- Short Course on Varietals
- Wine Trivia Challenge
- Recipe of the Month
- Health & Fitness

November 2007

11 -- Veteran's Day
22 -- Thanksgiving Day
24 -- Full Moon Day

Thank You! ........ Merci! ......... Gracias!

This is the moment of the year when we give praise to our producers for tending so carefully and lovingly to our common heritage, the Earth, and providing us with the fruit of their work.
Thank you, also, to the innumerable little hands along the way whose efforts allow us to enjoy their delicious products on the other side of the globe.
Thank you, last but not least, to you all, our clients and oftentimes friends, who give us the opportunity and the joy to share something so good, that feels so good, does good to the body, to the soul and brings people together in delight. Could we be asking for more?

Talking of people who are doing good for the Earth have you heard of the Pachamama Alliance? For the past 30 years we have been alerting, educating, warning, teaching about the very predictable and disastrous effects of a certain way to relate to the Earth and to Nature, a way that tends to exploit and destroy them for the short term benefits of a few of us. Well, over the years and in part thanks to changes that have become so blatant as to be inescapable to the blindest of the blind, we have been joined in this campaign by cohorts of concerned citizens of this planet. Pachamama is one such remarkable group of people who have created the aptly named Awakening The Dreamer website. Do yourself a favor and pay them a visit. They are doing a great job at WAKING US UP!

A Little Gift For You!

We all know that shipping heavy bottles across America is an expensive proposition! To save resources at all levels it is obviously smarter to choose reasonably sized boxes. In the wine business the ideal scenario is the full case containing 12 bottles of wine. Remember that our wines hold remarkably well if you lay them down in a cool place, if possible away from light and vibrations.
Therefore ordering a variety of wines to fill up a case makes a lot of sense: You save 10% on the wine, get the best shipping cost and create the smallest "carbon trail" possible! To help you make that decision we offer you our coupon FS50 that will save 50% of your shipping costs! And it's a double Bonus: you can use it once for you and once to make a gift. Simply click on the link now or enter FS50 in the coupon box when placing your orders. Offer valid until December 15 only!

Veronique's Wine Club [A Great Gift Idea!]

It has been my experience that folks who have no vices have very few virtues.
-- Abraham Lincoln

A Crash Course in Varietals, Chapter 4

Last month we covered Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon. Today we explore three other well-known varietals.

1. Syrah / Shiraz -- Wines made from Shiraz are often full-bodied with strong tannins and complex combinations of flavors including berry, plum and smoke. Aroma characters can range from violets to berries, chocolate, espresso and black pepper. No one aroma can be called typical though blackberry and pepper are often noted. It is called Syrah in France, Argentina, Chile and the United States, and Shiraz In South Africa, Australia and Canada. Winemakers may choose one name over the other to signify a stylistic difference in the wine they have made. Shiraz is widely used to make a dry red table wine, though it is often vinified on its own. It is also frequently blended with other grape varieties, such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Grenache, Mourvèdre and Viognier. It is grown in many wine-producing regions around the world, with concentrations in Australia, the Rhône Valley in France and the U.S. In addition, it is used as a blending grape in Spain and Italy.
   A great example to try:
   Shiraz Domaine de Clairac 2005, Languedoc.
   
2. Petite Sirah -- Petite Sirah, a synonym for Durif, is a variety of red wine grape mostly grown in California and Australia. Petite Sirah produces dark, inky-colored (red) wines with firm texture and robust, tannic tastes -- often with spicy, plumy or peppery flavors. The "petite" in the name refers to the size of its berries and not the vine, which is particularly vigorous. The wines are very tannic with aging ability that can exceed 20 years. Petite Sirahs may complement meals with rich meats.
   
3. Merlot -- Merlot is a red wine with medium to full body and hints of berry, plum and currant. Merlot's softness, combined with its earlier ripening, make it an ideal grape to blend with the sterner, later-ripening Cabernet Sauvignon. This flexibility has helped make it one of the most popular red wine varietals in the United States and Chile. Merlot is primarily produced in France, Italy, California and Romania, but it is also grown on a smaller scale in about another dozen regions. Merlot grapes are identified by their loose bunches of large berries. The color has less of a blue-black hue than Cabernet Sauvignon grapes and with a thinner skin; the grapes also have fewer tannins. And yes, there is such a thing as White Merlot, which is made the same way as the more popular White Zinfandel.
   Example: Château Haut-Mallet 2004, Bordeaux

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History will be kind to me
for I intend to write it.
-- Sir Winston Churchill

Wine Trivia Challenge

Question 1.) What word describes the taste left on the palate after the wine has been swallowed?
a.) After taste
b.) Bouquet
c.) Fragrance
d.) Balm

Question 2.) Which term is used to describe an undeveloped wine, one not ready to drink?
a.) Timid
b.) Hesitant
c.) Modest
d.) Backward

Question 3.) A wine is said to have balance when it has a harmonious combination of which attributes?
a.) Tannin, acidity, texture and bouquet
b.) Tannin, acidity, flavor and texture
c.) Acidity, texture, body and flavor
d.) Texture, acidity and flavor

Question 4.) A tasting term used to describe a wine with very little or no aroma or flavor?
a.) Confined
b.) Chambered
c.) Closed
d.) Restricted

Question 5.) In Australia, a 300-litre barrel is known as what?
a.) A hogshead
b.) A giant joey
c.) A king's keg
d.) A Brit's barrel

TOP | ANSWERS

Pork Chops with Apples & Sweet Potatoes

November doesn't have to be all about turkey. Try this simple-to-prepare meal; it's tasty.

Ingredients -- Serves 4

• 4 pork chops
• 2 onions -- sliced into rings
• 2 sweet potatoes -- sliced
• 2 apples -- peeled, cored, and sliced into rings
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoon pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Season pork chops with salt and pepper to taste and arrange in a medium, oven-safe skillet. Top pork chops with onions, sweet potatoes and apples. Sprinkle with brown sugar and season with 2 teaspoons pepper and 1 teaspoon salt.
3. Cover and bake 1 hour in preheated oven until sweet potatoes are tender and pork chops have reached an internal temperature of 160 degrees F.

Wine Pairing

• 2004 Mas de Janiny Merlot, Languedoc

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Nothing’s better than the
wind to your back, the sun
in front of you, and your friends beside you.
-- Aaron Douglas Trimble

4 Tips to Keep Diet & Fitness More Exciting

The bottom line is that if you want to build and maintain a healthy body, you must make your exercise and diet plan exciting and worthwhile. Following are four tips to keep you interested.

1. Reward Yourself -- The rewards should be small, but something you like, such as a small piece of chocolate or a handful of peanuts or raisins. Once in awhile, reward yourself with a half bagel or muffin, a slice of pizza or a glass of wine. You don't have to deprive yourself of the foods you love; but, you should use them as a reward and in small portions.

2. Record Your Workout -- Keep track of your daily workout and and give yourself a "gold star" every time you beat your last effort. Whether it's more weight, more reps, a faster time or a longer distance, keep track and challenge yourself to do better. If you continuously achieve your goals, reward yourself with a new bike, a dinner out or a mini-vacation (or whatever you think is worth working toward).

3. Make It Fun -- If you do the treadmill seven days a week, you probably won't last long. Spice up your routine by adding a fun and healthy activity at least once a week. Go for a walk, go jogging, hiking, biking or swimming. Play soccer or basketball with the kids. Try kayaking, weightlifting or take up golf or tennis. If it's fun, you're apt to do it again and again.

4. Learn -- Listen to books on tape or watch an instructional video on something that interests you. Just think, while you're getting in shape you could be learning a new language or how to kayak.

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Wine Trivia Answers
#1. a.) After taste; #2. d.) Backward; #3. b.) Tannin, acidity, flavor and texture; #4. c.) Closed; #5. a.) A hogshead