Category — wine lifestyle

Stories and news from the wine world:

• The Step-by-Step Process of Making French Wine
  — 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.
• Making White Wine: A Labor of Love
  — The grapes are grown at the wineries and then turned into wine and there are many varieties of grapes; each one either used either alone or combined to make different wines. But how exactly is white wine made?
• Making Your Own Wine: Where to Buy Wine Bottles
  — If you are interested in making your own wine, there are a few ingredients and pieces of equipment that you are going to need to purchase. One of the most important, of course are the wine bottles that you are going to use.
• Wine Region Map of Spain
  — With detailed illustrations of its varied terrain and topography, the map artfully showcases Spainâs vast variety of wines resulting from distinctive terrain, climate and winemaking styles.
• Crop Forecast Increases for 2008 California Wine Grape
  — Wine-type variety grape production for California is forecast at 3.40 million tons, up 6 percent from both the July forecast and from the 2007 crop, according to the USDA-NASS California field office.
• Green Your Wine Cellar
  — The environmental benefits of boxed wine is that cardboard and plastic bags weigh much less than bottles.
• Bargain Wine and the Big Mac Index
  — Wine prices in the U.S. appear to be heading up - what’s a bargain-seeking shopper to do? That’s the question I was asked by the wine and spirits editor of a major cooking magazine. The answer is to try to make the exchange rate work for you, not against you.
• The WineRack - A Wine-Filled Bra!
  — The WineRack has a “special boob-enhancing polyurethane bladder” that holds up to 750ml of the alcohol of your choice.
• What to do with Leftover Wine
  — While it’s easy to throw a vat of macaroni in a Tupperware bowl or wrap a piece of bread in a plastic baggie, the same can’t be said for wine.

Dispelling myths about what it takes to call yourself a wine enthusiast:

Myth number three — you cannot be called a wine enthusiast unless you belong to the elite wine club of your area and have a good knowledge about wines. There is nothing further from truth. Anyone who loves wine can be labeled as a wine enthusiast, period. Once you discover the love for wine, you would be thirsty to know more about the origin, various types, methods of serving, storage and other aspects of wine—just because you love this royal beverage. If you look closely, this is what actually describes the wine enthusiasts all over the world.

Exploding Some General Myths Concerning the Wine Enthusiast [WineXpert]

I received this e-mail on February 25, 2008

Andy,

My name is Ryan Scarafile and I am originally from the Syracuse area. I have been looking for a place in the area that allows people to make their own wine. I have recently reocated to the Baltimore Maryland area, but I still have family in the Syracuse area. Anyway, I am going to be asking my girlfriend of 12 years to marry me within the next few months and I thought since we are both very much into wine that I could pop the question by first making our own bottle together, and then secondly attaching a label that asks her to marry me. I am not sure if I can even pull this off or if this would be something we could even do together. Either way we would love to come in and make our own wine. Can you please let me know if this idea would work or any other information I might need to get this in the works? Thank you. I look forward to hearing from you.

Ryan Scarafile

The same day, I responded:

You’re a clever man with a nice imagination Ryan. I like your idea and will help make it happen for you. The wine making process takes 6 or 7 weeks. Here’s how it might work: You come in the first week to taste wines; pick a favorite and then make your wine. The wines come in batches of 27-30 bottles. Each bottle will cost between $5 and $8 each. When the wine is ready you both can come again to bottle, cork, label and decorate your bottles. They may take 3 days to a year (depending on the kind of wine you make) to age perfectly.

I can slip you one label to put on one of the bottles that day. It eill be different than all the other labels. If you put it into the box with all the rest, she won’t notice until you pull it out when you’re ready.

You can visit our Winery on Saturday afternoon, or any evening by appointment with the idea that you will just be doing a free wine tasting. Then suggest to her that you make a batch together. I could take photos for you to share later if you like.

On May 18, 2008, Ryan wrote:

Andy,

Last night I proposed to Leah, using the bottle you made for me with the ring tied around the stem of the bottle. It was perfect. She loved it. The bottle was everything I imagined it would be. I just wanted to thank you again for acommodating me, and all my requests, during this whole process. You certainly helped my idea and dream come true. You will be seeing us again to make more wine. Thank you again Andy!

Sincerely,

Ryan Scarafile

Found this site today:

WineLoversMeet.com is committed to bringing wine enthusiasts together in a safe and fun environment. Appealing to wine fanatics from newbies to connoisseurs, WineLoversMeet.com has claimed its stake as the #1 online wine community on the Internet, gaining membership from all over the world. With online dating becoming more socially acceptable these days, the Internet has become flooded with different ways to meet a potential intimate partner.