Wine service can be an overlooked aspect around the overall enjoyment of wine. Let Steven Spurrier from Decanter take you through wine service so that you are enhancing the experience with the right tools, glassware and techniques.
Have a great weekend and enjoy the video.
Ciao!
After reading a article about wine auctions, I found a nugget buried at its conclusion. The article is by Beppi Crosariol who is a food and wine writer for the Globe and Mail. Want to know how the rich get richer? They use wine as a method to reduce their personal income tax! Genius.
“But for sellers, unloading at auction can be absurdly lucrative, even when the wine is donated to charity. That's because donors receive a generous receipt against income tax, the amount usually based on the wine's replacement rather than retail value. And that's the key.
In Canada, a collector-worthy bottle of 1990 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape would have cost about $50 upon release in the early 1990s. To replace it now from the international market, including shipping to Canada, would easily take several hundred dollars. In fact, the tax receipts can be so attractively high that some people have been known to donate a $50-retail-price wine to a charity in return for a $400 receipt, then turn around and win back the same bottle for a bid of $200.
I don't know about you, but at my tortuously high income-tax rate, a $400 tax receipt would be worth more than a $200 refund, so I'd be making a net profit from the government. It's the hidden reason that fine wine has become such a popular collector's item.”
Link to the article here
Ciao!
If you live in Calgary or Edmonton, you'll be please to hear that the 2009 Rocky Mountain Food and Wine Festival is just around the corner. The Calgary event is happening THIS week with the festivities kicking off October 15 through 17 at Stampede Park’s BMO Centre. If you have never been to the festival, admission is between $25-30 dollars at the door and $0.50 sample coupons are required to be traded for the delectable food and drink offerings that are exhibited. If wine is not your thing, there are several beer and spirits representatives offering tastes of microbrewed beers, single malt scotches or tequilas.
If you are in Edmonton, the Festival stops at the Shaw Conference Centre, Halls A – C from November 5-7.
For more information, please hit up the festival website at http://www.rockymountainwine.com
WineCollective will be at the festival on Thursday in Calgary so if you're interested in meeting up / sampling some wines, fire an email to thecellar@winecollective.ca
Salut!
Wine Enthusiast magazine has released their Top 100 list of value wines for 2009. What makes a wine a contender for their value list? The bottle price must be less than or equal to $15 dollars US and be rated at least 87+ points. As with most US based publications, there are several wines that we haven't encountered but we recognized a one of the top 10's that is available in Alberta. The Segura Vidas NV Brut Reserva is a Cava that we have reviewed and enjoy thouroughtly. It has an outstanding QPR (Quality Price Ratio) and if you are looking to celebrate life with some inexpensive bubbles, its tough to top. We found a remarkable number of Sauvignon Blancs on this list with one seemingly on each page. One other noteable varietal that was missing was Pinot Noir. We are always on the lookout for value Pinot and were optimistic a few might make the grade.
These lists make for handy guides at your next market visit. Download the list here. Happy hunting friends!
Ciao!
Fancy yourself as the brains behind the production of a top Bordeaux or Burgundy? With the development and marketing of computer games aimed at gamers becoming railroad or amusement park tycoons, it was only a matter of time before the same concept would be applied to wine. The time appears to be now.
Wine Tycoon aims to put gamers in full control of a French Chateau and takes them through the entire operation around the production of wine. The game retails for about twenty two dollars and is the newest release for producer Got Game Entertainment. From what we have seen, the game looks incredibly detailed as it covers every aspect of the winemaking process from the agriculture all the way down to the choices of varietal blends to make up the end product.
We think it looks like a lot of fun and believe it might be a educational way to expose enthusiasts to the intricacies of being a winemaker. Christmas is just around the corner!
Check out Wine Tycoon here.
Ciao!
I recently received this story from one of WineCollectives loyal members RTT. It would seem that certain Canadian producers have been using imported fruit from the US and marketing it as Canadian wine. While this seems wholly fraudulent to me, it would seem the practice is widely accepted and continues. Our advice to consumers looking to purchase Canadian wine: Read the label and look for the VQA mark on the wine. Another thing to look for is “Cellared in Canada” which is a tell-tale that the wine consists of imported fruit.
The article is an interesting read and as always, we welcome your comments. Thanks to RTT for linking this up.
Imported Grapes in Canadian Wines
There is also another article from The Economist which I am linking up as well, talking about the same problem.
Ciao!
Mike Steinberger from Slate Magazine has an interesting piece around one of the greatest wine hoaxes ever perpetrated. In it he talks about how these events affected the reputation of the wine expert Michael Broadbent who auctioned and sold the fraudulent wine. It highlights how human fallibility can damage professional reputations and tarnish careers. After reading this, my next book purchase will undoubtedly be The Billionaire's Vinegar.
Check the Slate article out – Greatest Wine Hoax Ever
Recession? No matter:
“Italian bank vaults may soon resemble well stocked delicatessens if a plan goes ahead to accept expensive wines and dry-cured hams as collateral on bank loans from crisis-hit producers.
The idea, which was launched this week by an influential Italian bank chairman and wine producer, was backed by an Italian minister and follows the tradition of Italian banks storing massive wheels of parmesan cheese as loan collateral.”
Like I needed more reasons to move back to Italy!
We love sharing videos and links especially when we see them being a huge benefit to our members. Gary Vaynerchuk is one of those internet sensations who has appeared on Conan, Ellen and a variety of other media outlets. He produces a almost daily video blog called Wine Library TV where he reviews wines, interviews producers and generally does so in a 'drunk on passion' sort of way. A New Jersey native, his style and dialogue might be abrasive to some but his knowledge and every-man perspective is a welcome change to the stuffiness and snobbery that is occasionally projected by other wine critics.
This video is around how to train your palate to taste wine like the pros do. Its lengthy at about 30 minutes but worth every second. You might want to turn your volume down a bit before you start the clip as Gary V tends to get a little loud. 😉
Enjoy!
We are pleased to announce the WineCollective Summer Contest grand prize goes to the member named rtt. Congratulations are in order as rtt submitted numerous contest entries and will receive two stunning bottles of wine for the effort. We'd like to thank all those who entered and appreciate your thoughts and feedback around the wine you have received. Keep up the good work and keep your eyes peeled for our next contest which will be announced shortly.
Thanks again and enjoy your prize rtt.
David and Adrian
Mike Steinberger has a great recent article on Slate.com about the wines of France still being considered as best in the world. He makes a great point that although enthusiasts often move around the world in search of new varietals and expressions of terroir, they invariably come back to France as the source for their wine. I won't give the rest away but it is an interesting read and will hopefully make you think about giving French wine a shot at your next market or restaurant visit.
Bottoms Up!
Maybe two weeks wasn't enough time!. We here at WineCollective are all about fairness so we have decided to give our members a little time extension on the June contest. Therefore, we are changing the cut-off date for contest entries. The contest now will close on July 31st, 2009 at Midnight, with the winner announced shortly after that. The contest name is also changing to the Summer Contest due to the fact that it is no longer limited to June.
To enter, simply log into the WineCollective.ca site, go to the My Wines page and leave a comment based off the wines you have received. Each time you comment, that will count as one entry towards the contest. The grand prize is 2 brilliant bottles of wine to be delivered along side of the August packages.
Good luck, thanks for your understanding and we look forward to reading and responding to your feedback.
David and Adrian