The Curse of Knowing Too Much About Wine

Whenever my knowledge of wine prevents me from enjoying a particular restaurant I am reminded of Horne Fisher who lamented I know too much.  This was the unenviable position I found myself in during a family dinner at a waterside restaurant in Connecticut.   After choosing my entrée I eagerly turned my attention to one of my idiosyncratic pleasures—perusing a wine list.  I was mortified, horrified to say the least.  All of the wines on the menu were grossly overpriced.  So much so, that under different circumstances I would not have ordered any wine or would have simply left.  In this instance leaving was not an option plus everyone was relying upon my wine selection for the dinner.  Not wanting to put a damper on the evening or inflict my discomfort onto others I kept my chagrin to myself—until now. 

There seems to be some misguided belief in today’s restaurant business model that wine with lunch or dinner is a luxury.  Anyone who enjoys food as much as I do and those who read this blog know that this could not be further from the truth. Wine is a fundamental part of any meal, as essential to the dining experience as the quality of the food, its presentation and a properly trained wait-staff.  It is anything but a luxury! Hence when I am faced with a situation, as I was in Connecticut, where a Vinho Verde that retails between six to eight dollars a bottle is on the wine list for THIRTY THREE DOLLARS, I am outraged.  That represents a markup of over four times the highest retail price and more than five times the lowest retail price!  Another outrage I endured was the bottle of Vouvray I ordered for the dinner.  This wine normally retails for about twelve dollars a bottle; we paid FORTY-FOUR DOLLARS for the “luxury” of having it with our meal.  There is no justification for marking up wine to this extent.   

Restaurants are “for profit” businesses just as any other business.  I respect this and know that profit is essential for them to continue.  Operating such public establishments is also a very demanding business fraught with the contentious issues of dealing with a wide variety of people, inconsistent labor supply and very long hours.  Hence my very high regard for restaurateurs who choose to earn their living in this manner.  However, when it comes to restaurant pricing for wine I am at times appalled and outraged.  

As a consultant who has developed wine programs for many restaurants, I know that a bottle of wine is generally marked-up about 2 to 2 ½ times the retail price. Knowing this, I am put-off, annoyed and at times insulted by markups that far exceed this common practice. My only conclusion regarding restaurants that do not follow this convention is that they are more concerned with making enormous profits on wine than they are with providing a pleasurable dining experience.  Therefore, rather than bearing the burden of knowing too much in such establishments—I choose to dine elsewhere.    

My Little Curio Shop of Wine

There is an alluring aura of whimsy prevailing over the wine shop that I patronize.  If walls could speak then the walls of Madeira Liquors would surely say, come browse, come see what treasures lie within.  Of course this is just fanciful daydreaming on my part.  Yet, whenever I am there, I am unwittingly drawn to wines hiding in unexpected places.
      Madeira Liquors is a small, unpretentious wine shop standing on the corner of Ives and Williams Streets in Providence, Rhode Island.  The store is brimming with bottles of wines and liquors, tucked into every available nook and cranny.  Walking space is at a premium due to the limits set by their extensive inventory of wines.  The isles are stacked with open cases of wine touting special values.  Eight foot high shelves line the walls with bottles of wine organized by country of origin with one slight difference.  Although all the wines from Bordeaux, Burgundy, Spain, etc. are grouped together, the wine bottle standing behind the displayed bottle is not necessarily the same as the one in the front or the one in the rear for that matter.  This is what makes this such an exciting place to shop. One simply does not know what other treasures-of-the-vine await them on the same shelf. 
     Last week is a perfect example of never knowing what unexpected gem is hiding on a shelf. While rummaging through the section of Bordeaux wines I came upon a lone bottle of Chateau Bois De Lamothe amongst the various Bordeaux appellations.  I was intrigued.  Not only was I delighted to find a wine from such a little known wine producing area of France as the Cotes de Duras but it is also not a Bordeaux appellation.  This was not the first time I have had such a serendipitous experience in Madeira Liquors— there have been others. Two days before, yes I do go there often, I found a delightful white wine from Austria along with wines from Germany. On another occasion I have found rosé and tinto wines by Casal Garcia behind a bottle of Vinho Verde which is a white wine also from Casal Garcia. These experiences have taught me to peer far back on the shelf to see what other wines are there. As a result I had the good fortune of finding this wonderful bottle of wine from the Cotes de Duras for our dinner that night.

     The Chateau Bois De Lamothe is a delightfully playful wine.  Unlike most inexpensive wines, this seductive blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc continued to entertain our palates throughout our entire dinner.  Generally, most inexpensive wines do not “grow” or evolve after they are opened.  At their best they will start off with fruit and non-fruit aromas on the nose and similar taste sensations on the palate.  Shortly afterwards these aromas and flavors dissipate to the point that they are no longer discernible.  Of course there are exceptions to this generality.  Fortunately the Chateau Bois De Lamothe is one of those delightful exceptions. On the nose there are aromas of currant, black cherry and suggestions of asparagus. The same beguiling combination of black fruit and hints of asparagus are also noticed on the palate.  We savored this wine with our steak for over an hour. At times the taste of the black fruit was pronounced, only to give way to the long lush finish of the currants and then revert back to a softer, fruity structure.  The hints of asparagus remained in the background as an amusing afterthought, a curiosity to discover.  I cannot remember the last time I had such fun with a bottle of red wine, revealing so much for so long for only $8.99 a bottle.  

     My little curio shop on Ives Street is full of other such wonderful wine values.  In my brief period of time shopping there I have enjoyed a wide variety of wines for less than ten dollars a bottle.  Some of these great values include a red wine from Graves, a Bordeaux appellation known more for white wine than red, a delicate Spanish rose from the Navarro region and a luscious Portuguese red wine from Dao and more. Wine shops such as Madeira Liquors add a touch of excitement to the shopping experience that the big modern stores do not.  I cannot wait to find the other treasures hiding on their shelves.

Stay tuned for more Treasures from my Little Curio Shop of Wines  in Providence, Rhode Island.

Brandy from Cognac

  Never did I expect to find an inexpensive brandy with the finesse of one from Cognac. But it happened! Happily, I now have not one but two such brandies that are aromatically inviting, rich in flavor and with the delicacy and nuance associated with more expensive brandy from Cognac, France.

These two luscious brandies are from A. de Fussigny, a venerable old Cognac producer in Charente, France, under the label of Symbole National.   The rich XO (very old) is a lush, golden hued brandy with pronounced caramel and almond flavors.  As it “breathes” pleasant hints of floral appear on the nose. The finish is long and clean without the usual unpleasant after-bight, normally found in less expensive brandies and Cognacs. It is rare to find a brandy of this quality selling $12.99 let alone one from Cognac.  The Symbole Nationale VSOP (Very Superior Old Pale) is pale and dry, nuanced with floral and honey spices. The finish is long, clean and surprisingly smooth.  Somewhat less sophisticated than the XO it is an easy drinking pale brandy for only $7.49 a bottle! 

Cognac, as most know, is a brandy produced in the towns surrounding the village of Cognac, France.  To earn the distinction of the Cognac AOC (Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée) the “brandy” must adhere to certain strict standards such as the use of specific grapes, distillation method and fermentation process. The Symbole Nationale XO and VSOP are the end result of the brandy making skill of a fine Cognac producer making two sophisticated brandies, not in accordance with the strict Cognac AOC regulations.  Both the XO and VSOP are elegant brandies that would cost much more with the Cognac AOC designation.

At times it is difficult to choose which one I prefer more.  Much depends on the taste sensation I am seeking.  If it is a rich, silky smooth finish then it is the XO.  When my tastes turn to a lighter, drier style then I reach for my bottle of VSOP after dinner or anytime the spirit (no pun intended) moves me. Either selection rewards my palate with a brandy of style and grace and one that I can afford to enjoy as often as I wish.