Wine Tattoo

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I came across this photo of this guy who apparently loves Petrus enough to have it tattooed on his arm. Now this is dedication. During my twenties, the Britney Spears lower back tattoo was all the rage and as my friends were getting pierced and inked all over, I opted out. I can certainly appreciate the merit of a good tattoo and in some cases it can make a person seem more mysterious and vixenish but I just couldn't come up with a cool enough design that I was sure to love for the rest of my life - even something related to wine.

Believe it or not but my grandmother had tattoos. It was a very common thing for Indian women of her age to get inked, especially with their husband's name. I'm not sure where the idea came from but I'm guessing since my grandparents were born and raised in the Fiji Islands, they adopted the tradition from the local natives. She had a heart tattoo with Lal Singh (my grandfather's name) written in the middle. It was done prison style in a dark bluish-black ink and as she grew older and more wrinkly, so did the heart, actually it kind of melted. When my brother turned 18, he decided to get "SINGH" tattooed on his upper left arm in Old English script. When I first saw it, I joked it was a smart reminder in case he forgot his last name.

Perhaps one day, I'll take the plunge and get a tattoo and if I do, I'll follow Mr. Petrus' lead and go full throttle wine geek. Here are some possibilities:

For a lower back tattoo (AKA tramp stamp) option, I could go with the Guyot Trellising Sytem

Instead of a girly butterfly on my shoulder or ankle, perhaps something more intimidating like the Phylloxera louse

Dr. Anne Noble's Aroma Wheel on my back, or better yet on my torso in case I felt a need to consult it

If I had to pick a wine person it would be my idol, the amazing Jancis Robinson

And for a wine label it would have to be Clos Ste Hune Riesling from Alsace, but the '76 vintage

Frappucino + Vodka = Cocktail Time with Sandra Lee

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Sandra Lee's Capputini Recipe:

2 shots coffee drink (recommended: Starbucks Frappuccino)
1 shot vodka

Directions:
Fill a martini shaker with ice cubes. Add coffee drink and vodka. Shake vigorously. Strain into a martini glass. Top glass with remaining foam from shaker.

Oh Sandra, this is why I am so enamored with you.

Ramos Pinto Adriano from Portugal

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When it comes to Portuguese wine, sweet and delicious Port naturally comes to mind but what about their dry red wines? Portugal is a treasure trove of indigenous varietals that are rarely found outside of the country. The grapes are often difficult to pronounce but the reward is in the wines as they can be pretty darn tasty and best of all - shockingly affordable.

A couple of weeks ago, I had the opportunity to meet with Joao Nicolau de Almeida, the head winemaker of Ramos Pinto. I've always been a huge fan of their tawny Ports - especially the 30 year selection but I had never tried their dry red wines which Joao had brought along for me to try. I was most impressed with the Adriano which is made from the same grapes as Port wine ( 30 % Touriga Francesa, 30% Tinta Roriz 30%, Tinta Barroca, 10% Touriga Nacional - I told you they were tongue twisters) but the juice is allowed to ferment all the way through and it is not fortified creating a sturdy wine that tastes a bit like a cross between a fruity California Cabernet Sauvignon and an earthy, cedary Bordeaux. The French connection is not out of the blue as Joao's mentor was the famed French oenologist Emile Peynaud who is often credited as the father of modern winemaking. Emily Peynaud also authored one of my all time favorite wine books - The Taste of Wine: The Art Science of Wine Appreciation (which unfortunately is out of print).

Joao confessed to me that wines like Adriano have been a tough sell in the States since US consumers tend to equate Portuguese wines with something sweet. The Adriano retails for around $13 a bottle but I would put it up against wines three times the price. This is a great bargain and a potential game changer for the Portuguese market in general. Once consumers get their hands on something this tasty and affordable, there may come a day when we will be surprised to learn that Portugal makes dessert wines as well. OK, perhaps this is a huge exaggeration but you get the idea.

Delay in Posts

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Sorry for the delay in posts but I've been committed to a new fitness regime lately which has been taking up my extra time. Long story short, I've always lamented the fact that I could never run. I think I was forever scarred by those Presidential fitness tests in elementary school where they measured the athletic abilities of school children. My classmates were effortlessly able to clock a mile in under 8 minutes and I'd bring up the rear red faced and huffing and puffing at 15 minutes. The fifty yard dash was especially cruel as each student was asked to sprint separately while the rest of the class stood by the sidelines and watched. My sprint was more of a gallup or perhaps a hopscotch. Right then and there I knew there was a difference between me and other children - they could run and I could not.

I'm not the type of person to just give up so a few years ago, I made the decision to finally conquer running. It was my New Year's goal to clear the four mile mark and I'm happy to say I finally did it! Granted it took me about an hour to do it but I did it. My more athletic friends frequently talk about a runner's high and I think I got a whiff of it. It's really quite amazing to set a goal and finally accomplish it. The next step is to lower my time and clear 5 miles. We'll see how this goes. I've also taken up spinning which seems to help with the cardio and who knows, if I improve my swimming then maybe I can do a triathlon - ok perhaps I'm getting a little ahead of myself here but that would be pretty cool to do.

I'm crediting all the resveratrol in the red wine I drink which has been shown to increase endurance in laboratory mice. Hah! I'll just keep telling myself that.

The Squinter's Club

I'm going to have to start traveling with a Mighty Bright in my purse

My friend Scott said his eyes turned on him the day after he turned 40. He could see perfectly fine and the next day he became that person who holds the menu out with a sour squinty look on their face. I witnessed my own parents go through this and knew it would eventually happen to me but I didn't expect it to happen at the age of 32.

I've noticed the last few times I've been out to a restaurant, I'm squinting in a vain attempt to try to make out the blurred words on the wine list. It doesn't help matters when the font is a teeny tiny fancy cursive script, add the dim mood lighting and I'm surprised any wine ever gets ordered. When I first started to put together wine lists at the age of 21, it never occurred to me that people may not be able to read the list without reaching for their glasses. I went with what I thought worked best for the layout and design - reduce the font size, decrease the line spacing, use dark paper, make it all fit on one page! What's the problem old man, my young eyes can read it just fine. Wow - if only I could go back and smack my smug, arrogant self with 20/20 vision in the head.

Now that I've become a member of the squinter's club, I've learned a few important lessons:

• Make sure your customers can read the menu without looking like they are sucking on a lemon
• French Script is really not a good idea
• Neither is a font size below 8
• You don't have to fit everything on one page
• Consider the lighting
• Correct spelling is more important than ever or I will think my eyes are playing tricks on me
• Remember the mantra: if people can't read it, they can't buy it