Many people have their preferences in music just as they have their preferences in wine. When you get home after a long day at work, you may want to kick back with a glass of wine and put on some tunes. But can music help enhance the taste of your wine?

Interestingly enough, a study by Heriot Watt University in Britain found that people believe there is a difference in taste when certain music is played. In fact, 60% of people believed the taste changed when music came into the picture.

The sounds in the music somehow seemed to echo the flavors and tastes in the wine. Cabernet Sauvignon was most affected by “powerful and heavy” music whereas a bottle of Chardonnay tasted better with music that was “zingy and refreshing.”

Wondering what to try (music-wise) the next time you sit down with a glass of wine? How about “Live and Let Die” by Paul McCartney and Wings with Cabernet Sauvignon, “What’s Love Got To Do With It” by Tina Turner for Chardonnay, “Sitting On The Dock Of The Bay” by Otis Redding with some Merlot, or “Orinoco Flow” by Enya with Syrah.

So the next time you see a bottle of wine, don’t be too surprised to see the label include a few musical recommendations as well!

Posted by: Matters2009
Posted in: General | No Comments »
Tags: background music, bottle of wine, glass of wine, music played, wine and music

Looking for ways to keep track of the bottles you’ve enjoyed? A wine journal is exactly what you need in order to remember which vineyard made the best merlot and which chardonnay simply did not work with your swordfish dinner. There are several ways you can keep a wine journal. You could buy a blank journal and create your own format as you try different bottles, or you can purchase a journal made specifically for wine lovers.

Moleskine makes Passions journals tailored to the loves that people have. Their wine journal is an excellent way to keep track of your wine, allowing for places where you can record all sorts of notes, include pictures, and customize it in various different ways.

Kevin Zraly is all about wine. It’s a larger book with more room for larger pictures and space for writing. Great to keep at home, but because of it’s size and hardcover design, it’s not really made for traveling.

If you want something even smaller than the Moleskine, the Little Black Journal of Wine is a good choice. The elastic band keeps it shut and you have plenty of different note areas you can write in. Because of its smaller size, you may have to write smaller to get all your thoughts in!

Posted by: Matters2009
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Tags: journal, keep track, wine journal, wine lovers, wine notes

Love wine and love to recommend it along with various foods? You could be on the brink of a brand new career. A sommelier is someone who works at a restaurant doing exactly that. You’re much more than a waiter. You inform guests of the wine choices, make recommendations based upon their food choices, or suggest wines paired with certain dishes. A sommelier also gets to choose which wines the restaurant should stock.

However, you can’t simply walk into a restaurant and apply for the position. To be truly qualified as a sommelier, you need to go back to school. That’s right. A sommelier should go to the Court of Master Sommeliers in order to obtain an amazing knowledge of wine and more to become a certified sommelier. From tasting all the subtleties of wine to smelling the various aromas, there is a lot to learn through the courses offered. You can get certified if that’s all you want, or you can continue to take courses in order to become a true Master Sommelier.

Posted by: Matters2009
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Tags: certified sommelier, classes, love wine, Master Sommelier, sommelier

Need a good reason to get people together? It’s time to have good friends over for a fine time. Parties don’t just need to be centered around alcohol. Find ways to get people to have a good time instead of just standing around chatting.

Wine tasting is always fun – make it different by challenging everyone to bring a different bottle. Or make it into a guessing game. Will your friends be able to tell one red from another?

Host a game night. There are some hilarious and fun games on today’s game shelves. Enjoy drinks on the side or buy a game that makes them part of the fun. Just make sure not to drink while laughing.

Movie night is always entertaining. Whether you host a B movie night and make fun of the lame lines and hokey effects, or watch something fresh off the reels, popcorn and drinks can match up well.

A book club gives you literature, discussion, and, of course, books go nicely with fine wine. Kick back with friends and talk about the latest work of fiction while enjoying a delicious glass from your favorite bottle.

Posted by: Matters2009
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Tags: alcohol, drinks, friends, game night, get together, movie night, popcorn, wine

It’s a Sad Fact that Wineries are Avoiding Cork

For those of us who are old school, hardened wine lovers, the idea of a screwcap sends shivers down our spines.
You may as well drink boxed wine.
And yet, as you can read, problems with corks has caused many wineries to switch to the dreaded screwcap.
There have been several lawsuits over corks being tainted with TCA. Here is an article on one of them.

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Of the 18 wines, only three were suspect as to cork taint.

The judges were experts engaged by an attorney for the plaintiff to determine if they could tell which three wines had been tainted by the cork used to seal the bottles. The defendant in the civil case, a cork producer, said the wines were fine.

The case wasn’t unique. Over the last two decades, perhaps longer, many wineries have sued cork suppliers, arguing that the corks they bought were ruined by the chemical 2-4-6-trichloroanisole (otherwise called simply TCA). And a number of the wineries have won such suits.

But that’s little consolation for the wineries, whose reputations are at stake and who have little recourse if a wine is ruined by TCA, which can make a wine smell like a moldy dishrag. Such a situation could turn consumers off a brand for years.

It is for this reason that many wineries around the world (including about 95 percent of all New Zealand wineries) have switched from corks to screwcaps, and many others have switched to artificial closures, such as plastic. And we are seeing a lot more wine being packaged in boxes.

Among the reasons for these switches is to avoid cork taint.

One Sonoma County winemaker I talked with about this was angry: “Even if you buy first-quality corks (the highest grade),” he said, “we think that some cork makers throw in a small percentage of (bad) corks, just to get rid of ‘em.”
This complex topic isn’t new. The wine industry has been doing research into TCA-tainted corks for a long time, and a lot of that work has been done by the authoritative Australian Wine Research Institute.

The cork industry, largely based in Portugal and Spain, has spent a lot of money over the last decade cleaning up its act as well as promoting the benefits of natural cork. However, with both nations in financial straits, it remains to be seen if such campaigns can long survive.

Meanwhile, a growing number of U.S. wineries have switched to screwcaps. One of the first was Randall Grahm’s Bonny Doon, which now exclusively uses screwcaps for both white and red wines.

A strong proponent of screwcaps for its stellar line of white wines is the central coast region, where winemaker Christian Roguenant has made great whites under two brands, Tangent and Zocker.

A decade ago, restaurant wine service personnel were basically opposed to screwcaps since they seem rather mundane — and the ritual of removing a cork and offering a ceremonial first sip to the person ordering had been one of the service features restaurants could offer. Screwcaps changed this.

But over the last few years, most restaurant personnel have changed their minds and now applaud the screwcap, since it has done away with the question, “Is the wine corked?” The question now need not be asked.

As for the court case we mentioned above, chances are the public will never find out about it.

“Many times, such cases are settled out of court,” said one wine maker. “No one wins if it becomes public.”

Like it or not, the days of having to find a waiter’s corkscrew is almost over.
It is my belief that it won’t be too far in the future that screwcaps will be the norm with most wineries.

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Article: It’s a sad fact that wineries are avoiding cork
Article Source: PressDemocrat.com
Author: Dan Berger

It’s a Sad Fact that Wineries are Avoiding Cork

Resource: Bonny Doone Vineyard

Posted by: John Carter
Posted in: Wineries | 1 Comment »
Tags: cork, corks, screw cap, screw caps, wine, Wineries, winery

Looking for some ideas on what to drink in this New Year? The answer is simple – some New Start Martinis! There are so many different drink options out there, why not start with martinis that you’ve never had before? They don’t have to be anything special to qualify as a New Start Martini – just something you’ve never tasted. It’s easy to find recipes for good martinis. You can look around online for something that sounds tasty, or you can pick up a little book about martinis at the bookstore.

There are New Year’s related martinis like Midnight Martinis, Resolution Martinis, Elite Midnight Martinis, go a little retro-active with a Twentieth Century Cocktail, a Midori Melon Ball Drop, or just straight-up Good Times Martini.

If martinis aren’t your style, don’t worry. Make a resolution to try something different within you favorite drink area. If you enjoy beer, look for micro-brewed goods. If mixed drinks are your style, there are thousands to choose from. You can even be adventurous with wine!

Posted by: Matters2009
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Tags: beer, martini, mixed drink, New Start Martini, New Year, wine

In the USA, labels on bottles of wine have to be accurate.
It appears that in China, they take bulk reds from around the world, blend them and put them into fake bottles claiming them to be authentic French Wine.
Be very wary of wines from China.

Can China drink more French Bordeaux than France is producing? Apparently so, if statistics for top Bordeaux consumption in China are correct – by a factor of 8 or 9.

The Shanghai Times reported one enterprising merchant is importing bulk reds through Hong Kong, then bottling them aboard a factory-ship into recycled and fake bottles from the Chateau Lafite Rothschild wine estate. CCTV, the national broadcaster, cited the case of a 5-star hotel in Dongguan, South China, moving 40,000 bottles of Lafite annually. The Chateau Lafite Rothschild annual allocation to the entire China market is only 50,000 bottles.

The scale of fakery appears to be breathtaking. Although the fabled French vintner produces about 200,000 bottles annually, China records some 3 million bottles sold every year, making 80-90 percent of Lafite fakes. Lafite sells for US$7,800 a bottle at some restaurants. Formal business entertainment is expected to serve Lafite as the dinner wine. Businessmen dare not disappoint their guests. Empty bottles of real Lafite trade at near US$450 a bottle to recyclers.

Like the European luxury handbag, watch and couture labels in China, serious punters have more confidence in purchasing the same brands in Hong Kong.

Full article here

It’s terrible to think that wines may become the next market to rip off. It has happened to Gucci, Chanel and hundreds of others.
Be careful when overseas and buying French Wine. It may be Chinese wine – you just won’t know it until you taste it.

For discriminating wine lovers, check out our huge selection of Wine Accessories at BarParts.com.

Posted by: John Carter
Posted in: Wines around the World | No Comments »

The party is over and everyone had a wonderful time.

But now the dreaded cleanup has arrived.

What do you do with the Crystal Wine Glasses? Throw them in the dishwasher?

Wait! Read this first.

So you had friends over for wine and conversation. There was an Italian barolo, a California chardonnay, an albarino from Spain plus Neapolitan-style pizzas from a new place in town.

And now? Your friends have split and you have a dozen wine glasses, greasy plates, forks and a problem:

Stick everything in the dishwasher, invoke Bacchus and hope the stemware survives? Pile the glasses and greasy dishes in the sink, squirt in dishwashing soap, add water and scrub?

Or do what pros suggest: Use hot water and wash the wine glasses by hand.

So says Ray Foley, author of “Bartending for Dummies” (Wiley), founder of Bartender Magazine and a guy with 16 years tending bar under his belt. Sure, restaurants may run wine glasses through dishwashers, but hot water — just hot water, no soap — is the way to go, he says.

“Putting them in the dishwasher is not a bad thing, but … the problem with dishwashers and wine glasses is that, first, you can’t find a dishwasher where they fit in,” Foley says. “If they do fit, they clang against each other and some break.” Plus, dishwasher rinses may leave a residue.

Make sure you read the Original Story about Washing Crystal Wine Glasses.

Sadly, it seems that it will take a little time and work to get those Crystal Wine Glasses clean.

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Article: Washing Crystal Wine Glasses
Article Source: KansasCity.com
Author: BarParts.com

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Washing Crystal Wine Glasses

Other Resources: California chardonnay

Posted by: John Carter
Posted in: Crystal Wine Glasses, Wine Glasses | No Comments »
Tags: Crystal Wine Glasses, wine glasses

No doubt you already have some of the great bar essentials, like shakers and cocktail glasses. But now that there’s a New Year, it’s time to take stock of what you might have been missing during the festivities. That means you get to do a little shopping early on in the year so that next time you host a party, you aren’t without the tools you need.

A long bar spoon is a tool that can be just what you need for multiple functions. You may also want to get more than one. A long bar spoon allows you to mix drinks, serve drinks, or even fish them out of the blender or a shaker. Handy for picking fruit pieces out of drinks, too.

A double jigger it excellent because it’s two tools in one. One side is big enough for an ounce while the other is a quarter ounce, making measuring fast and super easy.

Had friends wanting a Mojito or Mint Julep but couldn’t deliver? A muddler gives you the power to give them those fresh drinks. Like a mortar and pestle, the muddler is a wooden stick that crushes herbs and fruits at the bottom of a glass. Better than a fork or hands!

A cork retriever keeps cork out of wine – something no one ever wants. Sometimes opening up a bottle means risking a piece of cork going in. A retriever makes it easier to snatch those random bits out again.

Posted by: Matters2009
Posted in: General | No Comments »
Tags: bar, bar spoon, cocktails, cork retriever, double jigger, muddler, shakers

Looking to try some brand new cheeses with your wine? Cheese, quality crackers or bread, and a good bottle of wine are always an excellent way to snack. Cheese is great if you just want something simple to eat while you enjoy a glass of wine. Try some of these for a nice change of pace.

Blue Castello is from Denmark, a soft cheese for easy spreading. Pour a glass of Chenin Blanc or Sauvignon Blanc when partaking of this cheese.

Boschetto al Tartufo Bianchetto is certainly a mouthful to say! Though it has a long name, this soft cheese can make for an excellent choice on your palate. Bochetto al Tartufo Bianchetto is straight from Italy and works best with Barolo or Sangiovese.

Bucheron is yet another soft cheese that hails from France. If you manage to get your hands on it, be sure to pick up a bottle of Chardonnay to match, or perhaps a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc.

Cambozola is soft-ripened which can make for some interesting flavors and textures as you eat. Its homeland is Bavaria and works well with Chardonnay.

If you want to drink some Champagne or Gewürztraminer, then by all means look into purchasing some Chevre cheese from France.

Cotija cheese is fun to say and to eat. Coming up from Mexico, this semi-hard cheese is nicely paired with Chardonnay or Riesling.

Crème fraiche isn’t your typical cheese. In fact, it’s often used in or around desserts for a sweet bit of change. Its origins are in France and because of its dessert design, should be treated with dessert wine.

Posted by: Matters2009
Posted in: Wines around the World | 1 Comment »
Tags: bottle of wine, bread, Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc, crackers, Gewurztraminer, soft cheese