Sometimes we all need a drink

Your Mayor tastes wine at Fleming's with Ti Miller. Ti heads up the staff of hostesses who make the Fleming's experience start off with style.

Meritage Wines and Pronunciation

When we see proprietary names on wine bottles, name like Insignia from Joseph Phelps or Opus One from the formidable duo of Mondavi and Rothschild, these names are chosen many times because they lack the required percentage of any one grape which would allow them to be called by the varietal name. A special group of these wines choose to emulate the blends of grapes made popular in Bordeaux. If they comply with certain standards, they may carry the name Meritage. The Meritage Association sets these standards. The wines must be a blend of two or more Bordeaux varietals, be the winery’s best wine of it’s type, be made by a US winery from AOC grapes and limit production to less than 25000 cases. The word Meritage was selected in a contest of 6000 entries in 1989, and combines the words "merit” and “heritage”. So the frenchified pronunciation Meritahj is incorrectly applied and the actual pronunciation rhymes with the word of it’s origin, heritage. Think there are only five varietals in Bordeaux?
Allowed grapes include Cab Sauv, Malbec, Merlot, Cab Franc, Gros Verdot, Petite Verdot, Carmenere, and St. Macaire for reds, and Semillon, Sauv Blanc and Muscadelle for whites. Yep there are White Meritages!

The Not So Great Sulfite Debate

Got a question from a friend in a bar last week asking for my input on sulfites in wine. Because of a law in the US, wines with 10 mg/L of sulfites must be labeled as “contains sulfites”. This has led many to believe that sulfites are not in old world wines. The fact is that sulfites, a resultant salt from the addition of sulfur dioxide, is used by most wineries/vineyards worldwide. European wines contain an average of 80mg/L, about the same as found in US wines. In the vineyard, sulfur helps prevent rot and fungus. After the crush, sulfur protects against bacteria, and slows oxidation. Organic wines have no sulfur added, but these still represent a small amount of worldwide production.
Sources differ as to the effects on humans of the sulfites in wines. Some claim allergies to the sulfite gives them headaches. Other sources believe that while there indeed may be chemicals in red wine that can cause headache, sulfites ain’t it. If you believe that sulfites cause you problems, take a simple test. Dried apricots contain high levels of sulfites, much higher than in wine. If you are a “sulfite sufferer’, but get no headache from these, I recommend you eat more frequently when you drink wines, and moderate consumption. If the apricots give you the same symptoms, (and one source says you will be the first they have ever heard of), then perhaps sulfites do indeed cause you problems. Want to eliminate the sulfites in wine? Apparently, the addition of hydrogen peroxide to wine will eliminate the sulfites. This link leads you to studies which go into detail on that, as well as debunks many sulfite myths. As for me, well, chemistry discussion itself gives me a headache. Moderation in everything, including moderation!

Humble Mayoral Beginnings

I recently received from Fleming’s Corporate offices a request for interview for their newsletter. One of the questions they are asking me is where the nickname “Da Mayor” came from. As I thought back on the time I’ve spent at Fleming’s, my time as your Mayor seems both fleeting and forever. Wowed by the “100 wines by the glass”, I changed my allegiances for 4 night a week barfly from a local Italian haunt to Fleming’s when they opened almost three years ago. Immediately hitting it off with the bartenders and management (it’s amazing how friendly people get when you reach a certain amount in annual consumption in one place), I started holding forth at the bar, as a sort of upscale Cliff Clavin, doing blind tastings and generally enjoying myself and learning all I could about wine. The ambiance of the bar is such that it attracted an upscale crowd who were interested in learning about wine, so I seemed to naturally move among them asking what they liked, recommending new things, and becoming a mainstay. Folks began to call me the Godfather, because every time I walked in, all the staff and patrons would feign reverence to me. I was thrilled when finally a friend blurted out “You must be the Mayor of this place!” and the nickname was born. Fortunately, I didn’t seem to chase the patrons away, so our Operating Partner, John van Peppin, encouraged me to continue. We started the now famous Monday Night tastings, and that was followed by the Newsletter and the Wine Blog. I am fortunate to have become Da Mayor of Fleming’s. It has made me many new friends, taught me about wines from a “people down” view, and rekindled my writing bug from years past. You have all been a key part to my ride. Thanks for coming along, and I hope to see you soon tasting great food and wines.

Hot Time; Summer in the City

It’s summer in Richmond, and the thought of a big fat Cabernet is, well, not exactly appetizing right now is it? One of the things I have espoused on these pages is how good white wines taste in the summertime, and how hard it is to get red wine drinkers to come over to the “light” side. Even if you try lighter style reds, the temperature outside seems to overpower “room temperature” wines inside. If you are not amenable to trying whites, there are a few chilling ideas to help you get through the summer time. Merlot and Cabernet do lose something when served too cold, but try chilling your Syrah/Shiraz or Grenache based wines. Most of these lose much less flavor on the chilling, and as we handle the wine glass, it warms back to a temperature that releases any missing flavors. You can, dare I say it, even put ice in your wine for a quick chill. Come on, don’t giggle. Your wine is about 85% water right now. A little more won’t ruin it! You scotch drinkers know that a “wee dram” of water added to your glass of Glenmorangie actually brings out nuanced characters in the whisky.
While we are on the subject, ice and wine have one more interesting use. Have a half bottle of something wonderful left but you are leaving on vacation? Pour the remains into a plastic baggie, carefully squeeze out the air and pop it into the freezer. You will do it no damage, and on thawing two weeks later you will have had none of the oxidation that can occur with even Vacu Sealed wines. Heck, you can even thaw it in the microwave with no ill effect!

Of Brick Walls And Mondays

This Monday marks another first Monday at Fleming's so I hope my worthy readership will come out and join us for yet another tasting of three wines and some great food. Blogging is a little bit like talking to a brick wall, you never really know if anyone is listening. So perhaps show that you are by coming out to see us this week.
There are so many people I know moving to NY this summer! I have 5 friends all headed to the big apple in the next month or so. My loss and their gain, but most will stay in touch and not make the "Brick Wall" syndrome continue. Once you get tired of talking to the wall, it's pretty easy to stop.