Category:Wine Curmudgeon

One consolation: France still makes great wine

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

The 2010 World Cup has not been a shining moment for French soccer. The players went on strike, a variety of national soccer federation officials quit in disgust, and the French sports minister reprimanded the team so severely that many of them cried. And, of course, Les Bleus didn’t win a game, scored only one goal, and finished last in their group.

Or, as one of my favorite newspapers, the French sports daily L’Equipe put it, “Ridiculous to the end“

Yet it could be worse. The Wine Curmudgeon is a Chicago Cubs fan, so I know more than a little about losing and ridiculousness. And the French can at least take comfort in white Burgundy, the world’s greatest chardonnay, which is more of a consolation prize than a Cubs fan will ever have.

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Wine Century Club: 100 varieties of grapes

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

The Wine Curmudgeon has finally found a practical use for his fascination with obscure and little known wine grapes. It's called the Wine Century Club, and membership is open to anyone who has tasted 100 different grape varieties.

This is not as easy to do as it sounds. The group's literature notes that a well-regarded sommelier managed only 82 grapes, and I had to make an effort to come up with the 105 that I submitted And I've tasted frontenac and sauvignon gris — to say nothing of spending 25 years drinking U.S. and European regional wine. On the other hand, some members have reached the 200-, 300-, and even 400-grape level (which makes me wonder if their social lives are even less interesting than mine).

The goal of the group, of course, is honorable: That quality wine exists that is made from grapes that aren't cabernet sauvignon, merlot and chardonnay. It's not about wine geekiness, but about exploring wine. In this, it is the exact opposite of the forces that propel the modern wine business, whose goal is to get everyone to to drink the same thing.

Membership is free and open to anyone who can fill out the form. Click through on the Web site to find it, mark off grapes, and email it back. You'll get a certificate in a couple of weeks. Membership is on the honor system, and reminds me of bird watching (which I've read about but never done). One keeps one's list handy, and then crosses off a ruby throated hummingbird or a blanc du bois.

Can I reach 200? Probably not, but it will be fun to try.

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Americans really do care about soccer

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

Or at least wine-drinking Americans who read the blog. The number of visitors was down 15 percent over the weekend, comparable to what happens when where there is a major U.S sporting event or holiday. Yes, I know, it's hard to believe, but people watch the Super Bowl instead of coming here.

So what kept the visitors away last weekend? The only thing I can think of is soccer's World Cup — or, as "football" aficionados in the U.S. like to remind us, the Super Bowl and World Series for "the most popular sport in the world." Plus, the U.S. played Saturday, against our arch-rival England.

And, as long as I'm on the subject, did you know that blog traffic falls off by one-third on weekends? Don't tell your boss, but most studies have found that people read blogs between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. While they are at work.

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A requiem for Osborne’s Solaz

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

We've had many fine thoughts here about the end of Osborne's Solaz, which the Wine Curmudgeon and many blog visitors thought was the best $7 wine ever.

Which brings us to the email I received from an Austin woman, who was desperately Googling the cyber-ether to find Solaz when her local retailer ran out and found our comments. Wrote Molly Pitts (and thanks for letting me use this, Molly):

"I hate thinking that was my last bottle — was the last bottle without me even knowing it.  Kinda like breaking up with your boyfriend and never getting a last meaningful kiss; instead you have to live with that silly peck on the cheek before he went to work the day before."

Couldn't have said it better myself.

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College sports realignment: The real truth (and it’s not about TV money)

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

Think they're watching a football game? Not really. They're part of a plan to corner the U.S. wine market.

The college sports universe is in a tizzy today, with reports flying to and fro about conference expansion and dissolution. Grown men are demanding legislative hearings, and here in Dallas we've actually stopped worrying about who the backup left tackle for the Cowboys is going to be. Believe me, when that happens, the world is in crisis.

The Wine Curmudgeon has learned that the reasons given for all of the excitement are a smokescreen; in fact, conference realignment is not about getting more TV revenue for the schools. My source, Deep Vineyard, reports that this is a power grab by the Pacific-10 conference, based in California, to corner the U.S. wine market. More, after the jump:

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Lone Star International Wine Competition

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

The Lone Star competition is the first event ever that the Wine Curmudgeon judged, which is why I’m always so glad to return each year. It runs today and tomorrow, with a huge Twitter Taste-off featuring the medal-winning wines on Tuesday. Yes, I’m going to Twitter — @wine_curmudgeon.

The competition is run by the Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association, and features Texas and regional wines. But since it’s international, it includes wine from California and other foreign countries. I’ll have a full report later this week.

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Why I don’t like wine corks — still

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

We can write all we want about how the quality of corks has improved, and the cork business can run campaigns and talk about how much effort they’ve made to improve the quality of corks.

But that doesn’t alter one unalterable fact: Cork is not the best wine closure. I was reminded of that Saturday night, when I opened a bottle of white Burgundy (chardonnay from the Burgundy region of France) and was overwhelmed with the smell of a damp basement. The wine, a Hubert Lamy Saint-Aubin La Princ e 2006, was corked, and I had to dump it.

My irritation — no, it was more than that — was not because the wine was particularly expensive or because I had paid for it or even because it was one of my favorites. It was, for white Burgundy, moderately priced at $22, and I had never had a Lamy before. I just like white Burgundy, this was in the store, and I had bought it.

What happened, and what it means, after the jump:

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