The other day I found myself in Barcelona, with the need of kill time. I found a wine bar called Vertical nearby. Turned out to be an extraordinary wine bar, one of a kind. More than 1200 references, mostly spanish, french and italian wine, but also from Croatia, Georgia, Greece and other less known lands. The place looks fancy, the glasses are nice Glasvin, and the kind owner recommends you nicely what is available by the glass. Strongly recommended as a serious wine bar.

I've been thinking about how much the film changed the conversation around Pinot Noir. It seems like it went from being a grape people appreciated for its elegance and complexity to something of a cult favourite, with prices to match in some regions.

Curious what people think. Did the Sideways effect genuinely change how we drink and value Pinot Noir, or was it just a bit of a fad? And where are you finding good Pinot these days that doesn't cost a fortune?

Personally, Pinot Noir remains one of my favorite personal styles (and I didn't discover Sideways till much later!)

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Hi, has anyone any experience with this wine key from L'Atelier du Vin. I'm in Paris, wanting to get a nice wine key, nothing extravagant, just a nice quality and useful keepsake. Found this at Bon Marche, it promises extraction in one motion. I've been wanting to get a dual action key, as these seem to work better then the single action I have now. But this is interesting with the gears that supposedly allow easy extraction in one motion. Hard to know without trying it, which wasn't an option at Bon Marche. And I worry about more moving parts that can break over time.

I know it's kind of silly to get this in the weeds about it, but if anyone has any feedback would be appreciated. There's also this other one, more traditional dual action.

Oaked Cherry Bomb! Only way to describe this. Still very young. I should not have opened this.

Grippy tannins, bursting with fruit with notes of cherry cough syrup and light acidity.

Paired with an Italian white bean soup. Picked up for $44 in an auction

I'm heading to a champagne bar soon and their bottle list is more extensive than I'm used to, including a lot of producers that I'm not familiar with!

Anything here a good value or something unique to try? Based on the prices at the rest of this place my hopes aren't high, but I'm not knowledgable enough to really know!

I tend to like yeasty / bready champagnes (the two Krugs I've had are my favorite by far).

https://www.lverosebar.com/menu

Thanks for any guidance!!

So after Alpha Omega, I rushed to Krupp Brothers a few blocks east before they closed to make the most of my stay in downtown Napa. I made it and the host was kind enough to let me try a flight. Since it was near closing time, I also rushed and didn't take any notes; going partially on memory here. Also, hard to give a "grade", but I doubt C+s here as these were all very enjoyable "big" wines. I might have a thing for Stagecoach now. During the flight, we found out there may be some Korean only releases as I've seen different labels.

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Krupp Brothers, Napa Valley, The Doctor, California Red Blend, 2023, 15.2% abv.

Tech sheet says this was 80% tempranillo and 20% CS, 19 months in 84% new oak, 709 cases. Savory, delicious, with time gets maritime. Very good. "Big" as the host said. I liked this one.

Krupp Brothers, Napa Valley, Synchrony, Bordeaux Red Blend, 2022, 14.7% abv.

Tech sheet says this is 57% Cabernet Franc, 35% Merlot, 7% Malbec, 1% Petit Verdot; 19 months in 63% new oak, 539 cases. I also thought this was savory and did not taste like a CF. I think the host mentioned it was because of the malbec, then again quite young.

Krupp Brothers, Napa Valley, The Water Witch, Red Blend, 2022, 14% abv.

Tech sheet says this is 33% Syrah, 22% Cabernet Franc, 21% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Tempranillo, 5% Merlot, 3% Malbec, 2% Petit Verdot, 2% Sangiovese; 19 months in 56% new oak, 675 cases. Sounds like a crazy field blend. I also thought this was another savory one. Definitely stronger than the Synchrony in terms of flavor, but not as enjoyable as The Doctor. "Big" as the host said.

Krupp Brothers, Napa Valley, The Wheelman, Cabernet Sauvignon, 2022, 15% abv.

Tech sheet says this is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon; 221 cases. Was not a tannic monster and quite enjoyable. More savory than the previous 3 pours. Surprised at how good these pours handle alcohol.

Krupp Brothers, Napa Valley, Veraison, Cabernet Sauvignon, 2022, 15.3% abv.

Tech sheet says this is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon; 19 months in 87% new oak, 982 cases. The best one in the flight, also was not a tannic monster. Savory fruit and quite massive. Liked them all!

Thank you Krupp Brothers!

Can anyone share favourite producers from this area?
I’m going to spend some time here, so far my favourites are Pepe Blanco, and Cayetano del Pino for fortifieds, which I have totally rediscovered when paired for food!

First time having terret noir. I was not expecting the ruby red color. It was described as a Tavel color and I agree.

Notes: notes of slight watermelon and eucalyptus or mint on the backend. Acid was medium plus, I would definitely pair with something creamy. This would pair with a nice creamy cheese. I also slightly tasted orange but only deeper into the bottle.

It’s different from other varietals, and I appreciated the learning experience. I wouldn’t say I loved it but I may have liked it more with some charcuterie, so definitely try the varietal with some of that. I think it would pair well.

Let me know if you recommend any other producers of this varietal.

Starting tomorrow (thursday 29th october): Expovina in Zurich, Switzerland.

Two weeks to try the best wines from Switzerland, Portugal, Italy, Spain, an many more!

Lovely delicate sparkler from a great producer in CA.
Here are some adjectives to please our AI r/wine overlord: delicate is the best descriptor actually. Seems very sophisticated giving off a bready nose followed by a dry soft palate feel. Not a lot of decernibe fruit profile. Almost as if it is hollow in the middle. Missing something but at the same time very fulfilling. Not an Oysters and Pearls wine, not austere. A bomb wine to kick off a meal but not sure on a pairing.

I was happy when I opened this bottle and intense smell of fruit, along with clear, medium ruby with garnet/orange color appeared in the glass. Last week I opened a 2008 Barolo and it was cooked.

On the nose I got cherry, ripe strawberry and intense baking spice.

Medium plus acidity, medium body with tannins still noticeable on the finish but integrated.

What I like the most is how the flavors came one after another. Cherry first, followed by strawberry compote, black tea then dark chocolate with a hint of mint at the end. Like a dark, bitter chocolate infused with mint herb.

Still plenty of fruit left. Did not decant and after some time in the bottle the flavors moved towards even more ripe spectrum.

93 points.

The 2015 was completely shut down and not giving anything on the nose or palate. The 2011 was showing a bit more aromas and fruit but not much. Although I’ve often disagreed with the “Bordeaux needs age to be enjoyable” crowd, I fully agree here. I would love to try an example of a Cheval with 30+ years of age. I knew going into the tasting that these wines need lots of age to show their best, but I have had young Bordeaux from top estates that still showed a lot of aroma and fruit. I guess these wines were both firmly in their “shut down” stage.

Luckily I only paid a $50 ticket price to try these wines (plus the Cheval des Andes and the Petit Cheval which were both showing better than the grand vin), but I can only imagine the disappointment upon opening one of these wines too young if you paid full price. The 2015 goes for $1k per WineSearcher!

I'm curious about Vivino premium but as far as I can see there's no free trial. If you have experience with it what do you think? Do the features actually work and are they worth the cost?

Are you British, or have you lived in the UK for at least five years?

Would you like to participate in a short online study about food-wine pairing perception? 🍷

It takes only 3–5 minutes to complete, participation is entirely voluntary, and you can answer the survey directly on your phone or computer!

This is a strictly academic project led by a researcher from the University of Surrey.

Thank you so much for your time and consideration. We really appreciate your help!

Survey link: https://heg.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_6A7ysF9WBzUVPy6

Bit of a random question for the group, but I am going to China soon and would like to try some wine from China (in order to fuel my wine tism). Is anyone familiar with any wine bars in Shanghai or Beijing that have Chinese wines to taste / BTG? Thanks!

I’m usually great with pairings, but this is going to be a casual, eat at your own pace, buffet-style thing with candy, a cheese board, chips and guac, cheese balls, spaghetti with chicken or meatballs, cupcakes- essentially every type of food. I want to have wine that will taste okay with the food, but maybe that’s not really possible since there is so much variety? I was thinking Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio/Chianti for the spaghetti, and maybe an orange wine just because it’s fun to start?

Since there will be 5 of us I want to start with a single wine for everyone to toast, and after that people can drink what they want at their own pace.

Suggestions? Am I over thinking this? Also to note, only 1 person coming has a “palate” and outside of starbursts and Cabernet I think my friends would likely be agreeable to anything I choose that leans dry. Sadly champagne is off the table as I don’t have proper glassware. We will be drinking out of Gabriel Glas universals so maybe a sparkling rose could work??

Foods:
-tortilla chips, salsa, guac
-cheese balls
-cheese board with baked goat cheese and honey and 2-3 more cheese I haven’t gotten yet
-prosciutto
-spaghetti with tomato and feta add chicken/meatballs
-SWEETS (candy buffet, cookies, cupcakes)
-popcorn

So I got invited to a private wine sale next weekend and figured I'd share the list of inventory along with prices for your viewing pleasure. I'm doing some due diligence on actual "regular price" bottles and flagging bottles that have considerable discounts. Don't worry, most of the California wines need not apply here outside of the Spotts and Diamond Creek.