Equines

• November 2009

  Bottom line, I suppose, is the 'drinking well'. If it tastes great (and isn't poisoning me) than is there truly a need to look the proverbial gift horse in the mouth, as long as serious collector's prices aren't involved?

  Forum post in the topic Is the wine you're drinking... by dmcker

  
  

• November 2009

  They're part of a company called 3 Finger Wines (3fingerwines.com). I've not had the Treasure Hunter, but have had their Dark Horse cab and was equally impressed by the quality:price equation. Must say their web site functionality is a little lacking, but should help you get some... Read moreThey're part of a company called 3 Finger Wines (3fingerwines.com). I've not had the Treasure Hunter, but have had their Dark Horse cab and was equally impressed by the quality:price equation. Must say their web site functionality is a little lacking, but should help you get some more info (or some more wine!).    (hide)

  Forum post in the topic Best bargains by chadrich

  
  

• November 2009

  Love the bit about horse stables :)

  Forum post in the topic Argentine Malbec comes of age by Drunk as a Skunk

  
  
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  November 2009

  Vieux Chateau Chambeau 2000

  Snoothrank:

  so I pull a 3 bone prime rib out of the oven at around 2pm on a sunny November weekday afternoon. don't know why I decided to make it, seemed like the right thing to do at the time. the roast was, in a word... well, two words — f*****g delicious. I had opened the Vieux Château... Read moreso I pull a 3 bone prime rib out of the oven at around 2pm on a sunny November weekday afternoon. don't know why I decided to make it, seemed like the right thing to do at the time. the roast was, in a word... well, two words — f*****g delicious. I had opened the Vieux Château Chambeau 2000 with no expectation... and of course it didn't let me down... I expected nothing and it delivered in spades. flat and flavourless, nothing. water with notes of empty wine bottle. it had decanted for about 30 minutes, not nearly enough time I suspected but still... as time passes, things have a way of working themselves out. as it turns out 30 minutes wasn't *nearly* enough for this wine. when I returned home at around 8pm I started picking at the roast... a little whole grain dijon, some horse radish.. baguette, basically a tiny repeat of my lunch. poured a glass from the decanter on the counter and booooom! completely surprised. there was a wine in there! nice cherry and cassis.. a bit 'o spice box and cedar, almost not enough grip but still surprising power for what I was led to believe just a few short hours previous. in hind-sight, I'm thinking it may have been better if I had opened the Château Chambeau 2000 sometime in 2007 rather than a few hours ago ;) still, well worth the money.    (hide)

  Wine review by ChateauRob

  
  

• November 2009

  Yeah I know. I was just off a conversation with some clown on a similar issue so went on a rant. I don't disagree with anything you said. Local is fresher and most often, tastes better. And the more you can support the local growers, the better. There is no reason at all that... Read moreYeah I know. I was just off a conversation with some clown on a similar issue so went on a rant. I don't disagree with anything you said. Local is fresher and most often, tastes better. And the more you can support the local growers, the better. There is no reason at all that they should be growing apples in Washington for example, because they taste much better from cold weather states like New York or Michigan, don't need irrigation, etc. One tragedy of housing developments is that the best land for those is usually also the best for farming - nice, gently sloping and well-drained. Out here the locavore argument is usually about carbon footprints, etc., and I'm on board with that too, but it's kind of selective in terms of the way it's usually presented. I buy into the argument of regional and seasonal being best. But the sustainability, carbon footprint, and all the other stuff is harder to swallow. I mean I'm doing a tasting next week of wines from France and CA, some of which just happen to be biodynamic and all that. But we're doing the tasting in NYC. That's where it starts to fall apart. The little farmer in the Loire wants to be sure to do no damage to the land, he farms only with horses, he mixes manure in the moonlight, and to really maintain complete integrity, he should refuse to sell his wine to someone who will need to ship and refrigerate it, because those actions negate his. Of course, then he can't sustain himself at all. Anyhow, we're in harvest season right now and it's the time to eat well because those of us who aren't fortunate enough to live in sunny CA have many months of cabbages and rutabagas ahead.    (hide)

  Forum post in the topic Wine Enthusiast adds to... by GregT

  
  
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  November 2009

  Redwood Creek Merlot 2004

  Snoothrank:

  Having traveled the world, I was amazed at this "dark horse" of a Califonia merlot. Complex, deep and incredibly satisfying. Must find more, this was a truly pleasant surprise!

  Wine review by Scottyj711

  
  

• October 2009

  To start the ball rolling, here are some that fall pretty much on the 'worst' side... Some wine: --Goats Do Roam (South Africa) --Shingleback Shiraz (Oz) --Cat's Pee on a Gooseberry Bush (NZ) --Mother Cluckers Chardonnay (NZ) --Marilyn Merlot (Napa) --Ptomaine des Blagueurs (Santa... Read moreTo start the ball rolling, here are some that fall pretty much on the 'worst' side... Some wine: --Goats Do Roam (South Africa) --Shingleback Shiraz (Oz) --Cat's Pee on a Gooseberry Bush (NZ) --Mother Cluckers Chardonnay (NZ) --Marilyn Merlot (Napa) --Ptomaine des Blagueurs (Santa Cruz/Southern France?) --Horse's Ass Cab (Sonoma) --Cleavage Creek Secret Reserve (Napa) --Tex Zin --Wild Boar Doe (Long Island) --Booger Swamp (Brushy Mountain Winery, North Carolina) --Red Chardonnay (the bottle's red, too; also from N.C.--what's going on over there?) --Mommy's Time Out (Italy?) --The Dog's Bollocks (house wine by a market in Calais obviously meant for those taking the ferry over from Britain--also the name of some decent Brit beer) Some beer and rum: --British Navy Pusser's Rum (UK) --Entire Butt Porter (UK) --Butcombe Bitter (UK) --Just about all the beers put out by Butts Brewery ('Le Butts Biere', anyone?--UK) --Aass Bock (Norway) --Bürgerbräu Bad Reichenhall Suffikator (a premium doppelbock from Germany) --Wasatch Polygamy Porter (Utah) I thought anyone from Oz, Kiwiland or even certain parts of the US might have an advantage in dredging names easily, but now am thinking Brits may have a legup. Non-English-language namings as perceived by English speakers may also have an advantage. Purposely dodged all the 'Hell' beers out of Germany since that just means 'light' in German. Some of the above have pretty nasty labels, too (e.g. Cleavage Creek). Have some jpg images I may go to the trouble of posting later. I like the British labels that can't name the varietal because they don't fall within the list of grapes approved by the EU. Also those Welsh wines that have some small English label on the back because the main label on the front, in Welsh, isn't acceptable to the EU. Finally, why is it that I find myself more willing to buy the funkily named beers than the gimmicky wines?    (hide)

  Forum post in the topic Best and worst names for... by dmcker

  
  

• October 2009

  GregDP, nice approach--hadn't hear that one before. What do you freeze it in? Wineflair, I've known several dogs, horses, mules, burros and raccoons that drink beer, and in a couple of cases wine, too. I've had cats that eat fruit--but drink wine? That's also a first. What... Read moreGregDP, nice approach--hadn't hear that one before. What do you freeze it in? Wineflair, I've known several dogs, horses, mules, burros and raccoons that drink beer, and in a couple of cases wine, too. I've had cats that eat fruit--but drink wine? That's also a first. What preferences has he/she shown? ;-)    (hide)

  Forum post in the topic Retail Therapy? by dmcker

  
  

• October 2009

  I don't think Greg'll be the first to respond to the post. My bet's on that other Piedmont & risotto fan guy. I don't know much about the older vintages about Piedmont- but you're shooting dtraight as can be about auctions right now. The deals that can be had, at this moment in... Read moreI don't think Greg'll be the first to respond to the post. My bet's on that other Piedmont & risotto fan guy. I don't know much about the older vintages about Piedmont- but you're shooting dtraight as can be about auctions right now. The deals that can be had, at this moment in particular, are kind of mind-blowing. Get on your horse folks. Browse the online auction catalogs. The mid-tier Cali stuff is as cheap as it's ever been, even in great years. While ALL of Italy has been kinda-keepin' at it's value, places like Spain and Australia have fallen through the floor and are available for a song. I wonder too, about the older Nebbiolo-based beauties, and eagerly await someone to answer this post.    (hide)

  Forum post in the topic older Barolo's by ChipDWood

  
  

• September 2009

  Seems we're getting even further astray on the sushi subject. If you like ba-sashi or the ba-nigiri rarity (even more common would be raw beef nigiri), than you might also like sakura-nabe winter stews, too--horse meat in the Japanese 'nabe' style. More a countryside option, all up... Read moreSeems we're getting even further astray on the sushi subject. If you like ba-sashi or the ba-nigiri rarity (even more common would be raw beef nigiri), than you might also like sakura-nabe winter stews, too--horse meat in the Japanese 'nabe' style. More a countryside option, all up and down Japan, with a few specialty restaurants in the large cities. Plenty of it in the norhtern Kanto fringes (Gumma and Tochigi), Shinshu, Gifu and Niigata,Tohoku and Hokkaido as well as Yamanashi which happens to be right next to Tokyo. Also Kyushu and Shikoku. Personally, though I am certainly a carnivore, I don't want to support the horsemeat industry. Having grown up with horses in California, and knowing several people in the competitive equestrian events in Japan, I have no respect for how they are most often treated in commercial contexts in Japan. A lot of the ba-sashi is from maltreated rejects from the race-horse industry, while other sources are unfortunate farms where parasites and pharmaceutical feed additions are an issue. I also don't eat whale and porpoise meat offerings in Japan in Wakayama, Tokyo or elsewhere, though I've spent time in Wakayama with people in that corner of the fisheries industry.    (hide)

  Forum post in the topic Wine and Sushi by dmcker

  
  

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