Summer Time Perfect for French Rosé!

Memorial Day has passed and unofficially welcomed the Summer of 2012.  With that, comes the arrival of a smorgasbord of French Rosés.  We currently have an offering of these lush pink wines from $11.99 to $19.99.  French Rosés are Dry with a very pleasing mouth feel.  They are a pefect accompaniment to the lighter fare of summer.  One of my favorite pairings is Rosé with a salad that has  walnuts and bleu cheese in it.  While you can pair these delectable wines with almost anything you wish, you can always use it as refreshing summer sipper paired with friends and conversation.  Remember, you can always find out what we are tasting in the cellar by visiting our website.  www.bruningswinecellar.com

The Sparkling Rant

I forgot I promised you a rant a couple of weeks ago. Since then, I've been on vacation. I'll have a post about the wine/beer/culinary scene in Charleston, SC soon.

First, though, is that rant.

Why can't you people drink some sparkling wine when it isn't the week between Christmas and New Year? By 'you people' I mean the ones who come into the wine shop, not the one who reads this stuff. (Hi, Mom!) But I digress.

So, yeah. We sold the crap out of Champagne and a few other sparklings (notably some wines from the absolutely amazing Cava house Raventos i Blanc) around the holidays. Now I can't give a bottle away.

What gives?

This stuff is awesome, you know, and the right one can be genius with food. Yes, I mean that. Champagne can be an amazing complement to an entire meal, not just an appetizer or dessert.

Anyway. Whatever. Drink sparkling. You'll thank me later.

Culinary delights at the Wympee Burger

Yes, you read that right.

And yes, I'm serious. Sort of.

This Dayton landmark has been transformed into a little gem of a restaurant/diner called Olive. They call themselves "An Urban Dive", and the best possible connotation of that phrase just about nails it. You can see a nice photo of the dining room down to the right.

I had dinner there last night, and the place is absolutely genius. All comers are welcome at Olive: they are a locavore restaurant catering to vegetarians, omnivores, carnivores and the gluten-free crowd. Freshness is a must with all of their ingredients, and they have really inventive plates of terribly delicious food.

I went for the Tuscan Chicken Grilled Cheese. Balsamic marinated mozzarella, tomato, pesto and chicken on grilled focaccia. It was pretty tasty, and the sweet potato fries were fantastic, too. I've got my eye on several other menu offerings, as well, so I'm sure to go back soon to try them all.

The place is BYO. All they do is charge you $2 for each wine glass you use. Which is kind of awesome. I was with one of my wine reps and we each brought a totally bad-ass bottle which would've set us back an arm and a leg in most restaurants. My rep brought a bottle of Greg Brewer's Diatom Chardonnay Hamon, which can't be bought in Ohio, and I schlepped a bottle of Evening Land Burgundy, which was delicious and can be purchased here (hint, hint). My bill was all of $12.

Go. Support great local places like this one. Reservations are recommended; they can only seat about 30 people. olivedive.com

Hello? Is there anybody in there?

That's what anybody who has looked at this blog in the last year has been thinking.

So, yeah, somebody is still in here. I've been busy.

After being consumed for the better part of the last year with the sale of our old building and the build-out of and re-location to our new home a couple of miles up the street, it's been so far, so good in the new digs. We've been getting a lot of compliments on the look and feel of the wine shop and many have commented on its more appropriately wine-specific atmosphere. I'm pretty happy with the way things have turned out, and it's been gratifying to hear that our customers think we made some smart decisions as far as aesthetics and shop-ability go.

That behind us, I'll hopefully find some time and some inspiration

to resurrect this thing.

For now, tide yourselves over with a couple of photos of the new place. I'll be back with one of my now-famous rants shortly.

Relatively shortly, anyway. I mean, it won't be next October or something.

Riesling and you, part tou

Well, as I mentioned a few weeks ago, I've been thinking a lot about Riesling lately. This is perhaps the greatest white wine grape on the planet.

Now you get to jump in with both feet. Next week we're going to taste nothing but white wines from Germany and Austria, including five Rieslings. These will range from searingly bone dry to dessert-wine sweet.

I've had my trepidations about trying something like this, mostly because many want a range of different varietals at a tasting. And everybody wants to end with a big Cab. I've decided I don't really care, though. Once in a while, at least, we can do something aimed at perhaps opening up some eyes and challenging preconceived notions and tastes. If you want to just drink some Cab or Chard, you can go to a restaurant and order whatever you want. Here, you're at my mercy.

Please come anyway. : )

A list, or is that A-list?

In a slightly delayed reaction to the annual Top 100 lists of the biggest wine rags, I've compiled a sort of top 10 list for 2010. I tasted a ton of great wine in 2010, and I thought it would be fun to reflect on the wines that got me all hot and bothered. You can head on over to the Bruning's website to view my picks.

Sugar, acid, food pairing and you: a quick guide to Riesling

So I'm at a German wine seminar the other day, and a few small revelations hit me.

First up, we tasted through six wines from the same Rheingau producer, Johannes Leitz (say it like 'lights'). The presenter told us the stats of the first two wines (sugar level, acid and dry extract), then asked us to guess the sugar level of the third. Everybody guessed slightly higher than the last, but in fact it was about 4 times as much. Why couldn't we tell? Because there was more acid in the wine, as well, drying up the finish and causing my mouth to water as soon as I spit. The finish removed all perception of sugar, and left me thirsting for more.

Later, we discussed food pairing. Inevitably, Riesling gets pigeonholed into pairings with Asian cuisine. It's understandable. It's great with spicy food. However, that acid that we talked about also makes it great with savory and fatty foods. Think about this: we have no qualms pairing orange juice with fried eggs and bacon, or a Coke with a cheeseburger, yet both of these are far sweeter than even the sweetest of table Rieslings. Why does it work? Again, acid. Acid cuts through the fat, providing a brilliant complementary pairing, just like Pinot Noir (a high-acid red wine...well, at least the good ones are) with Salmon.

So go ahead and enjoy that sweeter-than-your-norm Riesling. And pair it up with a nice filet mignon or cream-based dish. You'll be surprised at the results.