I’m not sure what, but I found it interesting and thought you might too.  As posted by The Cellarist:

Amount of wine produced in states that McCain won: 4.3 Million Gallons Amount of wine produced in states that Obama won: 773 Million Gallons Percentage of wine produced in America that comes from states that Obama carried: 98.6

National Geographic has posted a interactive page called Hangover Helpers.  It features several remedies from around the world.  Many of them are common knowledge:  For example, Americans drink tomato juice with an egg yolk, Worchestershire sauce, pepper and a shot (isn’t that a bloody mary?).  Italians drink coffe, while Russians sweat it out in a sauna.  I think the Dutch have the best idea, drink beer.  I have extensive experience with hangovers, and I’ve found that sleeping through the pain is the best remedy.  Of course, staying drunk one way to avoid a hangover alltogether.  However, I think I’d rather have a hangover than eat pickled haring (Germany) or drinking soured milk (Poland).

I wouldn’t say this is dead on, but I did get a couple of chuckles from it.  Quite honestly, it’s been a slow week in the wine world, and I feel the urge to post something…  The English are drinking more American wine than French wine (primarily contributed to the volume of Rose consumed)…  Some guy in Australia  is making wine infused with insane amounts of reservatrol, which is the antioxidant that cleans your arteries…  A number of rich folks have decided that investing in wine is a safer bet than Wall Street…

I try to weed out the crap and stick to quality news, but I need something to work with.  I guess I’ll have to get hammered at a new bar or consume ungodly amounts of some interesting wine and make my own news.  I just can’t count on the powers-that-be to fill my blog with worthy material.  I’m off to conduct some “research”.  If anyone needs me I’ll be drinking my way to a better blog.

Oh yeah, follow this link if you want to see Cracked’s list.

I always get confused when I’m picking out a bottle of sparkling wine.  Do I prefer Brut or Extra Dry?  I know one is sweet, and the other is not.  The logical approach is that extra dry would not be the sweeter of the two, but the logical approach does not work in this case.  I found an article that explains the variances in the sweetness of Champagnes and posted my findings below.

Brut-A dry wine, that is most drinkers will not taste any sweetness.

Extra Dry-Most people should taste a hint, but not an abundance of sweetness.

Sec-These wines have a higher level of sweetness that is obvious to most palates.

Demi-Sec-The level of sweetness rivals a dessert wine.

Doux-A wine that is extremely sweet, each liter contains at least 50 grams of residual sugar, whatever that means.

Keep in mind that a sparkling wine can only be called Champagne if it is grown in that region of France.  Also keep in mind that there are some amazing sparklings out there that are not Champagne.  Try a Prosecco this New Year instead.  If you like Italian wines, pick up a bottle of Spumante.  Sparkling from Spain goes by the name of Cava.   Whatever incarnation you choose, keep in mind that big bottles are fun, and sparklings are readily available in Magnum and Jeroboam (Double-Magnum) sizes.

Its press release claims Once Upon a Vine is, “What’s been missing from the wine bookshelf.” I have to admit that it does seem like a nice break from the volumes of reference materials often associated with the wine scene. It’s probably best to let them explain the book themselves:

Once Upon A Vine shares the stories of 24 winemakers…Not a wine tasting guide, not a tour book, not a wine education course, this book offers a whole new way to open the cellar door for anyone with any interest in wine. Once Upon A Vine uncorks true life stories, sagas about choices made, luck, hope and dreams realized that can both inspire the reader - and clarify the choices at the wine shop. “When you know a winery’s secret story,” Reynolds concludes, “you’ll always remember the wine.”

I like the fact that the stories all check in at under 10 pages, and are divided into six categories (ranging from Strong Women to Bootstrap). There is one troubling issue. It appears to only be offered through its own, private website: www.OnceUponAVineTheBook.com. Neither it nor any other work by Judy Reynolds is available at Amazon, and a news search turned up a bunch of nothing. Jane Seymour wrote the forward, if that means anything to you. I’m not completely sold, but will probably give it a look.

Update:  I was contacted by the author herself (see her comment on this post) and she has promised a copy of the book to JohnnyWino.  She is indeed selling the book independently, but does carry some hearty credentials.  I’ll be sure to keep you updated.  There’s still some time left to order a copy for your favorite oenophile before Christmas!

Esquire magazine has created a page titled “The Best Bars in America”. I typed in Texas, only to find that Houston has been entirely left off the listing. There are a few bars from Austin, but none I’ve ever heard of. I’m hoping that this is a work in progress and will continue to grow, since there is a place for you to nominate your favorite watering hole. I’m headed there shortly to try to put Houston on the map. Actually Katy, since the only bar that comes to mind is Mo’s Place. Come to think of it, most places I visit in town are chains or wine dives.

This is a very informative site, although somewhat disturbing. You input what you drank last night, and it translates the calories into the equivalent amount of food. I’m not sure what a jaffa cake or onion bhaji are, but I don’t think they’re healthy. I suggest trying this when you’ve finished drinking, so it doesn’t ruin your buzz. Yet one more reason to curse the BBC.

On Wednesday, Fiona and I packed up and headed to the Valley for a Thanksgiving feast. To ensure we were properly equipped, we brought several of our favorite bottles of wine from Houston. Sure, there’s plenty of wine in McAllen, but we thought it would be best to come prepared. After all, we wouldn’t arrive until late and didn’t want to have to search for the perfect bottle after a six-hour drive.

I dropped Fiona off at the swanky new sushi house and headed to see my old pal Donnie. I neglected to bring any alcohol with me, because I really didn’t know what to expect. Donnie rarely drinks anymore (gasp, shock, amazement) so I didn’t want to pressure him. Turns out, he’s ready for a few drinks and actually agrees to down a couple bottles of white wine with me. We had a nice Chardonnay and moved into some cheaper stuff when Fiona returned from dinner. Darel and Sarah arrived shortly afterward, and our reserves were dwindling fast.

“Pam’s got some wine that’s been around forever,” Donnie offered.

“Do you think she’d mind?” I replied.

“She doesn’t drink the stuff, so we should.” a slightly buzzed Donnie concluded. As we raided her stash, I found a nice Rioja. Perfect. A good wine, but not expensive enough to make me feel guilty. Then I saw the date on the bottle. 1982. There was no way my conscience would let me pop that one open. Ah, this will work, Chateau Ste. Michelle Carbenet Savignon. Wait, it’s a 1993-fifteen years old. Damn, is she a collector or what? We finally settled for an unfamiliar bottle of Cab in a brightly colored bottle. It was the youngest of the bunch, made in 2002.

I really didn’t know what to expect. By no means was this a wine that was meant to be saved. Just your average, everyday bottle of California red. However, it happened to be six years old. My glass had been empty for a full ten minutes, so I pulled the cork. Wow! I’ve downed plenty of wine over the past few years, but never really dabbled in the vintage crus. This was way different than what I’m accustomed to. It tasted so complete and ready. Smooth and velvety on the tongue. Everyone agreed, and it was gone in a matter of minutes.

We needed another bottle, and something from a convenience store would not satisfy this thirst. I still couldn’t bring myself to open the Rioja, but I had no problem opening the ‘93 Chateau Ste. Michelle. Again, I was entirely blown away. I savored every drop I managed to pour for myself as I tried to explain to Donnie how this experience would forever change me as a wine drinker. Over the remainder of the holiday, I found it hard to swallow the swill we carted around 350 miles for Thanksgiving.

I didn’t get a chance to talk to Donnie for a couple of days, but I was anxious to hear how his sister reacted to our pilferage. After some research on the net, I found that the 1993 was available on Robert Parker’s site for about $20. I didn’t feel so bad knowing that it could easily be replaced if needed. When we did speak, the first thing I asked about was the wine.

“Was she pissed.”

“Not at all. She said that that shit had been sitting around too long and needed to be thrown out.”

First, I was speechless. Then, I was mad-at myself for not going after the 1982 Rioja. I told Donnie to throw it my way, but never got a chance to get my hands on it. I’m hoping it will be there when I return. I’m thinking I have some unfinished business to tend to in the Valley.