New wine storage system does the trick
Nick Danger, Third Eye exclaims, “The love of my life was Betty Jo Bialosky but everybody knew her as Nancy,” and another favorite of mine, “Don’t crush that dwarf, hand me the pliers,” were both inventions of Firesign Theatre. I just had a chance to revisit their 2008 release of a compiled version of their hijinks. Some of it is still humorous to me. If you are still quirky and you enjoyed Goons and Peter Sellers, this dog still bites!
Yeah, yeah, I know it’s not wine. To make amends, proceed for a compiled listing of four price-driven categories Top Ten in each of “best price value” wines from a worldwide panel of experts: www.wine-searcher.com/topvalue.lml. I have sampled about two-thirds of the list. I am nearly unanimous in agreeing with the panel. The categories are $10, $20, $40 and $ 80. You will note there is a very wide range listed on each price. The page will describe the reason. Should you decide to proceed, try to locate all selections from the same purveyor. Ask them for a case discount and/or free shipping. Best is to ask your local, friendly, wine store person to assemble them and then wait patiently. (You know, the guy or gal I constantly harp on you to develop.) Happy hunting, folks! As in most things, the lowest price is not always cheapest.
Suckling, writing in Wine Spectator, reviewed the 2007 La Lecciaia Brunello di Montalcino, the “ultimate expression of Sangiovese” with a 95-point score and wrote best in 2014. He was correct in his timing, although I thought a bit rich in his praise. He was closer and I was wrong at 88 points.
Cellar time has rewarded the patient. Those who did not buy and cellar can get on board by moving quickly. It is on sale at $24.95. The wine has been stored properly and can be found on the net by your local purveyor.
The only producers of Brunello who exceeded Lecciaia in 2007 were Uccelliera $52 and Coldisole $53. The 2006 for all three are at least 2 points better. They will cellar much longer, 2026 or later.
Very well-crafted article on where the butter flavor comes from in wine. Written by Alex Berezow in Real Clear Science, it can be found here: www.realclearscience.com/blog/author/alex-berezow/2013/10/. Not only is this informative, it is a fun read and very down to earth. Berezow, by the way, is not a one-trick pony. When you visit the site, check out some of his other articles. Usually he is an interesting read.
Vintage watch confirms most of the worst news about the 2013 harvest. It also confirms that a large part of the U.S. will do well. Virginia, North Carolina, Oregon, Finger Lakes and Ontario are dicey as premature cold evening temps are setting in. They are struggling with late rain and cool temps.
The Douro (Port wine) was doing very well, but recent rain does not bode well. 2013 will definitely be a difficult year for wine lovers. Worse for many producers.
For those who think moving to a wine-growing region might be in their future, try this site: realestate.msn.com/10-secretly-amazing-cities-for-wine-lovers#1. My friend Vince Cardenas sent the link to me and I really enjoyed the synopsis and the links.
For cellarers and those who love great wine but are reluctant to open a bottle because they are afraid it will oxidize unless they drink it all in one sitting, I would recommend a new invention by a medical device maker named Greg Lambrecht. It is named the Coravin system. You can find it on the web. It may seem a bit pricey around $300 but it works extremely well and has been rigidly tested about 14 years. Coravin was rolled out in July, and I just saw the first results recently.
Wine that was poured in early August using this storage is as fresh as when it was first opened. Until now, I have used a nitrogen replacement model. They work well for a week or so. Then the wine might quickly go south. Coravin is far superior, in my opinion. In fairness, I must tell you, except when experimenting, I rarely need any open bottle storage. However, this seems to be ideal for keeping up with a large cellar.
