I was very sad to hear that the father of California wine, Mr. Robert Mondavi, passed away yesterday. Today, though, I was embarrassed to call myself a journalist after seeing the coverage that was given to Mr. Mondavi’s passing and legacy in the news today.
First up, CNN.com. Out of 21 stories featured on the front page, Mr. Mondavi wasn’t mentioned. What was mentioned? “Ashlee Simpson Gets Fairy Tale Wedding”, “Charter Bus Overturns On Freeway, Killing 1″, and my favorite, “Clinton Passes On A Shot Of Bourbon”. You can find the story if you scroll down to the bottom and venture into the “U.S.” section, then find the “West” section.
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It is 3am, I have a belly full of wine, the band Spiritualized is playing on my iTunes, and this futuristic gospel symphony is sounding different than it ever has before, for tonight I learned that the great Robert Mondavi has passed away at the age of 94. I never met the man, but it would’ve been an honor. Mr. Mondavi was an original Mutineer, someone who never accepted things as others saw them. He defied convention and saw beyond others’ convictions of the impossibility of his vision. Hindsight is easy, but venturing into the unknown is a terrifying journey, but it is also at the heart of the forgotten American Dream. Mr. Mondavi did not settle, and he did not let a situation dictate his standard. He is the Michael Jordan of wine, and I am thankful for all of his contributions to the world of wine.
I rarely use the word “value” when talking about wines. Value makes me think cheap, and cheap makes me think bad, and bad makes me think of the Fantastic Four movie, new flavors of soda that are obviously not meant to be, and my ever non-existent love life.
Today though, we’re going to look at wines that, well, are an outstanding value. This means that the wines are very good and very inexpensive. The reason for this is consumer perception and supply and demand.
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The best way to find out what style of beer/ale you like is to try them. This seems obvious but it is so easy to fall into patterns of buying what we know. Here are some different beers that are relatively easy to find and have completely different signatures.
Blanche de Chambly: This is a great example of a Belgium style white from Unibroue and is very clean and refreshing. I recommend this for everyone and you can find it at any grocery store that has a decent beer selection.
Paulaner Hefeweizen: A classic German wheat beer with banana and clove subtly woven throughout this tasty brew. American’s usually put a slice of lemon in their Hefe’s, but I would suggest against this and drink it as the Germans do, just the beer, no lemons or anything else.
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