Enobytes

Here is the 5-minute Pebble Beach Food & Wine recap.

Interviewed: Drew Barrymore.  She says that women like ice in their wine, and her “Pinot Grigio has beautiful notes and it is lacking in acidity.” Interviewer tries not to look horrified. Shortly thereafter, Dr. Vino reports on the statements as Jon Bonne chimes in on twitter, “she just set wine tasting back five years.” Then an MW puts Dr. Vino in his place, paraphrasing where he got off speaking on behalf of women. Dr. Vino responds, and then they make amends. I heard rumor that they are going to Disney Land to celebrate. Meanwhile, Harvey Steiman chimes in on his blog telling everyone to stop being so snobby and to microwave their wine.  Ok Drew, it is time for an intervention. I get that you like a wine with lower acidity and if your wine fits the bill, great, but please don’t say it is lacking anything! You are basically saying your wine is flat and flabby, which isn’t a good thing. I think you want to sell wine, not sit on it, right? Let’s do lunch and work on your strategy.

Sighted: Richard Jennings. I couldn’t get a quote from him because he was moving to fast. He seemed to be on a mission to collect 400 tasting notes. I think his contract is about to expire and if he doesn’t make 34,000 tasting notes by the end of the year, CellarTracker will fire him. That is just a rumor though. Or maybe a coyote is chasing him. I don’t know.

Quoted: Marc Hinton.  “I like my wines down and dirty.”  It must be a southern thing and I did not have time to ask him what the hell he meant by this.

Spotted: Antonio Galloni.  To heck with the food and the chefs, where are the wines and the Master Somms??? He spent his time drinking through grower Champagne, Ridge, Ornellaia, and Cos d’Estournel, just to name a few—then on to drink through every vintage of Scarecrow. “What stood out most was the consistency of the wines across all vintages”, but “I still can’t figure out the 2009. Every time I taste that wine something is missing for me.” I would talk to Drew about this. She knows something about lacking wines.

Stay tuned for next year’s recap.

Everyone loves a good pizza. I mean seriously, what’s not to like? From mozzarella to Italian sausage, sweet onions to olives, and arugula to feta cheese—the combinations are endless. Am I making you hungry? I hope so because I have plenty of pizza tonight so grab a bottle of wine (or beer) and come on over! Continue Reading

If you live in New York or plan to visit the area, be sure to check out the 6th annual New York Wine Expo happening March 1-3, 2013. The planners of this event are pros at putting on a great event, and I can attest they know how to rock wine events since I have attended their sister Boston Wine Expo event for many years.

This year, the expo will have 500 wines on hand for tasting and attendees will have an opportunity to meet the winemakers who produce them. Another great feature is attending the many wine seminars sold A La Cart. The Wine Spectator will present a number of them, and if you are a Pinot noir lover, don’t miss one of my favorite winemakers David Rossi of Fulcrum Wines present California Pinot Noir: Touring The State’s Great Pinot Regions.

And the best part?  Enobytes readers receive $15 off Friday and Saturday tickets!! Simply add the promo code “ENOBYTES” at checkout to receive the discount. Click here to purchase.

And a few words of advice:

• Show up early as the event gets packed quickly!!
• Sign up for seminars early, as seating is limited. You’ll miss out if you wait to purchase tickets on the day of the event.
• Don’t wear cologne or perfume
• Be polite to those behind the tables and other participants
• Grab a sample and move out of the way so that others have a chance to grab a sample. The table is not there to camp out with food and wine samples, or to start a side conversation with a friend.
• Take the train/bus or hire a driver. That way you can enjoy yourself without the worry of driving.

When: March 1-3, 2013
Where: Jacob K. Convention Center, 655 West 34th Street, New York, NY 10001
Price: $25-$35 seminars, $85-$95 grand tasting

Happy New Year from all of us at Enobytes. May 2013 bring you happiness, success, peace, hope & togetherness. Have a very safe, happy and prosperous New Year and welcome to 2013!

…and if you’ve over indulged last night, check out our top 10 Ways to Ease a Hangover

Wishing you peace, love, and joy this Holiday Season!

This wine is a delicious blend of 80% Syrah and 20% Grenache from Maremma. I knew there was awesome Syrah being grown in Italy but was not aware high quality Grenache was also being produced. This wine will appeal to all of you Rhone Rangers out there. The style is a bit more western than some Rhone valley purists might like, but it is a far cry from being a fruit-bomb. The bouquet has a unique spectrum achieving bold meltingly ripe strawberry aromas that mingle with sage brown butter. The flavor profile turns to black fruit and some subtle dried fruit flavors. Balanced and elegant this wine brings a berry assault to your palate that charges forward in a smooth but aggressive style expressing power and finesse not usually associated with this blend of grapes. Velvety tannins reflect a well regulated barrel regimen and adequate cellaring. I would pair it with the Straccetti di Pasta al Germe di Grano con sugo di Lepre (House made pasta with Rabbit ) again from Ristorante Il Leccio’s menu. Domesticated hare is much underutilized in this country and extremely delicious when prepared well.

Rating: Excellent (93) | $125 | 14.5% ABV