Why BYO's Rock, Expensive Wine You're On Notice

I'm sure we've all been there, whether it be a special occasion or you're looking to impress your date... You're at dinner and if the restaurant has one, the waiter brings over the wine list. First of all, having worked as a "server", the politically correct version of Waiter or Waitress, I'll tell you that alcohol is the number one source of profits for the restaurant, hands down. Food is just a low margin vessel for which to get alcohol down your throat and the wallet out of your neatly pressed pants. The wine costs vary from restaurant to restaurant based on a variety of factors, most notably the cost of the liquor license. In Philadelphia they cost upwards of a million dollars, so you better be sure the patrons are paying for that in some shape or form. As a general rule however figure that the actual price of the bottle is what the restaurant is charging for one glass. I resent this for numerous reasons, notably, I have no choice of the wine choices I'm given or why they were chosen and they are bloody expensive!

If you're feeling very daring and have some money burning a hole in your pocket, you might dine at an establishment with a professional Sommelierwho can help you navigate the wine list. Lucky me I was at such an establishment over the weekend, and let me tell you, I'm not impressed and my wallet hurts a little. After looking through the wine list for a few minutes I was struck with the sheer number of bottles, 750+. Surely a professional can help me find a wine I like?

A stuffy French man appears (Sommelier), nice but a little full of himself. I give him the flavor profile and region I want, for which is skillfully navigates the menu to several wines I might enjoy. I must have been high on the atmosphere or just a little intimidated by the guy in the tuxedo but I took his suggestion, quite sure this was going to be the best bottle of my life... particularly at that price! If you're following the sarcasm in the post I probably don't need to tell you, I was VERY disappointed. Was it a bad wine? No. Was it worth the price I paid? No! Was it even CLOSE to the price I paid? NO!!

Case in point here, have a cocktail before and after dinner and avoid the wine list. Alternatively visit your local BYO restaurant and bring your own bottle. At least if you're disappointed with the wine, you'll only be out $10.

Affordable Wine Finds of the Day

Two little affordable wine jewels for you under $10.

I shop at WineLegend.com as they have a local pick-up point a few miles away. Both are 2005 Grenache/Garnacha, the Bitch from Austrailia, Tres Picos from Spain. I invite you to buy both and do a side by side tasting to see how the same grape and same vintage grown in different locations can reflect in the taste of a wine. I particularly liked the story on Bitch and the bottle is a lot of fun. Apparently the wine maker had a Bitch of a time growing this very temperamental grape so he resorted to name calling! Cheers!

Summer Blush

Summertime is here, in a major way, the last few days have seen our A/C on hours out of the day. The summer heat makes rich, deep, red wine a little harder to drink. Much like a change in your wardrobe from slacks to shorts and change in your meals from rich to lighter fare, most people opt for lighter reds, whites and blushes in warmer weather. I personally mourn this transition because white wine doesn't have the complexity of red wine. For some reason it also leaves me with a little headache, often from one glass, go figure!

A lot of what gives red wine it's complex flavors is the poly-phenol's in the skin. With white wine you're just getting the fruit. All this being said there are some excellent lighter wine's out there to accompany any meal. My personal favorite's (by varietal) in warmer weather are: Pinot Noir (red), Sauvignon blanc (white), Riesling (white), Gewürztraminer (white) and Pinot Grigio/Gris (white). Completely a personal bias, I prefer a crisper white wine, obviously feel free to explore on your own and discover your favorite's. One really good thing about white wine that matches one goal of this blog is, it's REALLY affordable. You can get some excellent bottles for $10 and below that would cost much more if they were comparable red's. In the next few weeks I'll be reviewing one quality inexpensive wine from each of these varietals, stay tuned!