The Wine Shop at Capitol Market recently held their annual Claret tasting. Claret is a term the British have used for centuries to describe the red wines of Bordeaux. And while this Claret tasting usually features a Bordeaux wine or two, it is also expanded to include cabernet-based wines from around the world. The neat thing about this tasting is that the wines are tasted blind. Now, I know what some of you reprobates are thinking, but no -- this is not a wine-chugging contest where the object is to achieve a state of blindness.

This is a tasting where the bottles are put in paper bags so the labels are not visible and so tasters can evaluate them objectively and not be unduly influenced by “pedigree” or price. Unfortunately, I was unable to attend the tasting, but the results are published below by the Wine Shop’s Ted Armbrecht (who, I might add, has an excellent palate.) The tasting was conducted by expert taster Andy MacQueen, who was featured on last week's WineBoy webcast.Ted’s descriptions of the wines and their attributes reflect the comments of tasters who rated each of the wines. I hope this provides you with another tool when shopping for that special gift this coming holiday season.

See the companion post at Rich Ireland's 'Beers To You' blog on adding the right kinds of beer to a Thanksgiving feast.

For many of us, the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays are fowl affairs because the turkey will once again be the centerpiece of these traditional holiday feasts. Thanksgiving is also the beginning of the 40-day holiday season, which includes Chanukah and Christmas, culminating with the New Year’s celebration.

It is also a time of year when you will spend about 70 percent of your yearly wine budget, purchasing bottles for parties, gifts and holiday dinners. For me, it’s the most exciting time of the year. I’m like a kid in a candy store! The shelves of local wine shops are overflowing with bottles of every type and pedigree.
Turkey will once again be the featured main course for Thanksgiving and Christmas in my house. In year's past, I have written about the culinary versatility of turkey which can be successfully paired with red or white (as well as light or full-bodied) wines. The reason is that the bird is blessed with meat that has a variety of flavors, colors and textures, which present opportunities for us to try a lot of different wines.
The type of stuffing you use adds a whole other flavor dimension which -- depending upon the nature of the dressing -- opens up even more wine possibilities. Thus, the holidays also offer we wine hedonists a rare opportunity to sample a virtual sea of wines.
Here are a few wine recommendations to match your holiday turkey and associated culinary accoutrementa. The traditional oven-roasted turkey with sage-flavored dressing does wonderfully well with sauvignon blanc, especially the wines that exhibit herbal characteristics (Kenwood or Dry Creek Sauvignon Blanc).
Alsatian wines, such as riesling or even gewürztraminer, will also work well with this more traditional treatment (Pierre Sparr, Trimbach and Zind Humbrecht are some of my favorite producers). If you prefer red wine, you can try any number of California or Washington State cabernet sauvignons (Louis Martini, Hedges, or Alexander Valley Vineyards Cabernets are excellent choices).
My mother would oven-roast her turkey, but her dressing had no sage flavoring. Rather, she would season with salt, pepper and garlic and then add roast chestnuts and Italian sausage to her bread dressing. I have used full, rich California chardonnay (Falcor, Cakebread or Talley) to accompany this meal and it has worked exceptionally well.
I also have used full-bodied Sonoma or Amador County zinfandel (try Ridge Lytton Springs or Renwood Old Vines Zins). On those occasions that I smoke or charcoal grill the “national bird,” I’ll usually create a stuffing of ancho peppers, chili powder along with chipotles (smoked jalapenos), corn bread, corn, chorizo sausage and cheddar cheese. This dressing will get your attention and it demands wines that can stand up to the more intense flavors.
My favorite wines with this spicy, smoky meal are pinot noir from either California or Oregon, or French Rhones such as Chateauneuf Du Pape (try Domaine Serene or Domaine Drouhin Pinot Noir from Oregon, Cambria or Rochioli Pinot Noirs from California and Beaucastel (photo at right) or View Telegraph from Chateauneuf Du Pape).
And how about dessert (or as we call it in my home “prelude to the couch”)? Whether it’s pumpkin pie and whipped cream or some other belly-buster, you’ve got to try some late harvest riesling or moscato with the final course (Ch. St. Jean Late Harvest Riesling or Nivole Moscato D’Asti are excellent choices).
See the companion post at Rich Ireland's 'Beers To You' blog on adding the right kinds of beer to a Thanksgiving feast.

I must take issue with my friends Tara and Rob who, in a recent “Main Ingredient” column for the Sunday Gazette-Mail, suggested there is a double standard at play when it comes to wines for drinking and wines for cooking:

“If we’re going to pay a lot for a bottle of bliss that’s been coaxed to perfection by some grape guru, the last thing we want to do is watch as medium-high heat scrambles its molecules,” they state in the November 4,” Main Ingredient .”In other words, they seem to be saying, it’s not worth wasting good wine to flavor a dish. And, you don’t have to like a wine to cook with it.Believe me when I say I applaud anyone who can find good, bargain-priced wine for any use. As a matter of fact, my wine mission in life is to locate wines that meet those criteria. But why would you want to cook with a wine (cheap or expensive) that you wouldn’t want to drink?

ED. NOTE: We've got a blogfecta (blog + trifecata) of posts on the dining/drinking experience. After reading this one, check out Rich Ireland's "Beers To You" post on how restaurants routinely ruin good beers. And food blogger Brooke Brown weighs in with a plaintive cry about servers manhandling the glassware.Over the years, I’ve sipped wine from a variety of vessels, some of which, I must admit, were not exactly made of fine crystal. In fact, in my younger days, I occasionally drank the stuff from coffee cups, beer mugs, plastic containers, water glasses, wine skins, canteens and even (I’m reluctant to admit) from the jug...er bottle.

Like many males of my generation, I also spent a considerable amount of time back then in a ' 57 Chevy, a fraternity house and a foxhole. Consequently, many of the finer elements of wine appreciation, such as selecting the appropriate stemware, were subordinated to more mundane, yet practical considerations such as finding a couple of dollars to buy a jug of Lake Country Red.

Going to the WVU-Louisville game next week? Go a day early and join the fine folks at the “Slight Indulgence” wine shop in Morgantown for a special tasting and dinner at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 7.  Joe Elchik from Francis Ford Coppola Vineyards will lead the tasting and guest chef Jason Blosser will prepare special dishes to match each of six wines from Coppola. Cost for the event is $65 per person. Seating is limited, so call (304) 599-3402 for reservations. Slight Indulgence is located at 3200 Collins Ferry Road in Morgantown.

Join host John Brown as WineBoy, Episode 13, visits Wilson Ward’s Fisher Ridge Winery in Putnam County to explore the art of making wine in West Virginia. You’ll get the inside scoop on how wine is created — from the vineyard to the fermenting vats to the press and into the barrel. And you won’t want to miss WineBoy’s unique brand of trick-or-treating in version 13 of the batty, weekly Webcast on wine appreciation.

With Halloween just a week away, I thought it would be good to share some ghoulishly delicious information with you on things related to blood and wine. Over the years, I have reported on the French Paradox -- a research study that demonstrated a link between wine consumption (particularly red wine) and a reduced risk of coronary artery disease. The subjects of the study (French men and women who consumed large amounts of fatty foods such as butter and cheese), had a low incidence of cardiac disease which was attributed to their daily consumption of red wine.

Another study of red wine consumption back then added an interesting culinary twist to the equation. Researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison released findings of a study demonstrating that red wine, in conjunction with the consumption of garlic, is even more effective in helping reduce the risk of heart disease.

Watch WineBoy, Episode 12, John Brown's weekly off-the-wall four-minute webcast at thegazz.com/gazzTV, and learn some traditional -- and not so traditional -- food and wine pairings. He'll also recommend a really nice cabernet sauvignon. This week's special guest from Brown's Land of Id is cowboy oenophile Spud Dumplin, who shares "chuck wagon picks" for desert dining (does Shiraz go with fire-roasted Gila monster?).

Fall is upon us and with the cooler weather the number of indoor activities naturally increases. Consequently, there are a greater number of wine tastings, gourmet-wine dinners and other gastronomic events around our beautiful state. Whether you decide to stay close to home or travel, there are some nice events on the horizon for wine and food lovers in West Virginia. Check these out.

Bridgeport
Oct. 22: Provence Market's October Wine TastingIf you’re in the north-central WV area next week, you might stop by Provence Market Cafe for a tasting of some good Mountain State wine as Elaine and Alan Wolfe present their Jones Cabin Run Vineyards "Award Winning" selections on Monday, October 22. The tasting begins at 6 p.m.and costs $20 per person.

In case you didn’t know, Provence Market Café is an excellent restaurant with a Wine Spectator award winning wine list. You also might want to check out their annual Holiday Tasting which is scheduled for Monday, December 3rd. For further information on tastings or for dinner reservations call 304-848- 0911
Charleston
OCT. 22: Chefs with Golden Spoons DinnerIf you want to experience the best West Virginia’s culinary wizards have to offer, then consider attending the annual March of Dimes dinner and auction at Berry Hills Country Club on Monday Oct. 22, at 6:30 p.m. The dinner event will feature dishes donated by chefs from around the state, including those from Canaan Valley Resort, The Chop House, Edgewood and Berry Hills Country Clubs, Olgebay Resort, The Blossom, Snowshoe and several others. Attendees may bid for dinner packages in the chef’s restaurants, jewelry and weekend getaways. Tickets are $75 in advance and $100 at the door. Call 720-2229 for reservations. All proceeds from the event go to the March of Dimes.

NOV. 1: Science of Wine & Art of Food fundraiser
The 11th annual Science of Wine & Art of Food fundraiser by the Friends of the Clay Center takes place 6:30 p.m., Thursday, Nov. 1, at the Clay Center, featuring a five-course menu paired with wines of New Zealand and Australia. The menu will be prepared by the Clay Center's in-house caterer, Embassy Suites Hotel-Charleston and will feature assorted canapés of vegetables and gourmet cheeses; mussels a la mariniere; Autumn salad of mixed greens and poached pears; a mixed grill duo of lamb and venison; and almond tuile filled with vanilla mint mascarpone.

Silent and live auctions take place throughout the evening including trip to Sonoma, California; Alberta, Canada; and Hawaii, as well as such silent auctions for wine, gourmet food baskets, theater and sporting event tickets and more. Reservations are required by Friday, Oct. 26. Tickets cost $100 per person. Registration is available online at www.theclaycenter.org. Science of Wine & Art of Food is sponsored by Spilman, Thomas & Battle, PLLC, with additional support from BrickStreet Insurance, Commercial Insurance Services, Embassy Suites Hotel-Charleston and Warner Law Offices, PLLC.

NOV. 5: Capitol Market Wine and Cheese Shop
The Shop will hold its annual wine dinner on Monday, Nov. 5 at the Blossom Deli at the Capitol Market in Charleston. Chef Michael Rice has planned an Italian-themed menu to pair with wines selected by Vin Divino, an importer of fine Italian and Austrian wines. This will be five-course meal paired with six wines from Austria and Italy. The cost of the event is $75 per person and space is very limited, so call the Wine Shop at 343-9463 to reserve your spot.

NOV. 15: Blues BBQ Restaurant
The fine folks at Blues, across from the Clay Center at Lee Street and Leon Sullivan Way, will be holding a holiday-themed wine and food dinner on Nov. 15, beginning at 7 p.m. The menu is being constructed around traditional holiday foods matched with an international array of wines. Call Blues at 720-7873 for more information and to make a reservation.

Canaan Valley
NOV. 9-11: Canaan ValleyJoin me for a "Gourmet Wine Weekend In the Mountains - With WineBoy," the weekend of Nov. 9-11 at Canaan Valley Resort for an entertaining and educational food and wine extravaganza. I’ll select wines from around the world that will be paired with a cornucopia of culinary delicacies.

I’ll team up with Canaan Valley Resort’s executive chef Nemat Odeh to lead you on a tasteful wine and food adventure. Incidentally, Chef Odeh did his culinary training in Europe and is a really talented guy. Here’s the schedule: Friday, guests will kick-off the weekend with a "taste-around reception" where wines from the world's most prestigious regions can be sampled with matching culinary treats, including crab cakes, beef tenderloin, smoked salmon, pasta, a raw bar and other treats.

An educational wine tasting and seminar conducted by your own WineBoy will begin Saturday's activities followed by a delicious luncheon with specially selected wines. Chef Odeh will then conduct a Q & A and culinary demonstration after which guests can enjoy an afternoon of activities or relaxation in the Canaan Valley. The evening's activities begin with a Champagne reception followed by a six-course gourmet meal with matching wines. A Sunday brunch will conclude the weekend’s activities.

Cost of the entire weekend, including taxes and gratuities, is $450 a couple or $269 individual. Cost of the package without lodging is $350 a couple or $175 individual. For additional information or reservations, call 800-622-4121.

Maturity is certainly not one of WineBoy's personal attributes. But in episode 11 of John Brown's weekly wine webshow with attitude -- click here to watch -- he'll demonstrate the proper manner to evaluate and serve mature wines. Be sure to catch this latest webcast of Brown's part educational, part zany weekly four-minute show featuring his unique approach to all things wine. You'll want to pay particular attention to the advice of special guest and Wine Astrologist, the Marchrazi Umberto Lupini.

Coppola's "Director's Cut" Zinfandel is a perfect companion to the grilled pork chop recipe below With the arrival of fall, my thoughts turn to richer textured wines and fuller-flavored edibles, including all manner of grilled meat dishes that just seem to go so well with this time of year. But just as I began to plan a feast built around the above mentioned victuals, I visited my family doctor for an annual physical and a dose of reality.

Suffice it to say that his prescription for my continued well-being differs considerably from my own opinion of what is best for me. Hey, after all, I’m a devotee of Dr. Feelgood, whose idea of moderation includes being careful not to be so careful. Anyway, the dish I’m going to suggest to you today is really kind of healthy and it does include the liberal application of red wine (which we all know is important to cardiac health).

You know what makes WineBoy mad, really mad? Watch the webcast of WineBoy 9 by clicking here as host John Brown discusses the proper serving temperature of wine while lamenting how few restaurants - even the fancy-shmancy ones- pay attention to this very important aspect of wine appreciation. He'll also tell you about a very tasty Australian red with an Italian pedigree. Oh, and you'll love his interview with Pierre N'Cest Pas, a Frenchman with some strong opinions about American wine.

Over the past several months, I have had the pleasure of tasting a number of excellent wines for all things WineBoy, including this blog, the "WineBoy" webcast and the “Main Ingredient” column in the Sunday Gazette-Mail. You may have seen the reviews of a few of these wines in the Main Ingredient, but in case you haven’t, you might want to look for these lovelies at your favorite wine shop or grocery store. Enjoy.

2006 Groth from Napa Valley ($17): This beauty combines the herbal and grassy flavors one expects from sauvignon blanc with a richer texture and fuller feel that should pair exceptionally well with a pasta and asparagus dish with bits of pancetta or bacon.

As much as I try not to, I sometimes slip into 'winespeak' in describing the hues, smells and tastes of a wine that -- when the adjectives are stripped away -- is either good, OK, or unpleasant. People often ask me why wine writers feel compelled to go to such great lengths and use such “flowery” terms to describe the sensory aspects of wine. My short answer is that wine has such multi-dimensional qualities that it is limiting and not very helpful to use basic terms to describe it. (And besides, most wine writers get paid by the word).

This all came to mind the other day as I was trying to describe the attributes of a particularly good red wine (from the state of Apulia in Italy) known as Salice Salentino. The stuff was so pleasing to me that I was having difficulty describing it without becoming overly exuberant. However, I think there is a difference between using what I will call traditional language to describe wine versus using non-traditional terms. For example, if I describe a riesling as having ripe apple flavors, you will immediately use your own memory of the taste, smell and texture of ripe apples to understand how the wine might actually taste.

Show 7 of WineBoy, the informative, off-the-wall wine appreciation show of The Charleston Gazette is now online, featuring new show sponsor Blues BBQ Restaurant, right across from the Clay Center. Host John Brown takes on the question of the day: Why is it a good thing to air our your red wine?

Is it Real or is it Really Vito’s Thunder Mountain Chablis?New Yorker Magazine’s Patrick Radden Keefe in his “Reporter at Large” column recently explored the rarified world of collecting ancient bottles of wine (read article here). Specifically, Radden focused on bottles purchased at auction by multi-millionaire Bill Koch which were purported to be from Thomas Jefferson’s private collection and dated from the late 1700s. The column reads like a mystery novel and attempts to shed some light on the murky and imprecise science of verifying the true age of older wines, some of which are purchased at auction for hundreds of thousands of dollars. In this particular case, Mr. Koch goes to great lengths to prove (or disprove) the age of the wines he supposedly purchased from Jefferson’s stash.

In addition to real-life intrigue, the piece has a cast of characters that reads like a who’s who of the wine world, including Robert Parker, Michael Broadbent, Serena Sutcliffe and a whole host of other wine personages that only the wine-obsessed would recognize. Check it out.

In episode 6 of "WineBoy," host John Brown heads ups to Robert Wong's Bridge Road Bistro for a tasty pairing of wine and food. Executive chef Paco Aceves shares with Brown a chicken penne pasta dish from the Bistro's recently revised menu. Brown pairs it with a French red wine from a new wine list by general manager Amy Sue Gates. You'll be hungry before it's all over. And wait for those credits to roll...

In my hedonist’s mind, almost everything has a relationship to food and wine. In the summertime, my thoughts turn to cool refreshing white wines such as Sauvignon Blanc, Prosecco and Pinot Grigio, or spicy reds like Zinfandel, Syrah or Pinot Noir.

As far as food is concerned, to yours truly summertime means grilled foods or barbecue. Barbecue, though, means different things to different people. For some, it’s a verb as in: “I’m going to barbecue some hamburgers.” For others, barbecue is a noun and refers to a type of cooked pork or beef rib meat that is immersed in various sauces, chopped and served on a bun. Since I love to grill out, barbecue means a style of cooking to me. You’ll find just about every kind of food on my grill, including (but not limited to) pork, chicken, beef, lamb, fish, vegetables and sometimes even fruit.

In my estimation, barbecuing also requires a grill that uses “real” charcoal. Gas grills – no matter how fancy – simply do not measure up. The biggest problem with them is they don’t heat evenly, and it’s very difficult to add wood chips such as apple, mesquite or hickory to the fire. Using these chips or chunks adds a wonderful flavor dimension to grilled foods.

Plus, there is something compelling and almost ritualistic about setting charcoal on fire, and then using the coals to sear animal flesh or things that grow. I’m not sure I want know why this practice is so appealing to me - but it is. So, in the interest of making barbecue believers of you, I’m going to share a simple recipe for barbecued pork ribs that is easy to prepare and delicious to eat. I prefer to use baby back ribs that have been trimmed of excessive fat and scored with a fork.

Whether you use large slab ribs or baby backs, this recipe begins with a dry rub. What’s a dry rub? Well, first of all, let me assure you it does not require a masseuse. However, it does involve a massage – of the ribs with spices -that is. One of my favorite dry rubs consists of one tablespoon each of cumin, chili powder, kosher salt, coarsely ground black pepper, brown sugar and cayenne pepper (optional for those faint of heart). Stir this mixture and then rub it onto both sides of the ribs. If time permits, let the ribs sit in the refrigerator for a few hours allowing them to absorb the flavors.

At this point, I often grab a handful of hickory or apple wood chips (available at some grocery stores and home improvement stores such as Lowe’s and Home Depot) and immerse them in warm water and allow them to soak for at least half an hour. This is optional, but I think really gives the meat a great smoky flavor.

Now, fire up the charcoal and when the coals turn white/gray, move them to each corner of the grill, leaving space in the middle for the ribs to cook indirectly. Then add the wood chips to the charcoal. I have a large oblong, kettle-type grill which allows me to put about three slabs of ribs on the grill side by side. Make sure that the air vents on the grill are closed to about one-eighth of an inch. In this manner, you’ll be able to keep the temperature relatively cool – approximately 275 to 300 degrees F. Check the vents regularly to adjust the heat if necessary and turn the ribs once during grilling. It usually takes between 1 to 1 ½ hours to slow cook the ribs.

Once off the grill, I cut the ribs into bite-size pieces and then either serve them as is or immerse them in a tangy sauce.

WineBoy Recommends

Here’s one of my favorite barbecue sauces:

Combine:
- a cup of ketchup
- a half -cup of white vinegar
- a 12-ounce beer
- two ounces of orange juice
- a tablespoon each of molasses and brown sugar
- (optional) a teaspoon of cayenne.
Bring the mixture to a boil and then allow it to thicken for about half an hour.

Wines for your barbecue? All of these retail from between $12 and $20 a bottle:

- Zardetto Prosecco (a sparkler from northern Italy)
- Renwood Old Vines Zinfandel
- San Angelo Pinot Grigio
- Alan Scott New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc
- Argyle Pinot Noir
- Longview Shiraz

"WineBoy" episode 5 is now online-- click to watch. Host John Brown wraps up his introductory series, "The Five 'S' Words of Wine" with one that counts the most: 'Swallow.' The four-minute web show's setting includes John Crihfield's food stall at the Capitol Market, a wine recommendation from Down Under where they name their wines funny, as well as John Brown's signature off-the-basement-wall antics.

Watch for a new 'WineBoy' each Thursday morning online at thegazz.com (peek in Wednesday afternoon and it's likely to already be online). The next one -- online Sept. 4 -- features a Bridge Road Bistro wine and food pairing. Executive chef Paco Aceves shows off a new dish from the recently revised menu at owner Robert Wong's restaurant, paired with a white wine from a fresh new wine list by general manager Amy Sue Gates. You'll be both thirsty and hungry after viewing.

John Brown's grandparents, Saverio and Catarina Iaquinta, are seen at center above in this photo from the couple's 50th wedding anniversaryA friend recently asked how I came to be such a fanatic about wine. Good question and I get it often, especially now that I have a wine blog and "WineBoy" weekly podcast. As a matter of fact, I did a little self analysis on that question years ago and I think I’ll share it with you right here and now.

When I was growing up in the 1950s and ‘60s, I had the privilege of being raised in a culture distinctly different from most of my contemporaries of that time, and light years away from how kids grow up today. Back in those times, my world almost exclusively revolved around home and family. My mother was Italian and my father was Irish, but since I was raised with my mother’s family, it was the Italian influence and ethnicity into which I was absorbed. My maternal grandparents were both immigrants who spoke heavily accented English and who provided their nine children and 23 grand children with the elements of Italian culture and values that have molded our extended families to this day.