Meeting Rex Pickett (author of Sideways)

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Thank you Ian Blackburn (of Learn About Wine) for organizing a meeting with Rex Pickett, author of Sideways! Pickett has come out with the sequel to Sideways, called Vertical. 

It was inspirational to listen to Pickett speak about his life, influences on his storyline, struggles in the writing world, and his passionate hatred towards Merlot!

Interesting facts I learned were...

* Pickett's personal life is reflected in Miles, so the story is quite personal.

* Like Miles, Pickett really DOES hate Merlot.
* Sideways, the play, is coming soon to Santa Monica. (Pickett said "no" to creating the musical version).
* Pickett is working on an HBO series about a wine critic with a social disorder.
* The Hitching Post and many wineries of the Santa Barbara Vintner's Association were AGAINST the filming of Sideways, the movie, because they thought it would give them a bad name. Oh, the irony!
* Pickett's ex-wife, who at the time was his most trusted peer-editor, told him to burn Sideways after reading a draft.

* This author is not out to please the public. In fact, he had many creative differences about how the sequel should be. He did not want to write what others wanted for Miles; he wanted to let Miles be Miles and therefore decided to NOT consult focus groups or big-time publishers.

* In the book Vertical, Pickett takes our beloved characters to Oregon's Willamette Valley - where else would Pinot lovers go?

The wine nerd in me is thrilled to share these experiences with you!

Getting ready for Rex Pickett's talk at Cafe Metropol, Downtown L.A.

Artwork outside of Cafe Metropol

Danny and I are excited to hear about Vertical, the sequel to Sideways

Rex Pickett enthusiastically gives us the backstory to Sideways. Ian Blackburn, from Learn about Wine, is listening in the background.

Rex Pickett explains that he writes from a very personal place

Thanks for the event Ian Blackburn! FYI - "Beekeeper" Zin is his first wine! Full-bodied, smooth, dark berries with a hint of spice - delicious!

Some personal time with Rex Pickett

Thanks for the encouragement, Rex!

Rex, we all appreciate you for making the time for us :)

I read the first chapter last night... I'm hooked already! (I will post a review on the book when I finish)

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55 Degree Wine - Detour to European Wine

February 20, 2010: LAW(Learn about Wine)'s one-day Santa Barbara trip

*3 private wineries
*Provided transporatation
*Catered lunch
*Hands on wine education

What could go wrong?

Our bus' engine caught on fire. The trip started in Downtown, ended in Sherman Oaks.

Always positive, Danny and I decided to go check out 55 Degree Wine as a back up plan.

We met Andy, the shop owner, who hand picks his wine selection, which is mostly Italian. He enthusiastically took us downstairs for some wine tasting.

Ironically, we missed a chance of a day of tasting California wines to hang out with European wine. Andy told us that he actually cannot stand Cali wines, for it is too "jammy". Danny and I mentioned that European wines are often too earthy for us or even smell like a barn at times. He pointed out the reason was because they simply come from older vines that are hundreds of years old.

"Look at it this way," he started."When I started drinking coffee, I NEEDED cream and sugar in it. Now, I drink a straight shot of espresso. Is it bitter. Sure, but I appreciate its flavor. California wines are fruit forward and sometimes taste too sweet. The more experience you have with wine, the more you will start craving the old world style. You'll see."

For now I still promote Cali wines, but visiting 55 Degree Wine really opened my mind to learn more about European wines.

55 Degree Wine
3111 Glendale Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90039

google directions

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related to past blog entry on the Nero D'Avola

The Wine House - no risk buy guide!

The DILEMMA: "Danny, what bottle should we open up next?"

The Costa De Oro Tempranillo? Nope - at $27, that needs to opened on a special occasion...
The Ecluse Cab? Nope! That was $30!
The Castoro Primativo? Do we really want to open a Paso wine? We traveled so far to pick them up...

Once in a while, we get to a point where we can't manage to open up any of our bottles because we had splurged on them, or traveled some distance to get them. On a lazy Saturday, Danny and I ran out of cheap good wine to open and lounge with.

"Wanna go to Ralphs?"
"No"
"Wanna go to BevMo?"
"No"
"Wanna go to Trader Joe's?"
"No"

Here's the problem with going out to buy cheap wines blindly: what are you really basing the purchase on? The price? It doesn't matter if the bottle is cheap. If you don't like it, you just wasted money. What about the descriptions? Of course the stores will make it sound appealing... rhetoric! Points? Everyone has different opinions on wine - it's all relative.

In my experience, blindly picking bottles at stores is the worst way to buy. Sure, you stock up on cheap wines that you don't feel bad about opening at any given moment, but you only find "diamonds in the rough" occasionally. Most of the time, you will spend criticizing the wine, checking off which ones you will NEVER buy again. I don't mind paying up for a bottle that I know will be excellent and meaningful, but I WILL stress out about how I'm forced to finish a bottle which I cannot stand. What a waste of time and money! Plus, if I'm going to continue working out my liver, I'm going to give it the good stuff.

As Danny and I conversed about what to do and where to go to buy good, cheap wine, we remembered that the Wine House has a dispensing tasting room!

 

http://www.wineaccess.com/store/winehouse/newsletter.html?newsletter_id=129521

This is how it works: You go to the customer service desk in the back of the store and purchase a tasting card and put money on it (between $10-$20). Then you go to the tasting room, insert your card, and choose a wine to taste. Each tasting price varies (from $1-$6, depending on how much the wine costs), and whichever taste you choose, the cost will be deducted from your card. After this trial and error process, we found two bottles that we definitely wanted to purchase...


What we bought AFTER tasting:

2008 MAN Vintners Pinotage South Africa

Retail: $7.99

This red has a LOT of fruit and drinks smoothly - almost with a bacon fat aftertaste... in a good way! Perfect to bring to a party, or to lounge on the couch with. Don't judge it by the twist top. It's a good, solid wine that will deliver!

2008 Boekenhoutskloof The Wolftrap Red Wine Western Cape

Retail: $9.99 

More oaky and peppery than the above MAN Pinotage, but still has fruit present. Would be a great wine to enjoy with a meaty meal! Long, slighty tannic finish.  

Plungerhead Old Vine Zinfandel, Lodi

Retail: $11.99 

A delicious, mouthwatering burst of fruit. Smooth and easy to drink! Would pair well with smoked, tangy BBQ or a juicy burger! Great crowd-pleaser for any party. 

More importantly, we tasted cheap wines that we did NOT like, and therefore ended up not purchasing. If we had just bought blindly, we probably WOULD have picked up the bottles, and then be disappointed. We saved money, AND brought home bottles that were a great price and we KNOW will enjoy. My next dilemma.... which of the three bottles to open up first...

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The Wine House
2311 Cotner Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90064-1803
(310) 479-3731

google directions

Silver Horse - "Nada Blanca" Tempranillo - Central Coast - 05

This wine brings a positive connotation to "stinky". The nose... fresh, sundried dirt, after rain. The taste... OH so velvety, smooth, and a hint of chocolate and cherries - just enough to provide flavor. The second glass brought about more tannins, but they quickly softened out to a pleasant finish.

I'd like to also note that this wine is from the CENTRAL COAST. Kudos to producing a wine comparable to ones praised as "Old World Europe", yet attracting those, like me, who gravitate more towards California-style wines.

Silver Horse only sells the '07 "Nada Blanca" Tempranillo now, but you can find the '05 at Vino: Wine and Tapas Room in Encino. This restaurant has  HAPPY HOUR 4-7 everyday. They offer a generous pour of this "Nada Blanca" for just $6 a glass.