   |  Newsletter ArchivePlease Name Our Syrah Tasting, The Price of Happiness, and CoWineCo: The Early Years Please Name Our Syrah Tasting, The Price of Happiness, and CoWineCo: The Early YearsThe Price of Happiness A woman walked into the shop last week and asked a really fantastic question. She pointed at two bottles on the wall and said, "why does this bottle cost twice as much as that bottle?" We often get tough questions (usually they're something like, "I'm cooking pickled herring, peanut butter, M&Ms and an armoire for dinner...What wine goes with that?"), but this question was completely fair and profound. Why do certain wines cost so much? It's all grape juice, right? The easy way out is to say that the more expensive wine is just a better wine, but so much of tasting is entirely subjective. Regardless of what marketing is thrown in your face, you like what you like and that's it. But, there is some sort of grading scale we can work with. Though there may be that one guy in Piscataway, NJ that prefers Two Buck Chuck over Opus One, he's the ONLY one in the world (sorry Garden State folks, I lived there once so I'm licensed to make fun of it). The short answer to the value question is: earth, time, talent and reputation. First and foremost, the person who has the best piece of earth (soil, climate, shading, topography) either got there first or paid a load-o-dough for it so there's typically a premium attached to get ahold of those fantastic grapes. Secondly, the time spent harvesting, nurturing and aging the wines has a cost associated with it. If you hand pick only the best grapes from each bunch and age the juice for 12 months in very expensive French Oak barrels, you're going to charge someone more than the guy who sends a harvesting machine through the fields in half the time and ages the juice for 2 months in used, American Oak barrels. As with any industry, the wine world has its wine making celebrities who have for the most part, earned a higher salary by winning awards for the wineries where they work. You're paying for that, too. And lastly, you know the names Opus One, Caymus and Chateau Lafite-Rothschild because they've built up reputations over the years (or centuries) and of course, you're paying for that as well. There are a lot of other details that set certain wines apart, but you get the picture. So how do you find great, low-cost wines? Find new winemakers that don't have the cachet to add a premium onto their prices yet. Instead of that Napa Cab (which alone kicks the price up a bit), branch out and try similar wines from other regions and countries. And finally, try to figure out a way to describe what you like and just ask us, or any local wine store for that matter, to find you something in a specific price range that tastes like what you want to pour down your gullet.
Wine Tasting Schedule
CoWineCo's Greatest Hits: The Early Years This Friday the 19th 5:30-8:30pm (you can show up anytime before 8pm) $15/person 5 wines, cheeses, breads, crackers Reservations recomended -- info@cowineco.com or (323) 478-1985 Like many acts before us, we're putting out our greatest hits far before we probably should. These are some of the most popular wines so far in our first six months of business. We made our picks based on the amount of return visits by customers who felt they just had to have more. Come on by Friday and sing along to those old favorites like "Foxen Cabernet 2001" and the high school prom anthem, "Terre Rouge Syrah 2002." Wines Conde de Valdemar Alto de Cantabria Blanco 2002, Rioja, Spain Rene Mure Gewurztraminer 2002, Alsace, France Morgan Cotes du Crow's Grenache/Syrah 2003, Monterey, California Foxen Cabernet Sauvignon 2001, Santa Barbara, California Terre Rouge Les Cotes de L'ouest Syrah 2002, Calfornia
Please Name Our Syrah Tasting This Sunday the 21st 1:00-4:00 pm $10/person 4 wines, cheeses, breads, crackers No reservations necessary After brief encounters with "Que Syrah Syrah" and "Syrah! Syrah! Sis Boom Bah!" as titles, we decided to just be honest with you...nothing good rhymes with Syrah. Or does it? We often consult friends to help title these things but why not ask our loyal customers? If you have a good play on words that works, you may make it to that pinnacle of wine success....your title on our website for one week. Wow! Neat! I've Arrived! Write in a title that we can use. Pleeaaaase. Wines Eric Texier Cotes du Rhone 2001, France Baileyana Syrah 2001, Edna Valley, California Yalumba Barossa Shiraz 2001, Barossa Valley, Australia Alliance Shiraz 2001, South Eastern Australia
Auntie Em! Auntie Em! If you didn't get to try Auntie Em's innaugural Farmer's Market dinner last month, now's your chance to make up for that tragic, tragic mistake. Auntie Em's is having their 2nd Farmer's Market dinner this coming Wednesday, August 24th and Jen and I have paired specific wines for each course. Here is this month's menu:
1st Course : Trio of Chilled Soups:Yellow Tomato Gazpacho, Chilled Arugala Soup, Beet Ginger Soup 2nd Course : Toasted Corn Bread Panzanella Salad w/ Heirloom Tomatoes and Garden Basil Main Course (choose one): - Crab Cakes w/Chipotle Aioli and Cilantro Pesto on Fried Green Tomatoes and a Bed of warmed Succotash Salad
- Roast Chicken on the Bone in a Fig, Olive Oil and Lemon Bath on a bed of Provençal White Beans
Stop by cowineco for our specially paired wines before heading over for dinner. There's no corkage! This dinner is by reservation only so please call Auntie Em's @ (323) 255-0800 or email contact@auntieemskitchen.com
See You Soon, John and Jen
"It's the same things your whole life. "Clean up your room.", "Stand up straight.", "Pick up your feet.", "Take it like a man.", "Be nice to your sister.", "Don't mix beer and wine, ever.". Oh yeah, "Don't drive on the railroad track." ~Bill Murray, Groundhog Day |