1WineDude An insider\\\'s view of the strange and wonderful world of wine, told accessibly from an outsider\\\'s viewpoint.

Statistics Unique Visitors: Total Unique Visitors: Visitors Out: Total Visitors Out: 27 0 52 52

PLCB Manifesto (Oh! Glorious PLCB! Defender of Wine Monopolies!)
2008-03-11 00:52:00
(image: deviantart.com & leinz.co.uk - seriously edited by Dude)The follow excerpt is taken from an newly unearthed document, titled "The PLCB Manifesto" found unearthed under an old shed during a septic tank excavation in the outskirts of the PA state capital of Harrisburg. Or maybe not.A spectre is haunting Pennsylvania — the spectre of Monopoly Wine Sales. All the Powers of old PA have entered into a holy alliance to exorcise this spectre: Wine Maker and Consumer, Retailer and Oenophile, Chester Radicals and Philadelphian "grape-spies."Where is the party in opposition that has not been decried as Monopolistic by its opponents in power? Where is the Opposition that has not hurled back the branding reproach of Wine Monopolies, against the more advanced opposition parties, as well as against its reactionary adversaries?The history of all hitherto existing Wine Sales is the history of class struggles.Grape-grower and glass sipper, wine retailer and booze purchaser, vineyard owne ...

Weekly Wine Web Wrap-up: The "Hey, What Happened To Last Week's Edition?" Edition
2008-03-08 18:03:00
(images: toyarchive.com)Alright, alright, alright - so it's been a rough week, and rougher weekend, and Dude ended up totally missing last weeks' edition of W4. Maybe he had one too many brewskis. And maybe made some bad decisions at the bar while jammin' with his band homies.Let's just agree to get over this awkward moment together, and continue with our professional relationship as blogger and reader, OK? Cool.I give you the "Hey, What Happened To Last Week's Edition?" Edition of W4..."When the Dust Has Cleared... And Victory Denied..."When I say it was a rough week, I mean it - especially for our friends who are fighting the good fight against the three tier, monopolistic wine distribution industry. Wine and Liquor Wholesalers poured their big bucks into beating back legislation that would have allowed on-line wine sales in both Tennessee and Maryland. Never mind that both the public and the wineries of those states supported the legislation - what do they know about wine and t ...

WBW #43: Dude's Comfort Wine (or How I Survived My Brother's Heart Surgery)
2008-03-05 12:15:00
For Wine Blogging Wednesday #43 (this round hosted over at the fine WineLifeToday blog), we've been asked to review a "Comfort Wine" - and to explain why, like a good comfort food, this wine evokes some special, relaxing, or good-ol'-down-home feeling for us.First, let's start with my comfort wine. Then I'll lay the story on you - and to give you fair warning, this time the story is a bit intense. But I think it will be worth the read.The wine is Chateau Cabrieres Chateauneuf Du Pape. As always, Dude will provide a bit of history (and then a bit of his story).CDP (as wine geeks like to call Chateauneuf Du Pape) is a region in the Southern Rhone valley of France, it's name means "New House of the Pope" and stems from the 14th century (when Pope Clement V relocated the Holy See to France - a fascinating story in and of itself if you've got time to read it). CDP wines still bear the French papal insignia on their bottles.CDP doesn't so much have soil as it has rock. The vines literal ...

Food Review Weekly #3
2008-03-03 13:31:00
Just a quick reminder for you all to check out Food Review Weekly #3, this time hosted over at Candy Blog (Dude likes Candy Blog, because he's got a serious sweet tooth).Among the reviews are my 7-word take on Banfi's Rosso di Montalcino, but more importantly a review of Trader Joe's Gluten-Free Ginger Snaps, which totally rock.Enjoy! ...

In the News: How Young Buyers are Impacting Winemaking
2008-03-02 14:50:00
(image: darlingofourage.files.wordpress.com)This is not your fathers wine buying.There is a great little article posted today in SunJournal.com about how the tastes of a small, but extremely influential group of people are impacting the wine trade.And they're NOT talking about the Robert Parkers of the world, whose tendency to enjoy big, alcohol-laden fruit bombs have influenced wineries the world over to produce 'bomb'-astic wines at all costs in order to chase the high-end of the big wine magazines' point rating systems.These are 20-something sommeliers and wine directors that work for some of the most well-respected and expensive restaurants in the United States.And the wines that they're looking for? "Wines that are quirky, regional, with rich background stories..." Wow - definitely NOT your father's fruit bomb style of wine!..."Their challenge is to find a wine that they're as excited about as the chef is ... about the flavor of his vegetables from the farmers market..."This is ...

A Spy In the House of Booze: How to Survive an Industry Wine Tasting
2008-02-28 14:00:00
(images: tenaciously.smugmug.com)Booth babes. Row upon row of free alcohol to sample, some of it top notch. Hobnobbing with local wine celebs (e.g., Marnie Old).Man, the lengths I will go to give me readers a decent story!I was recently (in Q4 2007) asked by a local restaurant / wine bar to help them out an industry tasting event, held in downtown Philadelphia (i.e., sample some wines, help determine what they should be serving up in the near future).This particular event was hosted by Southern Wine & Spirits of Pennsylvania. SWS is one of the major suppliers of wine brands to the PA Liquor Control Board (the state-run monopoly that controls alcohol sales and distribution within PA). PA is the only state-controlled market in which SWS operates; that's because when you're a big supplier, you simply cannot argue with the billions of dollars at stake that are controlled by PA's potentially unconstitutional monopoly.So what's it like to attend one of these events? Read on, dear r ...

Happy Birthday 1WineDude.com (Dude's Greatest Hits)
2008-02-26 15:00:00
1WineDude.com quietly turns 1 year old today!I say quietly, because 1) I prefer intimate birthday parties, and 2) while this blog is technically 1 year old, it's only really been'all-grows-up' since October 2007, when Dude started "taking this blogging thing a bit more seriously," as they say. Not sure exactly who 'they' are, but I'm pretty sure 'they' say that.To celebrate this mini-momentous occasion, I thought that I'd join the time-honored tradition exercised by so many other blogs, musical acts, and aging TV sitcoms by essentially giving myself the day off, and rehashing previously published content!Kind of like they did on "The Facts of Life" with "throwback" footage, back when it featured George Clooney (by the way, I used to have hair like that... though I think I've destroyed most of the photographic proof in an incinerator somewhere in Northern NJ).So, for your reading pleasure, I offer you Dude's Greatest Hits: A Collection of the Most Visited Posts from 1WineDude.com...Doe ...

Book Review: Vino Italiano (The Regional Wines of Italy)
2008-02-25 14:00:00
This post, the Dude is offering his review of Joseph Bastianich's & David Lynch's weighty tome on all things Italo-wine-related: Vino Italiano.My review is part of a larger blog-carnival-type effort with near-simultaneous reviews of the same book happening at other wine blogs, called the Wine Book Club. You can check out some of the haps and conversation at the Shelfari book group. For more on the background of WBC, and a bit about the authors of Vino Italiano, check out my previous post on the subject.The Low-DownYou'd think that a 500+ page book would warrant a lengthy review, but that's simply not the case here (thankfully!). This is mostly due to the well-considered layout of the book.Vino Italiano is divided into three sections:A primer on Italian wine history & wine laws (essential information if you hope to understand an Italian wine label!)A tour of each of Italy's major wine regions in turn, starting with cultural interactions / story-telling, moving to well-written ...

Weekly Wine Web Wrap-Up: After the Storm Edition
2008-02-24 14:16:00
Greetings from PA, where we are digging out after a bout of winter weather; not the worst we've seen by a long shot, but the first significant winter storm we've seen all season - very, very late for these parts. I'm not going to jump the gun and blame global warming just yet... but... you gotta wonder...Speaking of Global WarmingWine Spectator reported this week on "The Gore-ical" giving the wine industry props for its efforts to Go Green, thus helping to preserve the environment and stave off some of our contribution to turning the Earth into a hothouse. I recently gave props to Domaine547 for going green, so we've got some good examples where this is impacting the thinking all the way through the wine retail chain. But so far, no one has called me the Dude-ical.I got my first real in-yo-face close up with global warming in Samburu, Kenya a few years ago. One afternoon while staying at the Elephant Watch Camp, we hiked up the river. Literally, up the river - as in, walking up th ...

1WineDude.com Readers - Save Some Coin When You Buy Your Wine! That, and other tidbits...
2008-02-23 15:00:00
The Main DomaineFor some time now, I've been digging the blog stylings of 1WineDude.com friend Jill over at domaine547.com. The domain457 on-line wine store has recently gone green, which is a move always viewed favorably by the Dude. Not that my opinion on green livin' matters in the grand scheme of things. But it's worth some props!One of the especially cool things about an on-line wine retailer that also participates actively in wine blogging, is that they can leverage the knowledge of the "wine blogosphere collective hive mind" to construct a killer wine selection. Not sure if anyone is also considering leveraging the knowledge of the "wine blogosphere collective hive mind" to attempt an evil plan at world domination, but if I hear about that, I will definitely blog it (but it will probably still only get, like, at most 3 diggs...).Anyway, constructing a killer wine selection is exactly what domaine547 has done. Case in point: they've got a special category in their product li ...

20 Things About Life I've Learned From Drinking Wine
2008-02-22 14:00:00
(images: davidzinger.wordpress.com, elsnoozo.blogspot.com, history.com, aceface.com)It's been said in some Eastern traditions that to be born a human is a rare event. To be a human and to question the source of life (to become a Seeker) is rarer still. And rarest of all is to seek and find your guru, the way to enlightenment.Well, I've had many gurus in my life. My dog, for example, has taught me a lot (including how to better smell my wine). Wine itself can be one of your life gurus, if you only take the time to pay attention to what it has to tell you.“Reality is an illusion that occurs due to a lack of wine.”- AnonymousInspired in part by a recent post in Zen Habits, below are 20 things about life that I've learned - from drinking wine. I fully expect that the list will grow, as my life journey of wine appreciation continues - but who knows, sometimes I'm stubborn, and I'm also prone to forget stuff, so I'd better share these now!Roll up with me, if you will, and let's enjo ...

My Readers are Smarter, More Talented, and More Attractive than Me (Reader Haiku)
2008-02-21 12:30:00
(image: dailyzen.com)It's official.1WineDude.com readers are smarter, funnier, more talented, and in all likelihood more attractive than I am. I say this because:I am arguably an impish gnome with a half-baked palate trying to earn an honest living from near-constant drinking (curse you, Zane Lamprey - you stole my job!), andI have received incontrovertible proof of how awesome 1WineDude.com readers are.Long-time Dude friend and 1WineDude.com reader WillyBouy (a.k.a., WeeRee-San) has rewritten my twitter wine Mini-Reviews......As haiku! And they're better than my original reviews! Just try this example on for size - let's compare my original with WillyBouy's reworked version:Original:`06 Sauvignon Republic Sauvignon Blanc (Russian River Valley): Just not into this wine. Citrus and tropical fruits, but what's w/ the toast?As haiku:`06 Sauvignon Republic Sauvignon Blanc (Russian River Valley):why does toast surprise the citrus, tropical fruits? Climbing out of here.And my personal fa ...

Help, My Wife Only Drinks Bad Chardonnay! (How to Rescue Her From Wine Hell)
2008-02-20 14:00:00
(images: nigella.com, mikesblog.typepad.com, gamerevolution.com, totalgambler.com)Warning: This post details - and advocates - actions that are sneaky, surreptitious, and downright manipulative. If you are of tender constitution, or high moral standing, I suggest that you turn away now.Still with me? Great - that's why I love my readers! You people ROCK!Please note: In this post, you will encounter the use of Chardonnay and femine pronouns. I'm using 'Chardonnay Oak-Butter bombs' simply as an example in this post - you can feel free to replace that with any wine vareital / style that you don't like. Similarly, I'm using the female pronoun because it matches my particular experience - feel free to substitute the male equivalent to suit your needs. Anyway, this will all make sense in a minute or two (I use that phrase a lot... is that, like, a mulligan for bad writing?). Got it? Good - let's get down to business!The Problem: Wine HellMany of you will be familiar with this scenario ...
Drinks  Hell  Help  Wife  Wine 

Fermentation's 2008 American Wine Blog Awards (Rock the Vote!)
2008-02-19 13:17:00
I would like to give a huge shout out of thanks to my readers for voting for me in the 2008 American Wine Blog Awards!I have a great deal of respect for what Tom Wark is doing over at his Fermentation blog, especially his continued fight against monopolized wine shipping - there's a passion that we both share!Having said all that - I don't think I'm eligible to receive any of the 2008 American Wine Blog Awards. According to Tom's blog:"Any wine blog in existence between January 1, 2007 and the end of January 2008, that has produced at least 52 posts during that time and is written in English is eligible to be nominated..."Technically, 1WineDude.com has been around almost that long, but not quite - since February 2007. And while the total number of posts in that time is close, it's not quite 52. So it looks like I'm out on both counts.Now, I can't stop you from voting for / nominating me (and believe me, Dude appreciates the love - and the free publicity!), but I certainly hope I do ...
Awards  Blog  Rock  Vote  Wine 

Why Fruit Bombs Are OK (I am Here to Whet Some Palates!)
2008-02-18 14:00:00
(images: jacop.net, pocketpcmag.net)Warning: If you consider yourself a wine snob, or are easily offended (or both), then I am about to lose you as a friend with this post.Because I am here to tell you that "Fruit Bombs" (those wines made in a style that deliberately dials up the varietal fruit and shoves it right into your face) are OK.No, really, I'm serious. They're OK.Yes, they really are. YES, they ARE.Now, before I explain why Fruit Bombs are OK, I need to tell you a little about Jaco Pastorius (stick with me - this will all makes sense in a minute or two)...Jaco Pastorius is widely considered to be the father of modern jazz bass playing. Often he is cited as the best jazz bassist to have ever lived (if not the best electric bassist ever, period). If, like me, you're a bass player, then you have to be inspired at least a little bit by Jaco's amazing playing and harmonious blend of musicality, technique, humor, and inventiveness - if not, you'd better have your pulse checked, ...
Fruit 

Weekly Wine Web Wrap-up - V-Day Hangover Edition
2008-02-16 14:57:00
Welcome to the post-Valentine's Day Hangover edition of the Weekly Wine Web Wrap-up (where Dude highlights some of his favorite wine news items over the past week)!Is it Getting Hot in Here, or is it Just Me?You'd have been hard-pressed (ha-ha) to miss stories this week about the impact of global warming on the wine world, such as this nice article from the AFP. According to the report, the French in particular are in big trouble. The article does not state how the U.S. will save France this time around (we can only assume America will want to go for the "Bail France Out Trifecta" having already performed that service when France was threatened by phylloxera, and zee Germans...).And the Winner Is...Once again, Gallo is tops in U.S. domestic wine sales, shipping an estimated 66 million cases in America during 2007. That's about 792 million bottles of wine, or 59.4 billion ml of our favorite beverage. The only comparison to that in the scientific world in terms of concentration is sp ...
Web  Wine 

The Official 1WineDude Wine "Mini-Reviews" Page (published via twitter)
2008-02-15 22:30:00
In January of 2008, I began to get into the Wine 2.0 conversation and started to post wine reviews on twitter. For those of you not familiar with twitter, it's essentially a 'micro-blogging' platform that allows you to post short updates about what's happening in your life. And when I say short, I mean it - there's a 140 character limit enforced on each post (hence, the 'micro' part).At about the same time, I also began participating in another form of Wine 2.0 wine review expression at Chateau Petrogasm, where no words are used - you review a wine with a sole image of your choosing.You might expect that a limit of 140 characters (or 0 characters) would be, well, limiting. So far, I've found just the opposite to be true. Both processes have been far from limiting - in fact, they've been downright liberating.When you're forced to boil down your reactions and thoughts in just a few words (or no words), you chose what you're going to say very, very carefully.No scores. No detailed hi ...
Reviews  Wine 

Wine Makes You Sexier (I'm just sayin'...)
2008-02-14 19:51:00
(image: www.yandy.com)And it's not because the object of your desire becomes more desirable after you've put on the "wine goggles."According to a survey jointly sponsored by the Australian Wine Council and on-line dating service Match.com, having a healthy knowledge of the world's most romantic beverage makes you more attractive, with those people preferring Italian wines being viewed as particularly "sexy" and "stylish."There's still plenty of time for you to order up a copy of Vino Italiano and join us for the first Wine Book Club. Just sayin'...Wine X Magazine (as reported by autumnilia) backs up the "wine = sexier" conclusion in an interview with sexpert Dr. Ruth, who tells us that wine is an essential element of foreplay (she prefers Beaujolais Nouveau, gewurztraminer, and CA white, so those may be some of the sexiest wine choices, seeing as how she's a sexpert and whatnot- again, just sayin').Finally - If you're totally desperate on this most Hallmark of holidays, Yahoo! Answers ...
Wine 

WBW #42 - Seven Word Wine Review (Banfi Rosso di Montalcino)
2008-02-13 13:00:00
This month's edition of Wine Blogging Wednesday comes to us courtesy of Spitton.biz, who have tasked the collective talents of the budding wine blogging community by asking us to review an Italian Red, using just seven words.Tricky, to say the least (get it?); especially for those of us whose prose, how shall I put this... does not value highly the elegance of the concise.But let's not sell ourselves short (get it??), or wax too philosophically about the relative merits of our brief (get it?!?) and minute (get it?!??) contribution to the great big blogosphere.Ok, ok... I'll stop!Anyway, for this excellent exercise in enological economy, Dude chose an old stand-by wine: Castello Banfi's Rosso di Montalcino D.O.C. (2003, Tuscany). Before Dude delves deep into the diminutive depiction of this dapper delicacy, let us first examine some way-cool background information so you can get up close and personal with what Rosso di Montalcino is all about....Most wine lovers have at least heard abo ...
Review  Wine  Word 

Moore Wine Reviews!
2008-02-12 13:26:00
There are 'wine shops,' and then there are shops staffed and owned by people who are seriously passionate about vino, and just happen to also sell some of their favorite wines to the public.Moore Brothers happens to be one of the latter. I was fortunate enough to make a recent trip to one of their stores (the location to remain a secret, lest the PA wine monopoly authorities gain an interest in how I came about the wine from the shop...), where I was greeted by a friendly staff (including fellow blogger David McDuff) who clearly knew their wine. What a refreshing change from the state-run PA monopoly wine stores...Those of you living in the greater NY/NJ/DE area should make it a point to check out your nearest Moore Bros. store ASAP. I can't promise you a discount if you drop my name there, but I can promise they will knock your socks off with their deep knowledge of small estate wines from Germany, France, and Italy. Those of you following Dude's wine reviews in Twitter and in Cha ...
Reviews  Wine 

Weekly Wine Web Wrap-up - In-Flight Dining Edition
2008-02-09 16:00:00
Welcome to the 2nd edition of the Weekly Wine Web Wrap-up, where Dude highlights the wine news stories of the past week (complete with snide Dude commentary, of course!).Cover Globally, Vinify LocallyThe highest profile wine news coverage of the week is likely this article in U.S.A. Today, which details the growing trend of 'micro-brew' wineries in urban areas that source their grapes and/or juice from rural vineyards. A handful of these wineries and their winemakers in NY and the midwest are featured by name (thus ensuring that their websites crash and their ISP demand additional hosting charges for their traffic overages)."Pardon me, old chap, but can I have my $36,000 back?"The UK Press Association reported this week of a Zafferano restaurant customer (in London) who returned a bottle of the legendary 1961 Ch. Petrus that cost the bargain price of £18,000 (about $36K USD), under the complaint that it might have been a fake. The restaurant told him that the wine was off-tasting an ...
Dining  Flight  Web  Wine 

More Reasons Why Wine Monopolies Suck (Fight the Power!)
2008-02-06 16:00:00
UPDATE (1PM ET): I'd like to send out a special welcome to all of the PA State government folks who, according to my site stats, have been reading this post. The wine world wants to know your viewpoints on these topics, so please shout 'em out in the comments section of this post if you're inclined.I suppose by now it's no secret that I can't stand the archaic, and probably unconstitutional three-tier monopoly wine distribution system still in effect in some states, including my hometown in the "Communistwealth" of Pennsylvania. The lucky numbers of you out there in blogosphere-land that are allowed to purchase the wine of your choosing, for a fair price, and have it shipped directly to your doorstep don't really know the suffering that we unlucky hordes in PA have to deal with when shopping for wine.Most readers will remember the board game Monopoly, in which players compete to take control of the highest amount of properties and services that they can, resulting in fees so high tha ...
Power  Wine 

Food Review Weekly #2
2008-02-04 15:45:00
"Arsenic is edible. Only once."So reads the quote at the top of this week's Food Review Weekly over at HeatEatReview.com. The Dude is featured in the Drinks section thereof. You can check it out here.The Eats section of the same has a link to a story about Caffeinated potato chips... which seems, well, just too damn odd!Anyway, hope everyone in blogosphere-land is recovering well from their night of Superbowl watching. Personally, the Dude's team is the mighty Pittsburgh Steelers, so he took not a small modicum of pleasure in seeing the Pats fall short of winning the big game (but I've just got a case of sour grapes, because the venerable Pats have denied my Steelers so many AFC Championship victories in the last several years).Cheers! ...
Food  Review 

Reds for Winter: Main Line Magazine
2008-02-03 15:46:00
Just in time for the not-so-Super-Superbowl (or any party occasion during these last few brink winter weeks), Jason Whiteside, my partner in crime over at 2WineDudes, has written a great article about soul-warming big red wines that are perfect for staving off the nasty chill of Winter, for the current issue of Philly's Main Line Magazine.[ Just a bit about Jason, so you know why you should trust him when you read his stuff: Jason is a fellow CSW, was previously a Sommelier & Wine Consultant on the Dutch/French Island of St. Martin, and is part of the Wine Educator staff at ChaddsFord Winery. Like the Dude, Jason also holds the Level 3 Advanced Certificate in Wine & Spirits from the Wine & Spirit Education Trust. He's got bad-ass wine smarties. ]Jason shares both bargain and splurge wine recommendations for each of the Big Red varietals that he features in the article, so you can put your newfound red knowledge to good use immediately (or at least before the weather wa ...
Magazine  Winter 

Weekly Wine Web Wrap-up - Groundhog's Day Edition
2008-02-02 15:45:00
Welcome to the first edition of the Weekly Wine Web Wrap-up (W4..?), where Dude shares some of his favorite wine news bites from the past week (Dude spends a goodly amount of time trolling the 'net for interesting wine tidbits)!Giant Wine Glasses Invade BritainIn this article from the International Herald Tribune, the Associated Press reports that Britain's Parliament blames part of the country's rising tide of problem drinking (particularly among women) on the growing portion size of common servings of alcoholic beverages, like wine. I've previously cautioned about the same thing (restaurant wine glass portion size, that is) for wine lovers to look out for when dieting.Cult Cabernet Prices Aren't the Only Wine Crime in CAThe Napa Valley register reported on what appears to be an inside job of high-end wine theft from Jackson Family (Kendall-Jackson) Wines in Sonoma County. The accused men reportedly made off with $200,000 worth of wines - presumably they were going to use that money ...
Groundhog  Groundhog Day  Web  Wine 

Wine Book Club 1st Edition, and Tasteless Exploitation of Naomi Watts
2008-02-01 00:05:00
OK, so Dude is waaaaaaaaaaaaay late in giving this event props and publicity blogging love... But in the case of love, later is always better than never (that's what I always say anyway - and I come from a fine, distinguished, and long line of justifiers!).The on-line Wine Book Club has been launched earlier this month, with the first edition being hosted over at McDuff's Food & Wine Trail. I met David McDuff recently at Moore Brothers and I can tell you from first-hand experience that the guy has serious wine smarties, especially when it comes to boutique Italian, German, French, and Austrian wineries. So by the Dude's standards, David seems like a splendid choice to get the wine book club ball a'rolling.The first wine book that will be reviewed by the Wine Club is Vino Italiano: The Regional Wines of Italy by Joseph Bastianich & David Lynch.No, not that David Lynch!...This David Lynch is the beverage director over at NYC's celebrated restaurant Babbo. Also, I'm pretty su ...
Book  Book Club  Club  Watts  Wine 

Making Sense of "Wine 2.0" (Power to the People!)
2008-01-29 00:13:00
Wine 2.0Whenever I'm asked about Wine 2.0, the conversation usually goes something like this:"Hey Dude - what exactly is Wine 2.0 anyways? Is that, like, some future technology where wine will get instantly zapped into my glass, like on Star Trek? 'Cause that would, like, seriously rule."Uh... not quite. I've found this a confusing topic as well, and I'm even a tech-savvy nerd-type. After all, it's a bit of an amorphous term, but even the casual wine geek will have noticed the term cropping up on the web. It must be important if everyone's talkin' about it, right? Some wine blogs even have their own sections devoted to it.So what is this Wine 2.0 stuff all about?...Wine 2.0 is basically just the concepts of Web 2.0 applied to the world of wine. And it's starting to turn that world on its head (er, cork)!"Power To The People - Right On!"Wine 2.0 might best be described as "Power to the People."Web 2.0 is about the migration of publishing and social network out of the hands of a ( ...
Power  Sense  Wine 

How to Pass the CSW Exam: More Advice from the 1WineDude
2008-01-26 15:50:00
Dude's been dabbling in the art of interpreting website traffic results, and noticed in the process that lots of folks are finding the 1WineDude blog while searching for advice on the CSW (Certified Specialist of Wine) exam.Well, Dude has passed this exam and he is here to help!I've written before on this topic, offering CSW exam advice based on how I nearly totally screwed myself on the exam due to my poor prep. work. So I thought I'd offer some advice about the exam itself (without giving you any actual questions, of course... shame on you for thinking that!). I'm assuming that most of you out there contemplating the CSW are already wine lovers, or industry types who have opportunity to taste wine, and so you're probably already cool with wine varietal taste profiles and the like. That's good - because the exam will test you on your knowledge of those elements. But what else do you need to be an 'A' student? Cue the Sam Cooke tunes...Don't Know Much About History...There's a ...
Advice 

Wine Communism: U.S. State's Non-Compliance to Wine Shipping Laws
2008-01-24 00:24:00
Here's a little quiz for all of you out there in wine-land. What do you call a government that:Limits the choices of products available to its citizens by offering them only via government-run monopoly that has no incentive to provide competitive prices, good customer service, or expanded selection;Charges its citizens a premium for the "privilege" of the products limited choices & poor service, including taxation on goods already controlled by the government;Refuses to change archaic legislation that was enacted over 50 years ago, in order to protect its monopoly position & profits;Does nothing to alter its stance or comply with changing federal law, nearly three years after its current legislation has been deemed unconstitutional at both the federal and regional levels?In most circles, the first two points could be considered Communism.Technically, the later two points aren't Communism, but I'd like to think that most people would at least consider them reprehensible...Unfor ...
Laws  Shipping  State  Wine 

A Not-So-Modest Chateau
2008-01-21 21:01:00
Not too long ago (June of 2007, I believe), in what is probably the coolest take on Blogosphere wine reviews since the inception of Wine Blogging Wednesday, Chateau Petrogasm was born.If you're at all interested in the visual arts, have even a small semblance of a sense of humor, and enjoy imaginative takes on the varied impressions that wine can have on different palates (& I hope this includes all of you Dude-O-Philes out there!), then you really need to check out the Chateau immediately. Or better yet, subscribe to their feed.I recently submitted my first humble contribution, which you can check out here (thanks for the post, Ben!).Cheers! ...
Modest