Tall Tales Brewing Company

Tall Tales Brewing Company is a small craft brewery on the Eastern shore of MD, outside of Salisbury, in the little town of Parsonsburg. They are committed to making handcrafted beers of high quality and excellent flavors. I personally feel these guys will give some of the big guys, both locally and nationally a run for their money. The team at Tall Tales is one of the friendliest and welcoming groups, I have had the pleasure to meet in the business. But do not let their charm fool you, these guys are serious about beer and food. But do not take my word for it, head on over to the brewery and see for yourself.

Tall Tales puts out some really nice beer and their selection is only growing. I recently had their Excalibur IPA and being a hop head, I was thoroughly happy and completely satisfied by what I was tasting. In my glass was a golden/orange color with a pure white head and good lace. Aromas of pine, grass and citrus (orange and grapefruit). First taste had a mix of hops and malt with a long hoppy finish. Hints of orange, lemon and pine melt on the palate. This is a very well balanced and solid IPA. A great hop bitterness with just the right malt backbone. Oh how I wish I had some Carrot cake to go with this beer!!

RIESLING

Riesling, is one of the fastest growing wine varietals. Why is Riesling on the rise? Well, among wine lovers, Chefs and Sommeliers this varietal receives exceptional attention for its out-going, food-friendly character. Riesling has gained international spotlight in large part due to its amicable, foof-friendly versatility. As palates prefer a wider variety of food flavors, wines that can fit a broader food-pairing bill will see an increase in demand. This is where Riesling fits in the picture, it would be difficult to find a more accommodating wine for a broader range of food. If you are looking for a no fail wine for an appetizer table, Riesling is there for you. If you've got a spicy dish- again its a Riesling that will bail you out. Why is Riesling so food-friendly? On of Riesling's key pairing advantages for it's food adaptability is that there are so many regional influences and styles made from this single grape varietal. Rieslings are known for their balance of acidity and sugar. It's the acidity that allows it to encounter and woo a variety of difficult pairing partners. The acid allows the wine to handle hearty sauces, high-end meats and even lighter fare. It also off-sets some of the tangy flavors of ginger and lime. While the innate fruit factor (apple, pear, citrus and tropical flavors) and light sweetness of an off-dry Riesling lends it charm for tackling high-spiced foods.

ROSE CHAMPAGNE

Among wine drinkers who know their Champagne, rose Champagnes are considered the Creme de la Creme. They are more expensive than golden Champagnes, a reflection of the fact that they are more difficult to produce, and they're far more rare, forming only about 5% of exports. There are two methods for making them. The first-and historical- method involves letting some the base wine sit in contact with Pinot Noir skins until it picks up enough color to tint the wine pink. The other method, more modern and more common, involves adding a small bit of still Pinot Noir wine into each Champagne bottle before second fermentation. This method us preferred for several reasons, among them the fact that such Roses seem to age better. Both processes are complex, and achieving a certain exact coloration is difficult, as lineup of Rose Champagnes will attest. The colors range from baby pink to deep copper. Though often mistakenly thought of as light and fairly simple, Rose Champagne can be richer and fuller than golden. The basic blend counts for a lot. The Rose might be a blend of 80% Pinot Noir and 20% Chardonnay- or just the opposite. A Rose can be made either way, but when you drink them the impressions the two wines make will be quite different.

RED WINE HEADACHES

     These headaches are often accompanied by nausea and flushing that occurs in many people after drinking even a single glass of red wine. It's not associated with the consumption of white wine or other alcoholic beverages. No one knows for certain why this occurs. It probably has more than one cause.
     Many people have assumed its caused by sulfites, but this is not the case. Almost all wines contain sulfites. Many white wines contain more sulfites than red wines. There are sulfite sensitive people who have asthma problems from Red wine, but there are also a slew of other things they can not have which have sulfites whether its added or naturally occurring.
     Some experts claim that it can be caused by Histamines, Tannins, Serotonin and other enzymes that people cannot metabolize. Many experts say to try taking a Claritin an hour before or to drink a cup of black tea.

Foods containing Sulfites: Beer, Cookies, Crackers, Pickles, Olives, Salad dressing, Vinegar, Sugar, Shrimp, Scallops, Fruit Juice and Lunch Meats.

Foods containing Tannins: Tea, Soy and Chocolate.
There are certain wine styles with less sulfites and tannins. This is due to reduced Maceration time. Example: Pinot Noir, Sangiovese, Gamay, Tempranillo, Dolcetto and Barbera.

References:
Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology
Harvard Health Letter
Tareq Khan M.D.

SPRINGTIME AND WINE

If you have not already used all your energy from the first burst of Springtime sunshine, on mundane things like yard work, then why not use it for some refreshing wine drinking. Most wines are as seasonal as food and clothing. So if your already updating from sweaters to sundresses then its time to update your wine wardrobe also. This a great time for sipping on and focusing on refreshing new white wines with high acidity and my favorite  Roses. Springtime inspires foods and holidays that reflect the life and love of the wine. Springtime menus vary as widely as the holidays. Easter menus can be so lovely and lively with ham, cheese potatoes, cranberry salad and Cinnamon are so calling for Pinot Noir, dry Riesling or a good sparkling Rose. The best lesson is to focus on the main protein of your meal.

THE RHONE VALLEY AND PROVENCE

There is another great region in France that is usually overlooked because of Bordeaux and Burgundy. It is justifiably famous for substantial wines that suit a dinner's main course. This is the Rhone Valley, which produces over 20,000,000 gallons of wine a year, mostly ordinary, but also including some superior types that are particularly well known and liked in the U.S.: the hearty red Chateauneuf Du Pape, the refreshing rose called Tavel and the big reds and whites of Hermitage. All these wines come from the southern part of the valley, near Avignon. Its wine is unusual because, unlike fine Burgundies or Bordeaux, which are each pressed from a single grape variety, it is usually made from a blend of grapes. For the best Chateauneuf Du Pape 12-13 varieties are used. Most experts recommend that it be given no less than four or five years to mature.

THE MEDOC

Are all the wines of Medoc of similar quality? By no means. The district is divided into two areas, the Haut-Medoc and the Medoc. The latter used to be called the low Medoc, but that term somehow sounded derogatory, the vignerons who had holdings there objected strongly, and they succeeded in getting the "low" eliminated. They had a right to feel sensitive, for their wines are good too; yet the best wines of the Medoc are indeed made in the Haut-Medoc section. So. narrowing down still farther, we find ourselves in the Haut-Medoc, which in turn is divided into 28 municipalities called communes. Four of  the best known of the are Margaux, Pauillac, St. Estephe and St. Julien (my personal favorite). Thus a bottle label saying appellation control, and St. Julien, pinpoints the wine as coming from one small commune in Bordeaux where red wines of almost uniformly outstanding quality are produced. There remains only the question of what specific vineyard in St. Julien grew the vine. And for the greatest wines of all, that is all-important. It is traditional in Bordeaux to refer to individual vineyards as Chateau. These Chateau's, incidentally, are not the imposing castles that you will find on the Loire River; they are generally spacious country houses, although some are little more than storage buildings in the vineyards. But whether the building be imposing or modest, the wine that many of the Medoc Chateau's put out is glorious. The owners guard the reputation of their labels jealously-some of them to the point of refusing to put their name on any wine at all if the year should be a bad one; then they sell their whole crop anonymously to a shipper to be blended. This happens rarely. There are a great many Chateaus in Medoc alone, and to settle some the confusion, a committee of Bordeaux wine brokers sat down in 1855 to divide them into five classes. The system is a simple numerical one. The top grade, for example is Premier Cru, which translates literally as "First Growth" but really means "vineyard of the top class."  When someone refers to Chateau Calon-Segur as a third-growth Medoc, which it is, he means that the Chateau produces wines of the third class; they are not quite as superb as those of the first or second growths. Yet even a fifth-growth Medoc is far from a poor wine. On the contrary, it is something special, for out of the hundreds of Chateaus that were rated in 1855, only 62 were deemed worthy of classification. Three were put in the first division: Lafitte-Rothschild, Latour and Margaux; and a fourth Haut-Brion was added, although it is not a Medoc at all but a Graves. So in addition to the warranty of quality supplied by the words appellation control on a Bordeaux bottle, one also has, for the finest wines, the name of the Chateau itself, and such words as mis en bouteilles au chateau (bottled at the chateau), which gives the buyer the assurance that the wine in the bottle was grown in a certain vineyard, by a certain man and bottled right there. The famous Medoc Chateau, along with many others in Bordeaux, owe their fame not only to the excellence of their wines, but also to their large size. Most of the great vineyards of Burgundy, the Rhine and the Moselle are divided among a number of proprietors, some of whom may own only an acre or two in a choice location, and each of whom makes a slightly different wine, following his own counsel. In Bordeaux, properties of 100 and 200 acres in single ownership are not unusual. Chateau Lafitte, for example. contains 150 acres under vine. The wine in all the Lafitte bottles of a given year is identical. This adds immeasurably to the ease with which a Bordeaux lover can pinpoint his favorites.

THE GREAT WINES OF FRANCE

The truth is that there are only a few great wines. That is the miracle and the mystery of wine, that the vine-the Vitis vinifera- has traveled right around the world, and yet in only a few fate-favored places is great wine produced. What do I mean by "great" wine? Simply this: Certain spots in some magical way combine the right soil, the right amount of sun, the right amount of rain, the right angle of slope- all these things for the right kind of grape to produce wines that in their balance, their bouquet, their subtlety of flavor and often their longevity, are unmatched by any others. They are all different from one another, having in common only their nobility, which they express in endless, enthralling ways; and it is a good thing that your palate will prefer this one and mine prefer that one, so that there will be no end to the delightful debates over their respective virtues. But in this select company all are superb, and all unique. Each is a creation that could not be duplicated chemically, or even naturally in another spot- not even by using the same grapes and importing the same soil and the same workmen with the same methods of cultivation and harvest. Move the vine and the wine will be different. There are vineyards in Burgundy where the vines at the top of the hill yield a far finer wine than do  those a few hundred yards farther down. Half a mile away the situation may be reversed; the lower slope may be the favored one. Why on vineyard should produce an ordinary wine and another across the valley should produce an a supreme one, no one knows; but that is the way it is, and we should be grateful that in a standardized, machine-made world there is on article that cannot be turned out to pattern. There are so many great wine regions in France, but, I cannot delay any longer in dealing with the world's greatest wines, the ones ideally suited to accompany the main meat course of any meal: the fabulous French wines of Bordeaux and Burgundy. Both of these regions produce red and white wine- and in each the best is generally conceded to rank with best in the world. Bordeaux comes in tall, slender bottles and has been called the Queen of red wines. It is subtle, inclined to be on the light, dry side, with an aftertaste that is indescribable.Its appeal is discreet and aristocratic. By contrast, Burgundy is the King. Its bottle is stouter in shape, with sloping shoulders, and the wine is stouter too. It is heavier, "chewier"; it hurls its imperial brilliance at you with a shout. Getting to know the Bordeaux and the Burgundies, with their apparent infinity of place names and complicated labels, seems a hopelessly confusing task. Actually it is simpler than it seems, for the French government has established regulations to aid the wine lover. These are the famous Appellation control laws, put into operation in the 1930's. Their aim is not only to prevent such sharp practices as the adulteration of good wines with bad ones and the use of misleading labels, but also to try to force each district to produce the very best wines that it is capable of. To that end, the laws specify the exact boundaries of each district, the kinds of grapes that may be grown in those districts, and even the amount of wine that can be produced per acre in each district. In Medoc district of Bordeaux, for example, the general quality of the wine is very high, and Appellation Control laws are aimed at keeping it that way- the Medoc is subject to stricter standards of quality than the other wine-producing districts in both Bordeaux and Burgundy.

BORDEAUX: Let us take up Bordeaux first. With no exception, without even a rival, this all-important area stands supreme for the extent, quality and variety of its wines. Every type of unfortified wine is made there: delicate and full-bodied reds, dry and sweet white wines, even a little Rose. The wines of Bordeaux run the full gamut of quality and price, from obscure local pressings that sell for a few cents a bottle and are drunk on the spot (they are not worth shipping), to the great Chateau names like Lafite and Haut-Brion, which ring like bells in the imagination of the wine lover, and which, for a good vintage, command upwards of $100 a bottle-when they are available. The boundaries of the Bordeaux region are defined by the Appellation Control laws. Any wine grown there, so long as it conforms to other provisions of the laws, may be labeled Bordeaux- Bordeaux red, Bordeaux white. Primarily, that designation guarantees the place of origin. It says nothing about the quality. To find a somewhat better grade of wine, one does not buy a mere Bordeaux; one should select a bottle from a certain part of Bordeaux region, which is divided, again by the laws, into two dozen separate districts. Many of these produce rather undistinguished wines, but five of them produce some of the greatest wines in the world, and the quality within those five districts is so superior that there is an obvious advantage for the grower in any one of the five in labeling his wine as coming from there. The five are: Medoc, Graves, St.Emilion and Pomerol, renowned for their reds, and Sauternes, for its supreme dessert wines, which are white.

THE SPANISH KITCHEN AND WINE

Please understand that Spanish cuisine and Mexican cuisine have almost nothing in common. The cultures share a few dishes due to Spanish influence in Mexico, but that was hundreds of years ago and the cuisine of beans and tortillas is not known in Spain. It never was. The Spanish view the evening meal as a very important time of the day. Dinner is eaten very late in the evening after chatting with friends over a glass of sherry and Tapas. The dinner goes late into the night. They do not see the meal as a "before event" such as we do before the theater or before the evening gets along. The meal is the event. The evening is spent dining with your friends and family. Americans find it hard to believe that Spaniards begin dinner about 10p.m. But please remember, the have several meals during the day, not the ordinary three that we celebrate. So by the time the last meal of the day arrives it is time to sit back, relax and enjoy the presence of those that you love. The American dinner is eaten in a hurry, and very early in terms of Mediterranean standards, so that we "can get on with the evening." At this point the Spanish find us very strange and difficult to understand. Why do we want to hurry anything? I think because we feel guilty eating when we feel we should be doing something puritanical and work like. I'm with the Spanish. The wines of Spain are world famous, and they should be. The great Rioja region produces first-class reds and whites and remember the Spanish invented Sherry, a wine left in barrels to "burn" in the sun until it is nutty and rich in flavor. All of these wines are used in cooking the wonderful cuisine of the Spaniards.

A JUG OF WINE

"Jug" wine has probably done more to promote the idea of wine as an everyday drink for the table than anything else in this country. We are indeed blessed in having an enormous wine-producing area in the hot valleys of California that can deliver to us a cornucopia of grapes for making into inexpensive table wines. And in fact, the quality level of this American "Vin ordinaire" is generally superior to that of most European countries. On the  other hand, much of the "Chablis," "Burgundy" and "Rhine" wine sold is pretty dull stuff. Not awful, just dull. A good jug wine should be fresh and fruity, "cleanly" made, with no peculiar or chemical odors. It should be balanced in sweetness and tartness. It should not be too heavy or harsh but should not taste like water either. It should be able to accompany food and is should be pleasant enough that you can drink more than one glass. Sadly, there are a number of California jug wines that do not meet these criteria. Some are possessed of a ghastly sweetness that will cloy the least discriminating of palates. Some are so earthy and vegetal that you wonder who put the cabbage and dill in them. Some taste unripe, some like cleanser. It's sad, especially because for some people this is their only experience of wine and having tried one of these they decide that wine is not for them. But there are some decent jugs out there, put out by California's enormous wineries. "Chablis" usually designates a fairly (though not totally) dry white wine-some nice examples are: Gallo Chablis Blanc (a reliable old timer). "Rhine" wine is almost always sweeter, sometimes quite sweet, with varying degrees of fruit. Almaden Mountain and Carlo Rossi are decent examples for those who like that style. "Burgundy" is red wine that can be in any of a wide variety of styles, from sweet and dull to dry and herbal. Almaden Mountain Burgundy and Gallo Hearty Burgundy are a good example in the sweeter, softer style. One would think that varietal jugs, named after single grape types, would be superior wines, but that isn't necessarily the case.The blends are often superior and less expensive. There are also some "premium" jug wines-in the same large-bottle format, but selling for a dollar or two more. Often these wines, made by wineries that also produce premium varietal wines, and are considerably better than the standard jugs. Robert Mondavi, Parducci and Fetzer are some good names to look for. There is a definite role for jug wine. We don't always want, nor can we afford to open a nice bottle of wine for every meal. Often just a simple glass of wine to relax with is just what we need. So, sure, keep a bottle of red and white on hand if you like-it's always useful for pouring into the pot, in any case.

EIGHT PRINCIPLES OF MATCHING FOOD AND WINE!

1. Drink the wines you enjoy with the foods you enjoy. If you have a thirst for Riesling and a hunger for steak, So be it. You will note be zapped by lightning for putting the two together. And in truth the flavors that your palate prefers will probably go together just fine.

2. Experiment. You might make some ghastly choices. But you will stimulate your own thinking about food flavors, as different wines accent different flavors in a dish. And you may, perhaps by dumb luck, hit upon some wonderful marriage of food and wine that will win you acclaim in your kitchen.

3. Do you want to show off  the food, or the wine? This is especially an issue when you're entertaining. If you are preparing a tricky and special dish that you hope your guests will ooh and aah over, don't distract them with an expensive 20yr old wine. Hungry people eating and drinking can concentrate on only so much at a time. Serve a good wine that will complement the meal but will not be too assertive.
Likewise, if you are dusting off a fine old bottle or have invested a small fortune in the hottest new wine, make sure you get the hoped for reaction by preparing simple food that will provide a tasty background for the wine.

4. The 4th involves a choice: you can match for similarity or for contrast. For example, if you are serving fish with a rich, buttery sauce, you might want to pick a Chardonnay or white Burgundy that has very buttery characteristics, as many do. In other words, you find food and wine with similar flavors (not always an easy task). But sometimes you may use wine as a counterbalance, to cut through or set off aggressive flavors in a dish. A good example here are oily types of fish, which often do best with tart, crisp white wines like a Pouilly Fume or Italian Chardonnay, both of which refresh the palate. This principle also gives you a wonderful out when, in your experimenting, you make a real blooper. As your guests grimaces over a nasty battle between food and wine you can observe to them that you hope that the contrast between food and wine flavors has worked out to their satisfaction.

5. Match strength to strength. If you're serving a delicate cod dish, don't attack it with a full-flavored California Chardonnay. If you're serving a rich, spicy, tomatoey pasta dish, don't let it overwhelm a pale red Burgundy. Light flavors deserve light wine; heavy flavors or spicy ones, need heavy wine.

6. The next principle will slightly complicate your task- the secret is the sauce. In many cases you want to match a wine not to the main ingredient in a dish but to the sauce. Why do you use a sauce? Because it changes the flavors of the food you're preparing. Salmon with creamy dill sauce is rather different from Salmon with lobster sauce- a wine that is good with one might not complement the other. So consider the balance of sweetness and tartness, the creaminess, the herbs in the sauce when thinking of a wine.

7. The next principle is one of my favorite. It involves the one bit of chemistry that makes wine and food significant. It is the acid in wine that makes it tastes tart (or sour), but acid is the backbone of any wine, and the best food wines are nearly always those with healthy acid levels. The hazard of trying to evaluate a wine without food is that a wine tastes overly tart by itself, but will be delightfully refreshing and stimulating with a meal. Likewise, a wine low in acid (often called "soft") that tastes lush and flavorful by itself may simply have its flavors disappear when served with food. All the other flavors in wine "hang" on the acid-so consider the acid of a wine when matching with food. Just because a wine is sweet doesn't mean it is low in acid. German Rieslings are usually slightly sweet, but they have good balancing acid-more in fact, than many other white wines. This makes them, despite what you've heard, actually rather good food wines, particularly with rich foods.

8. Let the last principle be... tradition. American food and wine lovers have devoted a decade or so to the serious business of matching food and wine, and in typically American fashion, have come up with a variety of technically sophisticated and well-organized approaches. Meanwhile, Europeans have for the better part of two millennium been happily sating their appetites with local wines made to suit the local cuisine-and have so mastered this art that they needn't think about it. So the marvelous sweet beef of Burgundy matches beautifully with Pinot Noir, while the fat fowls, freshwater crayfish and delicate cheeses of the region make one crave, Chardonnay. The rich, spicy dishes of Germany suit Riesling just fine, thank you very much, while Italian Chianti does very nicely with the Prosciutto, minestrone and grilled meats and game of the Tuscan hills. The easiest way to deal with the vexing question of matching wine to food is simply to follow the lead of our forebears. It's difficult to go wrong serving a lovely Italian wine with an Italian dinner. (And yes there is such a thing as Spaghetti wine). When serving seafood, look for wines made by those close enough to the sea to smell it.

THE HOUR OF THE APERITIF

The French have always, and with justice, been regarded as the world's gastronomic authorities. They have maintained that some mildly alcoholic beverage is required to set the gastric juices in motion, and they have developed a succession of delightful predinner concoctions that they call Aperitifs to perform this function. The Italians, in fact all Mediterranean peoples-and even Americans- have joined them in their pursuit. There are a number of Aperitifs that would make an admirable introduction to a thoughtfully planned dinner, but the choice depends on the kind of dinner you are proposing to give. If it is to be a buffet-style meal accompanied by a suitable table wine, then your guests should sit down to table with their appetites unimpaired and their gastric juices no more than set in motion. If you are going to serve good wines, then it is necessary to invite guests who will appreciate them and who can be trusted out of respect for the wines to arrive punctually, so that the period of waiting can be genuine, for which one cocktail, highball or Aperitif will be sufficient. It is quite another matter if the cocktail period is going to the meal itself-as it is nowadays in many houses.
The word Aperitif comes from the Latin Aperire, meaning to open, and indeed, a variety of fresh, slightly bitter drinks have traditionally been used to open both meals and appetites. More than mere cocktail-hour stimulants,however, wine aperitifs are also thought to be healthful because many contain small amounts of quinine, an ingredient originally added to protect French soldiers from Malaria. There are four aromatic wines that have been blended with bitter bark, brandy and Quinine (Dubonnet, Byrrh, St. Raphael and Lillet). Currently, the best selling French aperitif in the United States is Lillet, first created in 1887 when two French brothers white Bordeaux wine with a mixture of macerated fruit and small amount of quinine. Today, ten different fruits-eight of which are a well kept secret- along with sweet and bitter orange peel and quinine are cold-macerated in French brandy for four to six months before they are mixed with wine and aged. Two types of Lillet are made; non vintage, also called classic, and vintage, making it the only vintaged aperitif in the world.Vintage Lillet is aged in newer oak barrels than non vintage. Lillet Blanc, both vintage and non vintage, is produced from Bordeaux grown Sauvignon Blanc,Semillon and Muscadelle grapes. Lillet Rouge, whether vintage or non vintage, is a blend of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon.

LEARNING THE JOYS OF WINE, THE PLEASURES OF SPIRITS!!

The wine lover need not know and usually does not care that a peeled ripe peach, pricked 99 times, revolves slowly in a bubbling glass of cold Champagne. Nor does it matter to them that this is a delectable summer drink called Stachelschwein, "the porcupine" in Germany, where it is popular. Such knowledge is reserved for the bookworm. As for the neophyte among wine  lovers, there are thousands of other pieces of information (of great or little importance) that lie ahead of him. As they get into the subject, he will find greater enjoyment in the beers, wines and spirits of their choice when he knows something of the history and characteristics of each type and its place of origin. It does not matter much whether the first wines we savor are those of Australia, or South Africa, whether the table wines of a family come from Italy, Chile or California. The important thing is that we take the time to read, learn and drink!!! Knowledge, along with the constant tasting, can bring an appreciation of why, where and how we should enjoy our wines and spirits. There are many interesting differences to learn about. A brandy from Cognac and one made in Armagnac, for example, are both Brandies- but being distilled in different ways and aged in different kinds of casks, they are quite different in taste. A whisky made in Scotland is very different from the product of Ireland or our own American ryes and Bourbons. It is perhaps not surprising that table wines differ when made from different grapes; but it is remarkable that the dry white Blanc-Fume wines of the Loire valley are very different from the sweet white Chateau d'Yquem and other wines made from the same grape in Gironde Valley just to the south.
For the person who envies the evident joys their friends derive from choosing and drinking the right wine in the right place at the right time. I truly recommend they read, listen and TASTE!! There is so much learn every time you try something new or retry a new vintage of that old favorite!!

KOSHER WINE

Until the 1980's many Kosher wines tasted like a cross between Kool-Aid and Children's medicine. Today, however, Kosher wines are  in an entirely different league. Made by winemakers with good credentials from  such classic varieties as Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon, Kosher wines now compete with fine wines made anywhere in the world. To be Kosher, a wine must be made under rabbinical supervision and must be handled throughout vilification by a Sabbath-observant Jew. Wine handled or served by a non-observer is considered unfit for sacramental use. Historically, of course, Jewish religious authorities knew that wine was used not just for sacramental purposes but also socially. Wine eased and encouraged social interaction. Religious scholars speculate that rabbis and Jewish intellectuals may have feared such socializing, viewing it as the first step toward the disintegration of Jewish culture and the assimilation of Jews into other cultures. To mitigate against this, two versions of Kosher wine were made. The first, Mevushal (cooked) wine, would be boiled, making it in a sense morally sterilized. Though Mevushal wine would therefore be less palatable than regular wine, it could be shared by non-Jews and nonobservant Jews with observant Jews. The other type of Kosher wine would be non-Mevushal and, as result, generally better tasting. Non-Mevushal wine could be drunk and served only by Sabbath-observervant Jews. If a non-Jew or a non-Sabbath observant Jew touched a non-Mevushal wine, even accidentally, it could not be consumed by someone who strictly followed Kosher dietary law. Initially, Mevushal wines were quite literally boiled. Today the unfermented grape juice or wine is flash pasteurized- a more modern method of sterilization- and the wine is then aged. Flash pasteurization is also kinder than boiling when it comes to preserving the wine's aroma and flavor. In both Europe and Israel, Kosher wine has always been made from classic European grape varieties, such as Cab Sav, Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc and Merlot. While that is now true in Untied States as well, in the past most American-made Kosher wines were produced from foxy-tasting native grapes, such as Concord, which were also used for jelly. These grapes thrived along the East Coast, where the largest centers of Jewish population were to be found. Over time, American-made Kosher wine became inextricably linked with syrupy sweet wine, such as Manischevitz. The largest U.S. importer and distributor of Kosher wines is the New York based Royal Kedem. As for specific producers of Kosher wine, the best in California include Weinstock, Hagafen, Gan Eden and Baron Herzog. The most famous French Kosher wine is the one called Baron Rothschild, an expensive Kosher Bordeaux produced by Baron Edmund Rothschild of Lafite-Rothschild. From Israel, the producer to look for are Yarden and Golan.

WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN WINE

There are five qualities a taster must assess in order to determine whether a wine is great: Varietal character, Integration, Expressiveness, Complexity and Connectedness.
Distinct Varietal Character is a good thing. Each variety of grape presents itself in a unique way. When a young wine that has been made from a single variety of grape presents its inherent grape aromas and flavors in a straightforward, clear and focused way, it is said to have varietal character. Not all varietal characteristics have mass appeal. Some wine drinkers think the assertive, tangy green herb, olive and straw character of some Sauvignon Blancs is quite nasty, especially if the aromas go one step further and take on what is often described as cat piss smell. "Cat piss" as long as its not extreme, is a description used approvingly by some wine drinkers (including me) who do like Sauvignon Blanc. There's an obvious analogy here with cheese. Just because some people cannot bear smelly cheese, is blue cheese awful? Should every cheese be remade in the image of Kraft singles, just because these have widespread appeal? I think the idea is absurd.
Integration is a state whereby the components of a wine are so impeccably interwoven that no one characteristic or component stands out. Integration means more than just balance. Integration implies that all the components have come together in harmonious fusion.
Expressiveness is the quality a wine possesses when its aromas and flavors are well-defined and clearly projected. While some wines seem muddled and diffused, others beam out their character with almost unreal clarity and focus.
Complexity is not a thing but a phenomenon. Unlike, say jamminess or acidity, you cannot go looking for the thing called complexity. Complexity is more like a force that pulls you into a wine and impels you to repeatedly return for another smell and sip because each time you do, you find something new.
Connectedness is perhaps the most elusive of these concepts and the most difficult quality to ascertain. It is the sense you get from the wine's aroma and flavor that it could not have come from just anywhere but rather is the embodiment of a single piece of earth. Connectedness is the bond between a wine and the plot of land it was born in.

SCOTCH: A SPIRIT BEYOND COMPARE

Often imitated (never successfully) by producers in other lands, Scotch whisky is inseparably wedded to the Highlands and Lowlands of its native heath. It is compounded of elements indigenous to Scotland: crystal-clear water obtained from the sparkling streams the Scots call burns, barley grown on the mountain slopes known as braes, the peat fuel that gives Scotch its Characterically smoky flavor, and even say the Scots, the pure air of their land.
The original Scotch was an unblended spirit called Malt whisky- so named because it was made exclusively from barley that was germinated, or malted, by steeping it in water before fermentation. Strong, and harsh on the palates of most drinkers other than the Scots, who profess to enjoy it, malt scotch is still made in Scotland, and some is spared for export; what the rest of the world calls Scotch, however, is a blend of up to 60% of this malt whisky with unmalted grain whiskies.
The exact proportions and origins of the ingredients of their products-up to 50 whiskies may go into a single scotch-are closely guarded secrets of the distillers. About the only fact that manufactures do not keep locked in their Scots hearts and vaults is the age of the product. British law stipulates that any Scotch must mature for at least three years, but most of it is four years of age or more when it is put on the market.

DECANTING, DRINKING, AGING AND STORING PORT

Decanting- which is not difficult- is only necessary for those Ports that throw a sediment. These include vintage Port, traditional late bottled Port, Single Quinta vintage Port and Crusted Port. Depending on how old and delicate the wine is, it should be decanted from three to twelve hours before being served. If the wine is fairly young  and robust you can decant it ten to twelve hours ahead; a more fragile wine should be decanted closer to the time when it will be drunk. Ports that do not throw a sediment and so do not need to be decanted include ruby, young and aged tawny, colheita and white Port. These may be poured straight into the glass. One of the oldest and most curious Port traditions concerns the direction on which a bottle is passed. By custom, Port is always supposed to be passed from the right to left, in a clockwise direction. Drinking Port is the easiest part, any good-sized wineglass will do. (As with all wines, the glass should be large enough to allow the Port to be swirled.) Generally about 31/2 ounces of Port is poured in the glass-a slightly smaller amount , in other words, than you would pour of a regular wine. As for aging, some Ports are made so they can be drunk right away; others will mature and improve if stored well. The Ports that improve with age include vintage Port, single Quinta Port, traditional late bottled and Crusted Port. These can be stored a long time. Most vintage ports are best after it has been aged at least ten years, and some will continue to mature well for three decades or more. All other Ports are ready to drink when released, although they can also be stored for about two years without ant significant loss of quality. Ports that can be drunk right away generally have a stopper-type cork. These Ports should be stored standing up until you open the bottle. Ports that improve with age, such as Vintage Port are sealed with regular corks. These should be stored lying down. The ideal storage place is cool, about 55F, and dark, so that ultraviolet light does not instigate chemical reactions that, in turn, might cause the wine to oxidize. Port bottles themselves are generally black to help preserve the freshness of the liquid inside.

WINE WITHOUT BOOZE? WHY?

Take too much fun from the fun bank at Thanksgiving? With more holiday revelry coming up, I have three little words: alcohol-free wine.

The notion of tinkering with perfectly good vino makes true wine lovers blanch, but alcohol-free wine has some advantages over its boozy cousin, including far fewer calories: about 15 to 25 calories for a 4-ounce glass, compared with about 90 for a glass of Chardonnay or Cabernet Sauvignon. Alcohol-free wine also should confer some of the health benefits one gets from moderate regular-wine consumption,The same antioxidants found in regular wine also exist in alcohol-free wine if the same grapes were used. These polyphenols -- which fall under the broad umbrella of antioxidants -- include the almighty resveratrol, a compound in red wine that's been receiving recent media attention. Typically, alcohol-free wine is made by extracting the alcohol through a filtering or vacuum process, while leaving the other components intact. By law, the wines must be less than one-half of 1% alcohol. While it does appear that alcohol in moderation decreases the effects of cardiovascular disease, it can also increase your calorie intake; triglycerides, which is another blood lipid; your blood pressure; and possibly your cancer risk. You have to look at the total picture. And the public is buying it. Ariel Vineyards sold 1.2 million bottles of alcohol-free wine last year. Alcohol-free-wine drinkers include pregnant women, designated drivers and people who need to abstain for medical reasons or simply don't like alcohol. Someone with a long history of wine drinking who tries these products won't exactly be seeing stars. It's hard enough to find a really great, rich, soulful Cabernet or Chardonnay with the alcohol, and it's almost an impossible challenge to deliver a really great Cabernet or Chardonnay without alcohol. Alcohol is important to the roundness and richness and sweetness of wine.

But there are a few out there and one of the best I have tasted is Ariel. Ariel has the distinction of producing the only dealcoholized wine to win a gold medal at a formal competition against regular wines. Sure, it was in 1986 at the Los Angeles County Fair, but, still, the wine must have been the Secretariat of the bunch. There is also Fre which makes a pretty tasty sparkling wine.

PROSECCO, ITALY'S SPARKLING JEWEL

The veneto's ubiquitous Spumante, Prosecco grapes sometimes with small amounts of Pinot Bianco and Pinot Grigio added. The best of the Prosecco grapes undoubtedly come from vineyards just north of Venice in the rambling hills between the villages of Conegliano and Valdobbiadene. Traditionally, the sparkler was rather soft, slightly sweet and only slightly fizzy. Today most examples are dry and fully Spumante, though still more fruity and less dramatically crisp then Champagne. Prosecco is not made by the Champagne method, but rather by the Charmat process, in which wine undergoes a second fermentation in pressurized tanks rather than in individual bottles. In late afternoon virtually every bar in Venice pours glass after glass of Prosecco, which the civilized Venetians consider Ombrette, a pick me up. Such is the fame of Prosecco that it is now the second leading Spumante in Italy after Asti. Prosecco is mainly produced as a sparkling wine in either the fully sparkling (Spumante) or lightly sparkling (Frizzante) varieties. A still wine (tranquillo) is also  made from the Prosecco grape- it amounts to only 5% production and rarely exported.
In Italy, Prosecco is enjoyed as a wine for every occasion. Outside Italy, it is more often drunk as an aperitif, much like Champagne. Like other sparkling wines, Prosecco is served chilled. Since Prosecco does not ferment in the bottle and grows stale with time, it should be drunk as young as possible and preferably withing 3 years of it vintage, although high-quality Prosecco can be aged for up to 7 years. Compared to other sparkling wines, Prosecco is low in alcohol about 11 to 12% by volume. The flavor of Prosecco has been described as intensely aromatic and crisp with great flavors of apple, pear, peach and apricot. Most Prosecco variants have intense primary aromas and are meant to taste fresh, light and comparatively simple.
So the next time you want to kick off a celebration and want a new and inexpensive alternative to Champagne, reach for that bottle of Prosecco and see why many worldwide love to toast with a glass of this Italian Jewel!!

SLOOP BETTY INFUSED VODKA DINNER

Last night, I went to Sloop Betty Infused Vodka dinner at Sobo's winebeerstro in Salisbury, MD. I have been to many cocktail and wine pairing dinners before, but this one worked especially well. Why? Because it's Vodka, unlike stronger flavored booze like Tequila or Scotch, Vodka is more adaptable to the ingredients surrounding it-both in drinks and pairing it with food.

The Vodka used for this dinner was a hand-crafted Vodka from Sloop Betty at Black water Distilling. Owners Chris and Jonathon Cook and partner Mark Troxler are passionate in producing Vodka in a fine style made from Maryland-sourced and other select ingredients. Sloop Betty is Certified Kosher and they are working with Maryland Organic Certification Program to obtain recognition. OK enough of my jibber jabber lets get down to Vodka and food.

Once again Chef Frank Dubinski has blown my palette out of control with his creative and artistic food pairings for this event.

First Course- SCALLOP CEVICHE- scallops/ cucumber, onion & bell pepper/ rice wine & Citrus vinaigrette with avocado

Infused Vodka- Cucumber & onion

Cocktail- BETTY'S SQUEEZE- Cucumber Infused Vodka, Tonic and lime

The vodka was smooth and clean with a nice easy finish. Good balance of cucumber and onion flavors that were not overpowering.

Second Course- BLT PRAWNS- Bacon poached prawns/ smoked tomato-horseradish puree/ cilantro-lime vinaigrette/Crispy Prosciutto

Infused Vodka- Bacon, Lime and tomato

Cocktail- BLOODY BETTY MARY- Sloop Betty BLT infused Vodka, Bloody Mary mix, Old Bay and lime

The Vodka had aromas of smoked Gouda with flavors of lime and a little earthy. Great smoky flavor with a crisp cilantro on the prawns.

Third Course- PETITE NY STRIP STEAK- Peppercorn melange/ parsnip puree/ arugula/ pink peppercorn butter

Infused Vodka- 5 pepper

Cocktail- RED HEADED BETTY- Sloop Betty 5 pepper infused vodka, Grenadine, lime

The Vodka was hot hot hot!! Wonderful amounts of pepper and the jabanero really jump out in this one. The Steak was one the most perfectly cooked Ive had. Juicy, Warm and full of butter and pepper. (This was my favorite pairing of the night)

Fourth Course- APPLE CREPES WITH CALVADOS BUTTER SAUCE & PORT GLAZED GRAPE TART WITH PECAN CRUST

Infused Vodka- Starburst flavored ( apple, Pineapple, Grape and Strawberry)

So when your in you favorite liquor store look for Sloop Betty Vodka, if you cant find be sure to ask them to order some, you will not be Sobo's and see what creations The Chef has come up with and enjoy some of the great drink creations they have on the menu. Cheers

www.sloopbetty.com, www.southernoysconcepts.com