QPR Wines of Distinction

The sample boxes from our distributors were backing up at the retail operation in which I was, until recently, gainfully employed, so we divvied up the take and went our separate ways to taste and report back. Happily, the six I took home are all from our good friends at Wines of Distinction/J&J Importers and [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/gangofpour/uncZ/~3/Z7WQ4IQNJn4/qpr-wines-of-distinction

good wine wine warehouse wine company port wine

Help Steer the Direction of an Award Winner!

Generally speaking, I do very little public housekeeping here, but it’s time for some remodeling and I want your feedback. 

Despite winning some awards and receiving significant positive feedback about the design of this site, I haven’t materially changed the look or the function of Good Grape since November 2006.  Times have changed a lot in the intervening (nearly) five years.  At the time, Wordpress was a very secondary blogging platform choice behind MovableType (I chose door #3).  Facebook had recently announced general availability to the public from its former days of being collegiately oriented; Twitter launched, but was barely a blip on the radar, YouTube was hot (but not ubiquitous) and smartphones were still very niche in general adoption.  Tablets like the iPad?  Nope, at that point people were stoked about rumors of an iPhone that was set to be released sometime the next year. 

A lot has changed in five years and this site has barely kept pace, making due with duct tape and spittle.

image

A number of regular readers have let me know that pieces and parts of the site don’t always work, or the site is slow for them, or it’s hard to comment, or archive pages are junky looking, or links take you away from the site, etc.  And, forget about reading this site on your mobile phone – Good Grape equal’s bad mobile mojo.  The list goes on and on and I have my own list of wishes and want-to’s 35 items deep.

So, here’s the question and the crossroads I’m facing:

Do I keep the same general design (with some slight modifications like making the main text area wider and re-doing the navigation) and simply leave a classic design alone, focusing on enhancing functional and technical aspects of the site?

Or,

Do I take this opportunity to blow it out and set the bar for what a quality, beautiful, professional wine blog should look like, plus all of the social and mobile bells and whistles?

Readers, friends, colleagues, and peers: Your feedback is very welcome.  Should I mess with a good thing for a potentially greater thing, or do stay true to the visual identity in place and simply remodel focusing on functionality, familiarity and usability?

Please leave a comment.

Source: http://goodgrape.com/index.php/site/help_steer_the_direction_of_an_award_winner/

chardonnay syrah pinot noir moscato

Is the 2009 Belle Glos Meiomi as Good as the 2008?

Get 50% off shipping when you purchase six or more bottles of French wine with promo code "drink84"

icon
No, it's not. At least not for me, of the three bottles of the 09 I've tasted and compared to the eight bottles of the 08 I've tasted.

That said, it's still a good value in California Pinot Noir. The 09 is just lacking that little something extra the 08 had - and still has. I thought the 2008 was a 92 point wine and while the 2009 doesn't reach that same level of excitement for me, it is coming to market at very compelling prices. Whereas I'd never seen the 08 available for less than $19.99 I've seen the 09 for as little as $17.59 at Costco locations in Massachusetts and Arizona.

This price adjustment could be related to an intentional decision Caymus Vineyards (Belle Glos is Caymus' Pinot Noir label) made to drop their wine prices in response to the economic downturn that began a couple years ago. Gotta love a company that has a sense for market trends and eases pricing a bit at just the right time. I've seen Caymus Special Selection drop from around $125 to $99 and Conundrum from $20 to $15. I haven't seen Caymus drop below $55 yet however - have you?

Here are my notes: 

2009 Belle Glos Meiomi Pinot Noir

I was very interested to try the 09 vintage of this wine after thoroughly enjoying the 08 (92 pts across a half-dozen bottles). The signature sweet spice is still there but I also get ample chimney smoke at Christmas. It's a little unusual - we'll see whether I sense it in future bottles. But I still think this is a solid wine. Will buy more for sure.

89/100 WWP: Very Good 

Recommendation: If you see the 08 around buy it. There's not much left in the market and the 09s are replacing the 08s at most all high volume retailers. That said the 09 is still a pretty good play - especially south of $18.

Question of the Day: What do you think? Is 2009 as good as the 2008?


Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WellesleyWinePress/~3/fRdrZX0sjA0/is-2009-belle-glos-meiomi-as-good-as.html

types of wines types of wine about wine what is wine

Welcome to the Future

I won’t have a chance to get everyone an update on wider life for a few more days at the least (things are busy both professionally and personally, well definitely personally) but I was sad to see that social media darling Gary V has chosen to close Cork’d. Cork’d To Close It’s Doors It’s an [...]

Source: http://winewithmark.info/archives/632

wine warehouse wine company port wine wine spectator