woo hoo!

I get your E-mail blasts.. that tipped me off 😉

Gary, Another enjoyable episode! Anyone willing to pay $40 to $70 on a bottle of wine will have no problem finding a great bottle of wine. For those of us wine lovers that need to spend the paycheck on oil, gas and electricity, the real game is to find a $15 or less bottle of wine that tastes almost as good as a wine worth twice the price. How about giving us a few more episodes on some of your favorite best buy wines? Since Cabs, Merlots and Pinots are very popular, let’s hear about some of your favorites that are little known wines that are a real steal for the money. Whether they are from Australia, Argentina, S. Africa or California.

BILL T I will do that for sure, look for my favorite value wines coming soon!

I’m glad you said something about the size of that glass, Gary. Hmmm.

Gary,

Another great episode. Your change of stemware today (Burgundy Grand Cru?) inspired my questions.

What’s your opinion on Riedel and others’ “shape for every grape”? If we drink a wide variety of wines and don’t want to invest in, or have the space for a dozen different glasses, what shapes are the best multi-taskers? Lastly, are the high-end crystal really worth the money?

Thanks,
Nick

I am glad to see that I was not the only kid tasting tar. (I tasted it in Wisconsin. I wonder what the tar flavor profiles are like)

Several episodes ago (and I tried to track down the episode, but couldn’t find it) you said: “There are no great wines, only great bottles”

Unless I mis-heard this, doesn’t this obviate all the tasting and scores?

I hope you can make a comment about this.

Thanks,

Dan (In Houston)

this episode was so awesome it almost made my head explode. the rapping wasnt half bad you kind of remind me of this guy http://youtube.com/watch?v=5cfgeRCsfI0

man, that glass is so big it makes me want to curse…hahaha….it’s cool that you did some of your favs….i was hoping to make it to the questions, i thought i had a good one. the rap…awesome.
no question of the day…btw.
okay…new question:
in your opinion, how do meritage rank against bordeaux (as a whole). I understand that meritage is a bordeaux-styled american blend, so no one jump on me…i was just wondering what you thought the future holds for the meritage…could napa overtake bordeaux someday? oh yeah, and feel free to answer my question from the last episode

man, that glass is so big it makes me want to curse…hahaha….it’s cool that you did some of your favs….i was hoping to make it to the questions, i thought i had a good one. the rap…awesome.
no question of the day…btw.
okay…new question:
in your opinion, how do meritage rank against bordeaux (as a whole). I understand that meritage is a bordeaux-styled american blend, so no one jump on me…i was just wondering what you thought the future holds for the meritage…could napa overtake bordeaux someday? oh yeah, and feel free to answer my question from the last episode

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wow, made it into the top ten…amazing considering WLTV’s new found popularity…yay for me.
whatup gary!

When I was a kid, my fathers family had a roofing business and there was tar everywhere. I had the habit of picking up pieces of tar and chewing it. I can recall the taste of tar to this day.
BTW, great episode Gary.

Gary:

I know you talked about how tough wine is. If take wine from my cellar (56 Degrees). Then travel with it and it goes room temp. Do I need to drink it or can I put it back in the cellar. After your rappin we may have to call you Gary “Mad Dog” P. – Very good effort!

Gary,

Thanks for answering my question! I was really scratching my head there for awhile.

Yesterday, I found myself at the website for Sub Zero wine fridges, where they try to scare you into buying a wine fridge because of all the “enemies” of wine out there trying to destroy your vintage Ripple.

I found this quote on the site interesting: “Science has determined that wine stored at temperatures greatly higher than 13°C will experience an increased aging rate, resulting in the maturation of a wine over a very short period of time. The greater the temperature increase, the faster the wine ages. One study suggests that a month of aging at 91°F is the equivalent to between 4 months and 18 years of aging at 55°F, depending on the type of wine.”

So…if I want to fast forward to 2018 and drink my 2000 Lafite now, all I have to do is leave it at 91° for 4 months??? People try to sell all kinds of goofy gadgets to “instant age” wine, and I own them all (just kidding!!). Now, I find out all I have to do is leave my bottles on top of the fridge for a few months!

Tell me this is just a load of baloney. What’s the real effect of temperature on wine? My old house (which I just moved out of) didn’t have AC. That was fine for about 50 weeks out of the year, but for a couple of weeks every summer, indoor temps in the 90s weren’t unusual. But honestly, I’ve never noticed any effect on the wines. What would it really take to cook a wine, and how would you tell? What does a cooked wine taste like?

Gary,

I just read Tony’s post and am also interested about this whole wine storage debate. I am moving down to Virginia in a few days and currently have my wine stored in a basement. However, the best I can do in my new apartment in Virginia is a closet. Luckily the apartment has air conditioning and the temp should never really go above 70-75 degrees. How will the wine hold up in your opinion? If not, are there any tips you could offer to us who dont have the “proper” cellars but want to keep our wine safe? Thanks!!

Hey Gary, I’d also like to know the answer to Tony’s question (#15) on aging. I have always wondered why it is perfectly acceptable for a liquor store to keep all their wine at room temp (72-75 degrees) and maybe higher in the “back storage room” and under strong lights but unacceptable for the average wine connoisseur. In fact, I would love to know what temps a bottle of wine has had to endure to go from the winery in the land down under all the way to New Jersey …Or maybe from S. Africa to the US? I find it very hard to believe the hold of a cargo ship is a loving 55 degrees the whole way!

Nice rap. My question is: What happened to the “Question of the Day”????

Go Bears.
T

Hi Gary,

Noticing your big glass today – I wanted to ask you a glass question: Most wine glass manufacturers have a much smaller glass for Burgundy – compared with their Bordeaux models. Why is it that Burgundy is supposed to taste better in smaller glasses? Personally – I do not find that to be the case.

Best regards,

Henrik Brandt – Copenhagen, Denmark

Agree with the Jacob Franklin, great wine. Just visited the Elyse winery in Napa a few weeks ago (JF is their second label, named for the owner’s son – Elyse is the Daughter’s name). They had a few killer zins, in particular the 2004 Howell Mountain zin… the nose alone on that wine was spectacular, lots of white pepper. I think you carry the Korte Ranch which was also very good.

Aging – Great questions Tony & Bill regarding aging and store temps. Most “good” stores will keep items that turn quickly and are meant to sell quick and drink quick 1-3 years out on the floor. If you are walking in and expect to buy a nice $50-$100+ bottle of Cali Cab or Bordeaux other than the most recent vintage, typically it will be in a temp & humidity controlled area. BTW – Why are you so worried about the taste of your wine, when the thing that I believe will “RUIN” your wine the fastest is the CORK drying out and then seepage and oxidation. I believe it is a “Harmony” between temp and humidity, & light. I also agree with Gary – Wine is TOUGH!!! Just dont subject it to the extreme’s!! IDEAL storage will maximise a wines potential to age. Since wine is so subjective, and you would have to wait decades to get answers, I believe these are some great questions for discussion – I dont think you are going to get answers. Gary – I have watch every video since day one. Great job. BTW – Ya did miss ? of day!!!

Gary-
Just one idea about Tony, Gary and Bill’s questions re: aging. How about an experimental approach? Take five bottles of medium range wine, keep at 91 degrees and pull them at one, two, three and four months, then tasting them together to see the effect vs the control 5th bottle which has been at 55 the wholetime. It could be a January episode in the making.

First, thanks to johnb for that link to the white rapper. Second, thanks to Gary V for that spirited defense of new world wines! Right on!

Gary, there have been a lot of questions on the aging of wine and storage temp – all important issues. You have also raised the issue of the affect of decanting on wine. Does pulling the cork an hour or so before serving accomplish anything? Which wines really need to be decanted before serving? I believe how the wine is served has a huge impact on how it tastes – this may be a reason for the significant bottle variability you have commented on.

Question is this….if the wine publications tell the public that 1994 and 1997 are the best vintages of a decade, how do you know that the ’95 is the real “Aging” year? Do you look for tasting notes that have high tannic values across the board? What is it? I am a geek who REALLY likes to age his wine, so I would prefer a year that gives longevity.

B

B

For a better view of WL, don’t use Google Earth; use Windows live local ( http://local.live.com/ ). The Bird’s Eye View shows the WL building in the last stage of construction. If Gary were walking in, you could recognize him. The Taco Bell is still there.

Gary,

Great episode.

You’ve mentioned restaurant wine lists more than once in your shows. I’m curious, what your take on them is…do you think its worth spending an extra 40/50 bucks on a bottle of wine when you got out? How do you personally tackle this issue?