Flying Fish Cafe

Notes from the Phantom Wine-O

I have always liked the stories and legends I hear that are related to wine.  Here’s one from the ancient Persians.  According to their legend, their King Jemsheed loved grapes.  He hid them in his cellar in jars marked  “poison” so that
he could enjoy them all year long.  Of course, the grapes began to ferment within the jars.  One day a concubine, distraught over falling out of the king’s favor, tried to commit suicide by drinking out of the jars.  She fell into a deep sleep (passed out?), and when she awoke she began to tell of the wonderful dreams she had.  Thus, according to the Persians, the magical properties of wine were discovered.-With thanks to Thomas Conkllin

photo credit: dynamosquito

Notes From The Phantom Wine-O                               

The time from Thanksgiving to New Year’s, the “holidays”, are known as a time of joy and celebration. Nothing better epitomizes the holidays than sparkling wine or champagne. But not all sparkling wine is created equal. Or, as George Orwell put it, “All sparkling wine is equal, but some are more equal than others.” So when someone thrusts a glass of bubbles into your hand this season there are some things you can do to determine just how equal your sparkling wine is.

First of all, look at the bubbles. They should be small and plentiful, rising in a steady bead from the bottom of the glass. The French have a term, “oieul de crapot” (sic) which means “toad’s eyes.” Those are the very large, ugly bubbles encountered in cheap sparkling wines. (I won’t mention any names)

As a final point, sparkling wine should always be drunk in a tall tapered glass called a flute. Obviously, the charm of sparkling wine is the sparkle, and the less surface area, the longer the bubbles will last. All of us have probably seen the old movies, or been to a wedding, where the toast was done with the wide- bottomed coupe glasses. The legend is that that shape was modeled after the breast of Marie Antoinette. (A romantic notion, but a Frenchman once told me that the flute was actually the gass modeled after it.) Salud.

photo credit: vmiramontesl

Notes from the Phantom Wine-O

Since I spoke about soils in the last installment, let’s talk about the
phenomenon of the 45th parallel.  While it is true that grapes are grown
in many disparate areas, if you follow the 45th parallel in both the
northern and southern hemispheres you will find that they basically
bisect the great wine-growing areas of the world.



In the northern hemisphere, if you begin in western North America,
it goes through Portland, Oregon and so lies amid the Washington, Oregon,
and California wine-making areas. Follow it to the east and you will pass
through the Finger Lake region of New York State. Cross the Atlantic and
find yourself in Bordeaux. Traveling further east and you pass through the
Piedmont region of Italy. Much further east will put you in northern China
where there are rumors that some Australian growers, with the new political
openness and the vast potential for new customers, are exploring possibilities.
In the southern hemisphere in South America the 45th passes through Chile and
Argentina.  Cross the Atlantic and it lies just below South Africa. Then cross
the Indian and it passes just below southern Australia. 

What does this prove? Nothing really, except that those temperate climates,
and especially in areas close to large bodies of water which further moderate
temperature fluctuations, have proven most hospitable to the viniferous grape.
Could it be that some wily wine-grower or maker is exploring the western
edges of the Caspian or Black Seas with the hopes of finding cheap lands and
pleasant climes?

 photo credit: sara~

Notes From The Phantom Wine-O

Most fine wines are grown in poor soils and at the edges of agricultural production.  It has been conventional wisdom that vines need to be stressed and yields kept low to make good wine.  And  there are reasons for this thinking.

In the beginnings of efficient agricultural practices the best, most arable, easily-tilled land would usually be reserved for row crops to feed the population.  And wine, while certainly a necessity (to some of us), and a valuable addition to our quality of life, was relegated to less fertile land.  Over the centuries methods were developed  and refined and it became the common practice to grow grapes in marginal areas.

It is only recently, and not without some controversy, that some have begun to say that high quality grapes for wine can indeed be grown in more fertile areas.  More fertile soils will increase the density of the vines themselves by adding more leaves, and these leaves will need more elaborate trellises to prevent shading of the fruit and maintain airflow.  There will need to be more spacing between rows and between the vines themselves.  But if the vines are balanced, there is no reason that great, and much higher production wines are not a possibility in the future.

photo credit: John-Morgan