drowning my sorrows

[rone]

The perfect accompaniment to this most excellent T-bone steak is this Summers Knights Valley 1998 Merlot Reserve. Full, a bit tannic, a bit peppery, currant in the nose, a bit acid in the finish. And you probably won't be able to find any.

Comments

[vspope.livejournal.com]

Wine? The concept confuses me. I live in Pennsylvania, where our antiquated liquor laws lock out 90% of what the rest of the world has to offer.

Hell, our Trader Joes can't even carry Two Buck Chuck (and, oddly, neither can Delaware's); I'd have to cross the river into Jersey to try it.

[opadit.livejournal.com]

There's a Trader Joe's in Delaware? Ah, yes, just where I'd expect it to be, on Concord Pike near Naamans Road (http://www.traderjoes.com/locations/map/636.asp). Must introduce my parents to civilization when I go visit them next weekend.

After living in Seattle for so long, when I think of Trader Joe's I think of the wine selection. How odd for them to have stores in areas where they can't sell wines and imported beers.

[vspope.livejournal.com]

It surprised me that the Delaware Trader Joe's didn't carry wine, as there are private beer-and-wine-and-liquor stores within a stone's throw of it. I'm guessing that the license was either prohibitively expensive for a store that wasn't dedicated exclusively to alcohol sales, or legally unobtainable for some reason.

In fact, I'm torqued at the beverage selection in Trader Joe's in general -- the local ones have never carried more than one flavor of Reed's Ginger Brew (and it's not the one I like), and they dropped all of their non-diet Hansen's Natural Sodas. Fine, MAKE me go to Wegman's!

[opadit.livejournal.com]

My understanding of the law in Delaware is that a store can sell only alcohol (plus sodas), but no food. I'm pretty sure I've seen bags of chips and packages of mixers, bitters, sours, etc.; but basically a liquor store is a liquor-only store. No alcohol other than cooking wine can be purchased anywhere else. Package stores are independently owned and operated (unlike in Washington State[1] and Pennsylvania[2], where the state runs them) and are prohibited from operating on Sundays[3]. My guess is that Trader Joe's would have to occupy a separate, unconnected space or building exclusively for liquor sales if they wanted to sell them in Delaware.

Blue laws are so funny.

[1] - In Washington, supermarkets sell beer and wine, but not liquor. The state stores sell beer, wine, and liquor.

[2] - Obviously you know the Pennsylvania rules. Ever been to the Foodery at 10th and Pine in Philly? They have a fantastic selection of imported beers and lambics 'n' stuff, and you don't have to buy a full case like at a distributor or bar.

[3] - Hence the popularity and prosperity of State Line Liquors down the road from the University of Delaware, in Elkton, Maryland, where liquor stores are open Sundays.

[ronebofh.livejournal.com]

Sounds like someone needs a care package!

[vspope.livejournal.com]

Hell, I don't think that you're allowed to even MAIL wine to Pennsylvania without breaking the law.

(cue Beavis screaming "YEAH! YEAH! BREAKIN' THE LAW!")

[opadit.livejournal.com]

Ron, how do you like Australian shiraz? The wine I took on the plane with me out to Seattle was really nice -- I'm not a very good judge of wine (I don't have the skills or vocabulary of a connoisseur) but this had a balanced taste without that little extra "kick" in the back of the mouth that a bad red wine sometimes has after it's been swallowed. It was -- and here's where you'll make fun of me for not knowing any better -- an Alice White 2002 Shiraz. Maybe it's plonk to people who truly know wines, but I liked it and would recommend a try if you can find some.

On the way back I had Bella Sera Pinot Grigio (I forget the vintage), and that was terrible. I can't say what was so bad about it, except that it had that "fermented grape juice" feel to it, rather than a "fine wine" feel to it.

[ronebofh.livejournal.com]

I'm not much of a wine connosieur, but i can fake it a little. It helps to have all this wine country within a few hours' drive.

I haven't had much shiraz at all, but the ones i have had have impressed me a lot. My favorite inexpensive wine is The Rothbury Estate's 2001 shiraz, $6. It is really good and would be a good buy at twice the price. The other one i had was a shiraz-grenache blend from D'Arenberg, which dmw brought over to sambushell's while he was visiting. It's called D'Arry's Original. Very good stuff, around $18. I haven't even considered trying any California shiraz (shiraz and syrah are the same grape, but Australian shiraz and California syrah have different characters, so calling a California syrah a "shiraz" strikes me as a marketing gimmick).

It's funny you mentioned the Bella Sera... i did a double take, thinking that's exactly what i had in my fridge, but it's actually a Bolla Pinot Grigio. I like it; it's not fancy, but then i don't expect very much out of my white wine. Sometimes, something will blow me away, like the Domaine Weinbach 2000 Gewürztraminer (http://www.livejournal.com/users/ronebofh/64131.html). That was around $25 but SO good.

[ronebofh.livejournal.com]

I went to BevMo recently hunting for Bawls and ended up leaving with no Bawls and a bottle of a shiraz-mourvèdre blend for $10. I'll be sure to let you know how that pans out.