That’s the question we know many of you are asking yourselves as you enter Day Three with no AC. For those who don’t know the term, we refer to wine as “cooked” when it has been exposed to excessive heat (either high heat or moderate heat for a long period). But, for a wine fault some think is the most common of all, there’s astonishingly little definitive research on how much heat exposure and for what amount of time is necessary to damage wine. S
After a quick visit to Burgundy and then a family week in the South of France, we planned to spend Saturday driving from our rental house in Minervois all the way North and East to Strasbourg. When he was in DC last May, Rhone winemaker Philippe Plantevin heard about our summer trip and invited - insisted, actually! - that we stop at his house near Cairanne for lunch.
We've been tasting like crazy this week (and have the purple teeth to prove it), getting ready for this year. I know it sounds like hype, but 2011 is going to be a HUGE year in the world of wine.
From California we'll be seeing the later-releasing 2007 Cabs and some fantastic 2008 values. Washington state's 2008 reds set new benchmarks for quality, and Oregon will deliver both outstanding late-release 2008s and some delicious-right-away 2009s.
In Italy, we'll see Brunello and Barolo from the historically great 2006 and 2007 vintages, and we'll see Spain return to prominence with new releases throughout the year.
And then there's the 2009 vintage in Europe. When all is said and done, I suspect 2009 will come to be viewed as one of the three or four best vintages ever across Europe as a whole. The best values from Bordeaux's monumental 2009 vintage will arrive, huge value 2009 Rhone will show up, and 2009 Burgundy simply cannot be missed.
So ... that's why we're clearing out a bit of inventory this weekend. We've already have 20 to 30 new wines arriving over the next few weeks, and that's just the beginning!
With our 2009 Ken Wright Pinot Noirs about to arrive, I thought it would be worthwhile to give a little background on the man many consider to be America's master of Pinot Noir.
For reasons described below, Wine Spectator had to accellerate the release of the rest of the Top 10 list for 2010. Here it is:
3) Peter Michael Chardonnay Ma Belle-Fille 2008 (97 points) - we have 24 bottles availabe at $99.99 each.
2) Two Hands Shiraz Bella's Garden 2008 (94 points) - we've sold out of this in the past but may get a little more; if so, it'll be about $70.
1) Saxum James Berry Vineyard 2007 (97 points) - a Chateauneuf-type blend (Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre) from California; not available locally.
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