Category Archives: Wine

Event Recap: La Marca Happy Hour at Times Ten Cellar

I am lucky to have some friends who can pinch hit when my day job heats up.  Thanks to Rachael Kohler for stepping in! (She’s also a legit sommelier, so her notes are going to be better than mine ever could be anyway!)  

written by Rachael Evans Kohler

Times Ten Cellar hosted the event, and was as rustic yet elegant as ever.

I was lucky enough to grab a minute with Carmen J. Castorina, Director of Communications for E&J Gallo Winery, and wine maker of La Marca, Fabrizio Gatto.  Both gentlemen were extremely charming and very enthusiastic on America’s perception of prosecco, and particularly the big interest from Texans!
I had the good luck to sit next to Meredith Steele, a food blogger/freelance food writer.  Her perception of the wine was interesting because she instantly commented on how friendly the wine was to the charcuterie we were enjoying. Not all wines are pleasant around cured meats, aged cheeses, and spiced sauces!
  • La Marca is now a DOC* and produces 35% of all prosecco in it’s designated region- biggest producer
  • They only produce this sparkling wine using the Charmat method, basically fermenting the juice in large tanks rather than inside the bottles as they do in Champagne.  This keeps it very light, fruity, and fresh.
  • They are not  trying to make a serious, intense, yeasty champagne-style wine, but rather a fan-pleasing style that goes with anyone, any food, and any time.
  • They’ve come a long way in the last 8 years, from two guys driving across the US trying to sell this unknown wine, to flying around the country to meet the demands of interested buyers.
  • The blue label and packaging are extremely close to “Tiffany Blue”- a point they swear is just coincidence … but one that works in their favor!
For the hour that I was there, I thoroughly enjoyed myself.  La Marca accomplished its intensions by opening up conversations, turning strangers into friends, and the demise of a delicious appetizer by everyone at the table.
*DOC means ”controlled designation of origin”.  Basically it is a classification of where a product came from. Read more.

Post Up Here (Wine Poste)

I have a confession: I’m lazy.  Like … really lazy —- don’t even like to make decisions lazy.  My boyfriend mistakes it for indifference or even for the inability to make decisions … but it’s really just laziness.  That said, my laziness often gets in the way of me trying new places or things.  (In my best Most Interesting Man in the World impression) I don’t always make an effort to visit “faraway*” places, but when I do, it’s to the Design District to visit Wine Poste.

This 4500sf space has retail, art installations, event spaces (three of them in varying sizes, in fact), and even offers wine tasting events along with wine & cheese pairing classes and celebrity chef private dinners.

Now for the completely unique thing about WP: they ship wine.  Anywhere in Texas, you can order wine and have it delivered to your door for a mere $5.  NOTE: This is extremely rare.

Stop in soon and they’ll help you pick out a great bottle of wine, or shop their retail site, where you can shop for wines by varietal, rating, price, or region, and even see staff picks.

*Anything outside of Uptown is far away to me.  I know … I’m terrible**.
**I’m really not terrible … again … I’m just lazy.

Cru Wine Bar

Thursday nights were always a big to-do.  My friends and I would get dressed up and roll over to West Village for Cru’s Thursday night special of half price bottles of champagne and sparkling wines.

The atmosphere in Cru is relaxed but quite formal and the people sipping their glasses of wine are movers and shakers.  The bartenders are always up for a quick chat as are the people perched at the bar.

Saunter over, sip a bottle of bubbly, and try some of their amazing cheeses … don’t forget to take your crew.

Cru Wine Bar
www.cruawinebar.com
3699 Mckinney Ave | (214) 526-9463

Specials:
Thursday | 1/2 price champagne