by katrin on March 8, 2010
After a long winter of working through lunch, my colleague Molly and I decided it was time to enjoy a civilized lunch away from our desks. Smith & Wollensky’s semi-annual Wine Week proved hard to resist. So long yogurt and salad; hello steakhouse and wine! For the uninitiated, during lunch in March and September Smith & Wollensky pours ten selections from their wine list for $10. In general, the wines range from subtle (which is my nice way of saying that they are somewhat unmemorable) to just short of sublime. I’ve noted a couple of highlights (and a lowlight). The full list is below.
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by glenn on March 3, 2010
A further installment in value shopping – six wines, $72.
Since transporting alcohol across state lines is illegal, the following is entirely hypothetical. No crimes were committed in the writing of this post.
At the conclusion of a previous Plonk Patrol, I had threatened to move to New Hampshire, my fastidious shopping having been undone by the Massachusetts tax on alcohol beverages. Someone has to pay for Sal DiMasi’s lawyer, right? Well, here I was in New Hampshire at the Wine Expo sponsored by the Winter Wine Festival of Wentworth-by-the-Sea and the New Hampshire Liquor Commission. The motto of the event was ”Taste it! Love it! BUY IT HERE TODAY’. Outside the exhibition space where the vendors were offering up tastes of their wines was a pop-up store where the same wines could be purchased. To add to the thrill of shopping, the store offered deep discounts for purchases of six or more bottles. This could be plonk paradise, I thought. Alas, this was not to be the case – this bargain-hunting foray was going to be hard work. [click to continue…]
by glenn on February 23, 2010
As the ancient constellations wheel through the winter night sky, we enter the House of Aquarius – dominion of those conceived in the merrie month of May and birthed in the dead of winter. Each year, a group of my friends gathers to celebrate the birthdays of the two water babies in the group – one of whom is me. As pastry chef, I would create the requisite cake. Yet now, as cheese aficianado, I provide the cheese course. And since all great fetes begin with champagne, I bring a bottle – or two – of the liquid stars. [click to continue…]
by katrin on February 18, 2010
I don’t always fall for the pitch and buy the wine that has been awarded a rating of 90+ or has appeared on some wine critic’s top 10, 25, or 100 list for the year, but vinodivino’s recent email about the Viña Zaco’s Tempranillo from Rioja at the everyday price of $15.50 caught my eye. Yes, Spain is hot. Yes, wines from Rioja can be incredible. But even with many wines from Rioja in the $15-20 range, some of the better wines push $30+. The wine did happen to land on Wine Spectator’s Top 100 for 2009 list with a rating of 90, so I thought I would give it a try.
I tasted this wine over two nights. The first impression left me feeling so-so and not terribly impressed. The second try was quite different, so I will focus on my notes from day two. The Viña Zaco is a solid brick color, and still quite dark. The nose is dusty earth and black cherries. It tastes of chocolate, smoke, and cherries, with some herbaciousness. It is light bodied with zippy acidity and pleasant tannins. This wine just kept getting better in the glass, so I do recommend decanting it. And as you’re waiting for the wine to breathe a bit, check out their slick website, too.
by katrin on February 16, 2010
It is a bit unusual for me to drink two bottles of wine made of the same varietal from the same country back-to-back. But after having finished the review of the Caligiore Syrah (see my previous post), the bottle of Luigi Bosca Syrah called to me and I wondered how these wines would compare.
After a long winter of working through lunch, my colleague Molly and I decided it was time to enjoy a civilized lunch away from our desks. Smith & Wollensky’s semi-annual Wine Week proved hard to resist. So long yogurt and salad; hello steakhouse and wine! For the uninitiated, during lunch in March and September Smith & Wollensky pours ten selections from their wine list for $10. In general, the wines range from subtle (which is my nice way of saying that they are somewhat unmemorable) to just short of sublime. I’ve noted a couple of highlights (and a lowlight). The full list is below.
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