I don't know where the old saying “ignorance is bliss” came from. I do know that in some areas of life ignorance is probably better. A great example of that is in my college days when I worked in a doughnut shop. Once you figure out what goes into an apple fritter it pretty well fixes you for eating them ever again. I'm sure the same goes for working in a hot dog plant.
On the other hand, working around wine, and the education involved in making, selling, and enjoying wine has yet to produce a “yuck” result in my life. Actually, quite the opposite. Every time I learn a little more about the wine business I get that much more excited and can't wait to taste what I've learned.
It seems that everywhere you go in the wine industry education follows. However, the following are some of my favorite ways that I've ever learned about the enjoyment of wine:
First, one of the best ways that I can image to learn about wine is right where it is made. I have been very lucky these past few years to have several long-lasting relationships with highly talented winemakers who have been more than happy to share their craft with me. I'm sure they wouldn't have been so open with their information had I been a competitor, but as a customer and writer of wine they have been fantastic teachers.
Actually spending time with an experienced winemaker can change your entire experience of wine. I can tell you that my palate changes all came from time spent with winemakers.
The second way that I highly suggest getting wine education is to actually attend wine seminars. There is a fantastic one going on in the Tri-Cities this weekend. The annual Tri-Cities wine festival is November 4th and 5th this year, with a huge tasting event, seminars, and a gala event that happens on the 5th. You can find out more on getting to the event by going to www.tcwinefest.com.
If you don’t want to leave Pendleton, but are still wanting to get in on wine seminars I suggest Graybeal Distributing’s Wine 101 classes. A class will be happening this Tuesday night, November 8th at their warehouse. I was honored to teach at this week’s class and was so happy to meet a handful of my readers. Hopefully they’re still my readers after having to listen to me talk for two hours.
This week’s class will be taught by the amazing Rich Marshall from Maryhill Winery. He is a fantastic speaker and entertainer in the wine business, and I know those who attend will have a great time learning about wines in general, as well as the world of Maryhill wines. Contact Deborah at 541-276-2264 if you are interested in attending a Wine 101 seminar.
My last suggestion for learning about wines is to read. You can spend a small fortune on a Wine Spectator or Wine Enthusiast magazine subscription, or you can go out into the bloggosphere and be pummeled with millions of wine articles that are available every day. You can read my stuff at www.onerichwineguy.com, or for more educated reading I suggest going to www.palatepress.com. Paul Gregutt writes a fantastic blog, as well as many other fantastic writers and sommeliers such as Natalie McLean.
No matter how you get your education, I know that the more you learn the more you’ll love wine.
Enjoy!
Showing posts with label Graybeal Distributing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Graybeal Distributing. Show all posts
Saturday, November 5, 2011
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Goodbye To Roger Kelley, Ed Scapplehorn, and Bob Woehler
They say that the greats all go in threes. I am coming to believe that for sure after this week. Three great men who helped me, and shaped me in the wine business are gone this week. I want to spend just a few moments talking about each of them and the way that they touched my life and the lives of those in our region.
First, I want to mention Roger Kelley, the draft manager for Graybeal Distributing. I met Roger right away on my first day of work at Graybeal in Pendleton. Rough talking and full of vigor, Roger could flat out get the work done.
Roger worked more with beer than he did with wine, but we did spend a considerable amount of quality time in the wine isles of the stores a few times each year during reset season.
All of the big chain stores are organized by actual schematics as to what goes on each shelf. There was one thing that both Roger and I detested doing, and that was resets. We would spend hours pulling bottles of wine off of the shelves, cleaning the shelves, and then putting them back on in order. Truly a horrible job.
Roger had a method that worked. He would stand there and read the schematics and yell out to me what needed to go on the shelf next, one bottle at a time. During those times, as well as all the work we did together at the fair and Roundup each year preparing the beer gardens the things I appreciated Roger most for was his honest, straight forward talk, and his ability to get the work done.
Roger, I hope you’re enjoying an ice cold Coors Banquet up there in heaven!
At the same time I heard about Roger’s death, I also heard about another wine industry great in our area who passed away last week. Ed Scapplehorn, who represented Terra Blanca Winery for many years passed away in Richland, Washington.
If you saw a bottle of Terra Blanca wine on the shelf in your favorite wine shop or restaurant anywhere in America it was because Ed had worked to get it in there. Like Roger, Ed was a straight talking and hard working man. Having years of grocery and distribution experience, he could work and drink with the best of them. I just know that Ed is kicking back a glass of Cabernet or a Miller Lite right now. Save one for me Ed!
As I was writing this article tonight I found out that I had to add one more name to this article. Bob Woehler, one of the region’s most prolific and celebrated wine writers passed away this week as well.
Writing a weekly column for the Tri City Herald, as well as regular columns and articles in Wine Press Northwest made Bob a well known name in this region for wine. It’s pretty much known that having Bob taste wines with you, it was going to be entertaining and educational.
The thing I most appreciate about Bob, and I’ve chosen to follow his path in writing this column each week, is that “if you can’t say something nice, don’t say it”. Bob was very loyal to the industry by never talking bad about a wine, winemaker, or the industry. His articles were always fun and informative. Many times I would wish I had written so well about the same wines. I wish you only the best wines in heaven Bob.
Until next week, enjoy!
First, I want to mention Roger Kelley, the draft manager for Graybeal Distributing. I met Roger right away on my first day of work at Graybeal in Pendleton. Rough talking and full of vigor, Roger could flat out get the work done.
Roger worked more with beer than he did with wine, but we did spend a considerable amount of quality time in the wine isles of the stores a few times each year during reset season.
All of the big chain stores are organized by actual schematics as to what goes on each shelf. There was one thing that both Roger and I detested doing, and that was resets. We would spend hours pulling bottles of wine off of the shelves, cleaning the shelves, and then putting them back on in order. Truly a horrible job.
Roger had a method that worked. He would stand there and read the schematics and yell out to me what needed to go on the shelf next, one bottle at a time. During those times, as well as all the work we did together at the fair and Roundup each year preparing the beer gardens the things I appreciated Roger most for was his honest, straight forward talk, and his ability to get the work done.
Roger, I hope you’re enjoying an ice cold Coors Banquet up there in heaven!
At the same time I heard about Roger’s death, I also heard about another wine industry great in our area who passed away last week. Ed Scapplehorn, who represented Terra Blanca Winery for many years passed away in Richland, Washington.
If you saw a bottle of Terra Blanca wine on the shelf in your favorite wine shop or restaurant anywhere in America it was because Ed had worked to get it in there. Like Roger, Ed was a straight talking and hard working man. Having years of grocery and distribution experience, he could work and drink with the best of them. I just know that Ed is kicking back a glass of Cabernet or a Miller Lite right now. Save one for me Ed!
As I was writing this article tonight I found out that I had to add one more name to this article. Bob Woehler, one of the region’s most prolific and celebrated wine writers passed away this week as well.
Writing a weekly column for the Tri City Herald, as well as regular columns and articles in Wine Press Northwest made Bob a well known name in this region for wine. It’s pretty much known that having Bob taste wines with you, it was going to be entertaining and educational.
The thing I most appreciate about Bob, and I’ve chosen to follow his path in writing this column each week, is that “if you can’t say something nice, don’t say it”. Bob was very loyal to the industry by never talking bad about a wine, winemaker, or the industry. His articles were always fun and informative. Many times I would wish I had written so well about the same wines. I wish you only the best wines in heaven Bob.
Until next week, enjoy!
Friday, August 6, 2010
Goodbye Jack. You'll Be Missed
The wine industry in Northeast Oregon lost a very important person this week. No, he wasn't some haughty taughty winemaker, or some vineyard owner with thousands of acres. But, I can tell you that if you purchased a bottle of wine from any location in Northeastern Oregon in the last 10 years, the bottle had been carefully handled at some time by my friend Jack Huth.
The industry isn't all fancy winemaker's dinners and $100 bottles of wine pouring over the counters of artsy tasting rooms. For the most part, the wine industry is dirty hard work. It is stacking and unstacking dusty boxes and bottles of wines thousands of times each day.
This truth was taught to me 7 years ago when I took a job as the Marketing Director with Graybeal Distributing in Pendleton. One of the best teachers I had in this was Jack.
One of the things that I did to familiarize myself with the thousands of products we offered was to work on the warehouse floor at least a little every day. Quickly I found the best way to learn the wine products was to follow Jack around. He knew everything we carried, and exactly where it was at any moment.
One lesson that Jack taught me happened in my first week. He watched me clumbsily grab for a bottle of Lambrusco on the warehouse shelf. Like a flash he was there at my side. Little did I know, but Lambrusco is quite dangerous. If a bottle drops the pressure will send glass shards back into your face. Jack knew this from experience, and he had the scars to prove it.
Jack was not only a good educator to us rookies in the business. He was also a generous, warm personality. You could hear his loud laugh several times echoing through the warehouse in a day. He would always welcome back drivers and salespeople from their routes. One of the first to arrive Monday mornings, and one of the last to leave Friday night.
There was one thing about Jack that I always found odd though. For all the bottles of wine he touched in his career, I don't think he ever found one that he liked. The best I could ever convince him of was to take a sniff out of a glass before he would turn up his nose and go "phsssssh!" No. Jack's drink of choice was Keystone Ice. So, in honor of you Jack, tonight I am drinking Keystone Ice and I'm going to offer the readers of this blog my tasting notes:
24 oz. Keystone Ice straight from the can (best by date - October 11). The nose is fizzy with a little mineral overtones. I can't really swirl it to bring out more, but my first taste is cold and refreshing. Afterall, it is 85 degrees out at 9 p.m. and any beer seems right tonight. The flavors are malty and sweet, with some bite from both the faint hops and the alcohol as it hits the back of my throat. A finish that is short leaves me ready for another slurp. At 5.9% alcohol I'd say not too bad for a buck fourty nine! Guess you were onto something Jack!
Thanks Jack, and my hope is that you'll be golfing, bowling, and enjoying an endless supply of Keystone Ice from now on. We'll miss you.
Saturday, December 19, 2009
The 2009 Holiday Wine Lover’s Gift Guide
Last year, one of the favorite articles that I wrote was my holiday gift guide. You know, those little stocking stuffers that good little wine drinking boys and girls would enjoy. I’ve decided that Santa just needs help in this area once in a while.
That said, I know a few items that your wine drinking loved ones should appreciate this year. Put any of these under the tree and you are sure to get some appreciation under the mistletoe. These gifts range from $5 and up, so you can fit something into your budget.
First on my list is a really good corkscrew. There are many types out there. I personally appreciate a well made waiter’s corkscrew. The better ones have Teflon coating on the screw, making it easier to turn into the cork, and a two stage lift, making it easy to ratchet the cork out.
Many people expound on the love that they have for their “rabbit” style corkscrews. These gadgets have a clamp that grips the bottle, and with two swift movements the cork is extracted using a lever. If you want to go all the way, there are very fancy corkscrews that bolt onto the counter and are made of etched brass and hardwood.
Another type of corkscrew that is growing in popularity, especially at winery tasting rooms is the compressed gas style. This type has a needle that is forced into the cork. You press down and “pop” the cork is out.
Lastly, you can always buy a good pair of loafers. Yes…shoes. A widely distributed YouTube video has proven that you can open a bottle with your shoe. Just place the bottom of the bottle in the shoe. Cut the foil from the top, and smack the shoe and bottle against a wall. The force from the sloshing wine pushes the cork out in just a few strokes.
Last year I suggested buying people decanters, which may have been stashed in a cupboard in the best cases, and used as urinals in the worst. This year, there is a device out there called an aerator. It does basically the same thing as a decanter, but more efficiently. There are several brands out there that run from $20 to $70. You pour the wine from the bottle into the device and it forces air into the wine as it filters through to your glass.
For the wine lover who wants to own a piece of the action, I suggest buying into a wine club at one of the local wineries. Most wineries lay out the red carpet to their members. With the economy the way it is right now, there are several who are offering fantastic deals on their wines to club members.
What I really want from Santa is a shopping spree at a Graybeal Distributing, or at a local wine shop such as Great Pacific in Pendleton, or Bellingers in Hermiston. You can purchase a gift certificate from these places and let your favorite wino do their own shopping.
Lastly, for your favorite Santa’s helper, there is always the opportunity to spend the day with someone like…me. I make myself available for special guided wine tours and wine dinners throughout the region in the winter and spring months. If you’re interested you can reach me through my blog at www.onerichwineguy.blogspot.com.
Merry Christmas, and Cheers!
That said, I know a few items that your wine drinking loved ones should appreciate this year. Put any of these under the tree and you are sure to get some appreciation under the mistletoe. These gifts range from $5 and up, so you can fit something into your budget.
First on my list is a really good corkscrew. There are many types out there. I personally appreciate a well made waiter’s corkscrew. The better ones have Teflon coating on the screw, making it easier to turn into the cork, and a two stage lift, making it easy to ratchet the cork out.
Many people expound on the love that they have for their “rabbit” style corkscrews. These gadgets have a clamp that grips the bottle, and with two swift movements the cork is extracted using a lever. If you want to go all the way, there are very fancy corkscrews that bolt onto the counter and are made of etched brass and hardwood.
Another type of corkscrew that is growing in popularity, especially at winery tasting rooms is the compressed gas style. This type has a needle that is forced into the cork. You press down and “pop” the cork is out.
Lastly, you can always buy a good pair of loafers. Yes…shoes. A widely distributed YouTube video has proven that you can open a bottle with your shoe. Just place the bottom of the bottle in the shoe. Cut the foil from the top, and smack the shoe and bottle against a wall. The force from the sloshing wine pushes the cork out in just a few strokes.
Last year I suggested buying people decanters, which may have been stashed in a cupboard in the best cases, and used as urinals in the worst. This year, there is a device out there called an aerator. It does basically the same thing as a decanter, but more efficiently. There are several brands out there that run from $20 to $70. You pour the wine from the bottle into the device and it forces air into the wine as it filters through to your glass.
For the wine lover who wants to own a piece of the action, I suggest buying into a wine club at one of the local wineries. Most wineries lay out the red carpet to their members. With the economy the way it is right now, there are several who are offering fantastic deals on their wines to club members.
What I really want from Santa is a shopping spree at a Graybeal Distributing, or at a local wine shop such as Great Pacific in Pendleton, or Bellingers in Hermiston. You can purchase a gift certificate from these places and let your favorite wino do their own shopping.
Lastly, for your favorite Santa’s helper, there is always the opportunity to spend the day with someone like…me. I make myself available for special guided wine tours and wine dinners throughout the region in the winter and spring months. If you’re interested you can reach me through my blog at www.onerichwineguy.blogspot.com.
Merry Christmas, and Cheers!
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Roundup A Great Time For Happy Canyon Wine
The days are hot, and the nights are brisk. The wasps in the trees are nesting like crazy, and the squirrels are running around my yard picking up this year’s crop of walnuts. It’s Mother Nature’s way of letting us know that it is Roundup time again.
In just a few short days the town of Pendleton will become a haven for cowboys, cowgirls, and those who want to play like they are. The usual drink of choice is whiskey, beer, or soda. But, for those wanting something a little more “high-faluten” there are a couple of good wine choices that offer a lot of fun, and are only available in the Pendleton area.
A few years ago, I was approached to produce a label for a “Happy Canyon Wine”. With the help of the Happy Canyon directors, Maryl Featherstone of Graybeal Distributing, and Tom Huggins the Founder of Eola Hills Winery, we were able to come up with a couple of wines that are fun, refreshing, and provide great souvenirs to take back home and enjoy with friends later. My contribution was the actual label for the wine, which I had a great time creating.
Eola Hills winery, located in Rickreall, Oregon is a 100,000 case winery that produces about 50,000 cases for their own label and the rest under contracts with other wineries. Huggins, who has family in Pendleton, was very happy to work with the directors and Graybeal to come up with a couple of wines that would be very drinkable and fun for just about anyone. Their choices were a Merlot for the red wine, and a Pinot Gris for the white wine.
The Eola Pinot Gris is one of Eola Hill’s flagship varietals, winning several top scores in contests throughout the United States. Fresh Bartlett Pears come to mind when you first inhale the delicious aroma. At first taste, it is light, refreshing, and a little fruity with a light finish. The thing a lot of people enjoy is the spritzy finish caused by just the right amount of sugar and acid when the wine hits the front of the tongue.
The Eola Pinot Gris is great with fish or poultry. It works well with buttery dishes as well, like twice baked potatoes or cream sauces. I especially like it with a nice creamy seafood fettuccini.
The Eola Hills Merlot is produced mostly from Columbia Valley grapes, which tend to yield bright cherry and plum on the nose and flavors of the wine. The Merlot is not a big bold red. It is really more of a soft, drinkable wine that most people will find a good fit with anything from burgers, steak, or even just sitting on the patio as the sun goes down.
You can pick up Happy Canyon wine throughout Umatilla County and annually there are displays at Dave’s, Great Pacific, and Albertson’s downtown. If you want to try a glass before you buy the whole bottle just ask at one of the many restaurants in town. Most offer them as special glass pours throughout these next few weeks.
Enjoy, be safe, and Let ‘er Buck!
In just a few short days the town of Pendleton will become a haven for cowboys, cowgirls, and those who want to play like they are. The usual drink of choice is whiskey, beer, or soda. But, for those wanting something a little more “high-faluten” there are a couple of good wine choices that offer a lot of fun, and are only available in the Pendleton area.
A few years ago, I was approached to produce a label for a “Happy Canyon Wine”. With the help of the Happy Canyon directors, Maryl Featherstone of Graybeal Distributing, and Tom Huggins the Founder of Eola Hills Winery, we were able to come up with a couple of wines that are fun, refreshing, and provide great souvenirs to take back home and enjoy with friends later. My contribution was the actual label for the wine, which I had a great time creating.
Eola Hills winery, located in Rickreall, Oregon is a 100,000 case winery that produces about 50,000 cases for their own label and the rest under contracts with other wineries. Huggins, who has family in Pendleton, was very happy to work with the directors and Graybeal to come up with a couple of wines that would be very drinkable and fun for just about anyone. Their choices were a Merlot for the red wine, and a Pinot Gris for the white wine.
The Eola Pinot Gris is one of Eola Hill’s flagship varietals, winning several top scores in contests throughout the United States. Fresh Bartlett Pears come to mind when you first inhale the delicious aroma. At first taste, it is light, refreshing, and a little fruity with a light finish. The thing a lot of people enjoy is the spritzy finish caused by just the right amount of sugar and acid when the wine hits the front of the tongue.
The Eola Pinot Gris is great with fish or poultry. It works well with buttery dishes as well, like twice baked potatoes or cream sauces. I especially like it with a nice creamy seafood fettuccini.
The Eola Hills Merlot is produced mostly from Columbia Valley grapes, which tend to yield bright cherry and plum on the nose and flavors of the wine. The Merlot is not a big bold red. It is really more of a soft, drinkable wine that most people will find a good fit with anything from burgers, steak, or even just sitting on the patio as the sun goes down.
You can pick up Happy Canyon wine throughout Umatilla County and annually there are displays at Dave’s, Great Pacific, and Albertson’s downtown. If you want to try a glass before you buy the whole bottle just ask at one of the many restaurants in town. Most offer them as special glass pours throughout these next few weeks.
Enjoy, be safe, and Let ‘er Buck!
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