The Wine Broad's Board

Two-Buck Chuck? Out of Luck

In case you haven't heard, the 2005 Charles Shaw Chardonnay (aka Two-Buck Chuck) was judged as California's top Chardonnay at this year's California State Fair Wine Competition. (It scored 98 points, and was awarded double-gold, Best of California and Best of Class accolades.) So what's the big deal? The big deal is that this wine sells for $1.99 per bottle, and others in the competition cost many, many times more. (Or so they say; the full contest results haven't yet been released. Check the website in mid-July to find out who Chuck was competing against.) Just how good is this Two-Buck Chuck Chard? I wouldn't know about the 2005 vintage, since every last bottle had been cleaned out of my local Trader Joe's when I stopped in ONE DAY after the State Fair results were announced. I went there to buy a bottle for a blind tasting at my office (we do them every Friday--yeah, I know, poor me), but there was no Chuck Chardonnay to be had. It was pathetic, really: a 90-something-year-old man and I hovered outside the TJ's stockroom door like cheap-wine groupies, hoping to be invited backstage to meet Chuck. But he'd already left the scene with some whore from Larkspur, leaving Arthur and I to cry ourselves to sleep after drinking an inferior bottle of $50 Chard. I haven't given up, though. I'm still planning to do the blind tasting (maybe next week).

Go Fish

   

My friend, Tara, called last night to ask about my favorite seafood markets in San Francisco. Sure, you can get great fresh seafood at places like Whole Foods and Bryan's, but it's gonna cost you. Maybe you don't have a problem with paying $20/pound for fish, but that's not the sort of thing I can justify on a nightly basis. (I'm a writer, remember?) But that doesn't mean I'm willing to settle for week-old trout from the "dented fish store." My top picks in SF are both in the Inner Richmond district (my old 'hood), around Clement St. and 8th Ave. They're more Chinatown than uptown, which is just fine with me. The fish is ultra-fresh, and it's unbeliveably cheap, too. Check 'em out:

Seafood Center, 831 Clement St.

A small seafood-only market that sells everything from whole fish to live shellfish and super-fresh ahi. Ridiculously cheap.

New May Wah Supermarket, 711 Clement St.

Another great place for really fresh seafood (at Mickey D's prices) in the Inner Richmond’s mini-Chinatown district. May Wah is a big ol’ supermarket that also sells all kinds of great (some unidentifiable to non-Asian folk) veggies, fruits and packaged foods.

Here's one in San Rafael, while I'm at it:

The Seafood Peddler, 100 Yacht Club Dr.

seafoodpeddler.com

This is a restaurant that also sells fresh seafood in the entry area at prices that are way lower than retail. I’m talking about $12.99/pound for fresher ahi than you’re likely to find at your local sushi joint, gorgeous prawns for $12.99/pound and other fresh-from-the-sea delights. They even sell filet mignon, if you want to do a surfo-turfo thing. They go through tons of seafood at the restaurant each day, so nothing sits around waiting to be sold.

Now, I have a question for you: Who knows of a place to get great fresh seafood in Sonoma County? I'd love to hear about it!

'Nutty Wine Pairing

  Don't question it, just try it: jammy red wine with Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. Actually, ruby port is the ultimate pairing for such salty-sweet candy goodness, but a sweet-ish Zinfandel, like this one from Dashe Cellars, will do just fine. (Dashe makes a Zin port that would be perfect. Too bad I didn't have any lying around the house.) Whoever decided that Cabernet and chocolate made a good match was clearly smoking crack.

A cool packaging aspect of the Dashe wines is a little peel-off tab on the back label that includes the name and vintage of the wine, along with the winery's website address. (A lot of you probably don't give a crap about the back label, but I'm a packaging geek. I love this kind of stuff!) This is a great feature for people like me, who can't seem to remember the name of a new wine for more than two hours after I taste it. (That's what notebooks are for, right?)

   

Trade Show Mentality

I just got back from an industry conference, which had some fun moments (drinking some really good wine and hanging out with my office-mates), some incredibly boring moments and some really irritating ones. The irritating ones came courtesy of a guy who somehow decided during the course of an otherwise-fun "professional" event that he wanted to sleep with me. (We're both married, by the way.) I just can't relate to the "trade show mentality" that a lot of people have--namely, that it's OK for married people to screw around at conferences, and that somehow it doesn't count once you get home. Creepy. Anyone else out there have a story about being hit on at a conference?

Wine O' the Week: Take the Plunge!

Plungerhead 2005 Old Vine Zinfandel, Dry Creek Valley ($16) 

Here's a tasty Zin with a twist: It's sealed with a new-ish closure called a Zork. (Just pull the tab to peel away the plastic seal, then pop off the top. No corkscrew necessary, and you can easily stick the cap back into the bottle if you don't finish it. Like that's going to happen.) The wine smells like ripe raspberries, with a touch of peppery spice. It tastes like raspberries and black cherries, is smooth and balanced and has plenty of fruit flavor without being heavy or syrupy. In other words: tasty.

 

Rowdy Topless Tasters!

Last week I received an intriguing press release about a new program launched in New York’s Finger Lakes wine region (click here to read the news story). The program’s goal? To rein in out-of-control tour groups that can’t tell the difference between a genteel afternoon of tasting fine wine and a booze-soaked Mardi Gras parade. Groups exhibiting “inappropriate or illegal behavior” will be issued either a “Yellow Card” or a “Red Card” to let them know they’ve been put on notice. Meanwhile, tasting room staff will call the next wineries on the trail to let them know that a drunk posse of crazed wine tasters is heading their way. Groups holding the dreaded “Red Cards” may be turned away at their next stop and forced to drink tepid tap water for the rest of the day. This all seemed a bit extreme when I first read about it—how rowdy could these people be? We’ve all gotten a bit loopy after one-too-many stops on the wine-tasting trail, right? Well, it seems that Finger Lakes tourists have taken the concept to a whole new level of debauchery. Paul Thomas, who is the executive director of the Seneca Lake Wine Trail, told me about some recent incidents: “a college student almost killing himself doing a header off a winery deck, another customer coming close to drowning in a winery pond clearly posted ‘no swimming,’ customers urinating in the parking lot or scampering around topless.” Did he say “scampering around topless”? I hope I never see that here in California! (People prone to topless--or even pants-less--scampering are never the ones you’d actually want to see showing off the goods.) Now that I’ve put that appetizing image into your heads, does anyone have an out-of-control-wine-taster story they’d like to share? Feel free to make one up—I could use a laugh!

Note to Points-Chasers: Try Before You Buy!

Today I received a big sample mailing of highly rated, but way over-the-top Zinfandel (translation: too much alcohol and jammier than a Smuckers convention), and I couldn't help but feel a sense of dread at having to taste these wines. Is it just me, I wondered, or are there other people out there who don't want their wine to taste like raspberry-flavored pancake syrup laced with booze? To my relief, I found a forum discussion on the 'net about the too-jammy, over-extracted hype that this producer puts out. (I'm not gonna say their name because they're nice people, but it rhymes with "toes in womb.") The disturbing part was that a few of the posters had bought CASES of this wine--one even joined the vintner's wine club--without ever having tasted a single drop of the stuff. Keep in mind that this wine sells for $30+ per bottle, so a case goes for more than $400. Why would anyone do this?! Because the wine got high scores in Wine Spectator and from Robert Parker, so the buyers were sure they'd like it. Only they didn't. Newsflash: Robert Parker does not live inside your mouth! What Bob experiences as a "luscious, magical wine with essence of ripe raspberries and cassis" may very well taste like "artificially flavored sno-cone syrup with hints of battery acid" when it hits your personal taste buds. Ratings are supposed to be guidelines to help steer you in the direction of good wines, but they are not a substitute for tasting and forming your own opinions! Try buying just one bottle of that high-points wine before you pull the trigger on a whole case or join the winery's $100-per-month (plus delivery) wine club. I can't believe I even had to say that.

Wine O' the Week: Pink Liquid Crack

Robert Sinskey '06 Vin Gris of Pinot Noir, Carneros

Wine writer/sommelier/wine pimp Chris Sawyer turned me on to this pale pink delight, and I can't decide whether to organize a parade in his honor or kick his ass. I can't get enough of the stuff! It has a pale, salmon color, with fresh strawberry and citrus flavors that make it the perfect summer wine. Unlike some blockbuster California pinks, this one is crisp, light and understated. You can order it online ($20) through the Robert Sinskey website, or find a local retailer through Wine Searcher. But beware: this delicious wine is like pink liquid crack.

Yes, I know I'm lame

I know I promised to at least post a wine o' the week, and no, I haven't done it. Get off my back already! Sorry. Anyway, I've held off on posting new stuff not only because I have a lot of other crap to do, but because I was trying to figure out what sort of stuff I wanted to post here. I've since realized that I can post whatever I damn well please (yeah!), so I'm going to stop over-thinking this and just forge ahead. I was starting to feel pressure (self-imposed) to turn this into some kind of magazine, but that's not the point of a blog, now is it? I'll post my wine o' the week before the end of this week. REALLY!