I wound up on the CBS Early Show on July 4th, talking about beers for Independence Day. That, to my mind, meant craft beers brewed in America, as a kind of celebration of our country's history of small-business entrepreneurship and also as a celebration of the abundance of terrific beer being produced in the U.S. right now. Beer-fanatics will notice that I mostly picked bottles from the larger brewers on the craft side—Sam Adams, Sierra Nevada, Anchor Brewing, and so on. I'd love to have included some of my more regional faves, like Tröegs Brewery in Harrisburg, PA (big fan of their Troegenator Double Bock), Two Brothers Brewing in Warrenville, IL (Domaine DuPage French Country Ale—mighty good); Saint Arnold Brewing in Houston (look for the Elissa IPA), or Avery Brewing in Boulder (drink anything they make, seriously), but TV tends to want national—or near national—distribution, so I erred on the side of findability.

Anyway, here's a link to the segment on the CBS site. They don't seem to have the video up, but the content is there at least. They also left out the part where they had the anchors run a three-legged race while balancing raw eggs on spoons, with me standing at the finish line to hand the winner a beer. Really. 

After my appearance on the Early Show this past weekend, I got a number of emails asking for the recipes for the cocktails I mixed, all of which came from our new book, Food & Wine Cocktails '09. I should note that I definitely cannot take credit for the mixology-genius behind these drinks; mostly I hope I executed them in line with their creators' intentions. I can say that they tasted great on the set, though, even with the gale force winds that morning. — R.I.

So, credit where credit is due. Duggan McDonnell of Cantina in San Francisco created the following two drinks for Food & Wine Cocktails '09:

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I know that I definitely haven't finished my shopping, so I'm figuring I must have company out there in the rest of the world, too. Here are some terrific wines and other items (books, chocolates, etc.) that caught my eye recently:

I tasted a plethora of New Zealand Pinots on my recent trip there, but many of them are upcoming releases. I'll blog about those later; in the meantime, the 2006 Peregrine Pinot Noir (about $40, find this wine) is classic Central Otago Pinot, with a sort of blue floral scent (oh, you know what I mean...right?), juicy raspberry fruit, and a brambly, smoky finish. It's big enough to pour with some nice New Zealand grass-fed lamb.

For the crazy funkmeister wine fanatics in your acquaintance, a bottle of the 2000 Chateau Musar Red (about $40, too; find this wine) is just the ticket. It's got that classic Musar aroma of bicycle tire and sweet red cherry, with the same sweet red cherry fruit continuing in the flavor, along with wild strawberries and lightly twiggy tannins (by which I mean not-unpleasantly prickly in a dry twig sort of way). It's a big, dark Musar, representative of the vintage, which Serge Hochar says "was a year of Cabernet." Hochar also says, "If my wines had no V.A., I would stop making Chateau Musar. End of story." So be warned!

Since toasts are inevitable this time of year, Champagne is inevitable as well, and given its inevitability, you might as well pour something really good. Lately I'm liking the Ruinart Brut Rose NV ($75, find this wine). Not cheap, but it's a terrific rosé, dense with flavor even as its graceful structure gives it a kind of Grace Kelly beauty, in a wine way. 

In a non-wine vein, chocolate-genius Drew Shotts of Garrison Chocolates has a nifty and very tasty six-piece box of chocolates ($10) with fillings infused with Pama Pomegranate Liqueur. Too late, most likely, for Christmas, but not too late to order a box for yourself. You deserve one, since you're probably exhausted with all this present-buying craziness.

Lastly, I left one book off of my post about wine-book gifts, which is Ben Wallace's compelling page-turner dissection of one of the bigger wine scandals to happen in, oh, the past century or so. The Billionaire's Vinegar: The Mystery of the World's Most Expensive Bottle of Wine rolls scads of money, super-valuable (or not so!) counterfeit wines, some very high-profile collectors, shady business dealings, and a few read-it-to-believe-it debaucheries involving bottle after bottle of ultra-rare wine together into one big juicy narrative. I've never read a wine book that was as much of a page-turner; it's also smart and well written, which doesn't hurt.

And that's it. I'm out of here until after New Year's. 

That ol' holiday entertaining season is upon us (perhaps you noticed?) which means that the season of morning shows running segments about holiday entertaining is, too. Which is why I'm hopping in a cab when it's still dark outside tomorrow morning and heading over to the Saturday Early Show on CBS to do a 7:45 segment on holiday punches. On the docket are Fish House Punch—a Philadelphia classic that my charming wife's grandfather used to debilitate people with—and a brandy-red wine punch; I'll probably have a few other tasty-looking punches sitting around on the set as well, like this Limoncello Collins, and a Citrus-Cinnamon non-alcoholic punch that's ideal for kids, teetotalers, hamsters, and other non-likker-drinkin' folk.

Here's the video of the segment, too. 

This year saw a veritable flood of wine-related books. As always, some were good, some were great, and some were dreary. We'll skip the drear—it's already a worrisome enough holiday season without nattering on and on about bad books. And in fact, if cheering up is what you're after, one solution (at least for people who like wine) is to dash out and buy The Wine Snob's Dictionary, by David Kamp and David Lynch. Kamp, who writes and edits at Vanity Fair, is the satiric impresario behind the Snob's Dictionary series of books; Lynch, who I'm assuming supplied the insider-wine-info—and, knowing him, no small percentage of the wit as well—has written all over the place, including for F&W. (He's also co-author with Joe Bastianich of Vino Italiano, one of the best books out there on Italian wine.)

The Wine Snob's Dictionary operates nicely in its dual role of snarkily taking apart wine-geek pretensions while actually imparting useful information at the same time, e.g., "Volatile Acidity: Common wine defect caused by excessive production of acetic acid, resulting in a vinegary smell. Traditionally abbreviated to V.A. by Snobs, who like to use the term to intimidate pourers and sommeliers." 

Heading entirely in the other direction is Clive Coates magisterial (really) The Wines of Burgundy. Nigh on 900 pages of Burgundy-detail, with lucid tasting notes going back to vintages in the 1960s, a section of precisely detailed maps, and substantial profiles of vintages, producers and appellations, this is not a book for the casual wine fan. But people who are into Burgundy rarely fall into that category anyway. 

Since there are, of course, a lot of casual wine fans out there, it's probably more appropriate to throw a copy of Tyler Colman's A Year of Wine their way. Colman, alias Dr. Vino, takes a seasonal conceit as the organizing principle of his lively, approachable, basic guide to wine. It's a loose structure—I'm not sure why one should travel to Oregon in July rather than August, say, or June, though I'm happy to agree that Grüner Veltliner does have a green, nifty, springtime feel to it—but it's a functional one, and Colman's advice throughout is presented in pleasantly non-technical, casual language.

For friends who like a little conflict with their Cabernet, buy them a copy of Alice Feiring's part-vino-autobiography/part-impassioned-screed The Battle for Wine & Love. Feiring is as fervently in favor of funk, wildness, tradition, organic viticulture, natural yeasts and so on as she is fervently against new oak, large corporations that make wine, cold maceration, and the influence of wine critic (and F&W contributing editor) Robert Parker, among other things. The result is a bit like touring the world's vineyards with a slightly crazed and often funny Bohemian Luddite who REALLY loves wine—or at least loves the wines that she doesn't really hate. This makes for a fairly entertaining romp. The Parker-bashing gets tedious, to say the least, but it's made up for by passages like Feiring's account of working the harvest at Clos Roche Blanche, which is both lyrical and deeply real, and makes most of her philosophical and esthetic points more effectively than the portions of the book that are more overtly tendentious. 

If you're the kind of person who likes food with their wine—which I suppose means if you're breathing and ambulatory, and your jaws still work—then it's worth checking out Cathy and Tony Mantuano's Wine Bar Food. This isn't technically a wine book; instead, it's a cookbook that happens to focus on fairly simple (and mighty delicious) recipes inspired by the wine bars of several Mediterranean cities: Venice, Rome, Barcelona, Athens, etc. Tony Mantuano is the longtime chef (and partner) at Chicago's Spiaggia; we ran a few of these recipes in our April issue last year, so feel free to test-drive one or two before shelling out for the book. Or just throw caution to the winds—my guess is you won't regret it.

Lastly, in a more broadly alcoholic way, there's Kingsley Amis. Everyday Drinking: The Distilled Kingsley Amis is a reissue of three books on wine, liquor and beer that he wrote between 1971 and 1984. Some of the terms are dated, but Amis's gracefully lethal wit is as fresh now as it was then. Regarding serving Champagne: "...see that the wine is properly chilled; not less than two hours in the refrigerator is my advice. This should be common knowledge, but the world is full of idiots who buy a bottle at the supermarket, let it kick around half the morning in the boot of the car, open it on arriving home and are amazed when the stuff goes all over the kitchen ceiling." Not one to mince words, Mr. Amis, but then he never was. 

I've just learned, thanks to the erstwhile blogging efforts of my friend Dr. Vino, that a large glass of wine is the caloric equivalent of two jaffa cakes and an onion bhaji. I think I'd be more alarmed by this if I'd ever actually eaten a jaffa cake (Dr. V. is in the same boat), but mostly I'm amused. You, too, can be amused by similar equations—four large glasses = hamburger + jaffa cake + onion bhaji + doughnut + slice of pizza—by checking out this nifty caloric translator on the BBC Radio 1 site. It's very entertaining, especially if you're suffering from brain-deadening jetlag, as I am, having returned late last night from several days of zooming around vineyards in New Zealand.

I'll mention while I'm at it that Dr. V., alias Tyler Colman, has just published a very engaging book about wine (appropriately enough—lucky for all of us he didn't decide to become Dr. Kelp Juice) entitled A Year of Wine: Perfect Pairings, Great Buys, and What to Sip for Each Season. You could run right out and buy it, or you could wait until I post—in theory later this week—the pithy review I've been planning of several recently released wine books. Ideal for last-minute holiday shopping...

There's a remarkable article in today's Daily Mail, which I got to by way of my restaurant-critic pal Alison Cook at the Houston Chronicle, that somehow finds a charming note amidst all the horrorshow of the attacks in Mumbai (follow this link to Suketu Mehta's superb op-ed piece in the NY Times). The story involves a very lucky British fellow named Nick Hayward, five hours locked in a restaurant in the Taj Mahal hotel, some vintage Cristal, and a perfectly amazing headwaiter. And that's all I'll tell you, since anything else would wipe out the perfectly wonderful ending of the story.

But I will recommend a few Champagnes for the holiday season while I'm at it. These five are all grower Champagnes; I do intend, before the end of the month, to weigh in on a selection of more widely available brut Champagnes from the major houses—though we all know the road that's paved with good intentions (or with unbought stuffed dogs, if you're a Hemingway buff).

Without further ado:

Pierre Peters Cuvée Reserve Blanc de Blancs NV ($34, find this wine) Tree fruits such as white peach and pear define the scent of this lively, graceful Blanc de Blancs, made by a family who moved to Champagne from Luxembourg in the 1800s. Very graceful, svelte stuff.

Larmandier-Bernier Blanc de Blancs Brut ($45, find this wine) This all-Chardonnay cuvee has rapier-like acidity and focus, partly thanks to a very low dosage (the small amount of sweetened wine added after a Champagne’s second fermentation). It’s produced entirely organically by husband-and-wife team Pierre and Sophie Larmandier (who also just ran the New York Marathon together).

René Geoffroy Rosé de Saignée Brut NV ($50, find this wine) Luscious rosé Champagne,  produced using the traditional (and time-consuming) saignée method, in which the winemaker bleeds off the pink wine from the tank of fermenting Pinot Noir grapes.

Roger Pouillon La Fleur de Mareuil NV ($60, find this wine) Equal parts Pinot Noir and Chardonnay go into this complex, slightly honeyed, barrel-fermented Champagne, from a small, family-owned estate in the village of Mareuil sur Aÿ. I thought this wine was just wonderful when I tasted it earlier this fall—unfortunately, it's not exactly easy to track down.

Vilmart & Cie Grand Cellier Brut NV ($80, find this wine) Vilmart's full-bodied, powerful Champagnes are exquisitely creamy and rich, with a light oak barrel influence that’s unusual in Champagne, but characteristic of Vilmart.
 

I was on CBS's The Early Show this past Saturday, with some affordable wine recommendations for Thanksgiving (and every other upcoming holiday), and I keep receiving emails from friends wondering about wines that go with turkey, so evidently not everyone has their holiday grocery shopping done. To that end, here are a few of my favorite wines for Thanksgiving. These are just bottles I happen to like, that I think go well with a wide range of flavors—which is the key to a good Thanksgiving wine.

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It's unlikely that many people reading this will end up at Kasper's Meat Market in Weimar, Texas anytime soon, which is a shame, because the bbq brisket they serve up each weekend is mighty good stuff (their dry sausages are great, too, and you can get those any day of the week). I had it on New Year's Eve, thanks to my father & stepmother, whose farm in Schulenburg is a fifteen-minute drive away. And, since it's my purpose on earth to explore oddball pairings when the opportunity presents itself—admittedly a weird purpose on earth, but as my five-year-old daughter is wont to say, "you get what you get and you don't get upset"—I opened a bottle of Deutz Brut Rosé 2002 ($75) with the meat. One doesn't normally associate rosé Champagne with bbq, but I have to say it worked pretty darn well; the Champagne was forceful enough to hold its own with the meat, its red berry flavors actually working better than Kasper's sauce (I love everything about Kasper's—not least that they raise and butcher their own cows—but their bbq sauce is a weak spot. On the other hand, as John Ruskin noted, the demand for perfection is always a sign of a misunderstanding of the ends of art, so what the hell.) Anyway, you may not get to Kasper's and you may not have a bottle of '02 Deutz on hand, but if you've got some rosé Champagne and some bbq close by, don't be held back by the seemingly awkward high-low matchup. Pop the dern cork and start eating.

Champagne and sparkling wine sales are rising like, well, bubbles in a glass of bubbly this year—U.S. fizz-fans are on line to down about 900 million glasses of the stuff, about four percent over our consumption in 2006 (so says the 2007 Impact Annual Wine Study, by way of this article in USA Today). Do your part and hit the local liquor mart before New Year's arrives and you panic at the sight of an empty ice bucket. And if you want real Champagne—that is, the famous bubbly wine that comes specifically from the Champagne region in France—here are a few that I think are winners:

Oudinot Cuvée Brut NV ($35)
This small brand is part of the much larger Laurent-Perrier empire, though it started out at the end of the 19th century, when Jules Edouard Oudinot started making Champagne from his family vineyard in Avize. A floral scent and creamy, peachy flavors define this Brut.

Gosset Brut Excellence NV ($46)
Gosset, a small but very high-quality producer, was founded in the town of Aÿ in 1584. Unlike most other Champagnes, Gosset's wines-like this citrusy Brut-do not undergo malolactic fermentation (a kind of secondary fermentation that helps soften the wine), making them bright and remarkably zesty.

Deutz Brut Classic NV ($49)
The Deutz style is delicate and aromatically complex, as in this subtle, blossom-scented bottling. It's blended from equal parts Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier, largely sourced from the Marne subregion.

Bollinger Special Cuvée Brut NV ($56)
Bollinger, which owns an unusually high percentage of estate vineyards for a Champagne house (about 60% of its production) is known for its full-bodied density of flavor. This biscuity, luscious bottling is a great example of the Bollinger style.

Taittinger Prelude Brut NV ($75)
Taittinger's Prelude, an equal blend of Chardonnay and Pinto Noir, is sourced only from grand cru villages, making its price a bit higher but adding finesse to its peach-and-orange-inflected flavors. It's luxuriously creamy at first, and finishes with mouthwatering acidity.