Get Ready for the Onslaught of Wine Gift Guides

November 28th, 2008

Turkey and wine pairing articles are so over. They are officially the stuff of November 1st through November 27th. So, what’s next? Expect an abundance of pieces on what gifts to buy your wine loving friends…get ready for blog post upon blog post, upon newspaper article, upon magazine gift guide.

The first holiday gift guide devoted to wine would seem to be in today’s San Francisco Chronicle. You can find Jon Bonné’s introduction here, with a table of contents (over on the left) that will lead you to no fewer than eight separate pieces in the Chronicle’s special section. Expect many more such guides to follow from other reputable sources.

However, as insightful as many of these pieces will be, remember one thing: when searching for that perfect gift/gadget/etc. for your friends and family, you can never really go wrong with…wine — especially a wine that you love, one that has meaning to you. There’s no substitute for something truly personal; and, for that, you are your only guide.

2 Responses to “Get Ready for the Onslaught of Wine Gift Guides”

dhonig
November 29th, 2008 at 5:48 am

Yup. I have a 1,000 bottle cellar (with LOTS of empty slots- contributions welcome) and two different wine blogs, so people either (a) say “I had no idea what to get you,” or (b) buy useless wine gadgets. Hey folks, the thing I like about wine is wine.
Andre Ribeirinho
December 3rd, 2008 at 3:58 pm

Most of my friends think I know more about wine than they do - which might be true but it’s irrelevant - and they end up being afraid of offering me bottles that I might not like.

And this is totally wrong as like many wine lovers I like to try every different wine I can find!

get your wine on

2007 Scholium Project Naucratis Verdelho

Abe Schoener strikes again, this time with a great Verdelho at a slightly lower price-point than the Gemella. This is 100% tank-fermented and a very dry, mineral-laden wine. This is one of the reasons why Schoener is earning status as a winemaker as a cult winemaker. It delivers. $28 for Scholium goodness.

2007 Skylark Cellars Alondra Chardonnay

I admit, I really don’t dig Chardonnay, so you don’t see many around these parts. I do, however, love this one. Not surpisingly, it’s unoaked. $18 of un-oaked, un-malo’ed goodness!

2007 La Fenetre “A Coté” Red Blend, Santa Barbara County from Timeless Palate Wines

This is astoundingly good for the money. It’s 60% Cabernet Sauvignon from the Santa Barbara Highlands Vineyard, and 40% Merlot from the Bien Nacido Vineyard. The winemaker, Josh Klapper, is a mere 29 years old and one to watch. This is red, juicy and lush but not over the top. $18 and worth every penny.

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freshly pressed

Wine Store Design Continued: More Racks and Lights and Stuff:

Just a couple of images for the now…

Some of the single-depth racks, assembled (thanks again to Tim Krablin of Modern Cellar for the photo)…

And the interior of one of the lampshades, of which there will be 48, in three different shades of blue-ish purple. Keep in mind this is 36″ in diameter — as in three feet (the exterior is aluminum, non-powdercoated. I’ll let your imagination do the work).

Maybe one day I’ll post about the wines I’ve been tasting and stocking, and actually try to sell you something…which would possibly help me pay for all these neat things…ummmm, maybe next week…

Wine Store Design Continued: More Racks and Lights and Stuff

June 19th, 2009

Wine Store Design Part 4: Wine Rack Construction

June 5th, 2009

Wine Store Design Part 3: Urinal Defense Fund

June 3rd, 2009

wine jargon

Frizzante
From Wikipedia: Frizzante is an Italian wine term term for semi-sparkling wine (as opposed to Spumante, which is generally used for fully sparkling wines). Frizzante wines generally owe their bubbles to a partial secondary fermentation in tank. You might notice a light fizz or tingly sensation on the tongue with a Frizzante wine, compared to the more carbonated sensation that more fully sparkling wines yield.

Scorekage
Okay, so we made up this word yesterday after a great restaurant experience. We brought a bottle of wine with us, expecting to pay a corkage fee. But the restaurant either forgot to charge us the $15, or decided to be nice to us. We scored! Hence, “scorekage” has entered our lexicon. This can also refer to BYO friendly restaurants that don’t charge for corkage under any circumstances.

Frizzante

March 29th, 2008

Scorekage

March 23rd, 2008

Rioja

March 3rd, 2008

grapewise

I recently stopped by Venokado, a new-ish shop in LA. I bought a Lirac imported by Kermit Lynch, and it was yummers. Last night I had the pleasure of spending some time with one of its owners, Susan Brink.

domaine547