Un post foarte util (pentru cei ce vor sa "bata sistemul") al lui Christy Canterbury MW, publicat de GQ Magazine: "How to Beat an Overpriced Wine List" by Alan Richman In wine, as in life, money doesn’t buy happiness. A willingness to pay a respectable amount for a bottle on a wine list is no guarantee that what you drink will be worth the price, especially in these oenologically perilous times. Care for a lovely Sancerre? The 2012 Yves Martin Chavignol costs a restaurant owner less than $16. I just saw it on a wine list in the West Village for $76. Aubry Brut champagne? For the same owner, $29. For you, $97. Wines by the glass are worse. If you’re paying $13 for a glass, wherever you are, the restaurant owner almost certainly paid less than that for the bottle. Money and wine are no longer in harmony. These days, restaurants think money grows on vines. The good news is that a new age is upon us, one in which people who understand and appreciate wine are becoming partners in restaurants. They’re sommeliers and wine directors who fell in love with their professions over the past twenty years and now have different goals. They’re looking to expand their appreciation of wine by becoming owners, and they no longer want to stand on their feet in dining rooms seven nights a week. In Manhattan, within the past year, Charlie Bird, Estela, and Pearl & Ash have opened. At all three, wine drinking is thought of as an essential aspect of a joyful dining experience, not purely as a profit center. I love wine lists—the complexities, the minutiae, and the eyestrain that comes with studying them. I’ve been reading them passionately since the ’80s. They are the intellectual equivalent of constructing wooden scale-model Mustangs and Messerschmitts, all that detail work with glue and tweezers. You might not feel the same. A friend of mine says that wine lists terrify her—they’re like walking down a dark alley. Over the years, I’ve learned a few ways to avoid getting mugged. There are strategies to finding realistically priced wines. All that’s required is persistence, self-confidence, and a little knowledge. Here are ten of my secrets. ··· 1· Study the wine list before heading to the restaurant. These days, most are on restaurant websites. If the wine list isn’t there, consider an alternative eating establishment. If it is, look up a few interesting bottles on wine-searcher, a free site that provides the retail price of almost every wine. If the price on the wine list is just a little more than twice the retail price, the restaurant deserves your business. If the wine-list price is three or four times the price, dine elsewhere. 2· Learn a little about vintages. Memorize a few good years from regions you like. For me, it’s German Rieslings or Loire Valley Chenin Blancs—2008 through 2010 for the Loire, almost anything back to 2001 for Germany. Both wines age beautifully, even if they are whites. Look for 2006 through 2010 reds from the Languedoc-Roussillon. I like Barberas and Dolcettos from Italy, and you can go all the way back to 2004 with those—but ask the sommelier if the older ones are drinking well. Now and then I try a 2009 or a 2011 German or Austrian Pinot Noir—often called Spätburgunder in Germany and Blauburgunder in Austria. Vintage years are the ultimate leaps of faith. If you know a few very good years, you can be daring and order wines from obscure producers. The prices are certain to be sensible. 3· Arrive at the restaurant before your guests. Take a look at the wine list. See if bottles were added since you checked the website. Make sure the wines you investigated and hoped to order are still available. (Try to remain calm if they have disappeared.) Think of the exploration as a scavenger hunt conducted from a soft chair. 4· Beware of snappy adjectives. When talking to the sommelier, stick to basics: red or white, sweet or dry, fat or lean, oaky or not oaky. Cherish plain talk. If he starts talking about lavender petals and garrigue, put your head on the table and pretend you’ve fallen asleep. Maybe he’ll go away. 5· Cherish the sommelier who tries to understand what you like and doesn’t just tell you what he likes. If you’re considering a bottle that’s also sold by the glass, a good sommelier will offer you a taste. If you give the sommelier the price you hope to spend—yes, you must have the courage to speak up—he should stay within that range. If you say $60 and he starts pointing out wines that cost $90, make him go away. 6· Strike when you spot a bargain. I’m always ready with an underpriced white, something I can order quickly and confidently to begin the meal. It’s important to get wine to the table fast. These days I choose from three wines: from Spain, Verdejos (delicate) and Godellos (more robust). From Argentina, Torrontés (fruity). Want to wow the sommelier? Ask for a still wine made from Spain’s Xarel-lo grape. Smile modestly when he looks at you with awe. 7· Seek out the secret stash. Most sommeliers have wines they particularly like that they save for people they particularly like. Start by asking the sommelier where she’s from. Often such wines are from the region where the sommelier was born or lived, and chances are they will be reasonably priced. I tried this at the midtown restaurant Rouge Tomate, and the sommelier, Pascaline Lepeltier, gasped, “My God, I have so much secret stash.” She brought out a 2007 Savennières that was dry but lush, unusual for a Chenin Blanc. 8· Remember the names of top importers, people like Eric Solomon, Kermit Lynch, Terry Theise, and Neal Rosenthal. Ask the sommelier if he has any wines from them. He might never have heard such a question. He will be impressed. 9· Sign up for e-newsletters from restaurants you like. Follow them on Twitter. Like them on Facebook. Restaurants frequently have nights when the list is discounted or guests can bring bottles without paying corkage. 10· Indulge if you dare. Who doesn’t want something special for a birthday or an anniversary? But beware of counterfeit wines. If you’re dabbling in the old or the pricey, you need absolute confidence in the sommelier’s ability to know what’s authentic. You can always ask how the restaurant acquired the wine. You might be surprised. A restaurant where I once drank the best Bordeaux is now closed, but about twenty years ago, bottles there went for unrealistically low prices. After paying $300 for a magnum of 1988 Château Pétrus—today about $4,000 retail—I asked the chef how he did it. These days you might worry about fakes, but that was almost unheard of back then. The chef assured me that the wines were not just authentic, they had benefited from impeccable storage. All his Bordeaux had been stolen from the cellars of the famous Seagram Château & Estate. Remember that with wine, as with life, you might be shocked at what the hell is going on.
Posted on: Tue, 08 Oct 2013 15:01:34 +0000
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