Archive for July, 2010:
Posted by Greg Schroeder on July 29, 2010 at 8:02 pm
So you’ve been to the Amazing Grapes website several times, but you’ve never signed up to receive our emails. It’s really quite easy to do, and we promise we won’t slam your iPhone or Blackberry with too many offers. In fact, you get to choose how much email you receive from us.
Here’s my favorite part: Wineblowout.com! When you sign up for this particular section, you will receive exclusive offers before anyone else to purchase wines at a tremendous discount. For example, recently, we offered a 2006 Penfolds Koonunga Hill “Seventy Six” Shiraz Cabernet for the unheard of price of $8.98, a 50% savings over our already low price of $17.98. (I tried this and it was exceptional!)
WineBlowOut.com is a division of Amazing Grapes Wine Store. WineBlowOut.com focuses on selling wine at significant discounts, one screamin’ deal at a time, until it’s gone. These deals are so hot that they always blow out fast. You have to act quickly or you’ll miss it, but don’t worry – as soon as one wine blows out, we load in another. Equally cool is that when you take advantage of one of our low price offerings, you can also shop the AmazingGrapesWineStore.com website and add more wines to your cart!
Just as when you place your order for pick-up in our store with the regular website, you can also elect to pick up or ship the wines from the WineBlowOut.com site. If you’re in the neighborhood, I recommend you stop by and pick up your wine. This just means means you get to spend that savings on MORE wine – AND as a bonus, our tasting bar is open Wednesday through Saturday from 5-10 p.m. Who knows… you may happen to show up on a night where we’re hosting one of our fabulous tasting events and get to know our awesome bar staff.
Continue Reading
Posted by Greg Schroeder on July 21, 2010 at 7:53 pm
So you’ve been affected by the recent economic slowdown…who hasn’t? Your $30+ weeknight selection has been reduced by half – say, to an under $15 “gem?” Let’s face it – most of us have been affected by a diminished wine budget at one time or another. One of the best and most challenging aspects of my job is to find those ‘diamonds in the rough’ and recommend them to my customers.
Well, you’re in luck! This week, per our very own Amazing Grapes’ Steve’s recommendation, I discovered the 2007 Hahn Estate Meritage Table Wine. At Amazing Grapes, we sell this wine for an unbelievable $12.98 per bottle. (FYI, I was in Chicago today and purchased the same bottle for $14.99…just sayin’!) This blend is Hahn’s successful attempt at an everyday table wine that you would be comfortable serving to your most discerning wine snob friends, or to a newbie who has not yet had the pleasure of experiencing and pairing a wine with your delicious culinary creations!
I decided a thin crust cheese and sausage pizza when I stumbled on a little wine shop that just so happened to carry the very same wine I sampled just a few days prior at Amazing Grapes. This is a zesty little red, with black cherry and graphite aromas and appealing, sleek plum, spice and espresso flavors. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot, Malbec and Cabernet Franc. Drink now through 2015. My first sip proved to be a bit effervescent. However, after aerating the wine and letting it breathe in my glass for only a few minutes, I discovered this wine was an amazingly smooth and approachable and paired very well with the garlic-forward pie I was enjoying. (Yes, it is absolutely acceptable to be a pizza critic as well as a wine blogger when you are a pizza connoisseur, too!)
So the next time you are perusing our website looking for that deal, I suggest you consider the Hahn ’07 Meritage. At this price, it won’t last long. Cheers!
P.S. The word “Meritage” is pronounced mare-i-tij and rhymes with “heritage.” It is a combination of the words “merit” and “heritage” and is a proprietary term used to denote red and white Bordeaux-style wines without infringing on the Bordeaux region’s legally protected designation of origin.
Continue Reading
Posted by Greg Schroeder on July 14, 2010 at 7:44 pm
“Breathe in, Breathe out, Move on!”
Although it’s one of my favorite lines from a Jimmy Buffett tune, what I’m talking about here is wine. Does it “really” need to breathe? My emphatic, no-nonsense answer is YES! A customer at our wine bar who shall remain nameless recently ordered a taste of the ’05 Peter Franus Red Wine that we were pouring that week. I had it the night before and was blown away by its huge oak, smooth mouth feel and reminiscent of a much more expensive Cab (a steal at only $39.98 here at Amazing Grapes, by the way!).
Based on my experience, I was so anxious to serve it to our customer and was so confident in my recommendation that it bordered on arrogance. He took one sip and made this face that indicated to me he did not approve of my recommendation! Gasp! I asked, “Well? Wasn’t that the bomb? He said, “Ummm, not so much.” I didn’t realize that by the time I had tried that wine the night before, it had been decanted, Vinturi’d (yes, that’s a word!) and had been breathing for a good two hours.
Seeing as how this is a patient man and a loyal Amazing Grapes customer, he ordered a couple other wines by the pour. He had slowly and patiently sipped the Franus over the next two hours and by the time he was ready to drink it, he said the Franus was quite enjoyable. The lesson I learned that evening was that I should have instinctively aerated the wine into his glass upon ordering.
My first choice for aeration is the Vinturi. We sell it here at Amazing Grapes for $29.98, which is about $10 below retail. According to Vinturi’s website, “When wine is poured in the Vinturi, its internal design creates an increase in the wine’s velocity and a decrease in its pressure. This pressure difference draws in air which is mixed with wine for perfect aeration.” I could not have said it better myself.
So next time you’re in the store, or even online placing your order, add a Vinturi to your cart and aerate your wine. If you already own one, pick up a Vinturi for white wine, or one for a friend. You will be happy you did!
Continue Reading
Posted by Mitch Schroeder on July 14, 2010 at 7:40 pm
For many people, it’s those bottles and cans with the funny names in the “expensive” section at the grocery stores.
For others, its those beers that are talked about as much as they are drunk.
For everyone else, here are the basics descriptions which most people would agree on.
Craft beer generally is:
- Brewed in limited quantities
- Brewed using traditional methods and ingredients such as malted grains, such as barley or wheat, that are combined with hop flowers, yeast, and water
- Brewed with original recipes that use blends of various hops, grains, and yeasts to produce fuller, more complex flavors
NOTE: The mass produced beers, you know who I’m talking about, use corn and rice in the brewing process whereas the craft brewers stick with the malted grains. Brewed by independent breweries Craft beer can go way beyond the boundaries of additional ingredients, using such things as:
- Coffee grounds (this can border on weird, i.e. Mikkeller uses coffee beans that have been eaten by civet cats, digested and then expelled where workers then clean the beans for use in their beer. I’m not making this up! Click here to see for yourself!)
- Oatmeal Chocolate Wheat grains
- Cherries
- Orange peels
- An assortment of spices can also be used
- Basically, the sky is the limit. If something can flavor a beer, someone, somewhere has probably tried it!
If you’re in the mood to find out what a great bottle of beer can taste like, you owe it to yourself to dive in and try some of these. Beyond the funny names are some serious beers. Call us, we’ll be happy to get you started with some great selections.
Continue Reading
