The Well-Equipped Wine Geek – Cookbooks and Wine

December 12, 2016 by Joe Becerra

Cookbooks for the Wine Geek

The Well-Equipped Wine Geek – Cookbooks and Wine

We would venture to say the most Wine Geeks also do much of the cooking at home. They are either in the kitchen or out in the yard on the grill. What to cook, what wine to pair? A good start is a set of cookbooks that have wine pairing advice. The Well-Equipped Wine Geek must have cookbooks that include wine pairings. These books make great gifts for family and friends who love wine and love to cook.

Food and wine cookbooks available now

Buy this book: Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat: Mastering the Elements of Good Cooking
Samin Nosrat will make you into a chef. Learn how to tweak and improve your recipes by mastering these four elements of cooking.

Buy this book: Chef in the Vineyard: Fresh and Simple Recipes from Great Wine Estates
John Sarich is the culinary director for premium wine producer Chateau Ste. Michelle in Washington. He suggests wine pairings for each of these fantastic recipes, ranging from appetizers to desserts. You cannot go wrong with Chef John Sarich’s pairings.

Buy this book: Wine With Food: Pairing Notes and Recipes from the New York Times
Wine Writer for the New York Times, Eric Asimov, teams up with Florence Fabricant for recipes and wine pairings for more than 100 dishes.

Buy this book: Perfect Pairings: A Master Sommelier’s Practical Advice – Wine with Food
Evan Goldstein and his mother Joyce Goldstein are an excellent duo in this cookbook. She has the recipes and Evan has the wine suggestions.

Buy this book: Food & Wine Annual Cookbook 2016
Food & Wine monthly magazine tops my magazine subscription list each year. These are the best recipes of the year. Food & Wine is always a terrific resource for the cook and wine geek.

Buy this book: What to Drink with What You Eat: The Definitive Guide to Pairing Food with Wine, Beer, Spirits, Coffee, Tea – Even Water – Based on Expert Advice from America’s Best Sommeliers
Husband-Wife team, Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page, bring their sommelier knowledge and techniques to the chef’s table. A very comprehensive book for the experienced chef.

The Well-Equipped Wine Geek – Cheese Tools

December 6, 2016 by Joe Becerra

Cheese tools for the wine geek

Well-Equipped Wine Geek – Cheese Tools

Cheese and wine go hand-in-hand. How nice it is to sit in a comfortable chair with a book, a glass of wine and some cheese. Life can’t get much better than that! When entertaining guests, what can be easier to serve but a selection of soft and hard cheeses along with good wine? The Well-Equipped Wine Geek should have a variety of cheese tools.

The Well-Equipped Wine Gift will have the appropriate cheese tools for presenting and serving cheese. Open a bottle of chilled white, Rosé or sparkling wine, and serve with a set of different types of cheeses, hard or soft. Open a bottle of light red and serve with some tasty hard cheese.

Rule of Thumb: Always have a chunk of cheese on hand in the refrigerator for when you want to savor a glass of wine just before the dinner hour. My favorites are Manchego and Fontina. I like the Manchego at Costco and the Fontina from a local store within walking distance of my home.

Buy these Cheese Tools now for the Well-Equipped Wine Geek

cheese tools for wine lovers and wine geeks — Pass the cheese please

The Well-Equipped Wine Geek – Wine Tote Bag

November 28, 2016 by Joe Becerra

Our wine tote bags

Well-Equipped Wine Geek – Wine Tote Bag

The Well-Equipped Wine Geek will need at least two or more types of wine tote bags, sometimes called wine carriers. Most often a wine tote bag will be used to bring a special bottle of wine to a restaurant. Please see Corkage Fees or Bringing Wine to a Restaurant. If it’s not bringing wine to a restaurant, it’s bringing some great wines to a dinner party. Why not share some of your best wines with your friends? Impress them with the wines and the type of wine tote bag that carries your wine.

Most wine tote bags are insulated. This is perfect for white wine. Chill the white wine at home and bring it with you in your insulated tote bag. The photo above shows the two tote bags we use most often. The neoprene green wine tote bag is convenient because, after bringing your wine to a restaurant or dinner party, it can be tucked away in a purse or jacket pocket. Many a time we have left our wine tote bag at a restaurant or friend’s house. A little wine will often make you forget things.

Buy one of these wine tote bags now – wine geek gifts – Amazon

Insulated wine carrier tote – two bottles
Wine carrier portable neoprene 4 pack
Wine Enthusiast six bottle wine bag

How to make your own wine tote bag

The Well-Equipped Wine Geek – White Wine Insulators

November 21, 2016 by Joe Becerra

The handy white wine insulator – keep your white wine cool

The Well-Equipped Wine Geek – White Wine Insulators

The Well-Equipped Wine Geek must have one or two white wine insulators. A white wine insulator is a much better alternative than placing a white wine in an ice bucket. White wine and Rosé wine are best if they are in a temperature range of 50 to 60 degrees. A good white wine insulator will be able to keep your wine at the correct temperature over the course of an evening dinner. If you have a large gathering of guests, the Well-Equipped Wine Geek will have more than one white wine insulator.

Serving the wine between 50 to 60 degrees will allow the white or Rosé wine to bring out its fresh fruit and floral characteristics. If the white wine is served too cold, the wine drinker will not be able to experience the subtle flavors and characteristics of the wine. Too warm, and the white or Rosé loses its refreshing and clean features.

Buy these White Wine Insulators Now – Wine Geek Gifts

Wine chiller bucket – keeps your wine chilled
Wine Enthusiast Double Walled Iceless Wine Bottle Chiller

More wine gift ideas

The Well-Equipped Wine Geek – Two essential corkscrews

November 14, 2016 by Joe Becerra

The waiter’s corkscrew and the two-pronged Ah-So wine opener

Two essential corkscrews – Do you have both of these?

The Waiter’s Corkscrew

The Waiter’s Corkscrew is the most commonly used screw to open a bottle of wine. It is convenient, quick, reliable and trustworthy. It might take a few trials for the novice to get the hang of how to use the waiter’s corkscrew. But once that trial period is over, you will be just as good as anyone opening a bottle of wine. Watch the video to see how to use the waiter’s corkscrew. We also provide a couple of links to waiter’s corkscrews we like at Amazon. Please see the Amazon links at bottom of the article.

The Ah-So or Two-pronged wine opener

The Ah-So or two-pronged wine opener is essential for the wine geek for certain cork situations. It is not a corkscrew because it does not have a worm. Instead, it has two blades that you can wiggle back and forth down the neck of the wine bottle. Two of my friends have a serious collection of aged wines. The cork in old wines tends to shrink and deteriorate over time. If you use a waiter’s corkscrew on these wines, you are likely to push the cork into the bottle. The Ah-So will allow you to slip and slide the blade, and then pull the cork up without a hitch. When my friends bring one of their aged wines to a restaurant, they always bring their Ah-So with them. Most waiters don’t have them. My friends also insist that they open their bottle. Many a waiter has botched the cork pull, with much of the cork ending up in the wine.

Another reason for using the Ah-So is that you might wish to have a cork collection of your wines. A wine cork will look much more presentable without the hole made by the waiter’s corkscrew. You should be able to find an Ah-So at a good wine shop, but you can also order one from Amazon. The Ah-So or two-pronged wine opener also makes a great gift for your family and friends who enjoy wines. Check out the video below demonstrating the use of the Ah-So. See the link below to purchase an Ah-So.

Buy these wine openers and corkscrews now – Wine geek gifts

The Well-Equipped Wine Geek – Decanters

November 7, 2016 by Joe Becerra

Wide-bottom Riedel decanter

The Well-Equipped Wine Geek – Decanters

A wine decanter, perhaps two wine decanters, is a must for the Well-Equipped Wine Geek. Young and old wines alike benefit from decanting wine. For young wines, a wine decanter opens up the locked-in character of a wine that has been recently bottled. The young wine bottle has been on the move making its way to the wine-shop shelf. It needs to awaken and be stimulated with air. Pour the wine into a beautiful decanter and swirl it a few times. Then let it sit and come alive, showing its character. More on decanting wine.

For wines aging in a wine cellar, a decanter will do wonders. An old wine that has been cellared properly will have sediment in the bottle. By standing the bottle upright for several hours and then pouring the wine carefully into the decanter, the sediment will remain in the wine bottle. Like in young wines, the aged wine needs exposure to oxygen. Pouring the aged wine into a good decanter will bring life and vitality to the wine. A beautiful decanter brings a certain elegance to the dinner table. At least one stylish and sophisticated wine decanter is a must for the Well-Equipped Wine Geek. Below are three different decanters from the Riedel glass company. These will make a perfect addition to a wine geek’s collection of wine tools. A gift for the holiday season?

Buy these Riedel Wine Decanters Now – Wine Geek Gifts

USBOQO HBS 1.2 Liters Lead-Free Premium Crystal Glass Red Wine Decanter, Clear
Le Chateau Wine Decanter – 100% Hand Blown Lead-free Crystal Glass – Red Wine Carafe – Wine Gift – Wine Accessories

How and why to use a wine decanter – by Riedel

Additional gift ideas for wine lovers

The Well-Equipped Wine Geek – Wine Glasses

October 26, 2016 by Joe Becerra

A wine glass for each type of wine – The Well-Equipped Wine Geek

The Well-Equipped Wine Geek – Wine Glasses

Do you know that wine glasses are made in a shape and form that can enhance the aroma and flavors of the major varieties of wine? A Pinot Noir or Burgundy glass is much different from a wine glass for a Cabernet Sauvignon or a Bordeaux wine. The Well-Equipped Wine Geek will have a set of more than one type of wine glasses.

Riedel Glassware is the company responsible for inventing the wine varietal-specific glass. Just take a look at this Webpage to see the number of glasses made by Riedel. Just about each wine varietal that we are accustomed to finding in a wine shop has its own Riedel wine glass. For example, Barbera has its own glass, as does Albariño. According to Riedel, taste tests prove that the shape of a wine glass can enhance your appreciation of the wine. Take a look at the video.

Does this mean that you need to go out and buy a sundry of different wine glasses? Absolutely not! This is what we recommend.

The Well-Equipped Wine Geek should have these wine glasses

A set of Burgundy or Pinot Noir glasses
A set of Bordeaux or Cabernet Sauvignon glasses
A set of general use white wine glasses
A set of sparkling wine glasses

Many wine glasswear choices at Amazon

Great choice of wine glasses

More on selecting wine glasses and how to clean wine glasses.

Besides Riedel, there are many other wine glass makers and budget places to purchase wine glasses of different types and styles. Cost Plus World Market has a very nice selection of wine glasses at reasonable prices. Crate & Barrel has a large array of wine glasses in various sizes and shapes. If you can take the crowds, Ikea is an excellent place to shop for wine glasses. Cheers!