Is Friday the 13th Freaking You Out….?
July 13, 2012.
Barnard Griffin Syrah Port, Columbia Valley, Washington State.
July 12, 2012
Grapes
100% Syrah
Facts
- I’ve had this bottle laying around my office for a few months now, and I finally decided (late last night) that it should probably get a review. Normally I wouldn’t review a “cold weather wine” such as the Barnard Griffin Syrah Port in the middle of summer, but I’ve always been of the opinion that fortified wines don’t get the recognition they deserve. Instead, they unfortunately seem to get pigeonholed as “…that stuff your Grandma drinks at Christmas.”
- Barnard Griffin was founded in 1983 (I was 3 years old at the time…if you care to know). The name of the winery is taken from the surnames of the owners: Rob Griffin and Deborah Barnard.
- In 1975 Rob Griffin, graduated “Cum Laude” from U.C. Davis with a degree in fermentation science. In 1977, Rob relocated to Washington State as the winemaker at Preston Wine Cellars (it’s worth noting that at this time there were less then ten wineries in Washington State). The 80’s were obviously a busy time for the guy, as he founded the Barnard Griffin brand in ‘83 (with an initial 400 case production) and then in ‘84 he also took on the role of chief winemaker at Hogue. It wasn’t until ‘91 that he decided to go full-time with Barnard Griffin.
Everyone Stay Calm! The Winebulance is Here…
July 12, 2012
French Cows Fed 2 Bottles of Wine a Day to Increase Flavor.
July 11, 2012
A number of farmers in the Languedoc wine region of France have taken to feeding their cattle local red wine to improve the flavor of their beef.
According to The Independent, local farmer Claude Chaballier has been feeding his cattle wine, which reportedly has resulted in “lean, marbled and tasty,” beef.
The extraordinary development has seen a ‘Vinbovin’ label of meat established which is already being championed by some of the best restaurants in Paris.
Two Angus cattle and one Camargue cow were fed a mixture of leftover grapes, barley and hay before two litres of wine were integrated into their diet.
A similar experiment was reported in 2010, when Canadian farmer Janice Ravndahl in British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley had taken to feeding her cattle red wine for the 90 days leading up to their slaughter. Ravndahl got the idea after celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay feed beer to his pigs on TV show The F Word (click here for that video).
Click here for the full article from The Independent.
My Thoughts…
And just when you thought the French couldn’t possibly be any dumber, after the foie gras ban, they go and do something like this…AND TOTALLY REDEEM THEMSELVES!
Posted in News | Tagged feeding cows wine, France, french farmers feed wine to cows, Languedoc | Leave a comment //French Wine Merchants Boycott Californian Wine in Protest Over Foie Gras Ban.
July 10, 2012
Ze wine merchants in southwest France are a little pissed-off with the recent foie gras ban in California, so much so, they have decided to take all Californian wines off their shelves.
Foie gras has been outlawed across California as a law banning force-feeding of animals came into force on 1 July.
In southern France, the center of production for foie gras, winemakers are doing their part to show solidarity to the region’s many producers.
As only miniscule amounts of Californian wine are sold in this part of France, it is largely a symbolic move, seen as a way of protecting a delicacy that is a key part of French culture.
Californian wine producers would be unlikely to feel much economic impact from the ban. In 2010,United States wine exports totaled 370 million liters and were worth $915 million. Less than 1 percent of the shipments – three million liters, worth $8 million – went to France, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce.
Click here for the full article at Decanter.com.
My Thoughts…
I can’t even tell you how many people I spoke to who boycotted French wine (and still probably do) after the French government basically refused to take any part in the “war on terror.”
Of course, all of this makes TOTAL sense to me! Winemakers should absolutely take responsibility (and be appropriately reprimanded by consumers) for the actions taken by their Government. I hated Crocodile Dundee 3! Hated it! It was dreadful! I haven’t bought a bottle of Aussie wine since I saw that god-awful movie!
P.S. My thoughts on foie gras are as follows: It’s delicious. It’s inhumane, but it’s delicious.
Posted in News | Tagged Foie Gras, France, Languedoc | 3 Comments //Looking to Build a Wine Cellar and Happen to Have a Spare $59k?
July 10, 2012
Ladies and gentlemen, here’s a chance to own a serious piece of winemaking history!
Measuring 9′ in diameter, almost 9′ in length, and weighing-in at approximately 2,500 lbs, I would like to present to you the wine cellar to beat all wine cellars! And it’s all yours for $59,000 (OBO).
This barrel was hand-crafted in Europe and then shipped to the United States in the early part of the 1900s. It originally held 3,750 gallons of wine, and was actually in use all the way up until prohibition in 1920. It wasn’t until 2011 when the barrel was uncovered by the Rocky Mountain Barrel Company, who spent 7 months renovating and turning it into a functional piece of winemaking history!
I’d like to point out that Rocky Mountain Barrel Company reached out for me with the info for this post, with the generous offer of a 10% commission if I manage to get it sold. Piece of cake, I say! I know for a fact that all of my readers live in castles, and that a small piece of “furniture” such as we have here wouldn’t at all look out of place in your basement!
Posted in News | Tagged wine barrel, Wine Barrels, Wine Cellar | Leave a comment //← Older posts Newer posts →
