WineTasting.com Friends and Family Sale

WineTasting.com is offering a friends and family sale with savings "up to 70% off". To see the wines offered and pricing you'll need to register on their site. I'll respect their terms and not list specific prices and comparisons to nationwide bests here, but I'll say I spotted some nice deals from producers like Davis Family, Nickel & Nickel, Whitehall Lane, Twomey, Delectus, and more.

 Shipping terms are quite favorable so all in all a nice sale.

 To visit their site and register to see the deals: http://www.winetastingsale.com

 Question of the Day: See any nice deals there I may have missed?

 


Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WellesleyWinePress/~3/VPW8LH0Sr6Y/winetastingcom-friends-and-family-sale.html

wine aerator chocolate wine wine accessories buying wine wine brands

Field Notes from a Wine Life ? Power Structure Edition

Odds and ends from a life lived through the prism of the wine glass…

Naked Wine and Occupy Wall Street

It’s not hard to notice the parallels between the natural wine movement and Occupy Wall Street - both are valid causes sorely lacking coherence and a rallying point that would move them from fringe head-scratcher to mainstream momentum.

  Natural wine is about purity of wine expression—shepherding grapes grown without chemicals to the bottle with as little human manipulation as possible, representing the place where they came from in the process.


  Occupy Wall Street is about re-calibrating the world’s best economic system – capitalism—to preserve the middle-class, the labor force that has allowed the U.S. to create the most productive economy in the world.

Neither movement represents fringe radicalism as some would have you believe.  I look at both as being valid inflection points and, at their core, about keeping a balance between big and small, allowing every man and woman an equal opportunity at pursuing success around their particular truth.

image

What reasonable person would deny the validity of either if not clouded by confusion?

One idea well-conceived and well-communicated can change the world, but, unfortunately, both the natural wine movement and Occupy Wall Street are prevaricating from their essential truth, rendering them both toothless and feckless.

No need to crib from Che Guevara, but appealing to base logic and the common denominator would do both movements some good.

Just one man’s opinion…

On the Aussies, Redux

A few weeks back, I noted how the Australian wine industry was poised for a rebound in public perception due in part to two things happening in concert – public backlash to Yellow Tail wine, what I call the, “Derision Decision,” and an unspoken coalition of influencers recognizing Australia’s artisanal wine production – the antithesis of Yellow Tail.  I cited recent sympathetic mentions from Jay McInerney in the Wall Street Journal and Dan Berger, wine writing’s current patriarch, as proof points.

You can add to the list of sympathetic mentions about artisanal Australia with recent mentions from Jancis Robinson and James Suckling.

Don’t sleep on Australia.  It’s making a comeback slowly, but surely in public perception.

Tim Mondavi and Wine Spectator

Thomas Matthews, the Executive Editor for Wine Spectator magazine (WS), has commented on my site a few times.  Each of these instances has been to protect or project Wine Spectator around its editorial goals.

image

Good on Thomas for not being afraid to get in the ring.  Certainly, WS takes its fair share of shots from the wine chatterati, mostly with grace and aplomb.

Lest I cast myself as anything but objective, I should note that James Laube’s article on Tim Mondavi and Continuum in the current issue of WS (November 15th issue) is everything right about what mainstream wine media can offer wine consumers that online wine writing (mostly) doesn’t –long-form, depth, first-person access and an effort that takes weeks and not hours.

Laube’s piece is excellent - well-written and balanced; acknowledgement thereof is in order.

Besides the Wine

Jordan winery has two wines – a Cabernet and Chardonnay, but they really have a triumvirate in terms of things to buy.  Jordan focuses on food and wine as being partners at the table and, to that end, any purchase from Jordan should also include their olive oil.  Wow!

The Jordan olive oil makes Trader Joe’s EVOO seem like Two Buck Chuck, comparatively speaking.  A little whole wheat Barilla pasta, some homemade pesto using the Jordan olive oil and some artisan bread in five minutes a day and you’re assuredly living the good life.  The rub is I wouldn’t pour the round Jordan Chard with the pesto, probably a Sauvignon Blanc, but don’t let that dissuade you from picking up their olive oil – it’s good stuff.

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

cabernet riesling zinfandel rose pinot grigio

New Wines from South Africa

We?ve been fans of wines from South Africa for a couple of decades, but it?s been more than a year since we?ve tried anything new. Happily, our friends at Vineyard Brands took care of that again by sending us several samples for our consideration not long ago, and as is usually the case, we found [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/gangofpour/uncZ/~3/4ycAg6uutWM/new-wines-from-south-africa

best wine wine bottles wine coolers wines and spirits wine store

Mystery: whole cluster

The harvest of the 2012 vintage has begun in some parts of the northern hemisphere. Here’s a picture of some whole clusters of grapes, just harvested. Strut your grape savvy by telling us which variety are they are. Degree of difficulty: 8. Let’s hope they don’t have a stuck fermentation, otherwise would be a whole [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/GuSC/~3/O2pLRZPZZIY/

cabernet riesling zinfandel rose pinot grigio

Musha Cay ? Romantic Getaway For Honeymooners

If you spend your vacation on an private island in a most magnificent way then, Musha Cay, a gorgeous private island with over 150 acres of perfect tropical environment, dazzling white sugar-sand beaches, translucent turquoise waters, superb chic accommodations, and a 30 odd staff to attend to your every need, will be perfect choice for [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/vagablond/ysSN/~3/wpovV2TUKjM/

wine reviews fine wine wine on line red wines wines red

Wine-derful

Judges completed the first day of tasting the finest vintages the wine world has to offer at the 70th Los Angeles International Wine & Spirits Competition. Stepping into the Millard Sheets Center for the Arts, where judging is taking place, the aroma is musky, flowery, fruity, nutty. Pretty powerful! Judges gather around round tables comparing [...]

Source: http://blogs.fairplex.com/blog/wine/?p=62

vintage wine sparkling wines wine prices wine aerator chocolate wine