The Wine Curmudgeon

Wine of the week: Bogle Sauvignon Blanc 2008

The Wine Curmudgeon has been in a slump. Most of the wine I have tasted over the past six or eight weeks, including wine that I bought for myself (as opposed to samples), has not been much fun. The wines have been flabby and uninteresting, boring and predictable. At dinner Saturday night, the three wines we opened – two of which were long-time favorites – were amazingly disappointing. In short, I was drinking lousy wine, and I needed to do something about it.

Hence the Bogle, from a winery that has never let me down. And it didn’t this time, either. The sauvignon blanc is fresh and clean and bright, all those things that I enjoy and look for in a wine. Best yet, it was $9.

Look for what the Californians call grassiness (not unpleasant at all, which resembles a freshly mowed lawn), some citrus and tropical fruit, and a thoroughly enjoyable experience. Drink this chilled on its own or with spaghetti with clam sauce, as I did, and marvel at how some producers understand consistency and quality.

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Winebits 97: Grocery store wine, consumer trends, solar panels

• Wine Magazine honors Aldi: Decanter, the British Wine Magazine that is best known for keeping tabs on high-end Burgundy and Bordeaux and its excellent news coverage, has acknowledged the recession. Its annual retailer awards included a “Commendation” to Aldi, a German chain that is making inroads into the United States. It honored Aldi “for leading the way with good-quality cheaper wine.” This is nothing short of amazing. Decanter isn’t as over-the-top as most of the U.S. Wine Magazines, but it still doesn’t spend all that much time on cheap wine. We’re getting several Aldi’s in Dallas, including one not that far from me. Apparently, they do it with private label wines, so it will be worth checking out.

• Wine drinkers going from “frills to basics:” Or so said several top wine industry analysts at a wine industry symposium. One said that the industry is not out of the woods yet, and that unemployment should rise through 2009. A number cruncher from Nielsen told the group that consumers are desperately seeking value, resulting in the "re-prioritization of discretionary vs necessity," and a switch "from frills and luxuries to basics and value." In other words, all that stuff the Wine Curmudgeon has been saying for years. How come I’m not a highly-paid consultant?

• Green-thinking thieves: A Napa Valley winery has become the latest victim of criminals stealing expensive solar panels. The theft of about 25 panels at a winery that asked that is name not be released, was the 17th in the region since the beginning 2008. The solar panels in the case were worth $30,000. Previous thefts were worth as much as $50,000. This leaves two questions: How did they get the panels off without breaking them and who fences solar panels?

Technorati Tags: Aldi,Decanter,wine spending,wine consumption,recession and wine,solar panels

"The Wine Curmudgeon made it look easy"

This was supposed to be the link to my hard-hitting –- and 90-some odd second –- appearance on Dallas’ CBS affiliate on Friday morning. In fact, it's a link to the station's video library. None of the videos in the library apparently has its own URL, so you have to search for the video you want to watch. Type in "state fair wine" in the box on the upper right if you're so inclined. If you aren't, I don't blame you. This is a foolish, Mainstream Media way to run a Web site, because it's designed to pump up visitor numbers instead of making it easy to find what you want.

There are two highlights -– me mumbling into the microphone when I gave the blog address, wasting who knows how many thousands in free publicity, and Channel 11’s Ginger Allen, the blond woman at the end, saying what everyone already knows: "The Wine Curmudgeon makes it look easy." Or what I wished everyone already knew.

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Expensive wine of the month 6: Groth Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2006

The Wine Curmudgeon’s apprehension when he sees pricey Napa Valley cabernet sauvignon is well known. There seem to be an infinite number of these wines and each seems to cost more than the next. (They also seem to be suffering greatly during the recession, but that’s not news to regular visitors here.)

Which is why I’m pleased to report that the Groth, for those with $60 to spend for a Napa cabernet, is $60 well spent. It compares more than favorably with more expensive wines of its kind, including those that cost $20 and $30 more. The Groth includes what’s best about Napa cabernet – the ripe, juicy cherry fruit – and it doesn’t have what isn’t best. The oak is notably restrained, the fruit isn’t over the top, the tannins are correct, and the alcohol is manageable at 14.9 percent.

This is, obviously, a food wine. Pair with classic red wine dinners like prime rib or rib eye, and save it for a special occasion, be it birthday, anniversary or holiday.

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Minireviews 6: Evolution, Falernia, Sandstone, La Valentina

• Evolution XIII NV ($17): The Wine Curmudgeon fondly remembers when this sweetish white blend was a $10 and $12 wine. It’s still well made and a fine accompaniment for spicy foods and to drink before dinner – I just haven’t gotten used to it costing one-third more.

• Falernia 2008 ($10): This Chilean white is made with the pedro ximenez grape, usually used for sherry. But it’s not sweet (though I don’t know that it’s dry, either) and its fruity in a white wine way. If you’re looking for something different, this is worth trying.

• Sandstone Cellars VI 2008 ($25): This Texas red blend is youngish, and it probably needs another six months or so in the bottle to let everything come together. But there is a decent wine in there, with quality port-style fruit and very nice acid.

• Fattoria La Valentina Montepulciano d'Abruzzo 2005 ($13): I found this Italian red blend stuffed in the back of the wine closet and was irritated that I had overlooked it. It’s quality Montepulciano at a very fair price.

Technorati Tags: wine reviews,Evolution,Falernia,Sandstone Cellars,La Valentina Montepulciano,red wine,white wine,Italian wine,Texas wine,Chilean wine

The Wine Curmudgeon at the State Fair of Texas

One of my favorite things to do each year is speak at the State Fair of Texas, where we talk about wine, answer questions and spread the gospel about quality, value and regional wine – and all in English. I’ll be back this year, with my Two Wine Guys colleague John Bratcher and the great Dan Peabody, at the Fair’s wine garden.

The fair starts Friday; our schedule is here. The first talk each day will be Texas Wine 101, and the following talks will be Wine 101. It’s a lot of fun, especially when I describe how to spit. Stop by and say hello if you’re at the Fair.

And, for those of you who will be in the Dallas area on Friday morning, I’m going to be on the local CBS affiliate, Channel 11, at 6:45 or so. We’ll chat about the wine events at the Fair this year, Texas wine in general, and even offer some food and wine pairings – because, I know, everyone wants to know what to drink with a corny dog. And for those of you who can’t see it, I’ll post the video next week.

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Regional wine week set for Oct. 11-17

DrinkLocalWine.com will hold its second annual Regional Wine Week Oct. 11-17. What does that mean for you? You’ll see a bunch of Texas-related posts on the blog as well as as links to the DLW site, where we’re putting together a network of wine bloggers and writers from around the country. It should be a great overview of what’s going on with regional wine in the United States and Canada.

This year, we’re shooting for more than 50 bloggers and writers from around the U.S. and Canada (who aren’t in California or the Pacific Northwest) to write about “wine from around here” -– wherever “here” might be. Anyone can do it, and I mean that literally. You don’t have to be a wine geek, you don’t have to use words like toasty and oaky, and you don’t even have to write about wine regularly. All you need is a platform to write about wine and that you enjoy local wine. It really is that simple. Last year’s Regional Wine Week posts are here.

If you’d like to participate, send Dave McIntyre an email or drop us a note here. All you have to do is to post something during the week of Oct. 11-17 and send us the link. We’ll post the link on DrinkLocalWine.com, which will act as a portal to allow interested readers to find you and the others who are writing about local wine. All we ask is that you mention DrinkLocalWine.com and Regional Wine Week in your posts and on your blog leading up to Oct. 11 so we can get that viral Internet thing working.

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