Start the Revolution

Have no fear Buzzers, I am back.  I've been out preaching the good word, and that good word is 'Universality'.  As a statement of truly intrinsic redundancy, I write todays article in the vein of 'Wine is, in fact, for EVERYONE'.  The typically narrowed focus I take on blogging has been broadened as a means to profess what I hope will become a love for something that we should all enjoy but rarely do.  

I wave the white flag in the face of snobbery, something that I think is often confused with a lonely enthusiasm.  I am by no means giving up my quest to educate you to the next step in appreciating BETTER wines, but at the moment I am trying to encourage you to simply enjoy the wines you are currently consuming.  I am trying to get you to share your love of wine, not of the secret society we have nested it in, but in the everyday consumption of fermented fruit.  I am championing this wonderful nectar as the best possible pairing with any and every situation that you could possibly face.

I realize that I have a direct disdain for White Zinfandel.  I also realize that my beloved 'Motherland' is Napa Valley.  I also realize that White Zinfandel(Chateau Cashflow) saved Napa Valley in a time when workaday drinkers were simply popping bottles of domestic beer.  A comparison I almost liken having a clubbed foot and not being able to be drafted into the armed services; it'll save you, but you don't have to like it.  Furthermore, I realize that there are a lot of avid White Zinfandel drinkers out there, and in this moment of fervor I say: "DRINK ON".   Die-Hard Buzzers be at ease, it's a moment of amnesty for all wine drinkers.   Here's to you overly sweet, low acidity Riesling fans, and to you Two Buck Chuckers; thank you so so much for supporting our industry.

I'm young, both a hinderance and benefit when conversing on all things coopered.  I'm also tenacious about my love of wine, and that is something that I hope with both my age and my passion will be made contagious.  If you don't like wine, you haven't had the right one, and provided you confront me on this, I will help you see the light at the end of the bottle.  One of my biggest supporters and my faithful drinking partner is my loving godmother.  If you asked her what her favorite kind of wine was, she would simply reply, "the kind I enjoy".  I think we fall into some pit of clandestine tradition when discussing our personal joys, especially wine joys.  I myself find it hard to simplify my vino communications, and in doing such I get the reputation for somehow existing on some viticultural pedestal.  I'm not that special, I just get my word out.  I love wine, and I would lay down all that I have done to support it, if tomorrow I could fill the whole world's glass.  

Start the Revolution folks, its not too late.  We're on the cusp of something amazing, and with your help it can become as regular as 'after work drinks'.  Wine is for everyone, and it always has been.  Thank you so much for allowing me to pump my vine chatter into your eyeballs every few days, but more importantly thank you for allowing someone's beloved fruit to enter your palette.  To those of you who are already avid wine drinkers, I am your fan.

           Cam

Heres looking at you, Chris..

This is an article that I find needs to be addressed, not only from this writers point of view but of my very good friend Chris, so, as it is his birthday here we go:  YOU DON'T TASTE WINE IN A RESTAURANT PRIOR TO POURING IT, TO FIGURE OUT IF YOU LIKE IT!!!!

Listen, I appreciate that you know what it means when a wine is corked; it's a buzz phrase that is as pervasive 'overly tannic', an association that I mention only because often the source is unnaware of what they are actually implying.  Trichloroanisole(TCA), the chemical compound responsible for tainting the wine, has effectively contaminated the cork and thereby ruined it.  The final product is something that smells like wet newspapers and that cardboard you swear one day you'll remove from under your front porch.  It's a fact of life, and it happens to more wines than you would think, so nothing is wrong the the establishment that provided sed bottle.  

If you encounter a 'corked bottle' or you think you do(that's what us wine stewards are for) then by all means send it back.  We don't like to serve you something inherently faulty, and unlike sending back a steak, will take great pride in fixing your experience.  Here's where the problem arises:  You don't taste the bottle to see if you LIKE IT!  The purpose of sniffing your vino is to make sure it's not "off", not good.  Most wines that you spend decent 'coin' on are good; it's possible like all human relationships, that you aren't compatible.  Our job is to introduce you to 'good wines', and your job is to enjoy yourself.  It is in that vein that I say this; "It doesn't make you less of a wine enthusiast to not like a wine".  There are wines that I am not fond of, but that doesn't make them less important.  I'm struggling to like Pinotage(A blend of Censault and Pinot Noir), but droves of people cherish this little South African gem.  It makes my skin crawl thinking of the number of times my servers have come back to me with a perfectly good bottle of wine that someone felt entitled to refuse.  It's not your fault, you thought otherwise, and that's just life.  However if you have read this article, consider yourself advised.  

I love you guys like family, and this is just my way of saying, "Please respect these wines I so cherish".  Like children, all wines need a home, and like all causes they take all kinds.  Do I like Boones Farm?  Lord no, but I know that someone out there does, and maybe one day they'll step up and swing away at something better.  Try it, and in the spirit of my own example-setting, I'll drink a Pinotage tonight.  

   Cam

Dibble Dribbles...

As dusty rhetoric, and a certain temperance to expectations, I have been trying to shorten my blurbs.  I created the Buzz as a quick, easy, fun read for those of you who are tired of stuffy, tweed-laden(yes itchy) approach to wine.  

I had dinner with Vic Bourassa last night.  Vic owns Bourassa Vineyards, a premium example of what 'Boutique' ventures can create, given a certain minimalist approach on a scale level.  Vic is a firecracker, a business man and a story teller.  His wines are bombastic, boasting austere and often robust fruit that paints the pallette in shades of the darkest mauve or the most gorgeous flakes of gold(the latter being a byproduct of small-scale Sauvignon Blanc, yum).  This author prefers his Syrah Reserve, a Shiraz-tastic(yes I made that up) homage to bigger Croze-Hermitage muscle juice.  This Syrah pulls no punches, slamming the front pallette with fortified cassis and red currants.  The mid pallette is a speckling of dark licorice and warm blackberry turnovers.  Would Vic tell you that?  Probably not.  Vic would ask you if you liked how 'Rock Star' it's presence was.  Vic would tell you how that wine was a 'Liquid Sex Machine'.  Why?  Because he respects that wine is cool.  I recognize that I am, in fact, a wine nerd; a byproduct of both avoiding what is deemed inherently cool and having zero reservations about continuously waxing poetic when deemed necessary.  Vic is cool.  With his snow white hair and his child like grin, he graciously pours wine with the zest of a new father.  His port, the Solera, is my go-to after dinner drink.  With heavy leather and dark chocolate, this is a port that boasts formidability and layers of character....Come to think of it, so does the Bourassa family.  

In short, Wine is cool.  Wine is the sum of those who make it, and for their dedication, they are subject to my fandom.  I will dribble further on other wine-o's as I blog on into eternity, but for now, enjoy the good stuff that we can all appreciate.

                         Cam

As a post script, I want you buzzers to post a review of your favorite wine.  The person with the most personality in their review will get a free bottle of the Syrah Reserve from Bourassa.  Blog on....

I'll have the Usual

Sometimes an addiction to habit can be good, considering the diversity of what has become both 'enjoyable wine' and assumed 'enjoyability'.  I poke fun at those of you who say, "You know what I want", as if your toe is immeasurably uncomfortable with a dip in the ocean of change.  I will say, however, that there are a few wines that have received high praise for both being 'consistent' and delicious.  

I like Jordan's wines.  I just do.  They make a big style Cabernet Sauvignon that is both unobtrusive and still hearty.  It's a dash of black leather and heavy currant-like berries.  Simply tasty.  Their Chardonnay is made in the Fuisse model, a nod to the wines of Burgundy that have been replaced by the 'Land O Lakes' butter model that saturates the California Market.  Brian, the other contributor to this website(and my boss), goes to lengths to communicate the elegant reservations of their fruit; a sexiness that whispers 'Old Culture'.

Another beauty, Alpha Omega, is just 'freakin awesome'.  Pardon my level or grammatical depreciation, but they 'freakin' are.  Their Chardonnay is a knock-out, it's the Buster Douglas of the wine world:  Not the most expensive fighter in the ring, but given it's shot, it'll take down even the biggest dog.  Their Cabernet Sauvignon, that I have already mentioned on a past post, is a stellar competitor to the 'Caymus' and Silver Oaks' of the habitual wine world.  I had a chance to try their ERA; a Meritage(marrying the Varietals of the Old World on our Native Soil) that easily out muscles any cuvee of recent memory.  Cultured Leather and humidor lacquer the nose, preceding a strong blackberry and fortified currants.  Hints of bay leaf like spices linger on the extremely long finish, mellow neutral-sweetness cocoa marry into your saliva for what seems like days.  It's just 'freakin good'.  Fellow Oenophile and Wine Nerd Chelsea Bellows is their Director of Sales is a pen pal of mine, and she will tell you; it's not about what you do it's about the integrity of what you create.  Our relationship is a result of my passion for their wine, and the integrity of my suggestions.  It's nice to be a professional and a fan.  

           Follow what you love, understand that variety is both the spice of life and circumstancial.  Find a wine you like and paint your pallette with it.  Vary depending on your assumptions, but never ever settle for what you deem to be the best.

         Cheers,

             Cam

Mystery loves Company

         I find myself, more often than not, as to the veil that has been placed over the culture of wine drinking.  It is with that statement, or perhaps the commanding social magnetism therein, that I pose my latest theoretical tirade.  I believe, and those of us who are fortunate enough to work our daily lives surrounded by wine follow me on this, that wine is made hard to grasp by those who believe it is simply a hobby.  Following that statement, those that treat it like a culture, a pietry dish-like community wherein we all grow with our likes/dislikes; a shared hedonism that creates what I believe to be an inherently humanistic passion.

         What am I saying?  What's the best pairing for food?  Companionship, period.  I realize that here at the Daily Wine Buzz that I take a very solo-istic approach to 'learning' about wine; but I have to emphasize that wine appreciation that takes on a tone of isolationism is at it's heart is just wrong.  Wine Enthusiasm isn't about saving a bottle to savor alone, because passion arises from the ability to communicate enthusiasm; a collective teeth clacking, lip smacking reverence that begins at the first blessed sip.

         Don't associate this article with monetary labeling either, your $20 dollar bottle could easily be a 'share worthy' wine should you deem it to be.  I love Chapoutier's ventures in the inexpensive Samouren Rouge market; a byproduct of both my miser-like siblings and my overzealous fruit driven pallette(should that occasion arise).  I think Chile makes amazingly sensual fruit, while still practicalizing the budget therein.  Montes makes wines all over the price-scale; I will say, however, that a finer $60 dollar buy is nearly impossible against their 'Purple Angel'.  A blend of Carmenere and Petit Verdot(it does change vintage to vintage) this stellar, muscular red is both a blend of ripe berry fruit and winding, vegetative spice.  I decanted it for an hour and it was still as austere as any wines being produced in Northern California.  Did I share it?  With my family and my friends.

          Love wine, but more importantly love your passion.  This blog is a personal passion of mine, and as a result have become accustomed to indulging in both sharing and caring(no I'm not the Lionheart of the Wine world...yet).  A good friend and wine drinker, Doug King, convinced me to write this article as a means to express what I deemed rhetorical; excitement.  Get excited about having people who can share it with you, and more importantly, find more.  I love my mother(yes I am a "momma's boy"), and I revel in the fact that I can share nearly every cherished bottle in my humble 'cellar'.  As a result, she has branched out and begun sharing her prized bottles with her incredibly diverse social network.  

            The only way to understand the complicated and sometimes confusing universe of the fermented grape is to hear it from a knowledgeable source.  Be humble, and remember they aren't necessarily smarter than you, they just heard it from someone else.  Wine Teachers, be humble too, don't scare them off by confusing passion for power.  Wine Hoggers, you know who you are, and cut it out.  If I have a bottle open at the bar sometime, and you see me, don't ever hesitate to ask for a pour.  I love to share wine the same way I love to share my breath, in heavy doses with a smile.  

           Thank you again all you Buzz-ers, I love you all for supporting my passion, and will continue to fill your glasses and screens as long as you'll have me.  

                 Cam

The Wine in Spain falls far from Plain

More and more I read articles that corral a certain cluster of affordable 'every day' wines, a treasure trove of dedications and salutations to vineyards both old and new that are trudging forward in times of economic strife to keep our tables and bellies full of quality wine. You know what I'm finding less and less of on sed lists? California Tradition. Call it oenological evolution, or perhaps some divine nod to the forgotten areas outside of dogmatic comfort zones; the truth is, the value balance has shifted to non-domestic markets.
One of my favorite varietals, Mencia, is a beautiful pairing for gamey meats and heavy starches. Originally thought to be a 'grand-pappy' to Cabernet Franc(see, there is another Cab), this slightly above mid-bodied red is both elegant and substantial in it's fruit-driven nature. Musty, but not overly dusted, it's raw trail berry flavor coats the pallette in the vein of chocolate covered cherries or the prized corners of your mother's homemade blueberry pie pieces. It's fragrance muscles up to the task, hinting at just whispers of refined earth, but really pushing that dried fig and tobacco clippings we all want from our 'Bay Side Beauties', but find ourselves scraping our wallets to purchase.
I have never met the man, but Eric Solomon(a fellow 'Charlottean' as well) has brought droves of chic and gorgeous wines from 'other' parts of the old world. Specializing in French and Spanish Wines, he began his 'European Cellars' from his living room in New York with the help of just two obscure(and now famous) wines; 'Domaine de Marcoux' and 'Domaine de La Janasse'. A wunderkind of the wine world, Solomon started young and as it stands he doesn't seem to be slowing down anytime soon. His pallette is superb, and his ability to take risks on otherwise unheard of vineyards helps us all appreciate the true value of walking on the wild side of wine.
It comes as a double edged sword from this reader, as he had hoped to continue to sneak wonderfully affordable wines from Priorat(an area in the southern part of Catalonia, Spain) from the shelves and let the rest of you struggle to find the perfect Napa Cab. I jest only because I find that most workaday wine drinkers apply a price tag with a certain assumed quality, rather than actually believing too good can be true. Ribera Del Duero, a region that relies on the delicate Tempranillo grape, is producing wildly popular everyday wines that marry an air of regal earthiness with a great number of dried off-black fruits. Tempranillo is a dimunitive of the word 'Temprano', meaning 'early', and it's early ripening gives it a balance of leafy vegitation and sweet tobacco-like spices. Adding in malolactic fermentation(application of lactic bacteria to convert malic acid, the sharp acid in Granny Smith apples, to the creamy lactic acid) makes a Tempranillo this author's top choice for a 'Rocky' like Cabernet Sauvignon contender.
If you're a risk taking Maverick like Mr. Solomon, or if you're just up to a good suggestion, I suggest you go out and try something from our Spanish friends. Whether it's Priorat, Ribera Del Duero, Rias Baixas(Ree-as By-shass); you're sure to surprise and impress your company. Hey, if you're lucky, you might fall in love with a wine twice; Solomon fell in love with Clos Erasmus and then again with Erasmus Winemaker Daphne Glorian shortly thereafter. For now, let's just stick to loving his wine though, maybe I'll blog love life advice in a later column.
Cameron

Grape Gripes

It's amusing to me what little I actually know about wine DRINKERS. I published an article a few days ago about pronunciation, and all of our shortcomings therein. I say 'OUR' because even as much as I know about my wine, I can in some cases just flat out have no idea. Apparently there is a trend going around wherein people pronounce Merlot as Mer-lawt. Do you say Filet as if it were Fill-et? Do you find yourself saying 'I'll have a Pinot' and meaning Gris? Better, do you say Tempran-il-oh, as if you have never had a Que-sa-dee-yah? It's not our faults, because, well someone obviously didn't ever take the time to mention that you undoubtedly did not correctly know what the real deal was. I mean this in regards to not just pronunciation but in regards to overall basic wine knowledge.

This is a basic article that I hope will clear up a few inconsistencies in the world of the fermented Grape, peeves of my friends and wait staffs all over the East Coast that I have been made aware of. If you do these things, then you are not alone, because I gathered this information from a very large pool of sources in and around wine service. If you are offended by my candor, please don't be, this is tough love from a guy who loves all of you very much for simply reading his musings. If you are laughing at the people who do these things, I challenge you to look at your own understanding of wine, and I bet you'll find a skeleton of common fallacy somewhere therein.

So you want a dry wine? Asking a server for a dry wine is like asking a pet salesman for a bigger dog than the one you already have; Spaniels are certainly bigger than Chihuahuas but smaller than Mastiffs, yet none of them are quite as big as you assume their ESP laden brain to be. Dry is a personal taste preference, and we as your host have no idea what you are accustomed to. If you drink Sangiovese, the supple, acrid dryness is hard to beat, second only to the Nebbiolo Grape from Piedmont or perhaps the Sicilian Nero D'Avolo. If you think Mer Soleil is dry, then, I suggest you go Virgin(Un-Oaked Chard, not Hannah Montana). The point is, we have no reference point as to what you already consider dry. Understand, too, that dry is a taste reflex that is unique to how our pallette reacts to the wine. Some pallettes have been saturated by wines that cause that off-drying effect, and as such, we are all like little puckering snow flakes. Make us aware, so we can help you to the best of our abilities.

"I like Pinots, and I like Cabernets". You like what? Pinot Noirs? Cabernet Sauvignon? While I often shorten Cabernet Sauvignon to Cabernet, understand that Cabernet Franc is not nearly the powerhouse here that it is in Loire Valley or even Stellenbosch. Pinot Noir and it's white cousin the Pinot Gris/Grigio are both VERY popular varietals in America. So asking your waiter to pick you out simply a 'Pinot' may end in a very jarring surprise. Furthermore, Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Noir are VERY different styles of wine. Saying you like either of them, is about as vague as saying; "I like Shel Silverstein and I like Tolstoy". While both authors are brilliant and worth their own solid merits, they both have their own expectations. A better approach to this would be to say, "I'm in the mood for a bigger style Cabernet(at this point if you're in America, that will suffice for Cabernet Sauvignon), but I could ALSO go for a medium bodied Pinot Noir. This gives your server the opportunity to come up with several choices. 'DARE' Cabernet Sauvignon from Viader is an excellent by the glass Cabernet(Sauvignon) that wreaks of blackberry cobbler and calveskin. It's mocha influences draw out it's tannins and paint the finish with ground espresso. However if you want the medium bodied Pinot Noir, Bel Glos from Joseph Wagner(son of Chuck, maker of Caymus) is a dear of an elegant drop. It's Black Cherry all the way, hints of plum and herbs tinge the finish. Give us something to work with, this is just an example, but we cannot just understand your many years of wine drinking(or lack thereof) with a simple glance. What we do, is learn from you, and put it to good use.

House Wines do not represent the house. In Europe, however, they are representative of the quality of the Chateau(hence HOUSE). For this reason, many restaurants use this title to suggest a wine for the casual glancer, inherently to save money. Not all House Wines are bad, and as such, it is key to ask your server, "HOW is the House today?" The alternative, and most common question is, "What's the House?" Some restaurants pride themselves at pricing common and quality stock as House Wines, treats for newbies to the wine world. Others put out their most basic 'swill', juice that will most likely scare off anyone sticking a toe into the vast ocean of 'Wine Culture'. Don't just order a House Wine because you are being cheap. If the server recommends the House, you may be in luck, but listen to us because most of our reactions are genuine. I have had good House wine on many occasions, but only in the instance that the server said, "Oh, its great actually", and the House will often turn out to be a foreign varietal that doesn't sell well for reasons of consumer ignorance. If the server recommends a glass a mere $2 more than your house, pay it; that is our way of saying, I wouldn't do that if I were you. Bad wine is like boxer shorts you see at 'GoodWill'; you wonder who would buy it, but you inevitably see the shelves half empty(gross).

Just because you get headaches from drinking wine, does NOT mean you have some obscure allergy to wine. Conversely, if your doctor says you do, try to listen to their educated advice please. Until I started working face to face with people on wine, I had no idea how many authorized Health Professionals were circulating through society; a byproduct of our undoubtedly 'Do It Yourself' culture that self diagnoses the pain away. Sometimes you are allergic to these things, though in very, very rare occasions. More than likely it's a histamine issue and the pollen that undoubtedly attached itself to the skin of that particular red grape has gotten into your system and given you sinus tension. Even more likely, is that you cannot hold your alcohol, and you learned the same thing that most college kids do in their first years away from home: Drinking in volume does not make for fun mornings. If you drink black tea, you aren't allergic to tannins...period. If you eat blackberries, you have no problem with sulfites. If you are sensitive to either, or if you've convinced yourself that you have, you should find a good Old World delight(Spain, France or Italy) that has a much lower metasulfite content. Further, most times I cannot unravel what you have convinced yourself of, and I can only suggest you avoid it altogether.

Any way you cut it, these are a few Q and A sessions I deal with, backed by literally dozens of professionals that put their input into the metaphorical hat that I had to pull from. A lot of you fit into these categories, so don't blush please, just know that it can be helped. This is a guide for you to know what to tell us, so we can help you. I'm sorry if anyone was offended, but I'd rather give you tough love, than let you continue to miss out on the beauty that is wine in it's most splendid form.

Cameron