Active Dayton - Entertainment, events, movies, restaurants and dining, music and more to do in Dayton and Southwest Ohio

Check out this story from The Canadian Press entitled “Semi truck and its $1 million cargo of wine go missing from British Columbia”.

Which wine cliche would YOU ban?

By Uncorked | Tuesday, April 29, 2008, 07:19 AM

Perhaps you too will get a nice chuckle from this clever little column in the Napa Register entitled “A new government agency will regulate cliches on back label copy.”

If ONLY.

Author Ed Schwartz mentions my number 1 contender, the tried-and-true (cliche intended) claim that the wine is “Delicious now, but will age fabulously for many years.” I’m not saying it’s impossible. I’m saying the handful of wines those words may truthfully describe are NEVER the wines that have those words on their label.

I’d also nominate the variations on the “elegant yet full-bodied” or “subtle yet voluptuous” theme — those oxymoronic descriptions that contradict with reckless abandon. And the marketing campaigns that imply grandpa made each tiny batch down in his cellar that are too often slapped on a wine that is made in quantities that would make an oil refinery blush.

Ahh, marketing.

Which wine cliche would you ban?

Mark Fisher

P.S. And a tip of the cap to Nancy Bentley for finding this little gem …

Permalink | Comments (11) | Post your comment |

Semi truck goes missing — along with its $1 million wine cargo

By Uncorked | Monday, April 28, 2008, 03:13 PM

Oh. My. Golly.

If you see this missing truck, alert me … um, I mean, the authorities right away.

Adulteration or enhancement? Italian prosecutor probing big-name Brunello producers

By Uncorked | Monday, April 28, 2008, 06:56 AM

Here’s a potential scandal the wine world doesn’t need: An Italian prosecutor is has seized more than a million bottles in his investigation of whether some big-name producers of Brunello di Montalcino used unapproved winemaking techniques or grapes other than sangiovese in their wines, according to a New York Times story entitled ‘Bolt from the Blue’ on a Tuscan red.

The prosecutor is quoted in the story as suggesting some brunello di Montalcino makers “used different grapes to make the wine more tasty.” Wines the prosecutor impounded included bottles from some of the region’s biggest-name producers, including Antinori and Frescobaldi. (How deep are the roots of these two legendary producers in Tuscan soil? About this deep.) Here’s more from the NY Times story:

Why would anyone want to use unapproved grapes? “Very simple,” said Franco Ziliani, the Italian wine expert who helped spread the word about the scandal on his blog, vinowire.com. “Adding cabernet or merlot, which are more pleasant to the American palate, makes for a more appealing wine for the average consumer as well as critics.”

The American market, Mr. Ziliani said, is among the most lucrative and prestigious. Merlot in particular, he said, “makes sangiovese’s acidic tannins rounder, and more ready to drink,” and these grapes give these wines a darker color. Such wines regularly score in the high 90s with American critics, which usually translates into big sales. He and others believe winemakers in the region have been doctoring their brunello for much of the past decade.

Hmmm. If the practice IS widespread, let me ask: To what degree should we care?

If you’ve been buying a particular brunello over several vintages and liked the way it tastes, does it matter whether the wine had some other unapproved grapes in it? Does that practice amount to adulteration or enhancement?

I lean toward the camp that says each region’s rules DO matter — that the surreptitious addition of unapproved grapes, if it occurred, would amount to fraud. But a part of me whispers, “if it tastes good, who cares?”

Do you?

Mark Fisher

Cleveland International Wine Show will debut May 2-3

By Uncorked | Sunday, April 27, 2008, 04:21 PM

I’m a bit tardy in mentioning this, but hey … a little spur-of-the-moment weekend getaway, perhaps? The first-ever Cleveland International Wine Show will be held May 2 and 3 in, yes, Cleveland. Details are “in the jump,” available through a click on “continue reading” below. If you go, let us know how it was … and how it compares to the well-established Cincinnati International Wine Festival. Not that, you know, there would be a rivalry or anything like that … Read on for details.

(Here’s the full text of the news release I received concerning the Cleveland International Wine Show)

I-X Center Debuts New Exciting Show

The Cleveland International Wine Show — May 2 & 3

(Cleveland, OH) — Due to the overwhelming success of the Wine Tasting Pavilion at the Fabulous Food Show, as well as meet the growing thirst for wine in the Midwest, the I-X Center and the Cleveland Wine School present the first-ever Cleveland International Wine Show held May 2 & 3, 2008.

“The I-X Center is proud to partner with the Cleveland Wine School to create one of the largest wine shows ever to come to Cleveland,” said Eric German, show director and vice president of the I-X Center. “Whether you know a little or a lot about wine, the International Wine Show uncorks a world of wines for you to try.”

The Cleveland International Wine Show offers educational pavilions designed to take participants on an exclusive wine-filled journey through 50 regions. From Malbec to Merlot, Bordeaux to Barossa, this is your chance to swirl, sip and savor international wines. Attendees will have the opportunity try up to 500 wines from around the world right out of their very own stunning Schott Zwiesel crystal glass from Germany.

Aside from the wine tasting, attendees will have an opportunity to attend seminars presented by regional, national and international wine educators in the American Wine School Theatre. They can also learn about dynamic food and wine pairing demonstrations by top chefs, snack from the perfectly paired appetizer and tasting tables, or just relax and listen to the live jazz music by the Latin Five.

Ticket price: $60 per person general admission $20 designated driver admission Charge online at www.localwineevents.com or by phone at 216.265.CORK.

Event Hours: Friday, May 2 - 6:30PM - 10:30PM

        Saturday, May 3 - 1:00PM - 5:00PM & 6:30PM - 10:30PM

For more information, visit www.internationalwineshow.com Net proceeds benefit Cleveland Championships 2009

The I-X Center, located in the City of Cleveland, is one of world’s largest convention centers. With more than one million square feet of contiguous exhibition and conference space, including a one million-square-foot main exhibit hall, all on one level, the I-X Center offers the unique ability to accommodate multiple events simultaneously. The I-X Center’s diverse show schedule includes public events, trade shows, banquets, meetings, sporting events, and conventions. The facility attracts more two million visitors annually through a combination of consumer and trade shows. A full list of events at the I-X Center is available at www.ixcenter.com.

Clive Coates slams Parker, Wine Spectator and ‘emasculated’ wine trade

By Uncorked | Friday, April 25, 2008, 07:12 AM

Clive Coates MW (Master of Wine), writer and author whose 10-year-old book entitled “Cote d’Or: A Celebration of the Great Wines of Burgundy” is considered by some to be the Bible of Burgundy, has just released an expanded and updated successor entitled simply “The Wines of Burgundy” ($60, University of California Press).

The book’s publisher has sent out some review copies of the book, which has an official release date of May 12 but which is available for ordering from the publisher’s web site now. The book contains some rather interesting assertions about the role of the media in the world’s perception of Burgundy, from a wine writer who has spent most of the last three decades in Burgundy..

And Coates isn’t afraid to name names, singling out Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate, and Wine Spectator magazine, for specific and detailed criticism. Fine timing indeed, since the current (May 31) Wine Spectator is its “Special Report: Burgundy” issue.

Tell me what you think. Here are some excerpts from the book’s introduction:

“Wine Critics are often misinformed or just plain pig-ignorant. They ARE prejudiced. They set about doing the job of sampling Burgundy in the wrong way and at the wrong time. They try to imply that there is only one way to judge a wine (i.e., according to the personal taste of that critic), forgetting how subjective and temperamental taste can be, and also ignoring the fact that most wine is made to be consumed and judged mature with food and friends, not immature alongside numerous other bottles.”

“The bad critics look at Pinot through Cabernet-tinted spectacles and so criticise it for being what it never set out to be. Generally, they cause anger in the Cote d’Or and confusion at home. Moreover — and this is a situation which is almost universal in the United States, though thankfully largely absent in Britain — the trade has allowed itself to be emasculated. Instead of continuing to buy and sell based on their own professional judgement, they have consigned themselves to the role of mere purveyors. They buy what the Wine Spectator and the Wine Advocate score highly and then sell their wares by proclaiming the magazine’s marks. It is totally crazy. … “

“Burgundy has been much maligned — more so than any other region — by certain elements of the media. Robert Parker proclaimed that the region was a dinosaur of poor quality and high prices: the exact opposite of the truth.”

“The Wine Spectator has criticised the increasing bunch of estates that refuse to play ball with its modus operandi and submit samples for mammoth tastings. The magazine’s representatives arrive in the region only a few months after the wines have been bottled, before they have had a chance to recover, and attempt to rate every wine in percentage points out of 100. The time for accurate ratings such as this is much later, a year or two after bottling and shipment, dispassionately, in groups of 25 or so.”

Your thoughts?

Cheers!

Mark Fisher

Permalink | Comments (28) | Post your comment |

Wines among the tulips and daffodils

By Uncorked | Thursday, April 24, 2008, 03:47 PM

A wildly busy week for wine dinners next week, so if you can clone yourself and be two places at once, you’ll eat and drink fabulously well. (There are even more wine dinners listed in today’s Dayton Daily News Go! section, by the way). Many thanks to the Dayton-based wine listserv that painstakingly compiles these listings for its members, and which allows Uncorked to copy and paste each week for this web site’s readers. For info on Cincinnati-area wine tastings and events, go to my friend Michelle’s My Wine Education blog. And for the Dayton-based listserv’s list, click on “continue reading” below.

Cheers!

Mark Fisher

Sunday, May 18, 2008 1-4 pm, $60 in advance, $65 at the gate. Fleurs de Fete Wine and Gourmet Food Festival featuring more than 300 wines and food offerings from over 25 Dayton restaurants. Rain or Shine. Purchase tickets at many local wine stores or online at www.wellness-connection.org

Jay’s Kitchen Door Friday, April 25, 2008 4-8 pm 2006 Lioco Chardonnay un-oaked 2000 LE Cinciole Podere Petresco Chianti Classico 2006 Lioco Indica Carignan/Petit Sirah 2004 Bouchard Pere and Fils Gevrey Chambertin 2005 Chateau Larmande St Emilion Bordeaux

Saturday, April 26 , 2008 1-6 pm 2004 Lava Cap Chardonnay 2004 Speri Amarone 2004 Robert Modavi Oakville Cabernet 2005 Chateau Fonbadet

RSVP 222-2892 for all Dinners and Luncheons

Monday, April 28, 2008 Steltzner Dinner with the winemaker, Tim Dolvin $60 Local Trout stuffed with dungeness crabmeat , Duck Carpaccio,  Angus Ribeye with Yukon Gold Potatoes, White Asparagus and Cabernet Reduction Sauce,  Chef’s Choice of Dessert

Wednesday, April 30, 2008 L’Ecole Wine Dinner $60 Grilled Lobster, Shrimp and Scallops with a Pineapple Cranberry Chutney Marinated Grilled Denver “style” Lamb Ribs with a Housemade Cherry Barbeque Sauce Herb Roasted Beef Tenderloin with Sauteed Morel Mushrooms, Lobster Mashed Potatoes and Roasted Shallot Sauce Apple Cheddar Tatin

Monday, May 12, 2008 Wine Dinner with Alessandro Angelini $55 Antipasti, Sweet Breads with Cepes, Pappardelle with Duck Breast in Truffle Cream Sauce and Baked Stuffed Peaches

Saturday, May 31, 2008 Copper River Salmon Luncheon $65

Arrow Wine & Spirits Far Hills - Kettering Saturday, April 26, 2008 11-5 pm 2007 Chateau Mourgues Du Gres Rose 2005 The Four Graces Pinot Gris 2007 Shoo Fly “Chook Raffle’ Chardonnay 2005 Palazzo Napa Valley Red 2004 Torre Muga Rioja 2006 Can Blau Montsant 2006 Protocolo Red

Dorothy Lane Market (DLM) Oakwood Henriot Souverain Brut Unique ’06 Sauvignon Blanc DeLoach ’06 Russian River Pinot Noir Di Arie ’05 Amador Zinfandel John Duval Entity Shiraz Buehler ’05 Cabernet Brown Bag

Saturday, April 26 , 2008 1-6 pm Rene Geoffrey Brut Vinum ’05 White Elephant Beaux Freres ’06 Willamette Pinot Noir Buehler ’06 Zinfandel Pikes EWP ’02 Shiraz Ridgeline ’03 Cabernet Bonus Bottle

DLM Washington Square Thursday, April 24, 2008 5-8 pm Backsberg Estate Tasting with Simon Back Backsberg Estate has been rated one of Wine & Sprits Top 100 wineries of the year.

Saturday, April 26, 2008 12-5 pm Fifi’s California Dreaming Simi Sauvignon Blanc Fransican Chardonnay Estancia Meritage 2004 Simi Rancho del Oso Vineyard Cabernet Robert Mondavi Cabernet Reserve Darioush Napa Merlot

Dorothy Lane Springboro Friday, April 25, 2008 3-8 pm Morgan Pinot Gris 2006 Morgan Cotes du Crow 2006 John Duval Plexus 2006 Titus Cabernet Franc 2005 Mystery wine

Saturday, April 26, 2008 12-5 pm Owen Roe Riesling 2007 Owen Roe Pinot Gris 2007 Owen Roe Eola Hills Pinot Noir 2006 Owen Roe Sant Maria Valley Pinot Noir 2006 John Duval Entity Shiraz 2006

Cuvee Wine Bar and Cellar, 4457 State Route 725 Bellbrook Tuesday - Thursday 11:30 - 7 pm, Friday 11:30 - 8 pm Saturday 11:30 - 7 pm www.cuveewinebar.net Tasting from Friday, April 25 -Thursday, April 24, 2008 Kir with Domaine Mamiot Guy and Fils Aligote mixed with Chambord Adelsheim 2006 Tokay Fruiliano Three different Sakes (flight) Ozeki Karatamba from Japan, Osakay-Chobei from Japan, and Ozeki Ginjo Premier from California Domaine Fincham 2005 Red Note Blend Eric Ross 2005 Old Vine Carignane Charles Cimicky 2004 Reserve Shiraz

Beer: Pyramid Hefe Weizen Food: Spicy Cajun Crab Spread, Smoked Salmon and Spinach Mousse, Mini BBQ Pork Sandwiches

Saturday, 10 minute chair massages 12:30-3:30.

Friday, May 3, 2008 6-8 pm Drop In Aresti (Chilean) Tasting with Vicente Aresti Chef Chris will provide a selection of tapas.

Arrow Centerville 937-433-6778 615 Lyons Rd Centerville Friday, April 25, 2008 5-7 pm Beer Tasting Great Lakes Brewing Company: Holy Moses White Ale… Elliot Ness Lager… Burning River Pale Ale… Commodore Perry IPA… Edmund Fitzgerald Porter

Saturday, April 26, 2008 11 am-5 pm Wine Tasting 2003 Tamar Ridge Riesling… 2005 Black Bart Marsanne… 2006 Bodegas Castano Monastrell… 2006 Can Blau Spanish Red Blend… 2005 Palazzo Napa Valley Red Blend

Rue Dumaine www.ruedumainerestaurant.com Tuesday, April 29, 2008 5-7 pm TRIMBACH Reisling Alsace, 2005 TREFETHEN Reisling Oak Knoll District, 2006 AUGUST KESSELER Reisling Rheingau Kabinett, 2002

The Wine Gallery and Cafe, Corner of 3rd and Wayne Wednesday, April 23, 2008 5:30 - 8:30 pm

Market Wine Imports, Second Street Public Market Saturday, April 26, 2008 8AM to 1PM. Value wine tasting!

Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar 937-320-9548 Wine Wednesdays 5pm to 8pm in the bar. Wednesday, April 30, 2008 ANTINORI Chardonnay, Umbria Castello della Sela, Italy, 2005 A TO Z WINEWORKS Pinot Noir, Oregon, 2006 NORMAN Paso Robles, Mephistopheles, 2003 DELAFORCE Port, Colheita, Portugal, 1986

A Taste of Wine 90 S. Main St Miamisburg, OH 937.247-1120 This week’s wines: Omrah Chardonnay Seifried Gewurtztraminer Devil’s Corner Pinot Noir Rafferty Rules - Shiraz Parcel 41 Merlot Omrah Cabernet Sauvignon May 1 - Europe through Rose filled Glasses

Trader Joe’s in Kettering. Tastings Thursday 6:00 to 8:00 and Sunday 4:00 to 7:00. Espiral Vinho Verde (NV) DOC Vinho Verde, Portugal. King Shag Sauvignon Blanc (2005) Marlborough, New Zealand. Zarafa Pinotage (2007) WO Western Cape, South Africa. Panilonco Reserve Carmenere (2006) DO Colchagua, Chile.

McCormick & Schmick’s Seafood Restaurant April 30, 2008 6:30 p.m. Casa Lapostolle & Terrazas Wine Dinner $60 per person plus tax (gratuity included) RSVP 937.431.9765 Foie Gras Two Way, Dungeness Crab Bisque, BBQ Ahi Tuna with “Baked Beans,” Slow Braised Lamb Shank, Chocolate Fig Newton

Bella Vino Wine Merchant & Bar, Springboro, OH 45066 Thursday, April 24, 2008 5:30-7:30pm. Saturday April 26, from 2:00-4:00 2005 Domaine Amibt Guy Et Fils Bourgogne Aligote 2005 Meyer Fonne Pinot Blanc 2006 Thivin’s Cote de Brouilly Grand Cru Beaujolais 2005 DOMAINE ROUSSET Crozes-Hermitage 2005 DOMAINE LE GOEUIL CAIRANNE “CUVEE LEA FELSCH”

Little Sonoma, 6078 West Chester Road, West Chester, OH 45069.513-942-9463. Located two blocks north of Union Centre Blvd. at the corner of Muhlhauser and West Chester Roads www.LittleSonomaWines.com Friday, April 25, 2008 7 pm - “Four-Play” - Pits four lower value wines against four wines, four times the value of the first. Saturday, April 26, 2008 Mixin’ it up at Little Sonoma with Blended Wines

Inn at Versailles April 25, 2008 Vignalta Wine Dinner with Mr. Bonono 7:00 pm $ 85.00 per person RSVP 937-526-3020 Pinot Bianco Antipasti of grilled vegetables, artisan cheeses, salamis with dried fruit mostarda, proscuitto with fresh melon, cannalli beans with a crème fresh vinaigrette “Sirio” Dry Moscato Mixed micro greens with spicy pecans, sun dried cherries, and haystack mountain goat cheese in a brown sugar balsamic vinaigrette Chardonnay Fresh linguine with grilled mahi mahi, italian sausage, fresh spinach and broccoli “Gemola” Merlot-Cabernet Franc blend Baked eggplant with fresh ricotta and manchego cheeses “Agno Tinto” Petite Syrah Local braised lamb shanks with a wild mushroom and spring onion polenta Green Mountain Organic French roast Coffee Sweet crème gelato with saba and fresh strawberries www.innatversailles.com

The 1894 Port punches a ticket to the Fleurs de Fete

By Uncorked | Thursday, April 24, 2008, 06:31 AM

port bottle front1.JPG

The saga of the 1894 Port (which makes its public debut above) has taken a few new twists, summarized in a Taste of Wine column that will run tomorrow (4-25-08) in the Dayton Daily News Life section — but because you Uncorked readers are special, y’all get a sneak peek:

It started with a phone call.

The call was not unlike several others I’ve fielded since I started writing this Taste of Wine column 19 years ago that followed the theme of, “I have this really old bottle of wine and was wondering … .”

In the vast majority of these cases, the wines were not built for the long haul, not meant to be aged, and the wines have no chance of being drinkable, short of a miracle.

But this call — from June Kiehne of Kettering — was different. It involved a port — a wine that is fortified with alcohol to reach the 20 percent or so threshold, which usually helps ports deal with the ravages of old age a bit better than unfortified wines. And it was a whopping 114 years old — an 1894 Tawny Port. Kiehne inherited the bottle from her father, who received it as a gift in 1950. She has had the port since 1977.

I was particularly intrigued because one of the greatest wines ever to cross my lips was an 1898 Vintage Port at a tasting in Bowling Green, Ohio, back in the mid-1980s. Generally tawnies have already been aged in barrel for a period before bottling and aren’t necessarily designed to improve further with bottle aging the way vintage ports are, but I thought maybe, just maybe, this wine had a chance to still be drinkable. Through the newspaper’s wine blog Uncorked , I summoned help from cyberspace, and wine enthusiasts from both here and afar responded.

Dennis Hall, local wine enthusiast and former owner of Fairfield Wine, searched the Portuguese version of Wikipedia and used an online translator to try to obtain information about the bottle. Hall concluded the wine “is a single-vintage tawny port from 1894 that stayed in barrel for many years and was perhaps bottled as recently as the late 1940s” before it was given as a gift Kiehne’s father.

Meanwhile, Nancy Bentley, co-owner of Kinkead Ridge Vineyards in Ripley, passed my query onto Andrew Jones, an international wine writer and broadcaster, who had just visited the region of Portugal that produces port and spent time at the prestigious producer Fonseca’s winery (the bottle of 1894 has the word “Fonseca” on it). Jones said our bottle of 1894 does not appear to have any connection to the current Fonseca port producer, and suggested the wine inside probably did not survive in good condition.

Kiehne has decided to donate the bottle for auction at this year’s Fleurs de Fete, the wine-and-food event to be held at Carillon Historical Park on May 18. She’s familiar with the Wellness Connection of the Dayton Region, which benefits from the festival and its live and silent wine auctions, and decided the donation was the right thing to do.

After seeing the bottle for the first time on Tuesday, April 22, at Arrow Wine & Spirits, where Kiehne handed the bottle over to Arrow for the Fleurs de Fete auction, I too am skeptical that the wine inside has survived to the point it would still be enjoyable to drink. Although the label and cork appear to be in good shape, the amount of wine in the bottle has dropped well below the “shoulder” of the bottle, which appears to be just over half full. That suggests a lot of evaporation has occurred, and a lot of oxygen has gotten into that bottle — not encouraging signs.

But I’ve encountered miracle bottles of old wine that exhibited plenty of similar ominous signs but defied the odds and turned out to be much better than expected. So I’ll keep hope alive, and root for another miracle for whoever takes a chance on a bottle of 114-year-old wine.

(End story)

Cheers!

Mark Fisher

(Photo by Mark Fisher)

One of nation’s best wine writers jumps into the blogging pool

By Uncorked | Wednesday, April 23, 2008, 07:14 AM

In 1989, when I first started writing the Taste of Wine column for the Dayton Daily News (I was 12 at the time …), I kept a keen eye on our newspaper’s wire services to see what wine columnists in other cities were writing.

The one that captivated me the most — because it was so engagingly written, often with a delightfully playful sense of humor — came from the Miami Herald and its wine writer, Fred Tasker. When I reached the end of a Tasker column, my usual thought was, jeez, this guy’s a great writer who happens to write about wine.

Well now, guess who recently launched a wine blog on his newspaper’s web site? It’s called Wine Beneath the Palms, and it’s a welcome addition to the blogging pool.

Like me, Tasker has a “day job” at the paper he works for, as a medical writer and feature writer, which I’m sure (ahem …) sometimes gets in the doggone way of his wine blogging. (Hey, you think I sit around sipping wines all day? Think again, or check out today’s cover story in the DDN Life section.)

Of course, Tasker announced his blog first in his Herald wine column, like I did back in the stone age of 2005.

The wine blogging pool has plenty of room in it, and the water’s always warm (though perhaps not as warm as coastal Florida). And life in the pool just got a bit more fun.

When are you launching your blog?

Cheers, and a warm welcome to Fred!

Mark Fisher

Why I’m a ‘parasite,’ and why I was half-wrong about the Spectator

By Uncorked | Tuesday, April 22, 2008, 07:11 AM

A roundup of tasty little news items and observations to titillate your Tuesday:

— Jancis Robinson thinks I’m a parasite — but admits she is, too. That’s what she told an audience at the WineCreator conference in Ronda, Spain, where she was serving as conference president, and her remarks were reported in this Decanter.com story entitled “Critics should show more humility”.

“We must always remember that we are parasites on the business of winemaking,” Robinson said, referring to wine critics and journalists.

I see her point, sure, but golly, “parasites?” Let me go suck down some more red-tinged juice from my host while I contemplate my new title …

— Last week, I gave Wine Spectator magazine a cautious pat on the back for what appeared to be some welcome changes to its policies toward advertorials. Well, I might have been juuuuuust a tad premature — but just a tad.

The advertorials for wineeveryday.com are back in Wine Spectator’s May 31 “Burgundy” issue (page 32-33) that arrived in my mailbox yesterday, and the ad’s font and typeface and design have changed only slightly, meaning the ad, to my eyes, still appears to be designed to dupe readers into believing it is an unbiased story written by the Spectator’s editorial staff.

But the magazine did place the word “advertisement” atop the first of the ad’s two pages. That one small-but-important little word did not appear in a similar advertorial by the same company in the April 30 edition of the magazine. That change represents a step in the right direction toward ensuring casual readers are not deceived by an ad that appears to be disguised as editorial content. The Spectator could have done more — so too could other print publications such as food magazines and yes, newspapers — but it did take an important step in the right direction.

— Suburban Cincinnati winery Vinoklet has launched its very own wine blog. So far, the blog appears to be a vehicle for the winery’s press releases, but hey, who am I to decide what does and does not constitute a blog?

I am simply a parasite on the business of winemaking, remember?

Cheers!

Mark Fisher

Peeling back the layers of mystery on the 1894 Port

By Uncorked | Monday, April 21, 2008, 06:38 AM

A week ago today, I invited readers to help unravel the mystery behind a reader’s bottle of 1894 Tawny Port. And several of you did.

Dennis Hall, local wine enthusiast and former owner of Fairfield Wine, embraced the challenge with particular zeal, however. Hall, proclaiming “Modern technology is wonderful,” searched the Portuguese version of Wikipedia which led to a number of different sites which he then translated using an online translator. A circuitous trip through several related links put a few pieces of the puzzle together. “I guess that is what you get when you combine a wino with an intelligence analyst,” Dennis said.

If you recall, the label of the wine (which belongs to a Dayton Daily News reader from Kettering) reads, “1894 APF’s V.X.T.P. Tawny Port.” It was “produced and bottled by Abel Pereira Da Fonseca.” I wondered whether the producer was related to the current Fonseca port house, one of the region’s most venerable and prestigious producers.

Hall was unable to determine with certainty whether there was a connection, but discovered some fun clues along the way.

From Port producer Fonseca’s website, Hall found out the company was founded in 1822 with the acquisition by Manoel Pedro Guimaraens of the Fonseco & Monteiro company.

Shortly after the purchase Guimaraens was forced to flee Portugal hidden in an empty port cask during the “War of Two Brothers” (what a way to travel!)). He settled in London and maintained the headquarters there until 1927 when he moved back to Portugal.

If the wine truly came from “the” Fonseca, it seems questionable that the 1894 label would not mention Guimareans/Fonseco, 70 years after the acquisition, Hall concluded. In addition, he found other online references to a wine warehouse run by ““Abel Pereira Da Fonseca” that could explain the label’s “APF” initials. He also found label images that mention wines bottled and shipped by (but not grown or produced by) “Sociedade Comercial Abel Pereira da Fonseca.”

He figures that since Fonseca seems to be a relatively common name in Portugal, the “Fonseca” name on the 1894 label may just be a coincidence or someone trying to capitalize on the more famous Fonseca port house’s name.

As for the vintage year and the “VXTP” initials on the label, Hall found a Berry Bros. & Rudd virtual vintage chart that suggests 1894 was not a declared vintage for vintage port, which is consistent with a port producer releasing a vintage-dated tawny or Colheita rather than a vintage port.

The VXTP abbreviation, Hall said, may allude to a very extra old tawny port. VX and VO are often used in referring to aged cognac.

Hall’s educated guess, after all the research? He thinks the wine “is a single-vintage tawny port from 1894 that stayed in barrel for many years and was perhaps bottled as recently as the late 1940s” before it was given as a gift to my reader’s father in 1950.

I’ll forward this information to the bottle’s owner and ask what she intends to do with the wine (when I talked to her initially, she was weighing whether to sell or donate the wine).

Thanks very much to Dennis “Sherlock” Hall for his sleuthing!

Mark Fisher

Is it really all about — and ONLY about — price?

By Uncorked | Saturday, April 19, 2008, 10:26 AM

If it ain’t ‘spensive, it ain’t worth drinkin’ … for many wine drinkers, anyway.

That seems to be the conclusion of researchers whose work is reported today on Decanter.com in a story entitled “Price more important than taste: Caltech study reinforced”.

Do you find these studies as depressing as I do? Are we really that shallow?

I think more research is called for, and since it’s a Saturday in Dayton, Ohio, wine tasting capital of the world, I think I’ll launch the next study very shortly …

Cheers!

Mark Fisher

Read this and just TRY not to drool …

By Uncorked | Friday, April 18, 2008, 06:30 AM

Now really, can you possibly read the following words without awakening your tastebuds?

— “Herb-Roasted Beef Tenderloin with Sauteed Morel Mushrooms, Lobster Mashed Potatoes and Roasted Shallot Sauce.”

— “Local braised lamb shanks with a wild mushroom and spring onion polenta”

— “Sauteed sea scallop with masion butter”

— “Dungeness Crab Bisque”

— “Red Wine BBQ Chicken.”

Now here’s the thing: Each of these mouth-watering courses comes from a different event on our wine-tasting and events list that is meticulously compiled by a Dayton-based listserv and shared here on Uncorked. Five different events, five different delectable menus, and wines, oh heck yeah, there will be wines to complement those fine dishes.

Who can resist? Click on the “continue reading” link to see whether you can.

For info on Cincinnati-area wine tastings and events, go to my friend Michelle’s My Wine Education blog.

Cheers!

Mark Fisher

Jay’s Kitchen Door Friday, April 18, 2008 4-8 pm NV Gruet Brut Rose 2004 Clos La Chance Syrah 2005 Martin Ray Stag’s Leap Cabernet 2004 Martin Ray Diamond Mountain Cabernet 2004 Chateau Bahans Haut-Brion

Saturday, April 19 , 2008 1-6 pm 2006 Cinnabar Chardonnay 2006 Testarossa Palazzio Pinot Noir 2001 Costanti Brunello di Montalcino 2003 Chateau Lagrange

RSVP 222-2892 for all Dinners and Luncheons Monday, April 28, 2008 Steltzner Dinner with the winemaker, Tim Dolvin

Monday, May 12, 2008 Wine Dinner with Alessandro Angelini $55 Saturday, May 31, 2008 Copper River Salmon Luncheon $65

Arrow Far Hills - Kettering Saturday, April 19, 2008 11-5 pm 2005 Kuentz-Bas Pinot Blanc 2006 Kermit Lynch Vaucluse 2005 Las Tocas Garnacha 2005 Chateau De Lascaux Languedoc 2005 Justin Cabernet sauvignon 2006 Torbreck Cuvee Juveniles 2006 Siduri Pinot Noir Santa Lucia Highlands

Dorothy Lane Market (DLM) Oakwood Friday, April 18, 2008 5-8pm Chartogne-Taillet Brut Ventana ’06 Pinot Noir Juvenis ’03 Primitivo Bergevin ‘05 Merlot Chateau Sergant ‘05 Lalande de Pomerol Pozzan ’05 Cabernet Sauvignon Brown Bag

Saturday, April 19 , 2008 1-6 pm Del Rio ’06 Pinot Gris Feuillat-Juillot ’05 Montagny 1er Cru Bouchaine ’05 Pinot Noir Cht. St. Georges ’05 St. Emilion Grand Cru Bergevin ’05 Cabernet Martin Ray ‘05 Stag’s Leap Cabernet Bonus Bottle

DLM Washington Square Thursday, April 17, 2008 5-8 pm There will be no tasting due to the DLM Pastry show at our Springboro store.

Saturday, April 19 , 2008 12-5 pm A Bit of Bourgogne Left in California 2006 Alma Rosa Chardonnay 2006 Silver “Un-oaked” Chardonnay 2006 Acacia “A” Pinot Noir 2006 David Bruce “Central Coast” Pinot Noir 2006 Vision Cellars “Sonoma County” Pinot Noir 2006 Drew “Gatekeeper’s” Pinot Noir

Thursday April 24, 2008 Backsberg Estate Tasting with Simon Back Backsberg Estate has been rated one of Wine & Sprits Top 100 wineries of the year. Dorothy Lane Market Pastry Show DLM Springboro Community Room: Thursday, April 17, 2008 7-9 p.m. Taste the newest spring pastries in addition to our new Stuffed Baguette Sandwiches Sample a selection of fine wines and Belgian Ales View demonstrations by Pastry Chef Ghyslain and the DLM Pâtisserie staff Enjoy the debut of our new Killer Brownie® Gelato Tickets $35 or $40the day of the show

Dorothy Lane Springboro Friday, April 18, 2008 3-8 pm Bergevin Lane Callico White 2007 Perrusset Macon-Village 2005 Iuvenis Primitivo 2003 Graff Family Vineyards Consensus 2005 Mystery wine

Saturday, April 19, 2008 12-5 pm Recolte Pouill-Fusse “La Roche” 2004 Bergiven Lane Callico Red 2005 Chateau Castegens Cote de Castillon 2003 Levendi Symphnia Cabernet 2004 Chateau d’Armailhac Pauillac 2005

Cuvee Wine Bar and Cellar, 4457 State Route 725 Bellbrook Tuesday - Thursday 11:30 - 7 pm, Friday 11:30 - 8 pm Saturday 11:30 - 7 pm www.cuveewinebar.net Tasting from Friday, April 18 -Thursday, April 24, 2008 Lingenfelder Pinot Gris Ondine 2005 Chenin Blanc Chateau Marot 2005 Bordeaux Everett Ridge 2005 Zinfandel Four Vines Heretic Petite Sirah

Beer: Bell’s Oberon No food until the 5-7 Bremerton tasting Saturday, 10 minute chair massages 12:30-3:30.

Saturday, April 19, 2008 5-7 PM Meet Lucy Wilson, Assistant Winemaker at Bremerton, of Australia. Matilda Plains Sauvignon Blanc Bremerton Verdelho Bremerton Tamblyn Bremerton “Selkirk” Shiraz Bremerton Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon Matilda Plains Cab/Shiraz/Merlot Bremerton Verdelho Selkirk Shiraz Tamblyn (Cab, Shiraz, Malbec, Merlot) Bremerton Reserve Cabernet

Chef Chris will prepare: Marinated Shrimp Red Wine BBQ Chicken Beef Tenderloin

Arrow Centerville 937-433-6778 615 Lyons Rd Centerville Friday, April 18, 2008 5-7 pm Beer Tasting Sam Adams Longshot Grape Pale Ale…   Sam Adams Longshot Weizenbock…   Harpoon IPA…   Harpoon Barrel Series…   Harpoon Firth of Forth (Scotch Style Ale)…   Bison Brewing Company Organic Red Rye Ale

Saturday, April 19, 2008 11 am-5 pm Wine Tasting Around the World with Beringer Wine Estates Beringer Napa Valley Private Reserve Chardonnay… Beringer Napa Valley Alluvium White… Beringer Napa Valley Merlot… Beringer Napa Valley Private Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2004… Étude Pinot Noir Rosé… Beringer Founders Estate Riesling… Beringer Founders Estate Chardonnay… Beringer Founders Estate Pinot Noir… Beringer Founders Estate Merlot… Beringer Founders Estate Cabernet Sauvignon… Greg Norman Sparkling Wine (Australia)… Greg Norman Chardonnay (Australia)… Greg Norman Shiraz (Australia)… Greg Norman Cabernet/Shiraz (Australia)… Greg Norman Cabernet/Merlot (Australia)… Black Opal Chardonnay (Australia)… Penfolds Koonunga Hill Shiraz/Cabernet (Australia)… Penfolds Bin 389 Cabernet/Shiraz (Australia)… Greg Norman Reserve Shiraz (Australia)… Gabbiano Pinot Grigio (Italy)… Gabbiano Chianti Classico (Italy)… Gabbiano Chianti Classico Riserva (Italy)… Chateau Souverain “Winemaker’s Reserve” Cabernet Sauvignon 2003… Wolf Blass “Grey Label” Cabernet Sauvignon

Rue Dumaine www.ruedumainerestaurant.com Tuesday, April 22, 2008 5-7 pm VIGNADORO Prosecco NV MARQUES DE GELIDA Cava Brut Exclusive Reserva, 2003 JEAN LAURENT Blanc de Noir Champagne NV

The Wine Gallery and Cafe, Corner of 3rd and Wayne Tuesday, April 22, 2008 5:30-8:30 pm Special Wine Tasting featuring Krupp Brothers Cabernet, The Doctor, The Advocate and the highly rated Marsanne with Brian Thompson, representative and family member of the winery.

Market Wine Imports, Second Street Public Market Saturday, April 19, 2008 8AM to 1PM. Value wine tasting!

A Taste of Wine 90 S. Main St Miamisburg, OH 937.247-1120 This week’s wines: Del Rio Chardonnay Del Rio Viognier Del Rio Syrah Del Rio Merlot Del Rio Claret Juvenis Primitivo April 17 - Del Rio Wine & Cheese pairing, 7 - 9pm April 18 - Belgium Beer Tasting May 1 - Europe through Rose filled Glasses

Trader Joe’s in Kettering. Tastings Thursday 6:00 to 8:00 and Sunday 4:00 to 7:00. Condesa de Sarabella Viura (2006) DO Calatayud, Spain. Castineira Albarino (2006) DO Rias Baixas, Spain. Rosemount Shiraz-Cabernet (2005) South East Australia. Sterling Vintner’s Collection Cabernet Sauvignon (2005) AVA Central Coast, California.

McCormick & Schmick’s Seafood Restaurant April 30, 2008 6:30 p.m. Casa Lapostolle & Terrazas Wine Dinner $60 per person plus tax (gratuity included) RSVP 937.431.9765 Foie Gras Two Way, Dungeness Crab Bisque, BBQ Ahi Tuna with “Baked Beans,” Slow Braised Lamb Shank, Chocolate Fig Newton

Cork-n-Vine Wine Cellar in Troy, Ohio April 18, 2008 at 5 pm - April 25, 2008 Layer Cake Primitivo- Layer Cake Shiraz- Layer Cake Malbec- Layer Cake Cotes Du Rhone-

Miami Valley Wine & Spirits 943 West Main St., Tipp City, Oh. 45371 Friday April 18, 2008 5-9pm A Taste of France

Bella Vino, Wine Merchant & Bar, Springboro, OH 45066 Thursday, April 17, 2008 5:30-7:30pm. Cave de Pomérols, Picpoul de Pinet Arbor Crest Riesling J. Bookwalter Lot 21 Beresford, Shiraz, McLaren Vale Barnard-Griffin Cabernet Sauvignon

Little Sonoma, 6078 West Chester Road, West Chester, OH 45069.513-942-9463. Located two blocks north of Union Centre Blvd. at the corner of Muhlhauser and West Chester Roads www.LittleSonomaWines.com Friday, April 18, 2008 7 pm - Rhone Style Blends from around the world Saturday, April 19, 2008 Wines of Veramonte Wednesday, April 23, 2008 7-9 pm - Guenthers Wine Dinner, $40, plus tax & gratuity. Full course dinner paired with wines. Menu includes: Sauteed sea scallop with masion butter. Five oz Filet with homemade Crab Cake or Baked Halibut with Coconut Sauce. Both served with choice of salad and potato. Dessert: Godiva Choclate Cheesecake. RSVP Guenthers at 777-8880 or Little Sonoma at 942-Wine. Friday, April 25, 2008 7 pm - “Four-Play” - Pits four lower value wines against four wines, four times the value of the first. Saturday, April 26, 2008 Mixin’ it up at Little Sonoma with Blended Wines

Inn at Versailles April 25, 2008 Vignalta Wine Dinner with Mr. Bonono 7:00 pm $ 85.00 per person RSVP 937-526-3020 Pinot Bianco Antipasti of grilled vegetables, artisan cheeses, salamis with dried fruit mostarda, proscuitto with fresh melon, cannalli beans with a creme fresh vinaigrette “Sirio” Dry Moscato Mixed micro greens with spicy pecans, sun dried cherries, and haystack mountain goat cheese in a brown sugar balsamic vinaigrette Chardonnay Fresh linguine with grilled mahi mahi, italian sausage, fresh spinach and broccoli “Gemola” Merlot-Cabernet Franc blend Baked eggplant with fresh ricotta and manchego cheeses “Agno Tinto” Petite Syrah Local braised lamb shanks with a wild mushroom and spring onion polenta Green Mountain Organic French roast Coffee Sweet crème gelato with saba and fresh strawberries www.innatversailles.com

Did Wine Spectator change its ‘advertorial’ policy?

By Uncorked | Thursday, April 17, 2008, 06:38 AM

I can’t tell for sure, but it appears Wine Spectator magazine may have made some adjustments to its policies regarding “advertorials,” those print ads that mimic a publication’s editorial content.

Last month, there was a bit of a discussion on the topic in an Uncorked entry entitled Did Wine Spectator intend to deceive? That entry was followed two days later by the magazine’s denial that it tried to mislead readers.

In the May 15 print edition of the magazine (with the Chardonnay cover story), an advertorial on pages 74 and 75 for the wines of Diageo Chateau & Estates is clearly labeled, on the top of both pages, “special advertising section.” And the typeface or fonts used in the piece entitled “Making Scents of Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay” do not appear to mimic as closely the typeface of the magazine’s editorial content to the extent that previous advertorials did.

Those earlier advertorials, however, promoted the wines of a different advertiser, however: A line of wines affiliated with Gallo and profiled through a web site entitled wineeveryday.com. The first page of those advertorials contained the term “Wine Everyday”, with no mention it was an advertisement until the advertorial’s second page — and its design and typeface very closely resembled a Wine Spectator editorial review. (A Wine Spectator logo, by the way, appears on the Wineeveryday site, and a click on the site’s “Where to Buy” link takes you to — ta da! — Wine Spectator’s wine shop search page.)

So it may be that nothing has changed, and that the Wineeveryday advertorials will return in their previous form. But the most recent advertorial from Diageo suggests the Spectator’s editors might have taken a second look at the practice and concluded that it could mislead readers.

As I said in a previous post, anyone who works in print journalism (and I do) lives in far too fragile of a glass house to be casting too many stones over these advertorials, which newspapers, including mine, publish, and which are labeled “advertisement.” But I also think that the nation’s highest-profile wine publication, whose credibility is so important to its wine ratings, would hold itself to a very high standard when it comes to drawing a line between advertising and editorial content in order to protect that credibility.

So if they took some steps in that direction, well — good for them.

Cheers!

Mark Fisher

Have you marked your calendar for the premier wine event of the year?

By Uncorked | Wednesday, April 16, 2008, 06:28 AM

Yer’ darn tootin’ I’m talking about the Fleurs de Fete. If you don’t have Sunday, May 18 marked on your calendar, run and do it now (the event is from 1-4 p.m.). This has evolved into the Miami Valley’s signature wine event, just as much about food as it is about wine. Well, it’s also about being outside on a gorgeous spring day in the beautiful setting of Carillon Park … and about arguably the best “people-watching” of the year … well, it’s just a fun event.

Plus, proceeds benefit the Wellness Connection of the Dayton Region, formerly known as the Dayton Area Heart and Cancer Association.

You can order tickets online or purchase tickets at Arrow Wine & Spirits, Dorothy Lane Market locations, Bella Vino, Cork-n-vine, Jerardi’s Little Store, Miami Valley Wine & Spirits, Miami Wine & Liquor, Cuvee’ Wine Bar and Cellar, Wine Works and more, according to the Wellness Connection’s web site and “save the date” mailer. If you’re offering tickets and aren’t listed here, post a comment and let us know.

For more info, dial 937-223-4117, Ext 107, or email: lweide@wellness-connection.org.

See you there!

Mark Fisher

Help us unravel the mystery of this century-old bottle of Port

By Uncorked | Monday, April 14, 2008, 12:13 PM

I’d like your help.

A reader called me seeking information about a bottle of Port she inherited from her father, who was given the bottle as a gift in 1950. She has had it since 1977, and it has been well-taken-care-of, the reader assures me. Now usually, these kinds of calls concern wines that are long, long over the hill, but this one, well, this one is a bit intriguing.

The wine in question is an 1894 Tawny Port. The label reads “APF’s V.X.T.P. Tawny Port.” It was “produced and bottled by Abel Pereira Da Fonseca” and was imported by the Great Lakes Wine Co., Chicago, Ill. It appears to have indeed come from Portugal.

Now, I’m particularly intrigued because one of the greatest wines ever to cross my lips was an 1898 Port at a special Port tasting in Bowling Green, Ohio, back in the mid-1980s. And could the reference to “Fonseca” have any connection to the current Fonseca Port house? Hmmmm.

Does anyone know anything about this wine, or where we could find out? Help us unravel the mystery …

Cheers!

Mark Fisher

‘Beer Nutz’ succeeds ‘Fun with Grapes’ on public access TV

By Uncorked | Monday, April 14, 2008, 06:51 AM

Frequent Uncorked contributor (and former Fairfield Wine owner) Dennis Hall passes along the following little gem about a new “beer show” that has debuted on local cable access television:

As a follow-up to our wine show, “Fun with Grapes,” we have a new show about beer, entitled “Beer Nutz.” We cover beer styles from around the world, how to taste, serve, food matching, and cooking with beer. It’s an 11-part series of half-hour shows. I am with Gordon Strong, one of the top national amateur beer judges.

The show started running on Miami Valley Communication Council (MVCC) Channel 23 on Monday Apr 7th at 7pm for 11 weeks. MVCC includes Centerville, Germantown, Ketterig, Miamisburg, Moraine, Oakwood, Springboro and West Carrollton

It will also start on Dayton/Time-Warner Channel 10 on Tues Apr 15 at 9pm. If the wine show was any indication, other cities will pick it up as well.

The wine show also won a 2007 Philo Award in the Educational category from the Alliance for Community Media (Central States Region-IN, OH, KY, MI) Video Competition . This is equivalent of a regional Emmy for public access TV. The wine show is also still running periodically around town.

Don’t you just love what happens when the ancient, the natural, the mysterious process of fermentation collides with the modern wonders of television technology?

Cheers!

Mark Fisher

Tell us about your restaurant ‘hidden gems’

By Uncorked | Friday, April 11, 2008, 11:36 AM

My colleague Alexis Larsen and I have written a piece that was published in today’s Go! section of the Dayton Daily News on restaurant hidden gems in the Miami Valley.

What about you? Know of any hidden gems that we missed? You can post a comment right here on good ol’ Uncorked, or you can jump on our web site and nominate your own there.

I anticipate we’ll write a follow-up story based on the responses, so don’t be shy. The voices (and palates) of Uncorked readers should be heard!

Cheers,

Mark Fisher

A world of wine awaits

By Uncorked | Friday, April 11, 2008, 07:26 AM

Quite a list of wines and other special events to behold in this week’s tastings list, compiled by a Dayton-based listserv. In addition to Saturday’s memorial tastings for Doug Simon at both Arrows, check out the special events at Cuvee, which is bringing in some winemakers and winery reps for some special events next week, and preparing some tasty-sounding eats to go with.

The list is yours, all yours, with a click of your mouse button on the “continue reading” link below. For info on Cincinnati-area wine tastings and events, go to my friend Michelle’s My Wine Education blog. Otherwise, enjoy, and cheers!

Mark Fisher

Jay’s Kitchen Door Friday, April 11, 2008 4-8 pm 2006 Cave di Taitian Marsanne 2002 E Tira e Figli Barolo 2002 Paolo Scadino Bricco Ambrogio Barolo 2004 Neyers Neyers Ranch Cabernet Sauvignon 2001 Chateau Pavie Decesse

Saturday, April 12 , 2008 1-6 pm 2004 Domaine Charles Auidoin Marsanny 2003 E Guigal Croze Hermitage (Red) 2001 Cantine Antonio Caggiano Trurasi 2003 Chateau Brane Cantenac

RSVP 222-2892 for all Dinners and Luncheons Wednesday, April 30, 2008 L’Ecole Wine Dinner $60 Grilled Lobster, Shrimp and Scallops with a Pineapple Cranberry Chutney Marinated Grilled Denver “style” Lamb Ribs with a Housemade Cherry Barbeque Sauce Herb Roasted Beef Tenderloin with Sauteed Morel Mushrooms, Lobster Mashed Potatoes and Roasted Shallot Sauce Apple Cheddar Tatin

Monday, May 12, 2008 Wine Dinner with Alessandro Angelini $55 Saturday, May 31, 2008 Copper River Salmon Luncheon $65

Arrow Far Hills - Kettering Saturday, April 12, 2008 11-5 pm Doug Simon Memorial Tasting

Dorothy Lane Market (DLM) Oakwood Friday, April 11, 2008 5-8pm Ferrari-Carano ’06 Fume Blanc Stag’s Leap ’05 Karia Chardonnay Valferi ’03 Barolo Celeste ’04 Crianza Paoloetti ’04 Non Plus Ultra Brown Bag

Saturday, April 12 , 2008 1-6 pm Pierre Gimonnet Brut Hess ’05 Suskol Vineyard Chardonnay Layer Cake ’06 Cotes du Rhone Schug ’06 Pinot Noir Earthquake ’03 Syrah Gordon Brothers ’01 Tradition Bonus Bottle

Wednesday, April 16, 2008 5:30 to 8:30 pm Lee Hill of Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. will be on site to discuss and taste a full line-up of his best crafted beers.

DLM Washington Square Thursday, April 10, 2008 5-8 pm 2005 Domaine Feuillat-Juillot Montagny 1er Cru 2005 Domaine Morey-Coffinet Chassagne Montrachet 2006 Louis Chavy Bourgogne Grand Ordinaire 2005 Louis Chavy Mercurey 2005 Louis Jadot Chambolle-Musigny Encore Wine!

Saturday, April 12 , 2008 12-5 pm NV Schramsberg “Mirabelle” Brut 2006 A to Z Pinot Blanc 2005 Michael David “Petit Petite” 2002 Clos Pegase “Mitsuko Vineyard” Merlot 2005 Montes “Purple Angel” 2005 Krupp Brothers “The Doctor”

Dorothy Lane Market Pastry Show DLM Springboro Community Room — Thursday, April 17, 2008 7-9 p.m. Taste the newest spring pastries in addition to our new Stuffed Baguette Sandwiches Sample a selection of fine wines and Belgian Ales View demonstrations by Pastry Chef Ghyslain and the DLM Patisserie staff Enjoy the debut of our new Killer Brownie Gelato Tickets $35 or $40the day of the show

Dorothy Lane Springboro Friday, April 11, 2008 3-8 pm Enotria Cortese 2006 Onzi Pinot Noir 2006 Grigich Hills Merlot 2002 Chateau D’Arche Haut Medoc 2005 Mystery wine

Saturday, April 12, 2008 12-5 pm Gundlach Bundschu Gewurztraminer 2006 Domaine Feullat-Juillot Montagny 1er Cru 2005 Sorter Pinot Noir 2006 Martin Ray Diamond Mtn Cabernet 2004 Chateau Smith-Haut Lafite Pessac-Leognan 2003 Mystery Wine

Cuvee Wine Bar and Cellar, 4457 State Route 725 Bellbrook Tuesday - Thursday 11:30 - 7 pm, Friday 11:30 - 8 pm Saturday 11:30 - 7 pm www.cuveewinebar.net Tasting from Friday, April 11 -Thursday, April 17, 2008 Domaine du Petit Coteau L’Etoile Vouvray 2005 Moelleux Pot Luck White $15 and under/bottle Pot Luck White $17.99-21.99/bottle Pot Luck Red $15 and under/bottle Pot Luck Red Westerland Pinotage Ledgewood Creek 2005 GSM Pot Luck Red $25-$35/bottle Pot Luck Red $35-$45/bottle Pot Luck Red $100 plus/bottle

Beer: Bell’s Oberon

Saturday Food (noon): Greek Chicken Soup and Asian BBQ Ribs

Saturday, 10 minute chair massages 12:30-3:30.

Tuesday, April 15, 2008 5-7 Spanish Wine Tasting With Susana Munilla of Gabrarda Wines: Gabarda II (Grenache/ Tempranillo) Gabarda III (Tempranillo/Cabernet/Merlot) Gabarda IV (Grenache/Cabernet/Syrah/Merlot/ Tempranillo)

Food: Pork & Avocado Bruschetta , Chilled Seafood Pasta,  Spanish Marinated Lamb Chops

Wednesday, April 16, 2008 Susan McCrea of McCrea Cellars, maker of premium Rhone Varietal wines in Washington. Drop-In Tasting 5-7 PM 2005 Sirocco Blanc, 2005 Roussanne, 2005 Sirocco Red,  2004 Counoise, 2006 Mourvedre, Amerique Syrah

Food:  Fresh Smelt with Lemon Caper Butter, Chicken Liver Pate with Port and Fig Confit, Pork Shanks in Syrah Broth

Saturday, April 19, 2008 6-8 pm Bremerton Wine Tasting with Assistant Winemaker, Lucy Wilson Bremerton Verdelho Selkirk Shiraz Tamblyn (Cab, Shiraz, Malbec, Merlot) Bremerton Reserve Cabernet

Arrow Centerville 937-433-6778 615 Lyons Rd Centerville Friday, April 11, 2008 5-7 pm Beer Tasting

Saturday, April 12, 2008 11 am-5 pm Wine Tasting Doug Simon Memorial Tasting

Rue Dumaine www.ruedumainerestaurant.com Tuesday, April 15, 2008 5-7 pm Three 2 oz tastes of wine with Chef Anne Kearney preparing a variety of hors d’oervres to accompany the wines. DOMAINE DU TERME Gigondas, 2004 D’ARENGERG Grenache McLaren Vale The Derelict Vineyard, 2003 BODEGAS ZABRIN Calatayud Atteca Old Vines, 2006

The Wine Gallery and Cafe, Corner of 3rd and Wayne Wednesday, April 16, 2008 5:30-8:30 pm Wine Tasting

Market Wine Imports, Second Street Public Market Saturday, April 12, 2008 8AM to 1PM. Value wine tasting!

Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar 937-320-9548 Wine Wednesdays 5pm to 8pm in the bar. Wednesday, April 16, 2008 First Wednesday of the Month Comparison Tastings! FRITZ Sauvignon Blanc, Russian River Valley, 2006 ROSEMOUNT Chardonnay, Hunter Valley, Australia, 2006 CASA LAPOSTOLLE Merlot Cuvee Alexandre, Colchagun Valley, Chile, 2005 ROBERT CRAIG Affinity, Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, 2004

A Taste of Wine 90 S. Main St Miamisburg, OH 937.247-1120 This week’s wines: Picpoul de Pinet, 4 Graces Pinot Gris, St Gregory’s Pinot Meunier, Zen of Zin, Farnese Montepulciano d’ Abruzzo, Arbor Crest Cabernet Sauvignon

April 10 - Italian Wine Tasting 7 pm April 12 - Live Music with Rob Snyder April 17 - Del Rio Wines 7pm April 18 - Belgium Beer Tasting May 1 - Europe through Rose filled Glasses

Trader Joe’s in Kettering. Tastings Thursday 6:00 to 8:00 and Sunday 4:00 to 7:00. Campello Pinot Grigio (2007) IGT Delle Venezie, Italy. Well Red Organic and Sulfite-Free (2006) California. Rosemblum Chateau La Paws (2004) California. Guenoc Cabernet Sauvignon (2005) California. Edition Maximilian Pinot Noir (2005) QbA Rheingau, Germany.

Winds Cafe, Yellow Springs April 11 and April 12, 2008 Austrian Wines and Food Dinner

El Meson Santa Carolina Wine Dinner Tuesday, April 15, 2008 7:00 pm $65 per person / VIP Members $60 Tax and gratuity included

Santa Carolina Sauvignon Blanc Scallops & Mango Ceviche with a Mint - Ginger Sauce

Santa Carolina Merlot Chicken Skewers dipped in Traditional Molè Poblano and dusted with toasted Sesame Seeds

Santa Carolina Chardonnay
Spicy Jicama Salad Garnished with Steak & Chorizo Taquito Straws

Santa Carolina Carmenere and Santa Carolina Cabernet Pork Rib Chops glazed with a Guajillo-Tomatillo Sauce. - Served with Roasted Green Beans tossed with Tomatoes, Olives, & Goat Cheese.

Dessert - Mousse de Ronpope (Rum Eggnog Mousse)

Bella Vino, Wine Merchant & Bar, Springboro, OH 45066 Thursday, April 10, 2008 5:30-7:30pm. 2005 Karly Pockerville Run Zinfandel 2006 Mackienz Sonoma Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 Robert Hall Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 Everett Ridge Sauvignon Blanc 2006 River Road Reserve Russian River Valley Chardonnay

Saturday, April 12, 2008 3-6 pm - A sampling of HOTTEST Brands of 200

Friday, April 18th, 7 pm ~ Rhone Style Blends from around the world Saturday, April 19th, Wines of Veramonte ~ Four for $5. Wednesday, April 23, 7-9 pm ~ Guenthers Wine Dinner, $40, plus tax & gratuity. Full course dinner paired with wines. Menu includes: Sautéed sea scallop with masion butter. Five oz Filet with homemade Crab Cake or Baked Halibut with Coconut Sauce. Both served with choice of salad and potato. Dessert: Godiva Choclate Cheesecake. RSVP Guenthers at 777-8880 or Little Sonoma at 942-Wine. Friday, April 25, 7 pm - “Four-Play” - Pits four lower value wines against four wines, four times the value of the first. Saturday, April 26, Mixin’ it up at Little Sonoma with Blended Wines

La Petite France http://www.lapetitefrance.biz/ Reservations 513-733-8383 Friday evening, April 11, 2008 6:30 pm $60 Bodacious Bordeaux Wine Tasting Dinner Wine pairings for each course atwww.lapetitefrance.biz Pezat Bordeaux Rose Bouillabaisse layered with croutons and a dollop of rouille Leek and camembert tart garnished with field greens Duck breast with blackberry sauce, haricot-verts and a crisp potato pancake Chocolate orange pots de crème

Inn at Versailles April 25, 2008 Vignalta Wine Dinner with Mr. Bonono www.innatversailles.com

Permalink | Comments (4) | Post your comment |

Cincy winefest medal-winners should sound familiar to you …

By Uncorked | Thursday, April 10, 2008, 07:55 AM

The Cincinnati International Wine Festival has announced its 2008 medal winners, and the list is worth perusing.

The first thing that leaps out: Our friends at Veleta winery, whose wines I wrote about just a few weeks back, impressed the judges mightily. The Veleta 2007 Tempranillo Rose captured a gold medal, and the Veleta 2005 Nolados won silver. (The rose has not yet hit the shelves, but is on its way, the Veleta folks say …)

And two wines I sampled “at the source” just last week while I was in California — I’m still organizing my notes and catching up with work duties before I deliver a full report — won bronzes: the Michael-David 2004 6th Sense Syrah, and the Michael-David 2005 Petite Petit, an improbable blend of Petite Sirah and Petit Verdot. Both are great wines from an up-and-coming winery — and emerging wine region. And while normally, bronze medals at such a competition might not be such a big deal, the relative dearth of golds and silvers suggests that at this particular judging, a bronze might just mean a bit more. Another bronze was won by Ohio winery Vinoklet for its NV Traminette Master Reserve from the Ohio River Valley.

Anybody tried any of the other medal-winners?

Congrats to the winning wineries, and cheers!.

Mark Fisher

Permalink | Comments (6) | Post your comment |

A tasting and tribute to Doug Simon

By Uncorked | Thursday, April 10, 2008, 06:25 AM

Plan on stopping by either Arrow Wine & Spirits store this Saturday (April 12) anytime between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. for a memorial tasting for Doug Simon. The Arrow folks say a flat fee will be charged to taste a selection of wines, with proceeds going to the benefit of a charity that Doug’s family will choose.

Ohio’s wine-shipping laws: will legislators fix — or ‘fix’?

By Uncorked | Wednesday, April 9, 2008, 06:39 AM

A VERY interesting story out of The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer headlined Wine shipping fix changes little for Ohioans.

So … legislators who admitted they muffed the punt the first time are trying to fix the state’s confusing, restrictive wine-shipping laws that they messed with before in what was, for all practical purposes, secret legislation. But a sponsor of the newest proposed “fix” says he has encountered opposition to relaxing the shipping restrictions from Ohio’s Wholesale Beer and Wine Association (no surprise) and from the Ohio Department of Commerce (huh??) — all behind closed doors, of course. Spokesmen for those groups say, essentially, “Who, us?”

And the questions remain: Will these most recent proposals — which are being kicked around in private among lobbyists and legislators — receive full and complete public scrutiny before being tacked onto an existing bill and rushed into law?

And most important: Who represents the consumer in these deliberations? Who is sitting at the negotiating table representing the consumers??

Just wondering …

Mark Fisher