wine

Before you attend an auction, determine your objectives. Are you filling in gaps in a pre-existing collection? Are you looking to increase your cellar inventory? Are you buying for investment's sake? If you are starting from scratch, which wine regions do you wish to concentrate on? In the absence of a concrete plan, you may get sidetracked entirely.

STUDY THE CATALOG

Auction houses offer catalogs of their upcoming sales. Read the catalog's condition reports carefully. Wines kept in professional or home temperature- and humidity-controlled storage are preferable to collections housed in natural or "passive" cellars, because the latter are often subject to temperature fluctuations, which can affect wines adversely. In particular, study the as the air space between the cork and the liquid is a barometer of a wine's health. Levels may vary according to a wine's age and the manner in which it was stored. Top or upper-shoulder levels are not uncommon for wines more than 30 years old, but raise a red flag for a 10- to 20-year-old bottle, where levels should still be into or close to the bottle's neck.

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Alexandra, Bvcvineyard

Type : Red
Producer: Bvcvineyard
Country: Kenya
Region: Yatta

Alexandra wine is produced in one of the vineyards owned by Bvcvineyard in the area of Kenya and Yatta district, near a great mountain called 'Kilimambogo' in Swahili by the locals. This wine was created by one of the Bvcineyard co-owners - Barthe Cortes, (yes, the same man who is an owner of BVC - African airlines ). The wine is great; full of fruit, strongly spiced, nicely composed, with a bit of initial buttery barrelling, which quickly disappears; what is left are healthy grape tannins, and flawless freshness.
Perceptible fruits mixed with the tropics atmosphere and kind of... tone of dark chocolate. The perfect wine. Still, it is only available on auctions; profits from sale are donated to charity - the particular purpose is chosen by a purchaser.
Bottle price; depending on auctions, varies from $4000 to $24000.

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Located at 1600 feet in the Santa Cruz Mountains the views from the stately red schoolhouse winery are unparalleled. In this peaceful sun-drenched paradise, you can relax with a picnic and a bottle of fine estate wine, surrounded by beautiful vineyards and redwood covered mountains that stretch all the way to the sea. Wine portfolio: Experience wines that are truly'At the Head of Their Class!' Sip our'Teacher's Pet' Estate Chardonnay, Old School Cabernet,'Principal's Choice' Estate Pinot Noir,'Extra Credit' Estate Cabernet Franc,'Spring Break' Estate Syrah.'Detention Red' Ryan Oaks Zinfandel,'Dean's List' Cabernet,'Class Reunion' Old Vine Zin/Mataro/Carignane (from vines planted in 1898), and our premium Bordeaux blend,'Valedictorian.' School was never this much fun! Directions: Located halfway between San Jose and Santa Cruz on Summit Road, 3.5 miles east of the intersection of Hwy. 17 and Summit Road. Hours: Thurs-Sun 11-5.

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Both Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay are made in a variety of styles, and both can be made into anything from a crisp, dry white to a sweet late-harvest-style dessert wine. You could find examples of Sauvignon Blanc sweeter than a Chardonnay, and you could find examples of the reverse, too. But overall, I wouldn't describe Sauvignon Blanc as 'sweeter' than Chardonnay. In fact, I would expect the vast majority of Sauvignon Blancs to be leaner, crisper and more herbal than the vast majority of Chardonnays.

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• 30. Hartford 2007 Highwire Vineyard Zinfandel (Russian River Valley)
• 29. Chateau Beau-Sejour Becot 2006 Saint-Emilion
• 28. Merry Edwards Klopp Ranch Pinot Noir (Russian River Valley)
• 27.Bonny Doon 2006 Le Pousseur Syrah (Central Coast)
• 26. Madrigal 2005 Barberis Family Vineyard Petite Sirah (Napa Valley)
• 25.Two Hands 2006 Bad Impersonator Single Vineyard Shiraz (Barossa Valley)
• 24.Bodega Catena Zapata 2005 Catena Alta Malbec (Mendoza)
• 23. Adelaida 2006 HM
R Estate Pinot Noir (Paso Robles)
• 22. Trenza 2007 Tinto (San Luis Obispo County)
• 21. Betz Family 2006 Pcre de Famille Cabernet Sauvignon (Columbia Valley)
• 20. Au Bon Climat 2006 Santa Barbara Historic Vineyards Collection Bien Nacido Vineyard Chardonnay

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There are a few things that every respectable man needs to know. One of these things is how to select an appropriate bottle of wine for any occasion. The AskMen.com editors recently attended the Montreal Wine and Spirits Show to investigate some of the more popular wine varietals, and we?ve come back with this primer on five wines you should know. Bear in mind that we?re only scratching the surface here, and that true depth of knowledge will rest on your own exploration. Start your journey of wine-discovery by exploring the five wines you should know, tasting our recommendations and picking your favorites.

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Wine and Food pairings is an individual choice. Every person's sense of taste is different. In general, each person should decide for him or herself what combinations of wine and food taste good - don't worry about what anyone else says should work. However, I understand this is difficult when a wine drinker is just starting out. Hence, this listing. Remember - these are only guidelines!! You will figure out quite quickly that your own tongue has its own idea of what goes well with what. Trust your own judgement, and eat and drink what you enjoy! Typically, you want to drink light-to-dark, just as when you plan a meal you start with delicate tastes and work towards heavier tastes. For this reason, Champagne tends to go very well with appetizers or opening courses in a meal. It also goes well with sushi and very light meals, and of course as an after-dinner celebration

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Wine and Food pairings is an individual choice. Every person's sense of taste is different. In general, each person should decide for him or herself what combinations of wine and food taste good - don't worry about what anyone else says should work. However, I understand this is difficult when a wine drinker is just starting out. Hence, this listing. Remember - these are only guidelines!! You will figure out quite quickly that your own tongue has its own idea of what goes well with what. Trust your own judgement, and eat and drink what you enjoy! Typically, you want to drink light-to-dark, just as when you plan a meal you start with delicate tastes and work towards heavier tastes. For this reason, Champagne tends to go very well with appetizers or opening courses in a meal. It also goes well with sushi and very light meals, and of course as an after-dinner celebration

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Sometime in the early 1800s a two-masted schooner wrecked in the Baltic sea, near Sweden in A land, an autonomous cluster of islands that belong to Finland. Last year, when divers found the ship remarkably intact, they were surprised to find the cargo hold empty except for 168 champagne bottles, dubbed the world's oldest champagne. As it turns out, 150 feet under the sea is a great place to store wine, where it's safe from light and temperature changes, and 145 of the bottles are drinkable. Sommelier Ella Grussner Cromwell-Morgan described the taste:

The champagne was amber coloured and packed with aromas. It had a robust taste of tobacco leaves, dried fruit, and raisins and I could clearly taste the oak barrel ageing. [The taste] was heavy with a lots of flavour, a little bit like when you make home made mead. It was like sitting in a leather chair smoking a cigar.

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