Equipment’s that were used to make wine in the 1800s 

At the start of the semester when I realized that the class had to go to a winery; I was not enthusiastic about the idea.  Am I happy now that it is a part of the class requirement? Yes I am. My journey took me to upstate New York (Monroe). There you find the beautiful and spacious Brotherhood Winery. The Brotherhood winery is the oldest winery in the United States of America. First opened in 1839 with about ten acres of land. However, in 1999 a devastating fire destroyed all the original buildings. The winery had since been rebuilt and is now set up-on about four acres of land, and is privately owned by Casar Baeza a wine master from Chile.

My journey from the Bronx to the winery took about three hours on the train then to a Short Line Tour bus. After reaching the winery the staff was friendly, professional, and very informative. They informed us that they offer five to six tours per day and that one was about to start in ten minutes. It was six dollars just for the tour and ten dollars for the tour and wine tasting session. As luck could have it we got the longest working employee on the property; Franklyn he seemed to know everything about the winery.

As Franklyn took us on our tour; stopping every so often to point out important facts. I realized that I knew what he was talking about why? Because I study wine with Professor Goodlad. The Brotherhood winery is one of four wineries in the New York Region. There is a small vineyard but it is not used to plant grapes for production. However, it is used to preserve important grape vines. Brotherhood winery get their grapes to make their wines from Lake Erie, Finger Lakes, Hudson, and Long Island AVA’s. The winery is known for producing great Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Merlot, and Riesling Dry. Brotherhood winery has a bottling plant that bottles wine from wineries all over

the United States. In 2013 they bottled over four million bottles of wine and are expected to bottle eight million bottles of wine in 2014. 2013 was a great year for the Brotherhood Winery, in a wine tasting competition with some of the best wine producing wineries across America. Brotherhood winery took home gold, silver and bronze medals. The Riesling dry took the gold, Pinot Noir and Merlot took silver, and the Cabernet Sauvignon took the bronze medals.

At the end of our tour we had a wine tasting session, we tasted one Sparkling Wine Carpe Diem, 2013, three Specialty Wines Sweet Lolly Red, May Wine, and Rosario and one Dessert Wine Ruby Port. Thanks to my journey to the winery I found out that I am a sparkling wine lover. The Carpe Diem tasted first-rate and it is now the wine for me. Color: gold, Nose: fruity and sweet, Taste: peach and apricot, coats the mouth faintly. Carpe Diem would pair well with grilled chicken breast and red and green peppers with a twist of lemon. It was a wonderful experience that I got to share with my friend Nykkeicha. On the ride home I realized that I  was no longer afraid of the taste of wine, and that is a wonderful thing. 

Something unique to remember about the region: The name Piedmont means” foot of the mountain” and is home to more DOC and DOCG appellations than any other region in Italy. Piedmont produce red and white wine. The red wine is put to aged and the white wine is consume right away. top grapes varieties white Moscato, red Nebbiolo.

General Climate Conditions: Continental and foggy  because of the three mountains that surround the region.

Historical Perspective: Piedmont started winemaking in  200 B.C by the Roman Empire.

DOC of Interest: Barbera d’Alba  and  Dolcetto d’Alba.

DOCG of Interest: Barolo and  Barbaresco.

IGT of Interest: None

Propose a question for the exam: Name the two most important appellations in the entire region.

Answer: Barolo and Barbaresco

My Visit to the Wine Store

On Flatbush Avenue extension in Downtown Brooklyn, there is a sleek, modern well lit store. Wright and Goebel Wines and Spirits at 147 Flatbush Avenue Extension is a smart, inviting store. The store is unfortunately located on a strip that most (me included) are not inclined to venture down. Business wise there is almost no stores in that direction. The employees of Wright and Goebel are open, warm and extremely helpful. They give off a casual and approachable demeanor while answering your questions with ease. They will speak to you with respect no matter what questions you ask. They are also quite knowledgeable about the wines they carry and will offer suggestion based on questions they ask to ensure you get what you are looking for. As the name suggests, they offer wine and spirits. They have top shelf to lower end wines, sparkling and champagne, gins, rums and whiskeys. They offer “party wines” which are sold by the case. A considerate note; they offer suggestions on a tag on the bottle of what is a good wine for a gift, and the price.

From a layout standpoint the store is not as large as the outside looks, but it is more than adequate. Upon entering the store, to your left, there is a vestibule type seating area with wooden chairs and tables. At the end of this is a shelf that sits atop several wine coolers. This is where Wright and Goebel keep and display their Fine, Rare and Collectible selection some of the selection includes; Celani Family Vineyard  Tenacious 2010, Serrapetrona Moro 2007 Fontezoppa Vernaccia Nera 100% and Puligny Montrachet  1^st Cru Les Folatieres. In this section they bottles start at $60.00. There was also a bright red Moped sitting in this area. Wright and Goebel offer free delivery and keep some wines chilled if you request it. The wines though divided were not distinguishable by just glancing at them. The Old World Wines: France, Italy, Germany and California are located on the left side of the store in wooden cubbies. The wines are stored on their side as well as standing up. Whites are reds are stored and displayed next to one another. In front of each bottle there is a small note that tells you the name of the wine, country/region, varietal, the flavor notes and price. The Spirits section is located in the actual wall of the store. There are cubbies carved into the wall that display their rums, gins and whiskeys. Throughout the store there are books relating to wine on the tables, shelves and cubby spaces that you can read and refer to.

From a marketing outlook they are very business savvy and have promotions to introduce the customer not only to them as a store but as a guide to wine buying and tasting. Wright and Goebel are rated by Zagat, has a website, Facebook and a Twitter page. The company also offers FREE wine tastings Thursdays through Saturdays and pairing events. Their business cards are coasters with their information printed on it. There is printed material throughout the store for customer use. They have gotten excellent reviews on Yelp about their customer service and selection. They also offer customers a rewards program and you get a free bottle of champagne with every $500 spent.

I would recommend this store to someone who is a novice, like me, at buying wine. The store’s layout is open there is ample room to maneuver and peruse or read about the different wines. There is no sales person breathing down your neck, but the store is small enough that by just a look around an employee will come right over to assist you. My salesperson Owen that recommended a Riesling to me said they would like to hear my thoughts on the wine extending an invitation to return. The location is accessible by public transportation even though it is located on a strip that is not thriving commercially. The employees are respectful of your space. The store is well lit, the layout is contemporary, the labels are easy to read and prices are clearly printed. The tasting notes and county of origin make it simple to choose a wine that best suit your needs and taste profile. The selection though I expected more, was definitely adequate. Wright and Goebel exceeded my expectations and put this novice at ease.