Great Episode, Thanks for bringing on such a fascinating guest. I would love to see his TV show. Do you think it will be dubbed in English a la the original Iron Chief?

I was a little disappointed that you didn?t translate a little better; Henrik’s description of the different types of Auslese. He made a mention that the Donnhoff was not really an Auslese. Is he referring to when the grape was picked or the quality of the grape? I don?t know a lot about German wines and that is something I was really interested in learning about. Other than that, another great interview.

QOTD: I don’t believe it can be done anymore with the rising costs of commodities, fuel, labor, etc. It definitely could have been done within the past decade but unfortunately the days of inexpensive great wines are over…IMHO

Great Episode, Thanks for bringing on such a fascinating guest. I would love to see his TV show. Do you think it will be dubbed in English a la the original Iron Chief?

I was a little disappointed that you didn?t translate a little better; Henrik’s description of the different types of Auslese. He made a mention that the Donnhoff was not really an Auslese. Is he referring to when the grape was picked or the quality of the grape? I don?t know a lot about German wines and that is something I was really interested in learning about. Other than that, another great interview.

QOTD: I don’t believe it can be done anymore with the rising costs of commodities, fuel, labor, etc. It definitely could have been done within the past decade but unfortunately the days of inexpensive great wines are over…IMHO

This was a fantastic show. Not only did we get candid male German tactics (and the phrases behind them), but the throwing stuff compilation by JonB was ridiculously well done. Kudos to all (especially Jon)

QOTD: It would be tough, especially in the old world or North America. Maybe in S. America… The way I see it, you would have to have paid off all serious overhead (mechanical pickers etc), and bottle in tetrapacks. You definitely wouldn’t be able to afford hand-picking. $8 is tough. 10, probably.

Yes, I agree with everyone, Hendrik was a wonderful guest! Nice tack-on, Mott!
QOTD: Maybe great Value at $8, but not great great wine.

Gary & Chris, Hendrik Thoma? WOW!!!! Can’t wait to see it!!!! 🙂

I propose a change in the rating system. Instead of one score for the whole wine, why not rate each aspect of the wine. Color, acidity, mouthfeel, fruitiness, and over all flavor, maybe not these specific aspects but something similar.

QOTD: I suppose a great wine could cost under $8. It may not be profitable but someone could certainly do it.

L8 episode…….

Wow just wow, if this show was a wine I’d give it a 96+. You need more guests just like Hendrik, animated and fun. The chemistry between you two guys was amazing, I was smiling the whole episode. Hendrik reminds me a lot of a German physics professor I had a year ago.

The only downfall was that you did not let Hendrik speak enough and give more German wine history.

I can definitely see the roots of a Food Network or Travel Channel wine-based show, where u go around the world tasting wine and talking to sommeliers.

Thanks for another great show.

QOTD: No i do not think its possible to make a quality wine for under $8, at least not in America.

QOTD: I do not believe that it is possible to make a “very good” wine for under $8 and still make a profit on the wine on a regular basis…unless the land was already paid for, and the wine was made by using others equipment. However, I do believe that it is possible to find very good wine for under $8. It is just not always consistent.

Wonderful show again today.

Good episode, really enjoyed it.

QOTD: I think a pretty good wine can be made for under $5 but not a great wine. Occasionally the grapes and the terroir can come together such that even the mass producers can come up with a pretty good wine (not usually though).

yea ,i don’t think so but, i’m pretty sure it comes in a box

QOTD: A great wine or just a good wine consistently, no. A good wine where you catch lightening in a bottle and get lucky, yes.

Franzia may disagree 😉

Another great show. What it proves it that everyone’s nose and taste are unique and one should not be intimidated because they cannot detect the same as somebody else. This was borne out numerous times during the taping.
Hendrik is a great guest and should be back more often.

wow cool show! Herr Thoma is quite an entertaining guest and it was cool that Gary was pretty laidback this episode 🙂

Amazing show, what a nice way to start the guest apperance for 2009. Gary, you must travel to Germany to do a wine library episode with Hendrik. 40 minutes last like 5. Big up here!

QOTD: Really difficult to say but there’s probably one out there that no one’s talk about.

QOTD: Stranger things have happened… Anything is possible.

Great guest, but my absolute favorite part of todays epi was the last 2 seconds… “Link ‘Er Up Vaynerchuk”…. Mott in Giants hoodie… PRICELESS!!! Still laughing 🙂

QOTD: It definitely is possible. I’ve had a great CA viognier for $3.99:

Bears’ Lair 2006 – one-tone nose of pure papaya, med-body, excellent flavor extraction and best of all: zinging, mouthwatering acidity. Not complex, but very, very good and clean.

Is it common? I think you just have to get lucky.

So to answer your question: You can find a great wine for under $8, but you’re going to have to taste through a ton of crap to get there. And the next vintage is almost guaranteed not to be as good.

Überraschen! Ich liebe diesen Kerl. Dieses war ein ehrfürchtiges Erscheinen!

Hands down, your best guest to honored us with his presence and your interviewing skills were superb.

QOTD: I think it would be very difficult if not impossible but who knows, we are always looking for that special gem.

Again, great show and a stellar ending by Jon.

Auf Wiedersehen!

QOTD: You know, I think it is possible to make a great wine for $8. I think it could really only happen if some small producer caught lightning in a bottle on a side project or something, though.

What a great episode. My grandparents are from Germany and I’m going to call them tomorrow and ask about their experience with German wine!

Wow Gary, that was an amazing show. Hendrik is a terrific guest, and the two of you were obviously having a great time together. The energy level was tremendous, and I learned quite a lot about German wine in the process.

QOTD: Good wine can certainly be made for $8, but making great wine is such a labor-intensive endeavor that I doubt it can be done profitably at such a low price.

gary,

one of the best shows so far, , , again.

i know you’d kill me for this but i think the ”sweet spot” for a bottle is $30-40.

in my experience most bottles below or above that havent given me too much satisfaction.

What a new year’s gift, real entertainment.

As to the question of the day: I’m going for the more fun answer, which is what wines seem to consistently deliver for 8 bones or less. I think these two wineries, which I’ve tried, have so far the best track record of putting out that value wine. Whether they should continue to do so…well, I’m a bit of a Marxist, so…….probably not. Would rather see, say, health products produced at amazing prices.

1-Porca de Murca Portugese red, last I tried was the 2005 and 06. A Douro, if I remember right, more like 6 or 7 bones. Some tang, some structure, decent tannins, it doesnt belly flop. I don’t know how they do it, other than some very poorly paid people. The reserva, for about 10 bucks, is a ridiculous steal.
2-La Linda Argentine tempranillo–also in cabernet, malbec, pinot noir–others? It’s Luigi Bosca’s value line. Gary reviewed the tempranillo and loved it–I’ve seen this wine in good restaurants in Buenos Aires. These are all a bit sweet for me, so I prefer the Portugese. Having seen the poverty in Argentina, I hope they pay their workers something decent.

Perhaps you can do a part 2 of a show with Hendrik, with his question of the day continued? It’s a great question.

In my opinion, this was the best WLTV episode I’ve seen since I began watching around episode 250. Fantastic guest, good camaraderie between you two–I think he should come back every month…

Also, laughed my ass off at Jon’s video.

QOTD: Answer I think is obvious…Trader Joe sells a FANTASTIC $4 bottle of pinot. CLEARLY, that is the height of excellence.