Remember when Mario Batali used to host his instructional cooking show? He always used to tell his viewers to inquire with their local fishmonger about whatever seafaring item he was cooking that day. Of course, in this country, fishmongers are not all that common - particularly in the heartland. Neither are Fromagiers (though there are several popping up these days in major metropolitan areas). Wine Merchants, however, continue to thrive among food & drink specialists. But, with so many places to buy wine, how do you know where it's best to shop?

It may sound obvious, but I truly believe that wine merchants (and I'm making a distinction here from "liquor store" owners) should love to drink wine. Even before knowledge about the product, a merchant's enjoyment and enthusiasm for wine tops my list. But, of course, many enthusiasts stick to just one area of interest - so, in my mind, a good wine merchant needs to also be curious, open-minded, and willing to explore. This, I believe, will ultimately help them help their customers. Price, selection, customer service, and knowledge are all important as well, though I might rank them in the reverse order.

KNOWLEDGE - This is a big word, which I intend to encompass lots of ground. Knowledge of the products they carry is one thing (It's great when wine merchants have tasted the vast majority of what they sell), but product knowledge in the context of the larger wine world is important as well. Knowing the range of styles, flavors, food-friendliness, and how or when to best enjoy certain wines is a tremendous skill that not enough merchants fully invest in. They should. They should also use better judgement in how they present and store wines while in their care. Bright, hot lights, major temperature fluctuation, and bottles standing-up for months at a time are signs that some merchants simply don't care (or know) enough.

SELECTION - I've worked with several wine shop (and restaurant) owners who insist that offering a wide range of Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio, and Cabernet (and now Pinot Noir) is all they need to focus on. The rest of the selection can be filled out with well know "other stuff" like Chianti, Australian Shiraz, and Sweet Riesling ('cuz Riesling is always sweet, right?). I was in one sorry shop a few years ago, where a big sign read "France," but a total of about a dozen bottles sat there - 6 different bottlings from a single BIG Burgundy negociant, several $7-12 Bordeaux, a bottle of Cotes du Rhone (produced by an American winery), and one lone bottle of white wine - a Sancerre. This approach is so unfortunate, but rather wide spread.

CUSTOMER SERVICE - Clearly this is a key to any successful business, yet I'm amazed at how few retailers actually care. After all, we've all been to those places where nobody is on the sales floor, and the one person who is around sits behind a counter reading a magazine - and is usually unable to answer any questions that you have anyway. But if simply being available and attentive to customers can improve their experience, imagine what things like accommodating special orders; providing wine education, tasting opportunities, and food-pairing suggestions; and offering local delivery can do.

PRICE - Offering a wide range of wines for a wide range of competitive prices is always a good idea... But even better is to offer value for price - after all, a $10 bottle of wine may be a low price, but a really delicious $10 wine is a great value.

You know what they say about first impressions - they are often misleading. Yet, most of us (including some "professional" wine critics) visit with a wine for such a short amount of time, that their first impression is often their only impression. Recently, my wife and I enjoyed some 2004 Bien Nacido Pinot Noir from Lane Tanner. I say we enjoyed "some," because the wine took a while to develop in the glass after we opened it. Tanner makes very non-California wines - somewhat austere to those who are used to rich, syrupy, bombastic Pinots. This wine rings in at 12.5% alc., making it much lighter than other producers' wines from the same vintage and the same vineyard. When we first opened the bottle, the wine was a combination of tartness and acidity, with very little fruit showing at all. Two hours later (yes, we slowly revisited it throughout the evening) it had turned into a pretty, well rounded wine, with much more backbone than it had started with.

I recently noticed Rusty Gafney's comments on how he tastes wine for his newsletter, PinotFile. "I taste Pinot Noir daily in a quiet home setting," he wrote. "The wines are sampled at cellar temperature and are usually tasted over a few hours both always without food and often with food in a relaxed atmosphere so as to replicate the consumer’s drinking experience." Now this is what I like to hear from someone who assesses wines - a careful, thoughtful look at a wine throughout various stages of its life after being opened. While other writers take this approach, it's clearly not as common as one would hope.


And when I'm pouring wine for consumers or professional wine buyers, I rarely see people take much time with the wine deserves before making their buying decisions. Granted, in those situations, the notion of "so much wine... so little time" is often quite true. All I am saying is that it's a shame so many of us leap to judgement when tasting - and miss out on the potential of a magical metamorphosis that some wine will display.

A few days after Thanksgiving 2007, I read Joe Dressner's tribute to his friend André Iché, owner and winemaker at Chateau d'Oupia. I met Iché a couple of times at portfolio tastings, and have known and enjoyed his wonderful, character-filled, affordable wines for several years. His passing reminded me that many people in business of making wine are true farmers, passionate about their land, and masters at the artistry of growing grapes and blending wines.

I recently finished reading the updated, re-released "The Heartbreak Grape" by Marq de Villiers about the California Pinot Noir pioneer, Josh Jensen of Calera. Jensen returned to his native California after learning the ropes of Pinot production at Domaine Romanee-Conti. He invested a great deal of time, energy, and money in finding and producing world-class Pinot Noir from high-elevation limestone vineyards. His is a great story of passion, dedication, and ultimately, success. I had the chance to participate in a horizontal tasting Jensen conducted in NYC in early December, and am glad to see that his wines are still very much distinctive and exciting (after a bit of a lull a few years ago).

I've just finished reading Paul Pintarich's "The Boys Up North," about the pioneering winemakers in Oregon. It amazes me what some of these guys did: bucking trends, ignoring people who told them wine grapes could not grow in Oregon, all while living in trailers and tents on their farms and often maintaining full time jobs in Portland to pay the bills. From their start in the 1960s, these "boys" established a wine industry in Oregon, which now numbers over 300 wineries.

All this goes to show that there are real people behind the wines we drink. Sometimes they are operating machinery, removed by technology from the wine itself; but often they are getting dirty in the vineyard and rolling up their sleeves in the cellar, with a passion and mission behind their actions. I like to think there is a great personal story that goes with every bottle I drink - and learning those stories can be pretty inspiring.

My interest in wine has really always been about my interest in food. I first started drinking wine at the dinner table, and have found it much less appealing as a cocktail proxy, being slowly slurped on its own. My first wine affair was with the wines of Germany, soon followed by wines from the Loire, and reds from Burgundy. I'm an old-world kinda guy, when it comes to wine, finding a lot of wines from modernists in Europe, the Americas, down-under, and elsewhere to tend in another direction from my tastes (many exceptions exist, of course).

As my wine exposure has broadened, I've been lucky enough to taste LOTS of different grape varieties and styles of production. A few years ago, I even joined Steve De Long's fledgling Wine Century Club, where, in a blind tasting at one of their events, I inexplicably tied with the venerable Robin Garr for first place. I've become a fan of Fresia, benefited from more than one Bobal, and taken many a dip in the Picpoul. But for tomorrow's family gathering, it's back to my wine roots.


This year, we are preparing a pan-Asian themed feast as designed by the kitchen at Gourmet Magazine. The labor has been divided between a few parties. The meal's centerpiece will be an Indian-Spiced Roasted Turkey surrounded by various side dishes from pickled vegetables to Japanese Sweet Potatoes with scallion butter. With all the Asian spice in the air, this meal is gonna be screaming for some honest, food-friendly, slightly perfumed wine... and I can't think of a better pairing than some Riesling, Chenin Blanc, and some simple, juicy Pinot Noir.


Have a Happy Turkey Day Everyone.
_____
Postscript (11/23): The wines we drank...
1) Villa Rinaldi Rose Rosa Metodo Classico Brut NV - a deliciously crisp 100% Pinot Nero from Itlay's Veneto
2) Eugen Muller Forster Jesuitengarten Riesling Kabinett Trocken 2005 - dry, beautifully spiced wine from Germany's Pfalz
3) Paul Anhaeuser Kreuznacher Krotenpfuhl Riesling Auslese 2001 - richer, sweeter, but, alas, corked... from Germany's Nahe
4) Kalin Cellars Sonoma County Chardonnay Cuvee LD 1994 - that's right, 1994, the producer's current release
5) Jacky Truchot Morey-St-Denis 2005 - this Cote d'Or village wine is from a producer we love, who makes pure, traditional, delicious Pinot Noir. Sadly, as his children are not interested in taking over the family business, 2005 was Truchot's last vintage.

(I never did break out that Chenin I had promised)

On a recent Friday night, my wife and I had some friends over to chat about life, careers, their upcoming wedding, food, and, of course wine. We put out a spread of Italian cheese and salumi - and ended up drinking a bunch of French wines. First off was a dry, slightly austere, sparkling Chenin Blanc from the Touraine, followed by some '06 Thivin Côte de Brouilly, a Bourgogne Rouge... and, finally, alongside some dry-pan-roasted mussels, sprinkled simply with black pepper, a 1997 Philippe Vandelle "L'Etoile" Vin Jaune.

Vin Jaune, you ask? This article in the New York Times and another, much more in-depth, piece in The Art of Eating, turned me on to the wonders of this wine. Made from the Savignin grape, the wine is very nutty, much like sherry, complex and really rather yummy. Shortly after reading the two articles last year, I picked up several bottles of both red and white from the Jura region (near the French Alps, south of Geneva, Switzerland). While many of the area's reds (made from Poulsard, Trousseau, and Pinot Noir for example) are enjoyed young(ish), Vin Jaunes are best enjoyed after considerable aging. Most bottles I got came from the 2000-2002 vintages.

Fortunately, my wife's cousin was doing an internship with a snowboard design firm in the region, and offered to bring something "local" back for us. While I would have loved for her to smuggle in some raw milk cheese, I (half jokingly) asked her for some Vin Juane... and she delivered! She brought back a bottle of 1997 wine from L'Etoile, located slightly south of the more famous Arbois. It was a real treat - nutty, deep, rich - but not too thick, balanced with wonderful acidity, and, overall, a perfect foil/mate for those smoky mussels.

These kinds of wines are not available everywhere - and are certainly not for everyone (in fact most people, even most French, will find them a bit weird)... but if you are adventuresome or curious, check 'em out.