Find Your Muse - Wine Blogging Wednesday #63

Words are taken for granted in this world of instant information. No longer can we laugh out loud or properly use letters like R and U. The evolution of human interaction is being condensed into one hundred and forty characters and considered equivalent to a yellow canary named by the Warner Brothers.

When writing a wine blog there are hundreds of ways to proceed. Wine Blogging Wednesday, founded by Lenn of LENNDEVOURS, creates a focal point once a month for wine blog writing. My thanks go to Lenn for inviting me to host this month's edition.

For the next Wine Blogger Wednesday, I present a simple challenge with the following guidelines:

• Choose a wine they you know well and have enjoyed many times, but perhaps have not had the time or the motivation to write about OR a wine you have seen in your wine shop that you have been meaning to try.
• Time how long you enjoy the wine. Round numbers are more than acceptable but exact numbers get extra points.
• Take twice that amount of time to write your blog post. Use the time to find out something you might not have known about the wine and to edit your writing. A wise man once told me that there is no good writing, only good rewriting.
• NO SAMPLES! Too often the wines written about are out of convenience rather than genuine interest. Make this one of the wines that you decided to purchase.
• Last but not least, give your writing some flare. Use a style that will challenge you. Be creative and enjoy writing for the sake of the words. Be picky about which words you use. Think about the rhythm and the rhyme. Poetic phrase will be rewarded.

My coach always told me that the simplest tasks can sometimes be the most difficult. There is a lot of room to maneuver in this challenge, but do not make the mistake of waiting until the last week to begin writing. You may find yourself running out of time.

The deadline: November 18

Send your submission by e-mail to me.

Happy writing!

A blend of Pinot Noir and Claude Monet

The more invested and heavily educated of wine drinkers can sometimes taste a wine and give you the details of how it was made, where it was from, what vintage it was, even to the point of if the barrels were made by a certain cooper. It really is extraordinary to watch (although it is probably a good parlor trick at only certain types of parties).

Similarly it is truly breathtaking to listen to a knowledgeable art historian talk about an artist's masterpiece. They can look at the painting and tell you what brush was used, how many brush strokes were done, the period of history the painting came from, the materials used in its formation, the story of the artist or the depicted scene, the side story behind why there was this symbol placed just so... I find it fascinating.

Then again, I also spent from age 5 until age 10 wondering the halls of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, guided by my godmother, Danielle Rice who at the time was the museum's Director of Education. Every Friday for years I would go from school to the art museum, spend a few hours learning about one style of art or another and then be taken home by Danielle. On our way home we would always stop at Klein's Deli and pick up briny kosher pickle. I was much better at eating that I was at art and it was hard to tell if she was buying me the pickle to make me feel better or to reward me for sticking with the art classes.

Danielle is now the Executive Director of the Delaware Art Museum (a wonderful place to explore one weekend), which brings me back to wine. Danielle also happens to enjoy wine and has found the beverage to be a natural pairing with art exhibit openings and parties that highlight both art and wine.

Danielle notes: “I don’t know much about wine, but I know what I like... Just kidding...that’s what people say about art all the time. Art and wine have this in common: they both require discernment. And discernment is not something that can be learned instantaneously. Both art and wine encourage us to pause, reflect and savor. And there’s nothing more wonderful than seeing something new in a painting or noticing a new flavor in a favorite wine!”

It turns out that there are plenty of art lovers in the wine world (and I am sure the reverse is true as well). Gerret Copeland, who owns Bouchaine Vineyards with his wife Tatiana, is a resident of Wilmington, Delaware and a notable contributor to the Delaware Museum. Copeland was once the owner of a New York Stock Exchange brokerage firm which he then sold. He went on to purchase Bouchaine Vineyards in 1981. Besides having an interest in art and wine, Copeland is also interested in sustainable practices and environmental initiatives. You cannot help but like what he is doing.

When asked about the Gerret and his wife, Danielle says, "We are very fortunate to have the Copeland's involved with the Museum as well as with all of the arts in Wilmington. They are very generous and as a result of their passion for both art and wine we often get the benefit of enjoying Buchaine wines at our special events!"

In my opinion the wines from Bouchaine are pleasant and fruity. I tasted the 2007 Chardonnay and the 2007 Pinot Noir, both from Carneros. The Chardonnay was pleasantly toasty, with a blend of a bright yellow apple dipped in a light caramel. The Pinot Noir was floral and milk chocolaty on the nose with some dry cherry flavors in the taste.

It also turns out that the Delaware Art Museum is very integrated into the social media world. Recently the museum held an Exposed exhibition and for the duration of the exhibit the museum wrote a blog. It was well written and gave a 'real-person' voice to the pieces of art. Danielle also writes her own blog, although like mine sometimes the pressures of everyday life do not allow consistent writing as one would wish.

TasteNY or How to get bloggers to review wines

There is no secret to how most bloggers operate. Bloggers want to write, and wine bloggers want to write about wine. How do you ensure that bloggers write about your wines? Simple, send a few sample bottles the same way you send wines to newspaper reporters, magazine reviewers, enewsletter writers, or ANYONE ELSE that you want you want to write about your wines.

So, with this philosophy in mind Lenn Thompson, de facto promoter of wines created in the state of New York, found a group of wineries that make wine in the Finger Lakes region of New York who were willing to send a bottle of their wine for a group of bloggers to taste. he then found a group of bloggers who would all sit down and taste the wines together.

For this tasting Diane Letulle, Erika Strum, Robbin Gheesling, and I met at the Roger Smith Hotel to taste through a few of these wines.

Before I get started on my notes about the wines I want to say that I love sitting around and tasting wine with people who love talking about wine. It's like trading baseball cards, or something similarly geeky. If you are into it, then only other people who are into it really understand the feeling.

Now for the wines. One thing I noticed about all of these wines is the incredible acidity. Every wine had some awesome zing. However, for many they just did not have the fruit to match and balance it out.

Hermann J. Wiemer "Dry" Riesling 2007 - Finger Lakes, NY

Nose: Sweet peaches, light wet slate

Taste: A little sparkle, stony minerality, dried apricot - dies out entering the mid-palate

Red Newt Cellars Reserve Riesling 2006 - Finger Lakes, NY

Nose: Petrol, something mineral, white flowers, where's the fruit?

Taste: Lime, citrus, salty - "like a margarita in a wine glass"

(no Atwater photo... sorry)

Atwater Estate Vineyards "Dry" Riesling 2007 - Finger Lakes, NY

Nose: muted, white flowers

Taste: Peach, lemon, hot - dry? not really

Fox Run Vineyards Riesling 2008 - Finger Lakes, NY

Nose: Floral, cheese bread, a little yeasty

Taste: Slight sparkle, lots of acid, not much fruit

Hazlitt 1852 Vineyards Homestead Reserve 2008 - Figer Lakes, NY

Nose: Really pleasant! Floral with white stone fruits (peach, apricot)

Taste: Slight sparkle, lemon citrus, peach - yum!

Billsboro Riesling 2008 - Finger Lakes, NY

Nose: Floral, candied orange

Taste: Sweet apricot, balanced orange citrus, candied yellow apple - Best of tasting!

Anthony Road Semi-Dry Riesling 2008 - Finger Lakes, NY

Nose: A little brine, lime citrus

Taste: Olives (or is that the olive plate we were eating?)

Apiary

Another thing that wine geeks usually love is food. Getting together to eat and talk about what we are eating comes in close second to tasting wine and talk abotu what we are tasting. After meeting at the Roger Smith we went to Apiary for dinner. Erika is a much better (and much harsher) review of food establishments then I am, so for more about our meal check out her review: Apiary (Serious Food Where You Don’t Expect It).

I've been blocked?

What is twitter etiquette? There was a winery that sent me a bottle of wine. I found the first bottle corked and then did not like the second bottle, so I decided not write about the wines. I told the winemaker via twitter and explained why I did not like the wine.

He accepted my opinion graciously, noting that everyone has the right to what they thing. I recently found out that he then blocked me from his twitter updates (of which he makes many).

To me it is almost a blessing in disguise. Since most of what he does on twitter is talk about his wines, I am removed from the deluge of advertising. Then again, it does not allow me to respond and enter the discussion about his wines with the general populace.

How do you feel about this practice? Is this as bad as "un-friending" someone on facebook?

Trade Shows

Last week I was at the Miami International Wine Fair and I always find these trade show tastings to be very interesting. There are a ton of boths, each with a number of wines for the attendees to taste. Many of the booths are filled with winery representatives, either from the actual wineries or from the regions that the wineries come from.

The attendees of the Miami Wine Fair had varying wine knowledge levels. There were wine buyers from stores as well-known as Sherry-Lehmann, importers looking for additional wines to represent, and restaurant owners looking to stock their wine lists.

Then there were advertisers from magazines looking to talk to whomever will listen to them, seeing if there is any money they can convince a winery to spend with their publication. There are also a variety of press, both known and unknown that walk the show. There were two lovely ladies from Disfunkshion Magazine who were beautiful, extremely fashionable, and totally lost at a wine tasting. I talked with them for about 20 minutes, going through some tasting terms and about wine in general. Really great to talk to and soaked up the information enthusiasticly. I hope they keep trying new wines and integrate wine into their fashion magazine.

I always wonder how much business actually gets done at these events. It seems to me to be a who-knows-who event, where people look for the gems in the show to taste and remember, but mostly find their friends (the cliques are intense and jealously guarded, but not impossible to join). If you know the right people, they will all stop by your booth and taste your wines. If you do not know the right people you are just there to hope someone influential comes by. On the buyer side, there are so many choices and so many booths that it makes perfect sense to go visit your friends' booths first and then see what else is out there.

(upcoming work related mention... watch out!)

And Tuesday I am going to be doing it all again. This Tuesday, October 6 is the New York Great Match: Wine & Tapas hosted by Wines from Spain. I will be at the Drink Ribera. Drink Spain. booth, pouring some wines from Ribera del Duero. If you are enthusiastic about Ribera del Duero, or just want to learn more about the region, visit the Facebook page, Twitter page, and Drink Ribera. Drink Spain. website for more information.

And if you just want to say hi, swing by my table and I'll pour you a good glass of Spanish wine.