21495 Sun Sep 29 23:15:56 -0700 2002 5 1 San Francisco Bay Area 0 77495 Did anyone see the Chronicle's list of "...100 California wines that stand out above the hundreds...tasted so far this year..."? Was in today's magazine. I'm a total novice about wine so would appreciate any opinions/comments re their choices. Link: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2002/09/29/CM170818.DTL Sun Sep 29 23:15:56 -0700 2002 0 jenniferfishwilson 1 77517 The Chronicle’s Top 100 Wines article made me want to validate it to my tastes. Is anyone interested in participating in wine tasting group? I would be interested in getting together a group of ordinary people (w/o professional knowledge) that just want to get together taste & drink wine and decide what they like and be able to put one or two descriptors around why they like it. First, let me say “I know Melanie Wong. I am no Melanie Wong.” (Although she can certainly join us). The only reason I have any taste memories at all is because I take notes. I have lightly studied Champagne, Tequila and Vodka and am a little knowledgeable about those subjects. Every December, Michael & I have a Champagne party (blind tasting), so we have a pretty good idea of what we like. But basically, when it comes to wine, I am a cheap summer white and winter merlot kinda gal. I do not have a large wine budget so I love finding good value or inexpensive wines. Here’s an idea of how a tasting group could work… Once a month we get together and taste one section of the Top 100 Wine list. One person goes out and buys the wine; one person provides a location; one person provides basic information about the type of wine being tasted; a couple of people bring simple appetizers and someone writes it up for chowhound. The cost of wine & appetizers gets split between those attending the tasting. If any of the attendees have a wine in that category that they like or have heard good things about, they should definitely share it with us. Roles can rotate or not depending on group preference. If anyone is interested in participating in some variation of a chowhound wine tasting group, send me an email at me@rochellemccune.com. Let me know which evening night would work best for you and any ideas you have regarding logistics. Mon Sep 30 13:04:49 -0700 2002 77495 0 Rochelle McCune 2 77519 I think this would be better as a blind tasting with several of the top 100 wines per varietal and perhaps a ringer thrown in. Tasting a wine by itself is not nearly as useful (or fun) as comparing. Also, many of the wines on the top 100 list seem to be from smaller wineries. I belive it will be very hard to find all of these wines, and unless someone started looking right now, many of these will be impossible to find later. Regardless of what the groundrules turn out to be, I'm interested! Mon Sep 30 13:29:41 -0700 2002 77517 0 Paul Homchick 3 77523 He, he, maybe I'm just evil but I thought it goes without saying that ringers are always thrown into every blind tasting. ;-) We have often found that ringers are the most educational - people love being able to pick out the cheap swill or the "not" wine (having a chardonnay tasting and with a non-chardonnay ringer). Plus, the Chron's list is just California - frankly, I don't care where the wine comes from, just so long as its good - so we could have ringers from outside California. And yes, your point regarding the exact Chronicle Top 100 wines selling out is very valid. There are plenty of people that do ratings - Parker, Wine Spectator, NY Times, etc. I could probably do a little research and we can cobble together some type larger list so that whoever does the buying doesn't have to find everything but just some of the list. We can also put together a list of likely wine shops to look. I was thinking that we could have an organizing meeting that is a free-for-all -- everybody brings one bottle of something they like -- and we can hash out the details. Mon Sep 30 14:08:16 -0700 2002 77519 0 Rochelle McCune 1 77559 Most of the wines on Boyd's list are actually from fairly sizeable wineries - not huge, but sizeable. The main reason you may have a hard time finding many of these is that this top 100 is culled from the last twelve months of articles, and Boyd frequently doesn't run the original article until long after he and his panel tasted them. Frequently I find that 1/3 to 1/2 of the wines he recommends in the Weds paper are already sold out by the time he hits the presses. Your best bet to find great wines is to develop a relationship with your neighborhood retailer - they always know best! The other problem with Boyd is his lack of knowledge on imported wines. While this may sound silly to some, how can a man who doesn't taste Burgundy very often, if at all, state with any authority that he knows Pinot Noir? As my friends and I like to say, Gerald Boyd is pre-phylloxera (that means he is really old and out of touch with the modern world of wine). Mon Sep 30 19:23:33 -0700 2002 77495 0 deweyman 1 78205 I saw the list and can only imagine the Chronicle and its wine tasters must not do a lot of homework! So, Napa's "top" Chardonnay comes from Monticello winery? (I noticed Mason's Sauvignon Blanc is listed as one of Napa's top Chardonnays!!!). That's a sad commentary right there about their "research" or attention to the details! As for top Cabernets from Napa, the best they can find come from Chimney Rock, Folie e Deux, Saddleback, Sequoia Grove and Barnett???? Are they simply not tasting wines such as Pride, Spottswoode, Duckhorn, Phelps' Insignia, Montelena, Dunn, Heitz, Shafer, etc.??? One other note: On the list of wines is a Mount Tamalpais (they didn't spell it correctly) Merlot. The Chronicle "tasting panelists" include the owner of this winery!!! How's that for journalistic integrity??? Tue Oct 08 19:42:33 -0700 2002 77495 0 Monte Corbolino