West 32 Soju Wins Gold Medal at 2017 New York International Spirits Competition

June 22, 2017 by evebushman Leave a Comment

West 32 Soju was the highest rated soju at the event and was awarded Soju Producer of the Year for New York State.

New York, New York (Newswire.com) – After officially launching in December of 2016, West 32 Soju has taken the Gold Medal at the 2017 New York International Spirits Competition held in April in New York City. The event brought together close to 600 spirits from around the world, all competing in a blind tasting. It was judged by top spirits buyers from around New York City who evaluated the spirits by their category and price. Judges also named West 32 Soju the Soju Producer of the Year for New York State.

Soju has been distilled in Korea for hundreds of years and is low-proof “Korean vodka.” It is shared at social gatherings, parties, and celebrations. West 32 Soju is one of the only Korean-style soju made in the United States. The product is now available in New York, California, New Jersey, and Missouri and will be available soon in Nevada. West 32 Soju is made right in New York City and is the only soju in the world distilled by corn, and is both gluten-free and all-natural, unlike imported soju.

We are very excited to have won the gold medal in the New York International Spirts Competition. Our goal was to make the best-tasting, all-natural soju available on the market. This award definitely reaffirms that we have met that goal and are providing our customers an exceptional product.

Daniel Lee, Co-Founder of West 32 Soju

“We are very excited to have won the gold medal in the New York International Spirits Competition,” says Daniel Lee, Co-Founder of West 32 Soju. “Our goal was to make the best-tasting, all-natural soju available on the market. This award definitely reaffirms that we have met that goal and are providing our customers an exceptional product.”

West 32 Soju was created by two college friends who moved to New York City and frequented West 32nd Street, also known as Koreatown. They knew they could make a better tasting, higher-quality soju than imported soju. The concept and production for West 32 Soju was then developed. To learn more about the company or inquire about carrying the product, visit West32Soju.com.

About West 32 Soju
West 32 Soju is an American take on a traditional Korean spirit. The company’s soju is made in New York City and is all natural and gluten-free. For more information, visit West32Soju.com.

Kimo Sabe Mezcal Will Launch A Bold National Agave Spirit Taste-Test Challenge Vs The #1 Ultra-Premium Tequila & Oaxacan Style Mezcal

June 15, 2017 by evebushman Leave a Comment

Zacatecas, Mexico – Kimo Sabe, the award-winning, ultra-premium, and fastest growing mezcal brand, announced today its “Step Up to the New Taste of Agave” campaign – a 100,000 person, 10-city national consumer taste-test challenge –kicking off in Las Vegas in June. The challenge will pit Kimo Sabe, The New Taste of Mezcal against the best-selling ultra-premium tequila and a smoky ‘Oaxacan style’ mezcal.

The back to back (2016 & 2017) winner of the American Distilling Institute’s top honor, “Best In Class “ for all Agave Spirits, Kimo Sabe, is taking its taste-test challenge on the road to educate and inform agave drinkers nationwide on the breadth and depth of the agave taste experience. Launching in Las Vegas in June, Kimo Sabe will conduct a blind taste-test challenge with over 10,000 consumers, having them compare three top agave spirits – the best-selling tequila and ‘Oaxacan style’ smoky mezcal, and the disruptive new taste of agave, Kimo Sabe Mezcal. After sampling all three, consumers will be asked to rate their choices ‘good,’ ‘better,’ and ‘best.’

“We’re kicking off our challenge in Las Vegas, the party capital of the world, where visitors are looking to have fun, celebrate with their favorite spirit and are open to new experiences,” said Jim Walsh, co-founder and CEO of Kimo Sabe. “Our goal for the 10 city challenge is to create 100,000 Kimo Sabe brand ambassadors, because once sampled, agave spirit fans will make Kimo Sabe their new top shelf choice.”

Additional cities selected for the taste-test challenge include; Los Angeles, Dallas, Austin, Chicago, San Francisco, Seattle, New York, Miami, and Minneapolis. 10,000 consumers will be targeted in each market.

The public has a growing love affair with the agave spirit category. Studies show tequila consumption has doubled over the past 7 years, with mezcal being the fastest growing segment of that category.

“Everyone who loves agave spirits will appreciate this opportunity to take our challenge and experience for themselves how Kimo Sabe is evolving the industry. Tasting is truly believing. Our rapid growth is creating opportunities for hundreds of agave growers in Mexico, who we are assisting in creating sustainable, organic, agave ecosystems that will last for generations. We proudly call this strategy Building Bridges – as it connects the Mexican agave growers to a generation of US consumers seeking their own defining liquor category,” states Ashley Kvamme, Co-founder of Kimo Sabe.

Veteran agri-business flavor specialists Jim Walsh and Ashley Walsh Kvamme, who come from the premium chocolate business, started Kimo Sabe in 2014 with the goal to create high quality, artisan distiller flavor experiences of the agave plant at a price point for everyone to enjoy. The result has been award winning mezcals that are full of flavor, balanced and approachable, and have consistently garnered 90+ scores by leading industry critics. The Company has grown by 500% over the last two years and is outpacing sales growth of the leading brands in all agave categories. The Company expects its sales to double the entire mezcal category within 24 months.

“We aim to educate consumers through a direct taste experience of the full continuum of flavors across ultra-premium agave categories,” says Jim Walsh. “Most consumers have a sense of tequila flavors, and some have experienced smoky mezcal’s, but few have ever experienced the elegance, complexity and beauty of the literally hundreds of flavors of agave. Agave spirits have the potential to be truly memorable, where single flavors, when blended artfully, combine to create never before tasted harmonic accords or ineffable notes of magic. Kimo Sabe does for agave what Johnny Walker does for Scotch, as it gives the consumer a range of the special notes available in the category all in one product. This is the embodiment of the art of blending and distilling. We are excited to be expanding the agave industry and by doing so helping hundreds of Mexican agave growers prosper sustainably.”

Kimo Sabe Mezcal is made from 100% varietal agaves of which there are 42 varieties, while tequila is made from one type. Each type of agave has its own distinct flavor, giving mezcal producers a greater ability to create their own unique spirit. Common distilling practices known as ‘Oaxacan style,’ have in the past yielded smoky mezcals which to date have had limited consumer acceptance. In expanding the appeal of mezcal, Kimo Sabe has developed a proprietary blend of many agave flavors, which is carefully blended and distilled, and finally enhanced with sound wave technology. This process harmonizes each molecule of the spirit – the result is the smoothest, most flavorful, agave spirit made today.

ABOUT KIMO SABE MEZCAL

Kimo Sabe, The New Taste of Mezcal, is led by agri-business veterans and company co-founders Jim Walsh (CEO) and Ashley Walsh Kvamme (COO). Its USA headquarters are based in Pasadena, California, with its distillery and agave fields in Zacatecas, Mexico. The brand launched on May 1, 2015. It currently sells a Joven and Reposado Mezcal, with brand extensions anticipated. The American Distilling Institute awarded Kimo Sabe its agave spirit’s category top honor, “Best In Class,” in both 2016 and 2017. Kimo Sabe is currently distributed in California, Texas, Arizona, Nevada, New York, New Jersey, Minnesota, Colorado, Florida and Tennessee and will soon be distributed in Illinois, Wisconsin, Massachusetts, Maryland and Georgia

Kimo Sabe is committed to funding the creation of sustainable, varietal agave ecosystems in Mexico. They partnered with the Government of Zacatecas, Mexico to launch a pro-social program that will fund the creation of 100 new agave farms supplying 1,000 new jobs in the state. In March, Kimo Sabe became the official and exclusive mezcal of the SXSW Festival. Kimo Sabe is the title sponsor for all nationally televised episodes and live stream events of CBS Sports’ Poker Night in America. Ashley Walsh Kvamme was named one of the Top Women In Booze by Harper’s Bazaar Magazine this past year, and one of California’s top female entrepreneurs by Comerica Bank.

TEXSOM International Wine Awards Announces 2017 Winners

April 16, 2017 by evebushman Leave a Comment

Dallas, Texas – TEXSOM Co-founders and Master Sommeliers James Tidwell and Drew Hendricks today announced the final results for the 2017 TEXSOM International Wine Awards. The Awards garnered 3,581 entries representing 29 countries and 19 U.S. States, a record for the competition.

Entries in the TEXSOM International Wine Awards were blind-tasted and judged by 71 internationally renowned industry influencers from 5 countries. Of these entries, the judges awarded 2,480 medals: 310 Gold medals, 901 Silver medals, and 1269 Bronze medals. Suggested retail pricing of medal-winning entries ranged from US $2.99 to over US $700.00. Vintages spanned 40 years, with the oldest being 1977.

Judges’ Selections winners, those wines that were judged best for their categories, were announced at a reception sponsored by Enterprise Greece during ProWein 2017 at the Greek national pavilion on Monday, March 20. The event was a culmination of a series of award announcements by both Texas Monthly and the TEXSOM social media channels of all the Award-winning wines. All winning wines are listed on the Texas Monthly website at http://www.texasmonthly.com/article/tiwa2017/. Texas Monthly was the presenting sponsor, and has been instrumental in promoting the competition.

Last year, Greek wines showed well at the TEXSOM International Wine Awards, finishing 4th in medals received among the 25 countries entering wines. Enterprise Greece, the Greek government agency responsible for export promotion, is sponsoring some of Greece’s leading wineries at ProWein.

“We had a record year for the TEXSOM International Wine Awards,” said Tidwell. “That paired with the international recognition at ProWein, indicate that the TEXSOM International Wine Awards has become one of the most internationally influential competitions in the world. From the caliber of the judges to the quality of the entries, the Awards set the standard for what key tastemakers and industry influencers believe are the world’s top wines.”

Award entries were arranged by category of beverage, place of origin, and type. The final list of all winners includes: Judges’ Selections, Traditional Method Sparkling Wines, Other Sparkling Wines, Fortified (Dry and Sweet), Sake, White Wines, Rosé and Blush Wines, Red Wines, Ciders, and Fruit, Flavored and Honey Wines.

Wines chosen for Judges’ Selections were nominated by judging panels for specific categories, then blind-tasted by special panels to determine the winner of each Selection. Judges’ Selections demonstrate quality and unique character that are exceptional even amongst their medal-winning peers.

Unique among all other wine competitions, the TEXSOM International Wine Awards involved 42 rising-star sommeliers (separate from the judges) and three editors who have written detailed descriptions of a selection of medal winners. These notes will be highlighted for Featured Wines on the TEXSOM International Wine Awards website over the course of the year, and in the publication TEXSOM presents SOMMELIER. In addition to their duties in crafting notes for the selected award winners, the sommeliers participated in an educational retreat where each attended a series of seminars and observed judging by sitting with a judging panel, and also had the opportunity to receive direct instruction and feedback from a Master Sommelier or Master of Wine on blind tasting of wine.

The TEXSOM International Wine Awards was supported by 71 judges and more than 80 volunteers and staffers working together to make the competition happen. A list of judges may be found on the website at http://texsomiwa.com/.

ABOUT TEXSOM
Founded in 2005, TEXSOM was started by Master Sommeliers James Tidwell and Drew Hendricks to help promote professional wine service standards, outline paths for further wine education and certification, and raise public awareness about the professional standards and certifications for sommeliers. Today the conference draws more than 1,100 attendees, of whom more than 800 are sommeliers and other beverage industry professionals. The TEXSOM group purchased the competition now known as the TEXSOM International Wine Awards in April 2014. One of the largest, most respected, and longest-running in the United States, the competition was founded in 1985 by journalist and wine expert Rebecca Murphy.

Les Marchands: Weekly Wine Wednesdays and Monthly Somm-Guided Tastings

March 30, 2017 by evebushman Leave a Comment

Starting March 2017, Les Marchands resumed their acclaimed educational program with WINE WEDNESDAYS and SOMM TASTINGS, designed and created by new Retail Wine Manager Jeremy Bohrer and General Manager and Advanced Sommelier Emily Johnston, respectively.

Weekly, Les Marchands offers WINE WEDNESDAYS, an informal way to taste wines among fellow wine lovers. The early evening wine flight tasting is hosted by Les Marchands Retail Manager Jeremy Bohrer in collaboration with importers and distributors of some of their favorite wines. Each week Les Marchands works with a different distributor or importer in presenting fresh flights of wines. Guests are invited to stop by after work to try something new and have the chance to purchase one of their favorite bottles from the retail store. Bohrer has assembled a starting lineup that includes tastings from Epic Wines with samples from Lebanon, Italy, France and Spain; Vance Erickson Imports specializing in French, Austrian and German wines; The Bradford Wine Group showcasing local Rising Star wines and small artisanal French producers; and WineWise with unique Austrian and German wines.

WINE WEDNESDAYS are scheduled from 4:00-6:00 p.m. and open to the public. Pricing is $15 per guest.

On the third Thursday of each month, Johnston will present SOMM TASTINGS at Les Marchands. The SOMM TASTINGS are guided educational events hosted by Advanced Sommelier Emily Johnston focused on understanding the nuances of a specific wine producing region or a particular grape. The tasting is comprised of flights of three or four wines to highlight classic styles and current trends. This is an opportunity for wine lovers of all experience levels to learn more about wine in the most enjoyable way possible. The first four months of tastings include wines from Austria, the Rhone Valley, a Lesson in Blind Tasting and White Burgundy.

Upcoming dates for SOMM TASTINGS are April 20, May 18 and June 15, 2017, from 6:00-7:00 p.m. The Tastings are open to the public and priced at $25 per guest.

“Tasting wines that speak to a region is not only a key study tool of mine, it can also be a method of transport to another place or time,” states Johnston. “I’m looking forward to getting to know more wine lovers in our community and sharing this experience.”

For further information and to make reservations contact Les Marchands at 805.284.0380 or email inquiries@lesmarchandswine.com. Space is limited.

WINE WEDNESDAYS
with Retail Wine Manager Jeremy Bohrer

March 29
Vance Erickson Imports
Specializing in French, Austrian and German wines
$15

April 5th
The Bradford Wine Group
Local wines by Rising Stars and small artisanal French producers
$15

April 12th
WineWise
Unique Austrian and German wines
$15

********

THE SOMM TASTINGS

with Advanced Sommelier Emily Johnston

Les Marchands

April 20
Syrahs from the Rhone Valley
winding through the Northern and Southern Rhone Valley
to understand the nuances of this complex grape
3 wines $25

May 18
How to Blind Taste
curious to know the secrets behind recognizing
a wine from just a glance and a taste?
flight of blind wines $25

June 15
White Burgundy Tasting
3 wines $25

WINE WEDNESDAYS WITH JEREMY BOHRER

Every Wednesday from 4:00 – 6:00 p.m.; continues indefinitely

$15

SOMM TASTINGS AT LES MARCHANDS WITH EMILY JOHNSTON

April 20, May 18 and June 15, 2017

6:00 – 7:00 p.m.

$25

WHERE:

Les Marchands Wine Bar & Merchant

131 Anacapa Street, Ste. B, Santa Barbara, California 93101

At the Corner of Yanonali and Anacapa

For further information and to make reservations contact: 805.284.0380 or email inquiries@lesmarchandswine.com

About Les Marchands Wine Bar & Merchant

Awarded the “Wine Bar of the Year” by Imbibe, and one of the 21 Best Wine Bars in the country by Thrillist, Les Marchands Wine Bar & Merchant is led by a world-class team of certified sommeliers and wine professionals with more than 100 combined years of experience in the wine and hospitality industries. Hailing from some of the most prestigious restaurants and wine retailers from around the country, the Les Marchands team enthusiastically brings their love for and deep knowledge of wine to confidently guide each guest through an outstanding wine experience matching every palate and budget with wines to enjoy in the wine bar or to take home. Product knowledge and personalized service is lived out daily at Les Marchands and is incorporated into every phase of the business from private cellar consultation to custom tasting events to the wildly popular Les Marchands Wine Club. The wines curated by the sommeliers represent quality-conscious producers – imports are Eurocentric, from the most relevant producers in France, Italy, Austria, Germany, and beyond. On the domestic side, the focus relies heavily on local Santa Barbara County producers who are shaping and redefining the region. A full bar of handcrafted artisan spirits complements Les Marchands’ extensive wine program with classic stirred cocktails made in the old-school traditional way. These include such favorites as The Vesper, Hanky Panky or the Bijou just to name a few. Chef Weston’s bistro menu showcases seasonally inspired food for supper nightly from 5 pm, weekend brunch from 10am-2 pm and an extensive selection of cheese and charcuterie every afternoon from 2 pm-5 pm.

About Emily Johnston
Emily Johnston’s early training includes interning at Brander Vineyard in the Santa Ynez Valley followed by wine sales for a small Italian wine import company in Santa Barbara. Thoroughly inspired, Johnston left for Italy to study as a sommelier at ALMA Scuola Internazionale di Cucina’s Wine Academy where she received the highest academic honors in her class and achievement in Italian fluency. She became a Certified Sommelier with the Associazione Italiana Sommeliers (AIS) in 2011 while working alongside AIS Master Sommelier, Roberto Jacquemod Pane. Johnston became a Certified Advanced Level Sommelier with the Court of Master Sommeliers in 2016. Before arriving at Les Marchands as General Manager in 2017, Johnston served as Wine Director/Sommelier for the Toscana Restaurant Group overseeing the wine programs at four operations – Toscana, Bar Toscana, S.Y. Kitchen and Nerano for four years. At Les Marchands, she oversees the wine bar’s ever-changing menu of selections, educational programs and retail offerings. In 2015, she was awarded Zagat’s “30 Under 30” award for young talent to be watched in the hospitality industry.

About Jeremy Bohrer
Jeremy Bohrer is a veteran wine and spirits professional with over seventeen years working the vast wine world, including wholesale, retail, restaurant and production endeavors. His early experience as a wine rep for Constantine Wines, led him to California in 2000. He worked as a manager at Bacchus, a small family owned wine shop in Manhattan Beach and was a manager at Trader Joe’s where Bohrer was in charge of overseeing the wine sections of multiple locations and developed “Wine 101,” a course that was used to train company employees throughout California. His other roles include eight years with K&L Wine Merchants as the Burgundy Department liaison. In 2014, Bohrer opened his own small business, Still, a retail space devoted to the art of cocktail craftsmanship. Still sold all things cocktail related, from mixers and bitters, to shakers and vintage barware. The following year Bohrer also opened his own wine bar, Five & ¼, which focused solely on Old World wines France, Spain, Italy, and more unfamiliar regions like Croatia, Slovenia, Georgia and Hungary. As Retail Wine Manager for Les Marchands, Jeremy Bohrer brings his wealth of knowledge and passion for all things wine to the operation.

For further information on Les Marchands Wine Bar & Merchant visit:
www.lesmarchandswine.com
Become a fan of Les Marchands on Facebook: www.facebook.com/LesMarchandsWine
Follow Les Marchands on Twitter: @lesmarchandssb

Seed Wine wins gold for its inaugural Malbec vintage

February 19, 2017 by evebushman Leave a Comment

First time’s a charm for Seed Wine, which brought home a Malbec gold medal in the prestigious 2016 Global Masters wine competition in London on November 21, 2016. Hosted by the Drinks Business, the Global Masters is a rigorous series of blind tasting competitions, attracting entries from every corner of the wine-making world.

The tasting notes for Seed’s 2014 Malbec include luscious steeped blackberries, marionberries, and dusky Italian plums. The fruits lie well beneath lighter, more enigmatic aromas of violets, dust, and dark chocolate shavings. Seed’s 2014 Malbec vintage is the inaugural release for the boutique wine label, and its owners are delighted with the results.

“The Global Masters has reputation for being the toughest panel in any blind tasting series, so this really is an outstanding result for us,” CEO Tony Hartl said. “Our 2014 Malbec is completely sold out, but don’t fret, we have just released our 2015 vintage, which is fully expected to surpass the 2014s in elegance and age-worthiness.”

Malbecs from around the world were included in the competition, and a 6-person panel of highly qualified Masters of Wine and Master Sommeliers judged each entry. Winners are awarded medals bronze through gold, with “Master” reserved for the best of the best. With its 2015 Malbec vintage now available, Seed Wine has its sights set on even greater accomplishments in the future. You can learn more about the 2015 vintage here.

Beautifully delineated, the 2015 Seed Malbec is a small lot single-vineyard wine that is aged for 16 months in new French oak and has a long life ahead of it. At this stage in its development, the nose is quite primary and is heavily laden in fresh blackberries, plums, and macerated strawberries rendered more complex by attractive notes of sweet tobacco, bitter chocolate, and violets.

About Seed Wine: Launched after a serendipitous sojourn to South America, Seed Wine is the brainchild of Dallas entrepreneurs Tony Hartl and Alex Chang. The boutique Malbec is harvested with the world’s best winemaking techniques: hand-picked grapes, ancient canal irrigation, and 43-year-old vines.

Together with business partners Thomas DelMundo and winemaker Giuseppe Franceschini, Tony and Alex have the audacious goal of making the best Malbec in the world. But they aren’t stopping there. Every time a bottle of Seed Wine is purchased, a child in Mendoza receives a new schoolbook. It’s the tangible way that Tony, Alex, Tom and Giuseppe are planting seeds for the future in Argentina.

Vintage Eve Circa Jan 2013: Chocolate Tasting Separates the Dark from Light, the Leather from the Tea, the Raspberry from the Black Currant

February 14, 2017 by evebushman Leave a Comment

In keeping to my theory that those who spend time thinking about the aromas and flavors in their wine notice more about what is on their dinner plate, and, in taking it a step further, are blissfully aware of the trees and sky during a drive…to a wine bar or favorite restaurant.

So, it thrilled me when Wine Spectator magazine ran the story, “How to Taste Chocolate”, and supplied the handy Tasting Sheet to host a tasting, both written by Owen Dugan.

(For the article: You must login as a member but you can get the tasting sheet in a PDF. Scroll down until you see the chocolate header: www.winespectator.com/123112)

I read the one-page article with great interest as I had a special dinner coming up, my guests were chocolate fans, and this would save the pesky, “What to make for dessert” dilemma.

I learned from Dugan that I would need a variety of manufacturers, I would have to place the chocolate facedown (as name recognition – just like when tasting wine – creates a bias), glossy is more refined than dull, and we would need to slowly move the chocolate around in our mouths to detect the primary flavors.

For my tasting I cut off the section of the cardboard wrapper, which listed the cocoa percentage, and taped each underneath the corresponding serving plate. All could see that we were going dark to light, but there were some surprises (ingredients) along the way.

Dugan suggested going from light to dark, but as I wanted my guests to taste the gradual difference, from bitter to sweet, I did it opposite. Everyone enjoyed the chocolate more and more as it progressively grew less bitter as we worked our way to less cocoa and more milk.

Below is a collective of what we found during our blind tasting (Note: I used Appearance over Dugan’s “Look” and “Bite”, Flavor over “Savor.”)

Bar #1 – Appearance/First Bite: Matte, dark, clean, crisp, smooth and dry.

Flavor: Earthy, orange, coffee, leather, mushroom, smoke, tea with a short, bitter finish.

Comment: “A lot like a woman on a Sunday morning: cold and bitter!”

Bar #2 – Appearance/First Bite: More matte than glossy, dark, clean, crisp, smooth and dry.

Flavor: Earthy, leather, tea, smoke, nuts, coffee with a short to medium, bitter finish.

Comment: “The tea flavor reminds me of an Earl Gray.”

Bar #3 – Appearance/First Bite: Medium matte/gloss, medium dark and mottled, with a medium dull, grainy first impression.

Flavor: Stewed fruit, floral, savory spice, molasses, cinnamon, sweet herbs, nuts, vanilla and coffee, medium length.

Bar #4 – Appearance/First Bite: Glossy, dark, clean with a bite that was crisp, smooth and melty.

Flavor: Floral, plum, earthy, tea, molasses, orange, caramel, fruity and vanilla leading to a longer, sweeter finish.

Comment: “The best yet” and “Hot cocoa.”

Bar #5 – Appearance/First Bite: Medium matte/gloss, medium color, mottled with a crisp, smooth and grainy first taste.

Flavor: Floral, fruity, flowers, stewed fruit, pineapple, plum, citrus, raspberry, red berries, vanilla, savory spice and milk leading to a long sweet finish.

Comment: “My fave.”

Bar #6 – Appearance/First Bite: matte, light, clean, dull, smooth and melty.

Flavor: Earthy, tea, molasses, fruity, caramel, vanilla, nuts, coffee and very milky.

What was revealed

Bar #1 was Lindt Excellence, 90% Cocoa

Bar #2 was Godiva Santo Domingo, 85% Cacao*

Bar #3 was Godiva Dark Chocolate Almond, 72% Cacao

Bar #4 was Perugina Luisa, 51% Cacao

Bar #5 was Lindt Excellence, Black Currant Dark, 49% Cacao

Bar #6 was Ghirardelli Gourmet Milk, 32% Cacao

*Cacao and Cocoa are the same thing.

Conclusion

Can you say fun? Something new? Light dessert? Inexpensive? Or all four? Besides all that, the big thing we learned was that the black currant in Bar #5, was a surprise over the others. Not due to the sudden fruit, but to how we described it. Much like describing wine made from grapes, right?

And, as predicted, halfway through, at bar #3, I had more fans of the dark. My conclusion was that, just like in a wine tasting, appreciation grows as you taste and learn.

American Rum Portfolio Debuts at 2017 Miami Rum Festival

January 5, 2017 by evebushman Leave a Comment

Miami, FL – America is returning to its roots with a proliferation of local craft distillers creating authentic rums — as evidenced in the new American Rum Portfolio showcase at the 2017 Miami Rum Fest and Trade Expo. Is this the New American Rum Revolution?

Festival organizers recognize the rapid growth of American craft spirits. The 2017 Miami Rum Fest scheduled for April 22-23 at the DoubleTree Miami Airport Hotel and Convention Center will highlight a collection of fine American rums selected by the editors of Robs Rum Guide.

The American Rum Portfolio Debuts

The American Rum Portfolio offers craft spirit producers an opportunity to present their best products at this large gathering of rum enthusiasts, experts and professionals.

Rum connoisseurs and collectors will discover the most complete collection of American rums ever assembled under one roof.

The New American Rum Revolution

Before the American revolution, more than 8,000 distilleries in the American colonies were producing rum from the plentiful supply of molasses available through trade with Caribbean islands. Most ceased production by the time prohibition decimated the American spirits industry. Now, that downward trend is reversing.

“In the past few years, more national, regional and local rum distillers are gaining well-deserved attention. Many are making their mark as true artisan spirits by winning awards and setting new standards for authentic, hand-made rum,” said Robert A. Burr, publisher of Robs Rum Guide.

“We’re now tracking more than 150 producers of American rum. It’s nothing short of a rum revolution — changing the American rum industry. They’re bringing back the art of craft distilling, presenting American rum in a most favorable light by emphasizing the quality aspects of small production.”

Miami Rum Fest and Trade Expo Celebrates Rum

The annual gathering of rum experts and consumers in Miami is the place where rum reputations are made. The RumXP panel of expert rum judges from around the world gathers for their blind tasting competition. Rum producers from far and wide — as well as locals — gather to present their products to an eager audience.

Rum distillers, importers, distributors and retailers come together once a year to collaborate and put their heads together to assess the direction of the rum industry.

Now, American rum producers will take a front row position as the American Rum Portfolio debuts at this global gathering.

For more information about the American Rum Portfolio at the Miami Rum Fest and Trade Expo, call 707-278-6736 or visit the Miami Rum Fest web site: http://www.miamirumfest.com

UNCORKED WINE FESTIVALS RETURNS TO UNION STATION IN LOS ANGELES

November 28, 2016 by evebushman Leave a Comment

A complete EXPERIENCE for wine lovers

Uncorked Wine Festivals is bringing its national wine tour back to Los Angeles. The second annual Uncorked: LA Wine Fest will take place on Saturday, January 21st at the iconic Union Station in downtown LA. This is more than just your average wine tasting. This event will feature over 50 wineries with more than 150 wines to sample, a Champagne bar, International Wine Market, gourmet food trucks with both sweet and savory delights to pair with your wine, live music, custom wine- themed photo booth, blind tasting bar and a fun atmosphere in which to sip and savor with friends.

The event is from 5-9pm. VIP admission is at 5pm, providing an extra hour to taste, shorter lines and it features some special wines to be poured during only that hour. General admission begins at 6pm. Both tickets include all wine tastings with food sold separately.

Cocktail attire is requested but not required. The event is 21 and over only.

Court of Master Sommeliers, Americas Welcomes Seven New Masters to its Prestigious Ranks

June 29, 2015 by evebushman Leave a Comment

ASPEN, CO –The Court of Master Sommeliers, Americas welcomed seven new members: Brahm Callahan (Grill 23 & Bar, Boston, MA), William Costello (The Mandarin Oriental, Las Vegas, NV), Elyse Lambert (Maison Boulud, Montreal, QC, Canada), Jack Mason, (MARTA, New York, NY), Michael Meagher (Jackson Family Wines, Groton, MA), Kevin Reilly (Cyrus Restaurant, Healdsburg, CA) and June Rodil (Maguire Moorman Hospitality Group, Austin, TX).

L to R: June Rodil, Kevin Reilly, Michael Meagher, Will Costello, Brahm Callahan, Jack Mason, Elyse Lambert

The Master Sommelier Diploma is the highest distinction a professional can attain in the beverage service industry. The Master Sommelier Diploma Examination consists of three sections: a verbal theory examination, a blind tasting of six wines in 25 minutes, and a practical service component which focuses on restaurant beverage service and salesmanship. Candidates must receive passing scores in each category in order to earn the highly coveted title of Master Sommelier.

Held at The Little Nell in Aspen, Colorado from May 17th – 20th, the invitation-only examination was attempted by 63 individuals from 14 states and Canada. The results were announced at the Krug Reception attended by all who sat the examination, guests and Master Sommelier Examiners.

“On behalf of the entire Court, I would like to congratulate all candidates for reaching the final stage of the examination process, and heartily welcome to our organization those who were successful this week,” said Andrew McNamara, MS, Chairman of the Court of Master Sommeliers, Americas. “After years of preparation, these seven candidates have demonstrated their mastery of the highest standards in beverage theory, service and tasting ability. We look forward to their future contributions to the organization and the beverage industry as a whole. All of the candidates who sat the Master Sommelier examination showed admirable efforts and professionalism. We continue to applaud their dedication to this extraordinarily challenging process.”

ABOUT THE COURT OF MASTER SOMMELIERS

The Court of Master Sommeliers was established in England in 1977 to encourage improved standards of beverage knowledge and service in hotels and restaurants. The first Master Sommelier Diploma Exam to be held in the United States was in 1987. The title Master Sommelier marks the highest recognition of wine and spirits knowledge, beverage service abilities, and professionalism in the hospitality trade. Education was then, and remains today, the Court’s charter.

There are four stages involved in attaining the top qualifications of Master Sommelier: 1) Introductory Sommelier Course; 2) Certified Sommelier Exam; 3) Advanced Sommelier Course; and 4) Master Sommelier Diploma. There are 147 professionals who have earned the title of Master Sommelier as part of the Americas chapter since the organization’s inception. Of those, 124 are men and 23 are women. There are 227 professionals worldwide who have received the title of Master Sommelier since the first Master Sommelier Diploma Exam. For more information, please visit www.mastersommeliers.org.

Garagiste Festival: Southern Exposure Announces 2015 Winemaker Line-up, Plus New Events

March 9, 2015 by evebushman Leave a Comment

‘Wildly exuberant and fun wine event’ returns to Solvang March 27^th – 29^th; features hard-to-find, cutting-edge micro-production wineries from Santa Barbara County and Santa Ynez Valley; adds new Winemaking Symposium, Winemaker Mixer and Big Red ‘Shoot Out”

Paso Robles, CA – Garagiste Events today announced that tickets are now on sale for the third annual Santa Ynez Valley-based “Garagiste Festival: Southern Exposure,” which will feature over 60 of the area’s hard-to-find, micro-production commercial “garagiste**” winemakers. All festivities will take place at the beautiful, Mission-style Veterans’ Memorial Hall in the heart of Solvang, California from March 27^th – 29th. Proceeds benefit the Cal Poly Wine and Viticulture program.

Dubbed a ‘wildly exuberant and fun wine event’ by the LA Times, Southern Exposure features a ‘Grand Tasting’ on both Saturday and Sunday, each showcasing a completely different slate of winemakers. And, like all Garagiste Festivals, Southern Exposure offers attendees a low-crowd experience, high-quality wines, first-time and ‘soon-to-break-out’ discoveries, personal winemaker interaction, diverse varietals and, of course, a renegade and fun-loving spirit.

This year, the festival kicks off with two new events on Friday (March 27^th):

Happy Yeast Make Better Wine an educational (but fun) winemaker symposium sponsored by Laffort, and featuring Cal Poly professor and winemaker Matt Brain of Baker and Brain (5:00 – 6:30pm).
No Repeats: Rare & Reserve Winemaker Mixer where winemakers bring out the best of their best for attendees, including Club Only, Library and Pre-Release bottles, and compete in the “Big Red Shootout,” a friendly competition in which they blind-taste each other’s wines and vote for the best red in the room. (7:00 – 9:30pm).

Each Grand Tasting is preceded by one of the festival’s signature tasting seminars,*** moderated by Garagiste Festival Co-founder and radio host Stewart McLennan:

Saturday (March 28^th) – The Diversity of the Sta. Rita Hills AVA: It’s Not All Pinot & Chardonnay featuring Dan Kessler of Kessler-Haak, Chad Melville from SamSARA Wine Co. and Peter Work from Ampelos Cellars
Sunday (March 29^th) – The Elephant in the Bottle: The Great California Alcohol Debate with panelists Norm Yost from Flying Goat Cellars, Keith Saarloos from Saarloos & Sons and Stillman Brown from Zeppelin Winery.

“We could not be happier to be back in Solvang for the third year in a row with yet another extraordinary slate of 60 talented and innovative micro-production winemakers from Santa Ynez and Santa Barbara, over 20 of whom are pouring at the festival for the first time,” said Garagiste Festival Co-founder Doug Minnick. “More and more winemakers are telling us that The Garagiste Festivals are the only wine events they participate in because they are so full of passionate, knowledgeable (but decidedly un-snobby) fans of these very special handcrafted wines.”

Added McLennan: “Most of these wineries do not have tasting rooms and can’t be found on tour maps. The Garagiste Festivals bring them together under one roof, so our fans can not only try these fantastic, limited-supply wines, but also meet the cutting-edge winemakers behind them. And because it’s a Garagiste event, attendees know it will be fun and casual.”

Launched in Paso Robles in 2011, the non-profit Garagiste Festivals were the first to shine a light on the American garagiste winemakers, commercial artisan winemakers who handcraft under 1,500 cases a year and pay close, hands-on attention to every wine they make. The only festivals in the US dedicated to these innovative, hard-to-find, micro-production winemakers, the Garagiste Festivals have introduced hundreds of outstanding artisan winemakers to thousands of passionate wine consumers, members of the trade and media, raising the profiles of many of the winemakers nationally for the first time, and raising thousands of dollars for the education of future winemakers.

Garagiste Festival: Southern Exposure – Grand Tastings

Winemakers on Saturday Include: Apical Cellars*, Archium Cellars, Baehner Fournier, Bellissimo Cellars*, Bradley Family Winery, Brophy Clark, Carivintas Winery*, Carucci Wines, Clos Des Amis, Cordon Wines, Cotiere, Crawford Family Wines, Dascomb Cellars, Ferguson Crest*, Kessler-Haak Vineyards, La Montagne Winery*, Larner Vineyards, Levo Wines, No Limit Wines*, Pence Ranch, Press Gang Cellars, Roark Wine Co., SamSara Wine Co., Scott Cellars, Seagrape Cellars, Section Wines*, Solminer Wines, Turiya Wines and Weatherborne.

Winemakers on Sunday Include: Alta Colina Vineyards, Ascension Cellars, Barbieri Wines*, Big Tar Wines*, Central Coast Group Project*, Center of Effort Wines, Cloak & Dagger Wines, Conarium Wines*, Dilecta Wines, Dreamcote Wine Co.*, Falcone Family Vineyards, Graef Wines, Imagine Wines*, J. Brix Wines*, J. Ludlow Vineyard*, Mattina Fiore*, MCV Wines, Mount Dorado Winery*, Pace Family Wines*, Ryan Cochrane Wines, STANGER Vineyards, Tercero Wines, Tierra y Vino*, Vines on the Marycrest, Vino Vargas, Wandering Dog Wines*, Workman Ayer* and Zeppelin Winery.

Tickets are very limited and Garagiste Festivals always sell out. For the full Southern Exposure schedule, seminar details, participating hotels and to buy tickets go to http://garagistefestival.com.

To be alerted to breaking news about Southern Exposure and additional Garagiste events, sign-up for our free newsletter, The Dirt at http://garagistefestival.com/sign-up/, or follow us on Twitter (@GaragisteFest) or Facebook.

Garagiste Festival Sponsors include:

Major Sponsors

Visit Santa Ynez Valley.com, Wandering Dog Wine Bar, Travel Paso Alliance, Paso Robles Wine Country Alliance, mWEBB Communications, Glenn Burdette, G3 Enterprises, WiVi Central Coast Wine Industry Conference and Laffort USA.

Contributing Sponsors

Farm Credit West, Hinman & Carmichal, Pack and Ship Direct, Visit Atascadero, Digital Dogma, Distinctive Glassware, Stolzle Glasware, Scott Laboratories, Sempli Design, Vinzy, Enartis Vinquiry, Umpqua Bank, Soiree Home, Baker Wine and Grape Analysis, One West Insurance Services, The Good Life, Chumash Casino Resort, Spin the Bottle Wine Studio, Wood and Vine Restaurant, All American Containers, Golden State Overnight, GoVino and Zin Chair.

Media Sponsors

KSBY, KCBX, The KRUSH, 92.5, The Los Angeles Register, Wines & Vines, Vineyard & Winery Management, The Tasting Panel.

Hotel Sponsors

The Hamlet Inn, King Frederik Inn, Pea Soup Andersen’s Inn, The Oaks Hotel Paso Robles, La Quinta Inn and Suites Paso Robles, The Carlton Hotel.

For sponsorship info, email info@garagistefestival.com.

*New to the Garagist Festival

**Garagistes (garage-east) is a term originally used in the Bordeaux region of France to denigrate renegade small-lot wine makers, sometimes working in their “garages” (anything considered not a chateau), who refused to follow the “rules,” and is now a full-fledged movement responsible for making some of the best wine in the world.

***VIP Ticket holders only