Saturday, January 26, 2008

The things wine will do...

We've all done it at some point. The end of a long week, your better half dressed to the nines, it's pay day. Let;s go out for a date and have a nice glass of wine!

I arrived at the Veranda this evening for a glass of malbec (Punto Final, my obsession lately). As I sat down, I saw a couple clearly infatuated with each other, two half empty glasses at their fingertips as they canoodled in the corner. Nick and I shared a few laughs as this couple spent more time lip-locked than drinking. They quickly paid their bill and headed, incredibly, to St. Cloud's other wine location, Corks, with a promise to return.

I had been sipping the malbec, wrestling with my feelings about it. It's a great wine (previously rated on Noble Rot!) but they've changed it for the '05 vintage. It's more Zinfandel-like than Cabernet, and I've noted that malbec has that characteristic. Not quite a Zin, not quite a Cab, but sometimes just as good as either. The Punto Final '04 was a real bargain and the '05 is good...and believe me, I've had a few glasses in my quest to recapture those elusive elements, but it just doesn't quite put me over the top.

At any rate, the couple offered their bottle to the bar and I smiled thankfully, expecting to see a bottle of white zin. Not at all - they left half a bottle of Andretti 50% Primitivo and 50% Zinfandel - a truly great wine, like the man himself.



So now, as I sit here with a decent glass of Punto Final in front of me - do I let it sit and have a glass of Andretti, or do I finish the Punto and then curl up with the Andretti? Oh, to have this dilemma every night....

Monday, January 14, 2008

Price and wine


The Associated Press reports on a study done by Antonio Rangel and others at California Institute of Technology on the perception of wine as related to price. The study was intended to measure pleasure, and price was factored in.

The study took 20 participants and asked them to taste various Cabernet Sauvignons. The researchers took a $45 bottle and a $5 bottle and had the participants taste three times. The kicker was that one of the wines was repeated, this time with the price changed.

So what do you think happened?

It turns out that the price essentially determined the pleasure, and in particular, the $5 wine scored best when labeled as the most expensive.

This was attributed to the relative inexperience of the participants, but it struck me as funny, as Nick of the Veranda Lounge has threatened to open a $5 wine the next time we order a $100 bottle!

(img courtesy of Slate.com)

Saturday, January 05, 2008

Mumm Cordon Rouge NV



Happy New Year! I felt that my first post of 2008 should be, appropriately, a bubbly. There is lots to celebrate, from Rebekah's impending move to Minnesota to my continued publication as a wine journalist! (shameless plug - check out "WineS" magazine at a fine retailer near you...)

Let's get to business. I bought a bottle of Mumm Cordon Rouge NV at a recent "dot sale" at my favorite retailer - Westside Liquor in St Cloud Minnesota. The dot sale puts wine on sale at 20, 30, 50 and 70% off. I've learned that many of the 70% are at LEAST drink now wines, if not past their prime, but the 50% wines are generally good finds. I beelined for the bubbly on the first day of the sale and was happy to find a bottle of Cordon Rouge for only $22!

I've been nearly obsessed with this champagne even before my wine snobbery began. You see, this is what Formula One drivers spray on each other on the podium after a hard-fought race!



I popped the cork with reverence and a gleam in my eye, asking REbekah if she minded if I sprayed her and our dog as if I had just won the Monaco GP. As I poured I noted that it was properly effervescent and had a deep, golden straw color. I expected it to be on the heavy side, but the nose indicated otherwise. A hint of yeast with light fruit, not unlike a Sauvignon Blanc with a hint of tropical fruit and sweetness. The palate was equally divine, a *very* drinkable champagne that is a nice contrast to the heavy examples (like Veuve Cliquot, for example). Before we knew it, we had sipped through the bottle...unfortunately.

I'm going to be standing outside the dot sale before Westside opens next time, looking for bubbly!!!