As promised, this post will contain useful “general” wine information. Hopefully, you will find most of it helpful. Much of the information shared will come from my Sommelier course notes from the National Wine School (NWS), unless otherwise indicated. When storing/ serving wine, there is a “general” rule of thumb, red wine should be at 65° F and white wine should be at 55° F (the temperature of most refrigerators). Remember, once you open a bottle of red wine, store it in the refrigerator, then let it warm-up to serve it. The more detailed temperature list for serving wine is as follows:
- Sparkling (ice cold): 38-45° F
- White & Rose: 38-45° F
- Rich White (Chard. – cool): 45-55° F
- Light Red (chilled): 55-60° F
- Bold Red (slightly chilled): 60-68° F
When the “wine steward” or Sommelier (if they have one), presents you with the bottle you ordered, what are you supposed to do? First, check the label, make sure it’s the one you ordered. In particular, pay attention to the year. If you ordered a “vintage” bottle (one 8-10+ years old) and got one that is younger, say 5-6 years old, it did not cost them as much and you should not be paying the “premium” price. It’s OK to send it back (before they open it), if you think it’s too young! Second, they will hand you the cork, check it to make sure it’s moist (if it’s dry, that’s bad). Third, they will pour you a sample (1-2 ounces). Swirl the glass, this oxygenates the aromatics. Then bring it up to your nose & inhale slowly, you should smell several things. Swirl it a second time and then sip, but hold it on your tongue for a few seconds before you swallow. Finally, let them know it’s OK to pour. As to what you are looking for when you sniff & sip, I will go into that in a later blog. At least now, you can look like you know what you are doing.
Every year The Wine Spectator (WS), puts out its Top 100 wines of the year. This year they finally got smart, in my opinion, and focused more on reasonably priced wines that should be easy to get. It’s about time! The Top 10 all rate 94 or higher and produced more than 2,000 cases of each listed wine, some as many as 21,000 cases. For some of the imports, you may have to wait a few months before you can get one. However, I know the #1 is available NOW!! Enjoy.
- #1: Argiano Brunello di Montalcino 2018 [95 points/ $90/ Italy]
- #2: Occidental Pinot Noir West Sonoma Coast Freestone-Occidental 2021 [94/ $65/ California]
- #3: Chateau Lynch Bages Pauillac 2020 [96/ $137/ France]
- #4: Raen Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast Royal St. Robert Cuvee 2021 [95/ $70/ California]
- #5: Mastroberardino Taurasi Radici Riserva 2016 [95/ $73/ Italy]
- #6: Dunn Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain 2019 [96/ $175/ California]
- #7: Antinori Chianti Classico Marchese Antinori Riserva 2020 [95/ $50/ Italy]
- #8: Chateau Pichon Baron Pauillac 2020 [97/ $165/ France]
- #9: Resonance Pinot Noir Willamette Valley 2021 [94/ $40/ Oregon]
- #10: Greywacke Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough 2022 [95/ $23/ New Zealand]
That should do it for this post. Hopefully, you learned something useful. Next week’s blog will be a seasonal Wine of the Month. Don’t miss it. Cheers!