stlgrapes.com

More on Illinois lawmakers vs. Illinios wine drinkers can be found here.

There is a new wine bar and retail store opening up in Rock Hill called Bella Vita. Details are scarce, however this is the first of three stores that will be opening in St. Louis. Around 60 bottles will be open for tasting daily. If anyone has any other details about the concept, let me know.

Come June first, Illinois consumers will no longer be able purchase wine direct from wineries or out of state wine stores. While residents have has this privilege for fifteen years now, in about a week it will cease to exist. This also means that hundreds of wines will become unavailable because they are not represented by licensed Illinois alcohol distributors. A complete article on this ridiculousness can be found here.

This is another reason to add to my list of reasons I am glad to live west of the river. #4 is Illinois drivers. When not driving faster than the driver behind you, kindly move over to the right to let said driver pass. My trips to Chicago would be much less of a hassle were this rule followed at all times.

I don’t want to get started on a rant of stltoday or The Post Dispatch. I realize that St. Louis is a smaller city and with no competition by another paper, the bar is set by this lone publication. So I was excited to see the launch of a new website that would make it easier to navigate through the paper a few weeks ago. I was even more excited to see a new beer column of the paper called Hip Hops which promised to come regularly. I thought the column was a nice addition and a step in improving the dining/food/wine/drink sections. But where has it gone? Adam Jahov, the author, managed just one column on May 7th and I haven’t seen it since. How often can we expect it to appear? I will admit that I only get the weekend editions of the paper delivered to my door step. Am I possibly missing it in the printed version?

I’m assuming they use a smart card that is loaded with money to pay for the taste. Maybe argon to keep the wine fresh? I didn’t have time to watch the whole video. I remember that a San Francisco bar was using a machine like this a few years back. I cannot recall the name, but they loaded it up with very high end wines. Although you might not be able to afford that $300 bottle, you might be willing to pay $20-$30 for a one oz. taste of it.

The St. Louis Wine Festival will be held this year on September 27 & 28 at Forest Park. Straight from the source:

“The festival provides an opportunity to sample from more than 200 wines from around the world. Learn about new and exciting varieties from the experts in a relaxed festival setting.”

While the site has a partial list of the wines from the 2007 event, I can’t say that many of the selections are making me want to run out and buy tickets for this year. Seriously, Kendall Jackson? Barefoot Cellars? Fetzer and Gallo? If only the Schnucks in my neighborhood were conducting this festival would theses selections be ok. On the other hand, the previous list does feature many Missouri wines although due to the frost last year, I don’t know how that will affect MO participation this year.

So who chooses these wine participants? Vendors? Event planners? Can any wine be featured? Anyone know? I will look out for an update on the 2008 selections.

Sorry for the delay in posts. Working on some things and there is always that one task that slips through the cracks.

Robert Mondavi died this morning at the age of 94. One of the first to embrace Napa Valley and build one of the first wine empires on that soil, he was a man committed to wine and did much to promote and justify US wine around the world. Mr. Mondavi was also a great benefactor throughout the years, giving away millions to a variety of causes. There is much more on the life and times of this man. I wouldn’t know where to begin to describe his impact on wine.

About a month ago, I was reading Gut Check and it was posted that Chris Hoel was leaving our fair city for Yountville, CA to work in Thomas Keller’s famous restaurant, The French Laundry. In case you don’t know who Mr. Hoel is, there was an article about a year ago in the Riverfront Times in which he was featured. It is a great article about wine and wine people in St. Louis and followed Hoel just prior to his attempt at becoming a Master of Wine in the Court of Master Sommeliers. He is also one of the people behind the St. Louis Wine Clinic, which is a “school” of sorts that educates people in wine. As an aside, this is a great place for anyone interested in learning about wine. It is taught by instructors who know wine, wine regions, wine profiles, wine grapes, wine makers, etc. It is taught in a somewhat formal setting so be prepared. A thirst for knowledge and a thirst for wine go hand in hand there.

So now, a few questions… When does he start? What will happen to the wine clinic? What about his other St. Louis projects? And most importantly, who will fill the gap as best sommelier in St. Louis now for 2008? The field is wide open this year.

Anyone have any news?

First of all, I just got done reading the review of SLeek from the PD. One thing most certainly jumped out at me. What the hell is Yellow Tail doing on a wine list there? Wow.

Second up, Robust has launched a new aspect of their site called winesips. It is a new way to purchase wine online for either yourself or a friend by gifting it to them through email. You can purchase wine by the bottle, 6 oz. glass, or wine flight. My email is peggy@stlgrapes.com in case you were wondering.

Next up, Frank Robbins and Greg Stevens are busy kids over at The Wine Press. One of the great things about this place is that Frank has kept a blog of all the work that has gone into the development of a wine bar. Much more on this at a later date.

And last. I first heard of this program about two years ago when they were casting. Needless to say, I did not get picked to appear, nor was I called back for an interview. I remember filling out some online form and was then called by a casting person, but I guess I failed the phone interview. Anyway, I googled The Wine Makers a bit ago on a whim and while I haven’t been able to find an air date (it will be on PBS, but they have no information on their site), I did see some footage on youtube. I’m not sure what to think about it, but enjoy.

The Wine Makers Trailer

Stltoday.com has launched a renovation of their website. Maybe this has something to do with the “spin-off” of the Post Dispatch by former PD employees, stlbeacon.org. maybe not. Who knows. One one hand, I do not like the new site. I feel like it is very difficult to navigate through with the top bar constantly dropping every time your pointer scrolls over it, however it is also new and I probably just need some time getting used to it.

The plus side is that now forums and blogs are much easier to find which I believe will help bring a younger demographic to the site. I still think the designers and developers of the site need to add a comment thread to the bottom of each article. I see why there would be hesitation in doing so, but I also believe it would be a welcome addition to readers. Plus I am always looking for more ways to waste my time online.

Somewhat back on topic, there is a brand new beer column published today. Another step in the right direction. You can find it here.