Recent content by Christian Miller (CMM)

If by "traditional wine cultures" you mean a large swath of adults drink wine on a regular basis,, we are going backwards. The % of adults that drink wine has declined over past 2-3 years, and their average frequency of consumption has gone down. That said, among those who drink wine regularly...

Well put, I agree.

A very small fraction. Main reason to minimize odds of corked wine is consumer reaction. Althugh a significant minority of consumers won't notice TCA, it's likely that a bigger proportion will notice it but not ID the issue as TCA/"corked" wine and assume that's the way the wine/producer/type taste.

I haven't done any research related to the topic, but I think the Rheingau is quite familiar to US wine drinkers, in different ways depending on the consumer segment. Just for starters, it has Rhein in the name, and a lot of tours and cruises go through the area. Some of the producers and...

Yes it's kind of in that ballpark. Lacks a bit of the raspberry zestiness of some of my favorite Dry Creek Zins (e.g. Preston, Quivira under Grady Wann's tenure) but not all cloying or heavy. I think that Scherrer's zins have been cited positively on this board in the past.

At those prices for Champagne, I'd look for Roederer's Anderson Valley l"Ermitage bottling - excellent and around those prices you are quoting for mass market NV Champagne.

I've had the Argelet and Authentique, and liked both, FWIW.

Three whites & a red Gruner Veltliner Edna Valley Paragon vnyd 2019, Stereophonic (Jason Lefler) - medium-light gold; varietal nose with green/jalapeno pepper, green bean, hint of herbal fenugreek and yeast, citrus fruit; good acid, med-light body, slightly phenolic texture, dry with some...

Wow, that's as many Burgundies in two months as I've had in like two years! Nice tasting notes too; it's always tricky to calibrate with other people's notes unless you've tasted with them multiple times, but I think I got a good sense of the wines from yours.

That's one of the marvels of Lopez de Heredia - best of both worlds, you could say. But back to rustic, the contrast driving my pro-oxygen remark was between some inexpensive, rustic but enjoyable co-op wines from corners of Spain, France or Portugal and some much pricier, ambitious low/no oak...

To a large (not total) extent I agree when it comes to Cote d'Or wines. But when it comes to the rustic vector of oxygen exposure, over the last few years, across many wines, I've found myself thinking "I wish they'd racked or splashed or beaten this wine up a bit in some way." I am wondering if...

Oddly I haven't had Leitz's "normal" wines for a few years, but if the non-alcohol version is this good, I'd presume they are worth buying. Or maybe traditional Germanic Riesling just lends itself to NA treatment - I haven't tried the Loosen or Fischer versions.

I may as well add on two recent Rieslings on my table: Nahe Niersteiner Paterberg Kabinett 2021, Georg Albrecht Schneider - pale gold; moderate aroma with fresh green apple & lemon curd, hints of pine/floral; med-light body, decent acid, persistent fresh fruit with a stony touch, med length...

I recognize it, even write it in my tasting notes sometimes. But is what I call "rustic" the same thing you, or Rahsaan, or Jeff, or X calls "rustic." I suspect there'd be some overlap, but unsure how much. It would actually be a fun blind tasting to have everyone bring a bottle they'd call...

Oy, now we not only have to define "closed" but also "rustic."