The first of several shows recorded last year, this podcast focuses on the wines of Israel with an interview with blogger & retailer Richard Shaffer from Israeli Wine Direct and winemaker Zeev Smilansky from Meishar Winery.

Show Notes:

00:27 - Welcome & Background on Israeli Wine
02:10 - Israeli Wines Today
32:10 - Get Your Free Audible Book by clicking here
35:44 - Feedback and Next Show Theme

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Copyright 2008 Acan Media, Inc. Licensed to the public under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/

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Jeff Lefevere and I start our second season of Unfiltered with a panel of wine bloggers, podcasters, winery owners and retailers.

We welcome Ryan from Catavino, Jeff Stai a.k.a. El Jefe from Twisted Oak, Craig Camp from Anne Amie Vineyards, Kaz & Randy from Wine Biz Radio and Jill from domaine547.com

Show Notes:
00:25 - Welcome & Introductions
01:28 - American Wine Blog Awards
15:50 - Twitter: Waste of time or valuable tool?
23:14 - Amazon enters wine biz?
33:10 - Are high alcohol wines not such a bad thing?
39:17 - Who writes Wine-ing 2.0?
42:39 - Blog URL’s and Feedback

Feedback: winecast@gmail.com
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Copyright 2008 Acan Media, Inc. Licensed to the public under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/

 

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I am back behind the mic for another podcast and this time I’m reading a post from last week and reflecting about the comments.

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Copyright 2008 Acan Media, Inc. Licensed to the public under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/

 

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As I begin my 4th year of podcasting I present the final Unfiltered show of it’s first season.

Jeff and I welcome a panel of some of the top wine bloggers today: Alder Yarrow, Dr. Debs and Gabriella & Ryan Opaz. We talk about the state of wine blogging, where it is going and share some wine picks.

Show Notes:

00:25 - Introduction

01:40 - Question for Alder

04:21 - Question for Dr. Debs

05:46 - Question for Gabriella & Ryan

08:10 - Question for Jeff

09:19 - Are Wine Bloggers Having An Impact?

15:04 - Where Is Wine Blogging Going?

36:53 - Will Wine Bloggers Adopt A Common Rating Scale?

55:13 - Gabriella & Ryan’s Wine Pick

57:17 - Dr. Debs’ Wine Pick

59:13 - Alder’s Wine Pick

60:00 - Tim’s Wine Pick

62:30 - Everyone Plugs Their Blogs

64:00 - Jeff’s Wine Pick

67:00 - Feedback

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Copyright 2007 Acan Media, Inc. Licensed to the public under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/

 

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I’m back with another pick that I thought I hadn’t yet blogged but I wrote about the 2003 vintage for WBW 35.

Bodegas Castano, “Hecula”, Monastrell, Yecla 2004 ($14) - Very dark purple-black with aromas of blackberry, bacon, licorice and vanilla. Ripe black cherry and blackberry fruit flavors with medium firm tannins, good acidity and a nice minerality on the finish.

14.5% ABV
Synthetic cork closure
Score: 89
Rating:

Buy this wine online

 

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Another Quick Picks just in time for the Thanksgiving table featuring two Roussanne-based wines from Tablas Creek Vineyard.

Tablas Creek Vineyard, Roussanne 2005 ($27) - Light straw in color with aromas of pear, pineapple and orange blossom. Crisp pear and pineapple flavors with nice minerality on the finish. Wow.

Score: 91
Rating: 4/5 stars

Tablas Creek Vineyard, Esprit de Beaucastel Blanc, Roussanne/Grenache Blanc/Picpoul Blanc blend 2005 ($35) - Light yellow in color with aromas of pear, honey and spice. Pear, citrus and pineapple flavors finish long with refreshing acidity. A delicious Rhone blend that shows what can be done with these grapes in California. I will cellar a few bottles to see what happens with 5, 10 and 15 years of bottle age.

Score: 92
Rating: 4/5 stars

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Copyright 2007 Acan Media, Inc. Licensed to the public under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/

 

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The first of several podcasts from the archives, this one recorded in late May and mid-June but not edited and released until now. I spent about an hour with Cameron Hughes in his San Francisco offices and captured an interesting portrait of what makes this New World négociant tick. Unfortunately most of these tasting notes are for wines now sold out but Lot 25 is still available and now on sale, along with Lots 42 and 26. All of which are recommended.

Show Notes:

00: 23 - Introduction
01:53 - Interview with Cameron Hughes
26:53 - Tasting notes
27:04 - Lot 25, Carneros Sparking Wine NV ($19)
27:32 - Lot 26, Sauvignon Blanc 2006 ($12)
28:00 - Lot 29, Lake County Meritage 2005 ($11)
28:28 - Lot 30, Chardonnay 2005 ($12)
28:57 - Lot 31, Syrah 2005 ($12)
29:23 - Lot 38, Shiraz 2005 ($20)
30:10 - Lot 42, Shiraz 2005 ($18)
30:42 - Best of Tasting: Lot 38, Shiraz 2005 ($20)
31:03 - Best Value: Lot 26, Sauvignon Blanc 2006 ($12)
31:21 - Feedback
31:36 - Next Show Theme

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Copyright 2007 Acan Media, Inc. Licensed to the public under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/

 

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Another Wine Blogging Wednesday and this time I’m podcasting for the first time since WBW 23. Neil from Brooklynguy’s Wine and Food Blog came up with a great theme this month: ‘Silver’ Burgundy. Instead of investing in a Côte d’Or (’gold coast’) wine, we are drinking affordable Burgundy from the Côte Chalonnaise and the Mâconnais.

Since I favor red wines this time of year, I selected a village wine from Mercurey made by the well known Faiveley family. Listen to the podcast for more details but here are my tasting notes:

J. Faiveley, Domaine de la Croix Jacquelet, Mercurey 2003 ($20) - Deep ruby color with aromas of dark cherry, fennel and sage. Rich black cherry and raspberry fruit with a touch of earth finishing with firm tannins and good acidity. The bold fruit balances the tannins so I expect this wine to improve with a year or two more in the cellar. Alternatively, you could give it a couple hours in the decanter to open up before enjoying. A very good value in Pinot Noir.

13% ABV
Natural cork closure
Score: 88
Rating: 3.5/5 stars

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Copyright 2007 Acan Media, Inc. Licensed to the public under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/

 

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Jeff Lefevere and I return for another podcast after a hiatus of 6 months. We welcome Alyssa Rapp, founder and CEO of Bottlenotes and Mary Baker, owner of Dover Canyon Winery.

00:25 - Welcome and Introductions

01:09 - Background of Bottlenotes

16:28 - Dover Canyon overview

17:44 - Harvest 2007 discussion

25:06 - Is Bigger Better?

46:45 - To Cork or Not to Cork?

53:38 - Links and show conclusion

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Copyright 2007 Acan Media, Inc. Licensed to the public under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/

 

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