Eve's Wine 101

Gimmick: The French wine and Cheese party

by

The Wall Street Journal, not a publication to scoff at, has run what appears to be a press release from the wine and cheese industry in France.

You are prompted to join hundreds of thousands of applicants in America to host a party for ten of your friends. At said party you are prompted, for a whopping 15% discount on French wines, to serve:

“…some of France’s less-expensive sparkling white wines, instead of Champagne. France’s Iconic blue Roquefort cheese, which is taxed at 100% when imported into the U.S, was also crossed off the list as being too expensive.”

If that isn’t enough of an incentive to become a Francophile (for them) then you are also up for receiving an eclectic gift of:

“a hamper of French-themed party gear, including a corkscrew, an apron and a CD featuring pop singer Carla Bruni, wife of French President Nicolas Sarkozy.”

Ok, not to be too “snarky” about this but I think this is purely…a joke. A Carlo Bruni CD? I never heard of her until the press starting photographing her with Sarkozy. Hot chick, great list of x-boyfriends. (I’ve since read a review that says the CD is nice, think coffee shop music.)
But does anyone need another corkscrew or apron? Puh – lease!

Now, for myself, I happen to love French wine. Most of our cellar is devoted to Bordeaux. My husband spends hours every year pouring over which futures to order. (Futures is a term for buying wine in advance of their release date, from a winery that you’ve enjoyed, to ensure a good price and availability.)

I would more than welcome the opportunity to have a French Wine and Cheese party. And it would set me back quite a bit of money. But I’m not selling anything. I recommend that you take a peak at the WSJ article, have a laugh, and then visit your favorite wine bar or store and ask your favorite wine retailer what he recommends based on what he/she knows about you.

Even a wine 101er can get a better discount than 15% if they do some savvy shopping. I mean, in this current recession, who isn’t offering some kind of deal? The same thing can go for the cheese. And it doesn’t have to stink.

Potty Mouth Reader sent this in

by

To my friends who enjoy a glass of wine… and those who don’t.

As Ben Franklin said: In wine there is wisdom, in beer there is freedom, in water there is bacteria.

In a number of carefully controlled trials, scientists have demonstrated that if we drink 1 litre of water each day, at the end of the year we would have absorbed more than 1 kilo of Escherichia coli, (E. coli) – bacteria found in feces.

In other words, we are consuming 1 kilo of poo.

However, we do NOT run that risk when drinking wine & beer (or tequila, rum, whiskey or other liquor) because alcohol has to go through a purification process of boiling, filtering and/or fermenting.
Remember: Water = Poo, Wine = Health.

Therefore, it’s better to drink wine and talk stupid,than to drink water and be full of shit.There is no need to thank me for this valuable information: I’m doing it as a public service.

The really BIG wine glass

by

Slightly obnoxious size isn’t it? Something as big as the photo shows is meant to just be decorative only. But what happens when you bring 4 bottles of beautiful Chateauneuf du Pape and 2 more elegant Bordeaux to a restaurant? You don’t want the wine glass on the table normally reserved for ice water. And you definitely don’t want the little wine glass that you can’t get a nose into or a swirl out of. You want the big wine glass. And, God help you, you’re actually thinking: crystal.Stay home.

On a recent visit to a restaurant, oh lets just say for argument’s sake, in Tucson Arizona, we asked for the “big wine glasses please” that we were assured they owned. We were told something along the lines of, “They’re in the dishwasher.”

When we saw other guests just arriving, also with their own wines in tow, we tried again, wanting to have the hot, wet glasses fogging up our wines first.

But now they were said to be, complete with what appeared to us as unapologetic glee, “Being used at another table.”

When the other table got OUR glasses, at that point, we just wanted to get our bottles opened to dash into whatever receptacle we could find. (I was grateful not to be wearing pumps.)

We grumbled until we started, gee, you might have guessed it, drinking. Eating helped too. Suffice to say if you want a really nice glass either drink out of your own at home, steal from your neighboring table or go to a wine-friendlier restaurant.

No, I’m not telling you where we were. But feel free to reply to this post as to where we should eat…errr I mean drink…next.

Move over Littlemill and make room for Tommy

by

There’s a new Scotch shouldering its way into my liquor cabinet, threatening the alphabetical order of the rows, behaving like the brash teen that it is and taking more than its fair share of bravo calls: Tomintoul 16 year old.

I didn’t find it “the gentle dram” from Speyside as the labelling predicted at a recent single malt Scotch tasting. The guests were still reeling over my Littlemill, that I had promised would be the king of the evening with it’s gentle coloring and light, yet full taste, when I introduced them to Tom.
Tom was like a broad smack of hazelnuts in the entire mouthfeel. Something I could sip on during the holidays instead of an entire pumpkin pie. Tom had the aggressive hue I was used to. Tom was my new home.
When the guests had sampled the 6 Scotches we had laid out, and headed back to my Littlemill, I went for Tom. My forward example allowed for them to re-sample too and comment on the striking differences.
You may recall from the last tasting that I had put my name on that bottle of Littlemill, thinking I wanted to save some for later. It was funny for the guests to see me do that. This time I wasn’t taking any chances. The Littlemill and the Tom were deftly removed from the tasting arena, and the paying guests, and stowed away in a secret location. (Right behind me on a wine rack – but these guests didn’t notice wine at all that night.)
I’ve written about our home Scotch tastings before in this blog. You can search “Scotch” if you want to know how it’s done. If you want a funny, newbie perception of it, read this from one of my more snarkier guests that night: http://thedailysnark.wordpress.com/2009/04/14/isnt-scotch-a-guy-thing
For me, well I’m going to make sure Tom isn’t causing a riot in my liquor cabinet. I know, it’s only 7 in the morning but who knows if 1. Eddie put Tom in his luggage for his upcoming trip to Vegas or 2. I drank it all last night and that’s why I can’t stop talking about it!

A little teaser – just for SCV Classic/Wine 101 friends

by

An exclusive update for Eve Wine 101er’s from Jeff Jacobson, wine chair for the annual SCV Wine Classic:

I have not yet updated the list of wineries for this year’s Classic, but am receiving commitments from several outstanding wineries, with my own collection of older, library wines.

There will be similar wineries as last year, and a few surprises I can’t announce yet.

This year’s library table poured by a friend who poured Colgin Cabernet last year, will have 01 Bryant Family, instead.

And, the friend who usually donates older Bordeaux wines has given me half a dozen beauties from 1982, 1986 & 1990, that will be poured at the Jacobson library table along with Williams Selyems and a good selection of terrific wines.

I may put a couple of the old Bordeaux’s, as well as a magnum of 1995 Charmes Chambertin, on the silent auction or pour them.

Click on the like image down the right side of my blog to go right to the site to purchase tickets or:
Send a check by mail:
Payable to COC Foundation/Student Orchestras
Mail to: COC Foundation, c/o College of the Canyons
26455 Rockwell Canyon Road, Santa Clarita, CA 91355
Include your return address!

Or by phone:
(661) 362-3737
Fax: (661) 259-9961

Once in a Blue Moon Online Thrift Store Blog – Likes me!

by

In a moment of blind narcissism I have copied a new Facebook friend’s first blog post for my readers to read…and heartily agree with. She has a unique business – one I’ve been clicking through all week – thrift shopping on line:

Instead of issuing the usual newsletter this week, I thought I would try my hand at blogging. In all honesty, this wasn’t an idea I developed on my own. I recently met someone on Facebook who writes her own newspaper articles/blogs for a living and it was at her suggestion I get out of the Stone Age. Her name is Eve Bushman and she’s the author of Eve’s Wine 101. As you can tell from the title, her expertise is in wines, so for me to ask for her help in writing a blog about an online thrift store would have been fruitless. (Pun intended)

Personally, I think it’s a plus to know someone who knows everything you’d ever want to know about wine. Trust me it is not easy to choose a wine for a special dinner – if you are anything like me anyway – wine ignorant beyond belief. To help with making my special dinner wine selection, I would often ask a grocery store clerk for their recommendation. The irony is most of the clerks are even more ignorant than I am. At least I know where they keep the wine. I’m sure I’ll be chastised for attempting to buy a ‘good’ wine at a grocery store. But hey, I already admitted I know nothing about wine. Nada, zip, nil, NOTHING.

So even though wine doesn’t have anything to do with our online thrift store, other than us having some wine glasses for sale, I hope you’ll take a few minutes to read Eve’s blog and see for yourself how much she really does know about wine.
Sharon Todd
Once in a Blue Moon Online Thrift Store
http://www.gone-tomorrow.com/

Messages for Peter, aka The Goose, Are STILL Coming In

by

After I posted a letter from Peter Goossens Founder of the Loose Goose (see post just below this one) I started receiving messages from Dear Wine Friends. Not everyone has a Yahoo account to comment on my blog. If you would like to add to this post you can e-mail me any time at ebushman@earthlink.net
New Messages 4-11-09:
I feel very sorry about Peter. He was a great friend to all and such a pied piper! How does one person completely charm an entire city council, a school district, dept of parks, empty studios and the SCV Jaycees and make them envision a beautiful festival dedicated to wine? How does that person enlist over 150 volunteers to work for the love of the wine and not be even able to take a sip until the end of the night? He did something!! I wish him well and will always love that he brought so many like-minded people together. He’s Peter pan! Jeannie C.

My husband and I have been to the Goose events for three years. So sad to see a business with so much support go the way of this ‘perfect storm’ we are all living. Karena T.

I’m terribly sad! Not only was this great for SCV, but it was across the street from my home. What a ‘claim to fame’! Just too bad… each year produced a larger turn out and better vineyards. The Goose will definately be missed!!!! 🙂 Erin H.

And this link that was sent to me by the author, Mike Henn, really says it all: http://santaclaritablog.wordpress.com/2009/04/11/the-goose-is-cooked/

From our flock so far 4-10-09:

It’s a sad day for our wine community in Santa Clarita and for any wine lover when you see a fellow wine lovers business fail. I didn’t know him but knew what he did for the wine lovers here and that is what prompted me to send out the mail. The wine flag is at half staff today. :((( Steve L.

I admire Peter for what he has done for the wine community and for the city of SC. He put us on the map of the wine Wine World, Period. Too bad he didn’t get the much needed support form the city to keep this going. It’s sad to see the Loose Goose go, but as I know Peter, he already has new plans and I can’t wait to see what’s coming. We should honor him at our next ‘get together’! Roman W.

Here, here…toast to the Goose and much success for his passion of wine in the future. Jenny L.

Hi Eve, Well, I must say that Peter’s special blend has pretty much kept me together. Had I known how rare it was, I might have spaced it out a little better and wouldn’t be down to my last bottle—nah! I’m truly sorry for Peter’s loss and for his staff. What a great group of people. His web site seems to be turned off, so if you know his email, could you please pass on my condolences and wishes for better days for all of us in the future. I thought wine, tobacco and anti-aging products were all supposed to thrive in this down economy!! What are we to do???
Martha S.

Dear Eve, sorry to hear about Peter! He was asset to our wine community. John K.

Farewell from the Goose

by

It is with a heavy heart we share with you that as of yesterday afternoon The Loose Goose, and its projects (Loose Goose Wine Society, Loose Goose Wine Festival and The Cellar), are out of business.

Our journey started six years ago with an idea and a very ambitious plan to conquer the wine world, one wine lover at a time. We made Santa Clarita our home base and set out to create a company that would raise the bar and reach for ultimate customer satisfaction, while trying to make a difference in the community where it operates.

Although we had a rocky start – the first festival loss almost took us down financially – our team fought extremely hard to come back and shine. 12 months ago it appeared that everything was moving in the right direction: we just opened our private cellar, were well on our way to our first 1,000 members in our Loose Goose Wine Society, and were in the middle of preparing our 4th Loose Goose Wine Festival. Feeling that expansion was warranted and necessary, we moved our offices into a larger space, hired extra staff and developed new programs. Despite the first signs of the economic recession impacting our operations over the summer, last October we were successful at producing the largest wine festival in California (over 9,200 visitors). Six weeks later we celebrated the first year anniversary of our Loose Goose Wine Society with close to five hundred Members and their guests at Union Station in Los Angeles. Little were we aware that in the mean time, the ingredients were gathering for the “perfect storm”…

As a company, we spent the last 5 years creating a well respected luxury brand. Unfortunately, in this time of drastic economic downturn, the market for luxury items has been extremely impacted. In addition, one of the main components of our company was the production of large wine events. These events cannot be produced unless there is a generous influx of sponsor money. Sponsor money in this economy is hard to find, if non-existent. And finally, being a young starter company, we have not had the opportunity to build the reserve that would have allowed us to weather the storm.

So, no more Loose Goose. Although it would be insincere of me to deny that I am hugely disappointed and have a tremendous sense of personal failure, the most overwhelming sentiment I feel is gratitude.

Gratitude for all the people (the Flock, as we call you amicably at HQ) who have supported us and allowed us to take this project as far as we could: thank you!

Gratitude for all the partners, suppliers, wineries, vendors, sponsors, and collaborators that made our events possible: thank you!

Gratitude for all the volunteers who came out and donated their time and effort to make a difference in their community: thank you!

Gratitude for our team leaders who gave blood, sweat and tears year after year in challenging circumstances to create the finest wine festival in California: thank you!

Gratitude for the hardest-working, most creative and most loyal staff I have ever had the privilege to work with: thank you!

Gratitude for the “guardian angels” who have supported me until the end (and beyond). I couldn’t have done this without them – you know who you are: thank you!

And finally, gratitude to my wife and children for allowing me to “bet the farm” in the pursuit of dreams: I love you!

As we lick our wounds and try to rebuild our lives, we can’t help hoping for the excitement of what a new day will bring… With the utmost respect and one final “cheers” (for now),

Peter “The Goose” Goossens, Founder

The Loose Goose 22508 Market St. Santa Clarita CA 91321

(Post Script from Eve: This is breaking my wine-filled heart. Peter brought wine tourism to this valley. I would’ve liked our city to have supported the annual Loose Goose Festival if it could. Please post your comments here and to Peter.)

Describing Wine 101 (AKA "Creamed Corn!)

by

Any Joe or Jane can Google search how to describe wine. You can find out which fruit (from citrus to tropical) describes your white wine. And what berries (blueberry to raspberry) you may discern in your reds. Wine writers are always looking for new ways to describe “the nose” because, well frankly, it can get pretty dull reading the same thing over and over and over…

A fellow wine blogger brought this up to me over the weekend. His site, “Risque Sommelier…Just a little bit gay” has way more fun in this department than I can even dream of. But he still has to come up with riskier ways to describe the grape.

For me, I prefer to not read the back of the bottle or tasting notes to cheat. I like to throw out words never used before.
When my friend from south Africa was offended when I said that a particular wine from her home smelled like old shoe or dog paw, the sommelier in attendance, a friend and fan, was thankfully on hand to agree with me.

When tasting 14 Syrahs blind with local winemakers and our host called out “Corn” as soon as she took her whiff I couldn’t help but add, “Oh no, it’s Creamed Corn”. And you know what? She agreed with me.

Now don’t get me wrong. I don’t make this stuff up just to entertain. This is what I really smell. It’s a gift. You have to work on it.

I watched a wine DVD recently where the sommelier offered a wide selection of wine glasses available for the guests to sniff – filled with the usual suspects such as the fruits and berries described above – to help them identify what they were smelling and tasting. She said that smelling wine brings up certain memories of smells. I liked the memory part, that made sense to me. But if I stick my nose into a glass filled with pomegranate seeds, and then stick my nose into my wine glass…I’m stuck with those seeds. I don’t think that’s quite it.

There is a great book, somewhere down the right side of this page, that has scents captured in vials. One book for red, one for white, a master book, and the one I really want with all of the oaks. You can click on it here and go to his site. Then hold your mouse over the oak book and you’ll magnify colors from green to gold to blackened. I can appreciate that and it’s sold as a learning tool.

But back to the idea of using memories. Your unique memories do color what you pick up when you smell and taste wine…sidewalk gum, bicycle seat, gym locker, Pez candy, rainy blacktop, Hope chests. Are you getting it? Why would I describe what I smell the way you smell? I love creamed corn, and, I drank every golden drop of it from my wine glass.