You want great links, we got ‘em. I’m way behind on passing along bridges to cool stuff on the Interwebs, will try to catch up soon. For starters:

*I have no idea what to make of this. It seems pretty implausible that an ultrasound thingie could turn so-so wine into profound stuff. And I’m guessing that my expense request to share it with you, dear reader, will meet an untimely demise (has anything ever met a timely demise?). But it’s clearly a notion that merits extra interest in a world with too much wine and not enough money to buy it.

*Quite often, I’ll come across a “wish I’d thought of this” article, a nice execution of a swell story idea. This piece from the always-interesting San Francisco Chronicle wine section is one of those. To help those trying to figure out what wine to buy as a gift, reporter Stacy Finz unearths suggestions for strong women and men who are good at math, plus using the way people drink coffee as a guide and more.

*The whole interview is almost certainly a hoot, but we get the highlights (one would assume) in this excerpt from an upcoming Decanter profile of Gerald Depardieu. The actor/vintner/eccentric holds forth on how biodynamics “doesn’t exist,” why a certain celebrity chef is “all about marketing” (but Depardieu’s own winery is not at all) and how he converses to animals before killing them.

*Then there’s this “report” from the ever-droll folks at the Onion. It’s a spoof of course, and hilarious stuff. And as with most great satire, there’s a buttload of truth in there, too. As a friend said, “I may have observed some anecdotal evidence that supports this data at my own Thanksgiving table.”

*Finally, this has only a tangential wine peg — since “the juice” is such a great accompaniment for food — but it’s an absolutely fascinating look at an artist who (a) is truly inspired, (b) has too much time on his hands, (c) must be hungry quite often, or (d) all of the above.

Some people say Adam and Dianna Lee makes too many wines. Not that these folks don’t like his Siduri and Novy wines. I’m guessing that they just figure the Lees could make a few profound wines rather than a few dozen delicious ones.

I think anyone this gifted should do whatever he or she wants. Besides, look at those baby-faced visages and tell me: Don’t they have plenty of time to go for profundity? And isn’t being seriously immersed in the viniculture and viticulture of a bunch of wines a great way to get there?

Spending some time with Adam, as I was fortunate enough to do  recently, would convice anyone that he’s just going to get better and better at his craft. He’s funny, disarming and open; it’s like talking to a guy you played pickup touch-football and softball games with growing up. He’s also crazy smart.

(more…)

The food’s swell, but what makes Thanksgiving perhaps my favorite holiday is fellowship. So while I wrote about local stores in this week’s column, it’s the people behind them who make these places special. On this day, here’s who I’m thankful for on that front:  

I love the exuberance that Chuck Kanski (Solo Vino), Ray Zemke (Woodbury Cellars) and Dave Kuennen (BrightWines) share with their customers. I love the passion and thoroughness that they, along with Mark Mackondy (Buon Giorno), David Anderson (France44), Sam Haislet (Sam’s) and Mitch Zavada (South Lyndale), bring to seeking out the very best product. I appreciate the way that Phil Colich (Hennepin Lake), Brad Weiss (WineStreet Spirits) and Nic Nadeau (1st Grand) exact the lowest price that they can get from wholesalers — and pass it along to the consumer.  

I relish the fact that Corey Burstad (Tournament), Bill Abrahamson (Top Ten), Andy Kass (Sutler’s) and two Long Lake dudes – Pat Kessler (Lakeside) and Mike Yungner (Liquor Barn) — have made the outer suburbs great places to shop for wine. I admire the expertise that Darren Minehan (Sorella) and Rodney Brown (the Wine Shop) have brought to stocking wonderful newer stores. And I really like what I’m hearing about munis in Mound and Apple Valley, and look forward to checking them out.

I love the grace and savvy that Kristen Kowalski (the Wine Market), Chris Huff (the Little Wine Shoppe) and KaTrina Wentzel (the Wine Thief) have brought to a predominantly male vocation.

And I recommend that consumers seek out any of the above folks if they want to learn and appreciate more about wine.

With major apologies to the late, seriously great Marvin Gaye, one of his best songs might oughta be reworked as “Mercy, Mercy Me (The Economy).” Things ain’t what they used to be, that’s for sure.

I’ve been hearing for months that distributors are having trouble moving any wine in the $15-$40 retail range, especially to restaurants. I’ve been hearing about really good wines at all price points gathering dust at wholesalers’ warehouses. And lately, I’ve been hearing a lot about serious problems at the “high end.”

Alicia Anderson, who operates the fabulous Compleat Wine Cellars business out of France 44, admitted that business has slowed and added that “everyone in the luxury business is kinda scared right now.”  Out in California, the gorgeous food-qand-wine shrine Copia is in major trouble. And the Wine Spectator’s James Suckling has a great blog post up about a cult California winery getting a bit of comeuppance (fun comments thread there, too).

With sales at the medium and high end slowing, distributors will be cutting back on orders. That might be good news for consumers, as wholesalers and retailers might be forced to slash prices on current inventiories in order to bring in newer releases. 

Every party has a pooper. Last week — against my nature, some would say — I decided not to be one.

For months I had pegged the Nov. 20 Liquid Assets as a bashing-Nouveau Beaujolais column. Not because it’s bad, although it’s certainly rarely really good, but because it has gotten massively overpriced. Cue that recently deceased dude who did all the movie previews: “In a world where good wine can be found from almost every contintent for less than $10, French producers continue to criminally overprice a 2-month-old wine.” I saw one advertised for $15.99 the other day, which is nigh onto unconscionable.

But a lot of folks enjoy the “event”/party aspect of this simple wine on the third Thursday of November every year, and hey, bully for them. I hope it encourages them  to turn to other, better wine, but if that’s the only wine they drink all year, who am I to say they’re wrong? Especially since I gave it a tepid recommendation as a Thanksgiving wine, because its bright fruit, acidity and lightness actually can work with the myriad dishes at that table.  

Buy it for the novelty, the Nouveau-ness, but not for the second part of the name; go with Cru Beaujolais or even Beaujolais-Villages for that, or a Gamay Noir from the Loire. Most of all, buy it soon, for it’s best (and I use that word advisedly) when fresh.