GIFT LIKE A BILLIONAIRE: Buy 2 wine books, get another* free! 

gift giveawayThe Gift Like A Billionaire Giveaway is here, just in time for the holidays. Buy 2 copies of How to Drink Like a Billionaire, and get a FREE, signed copy of my previous award-winning wine book, Oldman’s Brave New World of Wine (a $25 value!).

My new wine book, How to Drink Like a Billionaire (Regan Arts), makes for an ideal holiday gift. A stylishly designed hardcover, it will enlighten the thirsty like few other wine books and looks great on your coffee table or book shelf.

While supplies last, here’s how to get a FREE copy of my last book, the award-winning Oldman’s Brave New World of Wine.

wine book gift

1) Starting now until December 12th, purchase two (2) or more copies of How to Drink Like a Billionaire on Amazon (and don’t forget to write a review!).

2) Email the Amazon receipt to alf@markoldman.com with your mailing address.

3) We will mail you a FREE, signed copy of Oldman’s Brave New World of Wine–just in time for the holidays!

For more on why How to Drink Like a Billionaire is the perfect holiday gift, click here!

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Conditions Apply:

*Only applies to 2 or more Billionaire books purchased between November 21st, 2016 and December 12th, 2016

*We reserve the right to refuse to any receipts.

*Valid for postage to the continental U.S only.

Turkey Steals: The 10 Best People-Pleasing, No-Hassle, Thanksgiving Wines Under $15

Stressed about what to serve your guests for Thanksgiving?  No need: here is my list of delicious wines that are versatile enough to match the day’s spectrum of flavors – plus they are inexpensive enough to serve in ample supply.

They are all priced under $15, some are even under $10.

thanksgiving wine under $15Top 10 Under $15 Holiday Wines

 

Sparkling wine:

Jaume Serra Cristalino Brut Cava (Spain)

 

White wine:

Antinori “Villa Antinori” Tuscana White (Italy)

Chateau Ste. Michelle Pinot Gris Columbia Valley (Washington State)

Marqués de Cáceres Verdejo Rueda (Spain)

 

Red wine:

Bogle Zinfandel Old Vine (California)

Castle Rock Pinot Noir Central Coast (California)

Jean-Luc Colombo Côtes du Rhône Les Abeilles (France)

Planeta Sicilia La Segreta Red (Italy)

Viu Manent Carménère Gran Reserva (Chile)

Yalumba Cabernet Sauvignon South Australia The Y Series (Australia)

 

For more carefully curated lists on affordable alternatives to Billionaire-caliber wines, check out my latest book, How to Drink Like a Billionaire (Regan Arts).

Chinon and the Chevelle: French Wine, American Thunder

Chinon and the Chevelle: French Wine, American Thunder: Pairing Loire wine with the wheels of Dirty Harry.

french wine american thunder

After teaching Chinon as part of my “Looks Like Red, Acts Like White” seminars at the Aspen Food & Wine Classic in June, this Loire Valley red has become a new passion for me.  Its medium weight and zesty berry taste makes it blissfully versatile with food, a fine bedfellow for both lighter and richer dishes.  Comprised of the Cabernet Franc grape, Chinon’s subtle “green” flavor – often manifesting itself as green olives, green pepper, or even pine needles — gives it a uniquely punchy personality that can be invigorating during interminable, sleep-inducing dinners.

It is no surprise, then, that I resolved to take Chinon to my relatives’ home for the mother of marathon meals, Thanksgiving.

Cue needle screech.

French wine on the most American of holidays?!  Homeland Security could cart me away for such an unpatriotic transgression.

So to balance things out, I was left with no choice but to borrow a ’67 Chevy Chevelle SS muscle car from the good folks at the Classic Car Club of Manhattan.  At least my ride would be unambiguously American.

On Thanksgiving Day, I loaded my wine bag with Chinon and the other treats listed below – and jumped into this brilliant blue thunder-chariot.  There’s no better way to feel like a Duke of Hazzard than to ride the rumble of 350 horses, emanating from an overpowered 396 “Big Block” V8 engine, a symbol of the halcyon, if smoggier, time before oil crises and politically correct Prisuses.  Like a growling volcano, this beautiful barbarian felt like it could blow at any time, which must be why it came equipped with a fire extinguisher near the gear stick.  We set off more than a few car alarms roaring out of the city.

My family was pleased with both my transportation and the wine, even if the former made the latter arrive a bit shaken and stirred.  It was the kind of cross-cultural match that France’s new president, Nicolas Sarkozy, would surely admire: French wine, American thunder.

Pronounciations:

Chinon: She-non
Chevelle: She-vell

The Chinons:

Domaine du Colombier Chinon Cuvee Vielles Vignes 2004(France, $17)
A medium-weight charmer that shows essences of dried currants and spice, with a hint of martini olives on the palate.

Philippe Alliet Chinon Vieilles Vignes 2003 (France, $30)
A smooth, light-to-medium bodied sip with aromas of black cherries, tobacco leaves, and freshly-tilled soil.

Olga Raffault Chinon Les Picasses 1989 (France, $44)
The rare older Chinon in stores now, it offers a pretty perfume of cranberries and plums, joined by notes of cedar on a smooth, enduring finish.

Also in tow:

Villa Sparina Monferrato White Montej 2004 (Italy, $13)
From Italy’s Piedmont region, this fascinating blend of Chardonnay, Muller-Thurgau, and Sauvignon Blanc displays considerable complexity for the price, with a swirl of grapefruit, pineapple, and almonds that stays refreshing to the end.

Domaine Jean Chauvenet Nuits St.-Georges “Les Vaucrains” 1er Cru 2002 (France, $70)
A show-stoppingly gorgeous red Burgundy—smooth and silky, showing blackberries, coffee, game meats, and a vapor trail of violets.

EOS Estate Vineyards Petite Sirah 2004 (California, $18)
A complex mix of wild berry and cassis greets the nose, with hints of mocha and sweet spice, which becomes a rich (but not heavy), spicy, highly-likable sip on the palette.  A good example of a less familiar varietal (Petite Sirah) prospering in a rising-star region (Paso Robles).

french france french american

Toro! Toro! Termes: Aching to be Unleashed at the Thanksgiving Table

A brunchtime visit to Manhattan’s cathedral of fromage, Artisianal, introduced me to a rich, spicy red that’s just aching to be served with your Thanksgiving bird: the Termes 2003 from Spain’s Bodega Numanthia-Termes.

Nuggets to Know:

1) Termes hails from Toro, an oft-neglected wine district of northern Spain not far from the country’s two marquee wine regions, Rioja and Ribera del Duero.  An increasing number of tempting wines are emerging from Toro, in part because of the influence of energetic importers like Jorge Ordonez, who is personally involved with the production of Termes (as well as the winery’s more expensive Numanthia and Termanthia bottlings).

2) The grape in use here is Tempranillo (called Tinta de Toro by locals), Spain’s signature red-wine grape and the primary building block for the wines of Rioja and Ribera del Duero.

3) Termes comes from 30-year-old vines. Old vines like these produce fewer grapes, and those grapes are usually more concentrated, ultimately yielding wine that is more likely to have intense flavors.


thanksgiving redProducer: Bodega Numanthia-Termes (Spain)
Wine: Termes
Vintage: 2003
Cost: $23
Track it down: www.klwines.com/product.asp?sku=1017653

The nose is a heady swirl of blueberries and blackberries, joined by a trace of dark chocolate, while the taste is spicy, smooth, and lushly flavorful.  This is a full-bodied, likeable velvet-jacket of a wine that will please your Thanksgiving tablemates and marry well with cranberry sauce, spicy stuffing, and the roasted skin of turkey.