WINE MEISTER’S CREED

SWABIAN ROOTS AND THE WINE MEISTER'S CREED

Some of my devoted fans expressed sticker shock after reading my very first blog. I reported on a Spanish tasting (price range $18 to $99) by the “Uptown Tasting Group". That’s exactly the point of belonging to a tasting group. You average out the expense of the wines. I love tasting highfalutin wines, but being a cheapskate is in my blood.

Frugality is as German as Mercedes Benz or BMW. Their owners race along the Autobahn, screech to a halt at a rest stop during lunch time, and munch on their Wurst sandwiches, which Mutti had made earlier at home.

Let’s dig deeper into the German soul. Germans identify with their dialect groups or tribes.

Bavarians love beer, weisswurst, lederhosen, oompah music, and rough play.

Swabians, like the Wein Meister, drink wine, love spaetzle, grouse, and make fun of their peculiar outlook on life.  "Schaffe, schaffe, Haeusle baue, verrecke" (Toil, toil, build your own four walls, kick the bucket) is our central creed. The Swabians are a laconic lot. We are notorious for our penny pinching ways.

A recent story in the New York Times looked into this thriftiness business that helped Germany weather the global financial melt down. The reporter ended up talking to the Hausfrauen of Memmingen, where the Wine Meister spent the first ten years of his life.

Has the Wine Meister street cred for bargain hunting or what?

BARGAIN HUNTING

The Wine Meister lives in Marin County and the greater San Francisco Bay Area is where his happy hunting grounds lie. Until further thorough research, I can only give you thumbnail sketches of the places that wine consumers in Marin County think of as bargain stores and then some.

Trader Joe's:

Regrettably, I belittled “Two Buck Chuck," when I threatened people with a subscription to the “Two Buck Chuck” wine club, should they refuse to read my blog.

These $1.99 bottles are marketed under the name “Charles Shaw Wines,“ and for obvious reasons became known as "two buck chuck." They are exclusively sold at Trader Joe’s.

The man who brings us these super bargains is Fred Franzia of Bronco Wine Company. Fred has long been a thorn in the tender side of Napa producers. They forced him to abandon an earlier bargain brand called “Napa Ridge.” Its grapes didn’t necessarily come from Napa and thus besmirched the image that clings to everything grown on the hallowed grounds of Napa Valley.

Fred Franzia, though, had the last laugh. He purchased the name of the defunct Charles Shaw winery, built a huge bottling plant at the entrance to the Napa Valley and prints on his back labels “bottled in Napa and Sonoma” both names associated with high quality California wines.

The Larkspur Trader Joe's has a small, but well organized wine department with a staff person on hand to advise customers. As in all Trader Joe's wine departments, the ubiquitous pile of Two Buck Chuck is displayed on the floor. There are other "super bargains" galore. However, despite my better judgment, I bagged the last bottle of a high end Pinot for $20, that usually sells for twice as much.

Barolo and Barbaresco are some of Italy’s most prestigious wines. They come from the Piedmont region and are both made from the native Nebbiolo grape.  Normally, prices start at around $30. The Trader offers ‘05 Barbaresco for $13 and '05 Barolo for $14.  Both are labeled “La Loggia.” The Barbaresco was exactly what I had expected a good Barbaresco from a fair vintage to be like. Bravo! I found the Barolo less appealing, but still good.

Cost Plus:

Small, but decent selection, handsomely displayed, with very helpful staff on the floor. Lots of “bargains” from obscure producers.

Beverages and More (BevMo):

Lots of “bargains,” and massive numbers of wines from all over the world. The ones I am most familiar with are not cheap. No staff person was on hand. How are you supposed to decide whether to buy this $80 bottle of Bordeaux or that $79.99 California Cab as a gift for wine savvy Uncle Bill?

I got the feeling that BevMo is one of those “loss leader” shops. There are indeed some good deals. They have the excellent Naveran Brut Cava (Spanish sparkling wine ) at $12, but then the Deutz Champagne that I see around for $35 costs $58.

Wine Meister’s delicate system doesn’t deal well with hard liquor. Still, I gave the hard stuff a cursory glance and spotted a bottle of German brandy for $35 that I saw later at Ludwig’s for $20.

Ludwig's Liquor and Smoke Shop:

This shop has been a San Anselmo institution for decades. When you enter the handsomely appointed store with its faint, sweet, tobacco smell, you don’t expect this to be a bargain hunters paradise, but it is. The affable owner, Magid Nazari, tastes everything that he sells. His selections from high end to bargain basement specimens are all good values in their class. Emphasis is on California wines, but there is plenty of esoteric foreign stuff around. I bought a very tasty bottle of '99 Valpolicella ($10) that stood me in good stead during Halloween and the Giant's victory in Game 4.

Further issues will deal with bargain hunting in San Francisco and in the East Bay.

MISCELLANEA

Photo above: Wine Meister during a visit to Chateau La Louviere (Bordeaux). The chateaux produces excellent reds and whites. The owner, Andre Lurton, makes bargain wines at his other properties, Ch. Bonnet, Ch. de Cruzeau, and Ch. de Rochemorin.

What did Thomas Jefferson and Richard Nixon have in common? They were both fond of Chateau Margaux. At White House dinners for assorted dignitaries, Nixon would serve his guests ordinary red swill and instructed his server to pour him Margaux on the sly (and you always wondered why they called him “Tricky Dick”). Then again, maybe he was just trying to balance the budget.