Drinking Wines

Those who collect wine, not just to drink but to age are those who should be getting a wine cellar. There are two types of wines out there on today?s wine market and one of these is the type of wine that you can drink as soon as you get it home and the other wine is one that needs to be stored in a wine cellar for the next few years while it continues to age. If you are a collector of the latter types of wine then you should have a wine cellar to keep them in if you want to have them age the way they should.

All wine needs to be kept in a cool place where it will not be exposed to direct sunlight ever. Too much heat or sun can affect the entire aging process of a wine and that is where having an excellent wine cellar comes in. If you have your wine in an appropriate wine cellar you will never have to worry about heat or sunlight and your wine will be safe and when you do open it, it will be scandalously good.

Your wine cellar needs to be at a constant temperature, say about 55 degrees, at all times. You cannot have your wine cellar fluctuating I its temperature if you want your wine to age properly. Too many fluctuations in heat and your wine is not going to taste right at all when you finally get to open it after taking it out of the wine cellar.

As far as getting a wine cellar you have a couple of different options. You can buy a wine cellar from various places. This is a good idea for those who have a lot of money, as is the option of building a wine cellar. Not everyone has this kind of money however and those people may want to look into concerting a space they already have in their home into a wine cellar.

Do you have a closet or a section of your basement that you may be able to convert into a wine cellar? This might be the perfect place to use as a wine cellar. You can even talk to your local wine merchant to see if they have a place where you can store your wine. That ma sound a little far fetched but many wine merchants actually do have a wine cellar that you can use a part of for a small fee.

What was started as an online store, has turned into a growing collection of internet resources on subjects ranging from Network Marketing, Investing, Health, Travel and Wine. Visit http://www.mjesales.com for our store or http://www.mjesales.com/articles.htm for more articles. For instant access to over 20 free ebooks, visit our free ebook page now! This article may be reproduced only in its entirety.

For those of you who have had the good fortune to get on the mailing lists of the cult wineries from California years ago you may be shaking your head in agreement as you read this note about wine prices. Those readers who have just started collecting top California wines may not have the same perspective due to current market prices in recent years.

This time of year some of the best boutique wineries are sending out to their mailing list customers wine allocations notices and pricing for the upcoming vintage. The list of top California wineries has been growing due to improved financial backing, better winemaking technology and sustainable agriculture practices; all of this is fueled by a very hot wine market. From my personal tastings, California’s top red winemakers and ones you should get on their waiting list include: Harlan, Abreu, Colgin Cellars, Bryant Family, Dalla Valle, Shafer Hillside, Screaming Eagle, Sine Qua Non, Hundred Acre and Pride Mountain.

Consumers who have been on these winery mailing lists from the beginning have seen a steady rise in wine prices. For some wineries the price increases are staggering. The 2004 Screaming Eagle came out at $500 per bottle. Their first release in 1992 was selling for $50 per bottle. The 2004 Harlan came out at $350 per bottle. Their first release in 1990 came out at $75 per bottle.

The free market system tells us that goods sell at prices that the current market will bear. Today many cult wineries are having no problem selling their wines because of the small quantities they produce. But at what point do long time patrons of these wineries have to stop buying because they are either priced out of the market or find more compelling wines at lower prices?

Top California wines are approaching the bottle prices of the First Growth Bordeaux wines. I think this will be a critical intersection to watch since the French have established 100 years of bottle aging data whereas the California newcomers have at best at 10-15 year track record.

I wonder if we are approaching some critical mass where the wine buying public starts to seriously look and purchase wines from other upcoming areas that reflect pricing of California wines from 10-15 years ago.

It is clear to me that one of the reasons Americans have fell in love with Australian wines in the past 5 years is that the quality to price ratio is often 1/3 that of similar California wines. Will the same hold true for wine from Chile, Argentina and Spain? Only time will tell.

One of the wine world’s best stories in 2006 is the 95 points Robert Parker awarded to a $19.95 wine from Australia. The Mollydooker Boxer Shiraz has one of the highest price to points ratio in the history of Mr. Parker’s notes. The wine made by veteran winemakers Sarah and Sparky Marquis defies gravity with a screw cap enclosure and a rip-off wine label tab that allows wine lovers to keep the name of the wine close to their hearts. So much for the snooty tissue paper wrapped bottles from the Napa Valley!

I would say that since this wine sold out in a matter of days post his review, American’s appetites for $150 California Cabernet’s may be waning. In closing, one of the best wines produced in California is the Phelps Insignia which sells for around $130 per bottle. This is widely available at wine retailers and every vintage is a great value. Some of the best vintages can compare to the top cult wines at 1/3 the price. I’m still amazed why this wine does not sell off the retail shelves in the first few weeks of sale! I commend the Joseph Phelps winery for keeping this great wine priced for all to enjoy. I wish more wines of this caliber and aging potential were priced this reasonably! I just recently tasted the 1994 Insignia and it was superb!!!! This wine has a well establish aging profile so give it a try.

Brian Pasch
http://www.brianpasch.com

French wine is made in a special way that other countries just cannot seem to match. There is extra care put into a French wine and this thoughtful consideration adds something special to every single French wine on the market today.

When making French wine the winemakers crush the grapes as soon as they get to the cellar. This allows for the most flavor to be gotten from each grape assuring that the French wine will have loads of flavor to thrill every palate like yours. Once all of the French wine grapes have been crushed the must is sent through the fermentation tanks to ferment, as they should. This is a necessary part of the French wine making in that if this step is not done there can be no alcohol in the wine, it would simply be grape juice.

The grapes used in the making of French wine have their own natural sugars and yeasts and other important chemicals. During the fermentation process the French wine grapes undergo a change in their chemical balances. It is this chemical change that makes the French wine special.

During the entire French wine making process those making the wine need to keep the temperature at a steady 25 to 30 degrees Celsius if they want to the French wine grapes to ferment as they should. There must also be the proper ventilation in place to keep the French wine processing smoothly.

The next step in the making of classic French wine is the maceration process. It is in this step that the French wine gets its color. The color itself of all French wine comes from the peels of the grapes and their own natural tannin. It is in this stage of the French wine development that the body of the wine comes into being. The amount of time that the French wine spends in this maceration will vary depending upon which kind of French wine is being made. Some French wines will need more time while others less. In some cases this process can go on for several weeks when making good French wine.

Only after the last stage of French wine are the solids taken out of the wine. This is known as the raking process. More than one French wine can come out of each process simply because the pulp that is taken can be squeezed to get pressed wine or it can be left and known as free run French wine.

What was started as an online store, has turned into a growing collection of internet resources on subjects ranging from Network Marketing, Investing, Health, Travel and Wine. Visit http://www.mjesales.com for our store or http://www.mjesales.com/articles.htm for more articles. For instant access to over 20 free ebooks, visit our free ebook page now! This article may be reproduced only in its entirety.

If you are a genuine wine lover or even if you are just slightly interested in the subject you can find everything that you need to know about wine online. Looking up wine online is simple and easy and it takes almost no time at all. No matter what you want to know about this fascinating subject you can find about wine online.

Looking up wine online has never been easier than it is today and as time passes it will only get even easier. This is because there are so many people just like you out there who love to learn as much as they can about wine. Since there is this need for information more and more people are putting the knowledge that they have about wine online. All of these wine online websites will give you all kinds of info.

Start your search of wine online by deciding what it is you are looking for exactly. The more you can narrow your search the better your search for wine online will be. So if for example you are doing a search in google about ?wine cabinets? you will type this into the search box. You should then get a list of all the wine online sites that have this kind of info. Then all you have to do is click on the links and go to town. You can read about your subject matter as much or as little as you need to when you are doing a wine online search.

You can also purchase wine online. This is a great way to buy your wine whether you are a collector or even if you are just looking for that special wine to celebrate a special occasion. When you search for wine online you can compare the prices and the years and any other characteristic of your wine that you want.

Buying wine online is just as easy as looking for information about wine online is. There are thousands of wine merchants who will be willing to ship you as much wine as you want. You can find wine online from another country even. It is nice to be able to get Italian wine online without ever having to go there!

So the next time you need some info about wine or you are looking to purchase some wine online just check the internet.

What was started as an online store, has turned into a growing collection of internet resources on subjects ranging from Network Marketing, Investing, Health, Travel and Wine. Visit http://www.mjesales.com for our store or http://www.mjesales.com/articles.htm for more articles. For instant access to over 20 free ebooks, visit our free ebook page now! This article may be reproduced only in its entirety.