Great episode. Did you read the NY Times article a couple of weeks ago that discussed the wine rating system? It discussed a lot of what you prove in each episode. Ratings are tremendously subjective, and can be pushed.

As for your question, I started to get into wine about 5 years ago. I was a lobbyist in Washington, DC, and was always out to eat and had the benefit of drinking some very nice wines. My issue was that I couldn’t always differentiate the difference between at $30 bottle of wine and a $100 bottle of wine. I started small…reading Wine for Dummies and books like that. I started to attend wine tastings and the annual wine show here in DC. I am still, admittedly, a rookie at this, but still press on to learn and appreciate wine tha that much more.

Question: You often refer to a variety of spices and flavors when reviewing wine. What is the best way to acquire that sensitivity in one’s palette? I have considered taking a sommelier’s course. What do you think?

My ex-girlfriend is from Burgundy (Dijon) and she was the one who really introduced me to wine. I’ll never forget going to dinner with her at a great French bistro in our old neighborhood. One of the waiters was notorious for upholding every cliche of the arrogant Frenchman. Holding true to that, he told us that the bottle we ordered was not that good and he would bring us something better, which happened to be considerably more expensive. My ex tastes it and being no stranger to good Burgundy, told him to send it back. It was terrible, possibly even corked. I still laugh when I think about the look on that waiter’s face. Before my ex, I had an interest in wine but by no means an appreciation. Even though the relationship ended, I’m still grateful she gave me that appreciation. Reckon that’s why Burgundy is my favorite wine bar none (sorry, Gary!!).

Oh yeah, about Saturday night – you go ahead and get excited about a preseason win. Go ‘Skins.

My ex-girlfriend is from Burgundy (Dijon) and she was the one who really introduced me to wine. I’ll never forget going to dinner with her at a great French bistro in our old neighborhood. One of the waiters was notorious for upholding every cliche of the arrogant Frenchman. Holding true to that, he told us that the bottle we ordered was not that good and he would bring us something better, which happened to be considerably more expensive. My ex tastes it and being no stranger to good Burgundy, told him to send it back. It was terrible, possibly even corked. I still laugh when I think about the look on that waiter’s face. Before my ex, I had an interest in wine but by no means an appreciation. Even though the relationship ended, I’m still grateful she gave me that appreciation. Reckon that’s why Burgundy is my favorite wine bar none (sorry, Gary!!).

Oh yeah, about Saturday night – you go ahead and get excited about a preseason win. Go ‘Skins.

Gary

BTW – “Big Blue” will make “Gang Green” look stupid on Friday night.

Great episode Gary.

I purchased 1/2 a case of the DiMajo back in March based on a recommendation from a wine store owner (one of my few non-WL purchases). My findings were the wine is terrific drunk within the first 2 hours of being open, and then goes downhill fast. This is a great wine for parties and dinner with friends – where you know you will finish bottles quickly. Cellartracker.com community has rated it between 83 and 91 — mostly 86-88s so you seem to be in agreement with lots of other wine drinkers on that bottle.

QOD: I don’t know if a I can say a person got me into wine — I seem to be more into wine than anyone in my family or my friends. I think the mystique of wine simply grabbed on to me because it is such a changeable and odd thing. Finding that “amazing” wine that no one else knows about is a great high. I still dream about that $9 1999 Domaine Breton you sold back in Spring of ’05. I wish I had bought more than 6 bottles. That was a real winner wine.

Gary-
Great episode!
I would rate your episode today as a 93.
I really enjoyed what you said today about the prices of the wines.
Biltmore Estate has a fantastic winery. They have free tastings at their winery 361 days out of the year. I have been a 12- month passholder for over 10 years. So I have learned alot about wines from trips to their winery since 1988.
Thanks Gary! Keep up the great episodes:):)

Gary-
Great episode!
I would rate your episode today as a 93.
I really enjoyed what you said today about the prices of the wines.
Biltmore Estate has a fantastic winery. They have free tastings at their winery 361 days out of the year. I have been a 12- month passholder for over 10 years. So I have learned alot about wines from trips to their winery since 1988.
Thanks Gary! Keep up the great episodes:):)

Gary… Nice episode, very engaging. And partly because I completly agree with you on the Hecula. As far as the QOD, I’d have to say that there has not been one particular person that had introduced me to wine. There have been a few (the random wine store clerk, friend, dinner partner) that have definitely fueled the already burning fire. Now, my QOD for those others on the board, particularly those who say they were introduced to wine at a young age (by parents) and for you Gary (as I am sure you were young; Wine Library being a fam business, right): how young is young? were you all teens? younger (with the wine being diluted)? Thanks in advance, looking forward to replies and the next episode!

this episode: 92 points…enthusiastic, informative, and very strong showing. okay QOTD: the person who got me into wine was a very influential person in my life. his name was flemming and he ran a small art gallery in downtown tuscaloosa, alabama. he was a photography teacher at the university of alabama and over my years in t-town he became a mentor and one of my closest friends…he passed away in december 2002. i still think of him anytime i open a bottle and it is great…i think ‘man, he would love this’…
good job gary…later

definitely a 90-92 today. a bit of everything that we need and not as frantically paced as yesterday (which i rate as about 88). i think the outfit is all that kept it below 95. 🙂

QOD: as a student i drank what was cheap (as an art student i drank Botticelli because it was cheap AND had the famous venus on the half shell on the label)…honestly i’ve always loved wine but now i think the real interest is stemming from having an academic’s (as contrasted to student) bit of disposable income and wanting to know how to keep learning and not JUST assume more expensive = more quality.
btw: my new trick it to keep a tab open to our liquor store here and check on each bottle as you review it, see if we stock it here…turns out your highly rated hecula is available so i plan to run out and get some tonight…. finally see how what you say compares to my own tasting!

QOD – my best friend’s father used to be the food and wine buyer for Cipriani’s here in NYC so he had a ton of quality free wine (mostly Italian) in his house. Lucky for me, every time I came over, he opened a bottle or two, and I got addicted to Amarones.

i cant say that there was one person that got me into wine. one day i just decided to drink it and then i started reading about it and before i knew it i was a fan. then i watched WLTV and wine became my religion.

I was turned on to wine by my parents and my hometown. I grew up on the Central Coast of California (Sideways country), so I was surrounded by wine. Now being only 22, I feel privileged to have had that exposure, as it has given me knowledge that I might not otherwise have so young.

This episode was 9 out of 10. Passionate, nice variety, and you gave added value by suggesting some a great buy (the Hecula). Bonus points for that “pepper-covered strawberry in a sauna” description.

Gary,

Your rating is 89-91 despite your anti-establishment persona towards well known wines. I don’t have to hear your descriptions of some wines to actually know that you will rip it. Having said that, you have high energy which comes through and that’s a positive for WLTV. I owned a liquor store in the village 20 years ago and that’s how I got into wines. As for the Jet’s – blah blah blah they will go to the playoff this year just like they did last year. All the sport commentators were predicting great things for them last year and where that get them, next to the wines in the cellar! If they have a 8 and 8 record this year that will be a big accomplishment. You’ll be eating crow by Thanksgiving.

Wow….the Jets at 16-0. Man, da Bears are going all the way and I won’t even say they’ll be 16-0. I will say, and although I have no NY/NJ ties, I think the Giants will fare better than the Jets this year, but sorry, you’re in denial. BUT…they’ll do better than last year.

Anyway, to whoever called you a dumb jock drinking wine like it’s beer: Idiot. Don’t get me wrong, I love wine, but anyone who takes it sooooo seriously that they’re obviously some little rich kid that grew up and don’t know how to have fun while enjoying some wine, is a complete moronic loser. You know your crap Gary….keep it up. And beer is great anyway.

As for the episode…right on. I’ll give you a full billion points in my 0 to infinity scale pointing system. Make that 3 billion.

And the person who most influenced me with wine, was my mentor here at work, Allan Frischman. He taught me a lot. I got into wine, without knowing a THING about wine. It’s only been 10 years now for me, so I’m still learning. The only thing is, he’s one of those “old world” lovers, doesn’t want anything to do with California. But I’ve got my own opinions. I love a kick butt super huge CA Cab, but I also love a classic Burgundy or Bordeaux. It just depends on the moment. I DON’T WANT CALIFORNIA WINE TO TASTE LIKE BORDEAUX OR BURGUNDY!!!! I love a Bordeaux when I’m having a Bordeaux. I love Burgundy when I’m having a Burgundy. And I love a big old CA wine when I’m having one. To all of you people who drink a CA wine and sit there trying to say why it’s NOT a Bordeaux or a Burgundy, well…you’ve got your answer right there: It’s NOT a Bordeaux or a Burgundy, it’s a CA.

And a big AMEN goes to you for not following the rules with having wine at the right time. Sure, obviously you don’t want a desert wine with your steak, but when it comes to regular wine with a meal…if you HATE white wine, a white wine won’t go well with your chicken or fish. If you hate red wine (which I have a friend who does), it’s still not going to taste good when you have it with steak. Have whatever the heck wine you feel like having. Sure, a lot of wines compliment a meal much better than another will, but seriously, I’ve had plenty of red meat with white wine or the other way around, and I wasn’t ruining my meal. Heck, last night I had some Batard Montrachet from Louis Latour with some burgers I grilled….freakin’ awesome (both the wine and burger).

Good night…go Bears…
Tony

Wow….the Jets at 16-0. Man, da Bears are going all the way and I won’t even say they’ll be 16-0. I will say, and although I have no NY/NJ ties, I think the Giants will fare better than the Jets this year, but sorry, you’re in denial. BUT…they’ll do better than last year.

Anyway, to whoever called you a dumb jock drinking wine like it’s beer: Idiot. Don’t get me wrong, I love wine, but anyone who takes it sooooo seriously that they’re obviously some little rich kid that grew up and don’t know how to have fun while enjoying some wine, is a complete moronic loser. You know your crap Gary….keep it up. And beer is great anyway.

As for the episode…right on. I’ll give you a full billion points in my 0 to infinity scale pointing system. Make that 3 billion.

And the person who most influenced me with wine, was my mentor here at work, Allan Frischman. He taught me a lot. I got into wine, without knowing a THING about wine. It’s only been 10 years now for me, so I’m still learning. The only thing is, he’s one of those “old world” lovers, doesn’t want anything to do with California. But I’ve got my own opinions. I love a kick butt super huge CA Cab, but I also love a classic Burgundy or Bordeaux. It just depends on the moment. I DON’T WANT CALIFORNIA WINE TO TASTE LIKE BORDEAUX OR BURGUNDY!!!! I love a Bordeaux when I’m having a Bordeaux. I love Burgundy when I’m having a Burgundy. And I love a big old CA wine when I’m having one. To all of you people who drink a CA wine and sit there trying to say why it’s NOT a Bordeaux or a Burgundy, well…you’ve got your answer right there: It’s NOT a Bordeaux or a Burgundy, it’s a CA.

And a big AMEN goes to you for not following the rules with having wine at the right time. Sure, obviously you don’t want a desert wine with your steak, but when it comes to regular wine with a meal…if you HATE white wine, a white wine won’t go well with your chicken or fish. If you hate red wine (which I have a friend who does), it’s still not going to taste good when you have it with steak. Have whatever the heck wine you feel like having. Sure, a lot of wines compliment a meal much better than another will, but seriously, I’ve had plenty of red meat with white wine or the other way around, and I wasn’t ruining my meal. Heck, last night I had some Batard Montrachet from Louis Latour with some burgers I grilled….freakin’ awesome (both the wine and burger).

Good night…go Bears…
Tony

91 points for the base episode, plus a bonus 2 points for the “Jersey” attitude when calling out your critics, so 93 today.
My wine habit has been mostly self motivated. I gradually went from buying the Chardonnay with the highest alchohol content to bring on dates, to where I am now: buying the red zinfandel with the highest alchohol content to bring home to my wife….
Matty Van: Muddy Waters has a partial answer to your query, “Champagne and reefer”.

Tony S…

I agree completely. California wine is wonderful for what it is. It’s not Bordeaux and that’s great. I love Bordeaux and I love California cabs. But they’re not the same thing and I don’t want them to be the same thing.

Today’s episode was definately a 92+….not only for the education but also because you were definately pumped up today.
My interest in wine started when my parents took me to California when I was a teenager and we visited vinyards. Although we drank wine at the dinner table in my family, it was nothing compaired to my experience in California. I sort-of from there became self-educated by simply reading, buying and drinking. My education and passion then flourised when I attended Culinary Institute of America. My instructors for Wine Studies, Michael Weiss and Steve Kolpan, really made me understand appelations, regions, countries, wine laws, varietals, terroir, old world wines, new world wines, food and wine pairing, etc.
To answer LMA comment #34, my family just had wine with Sunday dinner (rarely on weeknights as dinner was usually 1-2-3 then and sometimes we weren’t even all together), it was part of the meal so we really weren’t exposed to it in an irresponsible manner if you will…and, that goes back to as early as I can remember.
My question for you Gary — we all appreciate your passion for the Jets – and I sincerely wish that your team sees a perfect season this year – the more pumped you are, the better our WLTV will get 🙂 but, I have the same question that somebody else asked recently – do you like baseball and if so what team? I’m wondering if you’ll ever put a NY Yankees hat, photo, lunchbox (I did like that Jets lunchbox) something on your set one day just for us Yankees fans…a 5-game sweep against Boston this past weekend is something worth a little recognition, don’t you think? I thought it was HUGE!!

… huh? do you really usually decant wine nine hours before drinking?

Gary,

Just finished episode 76 (I stumbled across WLTV while surfing a new Google video featureâ?¦) I am hooked. Love what you are doing. I believe you are on to something real and will be a MAJOR influence in the future. I look forward to watching you accomplish this while enjoying the education (entertainment) you provide along the way.

Ratingsâ?¦ I would give you a solid 94.

Mike F. gets it – 6/9/1997 the date the http://www.winelibrary.com domain was registered.

GV – I’ll go a 90 on this one!

How I got into wine: my wife and I got into it together – we started going to byob’s and visiting our local liquor store before our dinner and it has grown from there – now we have our little collection and visit the wine library to stock our goodies. As a matter of fact I’ll probably be stopping in tomorrow or this week for a little re-stocking.

P.S. – GV are you still on schedule to do that Champagne testing. Looking forward to some new bubbly!

MIKE F WINS !!!!! MIKE EMAIL ME!!!!!

Great episode GV. I like the Skittles and Twizzler reference. I give you a 94. Maybe you can attempt to do the next wine tasting while wearing a Jets helmet?

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!!!