FineWineCountry.com
Sep 07 2008
Fancy Champagne Wine Mustard is prepared with powdered mustard combined with seasonings and a liquid such as; water, vinegar, wine and champagne. Like our Grained Dijon Mustard with White Wine, this item comes packaged in a reusable crock. There are many uses for the Fancy Champagne Wine Mustard, it can be used in all dishes calling for Dijon mustard, in salad dressings, appetizers casseroles and many other dishes.
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Sep 07 2008
"Peter D. Meltzer, Wine Spectator's auction correspondent for morethan twenty years, is the foremost authority on wine collecting. His book offers expert guidance for beginners and connoisseurs alike."
—Marvin R. Shanken, Editor and Publisher, Wine Spectator
"Peter Meltzer is an authoritative journalist, savvy collector,and urbane restaurant and wine list critic; he makes theideal companion and counselor for wine collectors."
—Michael Batterberry, Editor in Chief and Publisher, Food Arts
"Keys to the Cellar is fascinating, informative, and easy to read; with this book, you will truly understand the ins and outsof buying wines for your personal cellar."
—Kevin Zraly, educator and author of Windows on the World Complete Wine Course
A true wine-lover who knows the value of a well-aged bottle, Peter Meltzer both celebrates and demystifies wine collecting in Keys to the Cellar. His appreciation of fine wine flavors every page as he gives you a practical approach to building a collection that fits your preferences, your lifestyle, and your budget. You'll find information on:
As a bonus, this guide includes a user-friendly Wine Spectator auction index, an invaluable tool for researching the "going rate" for more than 500 top auctioned wines. Whether you are just getting started or want to enhance your collection, this is a book you'll savor again and again—like your favorite fine wines.
Customer Review: Valuable advice for buying fine wine
Peter Meltzer is a wine and food writer who lives on the Upper East Side and in the Hamptons. He wrote the very useful PASSPORT TO NEW YORK RESTAURANTS in 2001. He has been "Wine Spectator's" auction correspondent for more than twenty years.
Meltzer has written a practical approach to building a fine wine collection that fits your preferences, lifestyle, and budget. He covers:
-- Buying and selling wine at auction.
-- Bidding at online wine auctions.
-- Using the Web to calculate value or locate wines.
-- Buying effectively fromwine merchants.
-- Storing and enjoying wine short and long term.
The book includes the "Wine Spectator" auction index which covers over 500 frequently auctioned wines.
Meltzer emphasizes the importance of understanding what you really want to achieve from your wine collection. He urges beginners to start out buying only enough wine for the first year, and gain experience using hints from his book. The hints will be useful no matter what your objectives. He has suggestions and cautions for folks looking for bargains, and warnings for folks at the top end.
For example, Meltzer describes three sales within a few months of one another in 2004. In the first, at NYWinesChristie's, a case of the Leroy La Romanée 1953 sold for $49,350; just a month later at the same auction house, another case of the same wine sold for $19,975 and then a third sold at Acker Merrall & Condit for $17,550. He discusses the factors that might explain the differences in price, including documented storage history or lack thereof, bidder's panic, and more.
In a recent interview he points out that collectors at lower price points can benefit from buying at auction: "What's really heartening is that the market has polarized, It's the trophy wines at the top for which people will duel to the depths of their pockets, while the lower end of the price spectrum tends to be sane, sound, and accessible. You can buy off-vintages and unsung wines at below retail, often for well under $500 per lot."
One caution: don't rely solely on Meltzer before buying a free-standing, temperature and humidity controlled wine storage units. Meltzer lists seven "highly rated brands": Breezaire, Le Cache, Vinocraft, Avanti, Haier, Danby and Marvel. Five brands should not have been included:
- Breezaire makes cooling units, but it does not make wine storage units
- Avanti, Haier, Danby and Marvel make coolers which control temperature but not humidity.
Read Meltzer, but continue your research at a good reseller like Galt Wine, or at the manufacturer's websites like Avanti, Danby, Haier, Summit, Sub-Zero, U-Line, Marvel, or Viking, or on one of the wine discussion groups like the Wine Lovers Page.
On the positive side, Meltzer answers questions online at "Wine Spectator" in a straight forward, practical manner:
"Q: If I buy wine at auction from a reputable house and open it to find the wine oxidized or just generally shot, is that just part of the risk assumed in buying at auction, or can I ask for a refund?
"A: Auction catalogs generally stipulate that you are buying "as is," leaving you little recourse if a wine is oxidized. However, auction houses are not in the business of making enemies, and exceptions to the rule may be made. If you uncover an oxidized bottle, immediately bring it to the attention of the auction specialist and provide him with a sample to evaluate. (This won't work, of course, if it's been several years since your purchase.) As a rule, auction houses carefully inspect consignments prior to acceptance, so danger signs, such as low fill levels, inappropriate color, protruding capsules and so on, should be detected in advance, causing the lot to be rejected."
Meltzer's book is an excellent resource if you have any interest in buying wine whether at retail or at auction. It won the "2006 Georges Duboeuf Award for Wine Book of the Year". Kevin Zraly, a leading wine educator and author of WINDOWS ON THE WORLD COMPLETE WINE COURSE describes the book well: "KEYS TO THE CELLAR is fascinating, informative, and easy to read; with this book, you will truly understand the ins and outs of buying wines for your personal cellar."
Customer Review: Great book on how to buy for a new cellar and how to buy at auction
Meltzer is a veteran of the wine auctions and his tips for buying at auction are invaluable. He also provides very solid ideas as to how to start your cellar ( the actual collection of bottles, not the construction of the thing) depending on your interests, lifestyle and approach to wine.
I found it most informative because of the wealth of tidbits and asides that he adds to it. He has been around for a while and it shows. This is a book i would give to someone who wants to seiously get into wine, and i would definetly buy it again.
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Sep 06 2008
As temperatures cool and farmers prepare for the fall harvest, a new Madison County winery will open its doors for the first time. Sweely Estate Winery – which recently changed its name from Acorn Hill Winery – is putting the finishing touches on its 16,000-square foot hospitality center, which will include a tasting room and a banquet hall. The winery expects to open soon with a grand opening ...
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Sep 06 2008
Roland Don Bruno® label Sherry Wine Vinegar from results from the acetic fermentation of sherry wine from the Jerez de la Frontera region of Spain. This delicate, yet full-bodied vinegar is aged in oak barrels by traditional methods. Sherry Wine Vinegar has a true bouquet of traditional Spanish Sherry. Only a moderate amount of this vinegar is needed to provide a rich sherry flavor. Don Bruno sherry wine vinegar lends a wonderful flavor accent to sauces, meat, fish and vegetable dishes without adding salt. Use in salads or as a de-glazing liquid in finishing sauces.
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Sep 06 2008
Over the past twenty-five years, renowned critic Robert M. Parker, Jr., has visited both legendary and fledgling wineries all over the world and has tasted hundreds of thousands of wines. Only a fraction of those wines have earned his highest ratings and are considered by him to be truly legendary. In his latest book, Parker brings together what he calls "the best of the best," taking readers on a personal tour of the wineries that have impressed him most with their dedication to quality, consistency, and excellence.
The World's Greatest Wine Estates pays homage to exceptional wines and the exceptional people who make them. These lavishly illustrated pages showcase 175 of the world's most accomplished -- and most spectacular -- estates. Parker goes be-yond the labels, bottles, and ratings to present the land, the history, and the dedicated artisans practicing their craft. Though they form a wildly diverse group, all of these producers "share an inexhaustible commitment to their vineyards, a passion to produce as fine a wine as is humanly possible, and a vision that the joys of wine are infinite and represent the pinnacle of a civilized society."
Parker begins with an overview of what makes a wine great -- the ability to please both the palate and the intellect, to offer intense aromas and flavors without heaviness, to improve with age, to reflect its place of origin as well as the skill of its producers -- and explains how he came to choose the profound wines he features here. He also offers insider tips for ordinary wine-lovers who want to get their hands on extraordinary bottles.
The heart of the book contains profiles of the greatest estates of Argentina, Australia, Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Spain, and the United States. Each region is illustrated with a full-color map and accompanied by an introduction explaining the general wine history of the country. In his profiles of individual estates, Parker offers essential geographical information such as grape varietals, average age of the vines, and density of plantation; details about the estate's history and techniques and the wines it produces; visiting information for those who want to see the process up close; and tasting notes on the best recent vintages from each winery. Each profile also includes photographs of the vineyards and the people behind the wines, and labels from their best-known vintages.
Complete with a list of up-and-coming wineries ("Future Stars") and a glossary of wine terms, The World's Greatest Wine Estates is a very special reference for amateurs and connoisseurs alike.
Customer Review: Great gift
My husband loves to research wine - this book was a highlight of Christmas! Thick book - well-researched.
Customer Review: Good for beginners too
There's much in this book that would fly over the head of a novice, but for someone interested in getting to know Bordeaux - really get to know Bordeaux - this is a great introduction (if you want to spend the money). Color photos demonstrate the beauty of the chateaux, and there is a wealth of information here. What vintages were considered good at what estate and why - that's one of the most important things a novitiate can learn, and one of the most difficult to pick up on the fly. Here it all is for everyone...even the seasoned pros.
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Sep 05 2008
THE BENZIGER FAMILY WINERY will receive the Endangered Species Coalition Champion Award for Land Stewardship. Brothers and winery partners Chris Benziger, left, and Mike Benziger help to promote ongoing sustainable farming.
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Sep 05 2008
A complete reference for the home winemaker. From getting started with the very first batch to advanced techniques for making wines from grapes, this book covers it all. Includes detailed instructions and helpful hints for using concentrates, kits, juices, fruits, and herbs to create a wide variety of homemade wines.
Customer Review: Fill these Pages Please
This book could be reduced to one half or one third pages. The '115 great tasting' wines part of this book is essentially a repetition of the same basic formula over and over with only a few wines with some variation from one to the next. Basic operations are described, but I was hoping for a bit more of fine pointers. It is a good starter basic book. But save a few trees and streamline at the risk of looking like there is no content, or add some.
Customer Review: Best Beginners Book Out There
As a newcomer to home winemaking I found this book to be well organized, well writen and informative. It has all the details necessary to do the job properly without being overly technical. The author has a list of all the necessary equipment and a list of things that are "nice to have." I did some research on the author and he is recognized as one of the premier wine experts in the country.
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Sep 04 2008
This Port Wine Jam is rich with subtle caramelized onion flavor and has a perfect balance between sweet and savory. Serve with red meats, game birds and bold cheeses.
Ingredients: *Port Wine, Onions, Brown Sugar, Lemon Juice, Modified Food Starch, Ginger and Thyme Leaves. (*Contains sulfites)
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Sep 04 2008
Two oak trees ... two brothers ... Two Brothers label ... and now two medals. Twin Oaks Vineyard and Winery recently won gold and bronze medals in a multi-state wine competition.
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