by Subhash Arora
We have just entered a new paradigm in The Indian Paradox, a term I coined a few years ago to express my anguish and amusement at the happenings in and around wine drinking in India. The government of Maharashtra, by virtue of the excise order which reduces the excise duty from the recently introduced controversial and unjustified 150% to 75% for scotch and increasing it from the same 150% to, hold your breath, 200% on Champagne has recommended its denizens to shift from Champagne and fine wines to Scotch. While the excise duty has been increased to 200% across the board on wines, there have been graded reductions from 200% (where assessable value is less than Rs. 1000 per case of 9 bulk liters) to 150%, 100% and 75% (where assessable value is more than Rs.5000 per case). By declaring th...
by Jennifer Jordan
Despite the dirty looks and obscene gestures I get whenever I drive by a field filled with cattle or stroll by the local chicken farm, I stand by the notion that red wine goes with red meat and white wine goes with white meat. Sorry Bessie, my apologies Chicken Little: it’s just a fact among humans. Please stop trying to get us back with Mad Cow and Bird Flu. Your revenge tactics are getting old. Still, it’s not like you have to be a carnivore to enjoy wine: pasta, breads, and cheeses all certainly enhance a good glass of wine as much as any piece of meat. In fact, it might seem that wine – especially after consuming too much of itself – will go home with anything. Fish? Chili? Desserts? Even Hamburger Helper? Wine appears to have no limits. It may appear that way, but ther...
by Fran Benavidez
How to Go Wine Tasting By Fran Benavidez In recent times, wine tasting has ripened into a very chic activity, leaving many people bottled up with a great deal of confusion as to how it’s done. So, grab a glass and a shapely bottle of something with an alcohol %, and join me as we uncork the exquisite mystery of tasting wine. First, pick a designated driver, one who has either lost his taste buds or is too young to drink. Better yet, rent a limo so you and your tasting amigos can enjoy the fruits of the valley’s labor free from guilt and wreckage. Your loved ones will thank you later. Choose a Flight Wine tasting can involve some fairly rigorous standing f...
by Laurie Forster
Which comes first - the food or the wine? This is a common debate at the Forster dinner table. I met my husband, Chef Michael Forster, at a food and wine pairing class eight years ago and we have been discussing the topic ever since. When we go out to dinner, I like to first select the wine and then pick an entrée that works with my favorite wine. Michael instead thinks the food should come first and then the wine should be selected that enhances the dish. Just like any great relationship, we have both had to learn to balance and compromise to make these dining experiences fun for both of us. Understanding the concepts used for food and wine pairing can be quite similar to understanding the dynamics of personal relationships. Use the following tips to simplify your wine and food pai...
by Laurie Forster
Seems like this time of year the bubbly is flowing and there are just so many things worthy of a great toast. Whether it’s a big success at work, a new addition to your family or just making it through another holiday shopping season, there are many reasons to raise your glass. It is often said that giving a great toast is a dying art in America and I am hoping this year we can collectively create a renaissance. Use the helpful tips below to create and deliver a memorable toast. Just take a deep breath and whip out your fabulous toast at your next holiday function. Your friends will be inspired, your boss will be impressed and who knows, you might just get that raise next year! Remember as Robert Louis Stevenson was once quoted “Wine is bottled poetry.” I couldn’t have sai...
by Byron Carman
Byron Carman, The Bay Area Critic BayAreaCritic.com "The Bay Area's Premier Online Magazine and Newsletter" There are multiple scenarios involving returning wine at a restaurant. Each has its own level of expectations surrounding it on both the customer and restaurant employee. Here are a few of the situations you may face; as well as, my proposed way of handling it. SITUATION ONE You have selected a bottle of wine on your own that wasn’t recommended by the Waiter or Sommelier. The wine appears to be “corked” and needs to be returned or the wine you’ve selected is not to your liking. If the bottle is “corked” then of course tell the Waiter and politely ask for another bottle. If the second bottle is bad, then switch to another label. If you’ve ordered a bottle that isn...
by Byron Carman
Written By: Byron Carman, The Bay Area Critic www.BayAreaCritic.com We’ve all purchased a bottle of wine at a store, winery or restaurant and discovered that it just doesn’t taste right. Here are some various descriptions used to describe a bad bottle, otherwise called as a "corked" bottle: “Tastes like vinegar” “All I taste is the cork” “Smells like old wet newspapers” “Strong Chemical Smell” “Smells like Old Moldy Wood” I’ve experienced a couple of bad bottles in my lifetime. To be honest, I have stored them in the garage with the intent to take them back, however ended up procrastinating and pouring them down the drain. Returning wine can be somewhat awkward, because bad bottles are rare and hardly anyone actually returns wine. If you have purchase...
by Jennifer Jordan
Wine quotes, like grapes themselves, tend to come in bunches. From those who’ve sipped a bottle of Riesling and claimed, “That’s the best wine I’ve ever had,” to those who, after a wild night, spend their morning assuring that they will “never drink again,” quotes are part of wine culture. The famous and not so famous alike have uttered them. But, not surprisingly, it’s only the famous that get theirs in print. Now, reading a wine book and coming across a quote by some of these famous isn’t far fetched. An utterance by Mark Twain isn’t going to shock anyone: Twain made it well known that he enjoyed the pleasures of life. Similarly, a wine quote by Ernest Hemmingway is more likely to leave the reader saying, “Duh!,” rather than, “Huh?” But, not every wine...
by Jennifer Jordan
When it comes to wine, we use a variety of our senses. Our sense of taste and our sense of smell helps us perceive flavors and aromas, our sense of sight helps us look for legs, helping us to identify body, and our sense of touch, well, that just helps us to make sure we grab a glass of wine, and not a can of beer. In fact, there is only one sense we don’t really use: our sense of hearing. Now, I’ve done it myself: I’ve had a few too many glasses of wine, put the glass up to my ear, and sworn up and down that I could hear the ocean. Except for those rare, okay frequent, instances, hearing, when it comes to wine, is a bit left out. That is, however, until it “auditions” for inclusion in the form of song. The following is our list of some of the best wine songs to ever grap...
by Subhash Arora
Avanti Chianti- and make mine Classico please A friend’s wife, who loves her husband immensely, faithfully loves Tuscan wines too. Ask her the difference between Chianti and Chianti Classico and you will draw a blank. Ditto for Tuscan wines and Chianti! Perhaps a majority of wine drinkers don’t know either. Chianti Classico is to Chianti what Chianti is to Tuscany and what Tuscany is to Italy, if you know what I mean. It is a designated area, within Chianti, Tuscany, between Florence in the North and Siena in the South. It finds a very special place because of its terroir and personality when one talks of Tuscan wines. It used to be a part of the Chianti DOCG appellation until August 5, 1996 when it became a separate Appellation through a government decree. Earlier, since 1984 th...
