MOVING ON

It's been fun but I've gotta go. I will be hitting the road as a sales representative for Grape Expectations, a wholesale wine distributor. This job will provide me the opportunity to learn a new facet of the wine industry and a great deal more about wine in general. To all of the friends I have made as a wine steward at Trader Joe's; I will miss you. I have genuinely enjoyed discussing wine with you and have learned a great deal from our relationships which I will take with me on my new endeavor. I hope you have learned something of value from me as well. That said, after putting up 20 to 40 boxes of Charles Shaw a day I am overjoyed to never again have to stock another box of 3 Buck Chuck!

This blog has been slow starting due to the busy nature of my life as of late but I intend to make more time for it and keep it up. While I will no longer be writing about wine at Trader Joe's the philosophy with which I started this will remain intact. You will hear about wine I discover, my adventures on the road and my take on the world of wine in general. Please continue to post comments and questions. Please keep me updated on your own escapades and discoveries. Above all, please keep drinking wine! I can safely guarantee that I will do the same.

YOUR COMMENTS HERE

This section is for you to post comments. I am looking for feedback. Tell me what you think of this blog, the wine department at Trader Joe's, how I am doing as your wine steward and anything else you might be inclined to write. Suggestions, criticism, praise and general thoughts are all welcome. Just click on the comments link in blue at the bottom of this post. Everything you write will remain unedited.

I want this blog to be interactive, so please feel free to write comments and questions at any time on any of my postings even if they are unrelated to what I have written about. I will always respond to your inquiries and am very interested in hearing your thoughts and anecdotes about your own adventures in the world of wine.

Post away!

SUMMER WINE

It took a while but summer has finally come to Seattle. We suffered through the rainy gray of winter and the see-sawing weather of Spring and now we can relax and enjoy our reward; estivating in the paradise of the Northwest sunshine season.

In honor of the arrival of Summer I have put together a small section at Trader Joe's devoted entirely to great summertime wines. I will swap out the wines in this section occasionally over the next two months to provide a constant flow of interesting new options. Take a look on your next visit and please ask me if you have any questions

HOLY COW!

I have probably spoken to a lot of you about this wine already. Those of you who have not yet tried it should do so immediately! Here are my notes on the wine and the winemaker:

2oo6 Holy Cow Riesling

- This Riesling has a pale yellow color and gives off aromas of white peach and melon. It is neat, crisp and slightly sweet (off-dry) with lively acidity. There are flavors of young melon backed by gentle honey and mineral notes which linger in a round clean finish. Drink this wine with Thai food or oysters or simply enjoy it by itself in the summer sun (on the rare occasions when it shows itself).

This is another wine from renowned Washington winemaker Charles Smith, owner of K Vintners. Since K Vintners opened its doors in 2001 Charles has received a great deal of attention for his no nonsense approach to the wine industry and many accolades for his quality wines, including a dozen ratings above 90 points from Wine Enthusiast. You may know him best for his Magnificent Wine Company “House Wine” red, a Bordeaux style Cabernet based blend which has become a favorite among those seeking great wine at a reasonable price, wine, as he puts it, “for the people”. Charles continues this legacy with the production of Holy Cow Riesling.

Winemaker Charles Smith