Great to see hendrik in another show with the fantastic gary v.

QOTD: yeah, a grape of region that has winemaking talent but not trendy!

Terrific episode; I even liked his scarf!

I missed the favorite song question at the end there. ,

Terrific episode. Great guest, great Bulava video tacked on at the end. I am so grateful for episode #701 which heads-upped me to some faves (of other Vayniacs) that I had missed. You know, if I'm ever bedridden for a prolonged period of time, I will watch all 701 + episodes and pity all those who are not bedridden like me. I LOVE THIS SHOW!!!!!!!!!!

[Sorry, I can't stop myself, I am such a pedantic nitpicker, Gary. It's "by the same token", not "at the same token". Forgive me.]

Daria K from Toronto

ADVICE ANYONE - About to start a new career in wine sales, for a German wine company called Pieroth Wines in New Zealand.
I have a history in sales but no knowledge in wine, although i do enjoy red wine, What are the most important things to learn about wine??

I start in two weeks so just trying to get some tips.....thanks anyone.

Wonderful show, and great guest. More of these!

QOTD (a long time afterwards) : what I see in Spain is that some wines can be made for under 5€, but of course they are only from the major grapes (in Spain : tempranillo)and from areas where the conditions are optimal for wine making. In Belgium wines are also made, but it will be difficult to make a good one for under 20€, so...

I'm not sure how I coulda missed this episode but thanks for linking it up with the other German youngster. Greatest ep I almost never saw. Storm the Nickers! I listened to it twice but didn't hear it till I read it in the comments. Big ups to the Vayniacs! GV good job. You only interupted him 12 times. The German view is awesome.
Way to Tack it on MOTT!

That guy is awesome. Hilarious episode. Only problem was his inability to be honest about the wines. But I can understand, his livelihood depends on his German connections.
QOTD: Had a Bogle for 7.99 and a Penfolds for 6.50 (little too much oak) but both were quite serviceable and under 8.

Great show, great guest host but Gary, puh-LEASE stop interrupting while your guest is speaking!

I need to be happy a botle of wine and this great video...

Very interesting...
Nice entertainment...Hendirk its a very funny guy...
greetings from germany :-)

I'm a tremendous fan of this episode, Hendrik was a fantastic guest with a great personality. The banter between Gary and him was great.

Also, the fan video at the end was awesome, it made me shed a few tears from overwhelming laughter, thanks for the experience.

Just had to chime in and say thanks for a fantastic episode. That was fucking thunder right there. One of the top episodes in WLTV history.

QOTD - Yes, it is possible. I am drinking some solid wines in Argentina right now for under $8 US

This episode kicked A$$... Good job to all!!!

I have already seen and loved this episode...awesome show...but i just had the 2002 Zilliken Saarbuger Rausch Spatlese and it was utterly delicious. just thought I'd share!

"Victory through harmony" Arsenal all they way!!!!!

nice show hendrik! wunderbar dich auf dem internet wiederzufinden! can´t wait to taste the wines too!

cheers, joerg

I came across this video through the German Wine Institute, as I'm studying wines of Germany for the WSET Diploma. Positive feedback: The guest was a treat to watch, a wealth of information, and had lots of interesting stories to share. The wines that were picked were a good mix of wine styles, grapes, and good cross-section of wine production in Germany today. Negative feedback: let the guest talk, and stop interrupting! Oh yes, and the pesky point assignments. After being in the wine industry for many years, I've concluded that it's best to start weaning the American (and world) consumer off the travesty of the point system. This is someone's hard work, blood, sweat, and tears you're assigning a finite number to, and should treat it with more respect. The WSET trains students to use a scale of "faulty, poor, acceptable, good, very good, and oustanding" with a requirement to always justify these quality assessments (balance, concentration, complexity, and length). This seems more respectful.

Best show ever!!! Best guest!! Tough question!

If you want to taste a great dessert wine. Do try Moncalvina Moscato d'Asti (http://www.coppo.it/English/i_vini/moncalvina.htm) It's amazing wine. Goess well with ice creams and specialy with Rum Raisin Ice Cream! Do test it in one of your shows!

Saw this episode when it came out--keep thinking about it, came back to tell you: one of your best, GV. You 2 guys swirl my world!

This was a great episode very interesting. This guy is the man. Gary you should have more episodes on Chilean wines. I don't understand why you haven't, they are some of the best in the World. Please dedicate one whole episode to Chilean Wines. That Gewurztraminer was just the tip of the iceberg.

that was a sick video!

GV--keep the guests coming!!! You should get more master soms from nyc!!!

Loved loved Hendrik in this episode. He should definitely do more episodes.

You wantet to have 400 comments - here you go. Good show, schön dass es mal ein Deutscher zu dir geschafft hat ;-)

And thanks to the guy who did the short clip, loved it!

Fantastic episode. Hendrik Thoma is now my favorite guest on thow show so far ( of course, not counting Mott... no one can top him ). Hedrink was a LOT of fun and offered so much in this episode. His sense of humor was great and I loved how you two played off each other when "arguing" about the wines. Of course, my German heritage is happy to see a great Master Som from Germany and the German wines on the show do so well. QOTD: As long as the passion and heart is there, and greed isnt involved, I do think its possible. .....Loved the movie at the end, with music from one of my top movies of all time!!..... That'd be "The Great Escape" for all you that dont know.

Hey I completely got out of the habit of watching wltv but I'm getting back on track!
QOTD- Probably not but you never know what tricks the producers are pulling for profits!

What a great guest! ONe of my favorites!

if there was it wouldn't be under 8 bones for long. Question back Is anybody trying to make a great wine at under 8 bucks a throw? Is anybody tasting the 8 and under offerings? How much would they charge for the next vintage if the 8 dollar previous vintage got a 94? As for regular people, who is trolling the 8 and under rack with a pallet that could substantiate the greatness? or perhaps it just helped you enjoy a great evening. Nonetheless we can all enjoy searching and then stocking up on whatever we deem great. If it is great throw your wine guy the extra 2$ change from that 10 spot.(or wine gal) Thought your guest was great

Super episode. Just got back from Munich and that city obviously runs on beer. I'm looking forward to exploring more of Germany in the future.

QOTD: I have had plenty of good (sometimes very good) wines at the $8 price point (most notably from Spain) but I can't call any of them great.

Vielen Dank, Hendrik! What a great episode. I love Hamburg, I went to a really good restaurant there last time. Ristorante San Daniele in Poppenbuettel. I especially loved the reference to Ricola, as my boyfriend is Swiss and I love to recite the commercial. Wer hats erfunden? Schweizer. LOL.

QOTD: Can't think of anything off the top of my head, but anything is possible, right?

Hendrik was such an awesome guest! It looks like you two had a great time. He should definitely make the trip back for another episode! I loved Germany when I visited. People were so nice there and Hamburg is such an amazing city! Unfortunately I missed the Xmas market by one day...that just means I have to go back!

QOTD: A good $5 wine? Perhaps something serviceable, but what with the cost of labor, etc I don't see a "great" wine coming from a $5 bottle, unless someone is doing wine drinkers a service and taking a loss on each bottle! Maybe in South America you could get a rather good wine for $5, but I'm highly doubtful. If you find one, lemme know, I'd love to try it out!

I've been lurking it up for a while now, really liked this show and thought it's about time i left a comment. Great show, great guest, agree with Drew that you work well together, and liked the extra vid at the end!!

Dawn, don't worry, U.S. wines aren't unknown over in Europe, certainly not in UK anyway. Here restaurant wines lists are likely to include California Chardonnay and a quality Napa Cab/Sauv for instance. Also plenty of Zinfandel and White Zinfandel in the shops. Had a nice Washington State Merlot recently too.

However, we do seem to get more wine form other New World Countries, especially Australia, NZ and Chile (from where i tried a nice Gewurtz recently!)

QOTD: Decent wines yes, and i'd like to think there is a great wine for each palate out there somewhere - fun trying to find it too!

Keep up the good work GV..

Love "Soccer" !!!

excellent guest, excellent show.
5 dollars: difficult yet possible, but definitely not in Europe.
ciao a tutti

This guy is fucking awesome.... Enthusiastic europeans make me laugh

Nice show. I liked the contrast in purpose. Hendrik focuses on how a wine can be matched to a meal and value within a variaty and Gary has a more absolute perspective on the wines being tasted and how they compare to other wines at their pricepoint.

Forgot to mention... I think it is quite sad that wines from America are unknown overseas!!!

Really liked this episode. Great guest. Nice banter...

Also enjoyed the video that was "tacked" on!

QOTD: Don't think anything more than just ok for $8.

Infrequent commenter but not a lurker.. who thinks soccer is a far more exciting game to watch than Am.football.

Good show. Mr Thoma was a good guest (and quite modest never to mention his somm world championship, cuvées and Laguiole special edition) but I wish GV would develop his listening skills with guests. The occasional abdominal breath, Gary, it will take nothing away from the passion.

QoTD: A spohisticated wine can't be achieved at that price point, but there can exist servceable more large-scale productions. Obviously far cheaper wines can please vast numbers of wine drinkers, and who can judge?