The Wine Curmudgeon

Robert Parker and the Vintners Hall of Fame

This year, there won't be any controversy when Robert Parker isn't inducted into the Vintners Hall of Fame. That's because Parker, the critic who invented the 100-point scoring system and is the most most important person in the wine business, wasn't nominated for the 2012 hall.

You'll recall that there was a stink last year when Parker, who was nominated for the 2011 and 2010 classes, wasn't chosen. I wrote then, and I still believe, that "keeping Parker out of the Vintners Hall is like keeping Babe Ruth out of the baseball Hall of Fame because you don't like home runs." The Wine Curmudgeon, who gets to vote, voted for Parker. But not enough of the other 73 voters did, and he wasn't one of the five inductees. Somehow, the others didn't think Parker was someone whose "collective vision, determination, and hard work have been responsible for the growth and worldwide prestige of the California wine industry."

More, after the jump:

TexSom 2011

Seven years ago, James Tidwell and Drew Hendricks had an idea. Why not get a bunch of sommeliers together for a conference to help them learn more about wine? Their plan, shall we say, was met with some skepticism.

Which just goes to show how little the wine business knows about the wine business. The group that the two men started, the Texas Sommelier Association, will hold its seventh annual conference this weekend, and it has become one of the foremost wine education events in the country -- not only for sommeliers and restaurant wine professionals, but consumers as well. This is where wine drinkers who are ready to take the next step can do just that, and in a mostly friendly and unsnotty environment.

TexSom has become so successful, in fact, that the three-day event is mostly sold out. More, after the jump:

Wine of the week: Pedroncelli Dry Rose of Zinfandel 2009

The Wine Curmudgeon used to eat at a Dallas restaurant where the wine list was, to put it politely, pretty sad. This is not uncommon, of course, since too many restaurant owners tend see wine as an aggravation and not a way to please customers (and yes, I know I promised to write something about this, and it's still on the agenda).

It was frustrating that the wine list had very little anyone would want to drink, since I liked the food and the prices were reasonable. Fortunately, the Pedronceilli rose was on the list, and I drank a lot of it. Like almost every time I ate at the restaurant.

And why not? The rose ($10, purchased) paired with the food that I ordered and it was cheap, especially for restaurant wine. Best yet, the wine was -- and still is -- well made, with some cranberry and currant fruit, a bit of juiciness in the middle, and even some heft. This is not a light rose, but one with body, and it's almost as if there are tannins lurking in the back to remind you this is a dry wine and not that pinkish, sweet stuff. Pedroncelli is a fourth-generation California winemaker, and the family takes great care with what it does -- quality wine at good prices. The chardonnay is worth trying, too.

Chill this (especially this summer) and drink it on its own or with any summer food -- burgers and barbecued chicken come to mind. And be glad that one long ago restaurant owner had the good sense to have one quality wine on his list.

Enough wine for you?

The back room at the Indy International wine competition, where the 2,500 wines entered in the three-day event are kept during the competition. The photo is courtesy of Dave Falchek -- click here for the larger, more impressive image.

Winebits 192: Wine vending machines, master sommelier, wine confusion

• So long, vending machines: Pennsylvania's attempt to add wine vending machines to its already unique arsenal of state-sponsored wine selling venues has apparently failed. That the vending machines didn't really work wasn't the reason; rather, the company that does the machines is behind on its payments to the states. Some background here, which will make most of us who value common sense wince. The good news, reports my pal Dave Falchek and one of Pennsylvania's top wine writers, is that the entire state-sponsored system in Pennsylvania seems near an end. Dave was positively giddy about its demise when I saw him at the Indy International competition last week.

• Congratulations: Devon Broglie, who buys wine for Whole Foods in the southwest U.S., is one of the newest master sommeliers in the United States. This is impressive not only because earning those initials is so difficult -- there are only 112 in North America -- but because Broglie believes in regional wine. He is a huge advocate for Texas wine, as well as for the other states for which he buys wine for the grocery store chain.

• Too many wine choices: Young people are increasingly celebrating special occasions at home with a bottle of wine, but are baffled by the seemingly endless choices on supermarket shelves, says a British study. Keep in mind that it's difficult to extrapolate these results to the U.S. market, since Britain's drinking culture differs from ours, but it's worth noting that the study found that 55 percent of 18- to 34-year-olds drinks at home to mark a special event, compared to just 41 percent of all British in-home drinkers. More than a fifth of 18-34s believe the large wine selection in supermarkets makes buying too complicated compared to just 1 in 10 over-34s. And half admit that without discounting they would probably buy less wine than they do. In other words, people who buy a lot of wine are confused and base their decision on price since they are confused.

Indy International 2011

The 20th annual Indy International wine competition offered a variety of insights into wine competitions and U.S. regional wine. It offered a glimpse of the future of the former with a test of electronic scoring, while reaffirming that the latter are legitimate members of the wine community and deserve to be treated as such.

This year, there were 2,500 entries from 15 countries and and 38 states, which seemed to be not as many as last year. But my panel judged 212 wines over two days (not including the final round of taste-offs), and that was enough.

More, after the jump:

Indy International, day 2

A quick note before the final day of judging today, when we pick the best of the best. Yesterday, our panel gave a double gold to a red Bordeaux blend made with cabernet franc and cabernet sauvignon. We won't know the name of the wine until later today, but it's worth noting that we think it came from the U.S. East Coast.

It was an excellently made wine (my pal Dave Falchek called it a knee-buckler) that combined the structure of the cabernet franc with the fruit of the cabernet sauvignon. Equally as important, the wine showed its terroir -- it was lean and reserved, and was noticeably different from similar California wines.This is not to say one style is better than another, but that they are different, and one of the great joys of wine is appreciating those differences.