Vineyard Brands and WOSA group at Fairview!

Leading US wine importer, Vineyard Brands, in collaboration with WOSA, brings two groups of key clients and agents to South Africa each year. The groups tour the winelands and visit the producers in the VB portfolio. Robin Back chats to a few members of their group after their tasting at Fairview.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGVLE7kS6zo

CAPARZO Brunello di Montalcino 2005

92 points
WINE SPECTATOR
"Plum and ripe berry notes, with hints of strawberry jam, follow through to a full body, with a solid core of ripe fruit, chewy yet polished tannins and a long finish. This is deep and rich. Best after 2012." -

World Cup Wines from South Africa Tasting!

A Tasting of Wines from South Africa,
host of this Years World Cup Soccer.

presented by
Sheilah McGovern of Vineyard Brands.
Saturday June 5th • 1pm to 5pm

THE WINES:

The Chocolate Block 2007
$29.99
"...rich and full of flavor...a blend of 55% Syrah, 20% Grenache Noir, 16% Cabernet Sauvignon 5% Cinsault and 4% Viognier. Black fruit notes are predominant in the wine, but there is a touch of red cherry also and soft aromas meld very nicely with a rounded texture and ripe tannins in the finish..."

La Capra Chenin Blanc 2009
$8.99
reg. $10.99 save $2.00
"an explosion of fruit on the nose, with tropical melon, pear and guava as well as ripe citrus aromas. Tropical flavors follow through on the palate, balanced by a fresh acidity and clean red apple crispness."

La Capra Pinotage 2008
$8.99
reg. $10.99 save $2.00
"Sweet fruit, pepper and cedar on the nose, with loads of blackberries and ripe plums, well structred with supple tannis and layered with ripe fruit flavors following through from the nose."

Sincerely Sauvignon Blanc 2009
$9.99
reg. $12.99 save $3.00
A blend of fruit from Neil Ellis's finest vineyards.
"...a nice crunchy style, with sea salt and lime notes kept perky by mouthwatering acidity..." WS

Sincerely Shiraz 2008
$9.99
reg. $12.99 save $3.00
..."fresh attractive blackberry, plumlike fruit. Medium body with Rhone-like plum and spice flavors. Palate is smooth in an early drinking style."

Neil Ellis Groenekloof Sauvignon Blanc 2009
$13.99
reg. $16.99 save $3.00
An award winning white.."Predominant flavors are those of tropical fruit with herbaceous overtones, whilst the overall impression is of elegance and delicacy with a long flavorsome finish."

All tasting notes are from the Vineyard Brands website.

www.vineyardbrands.com

FAST FACT:

The flavonoids and antioxidants in grapes (used to make wine) have been shown to have beneficial health effects. Scientist concluded that two to three glasses of wine for men and one to two glasses of wine for women may help reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease by up to 40 percent, cut the risk of colon cancer and cataracts, and may also slow brain decline.

Burgundy Tasting at Grace Restaurant

Sheilah McGovern hosts

a BURGUNDY TRADE TASTING at Grace Restaurant

from 2-4 on June 2.

Look at that view...

Vineyard Brands sales rep Emmanuel Lemoine's view in New Zealand during his

Peregrine winery visit.

Peregrine winery, New Zealand!

Owners of Peregrine Lindsay McLachlan, Greg Hay
with Eugenio, Hank & Saj

Thierry Matrot wine tasting

Jay Schiering of McCarthy & Schiering Wine Merchants in Seattle with

Thierry Matrot-April 2010
Thanks to VB sales rep Val Markus for this terrific pic.

Tasting with Nicolas Jaboulet

Glazer's Domaines & Estates staff in Kansas City tasting Jaboulet Perrin with wine producer
Nicolas Jaboulet.
Thanks to our sales reps Joe Ancona for this great pic.

Wine Riot

Vineyard Brands sales rep David Bove at the
Wine Riot event

Music to your Mouth!

Eileen Hallmark pouring at the Music for you Mouth event.
The Inn, Palmeto Bluff, South Carolina

Paragliding in New Zealand! Go Jan and Emmanuel!

Emmanuel & Rene!
The Peregrine winery in New Zealand.

Jan paragliding in New Zealand during her visit to the Peregrine winery!

Stelvin or Cork. What's the difference?

Natural cork
Natural cork closures have a centuries-long heritage; however, they allow for a bottle of wine to be "corked" as the saying goes. A "corked" bottle has a musty smell and taste that stems from TCA (2,4,6-Trichloroanisole) - a substance used to sanitize the natural cork prior to bottling. The result is a flat, moldy flavor devoid of fruit-filled taste and aroma. It is estimated that about 5-10% of wines available on merchants’ shelves are "corked."

Synthetic Corks
Synthetic corks, derived from plastic, appeared to be a viable alternative to traditional corks. However, their track record has been tarnished due to their inability to keep oxidation at bay for any real length of time, significantly decreasing the shelf life of a wine and short-changing the maturing process of select wines.

Screw Cap
Screw caps provide the best seal for bottled wines, and eliminate the "corked" and oxidation problem in one fell swoop. Hogue Cellars completed a 30-month study comparing natural and synthetic cork closures with the Stelvin screw caps, their findings suggest significant benefits in utilizing screw caps over either natural or synthetic cork closures. While, screw caps do diminish the drama and romance of bottle opening it is well worth the sacrifice to ensure a taint-free wine that offers consistent aging, maintained flavor and freshness with optimum quality control.

The Stelvin screw cap appears to be the industry’s cap closure of choice. With producers such as Hogue Cellars , Beringer, Bonny Doon, Penfolds and many others utilizing the Stelvin screw cap closure for wines of all price ranges. We are sure to see this trend take hold as winemakers and wine enthusiasts alike place a higher priority on overall quality and less on "corked" tradition.

Read the complete article: http://wine.about.com/od/storingwines/a/Screwcaps.htm

South Africa World Cup! What a great wine portfolio!

Get ready for an event that happens every 4 years...

The World Cup!

How do you get ready? Well, though we can't tell you to be sure you're wearing clean underwear, we can confidently recommend you enjoy one (or more) of our wonderful South African wines from our portfolio: http://www.vineyardbrands.com/Aspx/OurProducers.aspx

Caparzo On The Red Carpet

Check out the new movie Letters to Juliet and see beautiful Tuscany...

including the lovely scenery at

CAPARZO & BORGO SCOPETO!