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.

I found this interesting enough to share. Distillers are so vain. Think about it. All the best hooch is named after a person. If you would like to know more about the name on the label, click here. I would never name a whiskey after myself. I’m not sure Weezer Whiskey could ever be taken seriously, regardless of how good it was.

And I’m not talking about the holidays. We had the pleasure of sampling a couple varieties of this year’s Beaujolais Nouveau Thursday night before Pentasul’s Christmas Dinner. I have to applaud the marketing they’ve done with this wine. When we popped the cork, I felt like a little kid seeing his first Santa Claus of the season. This year’s Georges Deboeuf is wonderful! Someday, Fiona and I will plan a trip to France and participate in the “race” described below. This year, I’m venturing to Spec’s for a case.

As the clock strikes midnight on the third Thursday of November, the new vintage of Beaujolais , Beaujolais Nouveau, is released to the world! Over 60 million bottles make the trek to Paris for worldwide distribution, of which Germany is the leading importer. This is a young wine (only 6 weeks old), grown from the Gamay grape, and is very fruity, light-bodied, and virtually tannin-free making for an extremely easy-to-drink red wine. It is best served chilled to really bring the fruit forward and is a popular complement to Thanksgiving dinners, in part due to its annual release date and in part due to its food-friendliness.

According to a French law passed in 1985, Beaujolais Nouveau may not be released earlier than the third Thursday of November. As a result, tradition and custom have set in to make the annual release race of this much loved wine a fun-filled event. Starting with the hand-picking of the grapes in the Beaujolais growing region (part of Burgundy ), followed by carbonic maceration, pressing, and fermentation and on to speedy bottling all to culminate in the midnight release on the third Thursday of November. Next vintners race to see whose Beaujolais Nouveau will be the first to fill the bars and bistros of the world awaiting the new vintage. They have employed all methods of transport as part of the fun and sport – from trucks to trains, jets to hot air balloons to rush their vintage to the front of the uncorking lines. Banners proclaiming, “Le Beaujolais Nouveau est arrive!” – “The New Beaujolais has arrived!” are scattered throughout wine shops, enticing those who are seeking a light-hearted, fruit-filled wine to decorate their holiday tables, and for a mere $6-10 a bottle, the decoration comes fairly cheap!

The above information was pasted from an email my wife sent out to a friend asking for a good Thanksgiving wine. I would give proper citation, but I have no idea where she found it.

Mick sent me this link, and it made me want to post. It’s been a long time, but I’m still alive. Thanks to Chieftan for Portuguese cork. I’m really looking forward to some Thanksgiving Wine (Beaujolais Nouveau). Best Wishes for the holidays.

We had plans to go to the community playhouse for a murder mystery this month, but plans change. House of Blues is opening in Houston, and one of the shows really stood out. Ghostland Observatory is an Austin duo that, quite simply, rocks. Check out their MySpace here. Their sound is hard to categorize, so you’ll just have to check them out for yourselves. This will be our first show in a long time, and I’m totally stoked. It will be one of the first shows in the new venue, and it’s sure to deliver.

Update: The show was awesome! Hard Rock will be the place to see a show in Houston once they complete construction. My only complaint, other than $7 beers, is that concerts have changed. Since when are you required to say “Excuse Me” while pushing your way to the front of the stage? We received several comments from people who were offended by this behavior. Hello! This is a rock concert! The band was incredible and I highly suggest seeing them while they are still playing the smaller venues.

We’re celebrating life and electricity tonight. Ike shook the house for several hours this morning, but all is well here in Katy. There are many in the area that have not been so fortunate. The coastal area is, for the most part, devastated. Flooding and fire, along with 110 mph winds have taken their toll. We are lucky: we are thankful.

This is the worst storm I’ve ever been through. Things got really hairy about 4 AM. Unknown objects were bouncing off the roof. The house was creaking at the seams. The winds were so strong that the windows were chattering with the pressure. I tried not to let Fiona know I was scared, but I was.

Fortunately, we live in a new, well protected subdivision. There were no tall trees to succumb to the howling winds. We have little debris to clean up.  Power was out for less than a full day.   We have plenty of wine to keep us entertained.  The storm is over, but the hard work begins.  It is unknown when Houston, much less Galveston and the coastal areas, will be up and running.

It’s so fuckin’ quiet. I have both tv’s on and all I hear is silence. There’s a loneliness that slowly consumes me the later it gets. I should go to bed, but there’s nobody there. I don’t feel ready for sleep.

I lived by myself for seven years and was never lonely. Turns out, I never had anyone I really missed. I’ve been singing Cinderella all week long. That’s really strange, because I never really liked them as a band. I LOVE my wife, and she’s been gone for a whopping three days. That’s not very long, but I really miss her. I seriously can’t remember when the last time we spent time apart was. I know how cheesy it sounds, but it’s true.

I feel like I’m just sitting around waiting. I hate waiting. Ask Fiona. I’m really bad. This is a different kind of wait. It’s not like a slow checker at the grocery store or being stuck in traffic. I can’t change lines or exit and take the long way. This is one I’ll just have to sit out. The waiting ends tomorrow morning, but I’ll be at work by then. Somehow I’m thinking it’ll be different once she’s off the plane. Does that make any sense?

I’m feeling better now that I’ve jotted this down. It’s not like having her here, but I’m sending a little piece of myself all the way to Seattle to be with her. I hope she sees this before she gets home. I’m letting everyone read it, but it’s mostly for her.

Baby, I miss you! I need you around to brighten up this joint. Turn it back into a home. See you soon!!!!

Update; I just finished watching the Cinderella video. It took 25 years, but I think they’re growing on me. Here’s another video you may or may not remember. I may have even seen these guys in concert, 80’s were a long time ago.

Pop the cork off any gathering with WINEOPOLY! Players buy favorite wines, collect bunches of grapes and trade them in for decanters. Sounds easy enough but add Import Taxes and serving faux pas and it becomes a little more difficult and a lot more fun! Learn while you play! Each deed back contains wine descriptors and fun facts about each wine. It’s all fun and games until you’re sent to the Wine Cellar to age-then you’re out of the game for three turns. So choose your token (wine bottle, cork, wine glass, cheese, grapes, or a carafe) and advance to CHEERS! Who knows? You may be elected president of the wine club or you may be penalized for serving obtrusively malodorous cheese!

A 40 year-old woman was arrested and her 11 month-old daughter was placed in protective custody after an officer witnessed her give her child a bottle she had filled with wine. Kathryn Bowen has been released after being charged with endangering the welfare of a minor for the incident that occurred at the Kentucky State Fair in Louisville. The mother claimed she gave the baby wine to help her sleep.

Want to dine at one of Wine Spectator’s award winning restaurants? Good luck. It’s hard to get a table because there are no tables. Osteria L’Intrepido was given the magazine’s Award of Excellence in the August 2008 edition. There’s one small problem. The restaurant doesn’t exist.

Robin Goldstein, author of The Wine Trials, submitted an application along with the $250 fee and an imaginary wine list for consideration. The main wine list was comprised of wines that had scored well in the magazine’s rating system. Conversely, the reserve list was purposefully composed of wines that received poor reviews from the magazine.

How did he do it? Goldstein isn’t going into any details, but Wine Spectator says it called the phone number on multiple occasions only to receive a message. There were also reviews for Osteria L’Intrepido posted on Chowhound.com. Thomas Matthews, a representative for the magazine, said that the wine list submitted was worthy of the award if it had existed. He further went on to state that, “This act of malicious duplicity reminds us that no one is completely immune to fraud.” The magazine has removed the restaurant from its website.

Obviously, Goldstein’s hoax was developed to prove a point. On his website, he claims, “If Google, Chowhound, and a couple of unanswered phone calls suffice to verify not just the existence of a restaurant but also the authenticity of its wine list, then it’s not clear what role the critic is playing.” Turns out the Award of Excellence isn’t as prestigious as it seems. Two-thirds of the restaurants that apply receive the award. There are currently over 4000 recipients on the 2008 list. At $250 apiece, that translates to $1 million in revenue for the publication.