Tag: wine

party clinking wine glasses
alcohol, beer, wine

How Is Non-Alcoholic Beer Separated From Plain Juice, Anyway?

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This question is a common one from newcomers to the non-alcoholic space. Wine or spirits without alcohol is just a particularly strong juice…right?

Not quite. This brief and highly informative article from The Takeout dives into the technology that transforms wine into an accessible, non-alcoholic variety. Similar to how coffee is turned into decaf using processes like Swiss Water or sugarcane, non-alcoholic drinks have a few options to choose from.

One option is reverse osmosis, a technique that’s also used to separate contaminants from everyday drinking water. Another option is called vacuum distillation, which involves the same science that heats out the alcohol in cooking wine. Simply put, this growing space is meeting a ton of needs in today’s increasingly alcohol wary world.

Just like decaf coffee, no alcohol and low alcohol varieties are positioned to meet a very thirsty niche. Non-alcoholic beer marketing is facing a rather interesting challenge due to having few competitors (yet). My suggestion to breweries: don’t go the route of generic decaf coffee marketing and focus on what makes products fun and accessible.

wine

An Up-Close Look At Californian Vineyards Saving Their Crops

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It’s more important than ever to keep an ear to the ground. Becoming emotionally detached in this stressful snowball of a year is a helpful short-term reaction, but a devastating long-term one.

This behind-the-scenes peek from Insider News shows the hard — and often desperate — work being put in to protect Californian vineyards from wildfires. Many of these yields aren’t even fully ripe, but it’s either that or risk the entire crop being tainted by smoke and ash. They don’t even need to be on fire to have their flavor changed entirely from all the changes in the air. According to multiple historians, these wildfires could very well be California’s worst in history.

Wine farmers and businessowners are given a rock and a hard place: let the grapes rot and file an insurance claim or try to sell what little they can.

When I visited one of Townshend’s local winetasting events early this year (right before COVID-19 started making waves), I tried some wildfire-tainted wine myself. It’s no minor side-effect: at best it has a smoky tang that drowns out the bottle’s subtle flavor notes. At worst it’s like trying to drink a cigarette. Just one sip and I was coughing. While this was from one experimental barrel surrounded by successful harvests, this video shows just how heartbreaking it is to see months (even years) of love and toil whisked away.

History in the making sounds grand on paper, but it’s usually an exhausting, demoralizing affair. If you’re thinking of buying wine soon, go for the smaller, local businesses. There are some truly stellar brands out there that don’t have grocery wholesale or household names on their side that could use your support.

alcohol, wine

Upcoming Budget Wine Review Series

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I’ve been reviewing a lot of decaf coffee lately, but I definitely haven’t forgotten about wine. It’s kind of impossible in these pandemic times.

Just in the past week I’ve been gifted some bottles, supplemented with a few grocery store purchases, and I’m eager to share. That Ava Grace Vineyards rosé was perfect with a bowl of pot roast and I’m already a longtime fan of Dreaming Tree. There is a ton of goodness out there that doesn’t require you break the bank. As such, I’ll be starting a budget wine review series to supplement my decaf coffee review series. Red wine, white wine, blushing wine: all of them at $30 or less.

It’s all about spreading the good word and saving money these days. These reviews will explore flavor notes, aroma, mouthfeel, packaging design, and food pairings. The rare time I step out of my $30 threshold and purchase a more expensive wine I’ll still review the bottle, but separately. If you like wine, or want to get into it, stay tuned. If not, I’ve still got plenty of coffee-related pieces on the way.

wine

Ever Tried Making Wine In An Instant Pot?

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I recently heard about the Instant Pot coming out with the Instant Pod, meant to compete with Nespresso and Keurig for the instant coffee crowd. Imagine my mingled fascination and disgust at the idea of making wine in one.

Now, I’m not against the idea of quick-and-easy wine inherently. I just won’t get my hopes up for the end result! This was a fun little video to watch: the creator decides to combine the iconic Welch’s grape juice and a little yeast into a (hopefully) wine-like creation, using the instant pot’s varied settings to properly ferment the brew. The results are about what you’d expect, but as far as I’m concerned, this is a great reminder about how much work goes into a wine bottle.

Give this a watch if you’re feeling experimental and want to play around while sheltering in place. Perhaps this could be the next dalgona coffee.

galaxy
alcohol, coffee, video

Caffeine And Alcohol Are Wrecking Your Sleep Patterns

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Caffeine is a drug (yes, a drug) that I’ve dispensed with years ago.

Back in the day I used to drink a triple-shot latte during or after work…and that was before I worked as a barista. I would still be able to sleep just fine afterwards, all hail community college exhaustion, but it was a gamble. Nowadays? Just two cups of decaf coffee without a span of time in-between will be enough to have me jittery. It’s incredible how much has changed. I think my former usual would give me a heart attack now.

Alcohol isn’t all that different. While I love a cold beer or a glass of wine at night, I have to have it early enough for it to leave my system. If I drink it too close prior to laying down my body goes into ‘nap mode’, with no more than three hours in before I’m waking up again. This short TED Talk dives into the science behind why our bodies react the way they do to caffeine and alcohol, from how our REM is affected to just how long caffeine actually stays in your system.

Caffeine and alcohol are great in moderation, but can easily wreak havoc on your health unchecked. I think I’ll skip a day or two this week.

alcohol, wine

You Don’t Need To Shell Out $50+ For A Great Bottle Of Wine

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Expensive wine and good wine aren’t always one in the same. Who knew?

A lot of people, as it turns out. Just unlikely the ones pricey bottles are actually aimed at. Vox released this short and amusing video on the convoluted nature of the wine market: already infamous for gatekeeping and snooty attitudes, it always goes a step further with its pricing model. The idea that expensive = quality is so pervasive that experienced wine tasters will outright contradict themselves on taste tests.

I rarely spend more than $30 on a bottle of wine, with my range usually between the $15 to $25 mark. If you could use a little more convincing that affordable is the way to go, my roommate’s parents are long-time wine drinkers who are all too happy to share their wine knowledge. When I asked if they’ve ever had a really expensive bottle of wine, they told me yes. When I asked if it was worth the price, they promptly told me no.

And there it is. At the end of the day, what you like is what you like.

alcohol, wine

Are You A Fan Of Sparkling Wine? You’ll Want To Keep Your Eye On Brazil

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My favorite wine really depends on my mood and what I’m eating. That’s nothing new. What is new is how Brazil is set to take center stage.

Beverage Daily has a brisk, yet detailed breakdown on Brazil’s sparkling wine scene and why it’s set to dominate over the coming years. According to a few studies and interviews, it’s a mixture of several factors colliding at the perfect time: rising interest in sparkling varieties, high-quality flavors and very proactive marketing campaigns. That latter’s importance cannot be understated, as a lack of wine knowledge and exclusionary attitudes can be a huge barrier for new drinkers.

If you’re like me and are a fan of wine and coffee, Brazil is the perfect place to start looking.

You don’t have to be a wine expert to know the most prestigious wine origins hail from France, Spain and Italy. Following close behind is the ever-popular California, as well as a smattering of notable Canadian and South African producers. Wine is undergoing a very vivid cultural shift these past few years as drinking demographics change and the environment sees yet more blows to stability. What we know as traditional quality may very well not apply in the next decade. Why shouldn’t Brazil toss its hat in the ring?

Sparkling wine is fun. It’s tasty. This is far from the first time I’ve heard of its growing popularity and it won’t be the last.

alcohol, wine

Wine Tasting in Florida at Lakeridge Winery & Vineyards and San Sebastian Winery on Winetraveler.com — History & Wine

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Florida wine? Yes, you read that right. I’m not just talking about tropical fruit juice either. Wine made from grapes, albeit not the grapes you may be used to, but grapes nonetheless. There are currently 88 wine producers in Florida generating a lot of money for the state. Though most of these producers are smaller, […]

Wine Tasting in Florida at Lakeridge Winery & Vineyards and San Sebastian Winery on Winetraveler.com — History & Wine

I’m often reading about (and trying out) wine from California and Washington. Occasionally I’ll pick something up from a third state, though Florida has yet to fall into that list. This is a very interesting look at Floridian wine and the unique varieties it brings to the table, from a specific kind of grape I hadn’t even heard of to experimental sparkling styles. Wine innovation is a huge deal these days and something that’s only going to get more common to bring in buyers.

I might just have to add one of these sparkling wines to my to-buy list…

alcohol, wine

The Best Of Both Worlds: Wine Ice Cream For All Your Depression Needs

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What helps puncture doom and gloom? If you answered ice cream, you’re correct. If you answered wine, you’re also correct.

As a wise girl in a taco commercial once said…”Por qué no los dos?“. I recently saw these wine ice cream varieties and immediately found a new product to try once I start ordering things online again. I absolutely have to try the riesling, though the cherry merlot sounds sumptuous (see: addictive). Whether or not they actually boast the unique notes and aftertastes that differentiate basic fruit flavors from wine remains to be seen. I’ve had champagne gummi bears that lived up to their potential, so I’ve got high hopes.

Frankly, just the sight of this was enough to perk me up after days of dismal news and even more dismal statistics. We’ll be back to regularly scheduled marketing critique and industry news, but for now? Salivate with me.

wine

Need Help Getting Into Wine? Learn About The Robust And Dry Spanish Red Wine Tempranillo

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Saying you like red wine is as basic as saying you like clothes. Points for honesty and not much else.

What kind, from where, made by whom? It’s a lot of minor and major details, to say the least, and it’s not surprising this expectation of a historical deep-dive can turn new drinkers off entirely. More pieces lately have been cropping up concerning this self-imposed barrier in the wine industry, from complicated labeling to stubborn marketing clinging to a very specific demographic. Fortunately for new wine drinkers, the Internet is the great equalizer.

This great guide over on Wine Folly offers up a detailed, yet brisk breakdown of Tempranillo, the Spanish red grape that’s defined the country’s wine scene. It’s a very robust variety that’s sometimes compared to smoke and leather, quite a jump from the fruitier cherry and raspberry notes of some pinot noir varieties. That’s right alongside breakdowns of the grape’s history, cultivation and long-standing appreciation in today’s stores. While I’m looking to buy more merlot, I’m excited to try Tempranillo soon.

Next chance you get to visit the grocery store, consider double-checking your red wine origins for Tempranillo. You might just find a fresh (or rather, dry) favorite.