As the first gentle snowflakes of the winter were falling here in Boston yesterday morning, I was up and at’m reading wine reviews. It’s true I’m always doing research. But yesterday somehow the stage was set such that I couldn’t help chuckling at some of the terminology in our wine lexicon! Have you ever noticed how often a wine – or maybe just the BEST wines – are described by some of the most colorful lingo of any (neutral) topic?

Some of the best terms (for the best wines) are words any woman would love to have poured over her (perhaps literally and figuratively!). A few of my favorites are: Smooth, Elegant, Alluring, Enticing, Polished and Supple.

Other terms may be more Marilyn Monroe in nature… How about: Opulent, Round, Generous, Vibrant or Juicy?

Others are ones you wouldn’t mind your partner whispering in your ear, sweet nothings that say everything you want to hear: Sensual, Sexy, Seductive.

Wine writers certainly have seemed to conjure a few precious gems to get you in the mood!

What wine terms tickle your fancy?

I think by now we can all agree: I am a wine nerd. I mean, my personal mission is to make wine much more accessible. But given the right audience, I’m quite likely to talk about the nerdier characteristics of a wine, what soil type the vines must have been planted in, the difference between a “high altitude” and a “valley floor” wine, why hand-harvesting resulted in a more concentrated vino experience, the difference between Pinot Noir and one of its genetic counterparts, St. Laurent, etc.

But when it comes to the why and what of physics, or the likes of ion beams, particle accelerators, and gamma rays, well, you’re more likely to catch me trying to keep up with the Discovery Channel and How it’s Made using my TiVo “rewind” feature to sort it all out. (Self awareness is half the battle, I always say….)

Take a look and read for yourself this Friday News and Trends day… The BBC has revealed “Winemakers Crack Open High-Tec Tricks” to prevent fraud – and it is JUICY! Once you’re done reading, pop back over here. I’m curious for some of you awesome, scientifically-minded folks to conduct some ‘poke some holes’ analysis and let us all know: Will all this high-falutent technology actually prevent wine fraud?

The sun is shining here in Boston and I’m off to a Grower Champagne tasting in a little while. Yes, I have something to feel jolly about! But as I was telling friends about my afternoon plans, I remembered many people don’t know the tremendous loveliness that is Grower Champagne – or what I’m so excited about.  So today I’m going to launch my latest Wine Wednesday theme: A Bit on Bubbly.

There’s much to be understood about Champagne. How they make it (aka what makes it so special). What grapes are used (Chardonnay (white), Pinot Noir (red) and Pinot Meunier (red)) and how that translates into “English” on a wine label. Why folks are eager to expand the region. Who are the top producers (or at least those who market their wines most effectively…). I could go on. For now, let’s focus on a specialty item within the Champagne world: Growers Champagne.

I’d argue Growers Champagne is the least understood and possibly the best Champagne on the market. (Yes, we all know I prefer when winemakers use the best grapes and allow the terroir to speak as loudly as possible. Oops! Did I just give something away?!) Here’s the scoop:

There are a handful of brand names (Moet & Chandon, Veuve Clicquot, Mumm, etc.) that produce 80% of the Champagne on the market. Each of these names produces wines per a formula, or a “House Style”. They largely get their grapes from whoever is selling them via the top (Grand Cru), next level (Premier Cru) or bottom teir of farmers (“generic” villages in the Champagne AOC); they only own 12% of the vineyards. The economics of this process is quite intriguing – and telling – too. The government tells growers what day they can harvest their grapes and sets the price per must weight. Such regulation means growers pick the grapes as early as possible, when the grape must weight is at it’s highest. Since they get paid based on 1) village “level” with Grand Cru villages getting paid the most and 2) weight of the grapes, growers are happy. Because each House can legally doctor the final alcohol level through chapitalization, they are less concerned with the ripeness of the fruit (when the grape’s natural sugar level is optimal for wine making). Winemakers also have more grape quantity to work with, allowing them to produce more Champagne for the market. The focus is on quantity, not quality. And so the vines are young, producing more fruit but having less character.

Grower Champagnes are produced by those who tend their own vines. The focus is on quality, not quantity. They select the ripest fruit so they only have to chapitalize when necessary. They use minimal dosage, less the sugar mask the flavors of the land. It’s simply wine making at its best. The fact that we’re dealing with Champagne in this case, well, to the victor goes the spoils!

It’s not that the mass-marketed wines aren’t fulfilling. (I, for one, think Perrier-Joet knows what they are doing.) But just because Grower wines are out of sight, doesn’t mean they should be out of mind. Enter folks like Terry Theise, an exceptional importer of fine wines. Theise has found some special wines and, under his well-known name, is allowing these small guys to compete with big houses (the Borders of the wine world, if you will).  Suffice to say (in this long, exuberant post), I’m going to taste a few Theise selections today and will do my best to report back with some of the latest finds just in time for the Holidays.

In the meantime, I’d love to know: What’s your relationship with Bubbly?

I was blessed with three things this Thanksgiving: inspiration, hope and pure delight. Since wine happened to be the catalyst for all three (and I feel like all we hear about is bad news these days), I can’t help but pick up my blog after the holiday weekend and share some positive goodness.

Inspiration. I’ve never had so much fun interacting with wine customers than last Wednesday night at the shop. People were looking for nice bottles of vino to accompany their meal, serve as delicious liquid ‘balm’ for potentially awkward family moments, or otherwise thank their host for their hospitality. People were simply in good spirits, looking forward to a few days off and satisfied bellies. Their bottle of vino was something they not only wanted to complete their meal, but to say something more, too.

Hope. People weren’t panicking. Some were looking to spend less per bottle so they could buy more than one more easily, but I couldn’t help but notice I was helping customers select more expensive bottles of wine for the occasion. (There is so much good juice at various price points I had anticipated helping folks find the perfect bottle anywhere from $10 to $100 – not more consistently in the $20-$35 range, which I did often.)

Delight. As I dressed my table, roasted my bird and prepared the delicious trimmings, it was lovely to open the bottles of wine I finally selected for the occasion (after much deliberation – after all, I am a Virgo with sometimes too much wine knowledge for my own good!). They were exactly what I hoped would delight my taste buds and guests.

Our pre-bird snacks were accompanied by an old favorite of mine (though the latest vintage which I had not yet enjoyed), the 2007 Guidobono Barbera d’Alba. I call it my fireplace wine; it is so approachable and versatile I can enjoy it with a variety of foods – or simply stick my feet up in front of the fire and sip. The 2007 is perhaps less complex in flavor than 2006, but it is no less satisfying. It was perfect for me to sip on as I put the final touches on the meal, enjoyed my guests and snacked.

Our main meal featured the 2006 Hillinger Small Hill Red, a truly fabulous, character-driven, soft and supple Pinot Noir/Merlot blend from Austria. In case I haven’t mentioned this wine here before, I will say it now: to me this wine is like the big, holiday bonus you didn’t know you were getting (it shows you the respect you deserve, but does so with unprecedented sophistication and grace). A lovely knock-out!

All of these things were enough to put me in the holiday spirit. This week I’ll be getting out my decorations and thinking about wines to delight us all as Santa slides down the chimney in but 25 days time!

How was your Thanksgiving? What wine(s) did you select for the occasion?