What is in a name?

Well, sometimes more than meets the eye - especially when it comes to Italian wine. Just as Italy hosts a mind-boggling array of different grape varieties, there is also something of a free-f0r-all when it comes to putting them on the label. Unlike the U.S. or France, where labeling is strictly regulated, Italian wines might be named for the grape variety, the village or district where the grapes were grown, or even simply for the winemaker. To make matters even more confusing, some wines are named for both the grape and the location.

For example:

• Chianti is not a grape; it is a region in Italy
• Pinot Grigio is a grape best grown in the Friuli and Trentino-Alto Adige regions of Italy
• Moscato D'Asti is both a grape and a region. Moscato (Muscat) is Piedmont's most traditional white-wine grape and Asti is a village northeast of Alba, Italy

Confused? Me too! It's a good thing that what really matters is what's inside the bottle.

Wine don't Whine

Over the course of the current recession, thousands of people have lost their jobs. For some, downsizing has come as an opportunity to try out something new. Some people have turned to wine as a second career. Only, where does one go to get the proper training? The top schools dedicated to the study of oenology are located in Chicago, NY, Denver, California's Napa Valley & Alexandria, Virginia. These schools cover such topics as viticulture, wine vocabulary, winemaking, winetasting, wine evaluation and food/wine pairing. You could pay to go to one of these schools or you could join The Traveling Vineyard as a wine consultant and earn while you learn!
Call into tonights conference call and hear what our president, Rick Libby, has to say about the New Improved Traveling Vineyard.

Date: Wednesday, Sept. 8th
Time: 9:00 pm EST
Phone: 218-844-0860
Code: 922283#

If you like what you hear, contact me at theeducatedgrape@yahoo.com. I will help you turn your love of wine into a business.

Together we can uncork the possibilites!

Cheers!

Deb

How to turn wine green...

No matter what your preference is in wine-white, red or rose- you can always think green once the wine is gone. Recycle the empty bottle, or perhaps use it for something else. The 375 ml bottles (1/2 bottles) make great containers for olive oil. And don't forget the cork. While those with a creative mind might turn them into trivets, wreaths or bulletin boards, others are creating a demand for recycling. Recycled corks are being used as floor tiles, agricultural products, sporting equipment and more. To find out whether there's a cork recycling location in your area visit www.recork.org. Turning wine green is easier than you think.

Wines that go great with BBQ's

Hitting the sauce this Labor Day weekend? Whatever your secret recipe is for BBQ sauce, you'll find it is one of the hardest foods to pair with wine. Spicy.... smoky....sweet... piquant...you'll want something that can stand up to these qualities without being overwhelmed by them. Plan on bold wines with a higher alcohol content (13% or more) and plenty of acidity, that also have fruit-forward flavors and a hint of pepper and spice. Red-wine lovers might want to choose Zinfandel or Syrah, while Riesling is a good prospect for white-wine lovers.

Happy Labor Day and Cheers!

the re-launching of the traveling vineyard

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New Date Change for Tasty Tuesdays

Hi all,

I have posted date changes for my Tasty Tuesdays wine classes, please see the blog below for details and new dates.

In addition, I will be offering Free in-home wine tastings as a Traveling Vineyard wine consultant starting October 1st. If you would like to host a FREE in home wine tasting in a more personal setting, please contact me. The in home wine tastings I conduct, will teach you how to taste wine correctly in a fun, unintimidating setting ~ you will learn that it truly isn't rocket science.

Contact me at travelingvineyard@yahoo.com and together we can learn about wine, one sip at a time.

Cheers!

Deb

How to open a wine bottle with a shoe

This came from a friend and I found it to be very useful to all my wineaux friends. Hope you find it useful too. It is in French but you don't need to know french to understand this video. Thanks Emily and Dave for contributing this.

Here is the link....

http://www.wimp.com/wineshoe

A Real Man....

Contributed by Donna Nolan:

A REAL MAN

A real man is a woman's best friend. He will
never stand her up and never let her down.
He will reassure her when she feels insecure
and comfort her after a bad day.

He will inspire her to do things she never
thought she could do; to live without fear
and forget regret. He will enable her to
express her deepest emotions and give in to
her most intimate desires.

He will make sure she always feels as though
she's the most beautiful woman in the room

and will enable her to be confident, sexy,
seductive, and invincible.

No wait... sorry... I'm thinking of wine.
Never mind.

Tasty Tuesday: Class Outline and Syllabus

First off, let me apologize, what was I drinking…err I mean thinking!!! I can’t possibly do these Tasty Tuesday’s every week or my liver would be shot--although, this mommy would be a very happy camper. So after much thought (and a long night of creating this syllabus), Tasty Tuesdays will be held the last Tuesday of every month.

For those who are local, I will post a reminder on my Facebook page (The Educated Grape), just friend me and you will be kept in the loop. All local classes will be held at 7:00 pm EST at my home in Milford Ma and a RSVP to me is required at travelingvineyard@yahoo.com. For those who can’t share in the wine festivities (if my husband asks, this is serious stuff we are doing), I will be posting our class on my wine blog the week of the scheduled class.

Here is how you can make the most of this wine adventure, whether you are near or far…

Get together each month with a group of friends, a special someone or if need be a mirror and gather round a table. You will need: Wine glasses, a corkscrew, water, water crackers (or if you have kids like me, Ritz will have to do), a camera, and the wines I recommend for each lesson (whites are to be chilled). The camera has a couple of purposes, first take some fun photos of your wine group during one of the lessons, email it to me and I will post it to my blog and more importantly embarrassing photos can be used as a future blackmailing tool should the need every arise.

The lessons are designed to be completed in about ½ hour tops. However, you can always continue tasting the wines until you feel you’ve got the hang of it (wink, wink). The wines I use as examples are of no particular vineyard or year. You will be able to find them at most any liquor store or wine shop. You can also purchase your wines at any particular price point. The price, vineyard and vintage (that is wine lingo for year) should have no major impact on the wine course.

Okay, here we go……..drum roll please…

Lesson 1: Wine Tasting-It’s not rocket science – August 31, no local wine class


Wines needed:
Italian Pinot Grigio (White Wine, chilled)
Australian Shiraz (Red Wine, served room temperature)

A brief overview of how to taste wines correctly. As if learning about wines isn’t difficult enough, there is a science to wine tasting….although like I said; it isn’t rocket science so not to worry.


The next 5 lessons will hopefully lend clarity to the 5 components of wine.


Lesson 2: “Man that’s some cool acid” – Sept 28th

Wines needed:
New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc (White Wine, chilled)
Oregon Pinot Gris (White Wine, chilled) **note: it is Pinot GRIS not Pinot Grigio

No we aren’t taking a trip back in time, but we are learning about the importance of acidity in wine, what it is and what it does. However that being said, for ambiance I suggest playing Grateful Dead music in the background.

Lesson 3: Tannins-They are the pits! – October 26th

Wines needed:
French Beaujolais (Red Wine, slightly chilled)
California Cabernet (Red Wine, served room temperature)

Actually tannins are good pitts (as in Brad Pitt). What are tannins? Why are they important? Do they cause headaches? You’ll want to tune into this class and find out. Ambiance recommended: Ocean’s Eleven on the big screen.

Lesson 4: What a sweet surprise! – November 30th

Wines needed:
Italian Moscato (White Wine, chilled do not open until ready to taste)
French Viognier (White Wine, chilled)

Sweet, dry, fruity….how can I tell the difference? This class will teach you what each term means and more importantly how to say the word ‘Viognier’!


Lesson 5: Check out those legs! - December 28th

Wines needed:
White Zinfandel (White Wine - actually pink in color, chilled)
California Red Zinfandel (Red Wine, serve at room temperature)

Legs, fingers and tears take on a whole new meaning in the wine world. Check out this class and find out all about them!

Lesson 6: Do you drink your wine naked? – January 25th

Wines needed:
California Oaked Chardonnay (White Wine, chilled)
Australian Unoaked (or stainless steel fermented)Chardonnay (White Wine, chilled)

Yes, I saved the best for last, get your mind out of the gutter it is not what you think. This class will illustrate the difference between oaked and unoaked wines. As for the ambiance for this tasting…. I am not even going there.

Coming Soon....Tasty Tuesdays

I will be starting a weekly class called Tasty Tuesdays. Each week will be a different topic. Tomorrow I will have a "syllabus" of classes and each week I will have a couple of wines to purchase for each class (optional). Locals are invited to my house for Tasty Tuesdays. Anyone have any topics they would like me to cover?

Welcome to my first blog

BIG LOUD cheer here!!! I am so very excited to be able to work my passion for wine into my life once again. We hope to have The Traveling Vineyard up and running by September 1st, so I am beginning now to fill my calendar with tasting events for the Fall season. My goal is to have 8 tastings for September; will you help me reach my goal? If you are interested in booking a tasting, please let me know by either responding to this post or emailing me at my new email address travelingvineyard@yahoo.com.

I am also in the process of building up a team of energetic wine entrepreneurs, if you are interested in making some extra money teaching about, learning about and tasting wine, please contact me ASAP and I will make sure you are fully trained and ready to go on September 1st. How much better can a job get?

I need to also send out a BIG thank you to Darlynn Nangano, my soon-to-be-downline-again who has inspired me to start this blog. You can also visit her blog at vintagevinogirl.com.

Now that all the bookkeeping is done, I need your help.......Could any of you recommend your favorite summertime wines? I have a 4th of July BBQ coming up and any advice would be great. If you have a great food pairing suggestion to go with your favorite wine, please share that too!

Thanks for taking the time to read my 1st of what will hopefully be many fun educational posts!

Cheers to all!

Deb