It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year (with lyrics)

It's the most wonderful time of the year
With the phones jingle belling
And everyone telling you "Try this new beer"
It's the most wonderful time of the year

It's the hap-happiest season of all
With those sales call greetings and drunk happy meetings
When vendors come to call
It's the hap- happiest season of all

There'll be dinners for hosting
Discussions of toasting
And more tasting than you know
There'll be scary wine stories
And tales of the glories of
Winemakers long, long ago

It's the most wonderful time of the year
There'll be much wine tasting
And time will be wasting
When sales are so near
It's the most wonderful time of the year!



If you couldn't tell, it's almost schmoozing season! That wondrous time of the year, when vendors and distributors are calling on all their accounts, trying to set up trade tastings and events and meetings with winemakers, all in the name of moving product! This is one of the best times to buy wine folks, retailers and distributors are trying to make room in the store or warehouse for new stuff, vintage changes, that kind of thing. Already our calendar at work is full, with meetings and trade tastings and public dinners! It's also a good time to do a little schmoozing yourself, you never know what the retailer or sommelier might have hiding in the back, waiting for someone to share their little gem with!

And yes, if you couldn't tell, I wrote those crappy lyrics myself, to the tune of Andy Williams's "The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year"

More Banned Wine...

I went out to dinner tonight with some awesome ladies, I actually think I just had my first "Girl's Night Out" experience, and had a total blast! The food was amazing,the desserts to die for, couldn't have asked for better company, and we had an awesome Virginia wine!

I get home to find this article in my inbox, apparently Alabama has banned the sale of Cycles Gladiator wines because they are a bunch of prudes it shows "side boob". To be fair, it does have a naked woman floating alongside a bicycle, but the image is old as dirt, and it's not like she's showing something I couldn't see on TV right this second. Actresses pose like this all the time, and it's the cover image on Vanity Fair. So why can't a stylized woman with strong ankles do it?

And of course, sales of the Cycles Gladiator line have increased, because seriously, who doesn't love contraband?!?!?

I find this even funnier, because I have a series 3 of their wines on my walls, as art. Or maybe I'm just a perv. ;)

I have discovered the nectar of the DEVIL!!!

I love bubbles, all kinds of bubbles, Champagne, Cremant de whatever, Cava, you get the idea. I don't think bubbles get enough respect, you'd be surprised how well they go with seafood and even some chicken! Try it sometime, a time when you're not celebrating or romancing. Although that's fine, too, if you're celebrating and you have bubbles, invite me!!!
I also have a soft spot for dessert wines. Not just Sauternes (my wallet cringes just mentioning it) or Tokaji, but late-harvest Zins, Banyuls, and now, a fortified Tannat, you also get this idea...
I had the GREAT idea to put them together (and this was better than my ice cream and mustard idea, not as awesome as ice cream and cornichons though...) and *gasp* OMIGOD it's AWESOME!!
It's better than a Kir Royale, but definitely along the same taste profile. Depending on how much of the Tannat you use, you get anywhere from a light pink to an almost blood red!! It's freaking AWESOME!! I cannot stress the awesome-ness of this enough!!
I prefer to use cheap Cava for this, currently I'm using Pere Ventura, which at $15 isn't too much a splurge, and is good enough to drink all by itself.

I warn you, once you start, it's hard to stop, although the Tannat clocks in at 17% abv, so it won't take much. I was totally drunk at 2:30 on Tuesday afternoon!!

It's THE DEVIL!!!