We do accept samples of wine from wineries and books from publishers and authors. We promise that our team will evaluate any items sent unless we become aware of any conflict of interest or challenge to our ethical guidelines. We will write a review of any wines or books we like with the disclaimer that we have been given the sample.
In the latest issue of The Tuscan Magazine, you will find my detailed Top 10 tips on "Hosting a Tuscan Wine Competition at Home". Wine professionals recommend having tasting exercises often and recording your handwritten observations immediately. Can you image a wine judge tasting over 100 wines at a competition and not taking notes?
Our recommendations for a Tasting Competition at Home can apply to any vertical or horizontal tasting exercise. Expose your guests to some new as well as some familiar wines. Broadening the palate and "sensory rolodex" is important for improving sensory detection for any level of wine-drinker.
The Tuscan Magazine new edition for July 2011 can be found at this link. The article appears on page 17.
The Tuscan Magazine now has both an iPhone and an iPad app that can be downloaded free. Check out the new articles on Tuscan wedding and travel recommendations in this terrific issue.
I was asked to put together a snack-friendly wine list for my editor at Tuscan Magazine. It's soccer/footie season in Italy. Italians have the same desire as we do in the States to find wine that is a complement to their snacks. Go Fiorentina!
I'ts April Fools Day. You don't want to be the fool caught drinking a poor value wine. The most commonly asked question I get is: Are there any good value wines out there? The answer is "yes", literally there are hundreds of them. Be discerning, do a little research, and you should be able to find some wonderful wines.
I was asked in September to participate as a Certified Wine Professional to help promote a wine and chocolate pairing on Dallas’ KDAF TV 33 segment, “The RC Project”. This pairing of chocolates from Steve Smith’s company, Nib Chocolates, and Waterbrook Winery, Columbia Valley, WA, will be served at the after-party of the AT&T Dallas Symphony gala, September 11. The Côtes du Coeur of the American Heart Association, of which I am a Society member, is providing the wine. This appearance made me contemplate the healthy pairing of wine and chocolate as part of our GrapeStone Concepts “point of view” on the benefits of drinking wine and eating healthy foods slowly.
(Roni Proctor, Dallas’ KDAF Channel 33 The RC Project; Steve Smith, Nib Chocolates; Tricia Conover, C.W.P., GrapeStone Concepts, Candice Crawford, The RC Project)
It has long been realized that red wine brings to our bodies a group of organic chemicals that can serve as clot-inhibiting, bad cholesterol reducing, antioxidants. Recently, chocolates also have been known for their health-inducing and psychoactive properties. The Aztecs were the first to use a hot, steamy chocolate drink from the seeds of the cacao tree, species theobroma cacao ,“food of the gods”, for its restorative properties. The consumption of chocolate triggers the release of endorphins which contributes to that inner glow induced in susceptible chocoholics, according to the Directory of Chocolatiers. Chocolates have organic compounds of anandamide and theobromine which cause relaxation and happiness.
The latest studies on red wine have been truly amazing. The health effects of wine drunk in moderation are not just the anti-atherosclerotic (anti -plaque in vessels), antithrombotic (anti-clot formation), but also are the angiogenic properties (inhibit the production of blood vessels) against tumors. Many new therapeutic cancer-fighting drugs work on the premise that the prevention of growth of new blood vessels inhibits the growth of tumors. The tumors need new blood vessels to survive and spread. Resveratrol, a polyphenol found in the skin and seeds of red grapes, is one of the agents that can inhibit cancer-feeding blood vessels.
Red grapes, dark chocolate, blueberries, garlic, soy and tea are some of the ingredients that starve cancer while feeding our bodies.
Dr. William Li, M.D., Medical Director and President of the Angiogenesis Foundation was recently covered by Wine Spectator for his presentation at the TED Conference, a small non-profit where the world’s thinkers and doers gather for “Ideas Worth Spreading”, in February 2010. Dr. Li says,
“By examining the potential of antiangeogenics in food, we will find answers to cancer all around us…In our groceries, in our food, and in our glasses”.
So the pairing this week of fine Oaxacan Spice and Tahitian vanilla bean chocolates with Waterbrook Winery’s 2007 Mélange Noir, a blend of Cabernet sauvignon, Merlot, Sangiovese, Cabernet Franc grapes, is not only fit for the spectacular Dallas Symphony Gala, but will make us fit, too.
The dilemma every holiday: How do I please all my guests and
also serve a wine or wines that pair well with the cuisine.? Here are some basic
suggestions for the 2009 Holiday Season.
Christmas Dinner Wines: Merry pairings - It is always a
smart move for the Thanksgiving or Holiday dinner host to offer a choice of
wines. This year, my choices are Pinot
Noir, Sauvignon Blanc, and Zinfandel.Pinot
Noir’s balance of crisp berries, light spiciness, and managed, moderate tannins
make it the versatile wine of the holidays. Sauvignon Blanc’s crisp acidity
matches well with first course salads. Zinfandel is a smart move with any big
and spicy dishes and is a hit with those
leftover turkey barbecue sandwiches.
Great Dinner Wine:
Gary Farrell Pinot
Noir Starr Ridge Russian River Valley 2006 -$46 - beautiful clear ruby
color with aromas of cherry, raspberry, and spicy dried berry with mineral notes and fine-grain tannins on the
finish. I did a wine tasting at their winery last month and was won over by
Gary Farrell wines. Master Sommelier, Tim Gaiser , (www.ciaprochef.com/winestudies/instructors.html)
steered me to visit this beautiful winery in the Russian River Valley of Sonoma.
I ended up shipping 6 bottles home: their Pinot Noir, Starr Ridge Vineyard and
their Bradford Mountain Zinfandel.
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