Dr Vino's wine blog

Last night, the James Beard Foundation presented their 2007 media awards in a celebration at the Hudson Theater in midtown Manhattan.

Although I was nominated in the website category, only one Colman won, and it was Colman Andrews taking home a medal for his writing in Saveur (my name is Tyler Colman for those who only know me by my nom de internet, Dr. Vino). Congratulations to Leite’s Culinaria, which won in the category for best website in Food, Beverage, Restaurants and Nutrition. For me, it was truly an honor just to be nominated since it is such a broad category and there are so many great websites out there in that journalistic frontier known as the ‘Net.

A complete list of winners and quotable quotes follows after the jump. Read more…

Sabretts and Vega Sicilia
Wines from renowned collector Steve Verlin’s estate are being sold this weekend in Chicago at Hart Davis Hart. He sounds like he was quite a character based on this preview tasting in New York: “In keeping with Verlin’s quirky preferences, the Sabretts [hot dogs] were served at Monday’s dinner with the 1968 vintage of Spain’s most honored wine, Vega Sicilia Unico. There was also popcorn popped in truffle oil partnered with a classic champagne, Krug 1985, and Krispy Kreme doughnuts were washed down with Chateau d’Yquem 1976.” [NY Sun]

Bordeaux sighs in relief
After getting damned and slammed by Jancis Robinson, Bordeaux catches a break from Robert Parker for the 2006 vintage. He hails it as “superior to 2004.” The Medoc lives to see another day, St. Emilion can raise their head in public but Pomerol is the belle of the ball since the wines from there are “excellent across the board.” Dry white Bordeaux bounces back from irrelevancy as the Parkermeister joins J Ro in praising the wines this vintage. But RP only hands out three potential top scores, to Mouton Rothschild, La Mission Haut Brion, and Bellevue Mondotte of St. Emilion. Needless to say, none of those were on the Jancis short list.

Caution: fragile. May be fake
Have you ever objected when the sommelier at a fancy restaurant uncorks your wine and tests a sample himself? Then don’t buy wines from the 18th century, which now post-Rodenstock, are getting downright molested. Quote: “A combination of nuclear isotope analysis and gamma radiation and proton beam tests conducted by experts from the universities of Bordeaux and Manchester will be used to confirm the age of each glass bottle in the Antique Wine Company collection. The wine itself � extracted by hypodermic needle through the cork – will be subjected to molecular and chemical analysis.” [Decanter]

Cameron Hughes, in the house
Yesterday’s post about American negociant Cameron Hughes sparked a comment frenzy–including several by Cameron himself. He elaborates on the differences between his wines and private labels at grocery stores, his sales techniques, and even offers readers of this site 50 % off shipping using a discount code. See the comments.

One of the oldest and most dubious sales pitches in the wine trade might be “this wine comes from the vineyard right next to [insert prestigious winery name here]. Similar quality, a fraction of the price.”

Uh huh.

So it was with my eyebrow duly raised that I met with Cameron Hughes. He lures Costco shoppers down the aisle to try his wine by telling them that he’s got a “$30 wine for $9.99.” Based on some rhapsodic reviews of his wines on wine web sites, the claim sounded plausible enough to lure me to meet with him for a coffee one morning on his recent trip to New York City.

Hughes is not a wine maker. He is part wine finder, part marketer, and and part salesman. And he’s introducing an innovative way of making and selling wine that is delivering cost-savings to consumers in the form of some easy-drinking, value vino. Read more…

This just in: two wine and health news items! Up first, with a headline like “Cyanidin-3-rutinoside, a Natural Polyphenol Antioxidant, Selectively Kills Leukemic Cells by Induction of Oxidative Stress,” my eyes glaze over, even if it is yummy cyanidin under discussion. Cut to the Fredricksberg Lance-Star for the giddy synopsis:

AMAZING! It has been found that a pigmentation chemical that makes grape skins and wines red has been found to kill human leukemia and lymphoma cells cultured in a lab, according to research to be published May 4 in the Journal of Biological Chemistry. [Fredricksberg Lance-Star, Journal of Biological Chemistry; thanks, Ryan!]

Meanwhile, Down Under, item number two, not from university researchers. The summary:

Screwcap wine drinkers have been given a health warning by wine writer Keith Stewart, who says there may be a link between the seal and increasing rates of breast cancer…[and] warns that the polyvinylidene chloride (PVDC) seal used in the screwcaps is one of the endocrine disrupters identified by cancer researchers. [Marlborough Express; thanks, Jack!]

:rolleyes:

Related: “Resveratrol now promises cardiovascular sloth” [Dr. Vino]

I recently tasted the intense, fruit-forward Tikal, Amorio, 2005 (about $30; find this wine). Along with notes of dark berries, tobacco and toast, was there also a whiff of petroleum?

The wine’s oversized bottle complemented the flavor profile perfectly since the bottle weighed about as much empty as a regular bottle full. I pity the wine store clerk who has to lift a case of it.

The heavy bottle took a long, meandering route to get to me in New York City. Starting out at the winery in Mendoza, Argentina, the wine’s American importer trucked it over the Andes to the port of San Antonio in Chile. There it loaded a boat and went to Oakland, CA. From there it came across country by truck to me in New York.

That’s a lot of carbon used to bring me this bottle of vino. But is it too much? At least the heavy bottle didn’t come by plane, which would have really jacked the petroleum per ounce of wine.

I was intrigued to read in the SF Chronicle that several restaurants have stopped serving (imported) bottled water because it is deemed too carbon inefficient.

Michael Pollan’s The Omnivore’s Dilemma prompted many eaters to think about the “carbon footprint” of their food and consider locally produced foods. Does that translate for you to your wine consumption?

The key issue for me is ease of substitution. I may be able to get water from local sources, but I can’t get any malbec locally. A tough call. Perhaps any eco guilt could be assuaged by buying carbon offsets?

Related:
“Local tap water bubbles up in restaurants” [SF Chronicle]
“Carbon neutral is hip, but is it green?” [NYT]

Chicago. Good weather. What could be better? How about a meetup on May 11?

I’ll be in town and look forward to meeting anybody who can make it. We can try wines by the glass (or any bottle from the shop with a $15 corkage fee–or “chill out” fee as they call it) together at the newish and hipster Juicy Wine Co. They have charcuterie and cheeses available.

The meetup is simply a chance to meet in the real world, off the internet, with wine enthusiasts, in particular, readers of this site and people who’ve taken my wine classes at the U of C. There’s no charge other than what you order at the bar. Consider it a happy hour. Or two.

So get your weekend started with fellow vino-philes! Post a comment or drop me a line at tyler [at] drvino [dot] com if you can make it. I look forward to seeing you there!

When: Friday, May 11, 5:30 – 7:30 PM
Where: Juicy Wine Company, 694 N. Milwaukee Ave. (bet Chicago and Erie)
Who: you – and feel free to bring a friend!

What’s your caption for this photo? Have your say in the comments below.

Thanks, Maureen!

5/2 UPDATE: Details now posted in the comments about the spa’s location–including two accounts from people who have been!

Congratulations to Gary Vaynerchuk of Wine Library in Springfield, NJ and tv.winelibrary.com on the ‘net! Known for his popular video podcasts, Gary had a great nine-minute segment on NPR’s Weekend Edition. Host Scott Simon visits the 40,000 square-foot store (wow–that’s enormous!) and tastes wine with Gary. Scott does a great job talking about blackcurrant, cough drops, and even soil-after-rain!

One thing that Gary mentions is that he has six magnums of Leoville Las Cases 1975 (his birth year) in his cellar waiting for the Jets to win the Superbowl. When they do–“please, God, please let that happen,” he says–he won’t just open one and drink it. He’ll open all six and pour them on his head! Good stuff. But also an expensive shower with each magnum fetching $350 today (and IF/when the Jets ever win, who knows what they’ll be worth).

I’ve got a few bottles of port from 2003, the year our son was born, to open with him on his 21st birthday. But otherwise not much with a “drink me” (or “shower me”) date on it. Which wines do you have stashed away for future occasions?