During the Christmas season, gift giving is the norm and sometimes I get wine and sometimes I get wine themed gifts. Over the years, I have written about many gadgets and trinkets that are strewn across our house. I always enjoy any gift, because I view it as someone thought enough of us to give us the gift. We have quite a few wine glass coasters, mostly with wine themes and they come in handy as they save the wooden furniture from getting unsightly rings. The latest set we received were selected especially with us in mind as they are remembrances of past wines that we have shared with them.
The first wine coaster shows two different bottles of Chateau Mouton-Rothschild and one bottle of Chateau Lafite-Rothschild. Millions of words have been written about these two famous wines from the Pauillac commune of the Medoc. Chateau Lafite-Rothschild has been famous for their wines since the 1600’s and was known as “The King’s Wine” and it was the first wine of the First Growths of the 1855 Classification of the Medoc. I have had the good fortune to have had bottles from the 1974, 1986 and 1989 vintages and I even have a bottle or two resting in the cellar. Chateau Mouton-Rothschild, which is part of the same family, but distinct ownership started off in the 1800’s and while greatly respected, they were listed first of the Second Growths. This was a slight to them and until this offence was changed in 1973 to list them as a First Growth, they never even bothered to indicate on their labels that they were ranked. While Lafite always uses the same label, Mouton since the end of World War II has commissioned a different artist to create a new label for them. Oh, to have a complete collection of even the labels would be awesome. Besides having a few more of their wines resting, I have had the honor of enjoying the 1961, 1964, 1973, 1985, 1986 and the 1990 vintages.
The second wine coaster features another famous house of the Medoc, and that is Chateau Margaux, which many consider the most elegant of the Medoc wines and has been a First Growth from day one of the classification. Chateau Margaux is from the commune of Margaux and has one of the most famous and grand estates of almost any winery in the world. I guess that I have been blessed to have enjoyed more wines from Chateau Margaux than any other winery. Without bragging I have had the pleasure of their 1961, 1967, 1970, 1976, 1978, 1986 and 1994 vintages and I still have a couple collecting dust.
The third coaster features the famed Opus One winery, that is a joint venture between Baron Philippe de Rothschild (of Chateau Mouton-Rothschild) and Robert Mondavi of Napa Valley. This was one of the first wineries that I had to visit when we made our trip to Napa Valley which almost broke our piggy-bank, and it was the first winery that I had book an appointment with. One of the original cult-wines from Napa Valley and still going strong, since their first vintage of 1979. Another wine that I have had enjoyed over the years with the 1989, 1992, 1994, 1995,1996, 2000 and 2002 and a couple of more that are also collecting dust.
The last coaster and certainly not the least, because I remember having the first bottle of it at a barbeque and it was served with steaks. Caymus Vineyards Special Select is from the Chuck Wagner group of wines, and though his family grew grapes for years, they only started making their own wine in 1972 and the Special Select is not offered every year, only when warranted. I have one bottle left from our grand tour of Napa Valley and it is a 1995 that we tasted at the winery.
These coasters just made me stop and appreciate the good fortunes that I have had, and in no means, am I bragging, but years ago, when I first started enjoying wines they were not as dear as they are today.
Boxed wine is all the rage among the popular price wines and when goes into convenience stores and party stores, there is a myriad of cardboard containers filled with wine. I guess that it is much more practical as compared to the old days of jug wines in the big gallon bottles with a thumb hole for pouring. In fact, box wines, may account for more wine drinkers than any other segment of the market, because it is handy, priced economically and the wine is ready to drink, without the need of cellaring. We are in the world of instant gratification.
Ms. Yoga while she was in town for holidays, spent a full day with us and she had a full itinerary, but of plans that she wanted to accomplish as well. I was off that day, but I declined to spend the whole day with her, not because I don’t enjoy her company, but because I knew that she would have preferred to spend the time with my Bride. They were going to go shopping, visit a mutual friend that is in the midst of redoing her new home, have lunch and of course more shopping. They even had time to sneak in a movie, and they really didn’t me tagging along, as it was a Ladies day of things to do, and I understand that.
When you get a group of people together even for New Year’s Eve, there will be no consensus of what sparkling wine is best. Everyone has different tastes and there really is no one-size-fits-all, in fact that is true for any type of wine. I have noticed that even at weddings when there is sparkling wine poured for all of the guests for toasting, afterwards there are plenty of glasses that have been barely touched. I think that some Brut finished wines are just too dry for many people, and really that is not sacrilege. I have always espoused that people should drink what they enjoy, and in that manner, they will eventually try other wines and that is what all wine lovers do. I know for a fact that I have learned to embrace many of wines.
I have to admit that that I like to go out for dinner quite a bit and you may have noticed, as I like to write about restaurants almost as much as I like to write about wine. Suffice it to say, that there are a few nights that I do not like to venture out on and New Year’s Eve is one of them. Over the years, I have found that the menus shrink, the prices rise and the service diminishes. I guess in my youth, I didn’t notice it as much, but now I do, so I know that there are other nights where everything will line up more favorable. Though I do miss the chance for some dancing, as bands seem more prevalent on that evening. So, for the last ten to fifteen years we seem to have everyone come here to ring in the new year, though some of the younger relatives skip our dinner to be with the crowds and that is understandable.
For everyone that celebrates Christmas, while the holiday is so special, it is also hectic. For those that are having big dinners at their home, it is an all-day affair of cleaning and cooking. For others, it is traveling to sometimes two or more different houses to give everyone the Christmas Cheer; and that is what we do on Christmas Day. We try to cover as many relatives as possible. On Christmas morning, it has become a tradition to have breakfast at my Mother-in-Laws home and since she has five daughters who are all married with children the house gets quite cozy with the ability to get everyone seated. There were doughnuts and Danishes, omelets, bacon and pancakes, enough to sate everyone for the morning. And then there are Mimosas, that wonderful breakfast drink of orange juice and sparkling wine. This is a drink where one does not have to splurge when making it, as any sparkling wine will work. We used Cook’s California Champagne Brut Grand Reserve NV, and you will notice that it is a “California Champagne” and since Cook’s was established in 1859 they have been grandfathered in for using the term “champagne” since it is now only legally used for wines from France, except for a few wineries that were allowed to keep the name, because of longevity. Cook’s proclaims that they are the “#1 Sparkling Wine in the U.S.” and I am sure that it is true, because they are a popular priced sparkling wine, made in the bulk process method using Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier grapes and it is festive.
The Wine Raconteur 