Sublime Wine

OK Party People-
Forgive me for not posting in a while, but I promise this post will be worth the wait! I have got one great bottle for you to run out and get-but you have to put your leathers on, first. I am talking about Fetish Wines 2005 Barossa Valley Shiraz!

I found it at Costco, it was rated 91 points by Wine Spectator, and it was $14.99. It’s rich, delicious, and dammit-I only bought one bottle! Now I have to go get more. Do not let the twist top scare you away. The winemaker, Rolf Binder, is a genius!
Bring Out The Gimp!
Suzanne

It is 230 degrees outside. At 11:30 PM. For real.

I need something delicious and delightful, and served well chilled. I look in my fridge, and lo and behold, I see a bottle of Lillet with SERVE WELL CHILLED stamped across the label.

I don’t usually drink aperitifs, but this really hit the spot tonight. It has been around since 1887, so apparently it has hit the spot for a lot of other people, too. Lillet is made in Podensac, which is 20 miles south of Bordeaux. It is a blend of white wines, which is then blended with herbs and fruits. Ok, I don’t taste the herbs but I do taste the fruit-it’s as fruity as Ted Haggard in a massage parlor!

Besides being tasty, I love the label on the back. It reads: It is perfect for those special times when day turns to evening and evening turns to night! I think that is that is their way of saying politely “It is tacky to drink this before noon.”

I’m not going to lie to you. Lillet is OLD SCHOOL. I don’t think they are running out of it at Skybar anytime soon. But it is different, and it’s nice to have an aperitif every once in a while. So get yourself a bottle, stash it in your fridge, and enjoy! (But not for breakfast).
Cheers old school style,
Suzanne

Keep an eye (and an ear!) out for the next podcast coming your way…Suzanne and Kelly interview Danny Mantle, the National Sales Manager of Santino and Renwood Wineries. Danny explains why Zin is in, why their Zin is so delicioso, and he throws in a couple of great stories, to boot! So stay tuned…
Cheers!
Suzanne

Ok, Party People, I am officially TWISTED! I am OBSESSED!
I AM IN LOVE WITH TWISTED OAK WINERY!

It is Sublime Wine’s Soul Mate…cursing, joking, GREAT WINE, rubber chickens…and did I mention great wine?

Yesterday SublimeWineRadio went to the LA WineFest and met one of the Great Ones, Boy Brainard. He is the OFFICIAL Wine Pimp of Twisted Oak Winery.
Keep checking the blog and our podcast for the most awesome interview ever. Twisted Oak is as fun as their wine is delicious. Also, check out their blog it will kick your ass!

Speaking of ass kicking, (or kissing, in my case) if you love PIRATES as much as I do, here is the link to their Pirate Party on August 18th-Kelly and I are going to try our best to get on our pirate outfits and get up there to be a part of this crazy event.

Back to their wines…we sampled their Verdelho, a crisp, delicious, nasty little white wine that will make you want more. Their reds kick ass, but you will have to listen to the podcast to hear about those…because I could go on for days. But in the meantime, if you want to get to your HAPPY PLACE , check out all the amazing award winning wines they have to offer. I promise, you will love them as much as I do!

Glug Glug and ARRRRGGHHHH!
Suzanne

My son is finishing preschool in two days. This afternoon we went to a pool party to celebrate the class “Graduation.” The lovely Mom who hosted the party confided in me that she totally lost it at school today and scared one of the kids because she was crying so hard. She told me she went home and had a glass of wine (ok, two) and then she felt much better.

I thought, how great is that? First, I loved that she could share that with me. Second, who HASN’T needed a glass of wine before 5 at some point or another? Speaking of which, it’s 3:30 and I could use one myself right now. Family can do that to you, sometimes.

My point is that we all need a break now and then. Sometimes an afternoon glass of wine can get us through the 27th game of Go Fish or Monopoly. When the water heater breaks down, the kids are fighting over which side of the couch they get to sit on, or the dog craps all over the carpet, take a deep breath. Pour yourself a little glass of wine. Don’t be hard on yourself, just enjoy it.

I have a feeling that on Friday, when my little guy walks away from his preschool for the last time, I will be a blubbering mess. I am going to take my new friend’s advice, and pour me a glass of something fabulous when I get home. Then I will challenge my little dude to a game of Go Fish.

Glug Glug,
Suz

Did I tell you that I love to cook?

As I am preparing for a very special dinner party for tomorrow night, I decide to make something bold…something decadent…something with WINE. I come across the perfect recipe, it’s Michel Richard’s “Silky Syrah Short Ribs.” It’s got everything: rosemary, port, honey,butter, garlic, cloves…and TWO FULL BOTTLES of Syrah! Hoorah!

So I shorted the pot and drank a glass. I picked Castoro Cellars Syrah from the Central Coast.

WOW! Like my mood, it was smooth, peppery, dry, and spicy! I started to feel bad that I only pinched one glass-would it be rude to stick a straw in the pot and siphon some out? Yes, I decide, it would. So I begin to wonder, what really is a Syrah, anyway?

After browsing some books and surfing the web, I have found out these interesting little tidbits. First of all, did you know that Syrah is grown throughout the world, and is one of the ten most popular varietals? I didn’t! It’s name is used interchangeably with Shiraz, but Syrah is mostly used in France & the USA, Shiraz is more Australia. According to www.wisegeek.com, some winemakers choose to use the term Syrah to refer to smoother wines made from the Syrah grape, and Shiraz for wines that are somewhat crisper.

Syrah is dark and spicy. It’s a lovely change when you usually drink the ol’ reliable Cab or Pinot. Next time you are wine shopping, do yourself a favor and grab a bottle of Syrah. If you can find it, get yourself a bottle of E & E Barossa Valley Black Pepper Shiraz-it will rock your world!

glug glug,

Suz

Does this sound familiar?

Who put these tiny socks on my teeth? Where are my pants? Who are you people and how did you get into my room? We’ve all been there: the splitting headache, brutal dehydration, colon blow…face it, you’ve got a hangover and you are screwed.

Or are you? We have three topics to discuss on hangover cures:

1. Prevention

2. Top Ten Hangover Cures

3. Hangover Pills

Let’s take prevention first. Wait, I have to put on the Granny Panties and turn into your mother for a minute. Don’t drink so much! Drink a ton of water before you go out to your crazy parties! Don’t take Tylenol or your liver might explode!

Okay, big underpants off, you obviously DIDN’T take your Mother’s advice, so let’s get to the list:

TOP TEN HANGOVER CURES:

1. Water and Gatorade-hydrate hydrate hydrate until you stop spinning.

2. Our Caucasian friends swear by a Bloody Mary.

3. Our Latino Amigos swear by Tripe soup.

4. Our Korean pals love Haejangguk (more brutal than tripe) It’s a soup with a base of cow bones and cow’s blood

5. Advil

6. Greasy hamburgers and a milkshake

7. Greasy Hash browns, or Tater Tots

8. Vitamins B6 and B12

9. Clam Chowder

10. Anything off the menu of Cracker Barrel or Waffle House (sorry West Coasters!)

So there’s your list. Did I forget something? COMMENT! Tell me what works for you! If you are the Jedi Hangover Master, I’d love to hear from you. Personally, a Mc Donald’s run does the trick for me.

Finally, you can order pills online that promise a hangover-free morning. We will be trying several hangover pills in the near future, so stay tuned for the final results! For now, check out Hangover Stopper.

They offer a 24-count bottle for $6.95 (I’ll try that before Haejangguk!)… and no, I’m not getting paid to plug them.

You can also check out Drinkin’ Mate for a FREE SAMPLE of Drinkin’ Mate tabs… “all natural effervescent tablet that social drinkers are taking to parties and happy hours to help ease the effects of over-indulging.”

Until next time, remember…

BEER BEFORE LIQUOR, NEVER SICKER

Wine when you dine, that’ll be fine,

Suzanne

Okay, we know we love wine, but when we get invited to a dinner party and inquire, “What can we bring?,” we hold our breath and wait for the dreaded words, “Oh, just bring a bottle of wine.”

Thanks for the 411. Why don’t they just say, “Oh, I don’t know, why don’t you bring food, since we’re having dinner…”

The panic kicks in. What to bring? What is the best wine for a dinner party? How much to spend? How do we pick out something decent besides picking a cool-looking label?

People, have no fear, Supersuz is here. For thirty bucks, go get yourself a mind-blowing bottle of St. Supery Cabernet Sauvignon 2002. If you want to really impress, bring a decanter and let it breathe for about a half- hour.

Eyebrows will raise. Friends will look at you like you are really smarter than they thought. Then they will want more. And the best part? You will absolutely be invited to more great dinner parties.

Here are some wine notes from the winery as to what you can expect:

The 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon is a dense wine loaded with rich plum, black cherry and briar. There is a slight hint of rose petal that is very seductive. On the palate bright cherry, cassis, currant and a touch of tobacco are mixed together to form wonderful flavors that last and last. The fine tannins and beautiful balance show signs that this wine will age for years to come. Drink now through 2012.

Two words for you people: MOUTH PARTY!

Do yourself a huge favor and check out St. Supery’s site. There’s a great video on the history of the winery and their philosophy of winemaking.

And, no, they don’t pay us for plugging them… I’m just a big fan.

Is St. Supery Cabernet Sauvignon 2002 the best wine to bring to a dinner party? That’s up to you, but I do know its an amazing choice for the price. I’d love to hear your comments!

Cheers and glug glug!

Suzanne

Hi Party People,

Stemless wine glasses. Yes? No? Maybe so?

Have you seen the stemless wine glasses out there? Are you confused as I am? What the hell is the point? If I wanted to drink wine out of a tumbler like Tony Soprano, I could very well do that. But I LIKE my stems. Wine is a celebration that should remain fancy. So I did a bunch of research, and here is what I can up with comparing the stemless with our old-school stems:

Pros of stemless glasses:

1. Guilt free dish washing

2. Better bar space

CONS:

1. You can’t put your nose in the glass and maximize the aroma (especially a problem with young wines).

2. 98.6 degrees temperature of my hand affects the temperature of my wine.

3. FINGERPRINTS- can’t get a proper impression of the color of the wine or the legs since your hand is covering the whole damn glass.

4. LAST BUT NOT LEAST: you can’t swirl your wine without sloshing.

If this info has just irritated you, because you REALLY REALLY wanted to get them a set of stemless wine glasses, the highest rated one one on the internet right now is Riedel brand. People do swear by them. You can get them at The Wine Club.

I really need your feed back on this. Please post your pros and cons to stems versus no stems, brands, etc. I am new to wine and stemless wine glasses, so please educate me!

There are some really cool wine gadgets and accessories out there, and then are are some really crappy ones. The stain remover we tried was Wine Away by Evergreen Labs, Inc. Did it remove the stain? YES. No one will ever know I dumped red wine all over the carpet. Check them out at www.wineaway.com.

The disposable disks from Epic gave a clean pour, but when you remove it from the bottle, you get splattered! There is no need to use these in everyday life. If you can’t pour a glass of wine without spilling all over yourself, maybe it’s time to take a break and switch to water for an hour or so. If you must use them, keep Wine Away handy!

One brilliant gadget Epic has come out with is their Wine Filter. It seals, preserves, and purifies! They are based out of Newport Beach (I’m jealous) and they are at Epic Gifts.

Another GREAT product we tried was our favorite-Label Lifters. They worked great, and I have been lifting labels ever since. Check out their website or go to your favorite wine and spirits purveyor and pick it up there.

The wine decanter cleaner ROCKS! The best response to this post WINS their VERY OWN wine decanter CLEANER! So Start typing people! Now go play with gadgets! And tell me your favorites!

Glug Glug!
Suz