BITS & BOBS

Posted on September 2, 2024 by Stan The Wine Man

Happy Labor Day everyone! Labor Day has a different meaning to it when you live in a tourist destination spot as I do. It’s not the end of summer as so many people like to say. In fact, that statement drives Susie and I crazy. Why? Summer is not over until the 22nd of September, the beginning of Fall. Labor Day for us here in the San Juans simply means that the amount of people who come to the island drops to a sane level. Yes, there are still tourists (the smart tourists as I like to call them), but not nearly as many and mostly on the weekends. It’s the time for us locals to enjoy the final weeks of the summer without the frenzy of tourism at its peak. The weather looks promising over the next week or so, which is even better.

Susie and I are counting the days until our flight to London and then Greece (Crete to be specific). Susie is at her best when it comes to organizing trips. I’ve set up a winery tour which I’m really looking forward to. It will be a visit to Lyrarakis, a winery that we do a fair amount of business with. I’ve heard they speak English quite well in Greece, which is a good thing. We’ve checked out the Greek language and it looks like it would be a challenge for either Susie or I to communicate effectively in the native tongue. I’m bringing my recording gear along to make some content for my YouTube channel. We are both super excited for this trip!

Summertime brings many challenges in my life. It’s super busy at the store, there is always lots of yard work to do, which all creep into my efforts to put out content both here and on my YouTube channel. I do have some interesting content to put out soon. I will be reviewing a new line of wines that Gard Cellars has released called Slope Life Wines. They are all under twenty bucks and there is a Cab, Syrah, Chard and Albarino. I am very intrigued by second labels so it will be interesting to see how the wines show. Also, since Pinot Noir seems to be a hot topic, I plan on shooting an episode titled “The many faces of Pinot Noir.” Pinot Noir can express itself in many different styles, so it will be interesting to delve into that subject.

I hope you all have a great week!

Cheers!

Stan The Wine Man

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BITS & BOBS

Posted on August 19, 2024 by Stan The Wine Man

I took a look at what I’ve published on this blog over the past few months and realized that that other than this piece, I’ve been very unproductive. First and foremost, I’ve missed both July and August with my “Pick of the Month”. I go to great pains to make my decision as to which wine deserves the honor of being my pick and by writing an article about it, I’m able to remind myself what I chose for each month. I had to dig deep into my memory and realized what they were and are. For July, I chose a white blend from South Africa which consisted of mostly Chenin Blanc and Viognier. It was well received, and people have been coming back for more. This month, I chose a Viognier from the Rhone Valley that goes for a whopping thirteen bucks. It has also been very popular. I think I’ll do a quick wrap-up of both near the end of this month before I reveal my pick for September which will be a red wine for sure. I’m hoping to find a great value to feature for the month that kicks off Fall.

It has been an incredibly busy summer this year. Not only at the store, but also in my personal life. I’ve had special tasting events as well as fulfilling private events that were auctioned off to raise money for specific organizations, schools or fundraisers for someone in need. I volunteer my time and resources to help them out. I’ve had three that I’ve organized in the past six months. They are very fun and interesting. It’s somewhat fascinating that some of these groups think that the company I work for pays me to do these. To make things clear, I donate my time and most of the wines to pull these private events off. I have a boatload of wine at my house that need to be drunk, and I enjoy sharing what I have. I have different formats that I use for each of these private tasting events, and they are all quite educational and entertaining. What a great way to share my knowledge of wine and have people walking away knowing just a bit more about the wine world.

My wife Susie and I are less than two months away from taking off to Londan and Greece. The trip is all planned out, thanks to my wife. We have a lot to look forward to. I’m super stoked to visit some of the wineries there and check out what they up to. Actually, wine had a huge influence on Greek culture. They make some fantastic wines from varietals most of us are not familiar with. Of course, we will soak in the ancient Greek culture that will be all around us, as well as dive into their cuisine. Susie has planned the trip so that we have some relaxation at the beach near the end of our visit to the country. These trips take quite a bit of planning and I’m very thankful that Susie is so good at putting all the pieces together. I’m bringing my recording device along to shoot some material for my YouTube channel. I’ll have lots to share on this platform as well. We are so excited.

Cheers!

Stan The Wine Man

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BITS & BOBS

Posted on August 12, 2024 by Stan The Wine Man

Did you know that modern day wine critics will bump up scores on wines to get notoriety for themselves? It’s a known fact that inflating scores on wines will move the winery to post the name of the critic on their websites as well as putting it on their bottles that go into the retail market. I’m confident that the winery doesn’t really care if the points are inflated, it helps them to sell their wines. One well-known wine critic in particular not only is known for inflating scores, but also charges the winery to send samples. That is ludicrous! Why would any winery pay to send a sample of their wines? It’s bad enough that they don’t charge the critic for the sample. I realize that a high score can move a ton of wine. So, the investment may be worth it to them. However, I would suggest to any winery, that they put some time into promoting their wines from the winery level, instead of depending on some person to rate their wines. In the long run, I feel that this approach would pay higher dividends. Wineries have a tough time with this. Not all of course, but a majority. Well known critics have gotten wealthy on the dependency of wineries for high scores. Personally, I feel privileged to be able to attain samples for review. It’s a responsibility I take very seriously. I grade wines fairly based on how they are made. I do my best to throw subjectivity out and allow objectivity to be the driving force of my decisions. Sometimes it’s painful to give a wine a low grade, especially if I know the winemaker. However, I am all about the consumer, helping them to spend their wine dollars wisely.

Speaking of high scores, most of you know that I loath the one-hundred-point scoring system for wine. Think about it. The only scores you see are between 84 and 100 points, at least in general. That’s a sixteen point spread. All other scores are thrown out the window, so to speak. Why not just make it a twenty-point system… 1-20, with 20 being the best score. It’s because, having a 100-point score on a wine sounds so awesome! Of course, Robert Parker Jr. made the 100-point system famous and it stuck. I use a grading system which works just fine for me. Joe Roberts of One Wine Dude fame is the one that introduced this approach to me. I like it. It’s simple and effective. I can still remember how excited I was to see As on my report card. It meant that I nailed that class! So, if I give a wine an A grade, it means the winery got it right. I will even go as far as giving a wine an A+ if I feel it went above and beyond what anyone might expect who tastes it. The grading system has thirteen possible outcomes. F, meaning failed. D-, D, D+, C-, C, C+, B-, B, B+, A-, A, A+. It’s one of the best systems I’ve seen for rating wines and it’s one I will continue to use both here and on my YouTube channel.

My recent episode on YouTube, pits Spanish Albarino against Albarino from Washington State. I hope you get a chance to watch it, the results blew me away! Its is done in the blind format, which is always fun to watch. Albarino is a hot ticket in the store, something that has been trending now for a couple of years. I always wonder what it is that moves people to start being interested in a particular varietal like Albarino. It’s probable due to the popularity of Paella which is a really good pairing with Albarino. It’s also been featured in a lot of food and wine periodicals. Whatever the reason, I am always stoked when people are willing to stretch their palate horizons.

Cheers!

Stan The Wine Man

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BITS & BOBS

Posted on July 29, 2024 by Stan The Wine Man

Susie and I are getting super excited for our trip to the island of Crete! The rooms are booked the plane tickets are purchased the tours are all lined up. Basically, we are two months away from flying off to Europe. Neither of us have been to Greece and we know that we can’t do everything. However, what we do have planned should satisfy our curiosity about this very interesting and old country. It’s fun to watch Susie do the research, including the restaurants we want to go to. I can’t emphasis enough my wife’s ability to plan and coordinate our trips. She’s the best!

Summertime at Kings Market is in full swing. One of the reasons I love this time of year is the diversity of customers who roam through our wine department. Some items I’ve purchased that have been sitting on the shelves for months have disappeared. We are talking higher-end wines that I know most of my local customers will avoid unless there is a special occasion. Not so with the tourists. They are blown away by the selection of wines we offer and have no qualms about buying what they want. They are on vacation, so why hold back! I purchased a vertical of Chateaunuef-Du-Pape from a specific winery a while back, thinking that some of my peeps would enjoy buying some older vintages of this awesome juice. Well, I sold a few, but now they are almost gone within a period of three weeks. Someone out there, most likely a tourist, sniffed it out and took advantage. Good for them and good for me. Sometimes I wonder why I bought something for the store as I look at it sitting on the shelf. However, by the end of the summer that problem is usually gone.

Recently I noted that Albarino sales are not nearly as brisk as they were last summer. Well, I was a bit premature on that. Now, I can’t keep them on the shelf once again. From a wine steward’s perspective this is very exciting. It means that people are stretching out there palate horizons and trying new things. Of course, Albarino is hardly new, it has been around for a long time. Evidently, people have started to show an interest in it. What started this recent movement? I have no idea. Had Oprah been around to tout its virtues, I could understand that. However, I am not aware of such publicity for this varietal, maybe one of you can enlighten me. At any rate, I’m happy to see people clamoring for Albarino. I love this varietal myself, having partaken of it for many years. I will make sure the shelves remain stocked for the month of August when the sun is still shining and people are looking for whites to go with summer fare.

There are so many interesting whites to chose from besides the safe bets, such as Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay or Pinot Gris/Grigio. I have an episode on my Youtube channel featuring three whites that could be an option for the summer (or year round for that matter). Check out the episode, I think you will find it interesting.

This recent Albarino craze has inspired me to do a blind episode featuring said varietal. Old World vs New World Albarino. I’ll record it tonight, so you should see it published soon. I’ll be very interested in the results. Washington State has really embraced this varietal with great success, so it will be Washington State vs Spain in the blind battle. Who will come out on top? You’ll have to watch and find out.

Cheers!

Stan The Wine Man

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