Taking the World Cork by Cork: Wine Cork Art by Conrad Engelhardt.
November 8, 2012
The next time you uncork a bottle of vino, you may want to revaluate throwing out the cork. At least, that’s how wine cork artist Conrad Engelhardt got his start! He decided that the humble wine cork deserved a “second lease on life.”
Engelhardt uses up-to 5,000 wine corks to create one of his masterpieces; which bearing in mind that he’s a fellow Brit, probably takes him at least…oh, I don’t know….about a week of wine drinking until he has enough to make a piece of art! :)
What I like most is that up close it’s difficult to discern the images; but as you step further back, the images become more vivid. I very rarely see the value in what a great number of artists deem their work to be worth, but THIS I can get behind! Click here for the CorkByCork website.
Take a look at the short video below to see one of Conrad’s pieces come together.
First World Wine Problems.
November 8, 2012
No Matter Your Political Affiliation, You Need Schmor Donkey and Elephant Wine!
November 6, 2012
…and so we arrive at Election Day 2012.
I don’t know about you, but I’m just going to be happy that it’s all over…mainly for the fact that I can’t vote (since I’m officially only a U.S. resident) and also so I don’t have to read any more of the misguided rhetoric which seems to have comprised the majority of my Facebook feed for the last 2 months! Then again, we’re still going to have at least …..oh, I don’t know….probably another 6 months of “fallout posts” to put up with! It gives me a headache just thinking about it!
Needless to say, when all this political craziness is over, and no matter the outcome, you’re going to need a little alcohol…and that’s where the fine folks at Schmor Wine step in!
There’s a first time for everything, and yes (in case you were wondering), this is the first time I’ve ever seen a wine bottle wearing a tie….but I’m guessing it won’t be the last!
With wine labels representative of their political parties, Donkey and Elephant wines come all dressed-up in Democratic or Republican neckties and are packaged with a mini-American flag. What else do you want? What’s that you say? ‘It would be cool if they played a little song or something when you squeeze the tie?’ WELL….GUESS WHAT…THEY DO THAT AS WELL!!! (I kid you not.)
Was I skeptical popping the cork on both these bottles? Well, only as skeptical as I am on both of the guys that have found themselves running for office i.e. VERY SKEPTICAL!!!
You know what they say though: Don’t judge a wine by it’s necktie…at least…that’s what they should say, because these wines are actually pretty good. What I would call definite “crowd pleasers.”
The wines are an interesting blend of Syrah, Merlot, Cabernet, Cabernet Franc and even a tiny amount of Viognier is added in there just to soften the wine up a little. Medium in body, and skewing mainly towards red fruit, the wine drinks extremely smoothly. A fair balance between cranberry, ripe raspberry and plum, with secondary flavors of oak, baking spices, clove and nutmeg. Subtle tannins hold everything together.
Visit SchmorWine.com for more information.
Buying Into the Vineyard Life.
November 5, 2012
The Financialist published a story a couple of weeks ago that reminded me of an interview I had winemaker Lucas Meeker give me on this very subject, a little over a year ago. If you have any thoughts about opening your own winery, you need to read my four-part “Thinking of Opening a Winery in Napa? You Should Probably Read this First…” series.
The Financialist story reads:
Owning a vineyard is a common fantasy for wine lovers, but over the past couple of decades, it’s started to become a common reality as well. Reasons vary—the pride of creating your own product, the beautiful property—but turning a profit is typically not one of them.
According to a study conducted by UCD, owning a vineyard in Napa can set you back $30,000 per acre for the first year, and $3,500 per acre for each of the following two years. Once you’re producing wine grapes, net profits will be around $3,700 per acre each year. With that said, it’s much more difficult to turn a profit in Napa Valley than it is in, say, Argentina, where land and labor costs are much lower.
For those who aren’t quite ready for the commitment, there are a growing number of companies that let you become a winemaker without the daily headaches of actually running the vineyard. Crushpad, in Sonoma County, for instance, allows individuals to create their own wine without owning any land.
Click here for the full article from the Financialist.
My Thoughts…
I’ve heard a lot of wine drinkers tell me that they want to get into the “winery game,” but I usually just have to switch-off and stop listening. The reason being is that I’ve been in the restaurant industry my whole life, and have had to put up with people saying the same thing about opening their own restaurant, i.e.: “I can cook! I LOVE cooking for my friends! I’ll open a restaurant! How hard can it be!?!?” is akin to winemakers having to hear: “I have an exquisite palate for wine! I love drinking wine with my friends! I’ll open my own winery! How hard can it be!?!?” People very quickly forget that self-contained wineries are farms, and that owning one requires you to get your hands a little dirty.
I think you’d be surprised at how hard both the aforementioned industry’s are. I’ve worked for a couple of different independent restaurant owners who seriously thought that all they would be doing is sitting at the end of the bar, drinking wine and schmoozing all night. So many people “have a go” at their own restaurant, mainly because the barriers to entry are so low (they’re cheap to startup), and I guess the one saving grace with vineyards is that they are so expensive to buy and maintain, otherwise I have no doubt that we would see a lot more people giving their own winery a shot.
Posted in News | Tagged how to buy a vineyard, how to buy a winery, own your own winery, start a winery, starting a winery | 2 Comments //The Wine Brick.
November 5, 2012
Is Europe Facing a Wine Shortage?
November 5, 2012
As reported by SFGate, French wine cooperative group Groupe Val d’Orbieu has stated that wine drinkers will soon face a shortage of mammoth proportions, around 1.3 billion bottles to be exact. I’m not too sure how they arrived at that number, but that’s what they say…
The “shortage” comes after a drop in production in Italy, France and Spain, and vineyards across Europe suffered damage from winter dryness, a cold start to the season, hailstorms and a summer heat wave this year.
Wine inventories in Italy and Spain were also depleted in the past two years, leaving no buffer to compensate for the slump in 2012 production,
“It’s historic,” Bertrand Girard, CEO of Groupe Val d’Orbieu, said at a press conference in Paris. “We’re short of wine. We’ve never seen that in three or four decades.”
The global shortfall is expected to be at least 10 million hectoliters (264 million gallons). That volume equates to around 1 billion standard-size wine bottles. World production fell in the past decade even as consumption rose, according to data from the International Organisation of Vine and Wine, or OIV. The world’s vineyard area also shrunk in the past decade, falling to 7.59 million hectares (18.8 million acres) last year from 7.85 million hectares in 2000, according to the OIV.
“The main risk facing the industry is that a lack of wine in stores will prompt consumers to turn to other beverages such as beer,” Girard went on to say. “Spain has zero stocks,” he said. “Italy has zero stocks. We no longer have stocks to bridge the gap. We have no more entry-level wine.”
Click here for the full article from SFGate.com.
My Thoughts…
Well it’s good to see that ol’ Bertrand Girard has faith in wine drinkers! i.e. thinking that they will switch to beer so quickly.
I don’t know about you, but if I’m in a wine mood, I’m in a wine mood. If wine is unavailable, then obviously I’ll switch to beer. If the price of wine is raised by a couple of $’s, then it’s no big deal, I’ll pay those couple of $’s. Then again, I’m a serious wine drinker (without that sounding like I’m an alcoholic).
I have to think this is the same thought by other wine drinkers, at least, the ones who generally drink wine from France, Spain and Italy. I tend to find that people who are fans of wine from these countries tend to be a little more “serious” about their wine drinking, and won’t be easily swayed to an alternate beverage by a so-called “wine shortage.”
Seriously though, I HIGHLY doubt we will see any serious shortages and I can’t say I’m too concerned. Much in the same way the French announced there would be a “Champagne shortage” for the millennium (which never transpired), I think this amounts to nothing more than misguided and unproductive propaganda.
Posted in News | Tagged European wine shortage, wine shortage | Leave a comment //← Older posts Newer posts →
