I think this is the article Brian was discussing last night.
Brian: What is the name of the shop near Washington and Broadway
that has the BBQ supplies?
Cheers,
Jim
July 19, 2006
The Pour
Too Sweet to Be Invited to Dinner
By ERIC ASIMOV
IT.S happened so many times that I.ve lost count. I.m having dinner with another person, trying to choose a wine that will complement the odd combination of dishes that we.ve ordered . meat, fowl, fish or whatever.
Back in the old days, 10 years or so ago, California pinot noir was one of my go-to wines. Its reputation was poor, and critics lambasted American pinot noir as a pale imitation of Burgundy, but I found it a great food wine, light-bodied enough to go with fish, yet intense enough to match up with meat. Not unlike Burgundy, in fact, but a lot cheaper.
Not anymore. California pinot noir has shot up in stature. Its popularity has skyrocketed, and the critics now love it. But on the dinner table? I rarely look at pinot noir nowadays. Not only because it.s gotten so expensive, but because many modern pinot noirs have lost the dry, lithe character that made the wine so fine a partner with food.
Why is this? Far too often now, pinot noir tastes sweet and has a heavy, almost syrupy character. And while pinot noir is the most glaring example, it.s often true, too, of many other high-end, supposedly dry red American wines like cabernet sauvignon and zinfandel.
Now sweetness itself is not intrinsically a problem. Some of the greatest, most versatile food wines in the world are sweet, like German rieslings and demi-sec chenin blancs from the Loire. But those wines have more than sweetness going for them: they have balance. The sugar is balanced by acidity, which provides structure and liveliness, allowing the wine to be both sweet and refreshing.
The American red wines, on the other hand, are meant to be dry, like their French forebears Burgundy and Bordeaux, which are dry by definition.
Burly zinfandels have always flirted with a tinge of sweetness, but nowadays they too taste sweeter and sweeter. I.ve particularly noticed this problem in pinot noirs from the Santa Lucia Highlands and Santa Barbara County on the central coast of California, in Napa Valley cabernets and in zinfandels from all over.
I.m not the only one bothered by this. Dan Berger, a critic who publishes Dan Berger.s Vintage Experiences, a weekly newsletter, called the rising sense of sweetness in American red wines .a sad and pernicious trend..
.They.re impressive wines, but the word impressive is not always a positive word,. he said in a telephone interview. .There.s lots to them, but maybe more flavor is less good. What you want is a harmony of flavors..
Dry wines that are not really dry are an American tradition. As the old saw in the wine industry has it, .Americans talk dry but drink sweet,. and the history of American wine consumption bears that out.
Popular mass-market wines from California, like white zinfandel and Kendall-Jackson Vintner.s Reserve chardonnay, have always had more than a subversive touch of sweetness, while the best-selling Champagne in the United States by far is Mo�t & Chandon.s White Star, a cuv�e made especially for the American market that is a step sweeter than the typical brut Champagne.
The rationale has always been that the American palate is shaped by the sugary soft drinks, ketchup and breakfast cereals of the childhood pantry.
Modestly sweet wines therefore help a wine-wary population make the transition to more classically dry wines, especially if that population believes it is drinking dry wines.
Sweet wines were associated with low-status fortified wines, like Thunderbird, or the sort of syrupy Concord grape wines that appear on many kosher tables.
But now, apparently, the sensation of sweetness has triumphed over the belief that fine red wines were dry bordering on tart and even somewhat austere. The changing character of the wines may even change the way people think of drinking wine. Justin Smith of Saxum Vineyards, a small but acclaimed producer in Paso Robles, Calif., calls them .social wines..
.These wines aren.t meant to go with food,. he said. .They.re for when you get home from work: you open a bottle, pour a glass and sit with it out on the deck..
In other words, they.re to be consumed like cocktails, which they resemble in another way, too. Most of these wines are high in alcohol, at least 14.5 percent and often above 15, which contributes to the impression of sweetness even if they are not actually sugary.
California red wines are made in a fruitier style than they used to be, which also contributes to an impression of sweetness, said Dr. Susan E. Ebeler, a flavor chemist in viticulture and oenology at the University of California, Davis. Grapes nowadays are allowed to ripen on the vine much longer than 10 or 15 years ago, resulting in much higher concentrations of sugar at harvest.
More sugar requires longer fermentation, which produces more alcohol and more glycerol. Dr. Ebeler said glycerol, whose name is derived from the Greek word for sweet, also contributes to a perception of sweetness.
Let.s see: fruitiness, high alcohol and higher glycerol. Add it up and what do you have? .It could be the sum of the parts,. Dr. Ebeler said.
While wines made in this style may try to appeal to the American sweet tooth, they may also reflect the wine business.s dependency on high ratings from critics who taste dozens of wines at a time.
.I think it.s a real, conscious effort on the part of some winemakers to make the wine taste supple and soft and hedonistic,. Mr. Berger said. .I think this style of wine is designed to be a home run. You don.t see very many people bunting. I think the more flashy, expressive style tends to be the style that catches people.s eye..
Of course, not all California red wines fall into this sweet category, not by a long shot. I.ve enjoyed many excellent reds in the last year, including, just last weekend, Etude.s 2003 Heirloom Carneros pinot noir, which was full of complex sweet fruit aromas and flavors, held together by a firm structure.
But the Etude was in marked contrast to two sweet pinot noirs that I could not drink with dinner. One was the Loring Wine Company.s 2004 Rosella.s Vineyard in the Santa Lucia Highlands. The other was an .04 Cuyama River in the Santa Maria Valley from Taz Vineyards.
Whatever else wine is, ultimately it must be at home on the dinner table. Obviously Americans enjoy sweet beverages with food, whether Coca-Cola, white zinfandel or this year.s top-ranked pinot noir or cabernet.
But for the long term, red wine that seems sweet runs the risk of becoming a marginalized beverage, served on the deck before dinner, yes, or maybe afterward with cheese or chocolate, like port. Then it will be time to stop and praise the winemaker.s impressive achievement, and reach for something else to drink.
--
------------------------------ *
* Dr. James Lee Ellingson, Adjunct Professor jellings(a)me.umn.edu *
* University of Minnesota, tel: 651/645-0753 fax 651 XXX XXXX *
* Great Lakes Brewing News, 1569 Laurel Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104 *
Greetings,
Mostly an update: and "Hot" wines form the SFGC.
It's that time of year again...
----- Forwarded message from "Jim L. Ellingson" <jellings(a)me.umn.edu> -----
Date: Tue, 19 Jul 2005 13:23:58 -0500
From: "Jim L. Ellingson" <jellings(a)me.umn.edu>
To: wine(a)thebarn.com
Subject: Zins at Bob's on Thursday
User-Agent: Mutt/1.5.4i
Greetings,
Bob's Extra-Vin-Zin-ganza, Ertravigan-zin, Whatever!
Zins and Ribs at Bobs
Thursday, 20 July 2005
6:30
Primitivo Bob Kyllingstad's Party Room and 14th Story Wine Cellar
Closer to Heaven, Further from the Street.
121 Washington Ave
612-672-0607
Party room is 315
Security/Dial code is 018.
Ribfest has moved to St. Paul, so we'll be doing our own thing.
Some brave souls will prepare their own ribs, salads,
desserts to share/pass.
Looks to be a relativley large group (say 15).
So mangnums or pairing up to bring 2 bottls of same label/vintage
would be a nice touch.
Corn on the cob and water mellon are always good additions!
Bob
Betsy Pork
Dave K?
Dave T
Lori
Ted/Carman Ted's Classic Ribs
Brian Malley Bold and Meaty Ribs
Ruth Greggory
Bill S German Potato Salad
Annette
Jim/Louise Orzo Salad, Bread (3x)
Nicolai
Karin
Gloria (later)
Regrets from Mark, Sue/Russ and Fredd.
Any feed back from the Rose' things? Here's a bit
form the LATimes.
Cheers,
Jim
2005 Domaine Tempier Bandol ros�
S. Irene Virbila
July 19, 2006
If you're intent on winning over your ros�-phobic friends, better make it the best: a Bandol from Domaine Tempier. Chez Panisse in Berkeley has been pouring the Bandol ros� by the glass for practically forever, with good reason.
Tempier ros� is tremendously food friendly. The color is a lovely coppery rose. It's scented with rose petals and wild strawberries, and yet when you take a sip, it's bone dry and perfectly gorgeous. The vintage in current release . 2005 . is a splendid year for ros�s in southern France, and Domaine Tempier has produced what may be its best ever.
ADVERTISEMENT
It makes a fine aperitif and can go straight to the table to accompany crudit�s, tapenade, salade ni�oise, grilled fish, light pasta dishes, etc. The Peyraud family who owns Domaine Tempier pours it lavishly with Lulu Peyraud's justly famous bouillabaisse.
An absolutely beautiful wine.
. S. Irene Virbila
*
Quick swirl
Region: Provence
Price: About $26
Style: Dry and fragrant
Food it goes with: Crudit�s, tapenade, salade ni�oise, grilled fish, pasta dishes, bouillabaisse.
Where you find it: Available at fine wine retailers.
Hot and sexy wines cool summer's heat
- Leslie Sbrocco, Special to The Chronicle
Thursday, July 20, 2006
Click to View
Hot, hot, hot. Not just the temperature outside, but the wide range of sexy sippers on store shelves. From barely pink blush wines to voluptuous reds, this week's roundup of bargains is all about drinking pleasure.
San Francisco-based winemaker Laely Heron, owner of the affordable Heron Wines line, has launched a new project in Spain dubbed Sexto. Meaning "sixth" in Spanish, the stylish red is a blend of six varieties including Grenache, Carignane, Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and the obscure Lledoner Pelut. Heron's debut bottling of the 2004 Sexto Terra Alta Red Wine ($13) scores with its spicy freshness and earthy elegance.
Another California vintner to watch is Cameron Hughes. Acting as what the French call a "negociant," he buys up surplus wine from top producers and releases it under the Cameron Hughes label. This technique allows him to invest not in vineyards, but in bottling complex wine at appealingly low prices. Most are sold through his Web site and at Costco. Two wines that pack a serious quality punch are the 2003 Cameron Hughes Lot 11 Paso Robles Petite Sirah and the 2003 Cameron Hughes Lot 12 Sonoma Mountain Syrah (both $11). You would expect to pay at least twice as much for wines from specific appellations, but Hughes negotiates savvy deals. The Petite Sirah is anything but petite. Rich, chewy, with notes of blackberry and licorice, it's a definite burger wine. The full-bodied Lot 12 Syrah sports deep, dark-fruit flavors and intense smoky notes.
If Syrah is what you seek, pick up another California version that overdelivers -- the 2004 Cycles Gladiator Central Coast Syrah ($10). It falls more on the elegant side of the Syrah scale with white peppery notes and boysenberry brightness. The eye-catching label is adorned with a century-old vintage poster that celebrates the golden age of cycling.
Syrah, also called Shiraz, is the signature grape variety of Australia. Down Under it generally produces hearty, in-your-face reds when bottled alone, but is the ideal partner when blended with other Rhone grape varieties. The 2004 Rosemount Estate Diamond Label South Eastern Australia Shiraz/Grenache ($12) shows the successful partnership. Almost equal parts of the two varieties, it's fleshy and fruity but tempered with an underlying earthy, brown spice quality.
If you're looking for beauty and the beef, head to Argentina where meat and Malbec are a match made in heaven. The 2005 Valentin Bianchi Single Vineyard Elsa Mendoza Malbec ($9) is a standout performer every vintage and is one of the top bargain wines on the market. It maintains a sense of vibrancy without sacrificing power and a plush texture.
Malbec is part of the traditional mix in France's Bordeaux region, where it shines when blended with Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. The blend works elsewhere in the world, too, as evidenced by the 2004 Inca Calchaqui Valley Cabernet/Malbec ($9). The wine is made up of mostly Cabernet Sauvignon with a splash of Malbec; the grapes are grown in the Salta region of Argentina. It tops the list for highest-altitude vineyards in the world -- 6,000 feet above sea level. With warm days and extremely cold nights, the grapes develop complexity and rich flavor while maintaining acidity. This wine showcases hints of dark-berry fruit, herbal notes and brightness, making it an ideal dinner companion.
During barbecue season, it's easy to automatically reach for red wine when the platter of ribs appears. Pink wines, however, which are primarily made from red grapes, are also ideal.
Two blush-style wines that fall on the lightly sweet side are the NV Barefoot California White Zinfandel ($6) and the 2005 Folie a Deux Menage a Trois California Ros� ($12). If you're shaking your head at the thought of sipping a White Zin, you might want to grab the Barefoot anyway. At only $6 a bottle, there's really nothing to lose. The salmon-hued wine has melony aromas and peachy flavors that are delicate and balanced. The Folie a Deux Menage a Trois California Ros� is a blend of Merlot, Syrah and, interestingly enough, Gewurztraminer, which adds floral notes to the final wine. Serve both wines well chilled with chicken or ribs covered in tangy barbecue sauce.
A drier style of ros� is found back in Argentina with the 2005 Los Cardos Lujan de Cuyo Malbec Ros� ($10). Crafted by quickly draining the pink juice from the red skins of Malbec grapes after crushing, this ros� is full and overtly fruity. Even if you don't drink pink, you might want to try this one when the weather is hot.
Shopping List
Pink
NV Barefoot California White Zinfandel ($6)
2005 Folie a Deux Menage a Trois California Ros� ($12)
2005 Los Cardos Lujan de Cuyo Malbec Ros� ($10)
Red
2003 Cameron Hughes Lot 11 Paso Robles Petite Sirah ($11)
2003 Cameron Hughes Lot 12 Sonoma Mountain Syrah ($11)
2004 Cycles Gladiator Central Coast Syrah ($10)
2004 Inca Calchaqui Valley Cabernet/Malbec ($9)
2004 Rosemount Estate Diamond Label South Eastern Australia Shiraz/Grenache ($12)
2004 Sexto Terra Alta Red Wine ($13)
2005 Valentin Bianchi Single Vineyard Elsa Mendoza Malbec ($9)
Leslie Sbrocco is the author of "Wine for Women: A Guide to Buying, Pairing and Sharing Wine" (William Morrow, 2004). E-mail her at wine(a)sfchronicle.com.
Page F - 5
URL: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2006/07/20/WIGBOK1EPO1.DTL
It's that time of year again...
----- Forwarded message from "Jim L. Ellingson" <jellings(a)me.umn.edu> -----
Date: Tue, 19 Jul 2005 13:23:58 -0500
From: "Jim L. Ellingson" <jellings(a)me.umn.edu>
To: wine(a)thebarn.com
Subject: Zins at Bob's on Thursday
User-Agent: Mutt/1.5.4i
Greetings,
Bob's Extra-Vin-Zin-ganza, Ertravigan-zin, Whatever!
Zins and Ribs at Bobs
Thursday, 20 July 2005
6:30
Primitivo Bob Kyllingstad's Party Room and 14th Story Wine Cellar
Closer to Heaven, Further from the Street.
121 Washington Ave
612-672-0607
Party room is 315
Security/Dial code is 018.
Ribfest has moved to St. Paul, so we'll be doing our own thing.
Some brave souls will prepare their own ribs, salads,
desserts to share/pass.
Looks to be a relativley large group (say 15).
So mangnums or pairing up to bring 2 bottls of same label/vintage
would be a nice touch.
Corn on the cob and Water Mellon are always good additions!
Bob
Betsy Pork
Dave K?
Dave T
Lori
Ted/Carman Ted's Classic Ribs
Brian Malley Bold and Meaty Ribs
Ruth Greggory
Bill S
Annette
Jim/Louise Orzo Salad, Bread
Nicolai
Karin
Cheers,
Jim
Any feed back from the Rose' things? Here's a bit
form the LATimes.
2005 Domaine Tempier Bandol ros�
S. Irene Virbila
July 19, 2006
If you're intent on winning over your ros�-phobic friends, better make it the best: a Bandol from Domaine Tempier. Chez Panisse in Berkeley has been pouring the Bandol ros� by the glass for practically forever, with good reason.
Tempier ros� is tremendously food friendly. The color is a lovely coppery rose. It's scented with rose petals and wild strawberries, and yet when you take a sip, it's bone dry and perfectly gorgeous. The vintage in current release . 2005 . is a splendid year for ros�s in southern France, and Domaine Tempier has produced what may be its best ever.
ADVERTISEMENT
<A TARGET="_blank" HREF="http://ad.doubleclick.net/click%3Bh=v7/3427/3/0/%2a/v%3B35213875%3B0-0%3B0%…"><IMG SRC="http://m1.2mdn.net/1236711/slidingDoor.gif" BORDER=0></A>
It makes a fine aperitif and can go straight to the table to accompany crudit�s, tapenade, salade ni�oise, grilled fish, light pasta dishes, etc. The Peyraud family who owns Domaine Tempier pours it lavishly with Lulu Peyraud's justly famous bouillabaisse.
An absolutely beautiful wine.
. S. Irene Virbila
*
Quick swirl
Region: Provence
Price: About $26
Style: Dry and fragrant
Food it goes with: Crudit�s, tapenade, salade ni�oise, grilled fish, pasta dishes, bouillabaisse.
Where you find it: Available at fine wine retailers.
Here are the Zin notes from a year ago.
Zinfandel
2001 91-93 Should be memorable
(mid 90's on the "100" point scale. 100 point scale my flask.
When was the last time anyone saw a 50, 60 or even 70 point rating?).
2000 84 mixed quality Drink
1999 89 solid, rich, ripe, high EtOH.
1998 83 "challenging" Difficult, etc.
1997 90
1996 86
1995 95
1994 96
1999 Better than 98. Quality varies with some
wines showing "late harvest" effects such as
residual sweetness, dried fruit flavors, etc.
Also be aware that some of the 99 CA Zin's are
quite high in EtOH. (jle)
Rating California Zinfandel Vintages 1980-1998
VINTAGE SCORE DRINKABILITY
2001 91-93 Should be memorable
2000 84 mixed quality Drink
1999 89 solid, rich, ripe, high EtOH.
1998 83
1998 83 Tough, cool year; mostly lean, simple wines -- Drink
1997 90 Best were ripe and potent, though quality varied -- Drink or hold
1996 87 Variable quality; best are well-balanced -- Drink or hold
1995 95 Brilliant fruit; ripe, complex, intense, balanced -- Drink or hold
1994 96 Dark, rich, intense, complex; classy -- Drink or hold
1993 88 Fruity, complex, fine balance-- Drink or hold
1992 93 Very ripe, opulent and complex -- Drink or hold
1991 92 Ripe, elegant, complex -- Drink or hold
1990 93 Rich, complex and concentrated-- Drink or hold
1989 82 Huge crop; uneven quality, tannic -- Drink
1988 84 Uneven crop; forward-balanced wines-- Drink
1987 92 Bright, rich and complex --Drink
1986 91 Firm, intense, tannic yet age-worthy -- Drink
1985 93 Wonderful balance and harmony -- Drink
1984 88 Ripe, opulent and complex -- Drink
1983 79 Uneven quality, tannic, average -- Drink
1982 82 Tight and firm, but uneven quality -- Drink
1981 85 Ripe, fruity, early-drinking -- Drink
1980 82 Hot harvest; uneven quality -- Drink
Vintage Ratings: 95-100, classic; 90-94, outstanding; 80-89,
good to very good; 70-79, average; 60-69, below average;
50-59, poor.
Drinkability: "Drink" means most of the wines of the vintage
are ready to drink; "hold" means most of the age-worthy wines
have not fully matured.
Zinfandel
http://www.winespectator.com/Wine/Spectator/Faqs/VarietalsFAQ.html
ZINFANDEL (Red) [ZIHN-fan-dell]
The origins of this tremendously versatile and popular grape
are not known for certain, although it is thought to have come
from Southern Italy as a cousin of Primitivo. It is the most
widely planted red grape in California (though Australia has
also played around with the grape). Much of it is vinified
into white Zinfandel, a blush-colored, slightly sweet wine.
Real Zinfandel, the red wine, is the quintessential California
wine. It has been used for blending with other grapes,
including Cabernet Sauvignon and Petite Sirah. It has been
made in a claret style, with berry and cherry flavors, mild
tannins and pretty oak shadings. It has been made into a
full-bodied, ultraripe, intensely flavored and firmly tannic
wine designed to age. And it has been made into late-harvest
and Port-style wines that feature very ripe, raisiny flavors,
alcohol above 15 percent and chewy tannins.
Zinfandel's popularity among consumers fluctuates. In the
1990s Zinfandel is enjoying another groundswell of popularity,
as winemakers took renewed interest, focusing on
higher-quality vineyards in areas well suited to Zinfandel.
Styles aimed more for the mainstream and less for extremes,
emphasizing the grape's zesty, spicy pepper, raspberry,
cherry, wild berry and plum flavors, and its complex range of
tar, earth and leather notes. Zinfandel lends itself to
blending.
Zinfandel is a challenging grape to grow: its berry size
varies significantly within a bunch, which leads to uneven
ripening. Because of that, Zinfandel often needs to hang on
the vine longer to ripen as many berries as possible. Closer
attention to viticulture and an appreciation for older vines,
which tend to produce smaller crops of uniformly higher
quality, account for better balanced wines.
--Excerpted from James Laube's book "California Wine," with
some additions by James Molesworth
--
------------------------------ *
* Dr. James Lee Ellingson, Adjunct Professor jellings(a)me.umn.edu *
* University of Minnesota, tel: 651/645-0753 fax 651 XXX XXXX *
* Great Lakes Brewing News, 1569 Laurel Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104 *
----- End forwarded message -----
--
------------------------------ *
* Dr. James Lee Ellingson, Adjunct Professor jellings(a)me.umn.edu *
* University of Minnesota, tel: 651/645-0753 fax 651 XXX XXXX *
* Great Lakes Brewing News, 1569 Laurel Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104 *
I wanted to clarify a bit here.
Alicia's deal tomorrow is a BYORose' . Bring a bottle of
your favorite pink/blush wine to share.
Cost will be limited to the food you buy plus your
usual generous gratuity.
Best,
Jim
Can someone print this out UC Davis article on how
seldom wine and cheese go together for Bob?
----- Forwarded message from "Jim L. Ellingson" <jellings(a)me.umn.edu> -----
Date: Thu, 16 Jun 2005 15:41:47 -0500
From: "Jim L. Ellingson" <jellings(a)me.umn.edu>
To: wine(a)thebarn.com
Subject: [wine] Wining about Cheese
UC Davis study challenges classic wine-cheese pairings
- Janet Fletcher, Chronicle Staff Writer
Thursday, June 16, 2005
Click to View
For many people, a bottle of red wine and a platter of good cheese virtually guarantee pleasure ahead. But according to new research conducted at the University of California at Davis, that time-tested marriage may be on the skids.
Graduate student Berenice Madrigal has spent the past year investigating what sound like the makings of a great party: eight red wines, eight cheeses and what happens when you serve them together.
Thinking of purchasing a nice chunk of cheddar to show off a favorite red wine from your cellar? Madrigal's study, undertaken for her master's degree in viticulture and enology, suggests that you might want to reconsider that plan.
"Our definition of a good pairing was that the two enhance each other," says Hildegarde Heymann, professor of sensory science in Davis' viticulture and enology department and Madrigal's adviser. "Our work shows this is probably not true very often."
Madrigal, a petite, soft-spoken 27-year-old from Mexico City, has a degree in food chemistry from the National Autonomous University of Mexico and a fondness for cow's-milk Mimolette. But it was Heymann who steered Madrigal to cheese as a thesis topic, a continuation of the professor's research into the sensory analysis of wine with food. Cheese made a suitable subject for exploration because the department has no kitchen.
To Heymann's surprise, few sensory scientists had analyzed the presumed affinity of wine and cheese. A review of the literature turned up almost nothing. A Swedish scientist, Tobias Nygren, had looked at white wine with blue cheese -- the cheese mutes white wine flavors, he found -- but no one apparently had looked methodically at the intersection of red wine and cheese.
Madrigal's first task was to assemble and train a tasting panel, volunteers -- mostly fellow students -- who would be taught to recognize various attributes in wine and to use identical language in describing them. For two weeks, the tasters met every day to master the sensory meaning of 20 common wine descriptors from bell pepper and berry to astringent and bitter.
Next they evaluated, tasting blind, the eight wines Madrigal had selected: two bottles each of Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah. In an effort to get wines of differing styles, Madrigal had chosen a low-priced and high-priced wine for each varietal pair. Tasters rated each sample on a 1-to- 10 scale for every attribute. Then Madrigal juggled the sample order and repeated the tasting twice to verify her tasters' consistency.
Following an intensive day of research at Corti Brothers, the Sacramento fine-foods store, Madrigal settled on eight types: two hard cheeses (Emmental and Gruyere), two cheddars (from Vermont and New York), two soft cheeses (mozzarella and Teleme) and two blues (Gorgonzola and Stilton). Heymann had suggested limiting the samples to cow's milk cheeses so the analysis didn't get even more complicated.
Over sessions that lasted three months, the same trained team of panelists -- six men and five women -- tasted each wine with each cheese, then scored the wines on the same 20 attributes they had evaluated before. Then Madrigal switched the tasting order, and the panelists repeated the task twice.
Months of analysis later, Madrigal and Heymann had their results, captured in a flurry of colorful spider graphs and multidimensional plots that the average wine lover would be hard-pressed to decipher. But to cut to the chase, their conclusions may not sit well with wine and cheese fans.
In virtually every case, cheese diminished everything the wine had to say. It muted both desirable traits like berry character and less desirable traits like astringency and bell pepper. It was an equal-opportunity silencer, exhibiting largely the same effect on each varietal, pricey and not.
From mild Teleme to pungent Gorgonzola, the cheeses made every wine taste less oaky, less berry-like, less sour. The two blues had slightly more impact on the wines than the two soft cheeses, but the differences were insignificant for almost every trait.
"The popular press tells us it should have gone the other way," says Heymann, meaning that cheese would enhance the wines. "We would have assumed that for at least one cheese and one wine, we would have a hit."
The one attribute that cheese seemed to accentuate in red wine was butteriness, a quality more often associated with malolactic Chardonnays than with reds. But with every other wine trait, cheese of every sort activated the mute button, a result Heymann can't easily explain.
"The decrease of astringency makes sense because you have a coating of the palate (with cheese)," says the professor. "All you need is a coating between the mucous membranes and astringent compounds and you diminish astringency. That is the one effect I would say is a real effect."
The other outcomes -- that cheese diminished fruitiness, oakiness or spiciness -- may be what Heymann call a cognitive effect. In other words, it's in our heads. We expect that result, so we find that result. Although she hasn't devised a way to tease apart the impact of cognition, or expectation, she suspects it's at the root of many vaunted wine-and-cheese marriages.
"My 'take home' is, you shouldn't worry about which wine you have with which cheese," says Heymann. "Have the wine you love with the cheese you love. " If most cheeses affect most red wines in a similar way, by turning down the volume, it may be pointless to keep looking for a match that soars.
Daniel Baron, winemaker at Silver Oak Wine Cellars in Oakville, says his extensive if informal research doesn't support the UC Davis team's conclusions. A cheese enthusiast, Baron says he has invested a lot of time hunting for cheeses that would complement his famed Cabernet Sauvignons.
"It's been a long journey," says the winemaker, "but in my experience, the old rules of wine and cheese pairing hold true."
For him, that means no blue cheese ("It really brings out the bitterness in a red wine"), no triple-cream cheeses ("iffy") and a distinct preference for well-aged cow's and sheep's milk cheeses such as aged Gouda, Vella Dry Jack and Manchego -- cheeses that he finds not just tolerable with his wine but flattering.
Other tasters who, like Baron, have experienced a ghastly clash between dry red wine and pungent blue cheese may suspect that something physiological is to blame. As for the utter rightness on the tongue of Vella Dry Jack and Silver Oak Cabernet -- how does Heymann explain that?
"There's that saying, 'Perception is reality,' " says the professor. "If you perceive that the wine is better with the cheese, then it is. What's happening in your head is no less real than what's happening on your palate, but it's probably different."
E-mail Janet Fletcher at jfletcher(a)sfchronicle.com.
Page F - 2
URL: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2005/06/16/WIGFFD8IBQ1.DTL
�2005 San Francisco Chronicle
--
------------------------------ *
* Dr. James Lee Ellingson, Adjunct Professor jellings(a)me.umn.edu *
* University of Minnesota, tel: 651/645-0753 fax 651 XXX XXXX *
* Great Lakes Brewing News, 1569 Laurel Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104 *
----- End forwarded message -----
--
------------------------------ *
* Dr. James Lee Ellingson, Adjunct Professor jellings(a)me.umn.edu *
* University of Minnesota, tel: 651/645-0753 fax 651 XXX XXXX *
* Great Lakes Brewing News, 1569 Laurel Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104 *
Greetings,
Alicia Anderson from France 44 has organized a Rose' tasting
this Saturday, 8:00 p.m.
Cafe Barbette is at 1400 W. Lake, just west of Hennepin. 612-827-5710
Cheers,
Jim
Not sure who's going:
Alicia
Bob
Betsy
Ruth
Christopher
Have fun.
http://www.latimes.com/features/food/la-fo-calcook10aug10,0,1398361,full.st…
THE CALIFORNIA COOK
Shades of summer
Ros�s may be pale and pretty, but with the season's vivid flavors they're bold and beautiful.
Russ Parsons; Leslie Brenner
Times Staff Writers
August 10, 2005
PINK is such a pretty color . so frilly, so delicate. It's the color of fragile flowers and fading sunsets. You probably don't think of it as the color of wine to serve with robust foods, but you should. Sometimes it takes a pale wine to stand up to strong flavors . which is why ros�s are a mainstay of my summer meals.
Here are a few of the big summer dishes I've served with ros� wines over the last couple of weeks: quick-cured green olives with oregano and lemon peel; thinly sliced spicy salame; almonds dusted with red chile powder; bruschetta topped with confited tomatoes and garlic; a smoked salmon salad made with mayonnaise and capers; kale and wild greens braised with potatoes and topped with shards of Parmigiano-Reggiano; even smoked tri-tip alongside a fiercely garlicky green bean and potato salad.
The ros�s I was drinking . a broad geographical sampling from the outstanding 2004 vintage . didn't just stand up to all of those dishes, they positively danced around them.
For those who love ros�s (and our numbers are steadily increasing), this will come as no surprise. Look at where they come from, for goodness' sake. The cuisines of Provence, Portugal and Spain aren't exactly made for shrinking violets.
A good ros� has fresh fruit . think strawberries, raspberries and cherries . with just a rumor of sweetness. It has crisp acidity that leaves your palate ready for more. Floating above it all, there are layers of herbaceousness, spice and minerality that would do credit to any red wine.
In fact, I think of ros�s as having the best characteristics of both reds and whites . the juicy complexity of the former and the refreshing, palate-cleansing qualities of the latter.
Because of this, there is probably no friendlier food wine on the planet. And given the kinds of deeply flavored dishes we eat during the summer, that effect is squared. With its sweet fruit, ros� pairs naturally with dishes that are sharp, salty or spicy. Tart green olives, capers, cornichons, dried red chiles . nothing fazes it. The crisp backbone cuts straight through smoke and fat. Ros�s go great with tomatoes, which turn most wines thin and acrid. And they love garlic almost as much as I do. Is there a summer ingredient I haven't mentioned?
Center of attention
MOST people seem to regard ros�s as hot-weather aperitif wines. Granted, there is nothing wrong with serving a glass of chilled ros� alongside a plate of almonds and olives to get a meal started. But limiting yourself to that is selling the wine short. Instead, make an entire menu based on ros�s, ranging from appetizers to dessert.
I suppose you could even pair specific courses with specific wines, but to tell you the truth, the idea kind of gives me the creeps. It seems to me to be missing the entire point of ros�s, which is uncomplicated pleasure rather than analytical examination. Instead, find a couple of wines you really like, then fill an ice bucket with them. Your only consideration should be when to open more.
Start out with crostini topped with a rich, smoky eggplant pur�e that you've spiked with tart diced tomatoes and fresh rosemary. Roast the eggplant whole as you would for baba ghanouj, and then chop it and stir it into a rough paste with a wooden spoon. Pur�eing it in the blender makes it thin and soupy.
Follow that dish with stuffed zucchini and tomatoes, a classic summertime dish that is too often neglected these days. But have you noticed all the billiard ball-sized tomatoes and round zucchini at the farmers markets? To me, they beg stuffing and baking. Because this is going to be an appetizer and not an entr�e, keep the filling light . nothing more than bread crumbs crushed with basil and garlic. Bake the vegetables until they're melting in a tart tomato sauce studded with capers.
For the main course, grill swordfish steaks and top them with a salsa pungent with green olives and pickled red peppers, perfumed with crushed fennel seed. Swordfish is one fish I prefer to have cooked thoroughly through. Cut the steaks thin and grill them over high heat . they'll be done in minutes. For the salsa, just chop the olives and peppers and season them with garlic and fennel seeds you've crushed in a mortar.
If you want to continue the theme, finish the meal with sliced peaches or nectarines and a plate of lightly sweetened fresh ricotta dusted with ground cinnamon. Try dipping the fruit in the wine left in your glass (for fastidious guests, bring out little bowls of fruit they can pour the wine over).
Though ros�s may not be overly serious, they are seriously fun. Most wines I buy by the bottle; ros� I buy by the case. Some wines are meant to be sipped and savored; ros� is a wine to revel in.
Rather than dabbling in different ros�s through the summer, I tend to find one I like and then buy a bunch. I mark my summers by which ros� I was drinking. The first wine I remember buying this way was Paso Robles vintner Gary Eberle's Ros� of Counoise, a wonderfully spicy wine from a little-known Rh�ne grape. It was my summer wine and I drank it for years until he stopped making it in 2000 . apparently nobody was buying it but me and even though I gave it my best effort, it wasn't quite enough to keep an entire winery running. (Eberle now makes a very nice ros� from Syrah.)
There followed a couple of summers of Swanson Rosato from the Napa Valley . a lovely strawberry-scented ros� made from Sangiovese. Then a couple of years ago it lost its Southern California distribution (you can still order it from the winery, but at $18 a bottle, it's getting pretty dear), so I moved overseas. My summer dinner guests and I have been enjoying Morgues du Gr�s, a crisp, herbaceous ros� from the Costi�res de N�mes in the Rh�ne in recent years.
This year's spring and early summer were unusually cool, and I put off choosing a successor. So, when the hot weather suddenly came, I was ros�-less and on the first blistering weekend, I had to run out and pick up half a dozen or so different bottles to audition for a dinner party . all of them under $15.
It was an interesting experiment. In the first place, the current 2004 vintage seems to be uniformly strong for ros�s, particularly those from Europe. When ros� falls down it is most often due to a lack of acidity, which can leave the wine flat and simple. Every 2004 we tasted was fresh and crisp.
A palette of pinks
ALTHOUGH ros�s are generically referred to as "pink," that's not really an accurate description. The colors of the wines I tasted ranged from a delicate pale salmon to a pronounced plum red. And though it is tempting to relate color and flavor intensity, there is no connection. A pale color does not necessarily equate to delicate taste and neither does robust color mean hearty flavor.
Neither style is inherently superior to the other. The Commanderie de Peyrassol and the Ch�teau de Pampelonne from Provence were subtle and detailed (at least for a ros�), with notes of slate and crushed herbs. The Garnacha-based Muga from Rioja and the Guappo from Puglia (mainly something called "Uva di Troia," Sangiovese and a dash of Primitivo) were as big and juicy as biting into a ripe plum.
Perhaps the biggest surprise was Robert Sinskey Vineyards' Vin Gris of Pinot Noir from the Carneros, a wine I have enjoyed many times in the past. But the 2004 is something else. A salmon so pale it is almost clear in the glass, it nonetheless packs an astonishing amount of fruit. If you were to taste this wine blindfolded, you would swear it was a well-crafted regular Pinot.
The hard work done, it was time to eat. We gathered around platters of spicy, salty, smoky, joyful summer food at a picnic table under an arbor of blazing bougainvillea and drank in the ros�s and the sweet, cooling evening breeze in roughly equal proportions.
*
(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)
With this vintage of ros�s from France, you can't go wrong
As long as winemakers have been bleeding the skin of red grapes to make pink wines, France has been producing many of the best ros�s in the world. Today, delicious ones come from Provence (where Bandol is queen, producing marvelous ros�s from Grenache and Cinsault) and the Rh�ne Valley, but the Loire Valley also turns out lovely examples . crisp and dry and delicious enough to make us forget the sweet and insipid Tavels of yore. The 2004 was superb; grab just about any French ros� you see from that vintage and you won't go wrong. Here are a few standouts:
2004 Ch�teau de L'Escarelle Coteaux Varois ros�. From a sub-region of C�tes de Provence comes this clear, coral-colored wine with generous red berry aromas. Silky, well-balanced, light and delicious, with gentle fruit and a little complexity. At Du Vin in West Hollywood, (310) 855-1161; Malibu Village Wines in Malibu, (310) 456-2924; and Wine House in West Hollywood, (310) 479-3731, about $11.
2004 Domaine Tempier Bandol. Tempier is the Mercedes-Benz of ros�s . well-made, well-known, racy, delicious and expensive. A lovely clear salmon-color, with apricot and strawberry aromas. Well-balanced; crisp yet luscious, with an almond finish. Available at fine wine stores, about $28.
2004 Verget C�tes du Luberon. A clear coral-pink wine from an appellation within Provence. Simple and delicious, with intense ripe cherry and apricot blossom aromas; perfectly balanced. The screw-top makes it a great picnic wine. At Colorado Wine Co. in Eagle Rock, (323) 478-1985; Liquid Wine & Spirits in Chatsworth, (818) 709-5019; Wine Country in Signal Hill, (562) 597-8303; and the Wine House, about $10.
2004 Ch�teau Revelette Coteaux d'Aix en Provence. Pale salmon-pink with a pretty raspberry nose. Crisp, delicious and refreshing. At Liquid Wine & Spirits; Twenty-twenty Wine Merchants in West Los Angeles, (310) 447-2020; and the Wine House, about $14.
2004 Domaine Sylvain Bailly "La Lou�e" La Croix Saint Ursin Sancerre ros�. A very pale salmon-colored wine with bright citrus and strawberry aromas. Silky and crisp, terrific Sancerre acidity and a lovely finish. At the Cheese Store of Silver Lake (323) 644-7511; Mission Wines in South Pasadena, (626) 403-9463; Wine Country; and Woodland Hills Wine Company, (818) 222-1111, about $18.
2004 Parall�le "45" C�tes du Rh�ne ros�. A clear ruby-pink ros� that's more serious than its price would suggest: It has perfect balance, restrained but delicious fruit, some complexity, and a long, berry finish. At Liquid Wine & Spirits; Wine House; Malibu Village Wines; and the Wine Room in Irvine, (866) 585-9463, about $10.
2004 Domaine de Fondr�che C�tes du Ventoux "L'Instant" ros�. From the southern Rh�ne, a salmon-pink wine with a straight-on strawberry nose. Juicy and delicious, bone-dry and crisp with happy fruit and a pleasant finish. At Liquid Wine & Spirits; the Wine Exchange in Orange, (714) 974-1454; and Wine House, about $12.
2004 Ch�teau Grande Cassagne ros�, Costi�res de N�mes. This deep, clear, watermelon-pink wine comes from an appellation in the Languedoc. Round, fruity and juicy, with good acid and sweet plum aromas, it's drinkable and fun. At Duke of Bourbon in Canoga Park, (818) 341-1234; John & Pete's Fine Wines & Spirits in West Hollywood, (310) 657-3080; Mission Wines; and Woodland Hills Wine Company, about $9.
WINE OF THE WEEK
2004 Ch�teau La Canorgue C�tes du Luberon
S. Irene Virbila
August 10, 2005
Before Peter Mayle wrote "A Year in Provence," the Luberon was a relatively sleepy place, treasured for its wildly beautiful landscape of hill towns and ochre cliffs, vineyards and lavender fields. Part of the scene since the 17th century, Ch�teau La Canorgue produces one of the summer's best ros�s. Dedicated to the idea of producing wines naturally, the Margan family farms their terraced vineyards organically and biodynamically. The vines aren't young, so the production is naturally low. The result is a lovely, coppery ros� lightly perfumed with strawberries and flowers. Dry and fruity, it goes down very easy, leaving behind an impression of fruit and earth.
It's a wonderful food wine, easily bridging the gap from aperitif to the table. Serve it with olives and salame, with soupe au pistou, pissaladi�re and salads, even roast chicken and bouillabaisse.
*
Quick swirl
Region: Provence
Price: About $13
Style: Dry and fruity
Food it goes with: Olives, soupe au pistou, salads, bouillabaisse
Where you find it: Mel & Rose Liquor & Deli in West Hollywood, (323) 655-5557; Wine Country in Long Beach, (562) 597-8303; and the Wine House in Los Angeles, (310) 479-3731.
*
Garlic and herb-stuffed tomatoes and zucchini
Total time: 1 hour, 15 minutes
Servings: 6
Note: Salted anchovies are available at Nicole's in South Pasadena, Bay Cities in Santa Monica, Market Gourmet in Venice and Surfas in Culver City. Canned anchovies in oil may be substituted.
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for drizzling (optional)
1 onion, minced (about 1 cup)
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
1/2 cup white wine
3 tablespoons capers
Salt
1/2 pound baguette
1/4 cup loosely packed, coarsely chopped basil leaves
2 cloves garlic, chopped
4 salted anchovy fillets, rinsed, bones removed and chopped
1/3 cup toasted pine nuts
3 (8-inch) zucchini
12 small round tomatoes (about 1 1/2 pounds)
1. Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Cook the olive oil and the onion in a large skillet over medium heat until the onion softens, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic; cook until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Add the crushed tomatoes, wine, capers and one-half teaspoon salt. Simmer until the sauce thickens, about 20 minutes.
2. Trim the crusts and cut the bread into cubes. Place in a food processor or a blender with the basil and garlic and grind to fine crumbs. Pour into a bowl and stir in the anchovies and pine nuts. Set aside.
3. Cut each zucchini in half lengthwise and use a melonballer to carefully remove some of the flesh from the center to make a "canoe." Leave about one-fourth inch at the sides and ends and a little more at the bottom. Season the inside with one teaspoon salt, and steam over rapidly boiling salted water until just tender, about 10 to 15 minutes.
4. Cut a slice from the top of each tomato. With the melonballer, gently remove most of the pulp. Season insides with one-fourth teaspoon salt.
5. Pour the tomato sauce into a lightly oiled 5-quart gratin dish or substitute two smaller gratin dishes. Spoon the breadcrumb mixture into the zucchini and tomatoes, mounding slightly on top. It will take 1 to 2 tablespoons for each zucchini and 2 to 3 teaspoons for each tomato. Do not press the breadcrumbs or they will become pasty when cooked. Arrange the zucchini and tomatoes in the gratin dish. Drizzle with olive oil if desired.
6. Bake until the vegetables have softened and the tops of the breadcrumbs have browned, about 30 minutes. (Time will vary for the smaller dishes, so start checking after 15 to 20 minutes.) Serve hot or at room temperature.
Each serving: 308 calories; 10 grams protein; 42 grams carbohydrates; 7 grams fiber; 12 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 2 mg.cholesterol; 648 mg. sodium.
*
Eggplant bruschetta
Total time: 1 hour, 20 minutes
Servings: 6 to 8
2 (1-pound) eggplants
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 teaspoon minced rosemary
1 tablespoon fruity olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 tomato, diced (about 1/2 cup)
1 baguette
1 oz. Pecorino Romano cheese
1. Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Pierce the eggplants in 2 or 3 places with a sharp knife and place them on a jelly roll pan or in a baking dish. Bake until the flesh is soft and the eggplants have collapsed, about 1 hour. Remove from the oven and cool.
2. When the eggplant is cool enough to handle, peel away the skin and coarsely chop the flesh. Put the eggplant in a bowl with the garlic, rosemary and olive oil and stir briskly with a wooden spoon so that the eggplant shreds and breaks apart into chunks but does not become a smooth pur�e. Stir in the salt, vinegar and lemon juice; taste and adjust seasoning. Gently stir in the diced tomato.
3. Cut the baguette into one-half-inch thick slices. Toast in a broiler or on the grill until browned on both sides. Spoon on some of the eggplant mixture and use a vegetable peeler to shave a small slice of Pecorino Romano on top. Serve at room temperature.
________________________________________
Each of 8 servings: 152 calories; 6 grams protein; 24 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams fiber; 4 grams fat; 1 grams saturated fat; 4 mg. cholesterol; 561 mg. sodium.
*
Swordfish with green olive salsa
Total time: 30 minutes
Servings: 6
1/2 pound green olives
5 tablespoons chopped roasted and peeled red bell pepper
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 clove garlic
Salt
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
Olive oil
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/2 cup chopped parsley
2 pounds swordfish, in 2 or 3 pieces
Freshly ground pepper
1. Start a fire in a grill or preheat the broiler.
2. To pit the olives, place them on a cutting board and crush them with the side of a chef's knife. Pull them apart and discard the pits. Gather the olive meat in a pile and chop it coarsely. You should have about three-fourths cup.
3. In a mixing bowl, combine the olives, chopped red bell pepper and crushed red pepper flakes. Place the garlic clove in a large mortar with about one-fourth teaspoon salt and the fennel seeds. Crush into a paste. Slowly add two-thirds cup olive oil, stirring constantly with the pestle.
4. Pour the olive oil mixture over the olives and add the vinegar. Stir several times to turn the mixture into a rough, loose paste. Taste and adjust seasoning, adding more vinegar or salt if necessary. Stir in the chopped parsley and set aside.
5. Pat the swordfish dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Rub both sides lightly with a little olive oil. Moisten a paper towel with olive oil and lightly moisten the surface of the grill or broiler pan. Immediately place the swordfish on the grill and cook just until lightly browned, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Swordfish should be cooked through, but don't let it dry out.
6. Place the swordfish on a platter. Stir the salsa one more time and spoon it over the fish. Serve immediately, passing any leftover salsa on the side.
________________________________________
Each serving: 457 calories; 30 grams protein; 4 grams carbohydrates; 1 grams fiber; 36 grams fat; 6 grams saturated fat; 55 mg. cholesterol; 837 mg. sodium.
--
------------------------------ *
* Dr. James Lee Ellingson, Adjunct Professor jellings(a)me.umn.edu *
* University of Minnesota, tel: 651/645-0753 fax 651 XXX XXXX *
* Great Lakes Brewing News, 1569 Laurel Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104 *
----- Forwarded message from "Jim L. Ellingson" <jellings(a)me.umn.edu> -----
Date: Mon, 22 May 2006 16:12:23 -0500
From: "Jim L. Ellingson" <jellings(a)me.umn.edu>
To: wine(a)thebarn.com
We're going to Sapor at 6:30 on Thursday.
Style du jour is Rhone Varietals. $5 per person in leu of corkage.
Part of their wine list is on their web site.
If you happen to bring something that's on the list or the shelf
(easier than you might think. Ask Russ about a split of
something obscure he'd bought at a winery that was on
their shelf as well.... ) we'll just save it for
another week. We're never short of wine.
http://www.saporcafe.com/
428 N. Washington, Mpls
612 375 1971
Yes/Guess:
Ruth
Betsy
Bob
Karin/Nicolai
Jim
More guesses....
Lori
Roger LeClair
Annette S
Dave
Sapor is very close to Sam's Wine Shop (closes at 8:00 M-Th).
They are doing some sort of Bastile Day tasting and special
Thursday through Saturday.
Flowering of cool new gins
By Charles Perry
Times Staff Writer
July 12, 2006
I blame James Bond. Everything started going downhill, cocktail-wise, when he insisted on vodka martinis, shaken, not stirred.
That sounded ultra-suave in the '60s, but the vodka martini has a fatal flaw . it lacks the heady aromatics and complex palate of gin (which must be why Ian Fleming actually specified a mixture of vodka and gin in "Casino Royale"). A straight vodka martini is a cocktail with a hole in the middle.
People were bound to fill that hole with something, and just look at what they're doing. The sugary, imitation fruit-flavored vodka cocktails being poured these days make me feel I'm at some kind of naughty children's Kool-Aid party.
I say a lot of these cocktails are suffering from gin deprivation, and apparently I'm not the only one who feels gin has been unjustly neglected of late. There's more interest in gin these days than there has been in many years. "It's something I notice around town," says dining room manager Jeremy Allen of Norman's in West Hollywood. "I think people are exploring."
Here's the best sign of a gin revival: In recent years, a whole category of boutique gins has arisen alongside the long-established brands.
The bartenders' favorite seems to be Hendrick's, a Scottish gin, which is so distinctive and yet refined that it creates remarkable cocktails. But keep your eyes open at leading bars around town and you're likely to notice other unfamiliar names, such as Junipero, from the Bay Area; France's Citadelle; a gin made by a Sonoma winemaker, No. 209; and Old Raj, another Scottish entry.
Anchor Brewing had just started making a rye whiskey in 1996 when owner Fritz Maytag decided to make a gin as well . and discovered how much there was to learn. "I made a list of all the ingredients anybody ever mentioned in gin," he says, "First we made a minimalist gin with the three basic ingredients everybody uses, then we added one botanical at a time to see what they do.
"We experimented and wandered in a wilderness for a long time. Then one day I just said, 'Stop, this is great.' " Maytag's Junipero is powerful and sculptured, loaded with gin's distinctive juniper flavor.
Leslie Rudd fell into gin, as it were, when he bought the Edge Hill Winery in St. Helena, Calif., and discovered that in 1882 it had become U.S. registered distillery No. 209, producing gin and other spirits. Napa County does not permit distilling anything but grape-based spirits such as brandy and grappa, so Rudd set up his No. 209 operation . which uses a still custom-made for him in Scotland . in San Francisco. It's a subtle, well-considered gin that makes a sophisticated cocktail.
Juniper's the key
GIN was invented for medicinal purposes by a 17th century Dutch physician named Franciscus Sylvius, who added juniper berries, spices and other botanicals to distilled spirits. During the 18th century, the English took to drinking gin for its alcohol content, but in the 19th century, despite gin's bad rep . it had become a byword for alcohol abuse . bartenders noticed that its crisp, piney flavor performed excellently in mixed drinks. In particular, it wedded beautifully with the body and winy aromas of vermouth. The all-time classic gin cocktail is the dry martini, created almost exactly 100 years ago, a cocktail so sleek and powerful it has been nicknamed the Silver Bullet.
As a result of this discovery, gin moved out of the categories of dubious medicine and cheap hooch to became one of the classic cocktail bases, along with whiskey, brandy, champagne and rum. Gin is the only one of that group that is never aged (or hardly ever . Kensington, one of the boutique gins most appreciated by The Times tasting panel, is aged in oak) and gets its aroma entirely from added ingredients.
It starts as grain spirit (vodka, in effect; many gin distillers are also vodka-makers these days). The botanicals are steeped in it, it's distilled one more time, and voil�: gin.
To be called gin, it has to include juniper berries . its very name comes from the French or Dutch word for juniper. This provides gin's unique, refreshing outdoorsy scent. It always contains some citrus peel, either lemon or bitter orange or both. After that, the distiller has a huge range of choices. Coriander and anise are very common, but some gins use 20 or more botanicals such as cucumber, licorice, rose petals or almonds.
One of the most important is angelica, a cold-climate member of the carrot family that flourishes in Northern Europe. Angelica is astringent; it's the reason gin doesn't have a cloying aftertaste. Another traditional ingredient is orris root, which has a mild, funky herbal smell somewhat resembling violets. More important, orris root binds volatile aromas, which would otherwise evaporate more rapidly than they do.
For a long time . call it the Seagram's age . many people seemed to think of gin as an industrial product without significant differences among brands. But recently, more than a dozen specialty gins have appeared on the market, showing an extravagant variety of styles: powerful gins for memorable cocktails, delicate or exotic ones for sipping, new takes on classical gins with a twist of their own.
About half of the companies marketing these new-wave gins have long experience in spirits, such as mainline gin distiller Tanqueray and the French firm Cognac Ferrand. There's a surprisingly strong Scottish presence. Hendrick's comes from the Girvan Distillery, which supplies grain whisky for the Grant & Sons brand of blended scotches. Old Raj is distilled for Wm. Cadenhead, a specialist in bottling high-end single malts. Ian Macleod Distillers, producers of Scotch and many other spirits, makes the remarkable Kensington, which tastes like a cross between gin and aged whisky.
Among the West Coast gins, the best are the two made by companies moving up from less alcoholic beverages, Junipero No. 209. Other brands are mostly the work of newcomers to the business, based in places as various as Chicago, Santa Cruz, Princeton, Minn., and Bend, Ore. Martin Miller's sends its freshly distilled gin from London to Iceland to be brought down to 80 proof with the local water.
Most of the new gins show the ongoing effects of Sapphire's explosive effect on the design of gin bottles. Instead of being packaged in old-fashioned squared-off bottles, most of them arrive in fanciful containers that look like giant perfume jars.
Pot-distilled products
BUT the real differences are inside the bottle. The well-known gin brands, like most spirits in the modern world, are distilled in high-volume column stills. In contrast, eight of the newcomers boast that they use the old-fashioned pot still, the kind associated with Cognac and Scotch malt whisky.
Pot stills are slower and less efficient than column stills but can make a more distinctive product, and most of the pot-distilled gins we tasted were particularly good.
There's no single style to these new gins. Several of the newcomers have a somewhat unfocused flavor, but the Bay Area brewery and winery distill splendid, rather classical gins. Scotland produced three of our favorites, all quite distinctive, and they could scarcely be more different: Hendrick's poetic and delicate, Old Raj rich and robust, Kensington startlingly original.
These new gins are so good they can be sipped straight, but they also make spectacular cocktails. Chiseled, aggressively juniper-flavored Junipero makes a bold, broad-shouldered dry martini, while Hendrick's produces virtually the opposite: elegant, layered, almost floral.
With its whisky-like notes, a Kensington Martini is halfway to a Rob Roy, and Old Raj is such a flavorful gin that you need to add more vermouth than you otherwise would (yes, ultra-dry martini fans, this is one case when gin can overpower vermouth).
In the gin market, these brands are just the proverbial drop in the bucket. But they reveal new possibilities.
Maybe, one day, some movie character will start a trend by demanding a Harvey Ginbanger, or a Hendrick's Fuzzy Navel . easy on the peach schnapps, shaken and stirred.
*
Aromatherapy cocktail
Total time: 2 minutes
Servings: 1
Note: From bartender Jeremiah Doherty at Grace in West Hollywood, this cocktail complements the botanicals in the gin. Find elderflower syrup at Silverlake Wine, L.A.; Larchmont Wine & Cheese, L.A.; La Petite Vendome, Pasadena; Manhattan Fine Wines, Manhattan Beach; Vendome, Beverly Hills; the Wine House, West L.A.; Blue Table, Calabasas.
2 1/2 ounces Hendrick's gin
1/2 ounce elderflower syrup
1 ounce tonic water
1 ounce soda water
Edible flower such as nasturtium (optional)
Pour the gin and elderflower syrup into a tall 12-ounce glass filled with ice. Add the tonic water and soda water, stir and garnish with the flower.
Each serving: 180 calories; 0 protein; 5 grams carbohydrates; 0 fiber; 0 fat; 0 saturated fat; 0 cholesterol; 8 mg. sodium.
What I know of who's coming and an article on Rieslings from
the SFGChronicle.
I'm a maybe at this point.
Many of the app's we sampled with 3M group were boring.
Entrees were good.
Bob,
Betsy
Annette
Warren/Ruth
Jim
----- Forwarded message from Betsy Kremser <Betsy.Kremser(a)co.anoka.mn.us> -----
Date: Fri, 30 Jun 2006 15:46:14 -0500
From: "Betsy Kremser" <Betsy.Kremser(a)co.anoka.mn.us>
To: <wine(a)thebarn.com>
Subject: [wine] Sparkling Wines & Rieslings at Krua Thailand
Bob made reservations for 10 at Krua Thailand on Thursday, June 6.
Sparkling wines and Rieslings are the styles of choice.
Krua Thailand
432 University Ave W
Saint Paul, MN 55103
651-224-4053
It's on the south side of University between Arundel and Western.
Bring glasses. Bob says they don't have much in terms of glassware to
offer.
----- End forwarded message -----
Refreshing German Rieslings are sweet, but not to a fault
- W. Blake Gray, Chronicle Staff Writer
Thursday, July 6, 2006
Click to View
The worst thing about the World Cup is that it ends too soon.
The world's greatest, most popular sporting event takes a whole month, but just when the biological clock gets accustomed to 7 a.m. games, and the neighbors are used to screams of "Goooooaaal!" at 7:15, the whole shebang's over.
If the finale on Sunday leaves you thirsting for more, extend the Cup feeling with the greatest wine of host country Germany -- Riesling.
German Rieslings are consistently among the most excellent wine bargains. The best ones are complex, delicious and refreshing. Plus, they're generally low in alcohol, allowing you to have one more glass than usual.
But there's a catch: A word that rhymes with "neat" and "petite" and has come to be an expletive for many wine lovers. Instead of speaking this verboten word aloud, we use polite euphemisms like "off-dry."
So I'll say it out loud: Yes, most German Rieslings are sweet.
But the good ones balance that out-of-favor characteristic with high acidity, making them food-friendly and thirst-quenching without being cloying.
Sweetness isn't such a bad thing for food pairing. Because of it, German Rieslings go nicely with spicy dishes that make other wines taste unpleasantly "hot" (high in alcohol). German Rieslings are among the few wines that go well with Thai food, with its complex combinations of spicy and sour elements. They're good with Mexican food as well.
Bad nun flashbacks
Unfortunately, German wines' reputation is stained for many Americans by the lingering stigma of Blue Nun -- as iconic for the bad-taste 1970s as bell-bottoms or wild-colored polyester shirts.
Beyond the specter of the Nun, the complicated labels on German bottles have also hampered their acceptance in the U.S. market. While language is a barrier, it's not the only one.
Many Americans have a passing understanding of French wine lingo, as much of it has been accepted into English. Spanish and Italian wines more or less follow the French model; if you understand appellation controlee ("name controlled," it signifies the region where the grapes were grown), then you can figure out its equivalent in Spanish and Italian.
German wines require learning not just new words, but new concepts. The most important is ripeness level -- grapes for Auslese wines are riper than those for Spatlese, so the wines are sweeter. Kabinett grapes are less ripe than Spatlese.
In the bargain price range, though, you don't usually have to worry about these classifications, as most cheap German Rieslings are QbA -- a more general classification with less ripe grapes. It's an indication of how confusing German wine labels are that few of these wines actually say "QbA" anywhere on the bottle. You just have to surmise it from the absence of the other terms.
Ironically, because the grapes are less ripe for less-expensive wines, the resultant wines are usually less sweet, making them ideal for people who believe that adjective is derogatory.
My favorite wine this week is from a producer that understands the marketing value of modern labels. The 2005 Schmitt Sohne Relax Mosel-Saar-Ruwer Riesling ($10) has a strikingly cool blue bottle that gives orders in huge white letters to people with a Blue Nun fixation: "Relax." And enjoy it -- the delicious flavors of peach, pear and apricot have a slight, fruity sweetness. The 9.5 percent alcohol level means that if you can normally drink two glasses of 14 percent alcohol wine, you can have three glasses of this.
I had the 2005 Rudi Wiest Rhein River Rheinhessen Riesling ($10) with takeout rotisserie chicken and it was a wonderful match. The wine's apple and quince flavors tasted vibrant throughout its long finish. The 2003 Rudi Wiest Selections Mosel River Mosel-Saar-Ruwer Riesling ($10) is also pretty good, if simpler, tasting mostly of apple. It's sweeter than the Rhein River version.
German from California
The 2005 Ironstone Vineyards Pfalz Riesling ($10) is a multicultural oddity; a German Riesling from a California winery.
Ironstone Vineyards was founded in 1990 in Murphys, in Calaveras County, by the Kautz family, whose ancestors were winemakers in the Pfalz region of Germany. Ironstone specializes in red wines but wanted to add a white wine; however, the family wasn't growing white grapes, so they looked overseas to Zimmerman-Graeff & Mueller, a German producer that makes wine for several other companies as well. ZG&M made Ironstone a proprietary blend for this delicious wine, which smells and tastes of lychee and fresh-cut flowers. Crisp and slightly sweet, the wine has vibrant acidity that makes it refreshing and food-friendly.
Three well-respected German producers make similarly fine Rieslings in the bargain price range. The 2003 Loosen Dr. L Mosel-Saar-Ruwer Riesling ($10), 2004 Two Princes Nahe Riesling ($11) and 2003 S.A. Prum Essence Mosel-Saar-Ruwer Riesling ($11) all have an apple and brown sugar character. The Essence, another wine with a modern nickname, also offers hints of apricot and toast, and is a bit less sweet than the other two. None has an alcohol level higher than 10 percent.
The 2005 St. Urbans-Hof Mosel-Saar-Ruwer Riesling ($10) looks more traditional, with a religious icon and plenty of German terms on the front label. It's the most unusual of the wines recommended here, with strongly green, herbal aromas and flavors of green apple, apricot and green-leaf lettuce that linger on a medium-long finish.
With the exception of the Ironstone wine, of which 10,000 cases were imported, the problem with recommending German Rieslings is that most are low-production wines that may not be easy to find.
Riesling Down Under
Enter the world's mass producers: the Aussies. The 2005 Banrock Station South Eastern Australia Riesling ($5) is an excellent deal for the price. Many Australian Rieslings are bone-dry, but this is in the German style, slightly sweet but not cloying, with flavors of lemon-lime and mango.
Finally, for people who think sweetness is a plus, not a curse, the 2005 Hardys South Eastern Australia Riesling ($19 for 3-liter box) is unabashedly for you; it's like a liquid candied apple. And the bag-in-box style will preserve the wine in your refrigerator for as long as four weeks after opening, perhaps long enough for the pain of Australia's exit from the World Cup on a bizarrely awarded penalty kick to fade.
No matter who wins the Cup on Sunday, a toast with the greatest varietal from the host country is appropriate. And since it's low in alcohol, you can also drink a cup to a better performance by the U.S. team (sigh) in South Africa in 2010.
Shopping list
These are the best deals The Chronicle found this week.
Rieslings
2005 Banrock Station South Eastern Australia Riesling ($5)
2005 Hardys South Eastern Australia Riesling ($19 for 3-liter box)
2005 Ironstone Vineyards Pfalz Riesling ($10)
2003 Loosen Dr. L Mosel-Saar-Ruwer Riesling ($10)
2005 Rudi Wiest Rhein River Rheinhessen Riesling ($10)
2003 Rudi Wiest Selections Mosel River Mosel-Saar-Ruwer Riesling ($10)
2003 S.A. Prum Essence Mosel-Saar-Ruwer Riesling ($11)
2005 Schmitt Sohne Relax Mosel-Saar-Ruwer Riesling ($10)
2005 St. Urbans-Hof Mosel-Saar-Ruwer Riesling ($10)
2004 Two Princes Nahe Riesling ($11)
E-mail W. Blake Gray at wbgray(a)sfchronicle.com.
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URL: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2006/07/06/WIG65JOL5F1.DTL
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* Dr. James Lee Ellingson, Adjunct Professor jellings(a)me.umn.edu *
* University of Minnesota, tel: 651/645-0753 fax 651 XXX XXXX *
* Great Lakes Brewing News, 1569 Laurel Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104 *
Our friend Mary at Chocolat Celeste has some wines she would like to sell.
These are half cases of wines she used in her tasting classes.
I "Googled" them to get the background info. Wine-searcher shows them
to be v. good values.
The Muscat is fortified.
----- Forwarded message from "Mary Leonard, Chocolat Celeste" <mary(a)chocolatceleste.com> -----
Date: Wed, 5 Jul 2006 10:32:55 -0700 (PDT)
From: "Mary Leonard, Chocolat Celeste" <mary(a)chocolatceleste.com>
Reply-To: mary(a)chocolatceleste.com
Subject: Hi-Wine
To: louise Stich <louise.stich(a)mci.com>, Jim Ellingson <jellings(a)me.umn.edu>
Hi,
It has been so long since I've seen you both, I get so preoccupied with the business.
I was wondering if you would know anyone that might be willing to buy some wines I bought for an event about a month ago. I can not return them to Sharrett's. The price was discounted to me.
I am trying to turn them into cash since the summer is so slow.
Here they are:
6 bottles of Domaine de Beaumalric 2000 - Muscat de Beaumes de Venise - $14.99 each $16.40 w/ tax
6 bottles of Santa Duc - Les Blovac Rasteau - Cote du Rhone 2002 - $19.99 each $21.90 w/ tax
1 bottle of Les Hauts de Montmirail 2003 Gigondas Domaine Brusset - $28.99 each $31.75 w/ tax
Let me know. I also paid tax of 9.5% on them.
----- End forwarded message -----
Beaumes de Venise is a medieval village with grottos in the sandstone cliffs. The beauty of this magical name and the sweetness of the golden liquid with its magnificent Muscat aroma is the stuff dreams are made of. The vineyard extends to the foot of the � Dentelles de Montmirail � - and produces this shimmering nectar exploding with white fruits and the sweet aroma of Muscat. The impressive freshness of Beaumes de Venise with its lemony and flowery flavour makes it an ideal companion for sweet entr�es, foie gras or special shellfish dishes.
Grape variety: Muscat
RASTEAU A.C .LES BLOVAC. Vieilles Vignes - Roughly three kilometres to the west of Gigondas, Rasteau lies to the north adjoining Cairanne to the south. The vineyards lie on the edge of what is known as the Plan de Dieu (the Plain of God), which was formed by old riverbed deposits. The exposure here is south/south east. All of the fruit is harvested at vineyards owned by Yves Gras. cousin, and the yields are well below the 52 hecto/hectare allowed for the appellation of C�tes du Rh�ne Villages. The blend is 70% Grenache, 20% Syrah and 10% Mourvedre, with vines ranging between 30 and 60 years of age. The wine is big and rustic. A blend of 70% Grenache, 15% Mourvedre, and 15% Syrah grown on Rasteau's steep hillsides, it reveals exuberant black cherry and blackberry fruit with a hint of espresso and chocolate.
2001 Domaine Santa Duc Rasteau Les Blovac, $24.99: Deep, dark garnet in color, with a very expressive, deep, dark black currant, blackberry and iodine nose, and a little menthol lurking in the background. Big flavors echo, with a streak of leather throughout and tannins that don't intrude on tonight's drinking pleasure, but it will certainly improve with 3-5 years in the cellar. It turns a bit earthy on the finish, where the tannins show the most. I really like this, and so does Kim; it turns more and more leathery with air, and that's fine with us!
Imported by Robert Kacher Selections, Washington, D.C.
Les Hauts de Montmirail 2003 Gigondas Domaine Brusset
Daniel BRUSSET *****
Gigondas "Les Hauts de Montmirail"
"A long time marginalized in Gigondas because of his insistence to use small new barrels at the property, Daniel Brusset is now well accepted by the local vine growers. His father starts "Les Hauts de Montmirail" in 1986 making vinification at the "chaix" located in Cairanne, and it was there another point of discord with the inhabitants of the village, for which Brusset were foreigners (Cairanne is located at a few kilometers only of Gigondas). The family quickly increases the property which passes thus from 7 ha to approximately 83 ha and now has the most spectacular vineyards in terrace of Gigondas: nested behind the extraordinary point of view of the "Dentelles de Montmirail", these high stone phalanges which point towards the sky, they give wines very marked by some touch of new and roasted oak and by rich flavours of red fruits which incontestably have much character - through restricted outputs, a very meticulous vinification and maturing, as well as bottling the less interventionist as possible. The potential ageing is 15 years approximately."
Robert PARKER
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* Dr. James Lee Ellingson, Adjunct Professor jellings(a)me.umn.edu *
* University of Minnesota, tel: 651/645-0753 fax 651 XXX XXXX *
* Great Lakes Brewing News, 1569 Laurel Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104 *
Bob made reservations for 10 at Krua Thailand on Thursday, June 6.
Sparkling wines and Rieslings are the styles of choice.
Krua Thailand
432 University Ave W
Saint Paul, MN 55103
651-224-4053
It's on the south side of University between Arundel and Western.
Bring glasses. Bob says they don't have much in terms of glassware to
offer.
----- Forwarded message from "Jim L. Ellingson" <jellings(a)me.umn.edu> -----
From: "Jim L. Ellingson" <jellings(a)me.umn.edu>
To: wine(a)thebarn.com
Greetings,
This week, Red and Ready wines at Auriga.
Sparkling/white/ringer/dessert wines always welcome.
Auriga Rest.
1930 Hennepin Ave, Mpls, 55403
612-871 -0777
Who: (mostly guesses)
Wine Pro Lori
Wine Pro Emeritas Bob
Betsy
Annette S.
Ruth
Bill
Nicolai
Give Bob a call. 612-672-0607
Cheers,
Jim
Choose Big, Bold American Reds for the Fourth
Wednesday, June 28, 2006; F07
Because charcoal grilling imparts such strong smoky flavors to foods, it cries out for a red wine with enough depth and dimension to stand up for itself. This translates into a full-throttle bouquet, lots of ripe fruit and a finishing dollop of vanilla from aging in new oak barrels.
The wine should also be American. Though I'm hardly a chauvinist when it comes to great wine, America n wines are better suited to the barbecue precisely because they epitomize the New World style of winemaking, where bigger and bolder are usually better.
Along with Red Flyer (my Wine of the Week), the following are my picks for a festive Fourth of July.
Liberty School 2004 Syrah "Central Coast" ($15; California; distributed by Winebow): With a perfect name for the Independence Day holiday, the Liberty School syrah delivers plush, stylish syrah fruit reminiscent of a pricey French Hermitage, a favorite wine of Thomas Jefferson while he was U.S. minister to France.
Trentadue 2003 Old Patch Red ($13; California; DOPS): Loaded with savory red fruit flavors, this traditional California field blend of zinfandel (52.5 percent), carignan (14.4 percent), sangiovese (20.3 percent) and petite sirah (12.8 percent) is a knockout.
Rabbit Ridge Allure de Robles ($14; California; Constantine): This chewy Rhone-style blend of grenache, counoise, syrah and mourvedre serves up delectable blackberry and cassis fruit accented by flavors of American oak.
Eos 2002 Petite Sirah ($17; California; NDC): This imposing petite sirah from Paso Robles offers a complex bouquet of mocha and vanilla fruit, followed on the palate by fat, juicy flavors of blueberry and cassis, and a finish of round tannins.
Ravenswood 2003 "Lodi Old Vine Zinfandel" ($14; California; NDC): Juicy cherry and plum flavors give this classic interpretation of American zinfandel a soft, lush impression on the palate.
Pedroncelli 2001 Petite Sirah "Dry Creek Valley" ($14; California; DOPS): A full bouquet of violets, black pepper and plum gives way to a bright shot of smoky blackberry and black cherry fruit on the palate, and smooth tannins on the finish.
BEST BUYS UNDER $10
Smoking Loon 2004 Syrah ($10; California; NDC): Excellent concentration for the price range, jammy strawberry fruit is highlighted by oak notes.
Pepperwood Grove 2004 Syrah ($7; California; NDC): Clear, pure fruit, with nice weight on the palate. Serve lightly chilled.
Hogue Cellars 2003 Syrah "Columbia Valley" ($9 to $10; Washington; Bacchus): Relatively full-bodied with firm tannins, this will stand up quite well to charcoal-grilled steak.
Francis Coppola Presents Syrah 2004 ($10; California; NDC): This robust red offers layers of vanilla-accented blackberry fruit and a hearty finish.
Desolation Flats 2004 "Rustler's Red Wine" ($10; California; Bacchus): The Italian refosco grape adds a distinctive plummy note to this fresh blend of zinfandel and petite syrah.
Ben Giliberti, The Post's wine critic since 1987, can be reached atfood(a)washpost.com.
WINE OF THE WEEK
Red Flyer 2003 "California Red Table Wine" ($9; California; DOPS)
Food Match Born in the USA for the BBQ grill. Serve lightly chilled with steak, ribs or chicken in barbecue sauce.
In the Glass Vibrant purple color, with deep ruby highlights at the rim. A full bouquet of vanilla, spice and black cherry is followed on the palate by oodles of lush strawberry/cranberry-like fruit, finishing with a crescendo of ripe tannins.
Grapes Syrah (75 percent), durif (16 percent), mourvedre (4 percent), carignan (4 percent), grenache (1 percent). Although this is a classic French Rhone grape blend, the 12 months of aging in French and American oak barrels is a California touch.
Geography From Monterey County, on California's central coast, where the wind and fog interact with the sun to slow the grapes' ripening, leading to a growing season that is up to two months longer than in warmer regions such as Napa Valley.
On the Label Inspired by the posters for sci-fi flicks such as "War of the Worlds." Also a subtle nod to Bonny Doon Vineyard's pioneering Le Cigare Volant Rhone-style blend, which depicts an extraterrestrial cigare volant ("flying cigar") on its label.
Where to Buy It Distributed to retail shops in the Washington area by DOPS Wholesale. For more information, visit http://www.redflyerwine.com/ .
TELL US WHAT YOU THOUGHT
If you give Red Flyer 2003 a try, send your comments to food(a)washpost.com. We may excerpt them in an upcoming issue.
--BEN GILIBERTI
� 2006 The Washington Post Company
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------------------------------ *
* Dr. James Lee Ellingson, Adjunct Professor jellings(a)me.umn.edu *
* University of Minnesota, tel: 651/645-0753 fax 651 XXX XXXX *
* Great Lakes Brewing News, 1569 Laurel Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104 *
