Wine Berserkers - international wine social media, online community, and forums

Jason T wrote: ↑
August 18th, 2019, 1:36 pm

John Morris wrote: ↑
August 18th, 2019, 11:32 am
Prices on most things are higher than in the US, in part because of the 17% VAT.
20%. Though that only further proves your point.

That's right. I'm out of date. It used to be lower than in Continental jurisdictions. And even then, everything was more expensive in London!

Not sure why you'd look for things in Kermit's portfolio but Wine Searcher works in Europe right? So you can check prices while you're there if you see something you like. Kermit and Neal Rosenthal have a reputation for taking relatively high markups, though that's not by any means universal across...

Over the last 20 years, the price differentials for wines with the most cachet have, to a large degree, been arbitraged. The last time I was in Piedmont three years ago (and on prior visits over the preceding 10 years) I found few bottles that were enough cheaper to be worth the hassle of lugging th...

Barthod's wine do not conform to the generally mistaken characterisation of Chambolle as light and feminine. Any particular reason for decanting? I think it's a mistake unless there are serious reduction or sediment issues. A mistake for Barthod? Burgundy? Wines in general? It might not have been n...

Barthod's wine do not conform to the generally mistaken characterisation of Chambolle as light and feminine. Any particular reason for decanting? I think it's a mistake unless there are serious reduction or sediment issues. A mistake for Barthod? Burgundy? Wines in general? It might not have been n...

So much for the notion that '99 Burgundies are shut down. With the first sample sip after decanting, I was blasted with rich, ripe cherry aromas, a mix of both black and sour cherry, with a bit of earthiness at the edges. This wine was not reticent at all, then or over the course of dinner later. (I...

If you can make sense of this Wikipedia summary of the three foundings, the multiple founders, the mergers, bankruptcies and turnarounds, you're smarter than me: The company now known as Wine.com was originally founded as Virtual Vineyards by Robert Olson in Los Altos, California in 1994 with co-fou...

maureen nelson wrote: ↑
August 16th, 2019, 1:44 pm
OTOH, it’s three bottles of a great premier cru at half the cost of Fu’s $200 price tag.

That really is a drag to lose out on, then.

Dale Williams wrote: ↑
August 16th, 2019, 2:13 pm
If you order the Rancia I'd look closely at bottle before opening. At that pricing vs rest of list I'd not be surpised if it's actually the regular CCR (or CC).

Which would probably be a better bet for drinking at this stage, particularly for a group that isn't a bunch of wine geeks.

If your friends like New World pinot, I think they might find the Rancia and the Barbaresco too tannic. I'd go for a cheaper, more approachable Chianti, which is lighter, has more fruit and less tannin. Or consider the Annamaria Abbono Dolcetto. Her dolcettos are darker and denser than most pinots, ...

Back to the topic at hand, here's a great example of why flavor descriptors are pretty useless in reviews. There is virtually no overlap in the flavors the seven critics used to describe this wine. There are a few terms that come up more than once -- "plum," "black currant," "wet earth," "leather," ...

If you have no good wine stores ( for example, I live in PA) my trick is to learn Importers who bring in wines that I’ve liked. They differ regionally so my go tos may not be yours but our own Dan Kravitz’ Hand picked Selections is reliably good, as are LDM, Tery Theise and Kermit Lynch, though muc...

Cf. "5 Best Oregon Producers Under $65"

Sorry. I couldn't resist.

markchurchill wrote: ↑
August 14th, 2019, 11:50 am

John Morris wrote: ↑
June 6th, 2019, 6:10 pm
Unfortunately, LVMH's drinks division has revenue of about 5 billion euros, so this is far below their materiality threshold for disclosure.
I see the valuation at 60 million euros for 60%. Cash paid. Closed 11/21/17.

Good sleuthing. Where did you find that?

Apropos of this topic, I see an old thread on Hamilton Russell's pinots and chardonnays has come back to life. The winery has a good, long track record of making excellent, balanced wines.

not just their cabs, but a lot of South African wines overall have been really impressing me over the past year. Even better, is that if one is to spend like $40-50 they are effectively buying the top end of South African wine. If you keep an open mind, you may be more than pleasantly surprised by ...

Here is my question: if Baltic oak was so prized in 1910 or so, why don't more people seek it out?? I had the same question. On a world historical note .... German riesling was the most expensive wine in the world then. Maybe the Baltic oak sellers were trading with the Germans for wine and it was ...

Yes, and Ridge has always stressed the fact that its oak is well-seasoned.

I hope Mel chimes in. Here's another article. https://blog.ridgewine.com/2009/10/14/the-oak-wars-french-vs-american-or-a-barrel-of-information-about-american-and-french-oak-or-more-fun-than-a-barrel-full-of-grapes/ But honestly, I don't think there's any black and white difference that most people ...

Typically coming from the charring of oak barrels: https://www.thewinecellarinsider.com/wi ... ine-terms/

There's a longer explanation in this Decanter piece.

I've had more mixed experiences with the '97 Tuscans. A '97 Felsina Rancia a couple of years ago was hard as nails -- all tannins and no fruit or pleasure. And I've had some Brunellos that were too alcoholic (Il Poggione and some others a friend served some years back).

Thanks.

When do we get to see a picture of you?

So who's who in the photo? I know Steve, but not the rest of you.

Is there a Berserkers equivalent of an interpleader action, where you sue, saying, in essence, "I don't have a dog in this fight. You guys duke it out"?

Come to think of it ... there's an emoji:

By my tally, your question has elicited the following recommendations: - Pull the cork some hours ahead, then decant immediately before pouring. - Decant - Decant 4 hours ahead - Decant 6 hours ahead - Decant 4-12 hours ahead - Double decant 24 hours ahead - Open five days ahead Aren't you glad you...

I'm not sure I understand the "don't undercut your retailers" logic. Why isn't taking the time to visit a winery and buy directl something to be rewarded by at least selling at the prevailing "discounted" rate of the average retailer? It's not like most people can actually visit the winery and buy ...

When [the wineries] set their own retail price, they have to factor in not just the cost of production, but the cost of running a store, separately from the cost of the winery. A retail operation is a different business with different codes, health rules, liability, personnel, etc. So they come up ...

My guess is that they have an agreement to not undercut their retailers. I know it works this way with bourbon distilleries in KY. The winery establishes the "suggested retail price" of their wine and many demand retailers meet that price to carry their wine. Sorry, but it's illegal for a producer ...

A local source does a very nice maple syrup aged in bourbon barrel - now that makes sense to me. We lacquered a turkey with it one year ... yum. Not quite sure what the point of that is, since the maple syrup already has a strong caramel note. I would think that would overpower the barrel tastes.

375ml glass bottle filled to the top with a screw cap and kept in the fridge. Works beautifully and just about free. Agree. I have a couple of .375s, a .500, and a .250. Why are other solutions still being discussed. [scratch.gif] I'm a 375ml-in-the-fridge guy, but I can see the appeal of a device ...

There is no protective layer. Gases don’t behave like liquids and form layers, which is good because 1% of air is argon. What about CO2? You read about it forming a blanket over fermentation tanks, and occasionally someone is asphyxiated when they fall in a tank. And I saw bees dropping dead over a...

There is no protective layer. Gases don’t behave like liquids and form layers, which is good because 1% of air is argon. What about CO2? You read about it forming a blanket over fermentation tanks, and occasionally someone is asphyxiated when they fall in a tank. And I saw bees dropping dead over a...

During Prohibition, the Gallos shipped grapes east to home winemakers by train. They had the Gallo name on reefer cars.

John & Todd, I am going to deadhorse a bit . . . There are at least a couple of versions of the "Original Vacu-Vin" as well as a shitload of knockoffs and other versions I have the two that are pictured below. vacu-vin.jpg The one on the left is the newer "Original Vacu-Vin and in my personal exper...

For a bottle to be drunk over a couple to several days, I have always used the Vacu Vin (pump til it clicks ) wine saver. Is it not thought of as reliable? I still have one of those as well, but haven't found it to be terribly reliable/effective FWIW, and you may already do this, I have found that ...

What's the protocol for airing young cali cabs? Next week I have on tap, 2015 Robert Mondavi To Kalon, 2016 William & Mary Cabernet, and 2016 William & Mary Proprietary Red. I have a window to double decant them 14 hours before dinner, a window to possibly double decant an hour before, and can pop'...

Wales won't split from England. Scotland is another story.

Maybe it's time we assign "levels" to ourselves. I propose baseball style, Rookie, A, AA, AAA, Major League. People like Francoise, Favre, a few others.... major leaguers . Making boilermakers with unicorn white Burgundy and unicorn Champagne, wines from the French Third Republic, wines that even R...

I’ve been enjoying a terrific vermentino passito from Lodi fruit made by Uvaggio Di Giacomo, a label in which Mel Knox is involved. Lovely light/medium body, perfectly balanced, and with multiple layers. Quite complex.

I don't the details of the winemaking then, but the techniques are quite traditional now. I doubt they had temp-controlled fermentation tanks then, which give the winemaker a lot more control at a critical stage.

Overall, 2013 was a better vintage, but 2014 was much better in Barbaresco than Barolo. Barbaresco avoided several hail and rain storms that made it a very difficult year in Barolo.

Andrew Dodd wrote: ↑
July 31st, 2019, 9:05 am
The one saving grace is thicker glass is more durable and less likely to brake if you drop it.

Also less likely to break.

Thanks. Ended up at Tyger, Tyger, a casual Aian fusion place that was really good.

Any suggestions for dinner in Santa Barbara? The only one I see is the Lark.

(I’m reading back over the thread, but on my phone. Forgive me if I missed suggestions.)

Most important thing I learned at the LDM imports tasting last year is that the stress is on the second syllable. It's tear-AHL-deh-go.

Teroldego? In California? ("Farms? In Berkeley?")

Nice in theory, but there's zero evidence that that's happening or may soon.

Gabe Berk wrote: ↑
July 24th, 2019, 2:23 pm
Maybe Opus will be $299 rather than $375 at the winery.

That would be a fairly normal differential, since the wineries usually charge list price so they don't compete with their retail distribution network. The retailers are free to discount.

I notice you didn’t mention st Joseph You can't really compare St. Joseph because it's a weird appellation, a sort of catch-all stretching from Condrieu to Cornas. It's ~920 hectares, but most of that isn't remotely comparable to the big three appellations. ( It was expanded from less than 100ha in...

Okay, but the question was about Napa , not California. The premise of many comments in this thread is that mainland Chinese demand (as opposed to Hong Kong) for high end Napa wines has driven up prices, which I simply do not think is the case—though I am open to correction. At an average price per...

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