure! Uh, yeah, OK.

3. Sales & Customer Data Analysis. The term 'RFM' was only mentioned once in all my seminars and discussions with other marketers...even then only briefed over. This is the data 'Holy Grail' standard with catalogers and is really only a base of which to begin looking at your customers and their activity/buying tendencies. It is a basic ranking system that stands for; Recency - how recent have your customers been active or made purchases, Frequency - how often your customers are purchasing from you, and Monetary - how much your customers are spending with you. This information is critical to know who, how, when, where and how much to communicate to your customers. The analysis and segmentation can get as complex as you want from there.

4. Customer Touchpoints. Just recognizing how many times or the opportunities in which your customer will be exposed to your product or brand is the first step. You'd be surprised how many of these opportunities get missed to either promote residual sales, get referrals, drive visitor center/wine tasting traffic, update data, or survey customers. This is one of the crowning points of DM in that you get to directly control your brand presentation at all of these points if you choose.

5. "Always On Economy". I loved this term from the CEO of Snooth, and it exemplifies the current status of both technology and the power of social networking. It refers to the level at which the customer is always 'watching' and you better be putting your best foot forward at all times. The old saying, "It is 10 times more difficult to acquire a customer than to retain one" could not be more prevalent than now. Your brand is only as good as its last memory of the customer. You get few chances to make up for a bad experience or poor exposure...there are just too many (better) choices for consumers now.

6. The New Economy. Hard to deny this at any level. The actual number of wine purchases is not down, but the category level of buying is. Luxury brands obviously taking the biggest hit here and wines in the $10- $20 space are rocketing with one of the fastest growing groups of buyers being the "millennials" (Gen Y) in their mid to late 20's. Liquor has almost always been viewed as 'recession-proof', and wine follows suit here for the most part. But, the everyday wines (commonly refered to as "Wednesday night" wines) are definitely falling in to the under-$20 category. Plus, women seem to be the biggest buyers here.

7. Food & Wine Pairings. One the best terms I heard throughout the conference was "home base phenomenon" referring to more people staying and dining/drinking at home rather than going out. This in turn creates more demand and interest in food and wine pairings or recipes that people can relate to and perform at home. This falls in to the 'added value' category that wineries can provide for their customers in their regular communications to their base.

8. Communications To Base Customers. How's that for a segue? This is not only the type of communication to customers but the frequency. Oddly, most are not communicating with customers enough with the consensus recommending at least once per month via email and 4-6 other times with direct mail or other marketing pieces. No surprise here.

9. Customer Relationship Management (CRM). This was big buzz-word with catalogers almost 10 years ago and wineries are just now realizing that this requires a true dedicated diligent effort. They discussed the three 'R's' - Relationship (building), Relevance (product/offer), Results (reading). It is way more about just keeping your good customers happy, it is truly about all of the above items I've touched on combined in to one big effort to create a real relationship with your customer and listening to their needs well beyond what type of wine they drink or buy. This also links back to the social networking aspect of getting more involved with people on an 'intimate' level and leveraging their circles of influence.

Well, 9 out of 10 ain't bad, I'll stop here...I could go on and on with this, but don't want to give up all my trade secrets at once. ;-} There is so much more to be addressed, but as usual, it comes down to prioritizing, resources, and the ability to execute programs fully.

In the end, it is kind of like breaking most comfort zones or habits people get in to...recognizing the problems/deficiencies first and then identifying a starting point then methodically working from top to bottom with the resources you have.

Best of luck and as always...

Till the next sip...swirl ya' later!

James
Chief Wino

THE First Major Napa Social Party of '09

Silver Oak just had their first big event since they rebuilt their facilities after the fire a couple of years ago destroyed everything. It was their 2004 vintage release party...and definitely more of a party than a true wine event. After fighting the throngs of crowds just to get near the front gates, I quickly realized this really wasn't so much about the wine as it was just the place to be, or, 'see and be seen' as the saying goes. I would argue to bet that 80% of the crowd couldn't name two of the varietals that make up the wine or any clue as to the makeup of the wine at all...or really even cared. Hey, it was Silver Oak for goodness sake...food, music, wine flowing freely (although it took forever to get measly pour of wine), pretty women, lots of guys, beautiful weather...what more do you need?

Well, for me, that was all fine...but I am much more inclined to pay more attention to a wine experience...maybe learn something, taste a vertical, listen to the wine maker, sit through a class about the vineyards/terroir...you know, an enriching experience of some sort. I am not sure the "cattle call" that this was is really my "cup to tea"...or in this case, my glass of wine. Maybe I'm just getting old or I'm just tired of fighting the masses when it comes to a wine 'party'. There were estimated 4,000 people that came through the gate that day...whew!

Here are a few items I'd rather see or experience when I go to winery release party or things I observe from a professional standpoint:

1. More information about the wine. There was really no direction or information about what we were tasting. Just wait in a long line to get your 2-3 ounce pour and then stand in line for 20-30 min. to get a bite of something to go with it. By the time you got your food, your glass was empty and you had to fight the crowd again...ugh! (Revised: To their credit, there were information tables and info sheets, but amongst the big crowds they could have easily been overlooked)

2. Comparative tasting of other vintages. OK, we're tasting the 2004. What was different about it over the past couple of years? How did stand up to other vintages? What was the blend for that year and why? I'd be willing to pay a little extra just to do a flight of say '02, '03, '04. Maybe they were just too focused on the '04, but then again, they did very little to provide info on it either.

3. Sell the wine more. They just assumed you knew how and/or where to purchase it. Again, there was very little direction about pricing or packages or what type of provision there was for the release party if any. I was never approached or suggested to buy the wine at any time. I'm sure they did OK with sales, but I can tell you, far less than they could have.

4. A welcome packet, brochure or map talking about what it was that I was experiencing. If it were my first time at one of these, I'd have been completely lost. I would not have known that there was also their TwoMey Merlot and their '99 vintage they were tasting in other areas. Nor was their a map or description depicting the 'story' of Silver Oak, family, or reference to the fire that forced them to rebuild this beautiful facility. I did finally find a map from someone after I asked, but they were not readily handed out when you first got there.

5. Very little personal interaction with the 'staff' of Silver Oak. You could tell that everyone with a Silver Oak shirt on was just trying to keep head above water to keep up with the massive crowds. Lots of activity and little direction.

6. No data capture of the party-goers. Nowhere did they allow anywhere to get some information about the patrons...4,000 of them! What a captive audience that got to experience your 'front door' first hand, and not one attempt gather my info. This amazes me, but I guess when you're Silver Oak, you do not need more people on your list...everyone knows you and loves you.

7. No materials to take back with me. They provided nothing to tempt me to visit them again or look them up online if I indeed had a great experience. Even just a small note card on the 2004 vintage with some details about it and contact info to follow up if I wish.

8. Nothing about their 'sister' property in Alexander Valley. I guess the focus was on the Napa property, and they had their own separate party up there. But, I actually really like the Alexander Valley wine and some reference to it would have been appropriate.

Anyway, I had a good time with friends, got to see some industry acquaintances, check out the new facility, do some great people watching and try the wine. I cannot say if I was the 'average' customer I'd be overwhelmed in to spending $100 a bottle on that particular vintage, but it was a decent enough event for my $30 entry. It was a pleasant day in the sun with my wife and friends and hey, I got two more Silver Oak glasses to take with me to replace the ones that were broken years back. Now THAT's the true "silver lining" to the whole experience...well worth it, eh?!

Until the next sip, swirl ya' later!

James

2009 - Time to Explore...More

One of my personal goals this year was to get a nice digital camera and begin shooting my own version of Napa Valley and the local areas. Well, after a very good referral from a photographer friend of mine, I'm off and running with my new gadget.

One of things I've quickly noticed is that you immediately become more observant about your surroundings...looking for any opportunity to shoot a good shot. I've gotten up early to catch a sunrise, taken the camera in the car on the way to work, taken it along while walking the dog, and pretty much looking at the vineyards much more diligently than ever before.

The Vineyards

There is a strange beauty in the depleted vineyards right now. The vines are being pruned back and the mustard flower is almost in full-bloom weaving its way throughout the land. Where the vines were once canopied and fully green, all the greenery is now on the valley floor and hills contrasting with the barren stalks of vines...almost giving it a sinister look to the vineyards.

Another observance is the the quicker assessment of the age of the vines. You can easily discern the young, newly planted 'skinny' vines along with the thicker, more robust aged trunks that denote its length of time in the ground. After being here for while, you can actually spot the 20+ year-old vines pretty easily in one glance.

The Land

The geology here is also pretty amazing. I had a tasting with a winemaker friend of mine that was a geologist in his former life. He now owns a vineyard up on Diamond Mountain (one of my favorite sub-appellations here) and he gave a quick lesson as we were standing atop the mountain area looking down at the valley floor. He said this area is so unique in that it comprises three primary topographies/landscape formations - 1) Volcanic, 2) Glacial, and 3) Tectonic. This was all "greek" to me, but when you look around, you can actually see these type geological activities results across the landscape.

The Seasons

Then there is the seasons as it relates to the sun. As you observe the path of the sun at different times of the year, you begin to notice how it affects the vines in various ways. As the sun goes from East to West and/or lower and higher during the seasons, you see that there is somewhat of a science to how the vines are laid out. some run North to South or East to West (or vise-versa) depending on their location in the valley or across a hilltop.mountain. This is no accident and when you talk to growers or vineyard mangers, you realize there is deep philosophy mixed with wine science that goes in to the entire process.

It never fails to blow me away when I really sit and write or think about these special things about 'wine country'. I love it here. These are just a few quick observations and I'm sure much more to come as I begin to explore this region and beyond start to train my new photographic eye.

Until the next sip, swirl ya' later!

James

My 2009 Wine Goals

Every new year I do goals, not resolutions. I've never really liked the idea of "resolutions" per-se...they always sounded to me like exposed past mistakes or failures attempting to turn in to a new positive movement of some sort...blah blah blah. Anyway, I do several 'categories' of goals - personal, business, family, etc. - and this year, I'm adding a new category, wine.

I never have really thought of doing 'wine' goals until now. Now, that I am living in wine country and working within the wine industry, I think it is more appropriate. I have a new position in the industry working for a high-profile premium winery that has solidified my presence here and staying in Napa Valley for a while. I couldn't be more pleased with starting 2009 in this manner.

Now for the goals...here goes:

1. Drink/open the wines in my collection that are probably near or past their prime. Believe it or not, this is no easy task. I have several 80's and 90's California reds that just plain need to be opened and drank asap. I see a "drink it or dump it" party in the near future.

2. Expand my collection to include more French, Italian and German varietals. 90% of my collection is CA red. This is primarily because when I collected a lot early on, I just flat out did not know what I was doing and made the common mistake more amateurs make. Through my wine training I've learned that regions like Piedmonte, Tuscany, Barolo, Burgundy, Bordeaux, Rhone Alsace, Mosel, Rheingau, etc. and the such provide for much more interesting wines to age.

3. Try more wines from Spain, Argentina, Chile and Portugal. Not only do these wines provide for some incredible values, the wine quality has surprised many experts in a very short time.

4. Join a dynamic wine club (or two). It's been over 5 years since I was a member of a wine club...and I miss this immensely. Only this time around instead of joining only from one winery, I am going to mix it up and try to include a club that exposes me to new varietals from around the world that I may not normally find on my own.

5. Take some more wine classes and possibly finish my 3rd level Sommelier training. The biggest thing I've learned in my training so far is how much I actually do not know. It is truly an endless vat of information that one can only hope to grasp a small percentage of within a keen area of interest.

6. Learn more about wine making. This is probably the area of least knowledge in my wine arsenal. Aside from constantly asking questions and observing about the process from winemakers I have met and/or worked with, I'd love to some day actually make a batch of my own wine.

7. Travel to new wine country/region. This one is pretty simple...Italy (Tuscany & Piedmonte). It has been on the radar for several years and it just needs to happen sooner than later.

8. Add more features on my personal wine website, LocalWino.com. I have had this site for over a year and have several new cool ideas/features I want to add to it...much more to come soon.

9. Work a wine harvest season. Now that I am working directly with a winery, I am very excited about working in the middle of a harvest (Aug. - Oct.). The amount of activity during this time is unparalleled and there is so much to learn. Lots of extra hours, but well worth it.

10. Keep up with my wine blog writing more regularly. Ideally, every week. But knowing what type of work schedule I am probably going to be dealing with, a more realistic goal is bi-weekly. I'll leave it at 2-4 times a month I will try and write about something new...I will have more 'material' to work with being more involved, so maybe I can make it happen.

So, there's my top-10. A great start already to the year...wine-wise that is. On New Year's eve, we did open three decades of wine spanning the 80's to 2005, I've updated my blog (here), I bought some Riesling and Piedmonte wines, made a 'date' with a winemaker to learn more about the processes and joining a local wine club this week that spans the globe...now about that vacation to Italy...better talk to my new employer soon.

Until the next sip...swirl ya' later!

James
Chief Wino

Testing the 1997 Vintage

Since the latest reuniting with my collection, I had to go through the laborious (yet fun) task of inventorying all my wines. During this, I discovered several individual bottles of the 1997 vintage (a case in total) that I decided were worthy of a 'horizontal' CA Cab tasting. For those of you not familiar with the term - horizontal - it refers to putting together several different wines of the same year/vintage (and preferably region) for comparison tasting. Vertical tasting refers to the same wine/winery of different successive years.

Anyway, I decided to invite a group out to share in the experience. As you can imagine, it was not hard to get a lot of takers to go out and taste a bunch of premium '97 California Cabs. I had read and heard various reports about the highly revered '97 vintage with very mixed reviews of the sustainability of these wines. Overall, the "word on the street" was DRINK NOW! OK, I'll oblige, if I have to.

So, we decided to make a go of it at the local restaurant that does not charge a corkage fee. Here was the line-up:

'97 Far Niente Cab
'97 Franciscan Magnificat Red
'97 Hess Collection Private Reserve (black label)
'97 Spring Mountain Reserve Cab
'97 Dry Creek Vineyards 'Epoch' Millenium Cuvee
'97 Cakebread Cab
'97 Bacio Divino Prop Red
'97 Beringer Alluvium Red

Without boring you with all of the details of the individual tastings, I'll provide the highlights of the 'event' in summary:

- Across the board, all the wines held up very well and with the exception of one that had a bit of leaky cork, the wines still had plenty of life

- The 100% Cabs seem to have held up a little better than the blends that had leaned out a bit

- Two wines in particular needed a lot of decanting time - the Far Niente and the Spring Mt.

- The "juiciest" of the wines was the Beringer Alluvium Red exhibiting the most upfront fruit

- The wine that held its structure the best was the Hess Collection Reserve

- The best food wines were the Franciscan Magnificat and Bacio Di Vino

- My overall winner was the Hess Collection Reserve - big fruit, structure, balance, got better with every sip, good with the meats, and still had legs to store longer if needed.

After reading so much about the '97 vintage and how it was under-performing, it was nice to get a chance to experience it for myself. I think the main thing is that with the huge expectations upon launch, it had nowhere to go but down. If I was to give the collective group a rating for the year, I'd put it in 92-94 category, which is still outstanding.

I've got a few more '97's to try along the way here that includes some more revered brands such as Harlan, Staglin, Caymus, Mondavi, Justin, La Jota and many more. So, I'll gladly report back as I begin to pop these during the holiday season.

In the meantime, I'll just have to suffer opening a myriad of other 90's cabs to sort through the collection to find the missing gems...tough work I know, but someone has to do it. Never has the cliche - "so much wine and so little time" - been more appropriate with the job at hand.

Once again, I'm getting lots of volunteers to assist in this tedious project. Hmmm, good to be popular in this respect I guess. Cheers!

Until the next sip, swirl ya' later.

James
Chief Wino

Reunited...and it Feels So Good...!

I waited five years...five trying, wishful, lonely years...to be reunited with my valued wine collection. Let me explain...

I started collecting in the early 90's after a few trips to Napa. My first purchase was a half-case of 1989 Beringer Cab with a random single bottle of 1988 (which I still have). I kept trying to collect wines but ran in to what most do in the early stages, I drank all my collections with little regard on how to actually begin accumulating the right wines. I had the odd couple of case always laying around, but most were "drinkables".

Then I met someone on a trip to Napa that gave me a few pointers on how to really 'collect'. The first step was setting aside a chunk of money ($500 - $1000) to buy en-mass separating out those to drink and those to put away for a while. Plus, learning to buy 6, drink 3, buy 12, drink 6, etc. so you actually accumulate some that you can open later along with buying some 'untouchables' for 10-15 years. I had accumulated about 150 wines or so, of which half were ready to drink (RTD). I was also a member of several winery wine clubs in the 90's collecting several wines from specific wineries that I liked (Sterling and Hess in those days...).

Then I discovered WineBid.com. Through some juicy financial years in 2001 - 04 I went on a tear buying some REAL collectibles from all over getting my collection up to about 500 bottles. I bought the the big 450 bottle Vin-temp cooler and stored a lot in my cool basement when I lived in Denver, CO. Ahhh...times were good.

Then I moved to Vancouver (Canada) for a special 2-year work project. I had to move my collection to a secure facility in Colorado, cancel all my wine clubs, could not ship anything up there and had virtually no access to fine wines without costing a fortune. (what was I thinking...?? ugh, sigh!!) And, I had to drink Canadian wines along with the odd import from Spain or Australia. California wines were ridiculously expensive and pretty much unavailable with the taxes and tariffs they put on US wines/alcohol. (what was I thinking (2)...??)

Then I moved to San Diego in '06 where I was in a few temporary living situation with work and personal stuff and it did not make sense to move all the wine out until I had the facility to take it back in. At this point, I really did not know what I had in my collection any more as my inventory sheets got messed up with all the moves and computer changes. At least I was able to drink CA wines again at reasonable prices.

Fast forward to Napa. I moved here in March '08, but again in a temporary situation as I was making a shift in work industries directly to the wine market. Finally, in July of this year we finally found a 'home' in Yountville (just North of Napa proper) where we are going to be for a while. After much trial and tribulation (and $$), I was finally able to get my wine, my cooler, and my wine stuff all shipped out from Colorado to Yountville.

At last, a physical reconnection with my long lost wines. Inventoried, organized, valued and well put away for the moment. And, all-in-all, they are in pretty good shape. Out of 40 cases, I only lost about 2 cases of wine to age/leakage/transport. The majority of all my valuables are very much in-tact. The bad/good news...I really have way too much wine to drink as most are 90's reds that need to be drunk now. I know, I know, you all feel very sorry for me...gee, why is everyone being so nice to me now...? I have a lot of new-found friends it seems.

Anyway, in my following blogs I will be giving some fun tasting notes on certain vintages, most from the 90's. And, believe me, I will work hard on getting through all of them in a timely manner...thank God for the Holidays coming up...more reasons to drink!

Until the sip...swirl ya' later!

Cheers,
JM
Chief Wino