IN THIS ISSUE:

A. Feature: Wine and Luxury Lifestyle
B. Event Highlights: April's Wine Tasting Dinners and Seminars
C. Wine Elite Philosophy: Visual Clues in Wine 


This is Sommelier Insight, the Wine Elite's update for wine aficionados, luxury consumers, restaurant professionals and event planners.

Each month, we deliver wine event ideas, a schedule of upcoming wine appreciation events, and objective information on wine from the perspective of independent sommeliers.

We are Your Central Resource for Private Wine Events, Wine Education and Sommelier Expertise: www.WineElite.org

Our spring so far has been filled with announcements of several strategic alliances that solidify our role as the #1 sommelier expertise center in the country -- call us if you need our help.

Among our new partners are
- Tamarind of London, featuring our flaggship restaurant wine program
- Quintessentially Lifestyle, #1 choice for high-end luxury experiences
- Spectrum Wine Auctions, our preferred source for aged and rare wines
- Newport Beach Winery, our new vineyardd base in Orange County
- Ritz-Carlton/JW Marriott, the center oof the LA Live complex

Below you can see the specific activities attached to each of our strategic partnerships.

Further in March, our first sommelier training course has started with a full class of 15. You can join the next course, starting on June 3rd, here if you live in Southern California. Taste the 45 most important grape/region combinations systematically with our sommelier team.

The online version of this live course will launch on July 1 and focuses on blind-tasting skills and wine recognition, independent of your location. Email us if you want to sign up.

Also, don't miss Dwight Furrow's dangerous findings on Bordeaux price/value relationships in his monthly column on the right; and further down, find a clear checklist on what to LOOK for in a wine tasting.

You can reach us anytime by replying to this email, or at joey@WineElite.org and 310 467 5582.



A. Wine and Luxury Lifestyle   

B. Upcoming Public Wine Tastings in Southern California

The Wine Elite Society hosts an ongoing series of sommelier-guided wine tasting dinners for the public, often in our signature blind-tasting format. 

Here are a few April tasting opportunities for Southern California residents. Email for info and reservations.


-- Wine Elite Society ttastings in Orange County, San Diego and L.A. 

-- Tamarind of London --- "Explosions of Flavor" dinner, April 8th in OC.

-- Pinot Provence ;--  "Sommelier Fireside" series, April 16th in OC. 

-- Newport Beach Vineyards -- Wine Cave Tasting on April 17th in OC. 

-- Ritz-Carlton/JW Marriott -- Sommelier Dinner on April 19th in L.A.

-- Spectrum Wine --- High-End Sommelier Dinner, May 7th in OC. 
 

C. Wine Elite Philosophy: What You See is What You Get

Systematic wine tasting starts with a review of the visual aspects. Even without smelling or tasting the wine, we can often gain major insight by looking at the glass content for a minute.

Here is a simple overview of the key indicators that are useful in blind-tastings, especially when you can compare a few glasses of different wines side-by-side:

Color:

Red wines come in three basic colors.
1. Ruby is most typical, and therefore isn't very helpful as a single clue.
2. Garnet or brick coloring shows often in aged and Nebbiolo-based wines.
3. Several grape varieties usually look purple: Syrah, Malbec, Carmenere. 

White wines get darker with age. Any color darker than straw (amber and gold, for example) suggests a white wine older than 10 years.

Intensity:

Thick skinned grapes create dense and darker colors, for example Cabernet Sauvignon. 

Thin-skinned grapes like Pinot Noir can easily be spotted by the low ruby intensity and watery rims.

Clarity:

Bright and clear usually indicates youth, while cloudy and dull colors are often a by-product of aging and disrupted sediment.

Sediment:

Any residual at the bottom of your glass indicates higher age of the wine, or minimum filtering that is sometimes used in the New World.

Tears:

Also called legs, the tears rolling down the side of the glass indicate the amount of alcohol and therefore give an indication of the weight, or body, of the wine as it will be felt on the palate.

Fat and slow rivers also indicate higher viscosity (thickness), as found in many Petite Sirahs Zinfandels and all Amarone della Valpolicellas.

 

 

Overview of our Resources for Your Use:

Catalog for Corporate Wine Tasting Events

Catalog of Wine Elite Programs for Restaurants

Topic Suggestions for Private Events

Private Wine Event Checklist

Whiskey Tasting Tips

GrapeRadio Interview

Speaker Profile at GigMasters

Public Speaker Program on Wine One-Sheet

Wine Elite Corporate Event Video

Essential Wine Tips 2pager

Special Events Idea One-Sheet

Program Brochure for Team Building Events


March 2014 "Sommelier Insight" Newsletter

February 2014 "Sommelier Insight" Newsletter

January 2014 "Sommelier Insight" Newsletter

December 2013 "Sommelier Insight" Newsletter

November 2013 "Sommelier Insight" Newsletter

October 2013 "Sommelier Insight" Newsletter

September 2013 "Sommelier Insight" Newsletter

August 2013 "Sommelier Insight" Newsletter