by Laurie Forster
I have found that most people want to enjoy wine, but that many of them just feel frustrated and confused by all the jargon and pomp and circumstance. I believe learning about wine should be simple, without attitude and above all else, lots of fun! So here are my 5 secrets to ordering a great bottle of wine every time: • Ask the sommelier or server for suggestions. Most are eager to help and have tasted most (if not all) of the wines on their list. Those of us who have chosen wine as a career enjoy drinking wine every night but don’t necessarily have large budgets. Sommeliers and servers will know the best bargains because that is what we are drinking at home! • If you are on a budget but don’t want the client to know that, point out a wine in your price range and then for a...
by Michael Pinkus
I’m going to tell you a story about glasses – not the kind you wear, but the kind you drink from – at the end of the story you’re going to call me a liar and a charletan … but before you cast my ideas completely aside I ask that you at least try what I recommend. If you are like my brother, who thinks I’m full of “it” with all this wine stuff – including glassware – you’ll walk away from the homework I have assigned no worse for wear … but if you are like countless others who have tried this experiment and have seen the light; then you could be out a couple hundred bucks (max.), but the rest of your wine tasting and drinking days will be very happy ones. What on earth is this guy babbling about? You are probably asking yourself right now, I’ll tell you: the pr...
by Michael Pinkus
Where things come from used to be a big deal … “American made”, “Canadian made”, “if it ain’t homemade it ain’t good”. But, now it seems like the whole world is “Made in Korea, China or India”. We get our canned goods with labels that say “Product of Thailand, Singapore or the Philippines”. Our fruits and veggies are trucked in from places “down south” like Florida and California, and as far away as Mexico and Chile. And nobody seems to bat an eyelash anymore. “I was vacationing in California one winter,” a former Canadian farmer recounted to me, “and they were selling locally-grown head lettuce for $1.69 packaged under the Dole name. When I returned home a week later, the same head of Dole California lettuce was selling for 69 cents at Loblaws.”...
by Joann Actis-grande
Greeks are said to be the first to produce wine, with traces found on the Island of Crete 4,000 years ago. In ancient times, it was a beverage that people drank every day. Wine was significant as a lucrative trading commodity. The Greeks introduced winemaking to Italy, with many Italian grapes having Greek roots such as Malvasia and Moscato, just to name a few. Later the Greeks brought wine making to France, Spain, and as far away as parts of Asia. Wine was such an intrinsic part of Greek culture it appears in Greek Mythology. The son of Zeus, Dionysus, known as the God of wine (Bacchus to the Romans), was believed to have introduced the grapevine and taught the secrets of its cultivation and fermentation. There were many festivals in celebration of Dionysos. The tradition of festiv...
by J Todd Greeno
Have you ever had a half-bottle of wine you wanted to save for another time, and wondered what would be the best way to hold the wine for several days? If you are not going to drink the left-over wine, there are a number of choices that will enable you to enjoy the wine on another day:... - Recork the bottle and keep it in a cool area - Pour the wine into a smaller container (such as a 375 ml bottle) to reduce the amount of air, AND keep it in a cool area - Use one of those pumps to vacuum the air out of the bottle, AND keep it in a cool area - Use one of the "Systems" that displaces the air with an inert gas, AND keep it in a cool area You may have noted one similar factor "keep the bottle left-over wine in a cool area"... ...and then there is the question, "How many d...
by Richard Baxter
As a plastic surgeon, I see breast cancer patients every week, though I have the gratifying job of doing the breast reconstruction and helping women get their lives back to normal. But it’s hard not to wonder why breast cancer is still so prevalent, after so many years and so many dollars of research. And why is it so much more common in our society than in other parts of the world? It has been said (somewhat cynically) that the entire economy of the Western world is built on things that cause cancer, an acknowledgment that environmental and dietary factors must be involved to some degree. And foremost among these appears to be alcohol consumption. Statistics on consumption of alcohol and its correlation to breast cancer have been dissected and massaged for years, and the result is ...
by Subhash Arora
India scraps ACD only to make Fine Wines more Expensive Announcement last week by the government to remove additional customs duties (ACD) will result in a drop of 20-35% in the retail price of low end wines, beer and liquor, but will result in an increase in the cost of premium wines. This is a classic example of 'The Indian Paradox'. The anomaly has arisen because the government, while eliminating additional duty under pressure from EU and the US, hiked the basic duties from 100 % to 150% (maximum allowed by the WTO agreement). ACD on the low end wines ( CIF lower than $25 a case) was earlier 75%, while on the high end wines (CIF higher than $40 a case) it was 20%. This segment will be hit negatively as the impact due to elimination of ACD is not as much as the increase i...
by Shiv Singh
The Indian Government has cut duties on liquor. The Finance Ministry has finally withdrawn all additional customs duties on imported spirit, wine and beer, following ongoing complaints from the EU and US on the high duties levied by India. An European Commission study had reported that the combination of duties and taxes in some states in India was as high as 550% on imported spirits and 264% on wines. Abhay Kewadkar, Sanjay Menon and Alok Chandra share their opinions. While the Centre has acted on the additional customs duties, which fall within its domain, the government is expected to empower states to levy duties and allow them to recoup revenue losses. The big question is, will you and I benefit? Abhay Kewadkar chief wine maker of United Spirits and director of Four Seasons Wines ...
by Subhash Arora
Following complaints from the EU and US on high duties levied by India the Finance Ministry withdrew yesterday all additional customs duties (ACD) on imported wines, beer and liquor through a notification by Central Board of Excise and Customs. All ACD on wines and spirits have been removed but the government has increased the basic duty from 100% to 150%. Duties on beer and liquor remains unchanged at 100% and 150% respectively. The removal of the duty comes shortly before the meeting of a WTO panel to consider the complaint of European Union and the USA against high Indian duties and taxes on foreign wines and spirits. The government had been saying all along that they would like to settle the issue before the WTO would take a negative decision. The government had removed the import ...
by Subhash Arora
I had started the evening tasting with Moet & Chandon to celebrate the inauguration of the new Bangalore facilities of National Instruments, a billion dollar Texas based IT company. The nine wines selected for tasting were Azure Bay, Kendall Jackson and Fontanelle Banfi Chardonnays, Beaujolais Villages from Louis Jadot, Sula Satori Merlot, Kendall Jackson Pinot Noir, Oxford Landing Cab-Shiraz and as the grand finale, Gaja Promis, all purchased locally from Metro Cash & Carry. A pretty decent selection that, for an august gathering that varied from novices to not- so- novices who were there to enjoy the tasting experience. One hoped that after the end of the evening there would be a few converts to the wine religion. At the very least, they would feel more confident in the company of wine...
