Nice job MikeF…You paid attention to the question.
Gary another great episode…14 pts…(94 to the magazine junkies).
Wine turned me on to wine…I have always been a foodie and naturally ordered wines while eating. By the grace of a few great wine stewards I have become an oenophile to the core!
I like how you are wearing Mike Vick’s number 7 practice jersey today 😉 GO FALCONS!!!

Thanks Gary! E mail is on the way. The pink shirt should do wonders to dispel my image as an uber geek. 😉

I definitely learned to appreciate wines from my father. Growing up in an Italian family, there was always wine on the table. It always found it interesting that my father loves wines, but still can’t really drink any other alcoholic beverages. Now, I continue my love for wine being involved in the restaurant business with my friends.
I am a Jet fan too, but I would be happy with 9-7 this year.

Awesome episode. 92-94pts. And thanks for covering South African wines yesterday. I’m almost as obsessed with them as much I am with WLTV, which has become the highlight of my night after a long day at work.

I lived near the Napa/Sonoma area so it was a natural thing to get into wine, sort of an evolutionary process, besides my grandfather made wine, when he wasn’t drilling on peoples teeth.

Rating 92-93 and for those who are so uptight and don’t appreciate Gary’s approach and levity with wine, go shop at Berry Brothers and Rudd in London, they are right your alley!

Episode is rated 91. The biggest wine influence I had was a college class I took. They had a full semester wine appreciation class at Purdue — where I got my undergrad degree. It was a fully legit class with 300 students. We had an hour lecture, then about an hour tasting (serving 300 students was tough!), then we usually watched a video the last hour. Get this, my prof’s name was Professor Vine. I’m not making it up. You can find the textbook we used (he wrote it) online if you look hard enough. I guess he was the wine buyer for United Airlines for quite some time and really knew his wine…

http://www.agriculture.purdue.edu/connections/spring2005/wb02_04.htm

My wife got me into wine about 5yrs ago (I was weak after a bad micro-brew) and never looked back. Living in WA I am surrounded by great wineries and CA is just a 2hr flight away – “when in Rome”.

Gary if I rated you on passion we would have to move to the richter scale – show gets 94.

Firstly, I’d rate this episode a strong 96. And I totally agree with you about the Vitiano!!!

Secondly, my father is right off the boat from Yugoslavia and his father had his own cellar, even made Slivovitsa. Wine was always talked about, even though it was not served to us kids growing up. I think what got me into wine seriously was being introduced, in the middle of the Carribbean, to a 1976 Chateau Margaux. Holy cow!!!! The rest is history.

Gary,
There’s one thing I’ve been wanting to tell you. I feel that this race to post first concept is silly. It seems to me that the first 4-5 posters probably skip the episode just to post first & who knows if they even go back to watch it. If you were to look at this thread alone only 1 out of the first 5 went back to post something relevant to the episode. I just think it really waters down WLTV & loses focus on its real purpose.

Ok enough of my rants. The reason I got into wine was because of my father-in-law. Before my wife & got married he was a hard nut to crack if you will. I needed an “in” with him & at the time we only had one thing in common & that was sports; baseball in particular. Since he was a former MLB player there were only so many arguments or strategies I could win & I was never going to be able to bs him. So that left me with wine. I knew he really liked it so I began to read every publication known to man & taste many different cabs (his fav). I found out what his favorite bottle was & learned it inside & out. I’m happy to report that it worked!!! The only problem now is that its become an obsession with me. A very expensive one. So much so that I just had to have my own cellar. One which we built together & I told him that he could only gain access to it by providing a minimum of 3 cases. And he did!!! We have really bonded.
Thanks Gary for allowing me to share this story. Not too many people know it.
Cheers!

Hey other Tony,

Finally, someone else who agrees that California wine (or new world in general) is not an old world wine and can appreciate BOTH styles!

See you later,
Tony

and go Bears!

Are you thinking Vanilla Milkshake when you say it smells milky? You said you know it’s something to do with the oak.

Better episode, less rushed, remembered the questions, I even have an answer for the QOD. 91

Mel Gibson in the movie “What Women Want” has a case of merlot fetched by one of the gals in the movie, so I went and got a bottle of under $10 Chilean merlot which turned out pretty good. Been stuck ever since. The science showing that red wine was good for you helped me along to trying wine as well, but isn’t as entertaining a story.

Gary- After a concert in 2004, one of our friends ordered the 2001 Artazuri with dinner and my wife loved it. A month later, the same friend dropped by and gave us 6 bottles. About a week later, a different friend gave us a bottle of 1993 Opus One as a thank you. Anyway, I bought a home cellar and have been hooked ever since.

Great episode. The 2002 Hecula was the second case of wine I ever bought in the summer of 2004. It was a great buy.

Dan

Gary – awesome episode – a “96” point classic (to be watched again and again over time). Really nice work. It was real, relaxed, you spent lots of time with the subject, Really taught something valuable – – and I love the “real” descriptors that we all can get (skitles, Dairy). Sometimes I can’t differentiate Parker’s and Spectators reviews apart because of they don’t get to the heart of the wine, like you do.

I agree 100% with the Falesco review. I bought a case of the stuff (at WL) with its first 90 point review in the 1990s. I was so dissapointed in it – I used half the case to cook with.

Which brings me to a question I have debated with friends for life. Does Parker and Spectator adjust scores for price?? Is a 91 point (i.e. Vitanno, Marquis Phillips) $10 wine equal in quality to 91 point $50 wine (i.e., a Calon Segur, or Renard). I personally would love for 90 points = “Excellent” regardless of price. That would let me determine which wines to seek depending on my budget. Do you have a feel for ratings adjustments….or an opinion on the proper way to rate a wine (based on price or independent of price)

After my Vitanno and later Marquis-Phillips experience, I stopped buying wines rated 90 points under $20. Didn’t want to bother with them anymore.

So Thank you for finding me a real QUALITY wine at a bargin – the Hecula. I don’t trust Parker on ratings of $10 wines – but based on your review I will seek out the Hecula. Thank you for that service.

I got into wine by visiting Napa during the 1978 harvest. Napa was different then. Not yet Touristy. Vinterns spoke to us – taught us, and we tasted those magical 1978 ripe Grapes while harvesting. That vintage and experience got me hooked.

Gary, Great review of the Renard. I was very excited to see it on the queue for today. I am a big fan of the Renard Unti Syrah, which gets a 90 RP. I always wondered if the 1 point better Tres Ninos was worth an extra 20 clams, but based on your rating of 94 I think I’ll have to give it a go. I have had great success buying based on your ratings and recommendations.

A note on the Falesco… I totally agree. I bought some of this based on the 90pt rating and was very disappointed. Luckily it was only 7 bucks.

Like I said, I have had great success buying based on your ratings and recommendations, so I would have to give you a 94. Keep up the good work

Gary- I forgot to rate your episode 76. You get a 91. I liked the different price points. I have tried the first 3 wines and agree with you on each. Maybe our tastes are similar??

I wouldn’t even cook with the Falesco it was so bad. Threw out both of the other bottles I had and I don’t like to throw out wine. That’s why it’s Wine Expectator. Gary definitely 91 points today despite the outfit. No team will be 16-0 this year.
I got into wine from a wine tasting group made up of neigbors and a friend from work. Still do a wine group 27 years later but new people now.

Question for you. How did Wine Spectator which is just an advertising rag get to be so influential. They are almost routinely of the mark and seem to rate wines based on who advertises with them or who is slipping a few K in their coffers.

Lawrence: good points (including football points). Lawrence, what od you make of Spectator’s bashing of BV and Montelena TCA-ladden and moldy cellars. Real and deserved or political?

Gary – Never mind that the Jets are not the best team in football – – they may not even be the best team in NJ (Prediction: Giants and Rutgers finish higher in their divisions than the Jets)

Re: Falesco
This producer is gaining a reputation for severe bottle variation.
That’s why I don’t buy it anymore, regardless of rating.

Later.

Hey Gary et al.,
Definately a 92. I liked the varied price points; it made an interesting show to see how the wines compared. No real negatives per se; just not your best.

QotD: A family friend introduced me to German riesling after my family had been, and are still, strictly white zin drinkers. The nuances of other varietals intrigued me, whetting my appetite for other styles. I really got into it at 21 when I purchased Wine for Dummies at my campus bookstore. Now 22, i am trying to develop my palate and buy as much wine as my gf of 3yrs will allow. Someday, I’ll have a vast cellar which I will whittle away, leaving one bottle when I die. That last bottle will be the one that describes my life best; it will be for my loved ones to celebrate my life with. I guess it should be a 3L bottle, huh? We’ll see.

GeneV,
I had the same thought when the competition started: “should’nt the first to watch the episode win?” Ah, oh well, its all in the name of good fun. Maybe i’ll start a new competition:

“LAST for this episode!!!”

Yes, I win. hopefully.

16-0 the Jets…? Are you now drinking bad wine that makes you see vapor trails? LOL

The Dolphins and the Patriots will have better records than the Jets.

How about episode where you and a wltv viewer blind taste wine together and rate the wines?

Gary,

I just got back from vacation (Sideways country, Napa & Sonoma) and have been catching up on all the WLTV vlogs. Your shows bounce between 85(boo hoo) – 95 (mostly in the 90’s) with an occasional 99+. (I particularly liked the “wedding” show.) Keep up the good work.

I don’t believe that you have done a Rosé show.

I was introduced to Rosés a few years ago in Aix when I asked the waiter for a reccomendation. He suggested a Rosé !!! And it was good . . . and then I noticed that many of the locals were also drinking Rosés. In the interest of trying all kinds of wines, how about it?

As to who influenced me the most — I have a group of friends (for about 27 years now) who began to taste wines in the blind. Not knowing the price or the label really forces you to judge the wine on its merits (color, nose, taste, etc.) To me, this is the only way to really learn about wine – at least at the beginning. We still do it occassionally. What fun.

Stan

My cousin started me into homebrewing beer and while we were waiting for the mash to cook, we would open up some red’s. Also, my family has always loved good wine for the holiday’s.

A question for you- what was/is your best and worst wltv episode you have done?

My wife and I love watching WLTV as we never see you in the store anymore. So, this is our only chance to see you.

There wasn’t one specific person who started us or influenced us about wine. We moved to the northeast in 1990. At the time, we were drinking basic (cheap) wines that were on sale at the time. One day I saw a liquor store ad in the paper for a 90-some-odd point wine for $29.99. Not having any idea about 70 point, 80 point or 90 point scores for wines…and never having imagined spending $29.99 on any one bottle, I headed on down to the store to find out about this wine.

That evening I threw a couple filets on the grill and opened up this bottle of ’85 Chateau Montelena. WOW! What a difference. We started ‘investigating’ other wines and after a while were exceeding that $29.99 benchmark. The following 16 years have been a joy…visiting wine regions in California. Oregon, Washington and Australia.

Definitely a hobby gone awry. But lots of fun!

Gary Beesley

Gary,
I rate today’s episode a 93. Interesting and memorable topic, fun delivery, some genuinely funny moments, some apparently great wines (both inexpensive and more expensive), one that tanked, and you did the viewer questions along with throwing out a good QOD. I have not tried the ’04 Falesco Vitiano, but I have enjoyed past vintages (e.g., ’01 and “02)so I was somewhat surprised the bottle showed so poorly. QOD: Most influential for our wine hobby was the wine steward (J.C.) and the “founder’s group” at the Woodstock Wine & Deli (Portland OR). Shout out to you guys!