2014: Top Ten Wines Under $15

What were some of my favorite wines of the past year?

As 2015 approaches, it's once again time to reflect upon the past year, to remember and savor many pleasant memories. As 2014 winds down, you'll see plenty lists of the best and worst of the past year. As I find value in such lists, I'll post my own series of Favorite Lists for 2014 over the next few weeks, covering food, wine, sake and spirits. These lists should provide a comprehensive summary of my favorites from this past year, allowing my readers to more readily locate such gems, the best of my recommendations.

My first Favorites List of 2014 is my Top Ten Wines Under $15. This list includes wines that not only did I enjoy, but which I also found to be particularly compelling for various reasons. They might be especially delicious, something more unique or just excellent values for the price. They all stand out, for some particular reason, above the other wines at this price point that I have tasted this past year.

This is a purely subjective list, based on my own preferences, and makes no claims about being the "best" wines out there. It is primarily the wines which spoke to me the loudest, even when they were subtle wines. These are all wines that I strongly recommend and which I believe many other wine lovers would also enjoy.

The wines are not listed in any particular order and each choice is linked to my more detailed prior review. All of these value wines are worth your consideration but please also note that the prices are approximations and the actual price may vary in your area. In addition, some of the wines might not be available in your local area, though you might be able to order them from the winery or an online store, dependent on your state's shipping laws.

1) 2013 Herdade do Esporão Alandra Rosé  ($6.99)
A good wine under $7? Yes, they can be found, especially with Portuguese wines. You would be hard pressed to find another Rosé that delivers as much for so little. This Rosé is a blend of Aragones, Syrah, and Touriga Nacional and is crisp, dry and fruity with delicious strawberry and cherry flavors. Simple but satisfying, this is going to please many wine lovers, especially at this price point. This is a wine to buy by the case.

2) 2013 Casa da Senra Loureiro Vinho Verde ($10)
Though this is not yet available in Massachusetts, I have high hopes that will soon change. This is a stellar Portuguese white wine, with a bright golden color. It is dry and crisp, with a complex blend of citrus, tropical fruit and herbal notes. A slight effervescence made it even more refreshing, and it had a long,pleasing finish. It possessed lots of character for a wine at this price point, making it one of the most compelling Vinho Verde wines I've tasted in some time.

3) 2012 José Maria da Fonseca Periquita ($9.99)
The price of this Portuguese wine hasn't changed for at least nine vintages, remaining under $10. How often does that happen? A blend of 74% Castelão, 14% Trincadeira, and 12% Aragonêz, it is an easy drinking wine, with plenty of red and black fruit flavors, spicy accents and a touch of vanilla. Though inexpensive, it has more complexity than many wines at this price point. Great with or without food, it makes for an excellent pizza or burger wine.

4) 2012 Espirit de Sarrail Carcassonne Rouge ($10)
This French wine is from the little known Cite de Carcassonne IGP, which was established in 1981. The wine is a blend of 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, and 20% Malbec and the aroma is compelling, such powerful fruit, and the palate lived up to the promise of the nose. Excellent red fruit flavors, a hint of spice, and some herbal notes. Far more complexity at this price point than many other wines. It's easy drinking but not overly simple.

5) 90+ Cellars 2012 Côtes du Rhône, Lot 103 ($11.99)
A blend of Grenache Blanc, Viognier and Roussanne, this French wine has alluring aromatics, with floral elements, which bring to mind a spring day. On the palate, there is a delightful blend of flavors, including pear, citrus, and some minerality with a hint of honey, though the wine remains dry and crisp. A pleasure to drink, this would be enjoyable on its own or paired with a salad, seafood, or even chicken, At this price, it's an excellent value.

6) 2013 Laurent Miquel Rosé ($10)
A blend of 80% Cinsault and 20% Syrah, this Rosé is a Vin de Pays d'Oc from Languedoc-Roussillon, and will remind you of Provence Rosé. The wine has an appealing, light pink color and a delightful aroma of bright red fruits. The aroma alone will draw you into this compellimg wine. It possesses a crisp, dry taste and flavors of strawberry, raspberry and underlying mineral notes. It was easy drinking, thirst quenching, and very addictive. Drink this Rosé year round.

7) 2012 Willy Gisselbrecht Pinot Blanc ($12)
This is an excellent value wine from Alsace. It is fresh and fruity, with delicious apple and melon flavors, and enough character to elevate it above overly simple wines. An easy drinking wine, this would be great on its own or paired with light dishes, from eggs to seafood. There are plenty of excellent wines coming out of Alsace, including value wines like this Pinot Blanc.

8) NV Francois Montand Blanc de Blancs ($15)
This French sparkling wine, made in the méthode champenoise, is from the Jura region and is a blend of Ugni Blanc, Colombard, and Chardonnay. Great acidity, a clean taste, and delicious flavors of green apple, lemon, and hints of toast. At this price point, this wine is a clear winner, presenting an excellent taste and was one of my favorite wines at a large wine event. You rarely find sparkling wine of this quality available at this price point.

9) 2010 Vinarija Dingač Peljesac Red Wine ($14)
A Croatian wine, this is produced from the indigenous Plavic Mali grape. It's an easy drinking red wine, but with sufficient character to raise it up beyond simple plonk. It's medium-bodied with mild tannins and an interesting blend of flavors, including black cherry, ripe plum, dark spices, pepper and a hint of herbal notes. There is a sense of the exotic in the taste, as some of it seems familiar but there is also something different with it as well. This would be an excellent burger and pizza wine, though it would stand up to a hearty pasta dish too.

10) 2011 Bodegas Carrau Tannat Reserva ($12.99)
Uruguay is an up and coming wine region which you are likely to see soon on more and more on local wine stores shelves. Their signature grape is Tannat, which is a French grape but which Uruguay has been making it its own. This inexpensive wine is a great introduction to Uruguay Tannat, as it is elegant and delicious, delivering plenty of fresh fruit flavors and complexity at a low price point. If you want to try something different, but which will still seem somewhat familiar, check out Tannat from Uruguay.

Only four different countries made this list and France & Portugal dominate the list, occupying a total of eight spots. It doesn't surprise me that Portugal has three spots on the list as they produce some of the best value wines in the world. Sight unseen, I'll take a chance on a Portuguese wine under $15 over a similarly priced wine from any other wine region in the world. Portuguese wines have often been on this list in previous years. For 2015, I highly recommend that my readers make the effort to taste, explore and purchase more Portuguese wine.

However, it was a major surprise that French wines took five spots on the list as in previous years, they were fortunate to even have one wine on the list. The wines generally though are not from major areas like Bordeaux and Burgundy, but lesser known regions like Cite de Carcassonne and the Jura. You can still find value wines in France, but you might find more of them in the lesser known regions. I should also note that I discovered two of these French wines at the Mohegan Sun WineFest.

Croatia and Uruguay each took a spot, both countries offering value as they still do not export significant amounts to the U.S.. Keep an eye on both countries in the near future as you may see more and more of their wines available at your local wine store. As for wine types, the list is also broken down into 1 Sparkling Wine, 3 Whites, 4 Red, and 2 Rosé.

I have other recommendations for wines under $15 on my blog and you just have to search for them. You can find value wines all over the world, in every region, though some regions provide a greater range and diversity of value wines. It is important to remember that though wine stores sell plenty of wines in this price range, not all of them are of equal value. Wines in this price range do not have to be one-dimensional wines that all taste the same. You can find wines of character and complexity, though you might need to spend a little more time seeking them out.

Wine blogs can help you in that regard, pointing out wines that you might not otherwise know about. Tasting the wines before you buy them is another way to find such values. Or simply ask your trusted wine store staff for advice and suggestions.

If you have some of your own recommendations for excellent wines under $15, please add them to the comments.

Thursday Sips & Nibbles

I am back again with a new edition of Thursday Sips & Nibbles, my regular column where I highlight some interesting wine and food items that are upcoming. **********************************************************
1) Legal Harborside is gearing up for the holiday season at Liberty Wharf. From December 18 through 24, the second floor at Legal Harborside will serve a “Feast of the Seven Fishes” tasting menu, featuring five courses from the best of the sea, with optional wine pairings.

Legal Harborside’s menu will be presented as follows:

Tuna Crudo (blood orange, preserved lemon, sumac, bottarga)
Laurent-Perrier Brut Vintage Champagne, 2004
Torched Nantucket Bay Scallops (pickled squash, brown butter vinaigrette, honeycrisp apple, ginger snaps)
Domaine du Viking “Tendre” Vouvray, Loire, 2012
Baccalà Gnocchi (baby shrimp, smoked cippolini onion, Limoncello froth)
Domaine Les Heritiers du Comte Lafon, Vire-Cesse, Macon, 2010
Black Bass (“cuttlefish linguine,” littleneck clams, cured tomato, saffron broth)
Smonnet-Febvre Irancy, Burgundy, 2012
East Coast Halibut (beluga lentils, scallop mouse, black trumpet mushrooms)
Beckmen Vineyards Estate Grenache, Santa Ynez, 2010

COST: $65 per person for tasting menu; $110 per person with wine pairings
For reservations, please call 617-477-2900

2) Ring in 2015 in style and head over to Boston’s South End on Wednesday, December 31, from 9pm-2:30am as The Beehive hosts its 8th annual New Year’s Eve gala celebration.

The Beehive’s, “Funkadelic Burlesque New Year's Eve 2015” is an evening of bohemian decadence and eccentric fun. Guests will explore their senses as they take in the wonders of sultry Parisian burlesque performances by the “Asian Sexsation" Calamity Chang and Vivi Noir and boogie to the explosive sounds of the all-star band The ABeez. Amy Bowles and Aaron Bellamy have brought a mix of spontaneous and exciting musicians together to create one slick funky-jazz band. The ABeez boogie in a modern way to the timeless soul and funk tunes The Beehive’s guests want to hear with a wall of funk like they’ve never experienced before!

Throughout the evening Executive Chef Marc Orfaly will feature a buffet of small bites, hors d’oeuvres and desserts, all served in a cocktail setting. To top it all off, guests can toast the evening with one of The Beehive’s signature cocktails, wine or champagne from one the evening’s sponsors including Chandon, SKYY Vodka, Hennessy Cognac and Moët & Chandon champagne. At midnight ALL guests will ring in 2015 with a complimentary champagne toast.

The cost is $145 per person with food buffet or $90 per person without buffet. Both ticket options include admission, entertainment and a complimentary midnight champagne toast. There is a cash bar all evening.

For more information or to purchase tickets please call 617-423-0069.

To Feed The World, We Need More Aquaculture

With our ever-growing population, we need to find ways to feed all of the new mouths during the next twenty years. And there seems to be little doubt that aquaculture is an essential element to feeding the world. As such, we need more aquaculture to ensure there is an adequate food supply in the future, and the U.S. needs to step up and promote more local aquaculture.

The United Nation Food & Agriculture Organization (FAO) has just released a new report, Economic analysis of supply and demand for food up to 2030 – Special focus on fish and fishery products, which was authored by Audun Lem, Trond Bjorndal, and Alena Lappo. The report projects the future food supply up to 2030, looking into supply and demand, and paying particular attention to seafood.

Though the rate of the world's population growth is expected to slow, it should still reach about 8.2 billion people by 2030, up from the current population of about 6/9 billion. "The main trends that will probably influence future food demand are food safety and health benefits, social concerns, production systems and innovations, sustainability and food origin." As such, there will be increased demands for sustainable seafood, especially due to its proven health benefits.

Seafood production across the world has experienced significant growth, primarily due to aquaculture as wild fisheries have seen, and continue to see, significant problems with resource depletion. Aquaculture currently accounts for about 43% of the total world seafood supply. Technology and scientific innovations have helped spur on the significant growth of aquaculture. It has become less costly to produce and operations have become more efficient. Within the next twenty years, all of this will only improve, making aquaculture a more appealing option. The report also addresses the problems which will affect agricultural production, causing its growth to slow, meaning it won't be able to meet the increased demands of a larger population.

I've discussed this issue multiple times before, stating the U.S. needs to increase its own aquaculture efforts, and for a few examples, check out U.S. Aquaculture Advocacy, Is Aquaculture Sustainable, and Updates From The Aquaculture Stewardship Council.  In 2012, the U.S. produced about 594 million pounds of aquaculture seafood, both freshwater and marine, valued at about $1.2 billion. However, the volume of aquaculture is only about 6% of the wild catch so there is much room for growth.

There are some promising signs in the Northeast region of the U.S., as noted in a recent Boston Globe article. Federal waters are starting to be opened up to aquaculture efforts. In October, the Army Corps of Engineers issued the first East Coast permit to grow mussels in federal waters. Federal waters present both challenges and opportunities, and could give a positive boost to aquaculture, and help boost the East Coast fishing industry. The article notes that the demand for mussels has nearly doubled in the last ten years, and my recent mussels article, Want Cheap, Tasty, Healthy & Sustainable Seafood? Choose Mussels, explains why they are such a great seafood choice.

There is hope, but we need to work harder to promote aquaculture. We need to pave the way for the future, for the greater population. Aquaculture can be sustainable and efficient, and the more progress that occurs, the better it will become. And the U.S. needs to make it a priority.

My Favorite Fiction of 2014

What were some of my favorite fiction books of the past year? 

Back in December 2011, I started a blog column, Authors, Alcohol & Accolades, which asked some of my favorite authors about their preferred drinks, both alcoholic and nonalcoholic. There have been 11 editions of this column so far, with more to come in the future. The inspiration for this series is that I am a voracious reader, of both fiction and nonfiction, and I wanted to combine that interest with my love of food & drink. The series has proven popular and it has been fascinating to explore what authors enjoy drinking.

As a special year-end addendum to that series, I'm posting a list of my Favorite Fiction Books of 2014. This list will include books of Science Fiction, Fantasy, Horror and Mystery/Thriller. During the past year so far, I've read over 240 books, both fiction and non-fiction, which provides a large pool for my choices. Most of the books on these lists were published in 2014, though there are a couple exceptions for books which were published in prior years but which I didn't read until this year. The books are not listed in any specific order of preference, simply by alphabetical order by the author's last name, except for the anthologies which are just listed in a random order.

Top Ten Novels For 2014
1) City of Stairs by Robert Jackson Bennett
2) Red Rising by Pierce Brown
3) Traitor's Blade by Sebastien de Castell
4) The Detainee by Peter Liney
5) The Crimson Campaign by Brian McClellan
6) Maplecroft: The Borden Dispatches by Cherie Priest
7) Veil of the Deserters by Jeff Salyards
8) The Emperor's Blades by Brian Staveley
9) The Shadow Throne by Django Wexler
10) The Tower Broken by Mazarkis Williams

When analyzing my list, you'll see that the Fantasy genre dominated, taking 7 spots. Though I might have read a slight more fantasy this year than other genres, some of the fantasy novels I read were very strong so they took the most spots  In addition, 4 spots were taken by 2nd or 3rd books in a series, and a couple of those books were even better than the first books in the series. Nearly all of the books on this list will have at least one sequel, many which will be out in 2015 so it will be interesting to see how they fare on my lists next year. All of the books on this list garner my highest recommendation.

To winnow my list down to only ten novels was very difficult, and tough cuts had to be made. However, there are still novels which didn't make my Top Ten but which are more than worthy of my hearty recommendation. To give them some well-deserved recognition, I am awarding ten of those novels Honorable Mention status. These are all books which should please most readers and you need to check them out.

Top Ten Honorable Mention Novels Of 2014
1) Perdition & Havoc by Ann Aguirre (a book & its sequel)
2) Blood Always Tells by Hilary Davidson
3) Phoenix Island by John Dixon
4) Sworn in Steel by Douglas Hulick
5) Tokyo Kill by Barry Lancet
6) Prince of Fools by Mark Lawrence
7) Code Zero by Jonathan Maberry
8) Blood & Iron by Jon Sprunk
9) The Younger Gods by Michael R. Underwood
10) Night Terrors by Tim Waggoner

As you can see, this list is more diverse than my Top Ten, with less fantasy novels. The diversity here is probably more indicative of my usual reading habits, an eclectic mix of genres. There is also a mix of first novels and sequels, with all of the first novels having sequels in the works.

I also want to give some raves to my favorite short story collections of the past year, Anthologies often don't seem to get enough credit but they can be quite compelling books, with an interesting mix of stories, often based around a specific theme.

My Top Ten Favorite Anthologies Of 2014:
1) Dangerous Women edited by George R.R. Martin & Gardner Dozois
2) Kaiju Rising edited by Tim Marquitz & Nickolas Sharps
3) Lovecraft’s Monsters edited by Ellen Datlow
4) The Dark Rites of Cthulhu edited by Brian Sammons
5) Dead Man’s Hand edited by John Joseph Adams
6) The Lizard Ardent Uniform edited by David Cranmer
7) Equilbirum Overturned edited by Anthony Rivera & Sharon Lawson
8) World War Cthulhu edited by Brian M. Sammons
9) The Book of 1000 Sins by Wrath James White
10) SNAFU: An anthology of Military Horror edited by G.N. Braun

As you will note, horror anthologies occupy the most spots on this list, with Cthulhu-themed collections the most prevalent. And there is only a single anthology that was written by a sole author, a horrific anthology of disturbing tales.

Finally, I want to give some recommendations for some of my favorite novellas of the past year, those long form stories which just don't reach the length of a novel. Most of these are horror, with some fantasy tossed in as well.

My Top Seven Favorite Novellas Of 2014
1) Chiliad: A Meditation by Clive Barker 
2) The Broken Road by Teresa Frohock
3) Servant Of The Crown by Brian McClellan
4) Murder At The Kinnen Hotel by Brian McClellan
5) Biters by Harry Shannon
6) Reborn by Brett Talley
7) The Last Mile by Tim Waggoner

All of the books on these lists would make great holiday gifts for others, or even yourself. Support author, who are small, independent business people, and buy more books. And if you read and enjoy a book, please leave a review of that book online and also tell your friends about it. The author would greatly appreciate your efforts.

Rant: Best Way To Recommend Wines

When you write about wine or other alcoholic drinks, you'll often have people asking you for recommendations. You might receive an email request, or someone could contact you through social media seeking your advice. They might want to know what Uruguayan wine, Sherry or Sake they should try, being unfamiliar with the category. It's simple to provide a handful of recommendations, to give them a list of several choices, but that is probably not the best way to be helpful.

The problem is that even though the person might have a good list of recommendations, they might not be able to find those wines at their local shop. There are many thousands of different wines available and most wine shops only carry a few hundred or so. What are the chances they carry the specific wines you recommended? They might be able to order the wines through the shop, but that takes times and not every wine is available in every state. Your recommendations thus become relatively useless, failing to accomplish their purpose.

However, there is a better way to recommend wines, one which will work at any wine store across the country, though it requires a little effort on behalf of the requester.

I'm often asked for Sake recommendations and my response is usually the same. To ensure the requester can locate the Sake I recommend, I ask them to go to their local shop and take a picture of their Sake selection. Then, they email me that picture and I can tell them which of those Sakes I would recommend. That ensures they will be able to easily obtain the Sake I recommend, and won;t be disappointed by going to a store with one of my recommendations but not being able to find it. I've done this with different types of wines too, from Sherry to Port.

This may be the best way to recommend wines and other alcoholic drinks,,to ensure their availability to the requester. It is more helpful than just providing a list of different choices. More people need to be doing this, assisting those seeking wine recommendations. I actually haven't heard about many people doing this currently, but would like to hear more and more people doing it. With the holiday season in full swing, lots of people are seeking recommendations. Do them a service and help them select the wines that are most readily available to them.