http://www.gotwines.net Drink. Learn. Love. Mon, 07 Apr 2008 18:42:34 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Pascual Toso, Magdalena Toso        2002 From California Chardonnay to Argentinean Malbec, Paul Hobbs does it all. He's a true North American winemaker, but lately he's found a new passion south of the border. His Argentinean wines range in price from as low as $20 up to a couple hundred. Hobbs is so ... http://www.gotwines.net/archives/105 No not the stuffed tiger. I'm talking about Paul Hobbs, one of California's most brilliant wine makers. If you love California Cabernet and Chardonnay, well look no further than the Hobbs family of wines. A versatile winemaker, Hobbs' Argentinian projects have yielded some of the countries finest wines. His Malbecs, ... http://www.gotwines.net/archives/104 Rijk’s Chardonnay, 2003, Tulbagh, South Africa                 $32   The most well known, and yielding possibly the most well respected white wine, Chardonnay is a complex grape which is grown all over the world. From the bright, citric, acidic illustrations of Burgundian Chardonnay, to the deep oak and butter character of classic California ... http://www.gotwines.net/archives/103 The Appellation d'Origine Controlee system divides the region into four classifications: Petit Chablis, Chablis, Chablis Premier Cru and Chablis Grand Cru.  In the case of William Fevre’s “Fourchaume”, we are talking Premier Cru (1er Cru).   The Premier Crus are situated on a series of hillsides both on the left and ... http://www.gotwines.net/archives/102 Rijk’s Shiraz, 2002, Tulbagh, South Africa   Shiraz, a grape which has enjoyed greatly increased popularity in recent years, is, in actuality, simply a new name for an old French varietal: Syrah. The Australians and South Africans adopted this name to pay homage to the ancient Iranian city of Shiraz, the place ... http://www.gotwines.net/archives/101 A few months ago I wrote a post about Rijk's Pinotage. I hailed Rijk's as possibly the most capable of all the South African producers. I stand by this claim, and intend to support it with some upcoming posts that will review their Shiraz and Chardonnay. If you can get ... http://www.gotwines.net/archives/100 Okay here’s a quick one for you.  I rarely drink a South African Chenin Blanc. My good friend insited on the quality here so we gave it a shot.  I was pleasantly surprised, not amazed, but none the less surprised.  Stellenbosch is a huge wine making area of South Africa ... http://www.gotwines.net/archives/99 Puligny-Montrachet is in the near the southernmost regions of Burgundy.  Its cool climate and temperate breezes make for awesome Chardonnay production.  In this region, coopers are known to employ unique barrel-making techniques.  A cooper would normally bend the casks of a barrel, clamp them in place, and patiently wait for ... http://www.gotwines.net/archives/97 Burgundy produces a huge selection of wines within its boarders.  Each town represents a sub-viniculture area where wine may be produced.  Most people think Burgundian wine to be only Pinot Noir; however much of the wine produced here is Chardonnay.  Named after the town found in Burgundy, chardonnay began its ... http://www.gotwines.net/archives/96 The Red Wines of Burgundy, France   When you’re talking red Burgundy, you’re talking Pinot Noir; a grape which has enjoyed a serious rise in popularity in recent years, especially here in the states. And when it comes to Pinot, no one’s been doing it longer than the French, and if you ... http://www.gotwines.net/archives/95 Well for starters their name. A Kaiken is a South American goose which flies over the Andes, traversing the lands between Chile and Argentina. This is why the folks at Montes, a well respected Chilean winery, chose this name for their Argentinean project. The idea was to take the world ... http://www.gotwines.net/archives/94 There’s an epidemic in this country. Beringer alone is making over eight million cases of White Zinfandel a year, and Americans are actually drinking this stuff. I mean people in Europe are eating chocolate covered bugs, but they won’t touch this completely unsophisticated, quintessential American interpretation of “wine”. The truth ... http://www.gotwines.net/archives/93 California Chardonnay, like other wines from the same state, commonly contains similar threads from bottle to bottle.  Two of my favorites are butter and oak.  The flavor of strong oak is imparted by using younger oak barrels.  The second is butter, imparted by malolactic or secondary fermentation.  This is a ... http://www.gotwines.net/archives/92 Our reviewers have connections!  If you don't see what you're looking for - email us and let us know.  Small batch wines... no problem.  We'll work with you to get that rare bottle delivered to your home... or make sure we refer you to someone who can!  Start by checking ... http://www.gotwines.net/archives/86 Just a quick review on a wine you've gotta try next time you're in the mood for something a little sweet. It's Covey Run Gewurztraminer, and at first I didn't expect much from this $10 bottle, but when I took that first wiff I knew why it's been selling like ... http://www.gotwines.net/archives/54 You may be asking yourself "Hey, what the heck makes these guys so smart? What do they know about wine?" Well nothing in particular makes me smart, but simple experience has made given me the knowledge needed to tell you what you can and can't drink. Who the hell am ... http://www.gotwines.net/archives/53 Cline Cellars “Small Berry” Mourvedre, 2004, Oakley, Costa County, California Planted in thousands of acres of vineyards by Portuguese and Italian immigrants over 100 years ago, the disease phylloxera has left behind only 600 acres in Oakley, half of which is owned by Cline Cellars. In this tiny area outside San ... http://www.gotwines.net/archives/49 I'm not really sure. I guess because it's fun. Plus I see it as an important public service. There are just too many people out there consuming bad wine and it makes me crazy. So stop by once in a while and see what we're up to. We'll keep you ... http://www.gotwines.net/archives/47 Australian Wine has Taken off like a bat outta hell in the last fifteen years.  This has created a major export for the Aussies, nearly increasing five fold in as many years.  Their major wine has come to be shiraz.  The name of the grape Shiraz was taken from that ... http://www.gotwines.net/archives/46 Spiros Hatziyiannis, Santorini, Greece, 2002 I love a wine tastes great for a good value, but I also love it when the wine has a great story.  Wine can be a conversation piece just as it can be a delicious intoxicating beverage.  In the case of Spyros Hatziyiannis, this story comes ... http://www.gotwines.net/archives/45 Pikes "EWP",  Shiraz, Australia, 2002   It’s kind of funny because despite the label proudly displaying a pike (a freshwater game fish), pike are not native to Australia.  This once again leads me to believe hat all Aussies a little nutty, but damn they can produce some good wines.  The EWP Reserve ... http://www.gotwines.net/archives/44 What is a Meritage?  "Meritage," pronounced like "heritage” is an invented word that combines the words "merit" and "heritage".  A Meritage wine is defined by the Meritage association as a hand-crafted wine blended from the traditional "noble" Bordeaux varietals including: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot and Malbec.  Geyser ... http://www.gotwines.net/archives/41 George Shinas utilizes his all consuming passion for perfection and time honored traditions to create some amazing handcrafted wines.   Shinas minimizes the use of irrigation, a practice by which many French winemakers claim, curbs standardization of wines across vintages.   The Winery also employs a horizontal trellis system, which allows for ... http://www.gotwines.net/archives/40