Category: Wine Items

Enotria Guide

/ Paul / Leave a comment

Are you looking for an iPhone app that helps you pronounce the wines of the world? The Enotria Guide is for you. With this app you can find the wine word you’re looking for and have the app pronounce it for you. We received a copy to test out. I have an iPad and while it’s written for the iPhone, it does work on the iPad. An iPad specific version is in the works. We tested it out and found that it had lots of layers to go through to find the words but the words are pronounced clearly and with the correct accent. If you are in the industry and already know how to pronounce the wines of the world, you’ll find this app useless. However, if you are new to wine this app might help you pronounce the words correctly. Have fun!

Drink This!

/ Warren / 4 Comments

coverWine, of course! Actually, I’m referring to Drink This: Wine Made Simple by Dara Moskowitz Grumdahl. Grumdahl’s purpose for writing Drink This is to bring the potentially bewildering (and pretentious) experience of wine tasting to a very basic level. Written for both the novice oenophile and the experienced sommelier and everyone else in between, Drink This offers wine tasting and pairing tips, debunks myths and mistakes about wine, and presents easy-to-understand facts about wine regions and varietals. Wondering what kind of wine to bring to a dinner party? Want to splurge on bubbly for a special event but your wallet has the recession flu? Drink This offers practical advice for these circumstances and many others. Grumdahl’s wise words for the budget weary allow the consumer to buy quality wines at value prices; at the same time, she offers savvy selections that present creative alternatives to California Chardonnay or French Champagnes.

I also appreciate Grumdahl’s no-nonsense approach to the wine experience. Her clever style and straight-forward approach disarms the wine snob and puts the beginner at ease. So you like Merlot? So does Grumdahl! No Sideways poseurs allowed in her book; however, if Merlot is not your thing, Grumdahl has a suggestion for you. Don’t know the difference between Bordeaux, Burgundy or any other wine region? Dara is glad you asked. Structured in a concise, clearly organized yet complete fashion, your questions are answered.

With the holiday season upon us, consider giving Dara Moskowitz Grumdahl’s Drink This: Wine Made Simple as a gift for that favorite wine collector or budding aficionado on your list. Should anyone wonder where you heard of this excellent wine source, mention that you read about it on Virginia Wine Time.

Cutter & Buck American Classic Wine Set

/ Paul / Leave a comment

We received a Cutter & Buck American Classic wine set from Forte Promotions and thought we’d review the products. In the set you get a classic waiter’s corkscrew, a drip ring, and a wine pourer. We chose to open a bottle of Woodland Vineyards Merlot with the set and record the opening for others to see. Other wine accessories from Forte Promotions can be found here.

All the products were of high quality steel and came in a decorative leather topped case. We started with the foil cutter part of the wine opener. The foil cutter does not have a serrated edge so be careful when cutting the foil. A serrated edge would make the foil removal easier. The corkscrew worked as expected. It opened the bottle without issue and the grip was very comfortable. The drip ring slid over the top of the bottle smoothly. The wine pourer fit snugly in the bottle but we must report that when pulling the wine pourer out, the rubber casket came off the pourer and stayed in the bottle. We had no problem getting it out of the bottle though. Overall it’s a nice product and works as expected. The packaging is very attractive and would make a nice gift.