Christian profusely apologized for the opening of the bottle of Bollinger Grand Anee 2000 Brut Champagne with a loud Pop. I reminded him that my mouth was salivating in anticipation from a seemingly Pavlov experiment. “Music to my ears” I said. I don’t think there is another experience quite like Champagne. From sight to the occasional Sound, it scintillates the palate, mind and mood. For those that say, “Champagne gives me headaches.” I say you are not drinking the right Champagne. I have had the occasional pounding of the temples from Sparkling or so called Champagne, but never from a top tier Champagne house (i.e. Bollinger, Jean Vesselle, Krug, Louis Roederer, Jean Milan, Andre Clouet, Alain Robert, Comte de Dampierre, Taittinger & more.) I did not include Veuve or Moet & Chandon, I believe that the top tier wine from these houses is still on par with excellence but the White Star and Yellow Label are more and more tasting like bulk production sparkling wines and aren’t made at the same standards as they were in the past.
Driving through the Champagne region towards Epernay, it was amazing to see the vineyards on top of the hillsides. You could see in some areas the chalk, which according to Christian from Bollinger, what makes Champagne the greatest region for growing Sparkling wines. It helps feed the vines water and provides an environment that keeps acidity high while the grapes reach mature flavors. In the Ay region of Champagne, Bollinger gets predominately Grand Cru Pinot Noir grapes for their blend. Bollinger house believes that Pinot Noir makes the best Champagne. The house style of Champagne is more of a full-bodied profile using at minimum of 60% of the Pinot Noir grape. Using 85% of Grand Cru and Premiere grapes, Bollinger uses and pays a premium for the grapes that they use to make their Champagne.
Another fact that differentiates Bollinger compared to other Champagne houses, is they hold thousands of bottles of Reserve wine that they blend into their wines giving them complete control of the blends to make their house style. They sit in individual bottles taking up to 200 meters in the underground cellars. Everything at Bollinger is Hand riddled by a riddler (the quarter turn of a bottle of Champagne promoting the eventual flow of the lees and sediment in the bottles that are going into secondary fermentation) who can quarter turn over 50,000 bottles in a normal work day. Bollinger uses Cork all the way through the secondary fermentation process instead of Bottle caps which is what most Champagne Houses use today. They only use Bottle caps on Special Cuvee NV blends.
Now to the best part, Barrel fermentation, the REAL difference between Bollinger and the rest. Very few Champagne producers use Barrel fermentation to make sparkling wine. Just with any wine, if you don’t have really good grapes (especially in Champagne) the Champagne will fall flat or muted by the Oak fermentation. Krug and Bollinger have really mastered barrel fermentation and Champagne. All you have to do to see that is just look at the wine ratings. When you drink a bottle of GREAT Champagne, you know it. Bollinger uses 5 year used plus White Burgundy Barrrels mostly from Puligny-Montrachet. They boast about the fact they have the largest collection of barrels at over 3,000 for a Champagne producer.
There is no question when you taste a Bollinger Grand Annee or Krug Vintage Champagne, you know that you are drinking some of the best sparkling on the planet. The complexity of the barrel fermentation adds great flavors almonds, nuts, but mostly gives the wine an incredible elegance and softens the acidity making the Champagne seem less abrasive, more full-bodied and creamy. I personally love to drink Champagne, and I do drink Champagne on just about every occasion that I can. I believe no great meal starts without a bottle of fantastic bubbly. Sometimes they begin, continue and end with bottles of Champagne.
The Champagne industry has struggled as the Euro has pushed the wines past what Americans are used to spending on Champagne. Even Christian mentioned that the Bollinger House was extremely worried about its future with the American market due to a decline in sales here. I told Christian to let me sell Bollinger Champagne for $30 a bottle on the shelf in the US and we both had a good laugh. We sampled through some of the House Champagne’s.
Bollinger Special Cuvee NV – This Champagne remains one of my favorite NV’s in the Texas Market. Sure Krug NV is also really special, but Krug at $150 a bottle, Bollinger at $80. I think they both have a place in your cellar. At this level I like the fact that Bollinger uses more Pinot Noir.
Bollinger Special Cuvee Rose NV – It is a very well made Rose but I think the Special Cuvee Brut is their Forte. Dried Cherries, Raspberries flavors, on a toasty palate with a long red fruit finish.
Bollinger Grand Annee 2000 – Great weight, texture, complexity, plenty of minerals, toast, grilled bread, nuts, flowers, hints of citrus rinds, delicate yet robust. Absolutely gorgeous Champagne, it is one that needs to be at anyone’s next special occasion.
Bollinger R.D. Grand Annee Champagne 1997 – More Leesy and toasty than the Grand Annee 2000, you can tell this Champagne really developed more plump weight with the extra bottle age before disgorgement. It is far more creamy, with vanilla tones. For the bigger is better fan, it is disgorged at a lower dosage level (sugar added before bottling) yet the extra time on the lees really gives it a more creamy texture. Another big hit from Bollinger, it shouldn’t be a surprise at this point. They have only been making great Champagne since 1826.
Recently, Bollinger purchased another Champagne house called Ayala, which is literally right over a hill from Bollinger in Ay. This Champagne house began production on 1860, but fell of the map over the past 20 years and now Bollinger is attempting to recreate it. I was very appreciative to have a short visit with Herve Augustin, who I believe is the President of Operations. Herve used to be with Bollinger and has been put in charge of making a Champagne that does not compete with Bollinger, yet would complement the Bollinger portfolio.
Herve has decided to focus on Zero Dosage or Brut Nature Champagne. As we head to tasting room, I can’t help but notice a smell of Horse or Barnyard. I must say I was quite concerned about the Champagne I was about to taste. Remember it had been raining for the past few days, and continued to rain the entire time I was in Champagne. Thankfully the tasting room did not have the same smell and the Champagne was clean from any wet animal smell. The Champagne’s were good, not the same level as Bollinger but definitely something that I will interested to see how they develop the brand. I am not sure of the price points in the US, but I will send a follow up when I get back the States next week.
The Winner from Ayala:
Ayala Brut Blanc de Blanc 2000 – This Champagne made me forget about the lack of personality from Herve. It is truly exceptional Champagne and should be great vintage Champagne that should retail less than $100 in Dallas, but we will see what import costs are.
Special Thanks to Terlato Imports, Christian Dennis & Herve Augustin.
Well I welcome the Sun as a sit typing this Blog from the patio overlooking the lake in Desenzano, Italy. Next Stop VinItaly..Arrivederci …
Ciao,
Amier
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Thursday, April 1, 2010
More and More Bordeaux
Sometimes it seems as if there is an endless supply of Bordeaux. I guess when you have over 3,000 producers it can be almost a reality. Then you take into account that many of these producers produce 2 - 3 wines. AY!
What started as a pretty laid back day, became a full-throttle marathon before Lunch. In 2 hours, I sampled over 150 wines from Petite Chateaux, 2nd Vins de Grand Cru Classe, Older Classified Growth wines. One of the most impressive sites to be seen is the negociant at Chateau Rauzan-Segla and there inventory of over 1.2 Million Bottles of Classified Growths to Cru Borgeois. I have never seen something like it, truely awe inspiring. Then when you do the math on the Petrus, Chateau Margaux, Lafite Rothschild (2000, 2005, 1982, 1989, you name it just palates and palates of it sitting in temperature storage.) I have never felt like such a kid in a candy store, all I kept asking was do you have any Lynch Bages 1989 (My Wife and I's Special Wine) which is getting harder and harder to find.
Some of the winners from the Day:
Clos du Marquis 2001
Lacoste Borie Pauillac 2006
Croix de Beaucaillou St. Julien 2006
Vray Croix de Gay Pomerol 2009
La Gravette de Certan Pomerol 2007
Chateau Leoville Poyferre St Julien 2007
Sarget de Gruaud Larose St Julien 2007
Chateau Clerc Milon Pauillac 2009 (Yes I Know it's that good that I had to taste it again)
Chateau Beaumont Haut-Medoc 2009
Chateau D'Issan Margaux 2009
Clos Demoiselles Listrac-Medoc 2003
Most of these wines will retail under $60 a bottle and are fantastic. I will have a complete list with tasting notes and prices once I get back to the states.
It was a fantastic day of tasting and tomorrow is a day of one appointment. Only it's in Champagne, a 7.5 Hour drive from here. However, I am a sucker for Champagne. A good Champagne is worth almost whatever it takes to ger it. Bollinger is up there with one of the best Champagne houses. When you ask the Chateau Estate owners what they like to drink from Champagne, it's almost always Bollinger.
If you haven't been to Bodega in a while, we are pouring Montaudon Champagne by the glass for $12 a glass. It's affordable and delicious. I am signing out from Bordeaux, next time you hear from me will be from Champagne.
Cheers,
Amier
What started as a pretty laid back day, became a full-throttle marathon before Lunch. In 2 hours, I sampled over 150 wines from Petite Chateaux, 2nd Vins de Grand Cru Classe, Older Classified Growth wines. One of the most impressive sites to be seen is the negociant at Chateau Rauzan-Segla and there inventory of over 1.2 Million Bottles of Classified Growths to Cru Borgeois. I have never seen something like it, truely awe inspiring. Then when you do the math on the Petrus, Chateau Margaux, Lafite Rothschild (2000, 2005, 1982, 1989, you name it just palates and palates of it sitting in temperature storage.) I have never felt like such a kid in a candy store, all I kept asking was do you have any Lynch Bages 1989 (My Wife and I's Special Wine) which is getting harder and harder to find.
Some of the winners from the Day:
Clos du Marquis 2001
Lacoste Borie Pauillac 2006
Croix de Beaucaillou St. Julien 2006
Vray Croix de Gay Pomerol 2009
La Gravette de Certan Pomerol 2007
Chateau Leoville Poyferre St Julien 2007
Sarget de Gruaud Larose St Julien 2007
Chateau Clerc Milon Pauillac 2009 (Yes I Know it's that good that I had to taste it again)
Chateau Beaumont Haut-Medoc 2009
Chateau D'Issan Margaux 2009
Clos Demoiselles Listrac-Medoc 2003
Most of these wines will retail under $60 a bottle and are fantastic. I will have a complete list with tasting notes and prices once I get back to the states.
It was a fantastic day of tasting and tomorrow is a day of one appointment. Only it's in Champagne, a 7.5 Hour drive from here. However, I am a sucker for Champagne. A good Champagne is worth almost whatever it takes to ger it. Bollinger is up there with one of the best Champagne houses. When you ask the Chateau Estate owners what they like to drink from Champagne, it's almost always Bollinger.
If you haven't been to Bodega in a while, we are pouring Montaudon Champagne by the glass for $12 a glass. It's affordable and delicious. I am signing out from Bordeaux, next time you hear from me will be from Champagne.
Cheers,
Amier
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
St Emilion, Pomerol & Sauternes
130 Bordeaux samples in less than 48 hours and here's what I noticed:
A diverse group of tasters, mostly French, Asian and Brittish crowded the Chateaux in anticipation of an apparently super-hyped vintage. It doesn't take long sampling these wines to realize that dream of terrior is starting to fade away. Chateaux poured very proudly these wines of excellent concentration, almost boasting their oppulence. Even James Suckling from Wine Spectator is already making excuses about the extraction of Oak amd Skin Tannin (yes, after I completed tasting I checked to see what others thought of this vintage.)
Beyond being a trade professional, I am also a huge wine fan. Not like so many of my counterparts that want to drink what's free, I enjoy the search for that great bottle of wine to purchase for my wife and I to share. So when I see the evolution of what I considered some of the greatest wines on Earth, it can be disturbing. When I see Hype and not substance pushing the prices sky high, I have to call a spade a spade.
Is 2009 a great vintage? It appears to be Very Good to Great
Is 2009 in parallel with 1982 as one of the greatest vintages? Only time will tell, people knew 1982 was a great vintage but it wasn't until later that it started to deserve it's reputation as one of the best ever.
The last truely proven great vintages in my opinion - 2005 (?Maybe still too tannic to tell), 2000, 1995, 1989. To me, a great vintage is one when you open a bottle it just makes you melt with anticipation for another taste. It's layered, complex, balanced and focused.
Vintages that I found issue with -
2003 - the wines were overly ripe and many display cooked fruit nuances and lack freshness.
2005 - Some of the petite Chateaux and Cru Bourgeois were excellent. Some of the 5th growths that I tried were amazing. Some of the 1st growths and 2nd growths were so extracted and tannic, they need 10 years just to hope that they come into balance.
I don't remember which wine maker told me this, but I swear by it. A wine doesn't grow into balance. If the wine is not balanced with fruit, acidity and structure than it can't just appear. As simple as it sounds, I think some critics have forgotten that simple rule of thumb.
-On to what I thought of St Emilion, Pomerol & Sauternes
On intial impression, it just seems if Merlot got over-ripe, super-ripe, too ridiculously ripe. SOme of the alcohols were a touch hot, only exaggerated by the huge tannins. There were those that did manage to make fantastic wines and overall you can still tell it was a good ripe vintage. It's a lot easier to make good wines from ripe grapes than green and plump (rain) grapes. It seemed as if some wineries saw the wines taking on an overipe quality and used stems to extract structure. You could really see some of what most have been extreme heat in the Sauternes. They boderline cloying. They seem to as a majority lack the zipline of acidity that makes them truely special.
On my top performers:
Pomerol
Chateau Gazin and Chateau La Conseillante - Both deserve a good mid to low 90's score.
St Emilion
Chateau Pavie Macquin & Chateau Troplong Mondot - These deserve mid to high 90's, they were really superb and really did a lovely job managing some of the prune and raisin quality I found in some of the other St Emilions. By the way, you must come to St Emilion at some point in your future and just see how gorgeous of a region it is. I am always amazed at how pretty it is. Since I was lost twice today as my GPS kept trying to send me down roads that no longer exist, I saw some picturesque countryside.
Sauterenes
Chateau Guiraud & Chateau Suduiraut - These will proabably score very high by critics but I think they should be in the more mid 90's. Nowhere near the freshness that I found in the 2001, which are still just absolutely amazing.
Tomorrow I head back to St Emilion this time to taste with some small estates that can't afford to be a part of the Union des Grand Crus. I hope to get a video or two of what they think candidly of the 2009 vintage. By the way, Wine, Hail, Rain, punishing winds, these are the lengths I go to bring you these reports. Just think of me as the guy from CNN, who stands near the Hurricane, only I have Purple teeth and I get to taste wines the whole time. Ahh the sacrifice!
Cheers,
Amier
P.S. It seems as if spell check in France, only checks for spelling in French - so sorry for all my grammatical errors. I plan to do a spell check when I get back to the States and just see how bad I am at spelling. I think I am in the aweful range.
A diverse group of tasters, mostly French, Asian and Brittish crowded the Chateaux in anticipation of an apparently super-hyped vintage. It doesn't take long sampling these wines to realize that dream of terrior is starting to fade away. Chateaux poured very proudly these wines of excellent concentration, almost boasting their oppulence. Even James Suckling from Wine Spectator is already making excuses about the extraction of Oak amd Skin Tannin (yes, after I completed tasting I checked to see what others thought of this vintage.)
Beyond being a trade professional, I am also a huge wine fan. Not like so many of my counterparts that want to drink what's free, I enjoy the search for that great bottle of wine to purchase for my wife and I to share. So when I see the evolution of what I considered some of the greatest wines on Earth, it can be disturbing. When I see Hype and not substance pushing the prices sky high, I have to call a spade a spade.
Is 2009 a great vintage? It appears to be Very Good to Great
Is 2009 in parallel with 1982 as one of the greatest vintages? Only time will tell, people knew 1982 was a great vintage but it wasn't until later that it started to deserve it's reputation as one of the best ever.
The last truely proven great vintages in my opinion - 2005 (?Maybe still too tannic to tell), 2000, 1995, 1989. To me, a great vintage is one when you open a bottle it just makes you melt with anticipation for another taste. It's layered, complex, balanced and focused.
Vintages that I found issue with -
2003 - the wines were overly ripe and many display cooked fruit nuances and lack freshness.
2005 - Some of the petite Chateaux and Cru Bourgeois were excellent. Some of the 5th growths that I tried were amazing. Some of the 1st growths and 2nd growths were so extracted and tannic, they need 10 years just to hope that they come into balance.
I don't remember which wine maker told me this, but I swear by it. A wine doesn't grow into balance. If the wine is not balanced with fruit, acidity and structure than it can't just appear. As simple as it sounds, I think some critics have forgotten that simple rule of thumb.
-On to what I thought of St Emilion, Pomerol & Sauternes
On intial impression, it just seems if Merlot got over-ripe, super-ripe, too ridiculously ripe. SOme of the alcohols were a touch hot, only exaggerated by the huge tannins. There were those that did manage to make fantastic wines and overall you can still tell it was a good ripe vintage. It's a lot easier to make good wines from ripe grapes than green and plump (rain) grapes. It seemed as if some wineries saw the wines taking on an overipe quality and used stems to extract structure. You could really see some of what most have been extreme heat in the Sauternes. They boderline cloying. They seem to as a majority lack the zipline of acidity that makes them truely special.
On my top performers:
Pomerol
Chateau Gazin and Chateau La Conseillante - Both deserve a good mid to low 90's score.
St Emilion
Chateau Pavie Macquin & Chateau Troplong Mondot - These deserve mid to high 90's, they were really superb and really did a lovely job managing some of the prune and raisin quality I found in some of the other St Emilions. By the way, you must come to St Emilion at some point in your future and just see how gorgeous of a region it is. I am always amazed at how pretty it is. Since I was lost twice today as my GPS kept trying to send me down roads that no longer exist, I saw some picturesque countryside.
Sauterenes
Chateau Guiraud & Chateau Suduiraut - These will proabably score very high by critics but I think they should be in the more mid 90's. Nowhere near the freshness that I found in the 2001, which are still just absolutely amazing.
Tomorrow I head back to St Emilion this time to taste with some small estates that can't afford to be a part of the Union des Grand Crus. I hope to get a video or two of what they think candidly of the 2009 vintage. By the way, Wine, Hail, Rain, punishing winds, these are the lengths I go to bring you these reports. Just think of me as the guy from CNN, who stands near the Hurricane, only I have Purple teeth and I get to taste wines the whole time. Ahh the sacrifice!
Cheers,
Amier
P.S. It seems as if spell check in France, only checks for spelling in French - so sorry for all my grammatical errors. I plan to do a spell check when I get back to the States and just see how bad I am at spelling. I think I am in the aweful range.
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Union des Grand Crus 2009 Primeurs
It's 1am local time and many of my fellow trade professionals are undoubtedly exhausted from such a fantastic day of tasting. As I go through the next few days tasting what appears to an endless supply of hearty Bordeaux, I will keep you posted daily on my findings.
Today: Sampled 85 Wines
Where: Pauillac, St Estephe, St Julien, Margaux, Pessac-Leognan, Graves
Thank you to Chateau Smith Haut-Lafite, Chateau Batailley & Chateau Desmirail for graciosuly hosting hundreds of trade professionals.
Background:
I purposely did not read about what other critics were stating about the 2009 vintage. A) I did not want to be influenced by other opinions. B) I like to taste as blind as possible. C) Let what's in the glass tell me it's story.
When tasting wines that have only been in barrel for less than 6 months, one must keep an open mind on the core components. Fruit, Acidity, tannin, weight and most importantly flavor. Over time one becomes accustomed to tasting wines from a particular region and they have classic flavor profiles that when done right give you a classic reference to search. What makes Bordeaux have a bit of a twist is that they are all blends. Besides the fact it needs to be a blend of some combination from the 5 varietals: Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Petite Verdot & Malbec: it's really all about microclimate and soil.
Depending on speed of uploads, I will try to upload some videos of the vineyards.
i.e.: I have some great shots at Chateau Smith Haut-Lafite in Graves - Has soils that showcase why Graves has such a chalky, dusty & mineral personality. It's the Gravel. It's everywhere.
Brief Synopsis of the Day:
So many great wines on what appears to be a stellar vintage. The wines are screaming with tannin, which is to be expected at such an early stage, however I wonder if some will ever come to balance. Some of the St Julien's I tasted seemed to be completely masked in Tannin.
St Julien
Chateau Leoville Barton & Chateau Brenaire-Ducru were very well made and should score well into the 90's. I will post all my tasting notes and reviews at the conclusion of all the tastings in Bordeaux.
St Estephe
These wines were ripe and round. Very lush and suprisingly drinkable. My favorite at this tsting was Chateau Lafon-Rochet.
Pauillac
It showed its dominate personality and possibly the reason it contains majority of the first growths. When these wines are on, it's very hard to beat. On a vintage that seems all about robust Cabernet weight, these wines stole the show for the day. Expect many mid 90's and above from this region. Of what we sampled today, Chateau Clerc Milon was a show stopper.
Margaux
This was a hard one to judge, there was such a dominate nose of fresh French oak and someone decided to drench themselves in Cologne that was in the room. However, I did find these wines to be very fine, yet not spectacular. I quite honestly expected a little more from what I expect will end up being considered a classic vintage. Don't get me wrong, plenty of the wines will score in the low 90's. My pick from the tasting was the Chateau Malescot Saint-Expurey & Chateau du Tertre.
Graves & Pessac-Leognan
Some of the whites tasted were out of this world. Pape-Clement Blanc is outstanding and I expect that it will be rewarded quite handsomly with a review in the near future. Chateau Picque Caillou, I thought showed very well also. The reds were kind of all over the board. Definitely not quite as rich and concentrated as some of the other wines tasted today. But the winner's really were superb, Chateau Pape Clement Rouge was singing in the glass, Domaine de Chavelier also was quite well made.
That's all for today as 2am approaches here and tomorrow begins at 8am to head back out to the vineyards. Pomerol, St Emilion and Sauternes are on the agenda for the day.
Avoir,
Amier
Today: Sampled 85 Wines
Where: Pauillac, St Estephe, St Julien, Margaux, Pessac-Leognan, Graves
Thank you to Chateau Smith Haut-Lafite, Chateau Batailley & Chateau Desmirail for graciosuly hosting hundreds of trade professionals.
Background:
I purposely did not read about what other critics were stating about the 2009 vintage. A) I did not want to be influenced by other opinions. B) I like to taste as blind as possible. C) Let what's in the glass tell me it's story.
When tasting wines that have only been in barrel for less than 6 months, one must keep an open mind on the core components. Fruit, Acidity, tannin, weight and most importantly flavor. Over time one becomes accustomed to tasting wines from a particular region and they have classic flavor profiles that when done right give you a classic reference to search. What makes Bordeaux have a bit of a twist is that they are all blends. Besides the fact it needs to be a blend of some combination from the 5 varietals: Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Petite Verdot & Malbec: it's really all about microclimate and soil.
Depending on speed of uploads, I will try to upload some videos of the vineyards.
i.e.: I have some great shots at Chateau Smith Haut-Lafite in Graves - Has soils that showcase why Graves has such a chalky, dusty & mineral personality. It's the Gravel. It's everywhere.
Brief Synopsis of the Day:
So many great wines on what appears to be a stellar vintage. The wines are screaming with tannin, which is to be expected at such an early stage, however I wonder if some will ever come to balance. Some of the St Julien's I tasted seemed to be completely masked in Tannin.
St Julien
Chateau Leoville Barton & Chateau Brenaire-Ducru were very well made and should score well into the 90's. I will post all my tasting notes and reviews at the conclusion of all the tastings in Bordeaux.
St Estephe
These wines were ripe and round. Very lush and suprisingly drinkable. My favorite at this tsting was Chateau Lafon-Rochet.
Pauillac
It showed its dominate personality and possibly the reason it contains majority of the first growths. When these wines are on, it's very hard to beat. On a vintage that seems all about robust Cabernet weight, these wines stole the show for the day. Expect many mid 90's and above from this region. Of what we sampled today, Chateau Clerc Milon was a show stopper.
Margaux
This was a hard one to judge, there was such a dominate nose of fresh French oak and someone decided to drench themselves in Cologne that was in the room. However, I did find these wines to be very fine, yet not spectacular. I quite honestly expected a little more from what I expect will end up being considered a classic vintage. Don't get me wrong, plenty of the wines will score in the low 90's. My pick from the tasting was the Chateau Malescot Saint-Expurey & Chateau du Tertre.
Graves & Pessac-Leognan
Some of the whites tasted were out of this world. Pape-Clement Blanc is outstanding and I expect that it will be rewarded quite handsomly with a review in the near future. Chateau Picque Caillou, I thought showed very well also. The reds were kind of all over the board. Definitely not quite as rich and concentrated as some of the other wines tasted today. But the winner's really were superb, Chateau Pape Clement Rouge was singing in the glass, Domaine de Chavelier also was quite well made.
That's all for today as 2am approaches here and tomorrow begins at 8am to head back out to the vineyards. Pomerol, St Emilion and Sauternes are on the agenda for the day.
Avoir,
Amier
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Wine 101 - Monday Nights at Bodega Bar Dallas
As I prepare for another adventure to Europe, I am reminded at just how complex our industry has become. 20 years ago, when I began my career in wine service, it seemed so simple. In your choices were Chablis (most likely California Chardonnay), White Zinfandel or Merlot. How times have changed? Not only does your local pub, with wine service out of 1.5L sitting at room temperature and been open longer than the waitress has been employed, serve a selection larger than 6 wines; but your fine dining restaurants are now expected carry and understand wine programs in the 100's. Oh, how times have changed.
Now wine professionals travel the globe to attend trade events that often barrel taste wines yet to be released just for an opportunity to stake claim to those few bottles that may one day mold your next memory. The sophisticated side of wine measures success in Quality and reputation not in production widgets and profitability. The wine industry goes against the grain of everything one learns in business school. Which is where the saying, "How do you make a small fortune in the wine business? Start with a large one!" comes from. Yet competition remains fierce as passions and love affairs with Vitis Vinifera remain so strong. Awards for wines and now awards for Sommeliers, producing an even more competitive environment for wine professionals.
Competition for awards and degrees have become a large part of the life of a Sommelier. Complex exams, blind tastings & wine service now separate on paper the knowledgeable from the enthusiast. In an Era where degrees count more than experience, Wine professionals are starting to see this trend as well. Most successful wine professional will agree, the best part of a career in wine is the study. The only way to learn is to have experience, and experience tastes so good. This year I set a goal of getting back to Europe (having a young child can have challenges in the traveling to Europe for weeks at a time department) & continuing the Master Court Sommelier course I started a couple of years ago (Pre-Baby.) I invite all of you to come along (Vicariously of Course.) I plan to make short video diaries of my travel, my classes & my general wine experiences.
Introducing Wine 101 - My Monday Night Classes. Attend my weekly classes as I prepare for upper level sommelier exams by teaching you the knowledge that I learn along the way. A class schedule is on our website under the link Wine 101. A short note: It is sad to see Crush close, if you have friends that used to go to Crush and don't have a new home (let's face it - a good wine bar is like a Home away from Home) tell them to come to Bodega Bar. Remember our Wine Fair is this Saturday and would be a great way to introduce new friends to Bodega Bar.
Cheers,
Amier
Now wine professionals travel the globe to attend trade events that often barrel taste wines yet to be released just for an opportunity to stake claim to those few bottles that may one day mold your next memory. The sophisticated side of wine measures success in Quality and reputation not in production widgets and profitability. The wine industry goes against the grain of everything one learns in business school. Which is where the saying, "How do you make a small fortune in the wine business? Start with a large one!" comes from. Yet competition remains fierce as passions and love affairs with Vitis Vinifera remain so strong. Awards for wines and now awards for Sommeliers, producing an even more competitive environment for wine professionals.
Competition for awards and degrees have become a large part of the life of a Sommelier. Complex exams, blind tastings & wine service now separate on paper the knowledgeable from the enthusiast. In an Era where degrees count more than experience, Wine professionals are starting to see this trend as well. Most successful wine professional will agree, the best part of a career in wine is the study. The only way to learn is to have experience, and experience tastes so good. This year I set a goal of getting back to Europe (having a young child can have challenges in the traveling to Europe for weeks at a time department) & continuing the Master Court Sommelier course I started a couple of years ago (Pre-Baby.) I invite all of you to come along (Vicariously of Course.) I plan to make short video diaries of my travel, my classes & my general wine experiences.
Introducing Wine 101 - My Monday Night Classes. Attend my weekly classes as I prepare for upper level sommelier exams by teaching you the knowledge that I learn along the way. A class schedule is on our website under the link Wine 101. A short note: It is sad to see Crush close, if you have friends that used to go to Crush and don't have a new home (let's face it - a good wine bar is like a Home away from Home) tell them to come to Bodega Bar. Remember our Wine Fair is this Saturday and would be a great way to introduce new friends to Bodega Bar.
Cheers,
Amier
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