I've included the contributions of Jose and Dale, as well as updating
the Napa visit section. As always, all comments and criticisms are welcome.

-------- Begin C&P -----------
Alt.food.wine FAQ - Version 0.2

Welcome to the FAQ for alt.food.wine! In this document, we have tried
to compile a list of questions that have frequently been asked on this
newsgroup. Alt.food.wine welcomes all questions relating to wine,
though questions concerning winemaking might get more responses in the
related newsgroup rec.crafts.winemaking.

Table of Contents
1. I have just found a bottle of wine in my parents' cupboard and...
1a. I want to know how much it's worth
1b. I want to know whether it's OK to drink
1c. Will it taste good?
2. I just had an incredible bottle of wine. Where I find some of it to buy?
3. What wineries should I visit (where should I stay? eat?) in...
3a. Napa?
3b. Sonoma?
3c. Paso Robles?
3d. Amador County?
3e. Santa Barbara County?
3f. Burgundy?
3g. The Rhone Valley?
3h. Bordeaux?
4. What is the best way to preserve an opened bottle of wine? How long
will it last?
5. What wine should I serve with this food?
6. Are those expensive Riedel glasses worth the money?
7. What causes red wine headaches? How can I prevent them?
8. What do those abbreviations mean?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. I have just found a bottle of wine in my parents' cupboard and...
1a. I want to know how much it's worth

First of all, an all-important question with any wine that's been
stored for any length of time is what the storage conditions were like.
It is generally agreed that wine prefers to be stored in cool, moist
locations, free of light and significant temperature variation. If you
can't guarantee such storage conditions, you're unlikely to get full
price for your wine. If it was found in a kitchen cupboard or garage,
it probably wouldn't sell for much at all.
It's also important to realize that most wine, maybe 99% of it, is
intended for near-term consumption. If your wine is one of those, it
probably won't be worth much unless it's got some sentimental or
historical value.
With those two caveats out of the way, there are several ways you can
get an idea of how much your wine might be worth. You can look for its
retail value on the websites http://www.wine-searcher.com or
http://www.winezap.com. If it's being sold today, you can find what
they're asking for it. However, don't expect to get retail value for
your wine. The easiest way to sell it is at auction, where you'd get
perhaps 80% of the retail price (in a best case analysis). To find out
what that wine has fetched at auction, you can use a database search
tool provided by the Chicago Wine Company (http://www.tcwc.com/ham.htm).
If you do want to sell your wine, there are several online auction
sites that you can use:
http://www.winecommune.com (probably the best for single bottles)
http://www.winebid.com

In some countries, you may be able to sell your wine on Ebay.
Additionally, in certain states of the United States, you may be able to
sell your wine on consignment through a retailer. Since each state has
different alcohol laws, you'd have to check with a local retailer to be
sure.

1b. I want to know whether it's OK to drink
The two caveats to the previous section apply equally to this
question. However, no wine will harm you, no matter how poorly it's
been stored nor how old it is. Also, old wine rarely if ever turns to
vinegar. The only real question is whether it'll be enjoyable to drink,
and one of the best ways to answer that is to open the bottle to see.
However, you can do some research on "drinking windows" proposed by
critics and other wine drinkers. Because most of the published
information is only available by subscription, you won't be able to find
Robert Parker's or the Wine Spectator's advice on the Web. However, a
decent resource is the website http://www.cellartracker.com, which is an
online cellar database for wine lovers. There is a search function on
their homepage that'll give you Cellartracker's customers' comments on
the wine in question, usually with a "recommended drinking window"
included. Of course, asking for advice on the newsgroup might get some
good advice, too.
Be aware, however, that any such drinking window is highly subjective
and based on an assumption of ideal storage conditions. Take such
recommendations with a good deal of skepticism, and open the bottle
earlier than recommended if there are questions about storage. If you
have any doubts about its storage, it's a good idea to open it up with a
backup bottle at hand in case the older wine turns out to not be to your
liking.

1c. Will it taste good?
One of the things about wine is that it evolves even after you open it.
Often an older wine will taste harsh or thin when first opened, but
don't give up on it. Let it sit in the glass for a while and "breathe"
for a while. Over the course of a meal it may "open up" and begin to
reveal its more subtle flavors and even become more full-bodied or
fruitier. Sometimes, recorked and tried the next day, older wines can
be seen to improve. Sometimes not. But don't give up on it based on
your first sip. Also keep in mind that some older wines are fragile and
may not last too long once opened. So, if you open it and like it, keep
in mind that it may not stay that way for long - or it might, depending ;-)


2. I just had an incredible bottle of wine. Where I find some of it to buy?
First of all, make sure that you know exactly what the wine is. That
means knowing the producer, the region it was made in, the vineyard name
(if there was any) and the year. Because there are lots of
similar-sounding names, you want to be sure that you're getting the same
thing you had. If you're not sure of those details and had the wine at
a restaurant, you can call them for a complete description of the wine.
If you had it at some other event, try to track down someone who would
know to ask them. Once you've got all the details, go to
http://www.wine-searcher.com (or http://www.winezap.com) and look up who
sells it in the Internet. Although you won't get all the listings
without buying the Professional version, you'll usually get enough
information to help anyway. If you can't find it for sale using
wine-searcher and it's a recent vintage (i.e., the year on the bottle is
no earlier than 2-4 years ago) you might try the winery's website or
call them to see if: a) they'll sell directly to you or b) they can tell
you who distributes their wine in your area. (You can then get ahold of
the distributor to find out who sells it near to you.

3. What wineries should I visit (where should I stay? eat?) in...
What follows is a compendium of recommendations made in alt.food.wine
over the past 5 years or so. Since they were made without knowledge of
your tastes, they may or may not be useful to you. If you can define
your tastes, you might get better advice asking the newsgroup after
describing your tastes to us.

3a. Napa?
Napa is known primarily for its Cabernet Sauvignon, but Chardonnay,
Zinfandel and Pinot Noir (in the region known as Carneros) also grow
there. Most wineries will charge a tasting fee, and many of them will
charge extra to taste their more expensive wines. These days, it is as
much a tourist destination as it is a wine region and has prices to
match. To avoid heavy crowding, you should avoid weekends, holidays,
the Summer and Hwy 29 by taking the Silverado Trail instead.

Here are the recommended wineries and why they're recommended (asterisks
indicate appointment needed):

Robert Mondavi Winery - informative tour, good wines, historical winery
Beringer Winery - great tour of limestone caves, history, good wines
Milat - good wines, reasonable prices
Sawyer - good wines, reasonable prices
Vincent Arroyo - excellent, unpretentious winemaking
Joseph Phelps - beautiful architecture and tour, great wines
Prager Port Works - unusual wines, nice people
Schramsberg - Good sparkling wines
Stony Hill* - Chardonnay specialists making very different Chards
Storybook Mountain* - Zinfandel specialists making serious Zins

Restaurants:
The French Laundry - Legendary and nearly impossible to get into; call 3
months in advance (to the day) for a chance for a very expensive trip to
foodie heaven
La Toque - Great French food and good wine list
Bistro Jeanty - Country French cooking
Mustard's - An old Napa Valley stalwart, good food
Domaine Chandon - This sparkling wine maker also has a first class
restaurant
Tra Vigne - Upscale Italian dining

Lodging:
Harvest Inn - hot tubs and view
El Bonita Inn (St. Helena) - cheap
Meadowood - Romantic (and pricey) resort
Deer Run Inn - Romantic and secluded
Vintage Inn - Wood-burning fireplaces, Jacuzzis, fancy motor lodge
Rancho Caymus - eclectic, great restaurant (La Toque)
Maison Fleurie - Nice bed and breakfast

Another attraction of the Napa Valley is that Calistoga, at the North
end of the valley, is also home to natural hot springs. If you're of a
mind to soak for a time in a mud bath, Dr. Wilkinson's Hot Springs comes
highly recommended.


3b.



4. What is the best way to preserve an opened bottle of wine? How long
will it last?

The primary enemy of wine is oxygen (even though proper aging of wine
requires it). Once wine is opened, it starts changing due to its
interaction with the air. In some cases this is good (a wine "opening
up" in flavor over the course of the meal, or even overnight in the case
of some older reds), but it will always end badly if enough time elapses.
If you haven't finished a bottle and want to save it for later
consumption, the best thing to do is to retard its reaction with oxygen.
Putting it in the refrigerator slows down the reactions, so this is a
good idea even for reds. (they should be warmed up again before
serving). Just corked back up, whites could go for a day or three
(depending on the kind and quality of the wine, the amount left in the
bottle, and your own palate), reds might last a week that way.
Probably the best method is to rebottle the wine in a smaller bottle
(such as a half bottle whose bottle you saved), allowing very little air
between the top of the wine and the cork. (that area is called the
"ullage"). When inserting the cork, put the end of a paper clip, or a
nail, or a wire, partially into the neck of the bottle as you insert the
cork as a spacer, allowing air to escape (so that pressure doesn't build
up). Then remove the object, allowing the cork to spring back. Tilt
the bottle to wet the cork, but then store upright for some time (to
give the cork a chance to fully spring back. Be sure to label the
bottle! Some say that wine rebottled this way could be put back in the
cellar and left there another year. If you have smaller bottles that
have screwcap closures, they are even better for storing excess wine.
There are also several systems on the market to reduce the wine's
exposure to oxygen. One is a hand pump and rubber stopper arrangement
which reduces the pressure in the bottle. They are marketed under
various names, including Vac-U-Vin. Follow the directions and do not
pump the wine down too much, or the volitiles in the wine will also
evaporate, leaving a wine "dead". Opinion is divided on whether wine
preserved with these devices tastes the same, with some people feeling
that wine loses some of its aromatic character when treated this way.
Those who favor its use say that proper use can extend the wine's life,
allowing a red wine to be stored for as much as two weeks in the
refrigerator under some circumstances before it becomes less than
interesting. Your own reaction may be different, of course.
Another wine preservation device is a gas displacement system.
Typically the gas is Nitrogen or Argon; it is introduced into the
bottle, displacing the air that was there before, and then the bottle is
resealed. The cheapest version is a spray can filled with a mixture of
nitrogen and carbon dioxide. It will likely do only a little to
preserve the wine due to the difficulty in removing all of the oxygen
this way. Given a choice, argon is a better gas to use because, since
it's heavier than air it will settle in the headspace of the bottle and
also leach out of the sealed bottle more slowly (it's also much more
costly, though). Even so, don't expect to store wines using canned gas
for more than a few days. More effective devices use a bubbler (such as
is used in fishtanks) to bubble nitrogen through the wine and
incorporate it into a tight seal for the bottle. Such devices are
marketed under the name Winekeeper and are sold online through Wine
Enthusiast (http://www.winenethusiast.com) and International Wine
Accessories (http://www.iwawine.com). You can buy them in one-, four-
and eight-bottle sizes, though the latter two are so expensive and
elaborate that they are more suited for wine bars and restaurants than
home use. Wine stored this way can probably be kept for a few days
without serious degradation.

5. What wine should I serve with this food?

There are no hard or fast rules for wine and food matching. No match
will be successful if you don't like the wine. This section, however,
is intended as a guide to some generally accepted principles, with
pointers to matches both good and bad (to most people's taste). The old
idea of "red with meat, white with fish" is not all that good a rule- it
depends what meat, what fish (and what red, what white!).

There are some matches that are considered classic:
Beef and Cabernet
Oysters and Muscadet or Chablis

There are some matches that very few people would find successful:
sole or other delicate fish with a big red, red meat with a light white
(basic Muscadet, Vinho Verde, or Sauvignon Blanc), spicy dishes with a
big Cabernet

However, the vast majority of dishes and possible wine matches are
in-between. There's no way to cover every eventuality here- we can say
beef and Cabernet is a good match, but a sauce, prep technique, or side
dish might conflict. So please be aware these are very general
guidelines, and feel free to ask specific questions on AFW .

Suggestions:
Meats
Poultry
Seafood
Vegetables/Sides
Cheeses

Meats
Beef is a classic accompaniment for bigger reds wines. With steaks,
especially if rare, one might stick to bigger more tannic reds- young
California Cabernet Sauvignon or Bordeaux, Australian Shiraz, or young
Northern Rhones. Roasts and braised meat might be more appropriate for
mature Cabernet or Merlot based wines (whether Bordeaux, New World, or
elsewhere), mature Nebbiolo, or other elegant reds

Lamb is often associated with Pauillac, but is a fine match for any
Bordeaux or Bordeaux-blend ("Meritage") wine. If heavy on the herbs and
garlic you might consider a Rhone (or a wine from Rhone varietals such
as Grenache, Mouvedre, Syrah, etc. from California, Spain, Australia, or
elsewhere), Bandol, or Zinfandel. Rioja also is a historic match.

Pork is generally lighter, and does well with lighter reds (Pinot Noirs
that are less heavy, most Sangiovese except Brunello, etc.). Roses also
work well. But many people think that pork is best with whites. Try a
Gruner Veltliner or a dry to off-dry Riesling.

Ham- roses are often recommended. Cured raw hams (proscuitto for
example) do well with whites or sparkling wines.

Veal -recommendations similar to pork

Game- for elk or venison, generally look to powerful wines, Syrah (Rhone
or New World) in particular is a good match, as are bigger wines from
Provence, such as Bandol. For wild boar, consider Brunello di
Montalcino. Rabbit is great with Sangiovese or Pinot Noir (or Riesling
in some preparations).

Individual dishes:
Choucroute - Alsace Riesling is traditional
Steak tartare- crisp whites
Beef Bourguignon - um, Burgundy!


Poultry:
Chicken- simple roast chicken is a fine backdrop for fine mature reds,
yet can also do well with whites. Coq au vin is typically served with a
wine similar to the cooking wine (though one might use a simple
Bourgogne for cooking and a fine Chambolle 1er with dinner- or a
California appellation Pinot Noir for cooking and the single vineyard
version for the table).

Duck- Pinot Noir is excellent, but this goes well with mature Nebbiolo,
Syrah, or Bordeaux as well. A vocal minority support Amarone.

Goose- mature Bordeaux or softer New World Merlots or Cabernets. A good
backdrop for most non-tannic reds.

Foie Gras- Sauternes or other sweet botrytized wines are traditional and
fine, but arguments can be made for Chablis Grand Cru, too!

Turkey- pretty controversial. Advocates for Zinfandel, roses, Riesling
Kabinetts, and more

Game birds: bigger richer ones do well with classic red wines; smaller
delicate birds might be better served with a rich white. Gamier birds
(from long hanging) tend to go with Rhone reds with some spice.

Seafood:
White fleshed fish (flounder, sole, etc) : Soave, Chablis, unoaked
Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc. If there's a richer sauce then oaked
Chardonnay or bigger white Burgundy

Salmon: many prefer big Chardonnays, but there is a long tradition of
reds, especially Pinot Noir with good acidity.

Tuna steaks- soft Merlot or other round reds. Less tannic Cabernet can work.

Lobster- big oaked Chardonnay (buttery California or a white Burgundy
like a Meursault) is the traditional accompaniment, but unoaked
Chardonnay (Chablis 1er Crus maybe) and Champagne have their adherents.
Try Grüner Veltliner as a dark horse.

Scallops: Chablis, Grüner Veltliner, Viognier, lighter Chardonnays
Oysters, clams, mussels: Muscadet or Chablis
Caviar: Champagne or Cremant de Bourgogne
Bouillabaisse- White Rhone or Southern French Rose

Vegetables and Sides

Mushrooms- one of the great pairings for red wine in general. Many types
are a great combo with earthy Pinot Noirs (especially crimini, cepes,
oysters, chanterelle, black trumpet, matsutake, etc). Crimini or porcini
in cream sauces do well with Chardonnay based wines. Creamed morels or
morels en croute call out for a fragrant (not big) Burgundy, though
others reach for Côte-Rotie and Temperanillo. Grilled portobellos
usually are a good match for Cabernet, Merlot, or Nebbiolo based wine.
Enokis and straw depend a lot on presentation (true for everything of
course), but more about sparkling or characterful white (Loire Chenin
Blanc, Viognier, Pinot Gris or Kabinett Riesling).

Truffles, black or white:
Best nebbiolo based wine you can find, Barbaresco can be even better
than Barolo for this match.


Artichokes - can be a wine killer, but try lighter whites
Asparagus - for some a strange match, but try NZ Sauvignon Blanc or
Grüner Veltliner. For white asparagus, try Alsace Muscat.
Fresh tomatoes - acidic whites
Ratatouille - fresh whites or roses
Salad- vinegary dressings are a wine killer. Drink water!

Cheeses
When in doubt, go with white.
Goat cheese - Sauvignon Blanc is the classic
Munster - dry Riesling
Gouda - lighter reds. Aged Gouda -good match for Cabernet based wines
Manchego - same as Gouda, depends on age. A tangy aged one is great with
Priorat.
Hoch Ybrig - does well with mature but vibrant big reds
Parmigiano Reggiano - Amarone, Cabernet
Cheddar: If we're talking young moist cheddar, fruity Zinfandel or
Merlot. Aged artisanal cheddars deserve a big dry red
Triple crèmes - Auslese level Riesling.
Epoisses - some of us like with red Burgundy, almost everyone likes with
white Burgundy.
Stilton - Port (or Tokay)
Roquefort - Sauternes
Gorgonzola dolce needs a bit of sweetness - recieto della Valpolicella
maybe. More mature versions, though pungent, can stand up to drier reds
Mimolette - Bordeaux
Brie and its relatives - better with whites

Non-European Ethnic Foods:
This section will be the most controversial. Unlike European cuisines
that developed alongside wine, there are few "classic" matches. So take
each of these suggestions with a grain of salt.

Chinese: Saying what red wine matches with Chinese food is impossible.
It's like saying which wine pairs with European food. The problem of
course is that "Chinese food" is not even one cuisine, but a group of
regional cuisines. The wine for a Cantonese dish is not neccesarily
going to be great for Szechuan, Shanghai, Fukien, Peking/Northern
dishes. And the same wine is probably not best choice for chicken, beef,
pork, and seafood dishes. Robert Parker I believe is on record
commenting on the affinity of Nebbiolo and dim sum dumplings with a
soy/shoyu dipping sauce. Beef with broccoli can pretty good with a
simpler Bordeaux or CalCab. Fiery Szechuan fare is probably best with
water or beer, but if you need wine try sparkling or off-dry Riesling.
Cab Franc has its fans, too.

Japanese: With sushi, sparkling wines or Sauvignon Blanc tend to get the
most votes. Other stick to sake ("rice wine", though actually brewed) or
beer. Of course, it you're ordering mostly grilled eel you might prefer
a lighter red. With cooked dishes, many find that Nebbiolo and Pinot
Noir do well with the umami flavors prevalent in some dishes.

Thai: Many people like Gewurztraminer. Others prefer Riesling or Chenin
Blanc. Rhone white varietals (Marsanne and Roussane) have their
proponents, too. A touch of sweetness helps if there's a lot of spice.

Vietnamese : Many of the same suggestions as Thai, lemongrass does well
with many aromatic whites (rousanne, viognier, etc). Fusion
(French/Vietnamese) can do well with Kabinett or Spatlese level offdry
Riesling, as well as dry Rieslings and Gruner Veltliner.

Mexican- like Chinese, really not one cuisine but a collection of
regional cuisines. Mole sauce might call for a Zinfandel or Sangiovese,
while huachinango Veracruz(red snapper w/green olives) might call for a
flavorful white. The usual Tex-Mex we often encounter in US defies wine
- beer is the usual answer. If you absolutely must have wine, then go
with Sangria or maybe sparkling or crisp offdry white.

Middle Eastern: a little easier. Does well with Rhone whites or spicier
ripe reds- Rhones, Zinfandel, etc. There are some Morrocan and Algerian
wines available, as well as the famous Ch. Musar from Lebanon, if you
wish to stay on theme.

Indian: Again, a collection of regional cuisines. Punjabi cuisine- with
a lot more kormas and cream-based dishes that have a fair amount of
spice and flavour to them, aromatic whites with good acidity tend to
pair well with Punjabi food, vegetarian or not. Rieslings usually work
very well, particularly the more acidic and citrusy ones from Australia.
North-west Frontier/Peshawari cuisine: Dry Riesling works very well in
conjunction with a lot of these, as it's one of the few wine styles that
can stand up to the strong flavours. Gewurztraminer also works quite well.

Malay/Singaporean cuisine: Riesling and Gewurztraminer both go well with
a lot of food from this area, but I've found that Sauvignon Blanc
(particularly the Marlborough style) works best. Very few combinations
in this part of the world work out as well as Singaporean chicke satays
with a glass of Sauv on the side.

Korean: lots of kimchi calls out for beer! But kalbi and bulgogi both
pair well with aggressive Syrah/Shiraz or other Rhone varietals.

Mark Lipton