Dirty South Wine

Enter The #crazybear- A Wine Video Odyssey

Enter the Crazy Bear from Kevin Kelley on Vimeo.

There is no turning back.  #crazybear wine is taking off and is the start of something beyond ridiculous...

@crazybearwine

Following My Dreams-- 2/15 is Coming!

(Stocking up-  This ride is gonna' git dirty!)

With my days at Murphy-Goode coming to a close, I'm really excited by the next steps of my wine adventure that sits just around the corner.

My life and lifestyle will change, but that is all part of pursuing a dream.

I am ridiculously excited to share my next steps with everyone on 2/15.

"Whatever you can do, or dream you can do, begin it. ...."-- William Hutchison Murray

This is going to get crazy!

Sabotage - The Beastie Boys

2010 Starts With A Book and A Wine (Kind of Sort Of)

(kudos to Foodie Buddha for giving me the unboxing idea)

2010 is off to a good start with a book and a wine showing up at my door.

In the late fall, I competed in Crushpad's Blogger Blend-off (a competition using Crushpad's Fusebox to create the best blended wine) and was selected as the winner.  My 1st case of the 2007 "da yamaz" (the llamas) just arrived.

It has just been bottled, so I will not say it is drinking well (yet)...  I'll check back on "da yamaz" in awhile to see how this sumbi*ch is coming together.  In awhile, I will be providing a link for anyone wanting to order "da yamaz".  All profit will be donated to charity.

Also, I just received a copy of "The Anti-Résumé Revolution" in which I'm featured in a chapter with an interview regarding getting laid off from Kodak and going for my dream job.  

 

Pretty crazy.

Now I'm off to film Sean Thackery...

The Fight For Popeyes Chicken Wine Pairing Turns Personal! Salinia Strikes!

(Video by Salinia Wine Company)

DANG!  Kevin Kelley and the Salinia Wine gang taunt the esteemed Jon Bonne for his choice of Francois Pinon Vouvray Brut Non-Dosage as his pairing in the Popeyes Online Wine Pairing Challenge

Also-  Slashfood Reports on the Popeyes Online Pairing Challenge

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As a reminder:  The Wine Pics are--

Besha Rodell from Atlanta's Creative Loafing

Kiralyudvar Tokaji Sec 2005-  Dry Hungarian Furmint

(Robert Chadderdon Import) 

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Kevin Kelley and the crew from Salinia Cellars / The NPA

Renardat-Fache Bugey du Cerdon- Sparkling Gamay

(Louis / Dressner selection)

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Mutineer Magazine's Editor in Chief, Alan Kropf

2008 Snoqualmie "Naked" Riesling-

Organic, Washington State Riesling

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Jon Bonné from the SF Chronicle selects the elusive and proven

Francois Pinon Vouvray Brut Non-Dosé

(Louis/Dressner Import) 

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Lyle Fass from Rockss and Fruit selects

Willi Schaefer Estate QBA 2008

(Michael Skurnik Wines)

A German Riesling from an uber producer.

Rowdy Shoots Salinia Wine and a Dirty South Dance

(Video by Rowdyfood)

Last week, Rowdy and I made a quick pit stop at Salinia to pick up some juice and to crash their lunch. 

The tone was set with Kevin Kelley preaching the power of eggrolls and champagne for breakfast-- it was all uphill from there.

 

(Photo by Rowdyfood)

Dirty South Wine's Blend Wins The Crushpad Fusebox Challenge!

Hot Dang!  A few weeks ago, the folks at Crushpad Wine rounded up 10 wine bloggers to compete in a wine blending competition using their Fusebox wine blending kits.  They would award two prizes- 1 for best wine blend, and one for best label. 

Swamped with work, I put off my blending until Halloween night, and then chained myself inside with my Fusebox and a ton of candy.

I spent about 4hrs tweaking, scrapping, and then restarting wine blends.  In between throngs of trick or treaters, I switched my palate cleansers from bread, to candy, then ice cold beer(s).

I tried using each variety at first-  A base of Merlot, a little Cabernet, a touch of Cab Franc, and a drop of Petit Verdot--  But I struggled to get the wine where I wanted to be (too much fruit and too much tannin were the usual results).  After a couple of hours (and a ton of candy), I switched to where I should have started- SIMPLE.  A classic blend of 86% Cabernet and 14% Merlot.  Body, character, rock, acid, and hopefully-- balance. 

Without much time to think of labeling, I found a goofy picture of me (taken by Lady Dirty) at the Calistoga Geyser-  Llamas (often pronounced yamaz), became "da yamaz", and I threw together some sugar-fueled copy. 

The Front and Back Label

The Wines that come in the Fusebox

I got wine everywhere

So-  I'm thrilled to have the winning blend.  As a prize, I get a case of my wine shipped to me, and the Dirty South Wine "Da Yamaz" wine blend will be available for order by the public (right after the label is approved).

Shout outs go to Fred Swan from Norcal WIne for winning the award for best label, and Erica Green at Purple Teeth Diaries for having a blend so good, they are making her a case too! (I want to try it!!!!)

Here is a list of all of the participating bloggers:

A Good Time With Wine

WIndy City Wine Guy

Purple Teeth Diaries

Savvy Taste

Cellar Mistress

Norcal Wine

Pulling the Cork

Another Wine Blog (Joe and Amy entering separately)

Eat Fruit All AM, Tacos All PM-- 3 Shots From Harvest

Spent the AM Checking out Fruit-

Eating tons of it. (Chardonnay above)

The afternoon eating tacos from a roadside taco truck.

Things could be worse.

Atlantan Shoots for Slot on Season 2 of "The Winemakers"!

Dirty South Wine guest poster, friend, and fellow Atlantan, goes for slot on
Season 2 of the "The Winemakers"

Please help Dave out and share his video with your friends!

Also- Follow David's journey on his blog "Winemaker's Guest Book"

Best of luck David!!!!

Enjoying the Blur: A Burning Goose of Funky Juice

The Interim:  This week back in Atlanta has been 2 parts scrambling to tie up loose ends, and 1 part the bacchanalian equivalent of the human cannonball.

I've been extremely fortunate to get together with some great friends in Atlanta, open many ridiculous bottles, and wake up with cold sweats every other night.

 

Woodfire Grill

Chef Kevin Gillespie is on another planet-- Rockin; the pure Dirty South flavor.  7 of us camped out and were blown away by his cuisine.  (Catch ATL's Kevin, Eli, and Hector on Top Chef 6 starting on 8/19.)  Kevin, Bernard and Nick run a hell of a restaurant and this place is really like home.

With a ridiculous amount of bottles, I'm often amazed at how the seemingly simple bottles shine...  In a line up of all-stars, the 2006 Foillard Morgon "Cote de Py" (Cru Beaujolais aka Cru-Boo) delivered an anvil of justice (who doesn't need more anvils of justice???) when paired with Woodfire's pork rib.  The Foillard totally drives me wild. Floral, tart, acidic, and just sexy.

Chez Dirty: Pizza Pahty!

Delivery pizza and poppin' funky bottles.  Chadd dealing with an overdose of brett (this wine smelled like chicken poop).  A little can add a touch o' funk-- But a lot is like eating a plate of nachos on hot day at the petting zoo. 

Tasty "The Mother-Funky'" China!!!!!!

In what has become a staple of the Atlanta wine scene, Tasty China is the playground for juice greatness.  No corkage fee (but bring your stems and cork screws) and crazy Sichauan food... This is where weird bottles come to shine.  Late harvest Condrieu, 1975 Napa Riesling (???), and a bevy of light reds-- pairing insanely well with Sichuan Beef Tongue, pork belly, tofu, and whatever seemed to be dropped in front of us.

The world is spinning quickly-- Grab some bottles, a couple of friends, sit down for a meal, and be happy. 

(Photos courtesy of Rowdy Food)

Quick Shots from Sonoma

Tasting through 90 Cabernet Sauvignon barrel samples with Dave, Ben and Randy.  I have tasted Cab barrel samples before, but never 90 in a single two and a half hour sitting.  Pretty wild.  The speed at which they can accurately taste blows me away. 

Jimmy, from Eat It Atlanta is in town for the Wine Bloggers Conference.  After a few Racer 5's at John and Zeke's, we hit the bar at Cyrus.  Man...  Paul Bara Rose to start us off.

Some serious Silken Tofu delivering the yang to my yin!  (paired with Sake)

A crazy weekend in store with the Wine Bloggers Conference in town--  More shots and vids coming...  I have yet to slow this train down.