Good Grape Goes on Hiatus

“Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans” said a very wise John Lennon and that’s exactly what has happened with me.  My life has kept apace, even as I’ve made plans to be a respected wine writer.

By most standards, 2011 has been a very good year.  I was a three-time finalist in the Wine Blog Awards, earning notice in the Best Overall Wine Blog, Best Industry Blog and Best Writing categories.  I started contributing a wine column to Forbes.com.  This site was named the 2nd most influential blog (and most influential wine blog) out of 4,000 blogs in a 2011 Wine, Beer and Spirits study by eCairn, a software company specializing in community and influencer marketing.  I was a panelist at Vino2011 in New York City, I won a scholarship to the Wine Writer’s Symposium in Napa Valley, and I turned down enough worldwide wine trip offers to fill a two-month calendar.

Yet, wine writing has exacted a toll.  I approach anything I do with a zeal and fervor that ensures me the success that I want and I’ve treated my wine writing as a full-time second job, to go alongside the job that I already have that requires 50 + hours a week.

Balance isn’t something that I’ve ever been very good at—possessed of an unassuming mien, a Midwestern work ethic, and a mental make-up whereby I cast myself as the underdog means that I am continually trying to prove something to myself, often times at the expense of real, true priorities.

Even more challenging is the fact that my standards for myself have been raised even as I’ve honed my writing chops.  Instead of figuring out a system to find time shortcuts, the amount of time it takes for me to write has become more deliberate and expansive while my interest in writing has become more professional in nature – less blogging and more credible journalism requiring more work to exceed the bar that I’ve set for myself.

The net result of this, after full-time job plus wine writing, is the rest of my life has received scant attention for nearly seven years and I’ve created a nearly untenable situation for myself, a set of internal expectations that I can’t live up to, requiring a time commitment that I can’t manage.

However, most importantly, the expectations and time commitments that I have assigned to my wine writing isn’t fair to the other people in my life – notably, my incredibly supportive wife, Lindsay.  She has been a saint the past six years, my blogging encompassing nearly the entire duration of our 6.5 year marriage.  But, she is long overdue a husband that takes the trash out without prompting!

I’ll be around the Internets – commenting on wine blogs, doing the Twitter thing, staying connected on Facebook and I’ll probably start engaging more actively on CellarTracker and on the WineBerserkers message board, but I’m taking a hiatus from wine writing to recalibrate, shifting my time to the things that are the most important to me:  Family and career.

Jeff

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

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Where to stay in the Napa Valley

We always like to stay within walking distance of fine restaurants and shopping. We like to enjoy our wine with dinner so we either walk or take a cab. We don?t drink and drive. The centers of the towns of Napa, Yountville, and Calistoga are giving the traveler many choices for lodging within a short distance of many restaurants. Continue reading

The post Where to stay in the Napa Valley appeared first on Napa Valley Wine Blog.

Source: http://www.winecountrygetaways.com/napablog/where-to-stay-in-the-napa-valley/

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Landon Winery Wine Club pick up for Aug 2012

It is summer in Texas and that means the heat is on. When the phrase ?dog days of summer? it was meant for Texas. Today the alignment of the moons, stars and solar systems must have had a hiccup because it was a very pleasant day to be out and about in North Texas. So [...]

Source: http://thegrapesaroundtexas.com/2012/08/19/landon-winery-wine-club-pick-up-for-aug-2012/

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Charles Shaw Blind Tasting Revisited

One of the more popular posts on this site historically has been a three-way blind tasting involving Charles Shaw and two $10-$15 Cabernets. The goal was to assess whether we might be wasting $10 a night when drinking wines we thought were better than Charles Shaw but in reality weren't because we'd built up a bias against Charles Shaw because it's so affordable.

This piece originally appeared on the now-retired RJ's Wine Blog. I wanted to republish it here so that folks wouldn't get a dead link as they tried to navigate to his site after reading his post on my site. RJ is still around thankfully but tonight we'll tip a 1.5L of CdP in memory of RJ's Wine Blog.

Non-related I've heard Charles Shaw is now over $3 in Massachusetts? I haven't been to Trader Joe's lately - can anyone confirm? I'll have to get over there soon and perhaps do a rematch blind tasting to commemorate the upcoming 4 year anniversary of this tasting.

At any rate, I hope you enjoy this blast from the past. Fresh content coming up soon I promise...Can you tell the difference between $2 Charles Shaw and a $10-$15 Cab? If not, you may be wasting $10 every time you crack open a bottle of wine. Can *I* tell the difference? After RJ posted his thoughts on the Charles Shaw lineup, we got to talking about how it would be an interesting exercise to do a blind tasting that included Charles Shaw alongside a couple of $10-$15 Cabernets. Could we tell the difference when tasting blind? Or would the Two Buck Chuck trick us?


How We Tasted


I had my wife pour 3 glasses and randomly order them. The wines were open about 20 minutes before I gave them a try. I smelled and tasted each of them, took notes along the way, and assigned a numerical rating on a 100-point scale.

Wine #1: On the nose: Young. Floral perfume. Dusty. A light colored in the glass. Slight veggies. In the mouth: A little bright. Not my favorite wine. Overall: Fruity, drinkable and so-so. Rating: 84

Wine#2: Nose: Rich. Caramel. Smells like a California Cab. Big, dark fruit. Mouth: By far my favorite. Full, soft, dense, ripe. Excellent. Non-harsh tannins. Luscious. Overall: This wine was by far my favorite of the three. Rating: 91

Wine #3: Nose: Bad, perhaps off. A little magic marker/plastic. Flat. Pretty bad. Awful. Mouth: Better on the palate than on the nose. A slight pucker on the finish. Overall: Downright awful on the nose, but I wouldn't pick it as being the Charles Shaw. It was bad in a different way than Charles Shaw is typically bad. The Shaw's fault tends to be that it's thin. This wine was *not* thin. The tannins are too noticable to be the Shaw. Rating: 78

OK, are you ready for the reveal?
  • Wine #1: 2006 Charles Shaw Cabernet Sauvignon (84)
  • Wine #2: 2006 Columbia Crest Cabernet Sauvignon (91)
  • Wine #3: 2006 Louis M. Martini Sonoma Cabernet Sauvignon (78)

Commentary


I was really surprised how much the Columbia Crest from Washington tasted like a warmer climate/California wine. As I was tasting the wines, I was biased to think that the wine from Sonoma would show richer, warmer characteristics. Not so. The Charles Shaw showed quite admirably for a $2/$3 wine. As always, drinkable and enjoyable. I am a fan of the Charles Shaw and I think they deliver "good" value.

In terms of professional ratings of these wines, and relative value:
  • Columbia Crest: 89 Wine Spectator/$11 equals a wwpQPR of 1.44 (Above avg)
  • Louis Martini: 87 Wine Spectator/$15 equals a wwpQPR of 0.67 (Below avg)
  • Charles Shaw (2003 vintage rated): 82 Wine Spectator/$2.99 equals a wwpQPR of 1.05 (Above avg) -or- at $2 a wwpQPR of 1.57 (Good)
What is this wwpQPR I'm talking about? I'm glad you asked. It's a formula I've devised (along with a calculator) that assesses relative value of wines depending on rating, price, and peer group. If value wines are something that interests you, I hope you'll check it out here.

To read RJ's take on these same 3 wines tasted on the other side of the country check out this post. The results might surprise you!

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WellesleyWinePress/~3/eeqKMeIEK3s/charles-shaw-blind-tasting-revisited.html

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Gift Baskets

It seems that every year the gift basket business gets bigger and bigger. From corporate gift baskets to those of us who simply don’t know exactly what to buy for our loved one’s…..gift baskets offer a real alternative and the industry is growing as a result. While I can appreciate that every business (like every [...]

Source: http://winewithmark.info/archives/668

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