Thanks to our official Ashley's Big Secret cartographer, MJ!
Showing posts with label Jeff's Wine and Jewelry Pairing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jeff's Wine and Jewelry Pairing. Show all posts
Friday, March 7, 2008
Ashley's Big Secret plans first ever trip to New Glarus!
Thanks to our official Ashley's Big Secret cartographer, MJ!
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
Two stories - A great sparkling wine for under $20, actually, under $4, and great place to eat on the Rhine River if you look trustworthy
First, I love not knowing the price of wine I drink because it allows me to taste the wine without any preconceived notion created by its price. Sometimes when I find out the price I am disappointed that so much was spent on something so dismal. At other, better, times, I am blown away with how wonderful a wine is at such a reasonable price.
Elke, a friend of ours brought three bottles of Schloss Biebrich Sekt (Sekt means sparkling in German) to us on New Year’s Eve. As she is from Germany, her bringing a German sparkler was apropos. Germans drink more sparking wine per capita than anyone else, and, along with their fame in white wines, it only makes sense that a German sparkling wine should be good.
The Schloss Biebrich Sekt Elke gave us compares to any under $20 sparkling wine in taste and at $3.99 at Trader Joe’s it is an extraordinary value.
As you can see from the label, it is a serious looking wine, as well.
It is made outside of Wiesbaden, Germany where there is a castle named Schloss Biebrich, which is pictured on the label. Wiesbaden is a great place to start visiting the vineyards of the Rhine River Valley. It is 30 minutes from Frankfurt airport and a world away from the commercially-oriented Frankfurt.
My favorite memory of the Rhine River wine region was when we were trying to find a suitable place for lunch with a view of the Rhine River one fall day several years ago. We kept driving up to likely looking restaurants and I would jump out of the car and open the door of the restaurant only to find it jam-packed with Germans – imagine that!
After going through all of the restaurants in three little towns, all packed with Germans eating lunch, we saw a sign for the town of Piesporter. I headed for it because Toni and I (mostly I) drank gallons of Piesporter Goldtropfchen, an easy to drink, pleasant, low-alcohol, low priced German white wine, when we were younger.
On the way, up the hill from the Rhine River Road to Piesporter, we saw a small hotel; that advertised a restaurant, the Burg Schwarzenstein. As you can see the hotel sits among the vineyards and, as you might imagine, the restaurant is something very special.
We sat by the window looking at the vineyards and the Rhine beyond and made friends with our waiter who was excited that we were Americans so that he could practice his English. He explained that all of their wines were grown on the estate and suggested a variety of wines over the course of a two-hour lunch that culminated in our drinking wonderful sparkling wine, the first German sparkler I had ever tasted.
After our wonderful meal, we were presented with an appropriately large check for all of the wine, food and fun for the four of us. My friend Dennis and I fought to be the first to hand the waiter our credit card, but he told us that they did not take credit cards, only cash. As the bill was several hundred dollars, in German Marks of course, we told him that we did not think we had enough cash to pay for the meal, as we always used credit cards.
The waiter told us that our lack of cash was not a problem as we could write a check for our lunch. We explained that we did not have a German bank account, as we lived in Chicago. He said that they would gladly take a US check from us, as we seemed like such nice, trustworthy people.
As luck would have it, we were able to find enough German Marks between us to pay for our lunch and we left with a wonderful memory of German sparkling wine and German hospitality.
Happy New Year, Jeff
P.S. Just so you know, we do take credit cards at Ashley's Big Secret and we have a great selection of gifts you can give yourself. After the holidays, you deserve a gift, or two, or three. You have been nice to everyone else, now be nice to you.
Elke, a friend of ours brought three bottles of Schloss Biebrich Sekt (Sekt means sparkling in German) to us on New Year’s Eve. As she is from Germany, her bringing a German sparkler was apropos. Germans drink more sparking wine per capita than anyone else, and, along with their fame in white wines, it only makes sense that a German sparkling wine should be good.
The Schloss Biebrich Sekt Elke gave us compares to any under $20 sparkling wine in taste and at $3.99 at Trader Joe’s it is an extraordinary value.
As you can see from the label, it is a serious looking wine, as well.
It is made outside of Wiesbaden, Germany where there is a castle named Schloss Biebrich, which is pictured on the label. Wiesbaden is a great place to start visiting the vineyards of the Rhine River Valley. It is 30 minutes from Frankfurt airport and a world away from the commercially-oriented Frankfurt.
My favorite memory of the Rhine River wine region was when we were trying to find a suitable place for lunch with a view of the Rhine River one fall day several years ago. We kept driving up to likely looking restaurants and I would jump out of the car and open the door of the restaurant only to find it jam-packed with Germans – imagine that!
After going through all of the restaurants in three little towns, all packed with Germans eating lunch, we saw a sign for the town of Piesporter. I headed for it because Toni and I (mostly I) drank gallons of Piesporter Goldtropfchen, an easy to drink, pleasant, low-alcohol, low priced German white wine, when we were younger.
On the way, up the hill from the Rhine River Road to Piesporter, we saw a small hotel; that advertised a restaurant, the Burg Schwarzenstein. As you can see the hotel sits among the vineyards and, as you might imagine, the restaurant is something very special.
We sat by the window looking at the vineyards and the Rhine beyond and made friends with our waiter who was excited that we were Americans so that he could practice his English. He explained that all of their wines were grown on the estate and suggested a variety of wines over the course of a two-hour lunch that culminated in our drinking wonderful sparkling wine, the first German sparkler I had ever tasted.
After our wonderful meal, we were presented with an appropriately large check for all of the wine, food and fun for the four of us. My friend Dennis and I fought to be the first to hand the waiter our credit card, but he told us that they did not take credit cards, only cash. As the bill was several hundred dollars, in German Marks of course, we told him that we did not think we had enough cash to pay for the meal, as we always used credit cards.
The waiter told us that our lack of cash was not a problem as we could write a check for our lunch. We explained that we did not have a German bank account, as we lived in Chicago. He said that they would gladly take a US check from us, as we seemed like such nice, trustworthy people.
As luck would have it, we were able to find enough German Marks between us to pay for our lunch and we left with a wonderful memory of German sparkling wine and German hospitality.
Happy New Year, Jeff
P.S. Just so you know, we do take credit cards at Ashley's Big Secret and we have a great selection of gifts you can give yourself. After the holidays, you deserve a gift, or two, or three. You have been nice to everyone else, now be nice to you.
Friday, November 30, 2007
Sparklers and Sparklers, Part Deux
This is the season each year when our family gets ready for the Holidays in every conceivable way, and several inconceivable ways.
For my part, I do two important things:
- I put enough Christmas lights on the trees in our front yard to assure that our house is visible from space; and
- I pick up our supply of sparkling wine for the Holidays in three categories (good, better and best, but more on that later).
As for the lighting our front yard, I believe that if a few lights are tasteful, then thousands of lights must be, well… really tasteful.
At last count, we have over 4,000 small lights on the trees and bushes in front of our house. I am about 2/3s done, but my budget for lights has already been depleted. Based on this year’s budget overrun, we may, or may not, break the 5,000 light barrier before 2008.
In a perfect world, we would get some sort of honorable mention for our lights based on the fact that we are spending hundreds of dollars in electricity so the 4-5 cars that drive in front of our house every evening will be amazed. Based on the lack of traffic in our neighborhood, our display is nothing if not exclusive.
As to my theory of Sparking wine for the holidays, I believe that you should have good inexpensive sparkling wine (under $10) for your everyday holiday drinking. My favorites in this first and least expensive category are Domaine Ste Michelle Blanc de Noir (white made from red wine grapes) and Cristalino, sort of a baby Kristal for $390 less per bottle than the more expensive, similar sounding Champagne.
I use the second category in holiday sparkers, the better wines, as a prelude to nice dinners with friends. My all-time favorite under $20 sparkler is the Roederer Estate Anderson Valley Brut Non Vintage Proprietary Blend. This is Roederer’s California vineyard in the Anderson Valley, north of Sonoma Valley. It is a beautiful winery producing a beautiful wine and Roederer is one of the premier champagne producers in the Champagne region in France. This is the same winery that makes Kristal, mentioned in the previous paragraph, which runs a cool $398 a bottle. The $20 Brut is phenomenal, without being phenomenally expensive... just like you-know-what.
As for the extra special Champagne, I like the same wine that Winston Churchill drank (why not?) - the Pol Roger Sir Winston Churchill Cuvee. It is a spectacular high-end wine that is wonderful to drink for a special occasion. It is a bit pricey ($198 a bottle), but what the heck, if you shop at
Most importantly, as Sir Winston used to tell all of his friends, “shop online at www.AshleysBigSecret.com for the best in high-end costume jewelry at unbelievable prices.”
Wishing you Happy Holidays,
Your pal, Jeff
For fabulous accessories, visit AshleysBigSecret.com. Please feel free to comment here, or give us a shout out at writeus@ashleysbigsecret.com.
© Copyright 2007. Ashley’s Big Secret, Inc.
Thursday, November 1, 2007
The DELI Diet®
I have a plan for the future, my future.
I intend to lose a meaningful amount of weight by Christmas.
I have targeted a loss of 13 pounds.
If I lose 13 pounds I will reduce my weight to the point where I was several years ago when I thought that I was fat. So, I am reducing my weight by one fat increment. When I am done, I will still be fat, but I will be only as fat as I was two years ago, not as fat as I am today, err, last month.
My secret, which I share with you now, is very simple. So simple, in fact, that I am registering it so that I will be the one to earn a Brittany Spears-sized income with about the same amount of effort that she puts forth.
I am hereby announcing The DELI Diet®.
It will be the latest rage and supplant the South Beach Diet, the Adkins Diet and all other diets promoted by people who were always thin and never needed to lose any weight anyway.
This is a diet so easy that even a complete imbecile can do it.
I am calling it The DELI Diet®!
To take advantage of my new-age, ultra-scientific diet research, all you need to do is Don’t Eat Like an Idiot.
I have been strictly seriously somewhat following the diet for nearly four weeks and I have lost five pounds. At least, I had lost it this morning before I single-handedly ate about half a large pizza. This is the reason that I am writing this tonight before my morning weigh-in.
If you agree that The DELI Diet® is a revolution in weight loss, proven beyond a shadow of doubt by my own weight loss, you can be part of this life-changing revolution. You do not need to spend your hard-earned money on books or ab machines, all you need to do is send me $5 to my address, below.
After you have sent the money, I will send you an e-mail with your own personal weight calculating/losing graph. Once you have the graph, simply fill it out in whatever way you think appropriate and, most importantly, you will feel so much better about yourself.
As for me, I will feel infinitely better about myself for inventing The DELI Diet® and, at the same time, finding a way to get people I don't even know to send me money.
Your pal, Jeff
Copyright © 2007 by Jeff Quinto
All rights reserved
I intend to lose a meaningful amount of weight by Christmas.
I have targeted a loss of 13 pounds.
If I lose 13 pounds I will reduce my weight to the point where I was several years ago when I thought that I was fat. So, I am reducing my weight by one fat increment. When I am done, I will still be fat, but I will be only as fat as I was two years ago, not as fat as I am today, err, last month.
My secret, which I share with you now, is very simple. So simple, in fact, that I am registering it so that I will be the one to earn a Brittany Spears-sized income with about the same amount of effort that she puts forth.
I am hereby announcing The DELI Diet®.
It will be the latest rage and supplant the South Beach Diet, the Adkins Diet and all other diets promoted by people who were always thin and never needed to lose any weight anyway.
This is a diet so easy that even a complete imbecile can do it.
I am calling it The DELI Diet®!
To take advantage of my new-age, ultra-scientific diet research, all you need to do is Don’t Eat Like an Idiot.
I have been strictly seriously somewhat following the diet for nearly four weeks and I have lost five pounds. At least, I had lost it this morning before I single-handedly ate about half a large pizza. This is the reason that I am writing this tonight before my morning weigh-in.
If you agree that The DELI Diet® is a revolution in weight loss, proven beyond a shadow of doubt by my own weight loss, you can be part of this life-changing revolution. You do not need to spend your hard-earned money on books or ab machines, all you need to do is send me $5 to my address, below.
After you have sent the money, I will send you an e-mail with your own personal weight calculating/losing graph. Once you have the graph, simply fill it out in whatever way you think appropriate and, most importantly, you will feel so much better about yourself.
As for me, I will feel infinitely better about myself for inventing The DELI Diet® and, at the same time, finding a way to get people I don't even know to send me money.
Your pal, Jeff
Copyright © 2007 by Jeff Quinto
All rights reserved
Monday, July 30, 2007
View from the other side
One rich lady comes up to another rich lady at the Country Club and offers her condolences on the recent death of the first oady’s husband.
The first lady says, “Thank you for your good wishes. We gave my late husband quite a sendoff. In fact, I spent $50,000 on his funeral.”
Amazed at the amount spent, the second lady says, “My goodness, $50,000. That is a lot of money. What did it include?”
The first lady says, “Well, I spent $5,000 on the coffin, $5,000 on the cemetery plot, $5,000 on the interment and $35,000 on the stone.”
The second lady says, “That must be quite a stone!”
At which point the first lady holds out her hand, displaying a huge diamond ring saying, “thank you, it is quite a stone.”
There is a point to my story, believe it or not.
You don’t have to say goodbye to your husband and you don’t have to spend loads of money for flashy, fabulous, fashion-forward fun jewelry. Just go to www.ashleysbigsecret.com and pick out anything in Ashley's online store.
It’s such a good deal and, for $35,000, you could buy more than one medium sized bauble. You could buy everything in the store and still have money left over to do your nails, buy a year’s worth of snacks, and, still, have enough left over to take a trip around the world.
Jeff
The first lady says, “Thank you for your good wishes. We gave my late husband quite a sendoff. In fact, I spent $50,000 on his funeral.”
Amazed at the amount spent, the second lady says, “My goodness, $50,000. That is a lot of money. What did it include?”
The first lady says, “Well, I spent $5,000 on the coffin, $5,000 on the cemetery plot, $5,000 on the interment and $35,000 on the stone.”
The second lady says, “That must be quite a stone!”
At which point the first lady holds out her hand, displaying a huge diamond ring saying, “thank you, it is quite a stone.”
There is a point to my story, believe it or not.
You don’t have to say goodbye to your husband and you don’t have to spend loads of money for flashy, fabulous, fashion-forward fun jewelry. Just go to www.ashleysbigsecret.com and pick out anything in Ashley's online store.
It’s such a good deal and, for $35,000, you could buy more than one medium sized bauble. You could buy everything in the store and still have money left over to do your nails, buy a year’s worth of snacks, and, still, have enough left over to take a trip around the world.
Jeff
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Jeff's Jewelry and Wine Pairings: Sancerre
Summer is for Sancerre
Sancerre is my all-time favorite summer wine. You can certainly drink it any time, but a summer afternoon by the lake is just about perfect if accompanied by a chilled (not too cold) glass of nice Sancerre and some interesting cheese.
Sancerre comes from the Loire Valley in France. The French like to say that wine is a reflection of its terrior, its soil and location. Sancerre is a product of “white” soil, which is rich in limestone. The soil and the location give the best Sancerre a taste of the soil that is unmistakable. It is pleasant, light, and earthy.
Sancerre is more interesting than the Australian and New Zeeland Sauvignon Blanc in taste, although they both come from the same grape variety, Sauvignon Blanc. It is also more expensive (sometimes a lot more expensive) than the New World Sauvignon Blanc, but what the hey. How much can you drink?
What brings me to a light-hearted discussion of Sancerre is that this weekend is my birthday (no gifts, but checks made out to cash will be accepted).
When asked what I wanted to do for my birthday by Ashley of Ashley’s Big Secret fame, I told her I wanted to have a picnic by the lake, play Bocce and drink, you guessed it, Sancerre and sparkling water and sample interesting cheeses, salamis, and crusty French baguettes from Panera Bread.
Life is good.
This is an important birthday for me. I am exactly halfway through my intended lifespan. Counting on good genes and no particular effort on my part, I am planning to live to 116 at which point I will decide if I want to live longer. Of course, as long as I have a good supply of Sancerre, sparkling water and interesting cheeses, I may decide that life should go on even further. I will keep you posted.
As far as jewelry to wear with a light, but interesting white wine, Ashley suggests that you look at our Fauxture Charm Necklace Set and our Gold Essential Charm Bracelet. Ashley says they are perfect for a rich summer picnic- sophisticated and fun.
For fabulous accessories, visit AshleysBigSecret.com. Please feel free to comment here, or give us a shout out at writeus@ashleysbigsecret.com.
© Copyright 2007. Ashley’s Big Secret, Inc.
Wednesday, April 4, 2007
Wine Tips for Cheapskates!
Please indulge me, dear reader, as my wine suggestion today involves three parts.
Part I – Apropos of nothing, my lovely wife started hocking me about serving too much nice wine to our guests at dinner. I cannot imagine what prompted her outburst as it was 8:00 in the morning and we hadn’t had dinner guests for several weeks. Perhaps, I had been on good behavior for awhile and complaining about wine at dinner was the worst thing she could think of at the time.
Anyway, she seemed adamant that I understood the wastefulness of giving too much expensive wine to tipsy guests.
Part II – When we lived in Kansas City, we used to go to a Greek restaurant called Tasso’s and run by a Greek guy named, you guessed it, Tasso. We used to order Roditys wine that came in a somewhat used looking bottle for about $15. It was OK and who knows what Greek wine is supposed to taste like, anyway.
One night I was going to the Men’s room and went left into the kitchen, instead of right to the Men’s room. Two wrong steps and I was in the middle of the kitchen watching Tasso pour wine from what must have been a five gallon jug, like the huge water bottle that sits upside down on an office water cooler of old. Tasso had the huge bottle under his arm and was pouring it, through a large funnel into one of the somewhat used looking bottles of Roditys. Next to the bottle was a box filled with used corks which he put in the bottle, once it had been refilled.
Part III – After thinking about Parts I and II, above, I have come to a revelation. At our next dinner party, I will start the evening with two bottles of, say, Heitz Cellars Trailside Vineyard 1994 Cabernet Sauvignon, my last two bottles. When the two bottles are gone, I intend to stealthily return the bottles to the kitchen where I will refill them from the box of Delicato Cabernet Sauvignon in the refrigerator.
Next, I will proudly return the bottles to the table and, without a word, refill everyone’s empty glass. The fun will be to see if anyone notices. My guess is that my guests will either be too tipsy or too polite to say anything, or both.
I will let you know what happens and if you are invited to my house for dinner, please do not give up the punch line as I may, or may not, refill the bottles from the refrigerator. As I think more about it, I may just drink the last of the Heitz Cellars and refill the empty bottles tonight, so that they will be ready for our next dinner party.
Part I – Apropos of nothing, my lovely wife started hocking me about serving too much nice wine to our guests at dinner. I cannot imagine what prompted her outburst as it was 8:00 in the morning and we hadn’t had dinner guests for several weeks. Perhaps, I had been on good behavior for awhile and complaining about wine at dinner was the worst thing she could think of at the time.
Anyway, she seemed adamant that I understood the wastefulness of giving too much expensive wine to tipsy guests.
Part II – When we lived in Kansas City, we used to go to a Greek restaurant called Tasso’s and run by a Greek guy named, you guessed it, Tasso. We used to order Roditys wine that came in a somewhat used looking bottle for about $15. It was OK and who knows what Greek wine is supposed to taste like, anyway.
One night I was going to the Men’s room and went left into the kitchen, instead of right to the Men’s room. Two wrong steps and I was in the middle of the kitchen watching Tasso pour wine from what must have been a five gallon jug, like the huge water bottle that sits upside down on an office water cooler of old. Tasso had the huge bottle under his arm and was pouring it, through a large funnel into one of the somewhat used looking bottles of Roditys. Next to the bottle was a box filled with used corks which he put in the bottle, once it had been refilled.
Part III – After thinking about Parts I and II, above, I have come to a revelation. At our next dinner party, I will start the evening with two bottles of, say, Heitz Cellars Trailside Vineyard 1994 Cabernet Sauvignon, my last two bottles. When the two bottles are gone, I intend to stealthily return the bottles to the kitchen where I will refill them from the box of Delicato Cabernet Sauvignon in the refrigerator.
Next, I will proudly return the bottles to the table and, without a word, refill everyone’s empty glass. The fun will be to see if anyone notices. My guess is that my guests will either be too tipsy or too polite to say anything, or both.
I will let you know what happens and if you are invited to my house for dinner, please do not give up the punch line as I may, or may not, refill the bottles from the refrigerator. As I think more about it, I may just drink the last of the Heitz Cellars and refill the empty bottles tonight, so that they will be ready for our next dinner party.
Too bad for me- all the women in my family already know about Ashley's Big Secret, so I can't apply the same principal to giving jewelry as a gift. Otherwise, I could save a whole lot of money by giving them, say, a gigantic ring knowing they, like my tipsy guests, wouldn be unable to tell the difference.
In wine we trust, Jeff
In wine we trust, Jeff
For fabulous accessories, visit AshleysBigSecret.com. Please feel free to comment here, or give us a shout out at writeus@ashleysbigsecret.com.
© Copyright 2007. Ashley’s Big Secret, Inc.
Sunday, March 18, 2007
The why, where and what of putting wine away for another day
Why - One of the great things about wine, and people, is that the good ones grow over time. With time and proper handling, they mature and mellow and today’s rough and bold one tends to become next year’s smooth and interesting one.
For those of us interested in being smart with our money (www.AshleysBigSecret.com members one and all), the great thing about putting wine away to age is that you can find a nice, reasonably-priced wine at your wine store today. You put it in storage for a few years and, then, bring it back as a truly great wine. In this way, you can drink amazing wines and spend a not so amazing amount of money to do it.
Where – Wine should be stored at less than 60°F. Ideally, wine should be stored at 55°F, the temperature in underground cellars. So, where in your house can you find a place that will remain less than 60°F, constantly?
The answer is not in your kitchen. The kitchen is the warmest part of the house, yet it is where people most often store their special wines. When they do, their special wines are being ruined.
You need to find a place in your house that is cool and not overly dry, such as a part of your basement away from the furnace and water heater. However, if you do not have such a place in your house, you can either buy a home wine cooler to store your wines or you can rent commercial wine storage space, both of which I do.
In terms of wine coolers, I bought a 48 bottle wine cooler at Home Depot on sale for around $100, not so bad. Larger wine coolers have, as you might have guessed, larger prices. Commercial wine storage is available in all large and most medium-sized cities. For about $325 a year, you can rent a wine locker at Strong Box Wine Storage in Chicago that holds 24 cases of wine.
The advantage of having wine in a separate, inconvenient location is that you tend to forget about the wine in storage which allows it to age unmolested. In this way, you are protecting the wine from you when you wish you had a great bottle of wine; or worse, you find yourself out of your everyday wine at home late one night.
What – This is the exciting part about storing wine, or putting it back, as we budget wine snobs like to say. You get to find a wine that you like, today. A wine that is priced right, today, but will benefit from being allowed to age. You are looking for a wine that will sleep for a few years and emerge from your cellar as a great wine at a great price.
I look for big (strong flavored) wines at reasonable prices. Weak tasting wines will not improve with age. They will just further weaken in taste. For this purpose, you are specifically looking for a wine that is bold and a little rough that would benefit from the mellowing that comes with age.
An example of a wine that was bought at a reasonable price and came out of storage a few years later as a spectacular wine was a 1992 Pahlmeyer Proprietary Red Wine. My son-in-law, Doctor Tim, suggested I buy the only case of it in the wine store where he worked at the time for about $18 a bottle.
While the wine was sleeping in my storage, the movie Disclosure came out featuring Demi Moore ordering a bottle of Pahlmeyer for her planned seduction of Michael Douglas. Pahlmeyer Wine, which wasn’t available anywhere anyway, became impossible to find and all the more valuable. Even without the excitement of the movie, this was great wine and when I pulled it out of storage a few years later, it was one of the greatest wines I had ever tasted and lucky me with 12 bottles. Life was good.
So, the object of finding a wine to put away is first to find one you like and that would benefit from being put away for a few years and, as any Ashley’s Big Secret Aficionado can tell you, it is lots of fun to find things to buy that are a deal.
In a coming blog, I will tell you some wines that are priced right, right now and would benefit from being put back.
In the meantime, remember don’t put nice wines in the kitchen, put them someplace where they have a constant cellar temperature and humidity or drink them as soon as you can. As for the nice wines you have without appropriate storage for them, a good plan would be to invite me (wino@ashleysbigsecret.com ) to come over and help you drink anything nice that you have that desperately needs to be drunk, now.
One more thing to remember, jewelry from Ashley’s Big Secret (www.AshleysBigSecret.com) is meant to be enjoyed immediately and does not need to be put away for later. Enjoy it now!
In wine we trust, J.
For those of us interested in being smart with our money (www.AshleysBigSecret.com members one and all), the great thing about putting wine away to age is that you can find a nice, reasonably-priced wine at your wine store today. You put it in storage for a few years and, then, bring it back as a truly great wine. In this way, you can drink amazing wines and spend a not so amazing amount of money to do it.
Where – Wine should be stored at less than 60°F. Ideally, wine should be stored at 55°F, the temperature in underground cellars. So, where in your house can you find a place that will remain less than 60°F, constantly?
The answer is not in your kitchen. The kitchen is the warmest part of the house, yet it is where people most often store their special wines. When they do, their special wines are being ruined.
You need to find a place in your house that is cool and not overly dry, such as a part of your basement away from the furnace and water heater. However, if you do not have such a place in your house, you can either buy a home wine cooler to store your wines or you can rent commercial wine storage space, both of which I do.
In terms of wine coolers, I bought a 48 bottle wine cooler at Home Depot on sale for around $100, not so bad. Larger wine coolers have, as you might have guessed, larger prices. Commercial wine storage is available in all large and most medium-sized cities. For about $325 a year, you can rent a wine locker at Strong Box Wine Storage in Chicago that holds 24 cases of wine.
The advantage of having wine in a separate, inconvenient location is that you tend to forget about the wine in storage which allows it to age unmolested. In this way, you are protecting the wine from you when you wish you had a great bottle of wine; or worse, you find yourself out of your everyday wine at home late one night.
What – This is the exciting part about storing wine, or putting it back, as we budget wine snobs like to say. You get to find a wine that you like, today. A wine that is priced right, today, but will benefit from being allowed to age. You are looking for a wine that will sleep for a few years and emerge from your cellar as a great wine at a great price.
I look for big (strong flavored) wines at reasonable prices. Weak tasting wines will not improve with age. They will just further weaken in taste. For this purpose, you are specifically looking for a wine that is bold and a little rough that would benefit from the mellowing that comes with age.
An example of a wine that was bought at a reasonable price and came out of storage a few years later as a spectacular wine was a 1992 Pahlmeyer Proprietary Red Wine. My son-in-law, Doctor Tim, suggested I buy the only case of it in the wine store where he worked at the time for about $18 a bottle.
While the wine was sleeping in my storage, the movie Disclosure came out featuring Demi Moore ordering a bottle of Pahlmeyer for her planned seduction of Michael Douglas. Pahlmeyer Wine, which wasn’t available anywhere anyway, became impossible to find and all the more valuable. Even without the excitement of the movie, this was great wine and when I pulled it out of storage a few years later, it was one of the greatest wines I had ever tasted and lucky me with 12 bottles. Life was good.
So, the object of finding a wine to put away is first to find one you like and that would benefit from being put away for a few years and, as any Ashley’s Big Secret Aficionado can tell you, it is lots of fun to find things to buy that are a deal.
In a coming blog, I will tell you some wines that are priced right, right now and would benefit from being put back.
In the meantime, remember don’t put nice wines in the kitchen, put them someplace where they have a constant cellar temperature and humidity or drink them as soon as you can. As for the nice wines you have without appropriate storage for them, a good plan would be to invite me (wino@ashleysbigsecret.com ) to come over and help you drink anything nice that you have that desperately needs to be drunk, now.
One more thing to remember, jewelry from Ashley’s Big Secret (www.AshleysBigSecret.com) is meant to be enjoyed immediately and does not need to be put away for later. Enjoy it now!
In wine we trust, J.
© Copyright 2007 Ashley’s Big Secret, Inc.
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
It's WHO you know!
One secret to great wines is having a wine guy or wine gal who really knows their stuff and can lead you to wines you like at prices you love. After all, without outside help, you would be required to drink all of the wines that look like possibilities. After trying all the wines, you would have to try to remember which ones you liked.
To illustrate the size of the potential problem, Sam’s Wines in Chicago lists over 3,000 wines on their website. I, for one, could not even attempt to drink all of the wines that I think might look good at Sam’s or anywhere else.
What can you do?
You can find your own wine guy or wine gal and they can do the legwork, so to speak, for you. We at AshleysBigSecret.com understand the value in knowing someone with taste and an understanding of quality and value. So, allow me to give you two names of people at great wine stores in our area. You might let me know of anyone in your area who fits the bill.
In Chicago, there is only one person to see. He is Celal Ince at Binny’s at 3000 North Clark. Celal (pronounced Ja-lel) has helped people I know with nearly unlimited budgets and others, like me, who are interested in drinking great wine at reasonable prices. He helped me stock my cellar with reasonably-priced great 1997 Italian reds that are drinking beautifully, now. He introduced me to my favorite white wine Sancerre, with its earthy, clean taste.
Lake Geneva now has a great wine store, Pop More Corks, on Highway 50, 25 yards east of Starbucks (we always give directions in Lake Geneva in relation to Starbucks). David Biegemann is the owner and he has over 250 wines with 150 wines under $20. He always has a selection of 6-8 interesting wines to taste. He has a great selection of small vineyard wines that are fun to try and all are reasonably priced.
To pair your reasonably priced wine with something that looks, as my daughter would say, funky fabulous, I recommend wearing a gigantic CZ ring with one of these guys' reasonably priced wine. Showing how much great taste you have in your jewelry, and, in your wine, show that you are chic and sensible. What a combo!
So, there it is – my sincere advice on two people to help you be smart in your wine buying. As to being smart in bling buying, look no further than AshleysBigSecret.com.
In wine we trust, J.
As always, you can e-mail Jeff at wino@ashleysbigsecret.com.
Please feel free to comment here, or give us a shout out at writeus@ashleysbigsecret.com.
© Copyright 2007. Ashley’s Big Secret, Inc.
Monday, March 5, 2007
An 'Inconvenient Truth' about Boxed Wine
Last week, I wrote about a terrific wine in a box, Delicato Shiraz. I bought it for $16 at Woodman’s in Kenosha (a selection of condiments and potato chips, second to none) and was amazed that the equivalent of four bottles of wine was able to be put in such a compact container.
Therein lies the rub.
If you and a pal were to sit down for a nice evening of imbibing, you would pull out one bottle and drink it and, then, pull out another. Very likely you would go slowly on the second, as you have this, albeit imperfect, little voice in the back of your brain that warns you that opening too many bottles will lead to overload.
The inconvenient truth is that the benefit of the little voice telling you, “caution, caution” is completely defeated by the box. There is no way to tell how much of the box has been drunk in one sitting. So, without the little voice to warn you of impending doom, you drink and drink and it is very possible that you and your pal will not realize that too much has been consumed until you are slurring at each other or, dread, the box is gone!
I would like to propose a solution here.
Let’s publicize this problem. After all, many right-thinking people must be incensed by this irresponsible, unregulated and deceptive packaging. Perhaps someone could make a movie showing what can happen and suggesting, well, demanding would be better, that these insidious wine boxes have a gauge on them, like a gas gauge in a car to warn you of well, you know, that your $16 investment is about to pay you some unwelcome dividends.
In wine we trust, J
Therein lies the rub.
If you and a pal were to sit down for a nice evening of imbibing, you would pull out one bottle and drink it and, then, pull out another. Very likely you would go slowly on the second, as you have this, albeit imperfect, little voice in the back of your brain that warns you that opening too many bottles will lead to overload.
The inconvenient truth is that the benefit of the little voice telling you, “caution, caution” is completely defeated by the box. There is no way to tell how much of the box has been drunk in one sitting. So, without the little voice to warn you of impending doom, you drink and drink and it is very possible that you and your pal will not realize that too much has been consumed until you are slurring at each other or, dread, the box is gone!
I would like to propose a solution here.
Let’s publicize this problem. After all, many right-thinking people must be incensed by this irresponsible, unregulated and deceptive packaging. Perhaps someone could make a movie showing what can happen and suggesting, well, demanding would be better, that these insidious wine boxes have a gauge on them, like a gas gauge in a car to warn you of well, you know, that your $16 investment is about to pay you some unwelcome dividends.
In wine we trust, J
For fabulous accessories, visit AshleysBigSecret.com. Please feel free to comment here, or give us a shout out at writeus@ashleysbigsecret.com.
© Copyright 2007. Ashley’s Big Secret, Inc.
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Boxed In
In her opening monologue for the Oscars, Ellen DeGeneres said that she wouldn’t be critical of any of the Oscar nominees, unless she was halfway into a box of Chardonnay. It was a modestly funny bit, but it got me to thinking about boxed wine.When we spent the summer in Spain some years ago, the best value in all of Spain was their boxed Sangria for about a dollar a box. Of course, Sangria is a fruity wine blend and not really serious wine, except if you drink too much of it and, then, the following day it can have a variety of serious effects.
Anyway, I have never tasted a boxed wine, except for the aforementioned Sangria. So, when I saw a 3 liter box (four bottles worth of wine in a box a little larger than an economy size box of Decon, except heavier) of Delicato Syrah for $16, I thought how bad could it be?
The answer is that it was great! It reminded me of the kind of wine that people in Italy Spain and France to drink very day. It is not expensive. It is good and it goes beautifully with food.
Instead of paying $10 a bottle for everyday wine, my suggestion is to buy one box of Delicio Syrah and save $24. My next bit of advice is to take the $24 you saved and go to http://www.ashleysbigsecret.com/ and buy a gorgeous necklace or a funky pearl set. Better yet, drink most of the box of wine and, then go on line to http://www.ashleysbigsecret.com/ and buy wonderful jewelry until you either fall asleep or you credit card maxes out.
In wine we trust, J
For fabulous accessories, visit AshleysBigSecret.com. Please feel free to comment here, or give us a shout out at writeus@ashleysbigsecret.com.
© Copyright 2007. Ashley’s Big Secret, Inc.
Monday, February 5, 2007
Much Maligned Merlot
Drinking wonderful wine is not about the money you spend. It, as in Ashley’s Big Secret (anything for a plug), is about being clever and realizing that the most important test of a great wine, or great jewelry, is whether you like it or not, not whether some critic says it is great, except for me, of course.Let’s talk about Merlot. You probably like Merlot. You were probably insulted in the movie “Sideways” when the co-star screamed that he wouldn’t be forced to drink Merlot no matter how great the girls serving it looked.
Well, let’s talk about Merlot. First, the main grape variety used in the most expensive wine from France is, you guessed it, Merlot. The wine is called Petrus and if you are having some please give me a call. However, before you start inviting your friends over to taste this wonderful Merlot, you should know that it could cost well over $1,000 a bottle.
So, there you are, you like Merlot. I like Merlot and the guy in the movie is just being dumb.
In terms of great Merlots, my favorites are Paloma and Duckhorn. Both are a bit pricey. However, I’ll bet that you can pick out a great Merlot just by going to your local wine store and buying a Merlot in the $8 to $15 range. Buy a couple of different bottles and try each with a friend or two. Next, write me an e-mail telling me what you liked best. I can be reached at wino@ashleysbigsecret.com.
In terms of what to wear during your Merlot tasting, Ashley suggests the Silver Faux Omega Set and a Shiny Silver Cuff. Simplistic and very classy.
Lastly, don’t forget to include me if you decide that you must taste Petrus.
For fabulous accessories, visit http://www.ashleysbigsecret.com/. Please feel free to comment here, or give us a shout out at writeus@ashleysbigsecret.com.
© Copyright 2007. Ashley’s Big Secret, Inc.
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Jeff's Wine and Jewelry Pairings
Poor Dad/Husband lives completely surrounded by fashion loving girly girls! He's a good sport, though, so we thought we'd give him his own blog segment. We love wine, and no one knows more about good wine than he does, so without further ado, we bring you:
The traditional and most obvious wine and jewelry pairing is, as we all know, Sparklers and Sparklers – sparkling rings and sparkling wine.
I remember seeing a friend’s wife who had some serious real jewelry one-upped by Toni wearing a Cubic Zirconia sparkler that looked every bit as delightful on Toni’s hand as the oversized real thing on our friend’s hand. They were both beautiful rings and attracted everyone’s eye to the dazzling display of opulence or, in our case, faux opulence.
So, if we are going to pair a sparkling wine with sparkling jewelry like: a black pearl necklace with matching pearls, we need to find a sparkling wine worthy of the jewelry and tasting expensive, but not. My first choice in this category is the Roederer Estate NV about $20, a deal at twice the price. Or, for half of that price, you can get a delightful sparkler in Domain Ste. Michelle Blanc de Blanc NV about $8. Ashley recommends wearing something classy and sparkly with either of those champagnes.
Buying great wine at a great price is sort of like Ashley’s Big Secret. If you are smart about what you buy, you can get great things at great prices. Let everyone else pay high prices. You are too smart for that.
Let’s try another pairing.
This time what wine goes with pearls?
Naturally, you were going to say, Sauvignon Blanc is perfect with pearls.
Pearls look especially fetching while holding a glass of white wine and shout for white wine that is sophisticated, but easy to like. Voila, Sauvignon Blanc from California or New Zealand. Neither the pearls nor the wine need be overly expensive. Ashley suggests these pearls and I suggest either the Canyon Road Sauvignon Blanc at about $7 (WOW, what a deal) or the Villa Maria Sauvignon Blanc from down under at $12.
In both wine and jewelry, you don’t have to spend a fortune to have beautiful things, you just have to know what you are doing or have a friend, like Ashley, who does.
I remember seeing a friend’s wife who had some serious real jewelry one-upped by Toni wearing a Cubic Zirconia sparkler that looked every bit as delightful on Toni’s hand as the oversized real thing on our friend’s hand. They were both beautiful rings and attracted everyone’s eye to the dazzling display of opulence or, in our case, faux opulence.
So, if we are going to pair a sparkling wine with sparkling jewelry like: a black pearl necklace with matching pearls, we need to find a sparkling wine worthy of the jewelry and tasting expensive, but not. My first choice in this category is the Roederer Estate NV about $20, a deal at twice the price. Or, for half of that price, you can get a delightful sparkler in Domain Ste. Michelle Blanc de Blanc NV about $8. Ashley recommends wearing something classy and sparkly with either of those champagnes.
Buying great wine at a great price is sort of like Ashley’s Big Secret. If you are smart about what you buy, you can get great things at great prices. Let everyone else pay high prices. You are too smart for that.
Let’s try another pairing.
This time what wine goes with pearls?
Naturally, you were going to say, Sauvignon Blanc is perfect with pearls.
Pearls look especially fetching while holding a glass of white wine and shout for white wine that is sophisticated, but easy to like. Voila, Sauvignon Blanc from California or New Zealand. Neither the pearls nor the wine need be overly expensive. Ashley suggests these pearls and I suggest either the Canyon Road Sauvignon Blanc at about $7 (WOW, what a deal) or the Villa Maria Sauvignon Blanc from down under at $12.
In both wine and jewelry, you don’t have to spend a fortune to have beautiful things, you just have to know what you are doing or have a friend, like Ashley, who does.
For fabulous accessories, visit http://www.ashleysbigsecret.com/. Please feel free to comment here, or give us a shout out at writeus@ashleysbigsecret.com.
© Copyright 2007. Ashley’s Big Secret, Inc.
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