With a new initiative from the California Wine Club (CWC), you can earn credit toward your next wine purchase while helping the environment. In partnership with ReCORK, the CWC will plant 1,000 new cork trees if they collect 20 million corks by September 2011. For every 30 corks that you mail in, you’ll earn a $10 credit towards purchases from the club and entry into a variety of weekly contests.
This initiative got me thinking about corks. Cork has been used to stopper wine vessels for centuries, though it faces growing competition from other closure methods. But why do we use cork? How are corks even made?
Learn more about cork and its history below the fold. Read the rest of this entry »
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Medium-bodied, layers of flavor, from black currant or blackberry to sweet, tropical fruit, and prized for its bright and refreshing quality.
Tasting notes for a nice Cab? Perhaps a unique Chianti? How about these two:
Full-bodied with virtually no acidity but an intensity that lingers in your mouth. Concentrated spicy, herbal notes and an earthy aroma.
A wonderful, straightforward blend. The bright flavor is tempered with a round smoothness and ends with a clean finish.
Despite the familiar sound, these aren’t wine tasting notes. Instead, these the comments come from the package of three bags of coffee I recently purchased. Specifically, they were from Starbucks’ Kenya, Sumatra, and House blends.
These notes got me thinking – should I drink coffee more like I drink wine? I really enjoy a good cup of joe, but I know far less about it than the wine that I consume. In fact, though, coffee can be understood and appreciated in many of the same ways as wine. For those of us interested in terroir and fermentation techniques, it’s interesting to taste how characteristics like provenance and preparation can affect coffee.
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Over the past week, low levels of radiation from the Fukushima Daiichi power plant in Japan began reaching the western United States. Despite heavy news coverage, the U.S. has largely avoided the panic-buying seen in other countries of items like salt, seaweed, and … red wine.
Given the short supply of iodine pills, people around the world concerned about radioactive fallout have been buying up other products rumored to protect against radiation. Although the run on salt in China was misguided (an adult would need to swallow over 6 lbs. of it to prevent radiation poisoning), consumers in Russia stocking up on wine were on to something.
As it turns out, several studies indicate that red wine does indeed provide some defense against radiation. The antioxidant Resveratrol may help mitigate the harmful effects of radiation exposure, in addition to its purported roles in cancer prevention and increased longevity.
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A few of Novy's Bottlings
Recently, I covered the rise of online wine discounters — and my experiences buying some of my favorite wines through them. Since then, I’ve come across a few other articles exploring the rise of these “flash-sale” sites.
Adam Lee, the winemaker and owner at Siduri and Novy, contacted Terroirist after reading my post to shed some light on how — and why — wineries work with sites like Lot18. The relationship between the two is far more symbiotic than I realized. Read the rest of this entry »
Uploaded to flickr by Steve Snodgrass
Discount online wine retailers are popping up with remarkable frequency. CinderellaWine and Wines ‘Til Sold Out were the first two to capture my attention, but since then, I’ve turned to sites like UncorkDeals.com from Wine Chateau and invino (formerly known as Winery Insider).
Each of these sites purports to offer significant discounts on quality wine. Some are, of course, better than others, but overall, I’ve been able to pick up some quality wines — often with free shipping — at prices far below retail. (Now whether I actually needed those wines is another matter entirely.)
Recently, I received an email from Lot18, another online discounter, touting wine from one of my favorite producers, Robert Keenan Winery. I visited Keenan on my first trip to Napa in 2007 and credit the producer with catalyzing my interest in wine. Keenan’s was the first wine club I ever joined, and I’ve been receiving four bottles every six months from them for over three years now. I’ve been impressed by every bottle of Keenan that I’ve ever uncorked. And the vineyard, on Spring Mountain, is absolutely gorgeous. Read the rest of this entry »
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Do you know anyone who gets itchy or sniffley after a glass of wine? About 8% of people experience unfortunate side effects like congestion, a skin rash, or a headache with wine. Sulfites added to assist preservation are often blamed, but recent research suggests that other compounds may, in fact, be responsible.
According to a study published by researchers at the University of Southern Denmark, the glycoproteins (protein molecules with sugars attached) produced during fermentation may be the culprit. They found that at a molecular level these proteins closely resembled several known allergens. Specifically, they were very similar to proteins found in ragweed that cause hay fever as well as other allergens present in olives, latex, and pears.
The study analyzed just one type of Italian Chardonnay, so it’s unclear how broadly applicable these results are. However, similar proteins are likely found in most wines. This knowledge may enable to someday make hypoallergenic wines by developing techniques that limit the formation of the offending glycoproteins.
Over the past decade, red wine has gained wide recognition as part of a healthy lifestyle. Proponents suggest that a glass a day can have far reaching health benefits. Everything from improved heart health, lower cholesterol, cancer prevention , and weight control have been associated with red wine.
Although the jury is still out on exactly how much of an advantage red wine offers (perhaps a topic for a later post), several nutritional supplements purport to provide many of the same benefits in tablet form.
I just caught a press release from “Vindure 900,” which contains Quercetin and Resveratrol – two key antioxidants found in red wine. The company claims that a single tablets has as much Resveratrol as 100 bottles of wine! On its impressive website, Vinomis Laboratories explains that these compounds are “two of the most potent activators of the SIRT genes responsible for longevity.” Researchers believe that the SIRT genes promote longevity by increasing cells’ lifespans and limiting the number of harmful mutations that they accumulate.
Now, why anyone would pass up their daily glass of wine in favor of a pill is beyond me. In theory, though, these pills may benefit individuals seeking red wine’s advantages without the alcohol or calories.
Have any of you taken Quercetin or Resveratrol supplements? Let us know in the comments. You can also order a free sample of Vindure 900and report back!
