Updates and Bullet Points

My how a year goes by! Last May 10th 2008 my wife Lisa and I were married. Time flies while the economy goes down the drain! Just a few brief notes of what I have been up to wine wise, A LOT! I really wish I had more time to get into detail more and I may not. Also, I am looking to you readers to know what you are looking to hear about? Maybe a wine topic such as...how do I track my wine collection best? Is there software out there to manage and value my collection real time? Maybe cheap white wines for the summer under $15? The list can go on forever, but you will be noted if I pick your topic so get to it and write in! I can also plan a MEAN trip to Napa soup to nuts so if you are headed out there or thinking about it drop me a line!

- We had a winemaker over for dinner at my house this past week. Russell From makes the wines at Herman Story (and a lot of other jobs at the winery in Paso Robles, CA) and was in town to meet and greet with the wine peoples and a few of his customers. We enjoyed his wines and will have a full feature blog for sure on this dinner, don miss it! Russell is a hard working dude that is passionate about his wines but also loves a great beer. My kind of dude so stay tuned!

- Spent a week in Grand Cayman drinking some fine wines and enjoying the top notch cuisine. Lisa and I spent our anniversary here and besides eating our way through the culinary scene were able to scuba 3 days, play some golf, snorkel and spend a lot of time at the beach and pool (bar).

- Visited one of my favorite wine bars again in NYC - Terroir - with my best friend and best wine friend...man they have an awesome selection and great people behind the bar!

- Have consumed various amounts of good cheap wines I need to get on the blog. Chesnay is by far one of my best finds, but have had a stunning $14 Bordeaux and a Traminer from Hungary that was so out of the box most that had it did not know what to think of it.

- Had an old throwback 1999 Napa Cabernet that I was wowed by after having a bottle a few weeks ago that was average at best. 2007 wines from California have started to arrive, Pinot, Chard Zin and Syrah - DON"T MISS this great vintage. The 2007 Napa Cabernet will be out next year - most are just about done with barrel time to be bottled this summer!

- 2008 Bordeaux futures have hit the market at the lowest prices for a quality vintage. The greatest part is that most of the great scores from the critics are wines priced in the $40-80 price zone. Not everyday wine but if you were thinking of picking up a case this is the vintage to do it with. I'm kicking myself for buying so much 2006! Great names so far:

Branon
Clos St. Martin
Duhart Milon
Gazin
Haut Bergey
Larcis Ducasse
Leoville Barton
Pavie Macquin
Pichon Baron
Pichon Lalande
Pontet Canet
Smith Haut Lafite

Sorry for the delay, work and the fact that I have not had internet access at home has kept me off the internet for a while.

Cheers,
Tom