Recipe: Old Ebbitt Grill Crab Cakes courtesy of Ali Ehrlich!

This past weekend Kim, the dogs and I spent three days kayaking, fishing, swimming and relaxing at our friends Shenandoah River house. The company included our friends Dave and Ali (Ali is pictured here on the left, with Kim and Raja), who we met through the weekends host a few months ago. Great food was eaten, great wines were drank, and great stories were both told and written.

Ali and I got to talking about her website “Life as an E” (Ehrlich) in which she gives fun and well written commentary on her life since marrying her husband David Ehrlich (the “E”!). The blog covers much more than just what they did last Tuesday or who called them last night. In fact, it is a good source for random travel, food and wine information including tasting notes and recipes! After picking her brain a bit and going through her website, I’ve asked her to share some of her recipes with us since many of them sounded very good.

Below is recipe for “Old Ebbitt Grill Crab Cakes” which I’m going to give a shot as soon at the kitchen is finished!!! Don’t forget to check out her site which features more recipes and great food and wine ramblings!

From “Life as an “E” by Ali Ehrlich:

Old Ebbitt is a DC institution, and while this is about 99% their recipe, we have made it at home a few times and tweaked it a bit for our tastes. These are authentic Maryland style crab cakes -all lump meat with almost no filler added and tastes incredible! I hope you enjoy them as much as we do.

First, you will need:

1 large work bowl
1 small/ medium work bowl
a baking sheet
1 pound jumbo lump crabmeat
1/3 cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons crab boil seasoning (such as Old Bay)
1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf (Italian) parsley
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon water
4 Saltine or Ritz crackers (or ¼ cup of breadcrumbs)
1 lemon (optional)

Got everything? Now, you:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease a baking sheet

Pick the crabmeat over to remove excess shells and cartilage.

Combine the mayonnaise, crab seasoning, parsley, mustard, and water in the medium bowl and mix until smooth. Add the mayonnaise mixture to the crabmeat and mix, being careful not to break up the lumps of crabmeat.

With your hands, break up the saltines into crumbs and mix into the crab mixture.

Form into patties and bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes, then turn the crab cakes over, and bake an additional 10 to 15 minutes, until nicely browned.

Plate and garnish with any extra fresh flat leaf parsley and lemon wedge, serve with tarter sauce on the side. Enjoy!

We usually get our crab and fresh seafood and fish from Cameron’s Seafood Market in Rockville. They have lots of locations in the DC area, and have daily and weekly specials available online.

Lately, I’ve been just enjoying the wine: Why it’s nice to put down the pen from time to time.

Tonight Kim and I ordered Chinese food; hot and sour soup, steamed dumplings and beef with broccoli. We have four take-out restaurants within 1 square mile, but our favorite is Asian Taste (on 36th St. in Hampden). They have sushi, too, but it’s not always that fresh and a definite pass.

With Chinese food, I generally prefer white wine in the form of either Gewurztraminer or Riesling. Gruner Veltliner from Austria works well, too. Tonight we went with one of our favorite producers of German Riesling; Joh. Jos. Prum. Last weekend we enjoyed a pair of ‘01 Prum Rieslings which were truly outstanding wines, so we had high expectations for this 2002 Graacher Himmelreich Kabinett Riesling.

The bottle was opened, food was passed around. We ate. We drank. Everything was good with the wine again being top notch. But other than telling you that there was an interesting dill component and it’s at least a 90 point wine in my book…I didn’t take notes and don’t intend on saying much else.

For those of you who know me well, you are aware this is out of character. I am of course referring to the fact that I have multiple wine notebooks and journals (such as the one I’m with above at Pardiso di Frassina in Montalcino!). I am never without my trusty point-and-shoot digital camera, always prepared to snap pictures of wine bottles. Per my request, Kim always has a pen and paper in her purse so that I am prepared to take detailed notes on how a wine looks, smells, and tasteds as well as other miscellaneous notes on the experience the wine provides, at the drop of a hat (or pop of a cork). Even at a nice dinner or special evening out, I can be caught scribbling notes on a napkin or typing notes into my phone. Obsessive? Yes, I’ve become quite obsessive- but it’s part of the fun of drinking and collecting wine for me.

But lately I’ve just been enjoying the wines. No notepad, no pen, no interrupting a nice dinner to contemplate the multiple compenents of a wine and how it pairs with each flavor in the food. And you know what, it’s pretty nice.

It makes me remember when I was first getting into wines and just drinking everything I could get my hands on to learn more about my new hobby. I wasn’t interested in remembering what wines brought leather, plum, was racy or finished with a touch of heat. I just wanted to know whether or not the wine was something I liked so I could buy it again in the future.

A few months back I wrote a piece titled “Ignorance is bliss…” in which one of the points I tried to make was that perhaps wine is more enjoyable before you know too much or drink the “best” wines in the world. Sure it’s nice to be able to appreciate great wines on a multitude of levels, but is it really necessary? I mean, isn’t the point of drinking wine to enhance a meal and bring friends and family together?

My hiatus from formal note taking is most likely just a phase (how would I continue being an amateur wine critic otherwise!). Perhaps after a weekend away in the woods of Virginia I’ll come back and return to my diligent note-taking self. But until I feel the need to return to my rigours bookkeeping I’m going to just be “ignorant” and enjoy some wine with my friends and family. After all, these are truly the most important things in life.

Cheers!

Montalcino Restaurant Review: Osteria Al Giardino (Montalcino, Tuscany, Italy) - Upscale and pricey, but worth it. Highly Recommended!

Osteria Al Giardino:

Ambiance: Elegant,
Food: Upscale and traditional Montalcino/Tuscan cuisine
Service: Outstanding: attentive, great wine service.
Wine List: Good overall. Fair pricing with a good number of bottles with some age to them.
Pricing: $$$$ - Expensive, but worth it for a special occasion. Expect around 60 Euros per person, plus wine (our total was aorund 230 Euros)
Attire: Upscale, but comfortable/business casual seems appropriate.
Overall Rating: Great. Highly recommended for special occasions but be prepared to spend some money. The food was exceptional across the board and the service was very good. Chef Giovanni Luca di Pirro shows great passion in his food and keeping you well fed!
Piazza Garibaldi 10
Montalcino, Tuscany, Italy
Bookings and Fax: 0577 849076. e-mail: osteriaalgiardino@virgilio.it
Closed Wednesday.

Il Girdino: This was our favorite “upscale” dining in Montalcino. The service was attentive and very helpful, the food was outstanding, and the setting was elegant and warm. Situated near the middle of town on the top of a hill where the main streets merge, Il Girdino was all around a great meal. The wine list represented some of the best wines in Montalcino and prices were on par with other restaurants and enotecas. Our meal began with a beef carpaccio of neck meat that was sliced so thin and delicate that it melted on the palate. Our other primi course was a poached egg served with a decadent white winter truffle sauce that was very simple but quite delicious. We paired these with wines by the glass from a well thought out list.

For a first course we split two dishes: white winter truffle linguine and a potato ravioli with artichokes and parmageano reggiano cheese. The homemade pasta dish featured a rich truffle sauce and a large plate of linguine covered with fresh shaved white truffles. This was a hit- the simplicity again let the truffle shine but prevented it from overpowering the palate. The potato ravioli was a bit of a let down. It was well spiced but the flavors and texture just weren’t that great. Overall, we were happy with this course.

Our main course featured both beef and cinghale (wild boar): a well seasoned steak cooked medium rare and a tender and flavorful cinghale stew. This course was paired with a 1999 Poggio al Vento (Col d’Orcia Riserva) that was served in beautiful stemware and went perfect with both dishes and which I rated 95 pts.

For dessert, we decided on a hazelnut Creme Brulee that featured lovely flavors and texture in the creme sauce hiding beneath a perfectly crisp top layer. This topped off one of the best meals I’ve ever eaten- all compliments to Chef Giovanni Luca di Pirro, who came to our table at the end of the evening to talk with us about our meal. You could see his passion for preparing world class meals in the way he spoke about the meal. A passion that was even more evident in the food itself.

Overall this was our favorite upscale meal in Montalcino. The setting is more elegant than most of the other restaurants, the food a little more upscale and complex, and as you’d expect, the prices a little bit higher. The meal with wine cost us around 220 Euros, or roughly $350 USD. Expensive? Yes, but worth it for one special night out in one of the most amazing towns in Italy.

MD Cru June Offline: Rieslings, Malbecs, Chorizo, Shrimp, Scallops and Flank Steaks- “Life is good.”

“Life is good.” That statement, which was made about halfway through dinner Saturday night by history guru “GF”, would be sufficient to sum up the evening. This was, of course, the monthly meet-up of the MD Cru- a group of food and wine enthusiasts who organize through the Wine Spectator forums to share great food and stories. And of course we open a few bottles of wine as well.

This month we were in D.C., at the beautiful historic home of one of the groups long-time members (there is no official group, or membership, for that matter, but it’s an easy way to refer to what has become a gathering of friends). The wine theme was two fold: German Rieslings and Argentine Malbecs. Other wines made it into the rotation, of course; a couple whites to start, a Champange, dessert wines, and a “pair” of ringers from Chile. Read more

Weeknight Dining: Eating Great In Baltimore - 16 Restaurants across town suitable for any budget!

With gasoline at $4.00 a gallon (or more), it seems that everyone is trying to cut back on spending. For many this includes eating out less and cooking meals at home. While cooking at home is always a great, healthy and cheaper way to eat, sometimes it’s just nice to not have to cook and do dishes. But does eating out have to cost significantly more than eating in? Or are there delicious options in town that will not break even the most sensitive budget?

Below is a list of some of the best restaurants in town that provide great food (and wine) for the price. A few of these aren’t necessarily cheap, but they are the most “bang for your buck” restaurants offering a great meal on any and all budgets. The list is arranged by neighborhood and provides summaries of each restaurant as well as what you can expect to spend per person. Chain restaurants were not considered for this list. Special thanks to Dae Chang who offered his expert analysis on a few places on this list! For another great list, check out the Dining Dish Blog’s Ten Inflation Busting Specials!

To nominate a restaurant to be on this list, e-mail me (michael@foodandwineblog.com) or leave a comment and I’ll check it out!  And don’t forget to check out these great wines that are budget friendly! Read more

Restaurant Review: Petit Louis (Baltimore - Roland Park): Outstanding French cuisine, wine list and service.

Overview

Ambiance: Upscale, bustling classic French Bistro.
Wine List: Impressive selection of French wines, sommelier available to lend a hand.
Corkage: Not available
Service: Very good to exceptional food and wine service.
Food: Classic/Elegant French Cuisine, good to very good.
Pricing: $$$ (Appetizers $7-$14, Entrees $17-$24, fair wine pricing).
Attire: No specific dress code but most patrons in business casual to business attire
Overall Rating: Highly recommended; great food, good service, great wine list.
Location/Contact Info: http://www.petitlouis.com

Review: A small French bistro situated in the beautiful Roland Park neighborhood of Baltimore, it’s easy to fall in love with Petit Louis. The classic decor, traditional French cuisine and impeccable food and wine service make Petit Loius one of Baltimore’s best restaurants for a casual dinner or birthday celebration. While not cheap, compared to other restaurants of this quality Petit Loius is almost a bargain! All these things combined make it one of our favorite spots in town- especially since it’s only a mile away from our house and parking is abundant. Read more

The Best Homemade Beer I Have Ever Made

Well, I just finished the last of a beer i brewed two septembers ago.  It was one of my first and more adventurous beers…. an Oak Whiskey Russian Imperial Stout.  And I have to say, aged over 18 months that thing tasted REAL good.  It actually was a fairly simple recipe, since I used an imperial stout kit for my base.  Added extra maltose to the wort to give the beer a nice creamy texture (which really didnt come out until it aged atleast 6 months in the bottle).  While the beer was in the primary fermenter, i soaked oak chips in a mixture of Irish whiskeys: Bushmill’s black and a touch of Jameson.  I also added a few drops of Jack Daniels… i have a bottle I bought at the distillery on my motorcycle trip and I never drink it straight, as I dont like Jack.  anyway, I let those soak for about 6 days and when i transfered the beer to the secondary, my goal was to add about half the whiskey… but when I got there, I made a last minute decision to add but a tiny bit of the whiskey (I wanted to drink a shot or so) and to add all of the oak chips.  I let this sit for about 2 months before bottling.  I recommend other people muck about with this general idea.  I never did check my specific gravity before bottling, so I cant give you an approximation of alcohol content, but I can tell you this:  sometimes girls would ask for a stout at my house during a party, her first beer, and i would give her one of those.  and in about 30 minutes they’d be complaining about being drunk.

Friday Wine Roundup: Best QPR (Quality to Price) Wines This Week- June 20, 2008

QPR is a measure of a wines Quality to Price Ratio. QPR is used to determine whether or not a wine is worth its price. Each Friday I put up a list of wines that I have recently tasted, that I feel offer great “bang for their buck.” With gas at $4.00 a gallon or more, it’s good to know that you can continue to enjoy great wines even when the budget tightens up. The wines listed here are wines that I feel offer you, the consumer, a great wine that is both well priced, and succeeds at providing a great wine experience. I try to introduce new grape varieties or wine regions to keep things interesting and recommend keeping an eye out for these good QPR’s next time you’re out wine shopping. Most, if not all are available throughout Baltimore. Read more

Recipe: The most simple grilled rainbow trout…EVER!

Another simple recipe, this time using Rainbow trout that was on sale for $7.99 / lb at Whole Foods! This went great with zucchini and asparagus. The other items on the plate are chicken breast and spicy chicken burgers. I know the plate looks messy and crowded…but when you don’t have a kitchen (STILL!) it’s nice to use less dishes so you are able to cook at home sometimes!

Grilled Rainbow Trout

Ingredients:

• Whole rainbow trout, cleaned and gutted with head intact.
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Ground Sea Salt
• Fresh Ground Pepper
• 1/2 lime, cut into wedges

Necessary tools:

• Grill (or broiler)
• Metal skewer (or wood skewer soaked in water for 30 mins)

1. Rinse trout in cool water.
2. Rub inside and out with olive oil, salt and pepper.
3. Place lime wedges inside trout and use metal skewers to enclose the cavity of the fish.
4. Grill over medium heat, 6-8 minutes per side until skin is crispy. Flip only once and use great caution not to let the fish fall apart.
5. Serve!

Meats on the grill and Pinot vs. Pinot: Argentina vs. New Zealand With My Good Friend Carlos

The Pinot Noir grape has a reputation for being difficult to grow and even more difficult to produce into a great wine. Since I’ve never had the chance to grow or make a Pinot, I can only go by the variability in the quality of Pinot Noir at certain price points. Across the board Pinot Noir’s are the most unpredictable wines when it comes to quality and value. Generally speaking, you have to spend two to three times more than you would for any other wine to get a good Pinot Noir.

With this in mind, Kim and I invited our friend Carlos (pictured above with Kimmy, and his leg is pictured next to the food below!) to come over, sit outside on the gravel that is our patio under renovations, and drink a few Pinots in the blind format. We wanted to evaluate the wines on their own, as well as with a variety of foods. I fired up the grill and threw on some lamb rib chops, a porterhouse steak, and a spicy marinated duck breast, as well as sides of pancetta-wrapped asparagus and spicy marinated eggplant. Overall the food went well with all three wines. Read more

Wine Region Overview: A brief look at Chile

One of the most up and coming wine regions (countries) in the world is Chile. This South American country has a very unique shape; it’s 4300 kilometers from it’s northern most tip all the way south past the Strait of Magellan, yet less than 200 kilometers wide (with the Pacific ocean to the west and the Andes Mountains to the east). The geography is also quite unique with the south providing vast glaciers and mountain ranges, yet the north and central parts filled with dry deserts, fertile plains, and a variety of micro-climates. It is only expected that somewhere in the middle of all this there would be a large area that is suitable to grow a few grapes. In fact, not only is there sufficient land and climate to make good wines, but in some areas the terroir is exceptional, allowing for the production of many great to outstanding wines.

Chilean viticulture is thought to be at least 400 year old, stemming from initial plantings by Spanish conquistador’s (seen above in image from Wikipedia Commons) in the 1600’s. Still, it wasn’t until the 1990’s that Chilean wine began to become recognized as having world-class wine potential. According to wikipedia, in 1995 Chile was home to only 12 wineries, whereas in 2005 that number has gone over 70. This increase in production makes Chile the firth largest exporter of wines to the US. So it’s no surprise when you walk into your neighborhood wine shop that a larger and larger section is being dedicated to this up and coming wines.

The most common varietals you’ll see from Chile are Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay, for whites, and Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Caermenere for reds. There is also a big push for Pinot Noir, especially in the Casablanca wine region where the cooler, longer growing season provides a good environment for this finicky grape to thrive.

THe majority of Chilean winemaking takes place int he middle of the country. Chilean wine law recognizes the following regions: Atacama, Coquimbo, Aconcagua, Valle Central, and Southern Chile. Of notable intersst are Acongua and Valle Central.

I’ve had dozens of wines from Aconcagua, ranging from the wines in Casablanca which produce ripe, balanced Chardonnay’s, citrusy and crisp Sauvignon Blanc and cherry-filled, slightly acidity Pinot’s that offer great value. In the north, Acongau is known for Carmemere and Cabernet Sauvingon. Valle Central is home to the most famous of the wine regions which includes the Maipo Valley (well-known for Cabernet-based wines), as well as the Rapel Valley, Curico Valley and the Maule Valley. These are the regions that brought Chilean winemaking to the international stage and continue to make some of the more interesting Cabernet-based wines year in and year out.

Overall Chile is a wine region to keep your eye on. Many Chilean wineries are brinigng in expert winemakers from around the world to help craft outstanding wines from the great fruit that is coming from the vineyards. I would expect to only see improvemnets in the quality of wine in this region in the next 10 yeras. With the pricing in today’s market, many of tehse wines are incredible values. Be sure to keep an eye out for Chilean Pinot Noir which in my opinion will become one of the next “hot” wines (similar to what happened with Argentinian Malbec). Lastly, do not pass up on a chance to try a Chilean Carmenere, especially with BBQ meats or lamb. The depth of flavors and acidity make this a go-to food and wine pairing.

Ordering wine in a restaurant: “By-the-glass” offers a fun learning experience (4 wines with steak)

After a few hours of working on the kitchen Saturday, Kim and I were getting hungry and it was getting late. 8:00 PM rolled around and we decided we wanted good steaks. Our favorite steakhouse in town is Fleming’s Primes Steakhouse and Wine Bar which offers 100 wines by the glass, an extensive reserve wine list and a variety of meats and seafood to satisfy any appetite. Beware that the wine prices are a bit high, but their by-the-glass list offers many good values, the food is always good, and the service is outstanding. So we called, squeezed in a 9:30 reservation and excitedly hurried over anticipating a great meal.  (Image from dreamstime.com)

Now, normally at a nice dinner I order a bottle of Champagne and a bottle of red wine at the beginning of the meal. This gives the wine time to sit in a decanter if necessary and helps us decide on what we are going to eat. At a steakhouse, it’s almost always a Cabernet or Bordeaux-blend, with the occasional Malbec or other miscellaneous varietal wine. On this night, though, we decided to try something different. SO we started our meal with a round of white wines by the glass, a Riesling and a Gewurztraminer to be precise. Both were quite good and perfect with our fried calamari appetizer. Read more

20 Great Value Wines: How to drink good wine when gas is $5.00 a gallon or more

The current economy has most of us cutting back on non-essentials, driving less, and trying to find ways to save a few bucks. Below is a list of wines that you can afford by cutting back on two gallons of gas or less (most are under $10!). For specific recommendations on wines, wine regions, wine pairings, or anything related to value wines, leave a comment. Have a favorite wine under $10 that I missed? Let us know about it! (Image: WINE AND MONEY© Kvkirillov | Dreamstime.com)

Here are my top picks for value wines, producers, and wine regions. Keep in mind that an 85 is a “Very Good” wine and shouldn’t be overlooked. Too often reviewers and magazines want you to think that only 90 point wines are worth drinking…this isn’t the case and can become quite expensive! An 85 point wine is a wine that I consider to be very good, and would buy again.

Keep an eye out for my report next week on the best wineries and wine regions when it comes to quality and value!

Twenty Great Value Wines: (Click here to download this as a shopping list in PDF Form)

Sparkling

N.V. Riondo Prosecco Veneto IGT -$12 (Italy, Veneto, Veneto IGT): Sealed with a traditional cork requiring a cork-screw. A little sweet, hint of yeast, a little fruity, not a lot of fizz but quite refreshing. Overall good appertif, nice flavors. My rating: 87 pts, GV (Good Value)

N.V. Roederer Estate Brut -$21 (USA, California, North Coast, Anderson Valley): This is the most expensive wine I put on the list, with all the others being $12 or less. But for the price, you get good value here. Apples and citrus on the palate, a very crisp wine with subtle nuttiness and caramel. Nice finish- a great bottle of a special dinner on a budget. My rating: 89 pts, GV Read more

Kazakhstan Restaurant Review: Boudoir Restaurant- A must-try when dining in Kazakhstan!

The following review was contributed by a good friend and fellow wine enthusiast Chris Hawley. He travels quite a bit and has generously offered to share this unique dining experience with us. The review is very well written, exciting, and makes me wish I could go to Kazakhstan this weekend for some great food. Thanks Chris!

Boudoir Restaurant

Ambiance: Classy, fusion bar style, surrounded by Fashion TV
Food: Continental global cuisine, fusion, Australian and Thai mix
Service: Spectacular for English speakers
Wine List: Good, nice selection of French, Spanish and Italian wines.
Pricing: $$$ Good value for the meal
Attire: none specified but casual and business attire was noted, club wear more appropriate later in the evening.
Overall Rating: Very good – highly recommended: Food was very well done, and there were a number of outstanding choices. Wait staff was very attentive and the chef made several table-side visits. The table-side desert using liquid nitrogen is well worth the visit.
Location/Contact Info: www.boudoir.kz (only in Russian)
134 Bogenbai Batyr, Almaty, Kazakhstan 050000 (below KazPost)
Phone +7727 272 5555

Read more

WineBloggingWednesday #46: White Rhone Wines with Dr. Debs of Good Wine Under $20

Each month wine bloggers around the world unite for a virtual wine tasting labeled “Wine Blogging Wednesday.” A particular blog is chosen as the host for the event who then picks a theme and a Wednesday on which the wine blogging community gets together to post their wine and a few tasting notes.

This month our host is Dr. Deb’s of Good Wine Under $20. Her theme which I greatly appreciate is white wines from the Rhone. We’ve been tasting and drinking a good amount of Rhone wines lately, but only 10 or so white wines in the last few months from the Rhone. This was a good reason to open a bottle of Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc I’ve been waiting anxiously to try. (For more on Chateauneuf, click here!)

The wine I chose is the 2003 Tardieu-Laurent Châteauneuf-du-Pape Vieilles Vignes (vines pictured below). This wine comes from an established producer who makes good to great wines throughout the Rhone Valley. Recently, Michel Tardieu put out a 2005 Chateauneuf-du-Pape (CdP) red wine that has received outstanding ratings and praise, including a score of 96 pts from the Wine Spectator’s James Molesworth (of whom I have great respect as a wine critic). This was my first Tardieu-Laurent white wine, though I’ve had many of his reds across a variety of vintages. I enjoy his style of wine very much finding them consistently hold true to the characteristics of both the fruit and terroir. I do recommend them highly if you enjoy Rhone wines or are looking to expand your palate to Southern France. Read more

Wine ratings: Just to clear something up: 85 pts is a very good wine

A recent conversation at a wine store has me a bit worked up. I asked someones opinion on a wine and they responded “it’s an OK wine for the price ($13) but I wouldn’t give it more than 88 pts.” I responded “I thought 88 pts was a pretty good score” to be almost interupted with “yeah it’s OK but there are a lot of 90 pt wines at this price”. I had to hold myself back from shaking my head and walking out. At what point did an 88 point wine become “OK” and at $13 become an “OK value.” Wines that I rate 88 pts (Very Good) and are $13 I would buy by the case!

This isn’t an isolated incident, either. Lately I’ve been noticing a lot of tasting notes on both CellarTracker and other websites that contradict traditional wine ratings. Many people will score a wine between 85-89 points, but just trash the wine. They call it hot, undrinkable, etc…but still give it a “good to very good” rating. Therefore, I’d like to clear something up:

95-100	Classic: a great wine
90-94	Outstanding: wine with superior character & style
85-89	Very good: wine with special qualities
80-84	Good: a solid, well-made wine
70-79	Average: drinkable wine that may have minor flaws
60-69	Below average: drinkable wine but not recommended
50-59	Poor: undrinkable wine, not recommended

An 80 point wine is still a good, well made wine. An 85 point wine is very good. Many people are in the mindset that only 90 pt wines are good and anything less isn’t worth it. By limiting ourselves to the upper 20% of the scale, we’re missing out on a lot of quality wines and wines that are actually pretty good are being overlooked.

Another reminder that ratings are only useful if you understand the reviewers palate. If a critic constantly gives wines 90+ points (ie Jay Miller of the Wine Advocate) they are skewing scale which reduces the power of having a rating system with 50 points of variability. Before considering someones rating, or posting your own, keep in mind what the scores are supposed to reflect and ask yourself whether or not the wine actually merits that value.

A few hours after putting this post up, WineLibraryTV addressed this very issue.  For Gary Vaynerchuk’s perspective on this issue and his evaluation of some “89″ point wines, check out “89 Point Wines, What Is The Deal?”

Tuesday Food and Wine Headlines: No more tomatoes at McDonald’s, New Maryland vineyard, Another Italian wine grape being investigated.

A Mc-BLT has just become a Mc-BL. McDonald’s announced that due to concerns over the possibility of salmonella contamination on its fresh produce, it will no longer include freshed sliced tomatoes on it’s sandwiches. Others, such as Giant Eagle supermarkets in Pittsburgh or many Winn-Dixie Stores will also be pulling potentially tainted tomatoes from the shelves. Grape tomatoes will continue to be used in McDonald’s salads but many people will be missing out on what was perhaps the only healthy aspect to the sandwiches of McDonald’s: lycopene-rich tomato slices. Just another reason to avoid fast food!  (Photo from Bruce Marlin TM through WIkipediaCommons).

Maryland’s newest and largest vineyard. The Baltimore sun reported that a new Maryland vineyard and winery is nearing completion in the Appalachian foothills of Western Maryland. Richard Siebert and his Knob Hall Winery will become the largest vineyard in Maryland, totaling some 60 acres when it’s all planted in early 2009. Located on 175 acres of his family farm, Knob Hall will hope to put out 30,000 gallons of high quality juice with the help of winemaker John Levenberg. While I have yet to find any Maryland wine all that inspiring, some of the wines of Maryland’s 24 vineyards are good to pretty good. Hopefully as local interest in wines goes up and winemaking technology continues to improve, so will the wines of our great state.

Not so noble after all? In the wake of allegations that some Brunello di Montalcino producers have been using other grape varietals than the Sangiovese clone known as Brunello in their prized wines another wine scandal has surfaced. Decanter.com is reporting that Italian wine authorities are now investigating the possibility that some producers of Vino Nobile di Montepulciano are also guilty. Currently only two producers are being investigated, according to the article. While these wines are made from Sangiovese, as well as other local grapes, the wine in question may have used grapes from other wine regions in Italy making these wines possible frauds.

Friday Wine Roundup: Best QPR (Quality to Price) Wines This Week- June 6, 2008

QPR is a measure of a wines Quality to Price Ratio. QPR is used to determine whether or not a wine is worth its price. Keep in mind, a good wine that is $10 may be an outstanding QPR, while a good wine that is $40, may be poor. Each Friday I put up a list of 5 wines that I’ve had recently that offer great “bang for their buck.” With gas at $4.00 a gallon or more, it’s good to know that you can continue to enjoy great wines even when the budget tightens up. The wines listed here are wines that I feel offer you, the consumer, a great wine that is both well priced, and succeeds at providing a great wine experience. I try to introduce new grape varieties or wine regions to keep things interesting and recommend keeping an eye out for these good QPR’s next time you’re out wine shopping.

Sparkling:
NV Freixenet Brut Cava “Cordon Negro” -$10: I’ve said it many times before: Cava is a great value wine and can be very good. Cava of course is the sparkling wine of Spain, more specifically the Catalonia region. Though not as complex or elegant as their French counterparts (Champagne), sparkling wines from Cava tend to be very clean tasting and provide among other things apple and citrus notes. Popping the cork on a bottle of good Cava (especially for $10) is a great way to begin any weekend (or weeknight for that matter!). This Freixenet Brut is no exception. It’s crisp, has notes of grapefruit and honey and has a refreshing finish that is sure to cool you off on a warm day or night. My rating: 86 pts, GV (Good value) Read more

Why again do we follow wine ratings?

James Suckling recently wrote a blog about a tasting he attended in March ‘08. The idea behind the tasting was to compare a couple Cult wines from California to the top wines of Bordeaux, all from the 2003 vintage. The lineup of wines was more than amazing and in the end Suckling and most of the group had a tough time distinguishing French from California in the blind format.

The top two wines of the night were from the US: the Colgin 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon Herb Lamb Vineyard and a 2003 Harlan Estate Cabernet. Suckling wrote of the 2003 Colgin, “…five tasters gave it 100 points, including Gabriel. It was easily the most popular wine of the tasting.” His unofficial tasting note: Read more

Tuesday Wine Headlines: Illinoisans ship wine, Hong Kong auction brings in serious dough, Beckam buys wife Napa winery,

Special Interests Overpower The People: Illinoisans Lose the Right to Buy Wine Online: It’s all over the internet and newspapers: Special interest groups in Illinois, through $6,300,000.00 in donations to politicians, have overturned the states policies on shipping wines from both wineries and out of state retailers. In a move that cripples the right to a free market, residents will no longer be able to find rare wines or good deals thanks to a lobby of greedy wholesalers and distributors. Further, there will be a limit imposed on how much wine one individual can receive from any out-of-state winery. What happened to the part of the constitution that says “States may not enact laws that burden out-of-state producers or shippers simply to give a competitive advantage to in-state businesses.” I guess this doesn’t apply to situations in which flip-flopping politicians will cater to whoever has the biggest checkbook. There is a reason Chicago is called the “windy city” and it has little to do with the weather. Read more

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