Days of Our Live's has The Wine Bible as a Prop

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While watching Days of Our Lives this morning I noticed in Sammy & Rafe's apartment on a book shelf there was a copy of The Wine Bible there. With all the drinking they do on the show maybe they actually use this book as a guide. This is the book I found nearly one year ago and it captured my attention to turn the gatherings from time to time with my girlfriends into a Wine Study. This is the most complete wine book I have ever come across in my search. If you are a lover of wine this book will help you immensely. It contains all the information you need to know about your favorite wines & tons more information from the vine to the glass. I highly recommend this book & I suggest to you that you & your friends start your own group to gather & do a study. Add a field trip of a wine tasting & then a tour of a vineyard or 2 when the weather is nice and it will not only draw you closer to your favorite wine but to your friends and you may also make a few new friends along the way. Couple that with trying wines you never dreamed you would like & you may just find a few more fine wines which are pleasing to your palate.

Take turns hosting the study at each others home or take it on the road to the local wine bar or favorite restaurant when it is your turn. Each brings a bottle of wine and an appetizer to pair with it. The idea is to keep it simple and not a lot of work for the host or hostess. Be creative. Each time you gather will be a different perspective and a reflection on the host. We all have different ways of entertaining and it will be nice to be open to how others wish to do it. The idea behind it is to learn. Keep it small & intimate as more than 6 will most likely turn it into a social and not a time of learning. There can be times throughout the year when you all gather for an event and invite a larger crowd and it is then you can share what you have learned and tell of the fun you had doing this and perhaps your friends will start groups of their own. I don't know if this was the author's intention on this book but it is how it is serving its purpose with my friends and myself. I can't think of a better way to enjoy the book than by trying the wines! Get your copy of The Wine Bible Today!

Salute!

WHITE WINE....a wine I forget to blog about

glass white wine pino noir grape,pinot grigio grape










I know I ramble on & on about red wine all the time. So I mustn't forget to keep updated on some whites. Let's talk about pinot gris versus pinot grigio. They actually are the same white grape but share the same name. In Italy & California it is known as pinot grigio and in Oregon & France it is pinot gris.Other regions in the world also use the names interchangeably. The pinot grigio grape is actually a mutation of the grape varietal pinot noir, which is in fact red. Pino Blanc is not the same and pinot grigio or pino gris....it is a further mutation of the same grape. So....we are drinking mutations? Does not sound so good! But it does taste soooooo good! I have learned that most pinot grigio wines are created in Italy. The Italian version is dry, not sweet and you might taste the mineral content in it. Californian versions will have a lemony taste, be a bit richer in taste but you will still have the mineral traces. French pinot gris are more fruity & flowery than the Italian versions. They will taste peachy or melony but still have the mineral aroma about them. Some experts believe the pinot noir grape will make the finest wine in the world. It grows best in cool climates and is a difficult grape to grow and make into wine. Since it is such a hard grape to grow possibly this is how the mutations came about. This is something I will need to further learn about and research.
I love looking at the pictures of the grape varieties. It takes me back to being a child and sitting on Poppa Donne's lap under his grape arbor and leaning my head on his huge chest, my long hair blowing in the breeze across my tiny face and gazing up at the huge deep purple grapes hanging from the vines above my head and feeling so safe as I listened to Poppa's talk of his days on the farm when he was a young boy in Italy. I had a happy childhood....it is a good memory I hold dear to my heart and glad to have had. Yes....life should always be so sweet!
Cheers!

HANG TIME.......................

Hang time..........The longer the hang time the greater the fruit's depth and complexity-perfectly ripe grapes produce superior, long-aging wines. On the other hand, if the hang time is too long, the grapes will become overripe, which will affect both flavor and aroma of the finished wine. If it takes a grape 120 days to ripen normally and it has been an extra hot year and they ripen in 110 days or it has been a really cold summer and they ripen in 130 days.....would there be a difference in the taste of the grape? Certainly! Long ripening allows for the tannins, not only the sugars to maximize in strength, thus affecting the taste of the grape which will in turn affect the taste of your wine. Perfectly ripe...not over ripe, grapes will make a superior tasting wine.
There are many factors which go into a great tasting grape, which will in turn help give you a great tasting wine....climate, sun, stress, temperature fluctuations, frost, wind and soil...to name a few. None of these ever stay the same so the winemaker needs to constantly be on their toes as to what the precious vine may need or not need at any given time.
So the next time you raise your glass to toast someone or some occasion, don't forget to cheer on the growers of the fruit in your cup.
Cheers!

A Wide Variety to Choose From....

Different grape varieties are plentiful! I have always loved fruits, but since beginning this study in wine I find myself actually admiring each grape singularly. I had never noticed the depths of color or shadings of the colors in all my 58 years on this earth. I just would plop the luscious fruits in my mouth and enjoy. But now I find myself analyzing the structure of the grapes and thinking. (Of course when I point this out to some of my friends, I know they are thinking I have gone off the deep end!) My friends just look at me and smile. That is of course not the case of the friends who share this common interest of mine to learn about the fruit from the vine to the glass. I have decided to do a bit each day on each different type of grape in the wine making. I have learned there are some 24,000 varieties of wine grapes which Ampelographers believe these represent about 5,000 truly different varieties. Most varieties I have learned have numerous names depending upon the area they are grown. Of the 5,000 varieties only 150 are planted commercially and of the 150 varieties there are only 9 varieties considered classics.
WHITE GRAPES:

• CHARDONNAY
• CHENIN BLANC
• RIESLING
• SAUVIGNON BLANC
• SEMILLION

RED GRAPES:

• CABERNAT SAUVIGNON
• MERLOT
• PINOT NOIR
• SYRAH

Tomorrow or later today I will begin the study starting with the whites....In the mean time I will go have a nice bowl of red grapes with my granola this morning.
Chow!

A New Wine Box In Our Wine Store

It had been a month since Gaynor had brought my box of wine to me, when she did my shopping for me after my surgery. It was empty and time to replenish. This would be my 5th time to leave the house in a month. I had an appointment in town so to make best use of my time away from the house I would make as many stops as possible and of course one of them would be our wine store. Instead of grabbing my usual box...I have been going out on a limb the last couple months with my box wine favorites and trying new adventures in taste. On sale for $17.99 was this box of SEVEN. I asked the man at the desk if it were good...he said it just came in this week and he had no idea. Price was right....container was attractive...when reading the side of box it had a list of 7 different wines and Shiraz was at the top of the list, so that being one of my favorites I decided to give this box of wine a try. Upon returning home I settled in with my glass of wine and did my little test. My findings were it was lighter in color than the wines I prefer, but I would give it a chance. The smell was light and weak to me. The taste was the same. But then again I prefer full bodied, dry reds. I will drink this wine for the next 30 days or so and see if my appeal for it changes. It is not bad tasting, just not what my palate prefers. It is sort of like if I could compare it to a date.....being out with a man and you enjoy his company and dinner is fine, but something is missing for you to want to have a deeper relationship with this man....nothing is wrong with this man....just not the main man for you. Can any of you out there understand this? Iam a woman who knows what she likes in her man and her wines and I hate to waste anyones time. I do hope I get some visitors this month to help me empty this box of wine. Maybe I will start to like it more, we shall see. I would although have this box of wine in my house for a party where some of the guest are not into the heartier wines. For them I think this would be a great wine. Maybe this wine would be the stepping stone to fuller bodied wines for the white zin drinker. To ease them on their way to darker reds.
This wine is a Spanish blend of 7 different varities of grapes.
Shiraz
Cabernat Sauvignon
Graciano
Garnacha
Tempranillo
Merlot
Petit Verdot
If one or more of your favorite reds are in this blend, give it a try. Your opinion may be very different than mine.

Tasting Wine.....

Just sitting here reviewing what I learned so far on wine......let's start with tasting..It used to be just simply..."I like it"...."oh no, I don't like it" This is how I tasted my wines and then I just stuck with the one brand I liked and never ventured out of that safety zone. But in the past 3 or so years I have grown not only older but grown with a desire to explore other territories and add more favorites to my list. In my coming out of my comfort zone I have found a lot of new wines (new to me) that I love and at our tasting a couple weeks ago Lisa brought a wonderfully smooth tasting white which surprisingly I will drink again. You can scroll down and read about our first tasting to see what wine Lisa brought.
As I have grown in my wine knowledge...and it is a slow process, enjoyable process, I have learned to savor every drop and let it meld in my mouth and let it speak to me. This luscious fruit of the vine is becoming my best friend. It is almost like I can have a conversation with my glass of wine now.
So simply what I do is take a nice look after its pouring, sorry but looks matter here. If it does not look appealing I do not think it would taste very well. After I have a mental picture of it I take a slow sniff to experience what I am hoping will be pleasant smells. If something does not have a pleasing smell I do not think it will taste too wonderful. But, remember not everything smells the same to each person. That is why our little wine tasting group will be good for us......what one smells or taste that another doesn't possibly by speaking this out and sharing you can then train your nose to pick up what someone else caught on to right away. After I savor a few of these moments I find myself envisioning the fields, the bright sun shining in the vineyard, the hardy vines climbing and wandering, the spectacular, plump, firm grapes just waiting to be picked by the tender care the pickers give them. Gods rain bathing them from time to time while growing. All of nature in sync to just bring you the most fabulous taste to bring to your table, to compliment your foods, your socializing with friends, to bring to your side while sitting in your home in front of the fireplace. Yes a glass of wonderfully tasting and well made wine can truly become your great friend. It is knowing I feel, when to stop and just have this be an enjoyable experience and not to go beyond your boundaries to have it wreck havoc on your life that wine can not only ease the stresses of a day, give joy to celebration, help your health & heart but it can take you to distant lands and dreams to put a smile on your face.
Getting back to this glass of wine I was tasting.....I then after the sight and smells are married in my mind swirl the wine in the glass as to see what the legs (the wine drippings on the inside of the glass.....do not swirl too fast or you will have legs on the outside of the glass also!!!) When swirling the wine the aroma starts leaping out at you. This I think I read is opening up the scents. Now after all this swirling and releasing it is time to really get your nose in there and see what you find. I know in public some may look at you and think "what is that person's problem". By the time you get to have your first sip your neighbor at the next table may be ordering his second cocktail. And if he or she is they are probably the ones thinking you are the one with the problem....But I am learning over the years if you make your wine drinking an experience and not just a thirst quencher or reason to have a drink, you will possibly find yourself drinking less and enjoying more. After this deep smell is when it is time to take your first sip...you want to wet your lips, raise the glass to your lips and once the wine hits your palate just savor the wine for the moment and just see if you can taste what you have smelled. Some like to swish the wine in their mouths before swallowing, it is all in preference I feel...there are no rules....it wouldn't be pleasurable if there were rules. My tasting stops at the sip and then after all this testing and learning is done I then enjoy my glass of wine with my meal or appetizer. Even living alone or dining alone can be made an occasion when treating your glass of wine like this. Not every sip just the first.....after the first and you have learned your wine you will have such a pleasurable experience that I think you will look forward not to your next drink to gulp down but to your next glass of wine to spend time with. Our lives are normally based on rush here and rush there with not much doing anything but going through the motions of life, getting things done but then wondering where did time go. Take time to "Smell the Wines"! and learn and pass your knowledge on to others. You will be surprised just how little people really do know about their wines but every now and then you will in your meetings, happen upon a real connoisseur and it is then you become even more intrigued...be sure to have a pen and paper (or bar napkin) with you then! You can learn a lot from someone willing to share their knowledge. Because of their love for it they will want you to experience what they do.
Till next time.....

How It Began

It all began in May of 2010. I had just published my
first book and was searching for ways to promote my book into the bookstores. It started with my favorite book store to visit, The Penguin Bookshop
in Sewickley, PA, the town in which my son lives and I frequent often. Upon going to visit another authors book signing I was browsing the shelves in the shop and stumbled across this book "The Wine Bible". Being a Christian the title grabbed my attention. When I took it from the shelves and opened its pages I found it was filled with so much interesting information that I just had to have it. So because of my great interest in wine which had entered into my life over the last decade I decided to purchase this book.
After my divorce as I started to socialize once again, a few of the men I dated were very educated in wines and the vineyards. I attended many wine tastings and learned a lot during this time. My drinking this luscious drink became an educational time and a pleasurable time, not a time of drunkenness. At one point in that past decade of my life my doctor advised me to drink wine (a small portion ) each night in order to build my blood and energy levels. I took his advice and I did so at least 5 nights a week and when my next rounds of blood work came in my blood was excellent for a 50 something woman and my cholesterol level was called impeccably remarkable by my primary care physician. They credited this to the wine & also my diet since I was 29 yrs old.
Getting back to the book.....I rather enjoyed this book immensely the next couple months. So when an author was to speak at the bookshop on his latest book, Wine Lovers Devotional 365 Days of Wine I decided to see what he had to say. I then purchased my copy.
So now I had 2 wonderful books to further educate myself in the makings of wine. While my long time, great friend Chrissy was visiting one day I then shared my books with her. I had been considering beginning a "Wine Bible" Study group consisting of a small group of my friends who shared a common interest...wine. Here we could learn and grow together in our knowledge of the vine. So as Chrissy was looking at the books I was hoping she would grab hold of my idea and then she brought the subject up and it was then I knew this should be. So from July till now we discussed doing so and on Monday we are having out very 1st "Wine Bible" Study.
Being Christian women for many years now the both of us know what the Word of God says about wine and drinking. So as we set out on this wonderful adventure with our close friends we do hope to remember He is Lord of our lives and we never would want to do anything to take away from that or cause one of our friends ( or ourselves) to stumble.
What God commands Christians regarding alcohol is to avoid drunkenness.

Ephesians 5:18

18 Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.

So Lord please remind us of this as we enjoy learning of just one of your wonderful creations, the fruit that comes from the vines.