Tartaric Crystals in Wine: the "Wine Diamonds" of Quality

Have you ever come across what appear to be white flakes floating in your bottle of wine? Did you assume that this snow-globe appearance somehow meant the wine was flawed or ruined?

What you had most likely seen are tartaric crystals, commonly referred to as “wine diamonds” or Weinstein (“wine stone”) in German speaking countries. So do these wine diamonds signal a bad bottle of wine?

Opinions about this issue are divided and the reason is simple: you have bought flawless wine, but you have not bought aesthetically flawless wine. Depending upon where you are from, this can matter to you more or less.

The American wine drinker is not used to finding wine diamonds in their bottles. Here, most wines undergo a cold stabilization process, which is when a wine is cooled down before it is bottled so that the white flakes, called crystallized tartaric acid, “fall out” and can be separated from the wine. But what price beauty? Cold stabilization influences a wine’s balance and taste: as some winemakers put it, the wine is actually being ripped apart, and the rapid cooling changes the wine’s colloidal structure. One might call it a clear case of style over substance. Continue reading “Tartaric Crystals in Wine: the "Wine Diamonds" of Quality”

There Are a Lot of Ways to Get a Wine to Market and It Doesn’t Involve Making the Wine

I notice numerous ads appearing in wine industry newsletters that advertise bulk wines for sale and often wondered why there is this classification of wine for sale and who buys such wine. I see ads for a lot of California bulk wines as well as some of these wine sales from Oregon, Washington, and from East Coast wineries and vineyards. And with some frequency it is not unusual to see ads for wines sales coming from many international wine regions.

Bulk wine is another facet of the wine industry that is not understood by the casual wine consumer, but it is a major contributor to the growth of the wine industry. What is bulk wine and grapes? This wine comes from surplus production at a winery that has not yet made it into the bottle and labeled. There is also a segment of the market where wineries and vineyards produce wine only for the bulk market. There are also brands that have no winery and rely on the bulk market to create their brand. Bulk grapes, like wine, come from a winery’s vineyard or an independent vineyard. These grapes are sold by the ton at time of harvest; often a year in advance.

Bulk wine is of a known quality that is tasted by a buyer prior to the purchase. Brokers that sell wines without a home never take possession of the wine, but still have licensing requirement from the Tax and Trade Bureau of the Department of the Treasury. Point being, bulk wine is a high-quality wine that has a pedigree-it has a known producer, known quality, historic characteristics and is easily sampled/tasted by the buyer. Continue reading “There Are a Lot of Ways to Get a Wine to Market and It Doesn’t Involve Making the Wine”

Medieval Wine Trivia

The cycle of the vineyards and man’s enjoyment of wine has continued throughout the ages
with some of these intriguing differences…

ONCE UPON A TIME

Roman civilization was well versed in viticulture and wine making, but then the Barbarians
destroyed their vineyards and turned them into pastureland and cornfields. Luckily,
Benedictine and other monks kept the art of viticulture alive at their monasteries. By the
12th century, viticulture was fully revived.

THEY WEREN’T SO FUSSY

One of the major differences between today’s wine connoisseurs and medieval man was that
back then they weren’t so concerned with which exact vineyard a wine came from, but rather
the general area. The body of the wine was more important than it’s subtle flavors and
aroma.

Continue reading “Medieval Wine Trivia”

Romancing With Wine and Food

You can always impress your date by romancing with wine and food. Everyone knows that the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach, and as for the wine we still aren’t sure on that one. However, most women love gourmet food and wine, so the man who can provide that and more is sure to impress his date for the evening.

Other countries like Italy, Brazil, and France are said to be known to have the guidebook on romancing with wine and food. The experience of romance with wine and food means that it is about the whole experience, with everything from the appetizer to the dessert; however don’t forget the environment in which the meal takes place.

Part of romancing with wine and food begins with the ambience, and nothing says romance like dining according to the seasons. During the summertime, dining outside can make all the difference in the world. You can enjoy the warm weather, and enjoy the food that goes with the season. Appetizers with fresh fruit and cheese are best for the warmer season, and pair well with chilled wine. Continue reading “Romancing With Wine and Food”

Wine Clubs and the Wine Industry – Adjusting the Stereotypes of Wine Enthusiasts in America

If you think American men only guzzle beer and women only enjoy cocktails, think again. In addition, if you think beer is the most popular alcoholic beverage in America, this article has a surprise for you. Today, Americans consume more wine than beer, and women purchase more wine than men do. More women also belong to a wine of the month club. As times have changed, these stereotypes require some adjusting too so that winemakers, wine clubs, and retailers can realize the importance of marketing to women. This article shows the new stereotype for wine drinkers in America. In addition, it discusses how women are changing the face of winemaking, both as winemakers and as consumers.

Merrill Research & Associates found in a recent study that Americans have increased their wine consumption for the last eleven years straight. This also includes wine consumption from an increase in wine of the month club memberships. This study proves that wine is extremely popular in America and more and more people are enjoying it every day through retailers, restaurants, and wine clubs. The per capita consumption of wine is now 2.77 gallons per year. An elite group referred to as “core wine drinkers” by the wine industry, only makes up 13.7% of the population, but they drink 87% of the wine consumed in America, 703 million gallons worth per year. With a $26 billion retail value, the wine business is booming, and both foreign and domestic wine producers and retailers are salivating at the opportunity that this potential market presents. Continue reading “Wine Clubs and the Wine Industry – Adjusting the Stereotypes of Wine Enthusiasts in America”

How to Become a Wine Tasting Expert

Becoming a wine expert is not as hard as you might think. What you will need, apart from sheer enthusiasm, is a combination of some straight forward wine skills. These come in the form of an ability to decipher and provide accurate tasting notes, read and fully understand wine labels and at least know what countries around the world produce wines.

First of all, pick your niche such as New World reds, oak-aged Chardonnays or Bordeaux wines (start with what you know or like best) – the list is limitless, so you can start anywhere you like. Then visit your local wine store, and have a good look at as many wines as possible in your selected niche. The staff in the wine store will usually be very helpful showing you how to select wines with certain aromas and flavours, as well as which varieties pair well with which foods. Also keep an eye out for alcohol levels – a high alcohol wine may not always be desirable.

A few pointers to keep in mind:

Read back labels to learn about the wines themselves.
Talk to shop staff or even to other customers for their opinion.
Is the alcohol level high for the wine in question or would you prefer it to be a little lower? (Higher alcohol wines tend to come from hotter countries).
Find out if the weather was good or bad for that vintage – this makes a big difference to the overall quality.

Continue reading “How to Become a Wine Tasting Expert”

How to Clean a Thermos Food Jar

Thermos food jars are only as good as they can serve their purpose; otherwise they can be such a disappointment. Pre-heating or cooling your thermos before filling it up could go a long way in ensuring best results, but never use the microwave for this. Always fill it up with hot or cold water before hand and leave it still for around five minutes, after which you can empty and use it as required.

The biggest gaffe one can ever pull is using the dishwasher and chlorine or bleach to clean a thermos food jar. Sturdy stain removers have an abrasive effect on the rubber washers in the covers and the lid. Before you know it, the thermos innards will begin to spill. The dishwasher makes work easier, but it denies you the opportunity to clean the flask to detail.

For best results, use trifling soaps or dishwashing cleansers like Dawn and Ivory in trivial soapy water, and hark back to rinse well before intended usage. Rough rasping cleansers will more often than not damage and smudge the surface and inner linings of the thermos food jars. When this goes on for some time, the thermos could even alter savors of your stored food and beverage. Continue reading “How to Clean a Thermos Food Jar”

A Wine Bar And Restaurant Share The Basic Wine Characteristics You Must Know

Knowing the basics wine characteristics will help you to develop your palate and find favorites. You will definitely have a better chance of getting what you love. A wine bar and restaurant says that classifying wines by their fundamental traits is the best way of learning about your taste.

Wine Characteristics

Sweetness – This is also known as the level of dryness. Human perception of taste begins at the tip of the tongue. The very first impression of a wine is how sweet it is. To taste sweet, you must focus your attention on the taste buds on the tip of your tongue. If your taste buds are tingling, it indicates sweetness.

Acidity – Tart and zesty are the acidity in food and drink. Tasting acidity is usually confused with the taste of higher alcohol. It is indeed common for wines grown in cooler vintages to have higher acidity. These feel lighter weight since they come across as “spritzy”. If you like one that is more rich and round, choose those with less acidity. Characteristics of an acidic wine include feeling gravelly when you rub your tongue to the roof of your mouth and feeling like you can gleek. Your mouth also feels wet or it seems like you just bit into an apple. Continue reading “A Wine Bar And Restaurant Share The Basic Wine Characteristics You Must Know”

How I Found Myself in a Bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken

Well actually, it wasn’t a bucket of KFC, but rather a two piece individual breast and wing meal. You know the special meal that comes in the box with two side dishes; personally I have always been partial to cold slaw and mashed potatoes without the sloppy gravy. And don’t forget the necessary spork and wet wipe napkin to round out the dining adventure.

It was a day like any other, except for the fact that I’m on spring break from school and my husband has been out of town, translation: I have lots of free time. It was nearing lunch time and I decided to treat myself and this day was the day. You see, my husband gets sick from most fast food restaurants, so I eat at them without him and KFC has been a twice a year treat for me when he is out of town. A quick trip around the big block and I was back on my sofa with my box of KFC and a new book by Geneen Roth, Women, Food and God.

I ate my wing first, I hate them because there is nothing to them and quite frankly I just wanted to eat something and it was lunchtime. In just a few minutes there was nothing left of the wing but teeny tiny bones in the bottom of the box. Next I opened the red plastic top of the container of mashed potatoes. I wonder what happened to those small Styrofoam cups; the spork scraping the foam was just like the nails on a chalk board sound, oh I remember it well. Styrofoam vs. plastic, I guess plastic is the lesser of two evils in today’s world. I dipped my spork into the mashed potatoes, they were really bland so I globed on some spreadable butter, and at least that’s what the package said it was, “spreadable butter.” Ugh, still bland. I finished the mashed potatoes anyway. Continue reading “How I Found Myself in a Bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken”

What Is the Hardest Part of Grocery Shopping?

I know that some people actually enjoy the experience of grocery shopping, but I have a problem. Let me explain.

I don’t know about you, but I’m not particularly fond of grocery shopping – for several reasons, some of which include:

I lose a few hours of my time that I could be using for other, more fun, activities like doing laundry or washing dishes.

I have to spend a large amount of my taxed income to buy food that I get to pay more tax on.

I have to lug the groceries from the store to the car, from the cart to the trunk, from the trunk to the house, to the refrigerator, the freezer, and cabinets.

I feel compelled to spend the next half hour cleaning the fridge out before I put the new food in there.

Then I feel guilty about all the food I just threw away from the last shopping trip! Continue reading “What Is the Hardest Part of Grocery Shopping?”