Keith Lawes, American Liquor Alliance

About Andy TaskerThe list
below is roughly organized from lighter-bodied to fuller-bodied, lower tannins
to higher tannins and light color to deeper color – but note that this is not an
"always" list, just a general guideline. Remember, European and old-world
countries tend to label their wine by region, while new world wine is most often
labeled with grape variety.
FULL
LIQUOR The Food and Wine combinations that most of us grew up with were
the 'red wine with beef' and 'white wine with fish or poultry' rules. Since
then, we've heard "any wine as long as you like it". In fact, you should drink
the wine you like but understand that the traditional rules are based on
centuries of experience. Once you understand the simple logic you will be able
to confidently match foods and wines.

A good food and wine match is an
evenly matched struggle for your palate . The first bite of the food should be
delicious. The first sip of the wine should be equally enjoyable and it should
replace the taste of the food. With the next bite of food, the flavors are fresh
again it should be as wonderful as the first bite. If the match is good, each
bite of food replaces the taste of the wine and each sip of wine replaces the
taste of the food. In a poor match, one is so dominant that it is all that is
tasted through the meal.

RSVP Wine and Spirits

Global Wine and Spirits: Chenin Blanc (white)
The wines can
range from very dry to off-dry to sweet as well as sparkling. Best known as
Vouvray and Saumur (villages in the Loire Valley). Also grown in California
which makes a softer, less acidic wine, and in South Africa where it is
frequently called Steen.
Noted flavours: Pear, apple.
Full
Liquor
GLOBAL
WINE AND SPIRITS
RSVP FINE WIN AND SPIRITS

American Liquor Alliance’s super store concept, Global Wine &
Spirits is intent taking advantage of Prime retail vacancies that have recently
gone dark in Regional Malls, Local Malls and Power Centers nationwide!

American Liquor Alliance, LLC recently announced that it will be actively
pursuing retail locations that have become available for its Global Wine &
Spirits concept. American Liquor Alliance is seeking locations nationally and is
presently evaluating dark locations coming on the market from Linens and Things,
Pier One, Circuit City, Office Depot and others. The Global Wine & Spirits
footprint is 25,000-35,000SF, and the preference is for the larger footprint.
The Global Mega-Store concept features a high end retail design combined with
cutting edge technology for customer interaction, education, and infotainment.

KEITH
LAWES
ANDY TASKER: Gewrztraminer
The most unforgettable of
grapes. Grown in Alsace and Germany and throughout Europe as Traminer, the wines
have an exotic perfume of lychee nuts, rose petals and sometimes red peppers.
They suggest sweetness on the nose, but the best (from Alsace) are dry. Also
produced in Oregon and California and Ontario. Gew?rz is German for spicy, and
Traminer means from the town of Tramin where the vine was first propagated.

Noted flavours: Lychee, rose petals.

Keith Lawes

Storing Wine

For any wine lover, storing wine well is
very important. There are a few simple principles that need to be understood in
order to select proper wine storage conditions. We can logically break down the
process into just 3 categories: storing wine for the short haul, storing wine
for long term aging and storing (or saving) wines that have already been opened.

Short Term Storage:
This is wine you will consume within 6 months.
These may be bottles that are just home from the store and destined to be
consumed shortly or bottles that have been pulled from longer storage to be
accessible for spur of the moment consumption.
American
Liquor Alliance servicesTrebbiano/Ugni Blanc

The Trebbiano
grape is also known as Ugni Blanc. It is planted in France, Italy and Australia
and is used for making wines as well as brandy. It's wines are usually dry and
high in acid.

As Ugni Blanc, it is the primary grape used in producing
Cognac.
Global Wine and Spirits Pinot
Noir (red)
A notoriously fickle grape. When fully ripe, makes exquisite
wines in Burgundy that age almost as long as red Bordeaux. Also successfully
grown in Oregon and California. Extensively used in the production of Champagne
(where it is blended with Chardonnay). When used by itself, it is called blanc
de noirs (a white wine from black grapes.)
Noted flavours: Raspberry,
strawberry.