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Cayuga White dropping fruit 2008 |
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Harvest can be fun !!! |
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Heroes square in Budapest, Hungary 2007 |
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Cultural Toasts
Chinese: Ganbei! (dry your cup) Dutch: Prost! (health) English: Cheers! French: Santé! (health) German:Prosit or Zum Wohl ! (cheers) Hebrew: Le'chaim! (to life) Irish: Sláinte! (to your health) Italian: Per cent'anni! (for one hundred years) Italian 2: Salute (health) Japanese: Kanpai! (dry your cup) Russian: Vashe zdorovie! (to health) Spanish: Salud! (health) Welsh: Iechyd da! (health)
"Vita vinum est" -- "Wine is life" -- according to Petronius, a Roman writer
Portuguese: SAÚDE ! VIVA 7/6/2006
Sherlock Holmes’ advice that
“When you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.”
7/18/2006
A very good impression with my wines to Catherine Fallis, Master Sommelier.
Even if the publisher edits me out I must have done something right :-)
TC,
John Z
Catherine Fallis is the world's fifth female Master Sommelier.
July 5, 2006
To: John Zuccarino at Silver Springs Winery
From: Catherine Fallis, Master Sommelier, and Robert Cohen Co-Authors, Great Boutique Wines You Can Buy Online, Fall 2006, Silverback Books
Re: Inclusion in Great Boutique Wines You Can Buy Online
Dear John:
Thank you for submitting Silver Springs Winery to be considered for Great Boutique Wines You Can Buy Online. We have included your winery and one or more of your wines in the manuscript submitted to the publisher. There may be some final cuts made to the manuscript by the publisher, so we cannot guarantee that your winery will appear in the finished version.
In the meantime, we’d like to thank you for helping with the production of Great Boutique Wines You Can Buy Online. If you have any questions, please contact either Catherine Fallis at grapegoddess@planetgrape.com or Robert Cohen at robertcohen@greatboutiquewines.com.
Best wishes,
Catherine Fallis, MS, and Robert Cohen Co-Authors Great Boutique Wines You Can Buy Online
How your brain helps you become a wine expert
"The researchers also used functional MRI techniques to measure brain activity from the subjects throughout the experiment. They found that as a result of prolonged odor exposure an area of the brain known as the orbitofrontal cortex (a region intimately involved in olfaction, emotion, and motivation) showed enhanced responses to the smells, corresponding to the subjects' improved capacity for distinguishing similar odors."
What I find fascinating is the region of the brain where the learning takes place. Also this proves you must get out and taste wine from all over the world or you will be very region or winery specific as to what you smell. So the question is do you feel more emotional or motivated or have a higher olfactory perception?
The link PLEASE CLICK ON ME
How your brain helps you become a wine expert
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8/20/2009
Zuccarino : Silver Springs Winery L.L.C. We have a person who is breaking the law everyday.
7/15/2007 Spurt of Finger Lakes wineries has no end in sight
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QUOTE
Today there are some 300 in an area roughly the size of Seneca Lake. And even with the price of land at about $200,000 per acre (compared with $5,000 in the Finger Lakes), Napa Valley continues to grow as a wine region. this statement is wrong...having just sold some land to a friend who is going to open up a winery...$ 8,000 an acre no mineral rights...with mineral rights add $10,000 per acre...min land for a farm winery set by the state is 10 acres
7/14/2007
Are you having a hard time pronouncing
wines and regions...I am...so I found this it helped me maybe it can help you...have fun !!!
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Salute, Per cent'anni!
John
2/9/2007
Traveling with Special Items
Alcoholic Beverages
Travelers may now carry through security checkpoints travel-size toiletries (3 ounces or less) that fit comfortably in ONE, QUART-SIZE, clear plastic, zip-top bag. Learn More
With the exception of medications, any amount of liquid including alcohol greater than three ounces must be packed in your checked baggage.
Liquids, including alcohol purchased after clearing the security checkpoint are permitted aboard aircraft.
Carrying Alcohol In Your Checked Baggage
Please note, you can’t take alcoholic beverages with more than 70% alcohol content (140 proof), including 95% grain alcohol and 150 proof rum, in your checked luggage.
You may take up to five liters of alcohol with alcohol content between 24% and 70% per person as checked luggage if it’s packaged in a sealable bottle or flask.
Alcoholic beverages with less than 24% alcohol content are not subject to hazardous materials regulations.
Fact.....Dom Pérignon was also an early advocate of organic winemaking using only natural process without the addition of foreign substances.
Misconceptions and Myths
The quote attributed to him—"Come quickly, I am drinking the stars!"—is supposedly what he said when tasting the first sparkling champagne. However, the first appearance of that quote appears to have been in a print advertisement in the late 1800s by the producer of Dom Pérignon Champagne. While the Dom did work tirelessly and successfully to improve the quality and renown of the still wines of the Champagne, he did not invent sparkling wine, nor was he the first to make champagne. Indeed he worked hard to prevent a secondary fermentation which was seen as a fault and most likely to break the wine bottles. [5] New documentary evidence suggests that a fizzy or sparkling wine was first made in England at least several decades before it was produced in France.
A major proponent of the misconceptions surrounding Dom Pérignon came from one of his successors at the Abbey of Hautvillers, Dom Groussard, who in 1821 gave an account of Dom Pérignon "inventing" Champagne among other exaggerated tales about the Abbey in order to garner historical importance and prestige for the church. [1] The myths about Pérignon being the first to use corks and being able to name the precise vineyard by tasting a single grape likely originated from Groussard's account. [6]
Prior to blending he would taste the grapes without knowing the source vineyard to avoid influencing his perceptions. References to his "blind tasting of wine" have led to the common misconception that Dom Pérignon was blind.
Contrary to popular belief, Dom Pérignon did not introduce blending to Champagne wines but rather the innovation of blending the grapes prior to sending them to press.
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How Temperature Can Affect The Rate Of Aging of Wine
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Temperature Change |
INCREASE IN RATE OF AGING ASSUMING ENERGY BARRIERS TO REACTION ARE: |
From |
To |
Low |
High |
55°F (13°C) |
59°F (15°C) |
1.2
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1.5
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55°F (13°C) |
73°F (23°C) |
2.1 |
8.0 |
55°F (13°C) |
91°F (33°C) |
4.1 |
56.1 |
2009 Vintners Hall of Fame Inductees
The Culinary Institute of America Announces the 2009 Vintners Hall of Fame Inductees
Congratulations to all for your passion and hard work...!!!
I would like to especially want thank Carole for her posting such great educational information on this BB...
Quote:
Carole Meredith, PhD.
Dr. Meredith spent 20 plus years in the Department of Viticulture
and Enology at UC Davis, studying grape genetics and using DNA typing
methods to discover the origins of Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay,
Syrah and most recently Zinfandel. Today she is the co-owner of the
Napa winery Lagier-Meredith. |
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Quote:
2009 Vintners Hall of Fame inductees’ bios:
Gerald Asher
Wine editor of Gourmet magazine for more than 30 years,
Asher displays both great knowledge of wine and the ability to write
about it without technical jargon. His elegant, witty writing has
passed along a passion for wine to many food lovers.
Jack and Jamie Davies
Jack and Jamie Davies resurrected the abandoned Schramsberg estate
in the mid-1960s. With Jack overseeing production and Jamie doing the
marketing, they established Schramsberg as a world-class house of
sparkling wine. Every president starting with Richard Nixon has served
Schramsberg wine at an official White House function.
Jess Jackson
In 1974, Jess, a founding member of Family Winemakers of
California, converted an orchard in Lakeport to a vineyard. By 1982,
the first Kendall-Jackson-labeled wine went to market. Jackson created
a new style of Chardonnay that made it the most popular varietal in
America. He has also embarked on a quest to elevate the best Sonoma
County wines to the highest level of respect in the wine world.
Carole Meredith, PhD.
Dr. Meredith spent 20 plus years in the Department of Viticulture
and Enology at UC Davis, studying grape genetics and using DNA typing
methods to discover the origins of Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay,
Syrah and most recently Zinfandel. Today she is the co-owner of the
Napa winery Lagier-Meredith.
Justin Meyer
A Brother in the Christian Brothers order, Meyer began his
winemaking career as an assistant to Brother Timothy at Greystone
Cellars, now the West Coast campus of the CIA. After studying at UC
Davis, he left the Brotherhood to create the Silver Oak Cabernet
Sauvignon-only program with David Duncan. The wine became one of the
most requested premium wines in US restaurants.
Warren Winiarski, PhD.
Dr. Winiarski left his teaching position at the University of
Chicago to become a winemaker, first working at Robert Mondavi Winery
before forming his own company, Stag's Leap Wine Cellars. The very
first vintage of Cabernet Sauvignon produced at his new winery won the
famous 1976 Judgment of Paris tasting, instantly proving that
California red wines are as good as any in the world.
2009 Vintners Hall of Fame “Pioneer” inductee bio:
Frederick and Jacob Beringer
The Beringer brothers emigrated from Mainz, Germany in the 1860s
to seek their fortune, and became leaders of the California wine
industry in its rise to greatness from the 1870s until the 1890s. A
Beringer Riesling won a silver medal at the Paris Exhibition of 1887.
The winery and house they built are among the most treasured buildings
in the Napa Valley. |
12/20/2008
Wine bottles going down the tube?

Quote:
Wine traditionalists sneer when vintners replace cork with plastic. They howl in contempt at screwtops.
So what will they make of a California company taking an even bolder step: doing away with bottles altogether and replacing them with cardboard tubes? |
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Not in my lifetime...no way !!!!!
12/06/2008 WinePod Online School of Winemaking
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Quote:
WinePod, the world's first personal winery that allows wine enthusiasts to make world-class wine at home, announces the perfect last minute affordable holiday gift for the aspiring winemaker--WinePod Online School of Winemaking. The $99 cost includes a four-week online winemaking school taught by WinePod's professional winemakers and hosted by award-winning author and sommelier Courtney Cochran. |

Quote:
Each purchase of the WinePod Online School of Winemaking between December 1 and December 31, 2008 will automatically enter the purchaser into a drawing for a WinePod personal winemaking system, a $4,499 value. |
So how many are going to rush into this fine easy wine production...
11/12/2008 The Riesling-Shoot-Out So, here's the analysis of the Nov 8 Riesling tasting.
There were 13 wines-six German, six New York, and one Canadian Riesling-but the tasters sampled fifteen. The purpose of the duplicate pours was to point out to tasters how perceptions can be altered by what is tasted before and after a wine.
In the case of the Wiemer, I purposely put it before another Finger Lakes and after the Donnhoff, knowing that the wine had the potential to make others think German. The Prejean was placed before and after a German and a Canadian wine, to see what the potential jumble of tastes might cause.
The Wiemer received 90 and above points from 6 tasters, however, no taster scored it that way twice.
The majority of tasters who did not like the two wines that were duplicated, had written the same general reason for their dislike of the wines on each occasion. This was not the case for those who scored the wines at or above 90.
5 out of 6 who scored Wiemer in the 90s scored the first appearance of the wine over the second, the remaining person scored in the opposite direction.
Of the 4 who scored Prejean in the 90s, 2 preferred the first appearance; 2 preferred the second.
Four New York wines received ratings at or above 90 points; of the four, Wiemer received 6, Prejean received 4, Glenora received 1, and Atwater (the one that had to be replaced by a second bottle) received 1. A total of 12 NY scores at or above 90.
Five German wines received ratings at or above 90; of the five, Donnhoff received 5, Messmer received 4, Selbach-Oster received 3, Bassermann received 2, and Lietz received 1. A total of 15 German scores at or above 90.
Vineland Estate received two scores at or above 90. A total of 2 Canadian scores at or above 90.
The best I can determine, 131 scores were in the 80s, with 30 scores in the 70s, and 27 scores under 70. Some people skipped a few scores, and others refused to follow the scoring chart I made up just for this event.
Here are stats I find truly interesting:
2 tasters gave 90 or above only to German wine. 4 tasters gave 90 or above only to NY wine. 4 tasters gave 90 or above to both German and NY wine. 1 taster gave 90 or above to German and Canadian wine. 1 taster gave 90 or above to NY and Canadian wine.
It was truly difficult to decipher most handwriting, but overall verbal impressions for the range of wines were relatively good across the board, with of course a few hate this and hate that. Generally, those who preferred German over NY wines seemed to have plenty of trouble with the phenolics of the latter.
The list of wines in the order that they were tasted.
2006 Bassermann-Jordan Riesling Trocken ($15.99 - Pfalz) 2007 Chateau Lafayette Reneau Dry Rielsing ($14.99 Seneca Lake, East Side) 2006 Schlossgut Diel Goldloch Riesling Trocken Grosses Gewachs ($59.99 - Nahe) 2007 Josef Leitz Ein Zwei Dry '3' Riesling Trocken ($15.99 - Rheingau) 2007 Ravines Dry Argenstsiner Vineyard Riesling ($25.00 Keuka Lake, East Side) 2006 Hermann Wiemer Dry Riesling ($17.99 Seneca Lake, West Side) 2007 Glenora Dry Riesling ($11.99 Seneca Lake, West Side) 2006 Hermann Donnhoff Grey Slate Riesling Trocken ($19.99 - Nahe) 2006 Hermann Wiemer Dry Riesling ($17.99 Seneca Lake, West Side) 2006 Selbach-Oster Zeltinger Himmelreich Riesling Kabinett Halbtrocken ($19.99 - Mosel) 2006 Atwater Estate Semi-Dry Riesling ($17.00 Seneca Lake, East Side) 2006 Prejean Semi-Dry Riesling ($11.99 Seneca Lake, West Side) 2007 Messmer Riesling Halbtrocken ($13.99 - Pfalz) 2007 Vineland Estate Semi-dry Riesling ($ ? Ontario) 2006 Prejean Semi-dry Riesling ($11.99 Seneca Lake, West Side)
11/05/2008
Wine 'allows guilt-free gluttony'
Quote:
A chemical found in red wine could make guilt-free gluttony a reality, an international study suggests |
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10/14/2008
LI wine growers agree: 2008's weather was a challenge
Quote:
At Paumanok Vineyard in Aquebogue, winemaker Kareem Massoud said the early frost and other factors cut his chardonnay crop by more than half. The season stands in sharp contrast to the warm, dry 2007 that produced some of the region's best wines in years.
Massoud said Paumanok will be cautious about spending on new equipment and projects. It had planned to open a second tasting room on Sound Avenue, but construction has been stalled. |
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10/11/2008
NEW RIESLING CLONE N90
NEW RIESLING CLONE N90, from Germany’s Neustadt Research Station was released this week
NEW RIESLING CLONE was released this week by Dr. Konstantin Frank’s Vinifera Wine Cellars after two years of work with Cornell University, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the New York State Department of Agriculture & Markets. Riesling Clone N90, from Germany’s Neustadt Research Station, offers higher quality wine potential with enhanced aromatics, has increased disease resistance due to a looser grape cluster, and also has greater winter hardiness. Dr. Frank was the pioneering viticulturalist who proved that delicate European grape varieties ( vitis Vinifera) like Riesling could be successfully grown in a cool climate like the Finger Lakes, catalyzing the “Vinifera revolution” there, throughout New York and the eastern United States. His son, the late Willy Frank, carried on the pioneering tradition, as does grandson Fred Frank, who released the vine on Thursday with several government officials involved in the collaborative effort. The two-year test period was to make sure that the vines were free of viruses and pathogens so that Dr. Frank’s winery may propagate them and offer the vines to other vineyards as well. Visit www.drfrankwines.com for more
10/4/2008
Cheers: Wine and Liquor Keep Flowing Despite Sour EconomyClick On Me
Quote:
Wine and spirit maker Constellation Brands may have posted a loss in its fiscal second-quarter profits, but the company also reported swift sales of vodka and premium wines. |
After this year I can say my Great Grandfather a prolific bootlegger during the depression feed his family on wine sales...some grappa too...I feel as if he is with me every inch of the way...first by passing his trade secrets to my grandfather who passed them down to me...humbling to have the history repeat itself...although I am leally selling wine...   
9/23/2008
Grapes In Brazil blog NEW from Cornell
Quote:
Welcome to the Grapes In Brazil blog! So what is this thing anyway?
Well, my name is Hans Walter-Peterson, and I am the viticulturist for the Finger Lakes Grape Program. I have created this blog as a way to document what I learn about the Brazilian grape and wine industry as I travel there over the last 10 days of September. I will be speaking at the XII Brazilian Congress on Grapes and Wine meeting in Bento Gonçalves (near Porto Alegre, in the very southern portion of the country - see the map), and then visiting growers, winemakers and researchers in the region for several days after the meeting. I will be there from September 22 - 30. |
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9/21/2008
Wildfire smoke may have tainted wine grapes
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Quote:
Three months after smoke from wildfires carpeted California’s vineyards, some winemakers in the thick of harvest are reporting grapes giving off unusual odors that may be signs of smoke taint. |
Quote:
One reason for the uncertainty is that some research suggests taint can’t necessarily be detected from tasting grapes or unfermented juice. Studies have shown the compounds that cause smoke taint—guaiacol and 4-ethylguaiacol — bind to sugar and aren’t fully released until fermentation, Burns said. |
Quote:
“The good news is that there seems to be the technology to fix things if something is wrong,” McGourty said, referring to filtration companies that specialize in removing the compounds. “Winemakers are wizards at taking problems and turning them into drinkable products.” |
9/18/2008 study of salivary protein-tannin aggregates this is one study I found eating lunch...funny as I read this my mouth started to get full of saliva...the power of suggestion... Nephelometric study of salivary protein-tannin aggregates
Quote:
Grape seed procyanidins were fractionated through different degrees of polymerisation, and human saliva was purified and separated into two fractions: one was mostly α-amylase and the other was essentially proline-rich proteins (PRPs). The interaction of these proteins with the procyanidin compounds was assayed using nephelometry, and the influence of several factors was investigated, such as degree of polymerisation, pH and concentrations of both protein and tannin. |
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9/6/2008
The Secret Life of Wine
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Quote: What is a connoisseur?
The question is perfectly answered in the definition, and example, given by Ambrose Bierce in The Devil's Dictionary, and nothing else needs to be said: Connoisseur, n. A specialist who knows everything about something and nothing about anything else. An old wine-bibber having been smashed in a railway collision, some wine was poured on his lips to revive him. "Pauillac, 1873," he murmured, and died.
9/5/2008
2008 Bordeaux harvest begins
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Quote:
The 2008 harvest in Bordeaux started today with Chateau Carbonnieux in Pessac Leognan bringing in the first Sauvignon Blanc grapes, ten days later than last year. |
9/3/2008 Bar owners turn to alcohol 'audits' to cut spills, boost profits
Is you Sommelier dipping into your profits...?...
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Quote:
Bowler is the owner of Bevinco, which performs "alcohol audits" for bar owners, pinpointing losses and translating the ounces lost into dollars. The Wake County business is a franchise of a Canadian company of the same name. Bevinco has franchises elsewhere in the state, including Durham and Charlotte. |
8/23/2008
Georg Riedel Glass workshop
First the pic's...
Me on the left...and Georg on the right...very cool...


Me on the left...and Georg on the right...very cool...
Bob Madill...Sheldrake Point Vineyard one of the Riesling wines we tasted came from him...

Lisa ...Georg's assistant...:
say hin name should be ....Riedel" is "reedle" just like "needle". And his first name is spelled Georg...Pronounced GAY-org in German.
First the glass size does make a difference...so size and shape does matter in relation to the varietal...and if it's a blend in relation to the variety...Sharon B ...I thank you for making me use the verbiage right...
Second...the glass does not have to be XYZ it can be any brand as long as it delivers the wine to you in the right way...I.E. I have a very long nose so for me the bigger the glass with a tapered opening gives me the best taste... if you have a smaller nose than I you will most definitely need a different glass...this is all subjective as wine is and very complicated...
What is the core value that I learned...
Size matters ...each size for each person
Don't care what people say drink in the glass that gives you the most pleasure...
Last... Don't judge a wine by one glass...your scores will change with each glass change you can bet the ranch on that... 8/14/2008 We had the news station do a story on Jap Beetles...all the leaves were eaten off of one prominent vineyard...then the question ...did you have to spray with pesticides...?... well yes the owner told the reporter... but with no leaves the grapes are not going to taste right, you think...???...as for me I have filled Jap lure bags ...never have I killed so many...then I mash them up and make a paste this leads them to the woods where my native grapes have grown 25 feet into the trees...they are the decoy vines...this helped all season for us... moderate damaged leafs on a my vines...

8/5/2008
The Nose, an Emotional Time Machine
So with wine ...I find this especally true...each smell brings me to special places...
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Quote:
Importantly, the olfactory cortex is embedded within the brain’s limbic system and amygdala, where emotions are born and emotional memories stored. That’s why smells, feelings and memories become so easily and intimately entangled, and why the simple act of washing dishes recently made Dr. Herz’s cousin break down and cry. “The smell of the dish soap reminded her of her grandmother,” said Dr. Herz, author of “The Scent of Desire.”
Many mammals are clearly nosier than we. Consider that our olfactory epithelium, the yellowish mass of mucous membrane located some three inches up from our nostrils, holds about 20 million smell receptors designed to detect odor molecules delivered either frontally, when we, say, sniff a rose, or via the rear, the volatile aromas that come up through the back of the mouth and give each jelly bean meaning. The nasal membranes of a bloodhound, by contrast, sustain an olfactory army 220 million receptors strong. |

8/4/2008
New bottle cap thwarts wine counterfeiters
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Quote:
A new cap invented by Argonne's Vulnerability Assessment Team can detect fraudulent or tampered wine. By plugging the cap into a computer through a USB cable, a wine buyer or auctioneer can determine if the wine inside is genuine. New generations of the cap will contain a color sensor that detects a particular tiny section of a tie-dye pattern located under the cap. Photo by George Joch. |

Quote: To combat this problem, Johnston and his colleagues in Argonne 's Vulnerability Assessment Team (VAT) have created a cap that winemakers can fit over the bottle's cork. The cap contains a small circuit that completes when it is removed, triggering an electric pulse that creates electronic evidence someone has tampered with the bottle. "There's no alarm that screams at you if the wine's been opened," Johnston said, "but there's no way of getting rid of the evidence of tampering because basically, when tampering occurs, information is erased—a kind of anti-alarm."
8/1/2008
Riesling shoot-out at Verasions at Glenora Nov 8 th 7 PM ::: I need your help tasters...
posted at 8/2/2008 11:41 PM EDT on democratandchronicle.com
First post: 4/10/2008 Last post: 8/2/2008 Total posts: 33 |
Riesling shoot-out at Verasions at Glenora
I need you to help me pull this thing off...
I have been in contact with Glenora's owner Gene and he told me that his inn and restaurant will accommodate us and he will do what he can to make this work...
I am putting on a 5 wine FL Riesling and 5 wine very highly rate wines from around the world to prove that the Finger Lakes wines are being under scored... I what I need is tasters...all you have to do is taste double blind...you will not know what country the wine is from...all you will know is the RS = Residual Sugar...
I personally have ordered 150 glasses and have an wine writer, author and teacher...
Thomas Pellechia – Wine Writer & Educator
Thomas has new book coming out...around that same date ...he will be the official person in charge of the professional wine tasting...Thomas has many years of industry knowledge ...this will make the news if the Finger lake wines wine over the worlds other top producers...I have also talked to Gene owner of Glenora and he is offering a discount of 20 % off the room in the Inn...On the room I need to know by Sept 15... as far as being considered for the tasting...e-mail me and lets talk wine...Cheers !!!
7:PM November 8th 2008
7:PM November 8th 2008 our group will be 20 to 25 inc the 15 tasters...tasting first followed by dinner...I will have firm numbers well before the event ...dinner is Dutch treat...we will have plenty of wine...min 3 bottles of wine per entry so that's a total of 30 bottles of the Riesling shoot-out wine plus some other wines I will provide ... in short no shortage of wine... Please start to e-mail me at Big7771846@aol.com and commit to that date and time...so I can figure out the tasters... If you are coming you can be a taster...I just need to know if you do come will it be 1 + ? TC, John |
7/17/2008
Worlds oldest grape vine is in America...say what...?...
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Quote:
MotherVine Premium Scuppernong Wine will be introduced on Tuesday on Mother Vineyard Road, the site of the more than 400-year-old Mother Vine, reputed to be the oldest cultivated grapevine in the world. "Nobody in Europe has come up with one as old as that - and we've challenged them," said David Fussell Sr., the owner of Duplin Winery in Rose Hill. |

Quote:
Vine genetics experts in Paris have confirmed the authenticity of the age of the old vine and ancient paintings of Maribor dating from 1657 and 1681, kept in the Štajerska Provincial Museum in Graz, depict the 16th century house with the vine – although in those days the frontage was lushly overgrown with its leaves! |

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__________________ “Fortune favors the bold.” Virgil quotes (Ancient Roman Latin Poet and Author of the epic, Aeneid. 70 BC-19 BC)
7/15/2008
The pot of gold may require dealing with a ton of crap...
The TerraCycle Story...
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Quote:
is a tale of ultimate Eco-Capitalism. The company's flagship product, TerraCycle Plant Food™, is an all-natural, all-organic, 'goof-proof' liquid plant food made from waste (worm poop) and packaged in waste (reused soda bottles)! |
Quote:
[the] story is a reminder about following your dreams. The pot of gold may require dealing with a ton of crap." -- CBS Evening News |
 
I love the whole concept...my neighbor is working with someone on this for in the vineyard...I still have to see how it works...the thought that the vine could get lazy and mutate thus losing a valuable thirst for nutrients...
Still I do think it could help crops in very poor soil...this is a venture I am thinking about doing myself...on a small scale next year...
The cork section...Click On Me __________________
7/11/2008
Sommeliers in the vineyard
I found this a very good read...enjoy...
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Quote: That restaurant staffer who hands you the wine list may know even more about wine than you think. In what appears to be a burgeoning trend, several Bay Area sommeliers don't just recommend wine to diners; in off-hours, they're vintners, too.
7/11/2008
Tannins in wine that cannot be smelled
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Quote:
One of the most prominent elements of wine "flavor" is tannin, more a sensation of touch rather than taste. It is also a significant flavor component of tea, chocolate, soy, pecans, walnuts, and the skins and seeds of many fruits, other than grapes, such as blueberries, dates, kiwi, peaches, persimmons, pomegranates, raspberries and figs. Tannin leaves a puckery, astringent feeling on the tongue, gums, and cheeks and can sometimes also taste bitter. Wine tannins come primarily from grape skins and oak barrels (see Red, Red Wine on the "Winemaking" page) and vary in strength and character. In the mouth, tannins can feel fine, round, and smooth or gritty, coarse, and angular. Tannins are one of the few flavor elements in wine that cannot be smelled. |
__________________
7/4/2008
Chateau Mouton-Rothschild should be demoted to Second Growth
Quote:
Cornell University study argues.
In 'An Analysis of Bordeaux Wine Ratings 1970-2005', the New York State university's School of Hotel Administration calls for revision of the 1855 Bordeaux classification. |
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I remember posting when I knew very little about Bordeaux and I still do know very little about it...but I concluded that the system was broke and needed to be revised...Cornell seems to agree with me...
I found my original thread...Click On Me
7/1/2008
CRUSH'' Documentary Wins Top Award at Oenovideo Film Festival
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Quote:)--“CRUSH,” a documentary about the 2006 wine grape harvest, presented and sponsored by Don Sebastiani & Sons, won the top award for short films at the 2008 Oenovideo International Grape and Wine Film Festival in Gruissan, France.
6/27/2008
Michael Broadbent MW Vrs... Robert Parker July 10th the showdown
Quote:
London wine merchants Roberson |
they are having a taste off sort of...

6/22/2008
Measuring tannins are one way to distinguish terroir with Red wine
Oenologist Dr. Janes Harbetson and others at the Washington State University extension has proven that tannins density can vary by as much
Quote:
tannins was larger than an order of magnitude and in two varieties (Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot noir) the variation was 32-fold |
other sites in different AVA's give off different readings, thus the use as a tool in helping define the word terroir...now we have definitive proof as far as tannins go that a sense of place exists...
and our own BB member Larry J. Schaffer2 Department of Viticulture and Enology, University of California, Davis, CA got in on the action too...
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6/21/2008
Researchers crack genetic code of bacterium that causes Pierce's disease
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Quote:
Pierce's disease has been around since the 1800s, but in the late 1990s a little bug called the glassy winged sharpshooter proved more effective than any prior insect at moving the disease-causing bacterium around vineyards. It spread Pierce's Disease to hundreds of acres of vineyards in Kern County in 2001, killing them all. The industry has been on red alert ever since, warning that its spread northward was likely. |
6/17/2008
First farmers made 'lucky beads'

Quote:
Some of the first farmers in the Near East probably used green beads as amulets to protect themselves and their crops, a study suggests. |
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Quote: Daniella Bar-Yosef Mayer, from Israel's University of Haifa, and Naomi Porat, from the Geological Survey of Israel in Jerusalem, examined 221 beads from eight Neolithic (or late stone age) sites dating to between 11,600 years ago and 8,200 years ago.
None of the minerals the beads were made from came from the immediate vicinity of the sites. Some were mined from as far afield as northern Syria, Cyprus and Saudi Arabia.
6/6/2008
Finger Lake Wine Center announces future plans
Quote:
ITHACA, N.Y. -- Right now it's just empty space, but come April, the Finger Lakes Wine Center will be opening in the Cayuga Street Garage. |
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6/5/2008
Alcohol cuts risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis
Quote:
People who drink alcohol are less prone to the sometimes crippling disease called rheumatoid arthritis compared with non-drinkers, according to a Scandinavian study published on Wednesday. |
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6/4/2008
Rotundone Imparts Peppery Aroma
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Quote: The sesquiterpene rotundone gives pepper its distinctive aroma, says an international group of researchers in a pair of papers in the Journal of Agricultural & Food Chemistry (DOI: 10.1021/jf800183k and 10.1021/jf800184t). Previously, the aroma of black pepper was attributed to complex interactions of many chemical components, including piperine and related alkaloids that produce a spicy heat sensation in the mouth.
5/30/2008
Cyprus researches millenia-old wine jars in wreck
Quote:
Archaeologists have started research into what they believe may be the oldest known ancient shipwreck off Cyprus which sank with hundreds of jars of wine on board 2,350 years ago. |
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Quote:
Cypriot marine archaeologists say it appears to be one of the best preserved wrecks in the region, carrying hundreds of jars of wine dating from the mid-fourth century BC. |
Is it possible that some wine might have made it...?...
Quote:
Researchers have found 500 large ceramic wine jars, or amphorae, and believe another 300 to 400 could be buried in sand along with the hull of the boat. Their design suggested they were from the Greek island of Chios, Demesticha said.
"We know Chios was famous for its high quality red wine, and we believe that the amphorae contained wine." |

5/30/2008
Bayer blamed for honeybee losses, clothianidin banned in Germany

Bayer blamed for honeybee losses, clothianidin banned in Germany
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Quote:
After a lot of urgent research conducted in the past few years, some tests on dead bees have shown that 99% of the ones examined had a high level of clothianidin in their system -- the chemical sold under the name "Poncho" by Bayer AG in Germany. It's used as a pesticide for sweet corn and rapeseeds.
According to Bayer, the chemical typically sticks to the seed and doesn't get into the air, but an "extremely rare" "application error" resulted in its release. Germany didn't take any chances though -- honeybees are vital to the health of many crops and the country has banned the entire category of pesticides. |

5/28/2008
A Tiny Fruit That Tricks the Tongue to think you are drinking Manischewitz... This is a sick fruit...it could make anyone lose their mind at a wine-tasting...this is the funny part...
Quote:
Mr. Aliquo issues his own warnings. “It will make all wine taste like Manischewitz,” he said. And already sweet foods like candy can become cloying. |
Quote:
CARRIE DASHOW dropped a large dollop of lemon sorbet into a glass of Guinness, stirred, drank and proclaimed that it tasted like a “chocolate shake.” |
Quote:
The miracle fruit, Synsepalum dulcificum, is native to West Africa and has been known to Westerners since the 18th century. The cause of the reaction is a protein called miraculin, which binds with the taste buds and acts as a sweetness inducer when it comes in contact with acids, according to a scientist who has studied the fruit, Linda Bartoshuk at the University of Florida’s Center for Smell and Taste. Dr. Bartoshuk said she did not know of any dangers associated with eating miracle fruit. |
Click On Me __________________
5/24/2008
New book on Jefferson bottles 'riddled with inaccuracies': Christies
Quote:
'Billionaire's Vinegar', a book about the collection of contentious Jefferson bottles, has left Decanter columnist Michael Broadbent MW angry about alleged inaccuracies and mischaracterisation of his relationship with wine dealer Hardy Rodenstock. |
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Quote:
The story hinges on a bottle of 1787 Chateau Lafite supposedly owned by third US president Thomas Jefferson, authenticated and sold in 1985 to the Forbes family for a record US$156,000 by then-head of Christie's wine department Broadbent. |
This is getting very VinoWoodesq..
Field Grafting why you do it and how to do it
This winter I will be working with a grower and partner doing a trial run on a few vines...old vines with deep roots that have a varietal that does not sell well...we will be grafting Riesling...the first year that is this winter we will prepare the strong scion wood for next springs grafting...look at how I am talking years...one year for trial at this location...the next for doing the 2 acres, then waiting three years for grapes...people wonder why growers have such love for their vines, it the joy of creation...especially something that will outlive you...

http://berrygrape.oregonstate.edu/258/
5/15/2008
Drama at Korbel champagne with baron Gary B. Heck
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Quote:
Nearly two dozen volumes of court records document claims of fraud, sex assault, death threat |
Quote:
The dispute, tinged with sordid details, pits Korbel champagne baron Gary B. Heck, owner and chief executive of a $159 million-a-year wine empire, against his estranged daughter, Richie Ann Samii, a west county horsewoman and trust fund beneficiary. |
What a mess in the next 15 years family wineries will be changing hands at a rate never before seen...will they survive the transition...?... or will they be bought up by big investment funds, as I have seen happing in the past few years...?...
Time will tell, but look for big changes to come, as for the affect on quality...my best guess is it won't be getting better, if they are distracted in courts and not distracted with making wine...greed what a shame...
5/5/2008
Wine enthusiasts stomp on shipment proposal:
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Quote:
Mike Havelka and Andy Kozusko are inviting fellow wine enthusiasts to a Bellevue restaurant event that is equal parts party and protest.
Mr. Havelka, a Sewickley businessman, and Mr. Kozusko, a Downtown attorney, hope Wednesday's dinner at Vivo will help head off legislation that would require all wine shipments to go through Pennsylvania's state store system.
These are not your typical wine drinkers. |
5/2/2008
EU wine market reform - guideThis part cracks me up...is this doublespeak at it's best...
Quote:
Chaptalisation: this will continue to be permitted, although maximum levels of enrichment with either sugar or must will be reduced. For exceptional climatic reasons, Member States may request the Commission to increase the level of enrichment. |
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4/30/2008
Absinthe's A Spirit Mind-Altering Mystery SolvedClick On Me
Quote:
The culprit seems plain and simple: The century-old absinthe contained about 70 percent alcohol, giving it a 140-proof kick. In comparison, most gins, vodkas and whiskeys are just 80- to 100-proof. |
I bet the 140 - proof kick would make most anyone crazy... 
4/23/2008
Glaxo Says Wine May Fight Aging
Quote:
Christoph Westphal, the chief executive of Sirtris, said Tuesday that drugs that mimic resveratrol, by activating enzymes called sirtuins, could “treat in a safe, natural new way, many of the major killers of western society.” |
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The wonders of wine...wine always was thought of by many a great philosophers, that wine could, should be used for certain ailments...even the bible has passages relating to wine as a healing drink..
4/17/2008
Weather 2008: Finger Lakes Temperature fluctuation and frost
4/7/2008
A History of Wine in America
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The whole book online...simply a must read, very fascinating...enjoy...we have come a long way in the US as you will read...as in all books some facts may be off just a bit, still this is very good information...
4/4/2008
You get what you pay for !!! Italian Wine Under Investigation for Adulteration The adulteration of the cheap wine is a potential health hazard. Click On Me
Quote:
In a separate investigation at the luxury end, 600,000 bottles of vintage Brunello di Montalcino have been seized by investigators who suspect winemakers used grapes other than Sangiovese, the only ingredient allowed in the Tuscan wine, a favourite of U.S. connoisseurs, L'Espresso magazine reported. |
Quote:
Brunello Di Montalcino's 6.5 million bottles annual production is sold in the United States. |
 __________________
3/30/2008
Study finds pesticide residues in wine Click On Me
Quote:
"Grapes are among the most contaminated food products on sale in the EU and receive a higher dose of synthetic pesticides than almost any other crop," argues the environmental NGO in a report analyzing pesticide residues in wine, published on Wednesday (26 March).
The study covered 40 bottles of wine - 34 conventional and six organic ones - purchased inside the EU. According to the results, the 34 bottles of conventional wine together contained 148 pesticide residues. All 34 bottles contained from one to ten pesticides, bringing the average per bottle to more than four. Of the six bottles of organic wine tested, one sample contained a low concentration of a possibly carcinogenic pesticide. |
How many of you wondered about the effect of pesticides and taste...?... Do most people want to forget the facts that some wines are filled with poison, as is our other foods so lets not just call out wine... 
3/28/2008
Human noses 'can detect danger'
Quote:
Our noses can quickly learn to link even subtle changes in smell with danger, claim scientists. |
Click On MeNow think of how much more we can smell....
3/37/2008 Understanding Tannins
Younger wines with short chain procyanidins made up of monomers to form the chain, some are stable others are not (fruit tannins) 2 to 5 ...5 to 10...10 to 15 units...when these are young they are perceived to taste bitter...as time aging allows the short chain tannins to build long chain tannins...when this happens color changes take place in order to make the longer chain of tannins...this is why a young bright red wine over time will move toward the browning out... this is when the tannins will be like silk, smooth or sweet not green, ripe...
So you have fruit tannins coming from the skin, stem, seeds...please note that seed tannins are the most astringent tannin thus the most pungent in taste profile, kind of turn your mouth inside out... ( each different grape has a different level of natural tannin content )...
Wood tannins if the wine saw any offer a complexity to the wine that will over time allow the wine to age over many years with the fruit tannins...
the difference between wood tannins and fruit tannins are
Quote:
Tannins extracted from grapes are condensed tannins, which are polymers of proanthocyanidin monomers. Hydrolysable tannins are extracted from the oak wood the wine is aged in. Hydrolysable tannins are more easily oxidized than condensed tannins. |
source Click On Me
So do wood and fruit tannins have taste ...yes... they have a taste and a feel, they each are very distinct ... in fact very condensed fruit tannins are not soluble and taste like grit...
This is a very complex question that could take you many years of studying as we are still finding out the answers, so you picked a moving target...
Tannins a great source of information... Tannins: definition
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Rule 78: A wider wine label debate
Quote:
Proposed Rulemaking 78 would end the common practice of “nesting” AVA names on labels. Nesting refers to labels that point out both the larger region of origin, such as Napa Valley, and a sub-region, such as Howell Mountain. |
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So do you want more or less info from the AVA ...more to me seems like full disclosure...less brings in the charlatans...
The BevWizard "Wine Smoother" Give me a break !!!
Someone tell me this if this is a joke...?
Has anyone tried this snake oil gizmo yet ...?
In the April issue of Vineyard & Winery Management
page 51
Quote:
The BevWizard "Wine Smoother" developed by Patrick Farrell MW |
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3/14/2008
I have found the science that proves corks do breath...
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MOCON page see fig. # 1 this proves that air transfers via cork...end of discussion...The Cork Does Breath...
I have asked for a retraction of the article based on the facts at hand that I have presented...from Appellation America and the author... the article that I want pulled as I have proven it wrong "Please Stop Telling People That Corks ‘Breathe" Click On Me
3/8/2008
Alcohol 'quickly' cuts heart risk
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Quote:
New moderate drinkers were 38% less likely to develop heart disease than those who stayed tee-total, a four-year study involving 7,500 people found.
Those who drank only wine showed the most benefit, the researchers reported in the American Medical Journal. |

3/5/2008
Hong Kong to host Asia's largest wine auction
Quote:
Hong Kong auction on May 31 is estimated to fetch more than $5 million and will include "cream of the crop" wine lots including cases of 1982 Chateau Lafite and other "first growths" of Latour, Margaux and Mouton Rothschild. |
Welcome Hong Kong...soon to become King Kong Click on Me
2/23/2008
2/20/2008
Procyanidins In Red Wine Help You Live Longer
Quote:
Wines from southwest France and Sardinia, where it is still made in the traditional way, tend to have higher levels of the compound - in some cases their levels were 10 times as high as wines from elsewhere. |
Click On Methis is a good quote...
Quote:
"There is a 19th Century expression - A man is only as old as his arteries - which can be taken to mean that those with the healthiest arteries live longer. So it was of great interest to us when we found both in Sardinia and in south-west France that the wines made in these in areas had higher levels of procyanidins." |
the power of observation in the name of science... Red wine diet draws a fan
Quote:
"The Red Wine Diet" by Roger Corder, a professor of experimental therapeutics at William Harvey Research Institute in London, spells everything out, from the science behind wine's benefits to how to incorporate it properly into your diet. |
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Quote:
Corder says the key to wine's health benefits is a chemical compound called procyanidin, and the book offers a guide to which wines have the highest procyanidin levels. |
 __________________ “Fortune favors the bold.” Virgil quotes (Ancient Roman Latin Poet and Author of the epic, Aeneid. 70 BC-19 BC)
"Lack of activity destroys the good condition of every human being, while movement and methodical physical exercise save it and preserve it."
Plato - Greek Philosopher
2/08/2008
Red Riesling will one day save White Riesling mark my words !!!
The very thought of Red Riesling might make your head shake no way…well WAY…yes Red Riesling is coming to you abet in very small quantities… as far as I know Ulrich Allendorf in the Rheingau region…looks like 2,500 vines will have their first harvest in 2008…
My thoughts are that Riesling is one of the most sensitive to that “sense of place” so you will see wild variation of this new Red Riesling…did I say new, please let me backtrack… The OCW does not address this grape to my knowledge …It’s thought that Red Riesling predates the White Riesling in 1435 we have an invoice
Quote:
Originally Posted by OCW
An invoice dated 1435, from a castle in the extreme south east of the Rheingau on the river Main, mentions ‛riesslingen in die wingarten‚, presumably Rieslings in the vineyard. |
So was the wine White or Red…?…
So how long has Red Riesling been around…?…much longer than you would think…does it have a place in the wine world…?…you bet yah, when the right producer gets this grape works out the high acid profile and integrating the harsh tannins that the wine can produce…since we know that a quality Riesling will age for from what I have studied over many decades and still taste wonderful…maybe the Red Riesling might be the future of the varietal due to growing conditions…
Quote:
The Red Riesling is considered to be one of the original forms of Riesling, and is said to be more full-bodied in taste |
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I would love to get some of the 2008 Red Riesling wine from wine producer Ulrich Allendorf…
Has anyone tasted a true Red Riesling not a blend…?…I would love for you to share the TN’s with us…Cheers !!!
Side note…
Quote:
Originally Posted by Stephen McGraw
A project involving a Professor Ruhl of the Geisenheim Wine Institute was undertaken where vines were propagated from the limited number of existing vines. Vines were planted at the Winkler Hasensprung vineyard. |

2/07/2008
Liv-ex - The Fine Wine ExchangeClick On Me
Quote:
China’s newfound passion is already creating a storm in the wine market, driving up the price of a case of 1982 Lafite Rothschild, for example, by nearly 93 per cent last year to £17,433 ($34,662, €23,334), according to Liv-ex.com. |
Love the real time sales ticker...Looks like the world got a bit smaller... 
1/31/2008
Assemblage The Art Of Blending
Quote:
Originally Posted by OCW
(The Oxford Companion to Wine) French word for the important operation in the production of fine wines of deciding which lots will be assembled to make up the final blend. Assemblage is of almost ritual significance in Bordeaux, where many châteaux make their so-called grand vin carrying the château name by selecting and blending only the best lots. |
In the New World...
Quote:
Originally Posted by OCW
In the New World, such a process is likely to involve the assembly of blends of various different quality levels and character. In this case there may be extensive experiments with small samples of each lot—known as bench blending—before final blends are decided upon. Here the winemaker is concerned not just with each lot's inherent quality but also with its affinity with other components in the blend. |
I love to bench blend...you can take 250 ml beakers( or what you prefer to use, no right or wrong) and go to town, but where are you going...?...for me most wines want to be something from the start, when I see a wine going the wrong way...i.e. too tannic, hot, flabby, acidic, that's when you better know how to blend...
As little as 1% of a complimentary wine can make or break the final polish or blend...imagine as little as 1%, this is why you must duplicate the blend at a min three times on three different days...preconceptions must be avoided... the wine will bloom as when a fine instrument is in tune...when the wine becomes the best it can...you better have good records...because when the "Grand Vintage" is presented in the beaker, magic fills the air !!!
1/25/2008
Petrichor: Goût de terroir-The Smell Of Minerals ?
Quote:
"Petrichor, the name for the smell of rain on dry ground, is from oils given off by vegetation, absorbed onto neighboring surfaces, and released into the air after a first rain." Matthew Bettelheim; Nature's Laboratory; Shasta Parent (Mt Shasta, California); Jan 2002. |
source Click On Me
Quote:
It turned out that the oils are given off by vegetation during dry spells and are adsorbed on to the surface of rocks and soil particles, to be released into the air again by the next rains. |
source Click On MeOk where am I going with this term Petrichor it's a smell...a
Quote:
it’s the pleasant smell that often accompanies the first rain after a long period of warm, dry weather in certain regions. |
Source see above link... First Petrichor is not the smell of the minerals, rocks or soil...it is the interaction of plant oils with the ground...this brings a good sensation to ones sense of smell...this also invokes the interaction of chemicals that form Esters...
Quote:
Esters react in a number of ways:
- Esters may undergo hydrolysis - the breakdown of an ester by water. This process can be catalyzed both by acids and bases. The base-catalyzed process is called saponification. The hydrolysis yields an alcohol and a carboxylic acid or its carboxylate salt.
|
source Click On MeSince we know that these plant oils work there way into grape vines via metabolic respiration via plant roots...it would be remiss of me not to suggest then the increase in the "Aroma Wheel " to include the different plant smells produced by specific rocks, soils and minerals that the "sense of place" can be found... Petrichor has been ignored and it's time to correlate that "sense of place" that each of us have experienced, whilst one is aware of it or not... By correlating Petrichor with minerals one can appreciate the fact that the 'Plant Oils' do interact with the soil and this brings out the minerality of that "sense of place' ... Now we only need to have them added to the Aroma Wheel...I have heard the excuse that stones don't smell, or have a quantifiable profile to note...I beg to differ... Your views ...?...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jamie Goode
Jamie Goode calls the "literalist" school holds that minerality comes more or less directly from the vineyard soils: slate in the vineyard produces slatey-type mineral character in the bottle. The implicit mechanism is that little molecules of slate journey from the soil through the roots and the xylem into the berries, and somehow manage not to fall out during fermentation. This, alas, is not how grapevine physiology works.
Even though chunks of slate (or clay or sandy loam) don't make their way into the grapes, some elementary minerals and mineral compounds do get taken up from the ground and end up in the juice. They arrive in small quantities, not enough to independently influence flavor, one way or another. They do, however, play an important role in yeast nutrition and metabolism during fermentation. And they are not particularly glamorous minerals, not the stuff of lyrical tasting notes: potassium, magnesium, sodium and calcium are the major players, none of them with noteworthy aromatic properties, particularly in such low concentrations. Wine flavors and aromas overwhelmingly come from compounds created either inside the berries during maturation or in the cellar during processing, not from substances transported from the soil. |
The last bold lines I have to say it like a dance not everyone gets to take the lead, yet we all get to dance and have a part in the dance...
Quote:
UC Davis flavor chemist Dr. Sue Ebeler: "As far as I know, there are no clear correlations of any specific compounds with a 'mineral' aroma. It is likely a complex mixture of compounds which we associate with the smell of soils or rocky areas. To really understand the use of this term, we would have to carefully define it with the use of some reference aroma/taste compounds that we could all agree on. |
Well there you have it...Dr Sue Ebeler states that all we need is common ground on vocabulary and then you could add it to the wheel...I suggest you nudge Dr. Noble and get her wheels rolling again...you did it once, now it's time to finish the job... Your views ...?...  PS Please note...when I mention "that sense of place" it's the interaction of terroir not the definition of it exclusively...  __________________ “Fortune favors the bold.” Virgil quotes (Ancient Roman Latin Poet and Author of the epic, Aeneid. 70 BC-19 BC)
"Lack of activity destroys the good condition of every human being, while movement and methodical physical exercise save it and preserve it."
Plato - Greek Philosopher
1/21/2008
Bottle Shock opens to mixed reviews
Quote:
According to Variety, that particular plot strand works. 'Wine lovers won't just sip but guzzle a lot of this down, and the same effect that sun-dappled days and sex in California had on Sideways operates here.' |
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Film Feud Over Famous Wine Tasting in Paris Heats Up
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Quote:
The story of a now legendary 1976 Paris wine tasting gets its first Hollywood treatment tomorrow night with the premiere of ``Bottle Shock'' at the Sundance Film Festival. It's one of two rival movie projects about the historic wine event. |
1/10/2008
Yeast and the roll in reducing alcohol ... some work is being done by Sylvie Dequin, an oenologist from INRA Montpellier... what they have found is that with the reduction in alc comes with a price...the price is a production of too much of a negative impact on the sensory properties of the wine by producing more gluconic acid leaving the wine too acidic, or too much glycerol giving you a great mouth-feel but at a cost of increased production of acetate and acetone, with a negative effect on aromas and flavour. Quote: Source Julia Harding MW 2007
She points out that selective vine breeding not genetic manipulation might be a solution...breading a vine for lower alc without taking away from the positive sensory properties of the wine...as you can see we have many issues and such little time...
12/26/2007
Fleeting wine trends keep things interestingClick On Me
Quote:
Yet, the wine business is made up of trends and strategies that are affected by such things as vintages that do matter (at least for some wines) and issues that seemingly have nothing to do with wine but have as great an impact as does the hand of the winemaker. |
I still think it's crazy to jump on a trend, or fad, but one can not always recognize them...remember in 1900 Catawba was all the rave... now to follow a well defined thirst for a wine-grape with a steady history this is building a safety foundation...seeing the new acreage reports for some wines and knowing where they are planted...it won't be long for that plonk lake of a fad wine to creep into the market...then you will have the ABP ( Anything But Pinot ) and the ABR ( Anything But Riesling) clubs forming...and the cycle goes round and round...I see the ABC (Anything But Chard ) club is starting to crumble, as long as it's oak free...!!!!!! 
12/22/2007
Alcohol TriviaHave fun...some of the facts are wild...I bet not all are true... Click On Me
11/27/2007
Wine may calm inflammation in blood vessels
From Noah to Napa, 5,000 years of Jewish Wine Making
11/02/2007
Device created for 'red wine headache'
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Quote:
BERKELEY, Calif. - The effects are all too familiar: a fancy dinner, some fine wine and then, a few hours later, a racing heart and a pounding headache. But a device developed by University of California, Berkeley, researchers could help avoid the dreaded "red wine headache." |
All they have to do is pasteurize the Red wine before ML fermentation, so no ML...then no biogenic amines...the production of tyramine and histamine will have not occurred...simple...solution...and they actually made a device for this...?...go after the cause not try to detect the problem...duh !!!
This thing is pure BS if you ask me... 
10/22/2007
New BottleWise Bag Lets Travelers Safely Transport Wine in Checked Baggage
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Quote:
MADISON, Wis.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--BottleWise™, maker of smart travel bags for the food and wine enthusiast, today announced the availability of BottleWise Duo™, a stylish yet functional bag for safely transporting wine inside checked baggage. Developed in response to U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) restrictions on liquids in carry-on bags, BottleWise Duo allows travelers to once again bring home that special souvenir from their wine country experience. |
It's better than wet baggage...
10/18/2007 The carménère grape that sets Chilean wine apart
Quote:
After phylloxera, it was not replanted; hardly any carmenère can be found today in Bordeaux. That might have been the last word on carmenère, had some French scientists visiting Chile in the early 1990s not been troubled by the appearance and character of Chilean merlot. Further studies revealed that in fact much of the merlot planted in Chile was in fact carmenère, traceable most likely to cuttings brought over in the mid-19th century. |
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10/17/2007
The Use of UVL light to reduce Botrytis storage rot post harvest
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UVL hormesis in fruits: a concept ripe for commercialisation
In northern climates with low UVL a chemicals called
Quote:
Pyrazines are important flavor components in foods. Pyrazines are nitrogen heterocycle molecules, with methyl, ethyl, methoxy, isopropyl and isobutyl derivatives being the major aromatic components in many fruits and vegetables. (8) See Figure 1. Methoxypyrazines are grape derived flavor compounds that contribute a very characteristic herbaceous, bell pepper or earthy aroma to wines of some grape varieties. (1)
|
It's the Methoxyprazines that the UVL converts and breaks it down so you don't get the green taste in your wine...in years when we get poor UVL then we look for solutions...this year we did not have this problem...03' yes...in the FL region...
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Ultraviolet
Name Abbreviation... Wavelength range in nanometers... Energy per photon UVC, short wave.......or germicidal Below 280 nm .........4.43 - 6.20 eV
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Conclusion, a devise that would use UVC could make many problems go away in winemaking...does any of the winemakers or Oenologists have any experience with this treatment...this is an area I will be investigating in the future...
10/10/2007
Demystifying Wine Expertise in Expert and Novice Wine Judges
Demystifying Wine Expertise: Olfactory Threshold, Perceptual Skill and Semantic Memory in Expert and Novice Wine Judges I found this study fascinating ...read it and then read it again...it's very thought provoking...how we communicate is key toward getting to the real olfactory facts...experts don't have to think about how to communicate, thus they are more accurate...my conclusion is when you write tasting notes and judge wine just write what you think at the time...don't worry about the verbiage or you will lose the note...
Quote:
Although language serves memory well under many situations, language may also be an insidious source of memory disruption in situations for which it is not well suited, such as when remembering smells. The type and degree of disruption appear dependent on an individual's domain-specific expertise. It is conceivable that in some areas of expertise, semantic memory plays a large role in the early stages of skill development, but that qualitatively different processes are involved subsequently as expertise advances |
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Details of odorants employed as materials... Click On Me
Quote:
When forced to identify the odorants, experts' superior perceptual skills protected them from verbal interference, whereas novices' generated verbal representations of the odours were emphasized at the expense of the odorant itself. This has implications for training in wine-evaluation skills. |
10/9/2007
Wine as medicine ...bring it on...
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Quote:
Wines have always been known for health benefits, but the benefits are not without caution. Wine web tells us that going back to 450 BC, Hippocrates recommended specific wines to purge fever, disinfect and dress wounds, as diuretics, for nutritional supplement. A French doctor wrote the earliest known printed book about wine around 1410 AD. |
Ever wonder why Syrah and Pinot taste the same ?
Because they are related !!!
Genealogy of wine grape cultivars: 'Pinot' is related to 'Syrah'
Quote:
'Syrah' parentage ('Dureza' 'Mondeuse Blanche')
As a consequence, 'Pinot' is more likely to be a 2° ancestor of 'Teroldego' and 'Dureza', a grandparent, an uncle or a half-sibling. Interestingly, our data and pedigree reconstruction suggest that 'Pinot' and 'Syrah' are 3° relatives, which has never been suspected before. These genetic relationships between 'Pinot' and 'Dureza' and between 'Pinot' and 'Syrah' could explain the high number of allele IBS observed among some 'Pinot' 'Syrah' crosses. This is consistent with the genetic distance between 'Pinot' and 'Syrah' (PSA=0.5) and between 'Pinot' and 'Dureza' (PSA=0.452). This pedigree is consistent with our data, but it contains several unknown cultivars. Yet, as most of them are likely to be extinct now (Scienza and Failla (1996) list more than 20 extinct cultivars in Trentino), it is possible that this pedigree will never be further improved. |
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Enjoy...next time you do a blind taste and get the two mixed up you will know why...
9/25/2007
Wine prices set to surge
From Australia
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"It will mean that we are going to make better and better wine, it'll just be that consumers will have to pay more for it and get used to drinking better." |
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9/23/2007
Fine wine prices sink as credit squeeze bites
QUOTE
Prices in the sector had been up 43 per cent since January because more investors moved into alternative asset classes. But that bull run may be coming to an end, experts say.
The early indications are that the 1.1 per cent drop in the index in August will carry through to September, Liv-ex.com director Justin Gibbs said.
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So much for a controlled market...even monopolies can suffer at the hands of the consumer and it's ability to spend discretionary money...Maybe this is a wake up call for the Châteaux... around the world...
The world will always have flippers who will disrupt the markets...
9/20/2007
9/20/2007 For someone soon to crush Pinot Grigio produce it...PG will soon to replace White Zin as the fourth fastest growing wine in the USA...this is old news ...yet good news...white wine can have good effects on ones health ...it's not all about red = only healthy wine... many whites offer the same antioxidants that are touted...thanks for the article...
Have wine experts forgotten the virtues of white wine?
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9/17/2007
Enzyme finding could help lead to better smelling wine and water Click On Me
QUOTE
Everyone knows that pleasant "earthy" smell of newly ploughed soil and the unpleasant "musty" smell of water, fish, and corked wine. Now, scientists have discovered how geosmin, the chemical responsible for those smells, is formed. David Cane and two of his graduate students at Brown University in Providence recently demonstrated the mechanism by which geosmin is produced, by splitting the enzyme responsible for geosmin synthesis into two halves. We seem to be getting closer to the truth each day...
9/14/2007
The New Organic Vineyard Is The Ugly Duckling
I hate to say it the beauty I see in a young vineyard seems ugly to most people…in such a superficial society where everything has to be perfect…Organic young vineyards are not beautiful at first glance…add biodynamic farming and they just might commit you to the vineyard insane society…people have to face the facts weeds are a naturally protecting shield when the bugs descend upon the field during the season…Organic sprays…soap, the shimmer of an old CD to keep the animals away…the smell of human hair and perfume that is discarded from beauty shops are a valuable commodity to us…as they are placed around the boundaries… yet we still can’t see the vines for the weeds…hold on using an eye magnifier you can see green vines among those weeds…vines 6 feet tall…with fruit dropped to aid in the development of the vine….as for the deer that deer fence with electric (solar) wire around the vineyard ….people often ask…what are you raising…after punching cattle in TX for a time many years ago…I shrug it off…taste the wine then tell me what you think…for this ugly duckling next year she will turn into a beautiful swan…when we crop our site where our tasting-room is…as for my other Organic interests they are looking real nice …the fruit this year what I have seen could be the vintage of a decade…and we just had that in 2001 and 2005…imagine 3 vintages of a decade in one…I feel blessed to be apart of this…I made a wine a Ice Wine in 2004 that will live for over 100 years …a bold statement…yet true…so when they lay me down to rest the joke will be on the world…I will have touched this world with sweat and blood…a legacy will have been left…now if G-D has years for me all the better…I have fulfilled my commandment of my religion…to plant a vineyard, as did Noah…life is good…no matter how the outside looks…it’s the ugly duckling that made this swan smile…
9/10/2007 The Greek solution to high wind and grape growing
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WIND,
In Greece in one of the most windswept wine regions, not even olive trees can grow. Vines survive only because they are trained so low that they look like large doughnuts lying flat on the ground with grapes crouching even lower in the center hole. Each vine is called stefani (crown) it will grow that way for 20 years after which time the trunk becomes strong enough to withstand the whipping wind, and the vine can be trained upright in the normal manner. source page 19 of Karen MacNeil The WINE BIBLE 2001 ISBN 1-56305-434-5 workman publishing company New York |
a nice link Click On Me
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8/27/2007 Scientists in France and Italy have deciphered the complete genetic code for the plant producing wine grapes, according to a study published Sunday. the link to the information...Click On Me
Quote:
This suggests that it may become possible to trace the diversity of wine flavours down to the genome level. Grapevine is also a crop that is highly susceptible to a large diversity of pathogens including powdery mildew, oidium and Pierce disease. |
The above is good and bad news...for the control of "pathogens including powdery mildew, oidium and Pierce disease" etc...this is great...to be able to control wine flavors down to the genome level...at first glance seems ok until you add all the other variables that go into flavor...last someone could bio-engineer a nefarious pathogen and make it impervious to all known cures...
8/26/2007 Wine grape genome decoded, flavour genes found
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Quote:
Scientists in France and Italy have deciphered the complete genetic code for the plant producing wine grapes, according to a study published Sunday. While the findings will do nothing to enhance the mystique of winemaking, they could pave the way for gene-based manipulations to boost flavour and improve resistance against disease.
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Pinot Noir, the signature grape of the famous Burgundy wine region in northern France
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The researchers discovered that V. vinifera had large "families" of genes "directly correlated with the aromatic features of wine," especially related to tannins and terpenes.
8/16/2007 Venom in wine triggers severe allergic reactions
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Wasp venom found in very young wine can cause severe allergic reactions, say doctors in Spain.
Doctors at the Rio Hortega hospital in Valladolid, Spain, treated five people who had developed allergic reactions as a result of drinking wine or grape juice. |

8/14/2007
Global Champagne Shortage
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QUOTE Vineyard owners in eastern France are refusing to sell tens of millions of bottles stocked in their cellars because they see them as their retirement "nest-eggs".
8/14/2007
100 point score card was talked about in 1975... by A.E.I. Milan
I was reading an old wine book and found that it was the Associazione Enotecnici Italiani 1975...this was the first time I ever heard of this proposal...at the time it was noted that the word "finesse" and "harmony" would be problematic to the system...the book does say the advantage was that a judge could quantify their judgements...from bad to excellent... source Wines Their Sensory Evaluation UCD...Amerine & Roessler 1975...
So I was wondering if this was the seed that started the 100 point system...or was this independent of what Mr. Parker thought of... I like the 100 pt system...history tells us the world liked it too...I just found this very interesting... 
8/14/2007
Fixing corked wine with plastic wrap
8/07/2007
Wine shift threatens wildlife-rich cork forests
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If you buy a bottle of wine with a metal screw-top or a plastic cork, you won't just be thumbing your nose at tradition. You may also be dooming the world's cork forests. |
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8/6/2007
Reductive Reasoning Getting to the bottom of 'reduction' problems in screwcap wines By Jamie Goode From Wines & Vines, 08/01/2007
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This is a great read...take your time and think about it real hard...Jamie does a great job explaining the problem...enjoy!!!
8/06/2007
Alcohol Detection Sensors In Your car
I would make this mandatory...think of how many this would save...
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8/05/2007
wine industry enjoys resurgence Click On Me
QUOTE
Long before biblical times, grapes were pressed into wine in the Judean Hills that surround Jerusalem. the best line in the story...
QUOTE
"People talk in this business. They share their secrets. All the recipes are known. It is the hand of the cook that makes the difference."
8/2/2007
More info on
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After several years working away in a laboratory in Adelaide, a team of Australian wine scientists has discovered the precise chemical compound that makes a shiraz taste peppery. |
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8/1/2007
Cybernose to help measure wine aromas
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Quote:
He said it was hoped the Cybernose would enable the wine industry to measure aroma and flavour objectively, and help winemakers pick grapes at optimum ripeness.
I don't need this Cybernose to tell me what to do...are we this desperate that we need a machine to help us???
7/31/2007
Australian scientists sniff out wine's peppery aroma
This is a great breakthrough as we get to learn more about what we taste in a wine...
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Quote:
The compound, known as alpha-ylangene, is so powerful that a single drop is enough to make an entire Olympic-size swimming pool smell peppery, institute researcher Mango Parker told a wine industry conference.
7/25/2007
Is this the end of the glass wine bottle?
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Next month, Sainsbury's is introducing lightweight and recyclable plastic bottles for some of its best selling wines.
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I think not !!!
7/24/2007
Where did that note of Cinnamon come from? As a winemaker I can confirm that the note of cinnamon does come from the interaction of the yeast and the grape...not the barrel...it could come from the barrel...that said I made some red wine from super ripe table grapes from Chile...the wine never saw any oak I let the wine lay on the lees for one year...this was one of the best wines I have ever had...big notes of cinnamon...I then looked up this fact in a Oenology book
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The following compounds are present in the grape skin at maturity: benzoic and cinnamic acid, flavonols and tannins |
source Vol 1 "The Microbiology of Wine and Vinifications" from University of Bordeaux publisher John Wiley & Sons , LTD ISBN 0471 97362 9...
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Ethyl cinnamate is the ester of cinnamic acid and ethanol...pure ethyl cinnamate has a "fruity and balsamic odor, reminiscent of cinnamon with an amber note" (Merck Index). source Merck Drug CO |
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The use of purified enzymes with low cinnamoyl esterase activity (eg. LAFAZYM EXTRACT, LAFAZYM PRESS or LAFAZYM CL). These enzymatic preparations permit a larger choice of yeast strains as they prevent the production of vinyl-phenols (4-vinylphenol and 4-vinylguaiacol). or in English the animal odors... |
source Click On MeA note on yeast...natural yeast can work well with a spontaneous fermentation that produce wonderful wines as well as cultured yeasts...   __________________
7/21/2007 Do we taste fat? The sixth taste ?
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Quote:
Five sub-modalities allowing the perception of sweet, salty, sour, bitter, and umami stimuli are classically depicted. However, the inborn attraction of mammals for fatty foods raises the possibility of an additional orosensory modality devoted to fat perception. |
Salute, Per cent'anni!
7/21/2007
College grads post tips on wine blog
7/18/2007
'MW shock' or Microwave shock... yes a new term...
Before the note...I had my wife nuke the wine for 7 seconds...after she let the wine sit for 15 min she called me downstairs to taste...she used two exact glasses...I was able to pick out the Nuked wine spot on first few sips from each glass...
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wine temp will do this (source Amerine) at 95 F the palate will have more sensitivity to sweetness and sourness at higher temps... at 50 F bitterness is more pronounced... |
I think for me the nuked wine had pronounced and distinct sweet notes with less of an acid tingling sensation...this is why I think some like the nuked wine better ...Americans talk dry and drink sweet...this supple change to the wine made the fruit seem more new world...then I let the wine sit in the glasses for 20 min...after 20 min the wines seemed to even out to a point...the nuked wine finally tasting more like the un nuked wine...my conclusion is no harm done at all...did I just say that???...ok very short term yes a change then she comes back to where she should be... I will call this 'MW shock' yes a new term...
7/10/2007
Wine Tasting: On the hunt for pinot noir By Eric Asimov, The New York Times
Quote:
Since the movie "Sideways" came out in 2004, America has carried on a passionate affair with pinot noir. Restaurants can't keep it in stock, wineries can't make enough of it and consumers show no signs of loosening their embrace of it. Sales shot up by 70 percent in 2005, and might have continued at that rate in 2006 except that shortages held growth to 20 percent, according to the Wine Institute, a trade organization. |
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7/8/2007 Wine Glass Music
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Now that a talent...you don't see too often...
7/5/2007 Century-Old Ban Lifted on Minimum Retail Pricing
Manufacturers have long been forbidden to dictate prices on their goods, whether pocketbooks or Porsches.
Published: June 29, 2007
WASHINGTON, June 28 — Striking down an antitrust rule nearly a century old, the Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that it was not automatically unlawful for manufacturers and distributors to agree on minimum retail prices.
The decision will give producers significantly more, though not unlimited, power to dictate retail prices and to restrict the flexibility of discounters.
Five justices, agreeing with the nation’s major manufacturers, said the new rule could in some instances lead to more competition and better service. But four dissenting justices agreed with 37 states and some consumer groups that abandoning the old rule could result in significantly higher prices and less competition for consumer and other goods.
The court struck down the 96-year-old rule that resale price maintenance agreements were an automatic, or per se, violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act. In its place, the court instructed judges considering such agreements for possible antitrust violations to apply a case-by-case approach, known as a “rule of reason,” to assess their impact on competition. The new rule is considerably more favorable to defendants.
The decision was handed down on the last day of the court’s term, which has been notable for overturning precedents and for victories for big businesses and antitrust defendants. It was also the latest of a series of antitrust decisions in recent years rejecting per se rules that had prohibited various marketing agreements between companies.
The Bush administration, along with economists of the Chicago school, had argued that the blanket prohibition against resale price maintenance agreements was archaic and counterproductive because, they said, some resale price agreements actually promote competition.
For example, they said, such agreements can make it easier for a new producer by assuring retailers that they will be able to recoup their investments in helping to market the product. And some distributors would be unfairly harmed by others, like Internet-based retailers, which could offer discounts because they would not have the expense of product demonstrations or other specialized consumer services.
A majority of the court agreed that the flat ban on price agreements discouraged these services and other marketing practices that could promote competition.
“In sum, it is a flawed antitrust doctrine that serves the interests of lawyers — by creating legal distinctions that operate as traps for the unaware — more than the interests of consumers — by requiring manufacturers to choose second-best options to achieve sound business objectives,” the court said in an opinion written by Justice Anthony M. Kennedy and signed by Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and Justices Antonin Scalia, Clarence Thomas and Samuel A. Alito Jr.
But in his dissent, portions of which he read from the bench, Justice Stephen G. Breyer said that there was no compelling reason to overturn a century’s worth of Supreme Court decisions that had affirmed the prohibition on resale maintenance agreements.
“The only safe predictions to make about today’s decision are that it will likely raise the price of goods at retail and that it will create considerable legal turbulence as lower courts seek to develop workable principles,” he wrote. “I do not believe that the majority has shown new or changed conditions sufficient to warrant overruling a decision of such long standing.”
During a 38-year period from 1937 to 1975 that Congress permitted the states to adopt laws allowing retail price fixing, economists estimated that such agreements covered about 10 percent of consumer good purchases. In today’s dollars, Justice Breyer estimated that the agreements translated to a higher annual average bill for a family of four of about $750 to $1,000.
The dissent was signed by Justices John Paul Stevens, David H. Souter and Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
The case involved an appeal of a judgment of $1.2 million against Leegin Creative Leather Products after it cut off Kay’s Kloset, a suburban Dallas shop, for refusing to honor Leegin’s no-discount policy. The judgment was automatically tripled under antitrust law.
Leegin’s marketing strategy for finding a niche in the highly competitive world of small leather goods was to sell its “Brighton” line of fashion accessories through small boutiques that could offer personalized service. Retailers were required to accept a no-discounting policy.
After the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, in New Orleans, upheld the judgment and said it was bound by Supreme Court precedent, Leegin took the case to the Supreme Court. Unless it is settled, the case, Leegin Creative Leather Products v. PSK Inc., will now be sent down to a lower court to apply the new standard.
The Supreme Court adopted the flat ban on resale price agreements between manufacturers and retailers in 1911, when it found that the Dr. Miles Medical Company had violated the Sherman act. The company had sought to sell medicine only to distributors who agreed to resell them at set prices. The court said such agreements benefit only the distributors, not consumers, and set a per se rule making such agreements unlawful.
Justice Kennedy said Thursday that the court was not bound by the 1911 precedent because of the “widespread agreement” among economists that resale price maintenance agreements can promote competition.
“Vertical agreements establishing minimum resale prices can have either pro-competitive or anticompetitive effects, depending upon the circumstances in which they are formed,” he wrote.
But Justice Breyer said in his dissent that the court had failed to justify the overturning of the rule, or that there was significant evidence to show that price agreements would often benefit consumers. He said courts would have a difficult time sorting out the price agreements that help consumers from those that harm them.
“The upshot is, as many economists suggest, sometimes resale price maintenance can prove harmful, sometimes it can bring benefits,” he wrote. “But before concluding that courts should consequently apply a rule of reason, I would ask such questions as, how often are harms or benefits likely to occur? How easy is it to separate the beneficial sheep from the antitrust goats?”
“My own answer,” he concluded, “is not very easily.”
7/2/2007
France's earliest winery found
Roman ruins found in southern France have been declared remnants of the country's earliest known winery.
The large site, built around 10AD, is still surrounded by vines today on the outskirts of Clermont l'Herault, in the heart of Languedoc wine country.
6/30/2007 More info with a study...enjoy...
Tongue sensors seem to taste fat
 Receptor may determine desire for dietary fat
 By Jim Dryden
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In the mouse experiments conducted by the researchers at the University of Bourgogne in Dijon, the rodents were fed two solutions: one laced with fat and the other containing a gummy, fat-free substance that mimicked the feel of fat in the mouth. Normal mice preferred the fatty solution, but mice that had been genetically engineered without the CD36 receptor protein didn't have that preference. In additional experiments in laboratory rats, the scientists found that removal of the CD36 gene kept the animals' intestines from initiating secretion of digestive juices necessary to digest fat. |

6/29/2007 Do we taste fat? The sixth taste ?
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Quote:
Five sub-modalities allowing the perception of sweet, salty, sour, bitter, and umami stimuli are classically depicted. However, the inborn attraction of mammals for fatty foods raises the possibility of an additional orosensory modality devoted to fat perception. |

6/26/2007
Alsace devastated, Trimbach, Weinbach damaged by hail
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6/2007
Tom Hill & Bernard Roth Click On Me
6/14/2007 'Stimulus and Related Errors' is amber wine always oxidized...NO !
I will point out 'Stimulus and Related Errors' logic would have you think in error when two characteristics from stimulus errors...slightly amber wine... white table wine if too old will have an slightly amber color and have a oxidized odor...but it is very likely that white wine made from red grapes to have a slightly amber color to be of a wine that is young and fresh...just because amber in color and oxidized in color are logically related does not mean they occur simultaneously...source page 53 out of print 1976 WINES: Their Sensory Evaluation...Amerine/ Rossler...
'Stimulus and Related Errors' is amber wine always oxidized...NO !
6/12/2007
Now wine offered & bottled piccolo, or fairhead 187ml 12 pac
Looks like more options...bigger profit margin for less ?
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow:
There grows no vine By the haunted Rhine By the Danube or Guadilquivar, Nor on Island nor Cape That bears such a grape As grows by the Beautiful River.
Very good in its way Is the Verzenay Or the Sillery, soft and creamy. But Catawba wine Has a taste more divine, More dulcet, delicious and dreamy
6/5/2007
Let me help you out on the term "Fat" this is a full-bodied usually RED fruit bomb high alc By Vol...a wine on adrenalin...Wines that are high in glycerine do not affect the smoothness of a wine...it only adds to the perception of sweetness...it is a false truth to use the term glycerine in relation to mouth-feel... are you ready...to prove my point further I will enlist a fellow posters quote who happens to be a scientist"There is not (or should not be, at any rate) enough glycerine in wine to have any significant effect on mouthfeel or flavor...only in the detection of perceived sweetness to a small degree... It definitely is NOT the source of tears/legs on the side of your wine glass. This phenomenon is called the Gibbs-Marangoni effect, here is a simple explanation. Years ago, Scientific American did a nice article on the nature and science of wine tears, but I have never had success finding it when searching recently.
Glycerol is the chemical name for the 3-carbon tri-alcohol HOCH2CH(OH)CH2OH. Glycerine is the more common generic name for this compound in its impure commercial form. The notion that glycerine is a significant component of wine, and lends properties to some wines such as flavor, viscosity, or mouthfeel, is (from everything I've been able to find in the scientific wine literature), simply unfounded. But many wine lovers continue to believe otherwise, partly due to laziness on the part of some wine critics in being a little more technically accurate in their descriptors. BTW, a related compound with one less hydroxyl group, the di-alcohol propylene glycol, is what you mix with water to make common antifreeze." posted by Alan Rath Location:Fremont, Calif Occupation:Scientist...
and more info:No positive relationship between glycerol per se and the mouth-feel attributes of wine has yet been established ....... Furthermore, at the concentrations at which glycerol is normally found in wine, the impact that it could have on the viscosity of wine would probably not be perceived by even the most experienced tasters (Noble & Bursick, 1984). Against this background it is quite possible that the perceived contribution of glycerol to mouth-feel can easily be over-emphasized."
This summary actually appears to have been taken from a much longer article describing a South African study. Though it's a bit dry this article is well worth reading for anyone interested in the impact of glycerol in wine. For those who don't want to labor through the entire article, the take home message is: the vast majority of dry wines fall into a fairly narrow range of glycerol concentration, with little difference between white and red, and NO correlation between concentration and quality as measured by award of gold/silver/bronze medals. The average concentration of glycerol is not nearly high enough to have any impact on the perceived viscosity of dry wines, though it may add a slight bit of perceived sweetness. This and this only...a bit of sweetness...
From another article (referenced in the above study): "at levels at which glycerol is normally found in wine, from 1.0 to 9.0 g/L, its primary contribution to the sensory properties of wine is to sweetness. Further, in the wine used in this investigation, below a concentration of 25.8 g/L, glycerol does not produce a detectable increase in perceived viscosity"
6/5/2007
The Punt in a bottle... A "punt" is the part of the blown glass vessel that was attached to the "punty" the steel pipe that was used to blow the glass and maneuver the glass so it can be shaped.
During the part of the process where a hot "bubble" of glass is transferred from one punty to another, there are actually two (2) punts on a vessel. Until the first one is cut away, thus opening the vessel.
A blob of glass is gathered onto the end of a punty. It is spun to center it and hanging straight down, a puff of air causes the blob to expand with a hollow in the middle. At this point the punty is attached at the end of the vessel that will eventually be the opening. The blob is inserted into the "glory hole" a second furnace that keeps the glass pliable so it can be worked and shaped and if it is going to be a bottle or a vase, the hot bubble is spun while being shaped with various tools, open molds, so to speak. When it has been shaped as desired, another worker pulls a blob of molten glass onto the end of another punty which is then stuck to the bottom of the vessel, often pushed in a bit to make it concave, which will allow it to sit level, but that comes later.
Now that the vessel is attached to the new punty, the first punty is cut away with big shears, and the now open vessel is further shaped, often being put back into the glory hole numerous times during the process, to soften it so it can be worked. Often this is repeated several times so if this is going to be a vase, the top can be stretched and flared, pleated, rippled, turned down on itself, whatever.... When the vessel has hardened enough to hold its shape, it is grasped by a helper with metal tongs and the second punty is broken off the bottom of the vessel. This is the punt.
See this:changing ends.
Often this protrudes past the base rim, so the vessel will not sit square and has to be ground away, and often polished. Sometimes it is ground down so that the bottom is entirely concave, or it may just be ground until it is below the level of the rim, leaving a bump in the bottom.
Although the Egyptians and others in the middle east were making faience or fused glass 3500 years ago, the first glass blowing was done in the first century B.C. The "Portland" vase, made in Rome, has a punt mark on the bottom.
Glass for windows, an extremely expensive item in the middle ages, was blown on a punty, cut and flattened and some very early pieces have been found in very early glassworkers shops, with the punt still attached. Interestingly, some of the colors developed by these early European glassworkers were secrets that are still a mystery today. The stained glass in cathedral windows is difficult to replace because glass makers are still trying to duplicate particular colors.
The punt predated sparkling wine by centuries and all kinds of vessels have punts on the bottom.
History of glassblowing by glassblowers.
That being said, there are some TYPES of glass that are stronger and more suited for bottling under pressure. Different minerals added to the sand add more than just color. Some glass is extremely brittle, add certain elements and the glass becomes extremely tough.
Glass bottles made in molds have a concave bottom because the bottles are pulled from the molds before the glass has completely cooled. If the bottom is completely flat, the glass can slump and the bottle will not sit flat. I have a bottle of olive oil, from Italy, that has as deep a hollow in the bottom as any wine bottle.
6/5/2007
Finally I think I can explain Terroir thru blending ?
You can make a wine from the grape Tempranillo from Rioja, if this was estate grown then you will not have a taste of the taste of Rioja, of northern Spain area. Especially if it was vineyard specific. Now go and do a traditional blending and the taste will reflect the region Rioja provided you used grapes from very different vineyards.
The French call blending assemblage. This would seem just right if you would blend grapes from different soils and growing conditions in the region. Then you will have a taste of Terroir of the region.
So can you taste Terroir yes, can it be vineyard specific, yes. Does this mean you will have a flavor of the region, no....only that specific vineyard.
The last level of true Terroir is to include the winemaker, yes the winemaker and the spirit of the grower, climate, moisture, minerals, and all that comes into contact with the wine for each vintage.
So blending seems to create a more uniform wine of a region rather than the specifics of a single varietal, so in my opinion to truly get a taste of a region you must taste a blend. To get a taste of a single vineyard then taste a blend from the estate or a single varietal from the vineyard.
So now you have it Terroir within a Terroir seems to be at the mercy of the winemaker. Thus to me this is the most important aspect of Terroir ( not the only) it is how the winemaker made the wine and where the grapes came from in that region.
6/52007
Freezing Wine
Think of wine like fresh meat...than after you cook it and serve it you have left overs...what to do...either you place it in the frig and eat it over the next few days...or you can freeze it ...same with wine...only freeze it once never twice...be repaired to deal with potassium bitartrate, also know as cream of tartar...this will fall out the crystals won't hurt you they will need to be addressed...either by decanting or just place the bottle upright and let the sediment fall out to the bottom...be careful and pour the wine until the crystals come to the neck of the bottle... FYI obviously white will show you the crystals much better...red wines will also have them...you just have to be careful and look...Cheers!
4/23/2007
Red Wine Could Kill Cancer Cells
A new University of Pittsburgh medical study found that red wine could kill cancer cells.
Researchers discovered that a naturally occurring antioxidant found in red wine and many fruits and vegetables selectively kill Leukemia cells.
Researchers hope the discovery will lead to a more selective, less-toxic therapy for Leukemia.
4/15/2007
How Temperature Affects the Aging of Wine
By Alexander (Al) J. Pandell, Ph.D.
I found this study incredible. Especially the reaction barriers at higher levels of long term heat. The reductive slow development of wine at 45 F or 39 F could mean that in a normal human lifecycle you may not be around to taste the wine. Last the chemical reactions might not develop and the wine may taste totally different than a normal aged wine.
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4/10/2007
Winery Tasting Rooms: Trick or Treat?
"Free wine!" you might think, driving up to the tasting room of a winery in Napa, Sonoma, the San Ynez Valley, or even Long Island. You might have been correct in the seventies and eighties before Americans discovered the French Paradox, the film Sideways, and developed a more sophisticated palate.
"Many people never had a glass of wine until they walked into this restaurant," Charlie Palmer told me just after the opening of Aureole in Las Vegas with its gigantic glass wine tower, designed by Architect Adam Tihany after watching Tom Cruise in the film Mission Impossible. That was in 1999.
Now that wine has entered pop culture and visiting tasting rooms are considered a cool weekend activity, winemakers no longer have to give away free samples to attract potential customers. Yet many visitors resent what they feel are nickel-and-dime tactics on the part of wineries. Veronica Barclay conducted an interesting survey for Wine Business Monthly on the subject in which they surveyed many wineries about what they charge, what the patron gets for his money, and their rational for it.
According to the survey, most wineries don't charge per taste of an individual wine, but offer a menu that includes a tasting of three, five, or more wines at a price ranging between $5-20. Some wineries offer "estate tasting" by appointment, which includes library wines paired with food made by in-house chefs.
From the winery's point of view, the reasons for charging per taste are quite valid. One of the most important reasons cted is that charging for wine calls for a level of restraint and helps patrons avoid driving under the influence. A second reason has to do with showcasing the wine in the best light - the so-called Tiffany approach in which diamonds are carefully placed on a black velvet display by a pair of exceedingly manicured hands so the potential buyer can get a sense of their value.
Charging for wine is one way to block out the 'partiers' and focus quality attention on customers who want to learn about the wine. This past summer, I visited Wolffer Estates, among other Long Island wineries, and was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the tasting experience. The servers were well versed in all wines and actually made an effort to speak intelligently about them as they dutifully trudged from the tasting room to the sunny patio every five minutes to give a taste of a new wine.
The Wolffer Estates tasting experience was more similar to a restaurant than anything else, with the tasting menu beginning at about $10 and going upward from there, depending on how many library wines a patron wanted to try. Food (a cheese plate) is also for sale (no outside food allowed). At the end of the tasting, servers bring the check in a restaurant style folder with a clearly marked line for gratuity (which they very much deserve, considering they managed to sound enthusiastic even though they must have given the same talk five hundred times that day).
4/4/2007 Sour grapes blight Bordeaux wine event
 By Chris Mercer

4/4/2007 - Wine producers in Bordeaux's Saint-Emilion say they are to appeal against the suspension of the area's 'grand cru' label, a ruling that threatens to overshadow a crucial week in the Bordeaux calendar.A spokesperson for Saint-Emilion's wine union told BeverageDaily.com the group was currently working on an appeal.
A Bordeaux court suspended the area's prestigious 'grand cru' wine classification on Friday, upholding a complaint by four Chateaux that were last year de-listed from the superior quality mark.
The ruling has prompted serious questions over Bordeaux's whole wine certification system, after the same court last month annulled a similar mark, 'crus bourgeois', in the well-known Médoc region.
The moves mean two of the most prestigious quality marks for Bordeaux wine currently do not exist.
And this comes as tasters and journalists from around the world this week descend on south west France to put the young 2006 Bordeaux vintage through its paces.
There's a hard act to follow too, with 2005 judged as one of the best Bordeaux years ever. Sales of top wines grew in strong double-digits in the first half of last year as enthusiasts clamoured for a piece of the vintage.
Saint-Emilion, which has held its cherished 'grand cru' label since 1954, last summer updated the list of wineries making the grade, in co-ordination with France's appellation regulator, INAO. The list is refreshed every 10 years.
They selected 15 'premiers grands crus' and 41 'grands crus classés', leaving another 30 applicants out of the club.
But four Chateaux de-listed in last year's re-shuffle complained that authorities had not visited every vineyard. The Bordeaux tribunal agreed, ruling this raised serious doubts about the new classification.
Both sides must now wait for the next hearing to see whether the suspension will turn into a full termination of Saint-Emilion 2006.
Some have called for calm by reminding wine producers that the 2006 vintage will not hit the market until 2008.
Others stressed the need for a quick solution. "At the moment we are in a situation where we have no classification, and we cannot afford to stay like that very long," said the spokesperson for the Saint-Emilion wine union.3/27/2007
Bordeaux 2005 Prices irrational exuberance
Ok now try this thought on , yes get out your tin hats it's me posting...... Now as was asked how many bottles are being bought for speculation? If as I suspect wine hedge funds are in this game plus the regulars then you might actually see a correction when the first market disturbance occurs, a collapse in the dollar, a small war, another oil spike, an act of despicable unpredictable chaos with the weather...then you will have a market correction.... how about another great year vintage... What goes up this fast and stays up ......if I was long I would sell into this market..that is unless I was going to drink the wines...but how many are really going to drink the wine...?
This is the point how many ? Maybe it will all get bought up and drunk....then if you are ITB this is a very good time to be in it due to irrational exuberance...sound familiar...the day Alan Greenspan ever talks about wine I would run for cover if I was long. Right now is what I saw in the stock market...then the real estate market....reading on the Dutch bulb market..the Hunt's silver market.... people "the prices will fluctuate" this is a given and the next move will be down...It may take a year or two but this will happen. the QPR is out of whack with the correlating and astounding vintages of past.
Maybe it will be the producer that bottles his 2004's and gets caught selling them as 2005's...it could be that simple. My bet is down not up... my 2 cents... now you can take your tin hats off....
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While at the J. Paul Getty Museum 1200 Getty Center Drive Los
Angeles, CA 90049-1687
The Punt and it's history in glass and the color green.
I observed waldglas or forest
glass Click on me it was a 5 ounce glass with a punt in it the date of this glass was
estimated at 1480-1520. I also came across a beaker with a punt 1400's.
The worlds oldest bottle of wine was found near Spayer, Germany, inside
Roman stone sarcophagus the bottle was from 325 AD and was found in 1867...no
punt.
So I think that with sparkling wine came the need for the punt.
I have found this information and just don't know if it true. People write
history and manipulate it. So [quote]As early as 1630 a retired British Admiral,
Sir Robert Mansell, while searching for a way to make coloured glass had
invented a manufacturing process incorporating the use of iron and manganese
which resulted in English glass bottles being much stronger than those being
manufactured in France at that time.[/quote] Click On Me
What I found very interesting is that glass in the north Germany etc. was
green [quote]With the sand ferric oxides came into the mixture, which colors the
glass green in quantities of less than 0.1 %.[/quote]
Could this be the reason for our green glass today?
So with my observations at the museum I have concluded that the punt was a
technology breakthrough in the glass world and this was due to the high pressure
in the bottle of sparkling wine. The pressures I believe the pressure of a
sparkling wine is up to 6 atmospheres ( one atmosphere is equal to 14.7 PSI) to
the min of 2 atmospheres and this did cause glass without a punt to explode.
The punt would do the trick and as it was adopted as early as the 1400's I
would conclude that sparkling wine under glass was invented around this
time.....leading to the use of the punt. Thus the punt shows up in a glass that
I saw from the 1480's and from the beaker with a punt 1400's. The only reason
for this was due to the changing they made in manufacturing due to the sparkling
wine under glass problem.
Conclusion, I have dated the first use of the punt and sparkling wine was
the catalyst. No one knows for sure, but this is my best attempt to date the
punt and give reason for it as well as the color green being prominent in glass
today. If anyone has other information I am all ears and love to learn.
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Grape seed extract may help prevent skin cancer
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Chemicals found in grape seeds may help ward of
skin cancer due to regular exposure to the sun, according to the results of an
animal study reported Sunday in Chicago at the 223rd annual meeting of the
American Chemical Society.
Researchers from the University of Alabama, Birmingham exposed hairless mice
to ultraviolet-light. Some of the mice they fed a standard diet supplemented
with grape seed proanthocyanidins, or GSPs, while control mice were fed a
standard diet without this supplement.
Dietary supplementation with GSPs inhibited light-induced carcinogenesis,
study chief Dr. Santosh K. Katiyar told the conference.
Mice supplemented with GSPs had up to 65 fewer tumors than control mice did.
Moreover, the tumors seen in GSP-supplemented mice were up to 78 percent smaller
than those seen in the control mice.
"It suggests that regular consumptions of GSPs as a dietary supplement may be
beneficial for the prevention of skin cancers," Katiyar said in a written
statement.
GSPs appear to inhibit suppression of the immune system caused by ultraviolet
light. This is "an important characteristic of GSPs. which has not been reported
by several other dietary botanical agents," Katiyar noted.
GSPs have antioxidant activity, and UV-induced oxidative stress has been
linked to the induction of skin cancers.
Over exposure to sunlight accounts for more than one million new cases of
melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancers each year in the United States. Effective
preventive agents and strategies that can reduce or control the risk of
UV-induced skin cancer is required to address this "pressing public health
issue," Katiyar said.
Based on the current findings, studies of GSPs for the prevention of skin
cancers in humans are warranted, the Birmingham team
concludes.
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3/11/2007
What women want in a wine
Click on me
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News release 1/30/2007
Silver Springs Winery L.L.C. aka Don Giovanni Wines tm. located in the Finger Lakes on the East side of Seneca Lake at 4408 State RT 414 Burdett, NY 14818 will launch www.Wine101.TV sometime in early February 2007.
www.Wine101.TV is an Internet TV short program on wine. The shows will average five minutes more or less and will explore the wine world. We at Silver Springs Winery are very enthusiastic about this project and find ourselves on the cutting edge of interactive Internet TV. We feel that eventually all programs will arrive via the Internet and we wanted to be among the very first to do so.
The show will be directed toward learning and how much fun wine can be. We will announce very shortly when our first show will be available in early February. So stay tuned as together we explore the wine world via www.Wine101.TV .
Cheers!
John D. Zuccarino
Silver Springs Winery L.L.C.
1/25/2007
On Tasting Wine
"There are no standards of taste in wine, cigars, poetry, prose, etc. Each man's own taste is the standard, and a majority vote cannot decide for him or in any slightest degree affect the supremacy of his own standard." -Mark Twain, 1895
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Wine lovers fear quality will wither
With Pa. LCB chairman, and aficionado, Newman gone...
By Paul Nussbaum
Inquirer Staff Writer
What's the state of wine in the state of Pennsylvania, following the abrupt departure of Jonathan H. Newman as chairman of the Liquor Control Board?
Newman, a wine aficionado, created the Chairman's Selection and other promotions that helped change Pennsylvania's reputation as a purveyor of high-volume, low-quality, overpriced wines. Some wine enthusiasts worry that without Newman, the selection and availability of fine wine will suffer in Pennsylvania's monopoly of 643 state-owned and -operated liquor stores.
Newman resigned Wednesday, citing differences with Gov. Rendell. Rendell last month appointed former State Sen. Joe Conti (R., Bucks) to a newly created job of chief executive officer to run the LCB's day-to-day operations.
The LCB's new chairman, P.J. Stapleton, said yesterday he did not share Newman's passion for wine. Stapleton said he would focus on the operation of the state system, modernizing stores and increasing training of employees.
"I don't claim to be a wine expert, though I certainly enjoy a glass of wine," he said. "But it's not my passion."
S
go to http://go.philly.com/lcb
Wine Facts and Wine Quotes
As early as 4000 BC, the Egyptians were the first people to use corks as stoppers
http://www.beekmanwine.com/factsquotes.htm
Cork's first recorded use as a stopper — and its most common use today — was by the Egyptians thousands of years ago.
Ancient Greeks also used cork oak bark to make fishing buoys, sandals and stoppers for vessels for wine and olive oil.
The
Romans found many uses for cork, including the construction of house
roofs and beehives, in ship construction and for women's shoes.
http://www.corkfacts.com/nchoice1.htm
WORLD'S OLDEST BOTTLE of WINE Unearthed during excavation
for building a house in a vineyard near the town of Speyer, Germany, it was
inside one of two Roman stone sarcophaguses that were dug up. The bottle dates
from approximately 325 A.D. and was found in 1867.
The greenish-yellow
glass amphora has handles formed in the shape of dolphins. One of several
bottles discovered, it is the only one with the contents still preserved.
The ancient liquid
has much silty sediment. About two-thirds of the contents are a thicker, hazy
mixture. This is most probably olive oil, which the Romans commonly used to
"float" atop wine to preserve it from oxidation. Cork closures, although known
to exist at the time, were quite uncommon. Their oil method of preservation was
apparently effective enough to keep the wine from evaporation up to modern
day.
The bottle is
on permanent display, along with other wine antiquities, at the Historisches
Museum der Pfalz (History Museum of the Pfalz), which is
worth a virtual visit or an actual one, if traveling near the area of Speyer,
Germany.
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Oldest wine bottle 325 BC Roman |
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JET-MAN : THE INCREDIBLE FLYING MAN !!!
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