red or white?
by taylor moody “the wine guy”
Holiday Pairings
With the holiday season in full swing, you may be looking for something to ing palates. From Paso Robles, HammerSky Vineyards’ “A-List” and “Party of Four”
complement all of the festive foods being passed around. How about something blends helped it win the recent accolade of “Best California Boutique Winery” in
that is as popular now as it was in biblical times? If you couldn’t guess, we’re talking 2009 from the Family Winemakers of California. HammerSky Vineyards is also a
about wine. There’s no better place to look than right here in California for some boutique winery, and is an up-and-coming favorite in Orange County, San Diego,
of the best wines on earth. Whether you are hosting a large holiday extravaganza and celebrity wine circles.
or an intimate family gathering, there are wines that enrich every dish. When it What about those health benefits we keep hearing about wine? Recent studies
comes to traditional fare, turkey, ham and roast beef are perennial favorites. Pinot are finding that moderate consumption of wine may help lower the risk of Type
Noir and Merlot or Merlot blends will complement all of these wonderfully. What 2 Diabetes, assist in weight management, help in digestion (which will come in
about mashed potatoes and stuffing? Pinot and Merlot pair well with those as handy after those big meals!), and wine contains resveratrol. The focus on the an-
well. No need to jump around pouring different wines for different dishes; let’s tioxidant properties of resveratrol are the laboratory results that show protective
keep things simple. Pinot Noir can be a bit more expensive, so it may be more qualities that inhibit cancerous changes in cells. Moderate consumption is the
appropriate for smaller gatherings. Pinot Noir can also be a very temperamental name of the game though. Here are some words of advice and a simple solution
grape, which is another good reason to serve it at small gatherings in case you regarding the worst byproduct of drinking. Dehydration is a common cause of
find yourself with a sub-par bottle. One surefire Pinot Noir is the 2005 R. Merlo hangovers and can be avoided by drinking water before, during and after your
Pinot Noir from Trinity County. Being a boutique winery, with small batches and meal. Have a safe and happy holiday season!
handmade, high-quality wines, R. Merlo is a great choice. It recently received the
Gold Medal – Best of Show award at the 2009 Los Angeles International Wine & Taylor Moody is our resident “wine guy” expert. Having worked with many California wineries
Spirits Competition. Merlot is almost always a safe bet if you are nervous about over many years, he and his company, International Wine Ventures, can provide wine tasting
potentially picky wine drinkers. It is estimated to be the third most-grown varietal and catering services for the smallest, most intimate and romantic events to the largest
world-wide, and is usually a very “easy-drinking” wine. Blends are increasing in galas. Moody also gives back to the community by donating a percentage of profits when host-
popularity, and because they incorporate Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet ing charity functions. For more info, e-mail Taylor at tmoody@intlwineventures.com or visit
Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, it has the ability to satisfy a wide range of discern- intlwineventures.com.
58 RAGE monthly | December 2009
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