This article in the UK’s Telegraph newspaper talks about how Rose wine has become so popular in France it now outsells white wine. That’s quite an achievement. If anything should convince skeptics to try pink wine, this is it. As the article points out, it’s the dry and sophisticated roses that have accounted for this surge in sales, not the sweet (or more likely, sweetened) “blush” wines that have given pink wine a bad name in this country. The trend to drink rose wine seems to have not hit this part of the country yet. We at kybecca would certainly like to do our part to change that. Here are a few of the most common objections I hear to drinking pink wine and how I would respond:
Rose wines are too sweet Actually there are two things wrong with this. First, there’s nothing wrong with sweet wine. But more importantly most roses that are produced worldwide are not sweet. This stereotype has to do with people’s association between pink wine and white zinfandel. Roses from France, Italy, and Spain are rarely sweet. Even here in Virginia there are plenty of nice dry roses. Kluge Estates and Linden Vineyards in particular make very nice ones.
I don’t drink pink wine This is like saying ‘I don’t eat yellow food’. There’s nothing that links these wines together other than the fact they are pink and are wine. So it doesn’t make sense to reject a wine based on color.
I’ve never liked any rose wines I’ve ever tried There are thousands upon thousands of roses made worldwide. Even if you only count what’s available where you live, you’re probably talking about at least a few hundred different kinds, all of which taste different. Keep trying with an open mind you’re sure to find one you like.

I love rose wines because they have really nice red fruit flavors that you don’t find in white or red wines, are crisp and refreshing and are still a great value. The Don Salvador Rosado (the Spanish word for rose) is a steal for $7.99. It has delicious strawberry and cherry flavors. Roses can be more serious too. Bandol, a region in Provence, makes high-end roses that have great complexity and can even age a bit. We have one that sells for $30 if you’re ever looking for a higher-end wine that’s not typical. So if you’re curious read the article and see why the French have come to love these wines so much.

infantry demonstration.

Took pictures of a group touring a preserve in central Virginia looking for rare and endangered plants…

Interesting article I found on the real ale movement in Britain. Traditional British cask-ales are becoming more popular even while overall beer sales are falling. This matches the trend in this country for increasing interest in craft beers and microbrews while sales of the major brands fall.

What this means, I think, is that more and more people are realizing that beer (and wine) is about the taste, it is not merely an alcohol delivery medium. This is also part of a broader trend of the improvement in the American (and British) palate. You can see it everywhere. Coffee, for example, is generally better than it was 15 years ago. Wines from smaller wineries have cracked the market where before the mass-producers were dominant. Cooking shows on television are more popular than ever and people are beginning to discover it’s worth it to spend a little bit more on better ingredients.

Anecdotal evidence also shows that the movement to drink better beer could have a beneficial side effect – less drunkenness. Better ale is more expensive so it discourages buying and consuming in large amounts and encourages people to buy based on flavor rather than “value” (which is really code for saying you get more alcohol for your money). As the guy quoted in the article put it, “Nobody likes a lager lout, but have you ever heard of a real-ale lout?”

during a brief downpour at a science camp where kids were launching rockets…among other things.

If anybody is looking for something new to try, here is some stuff that just came in:

Oktoberfest is closer than it seems, and some of these beers are starting to come in. Right now we have Hofbrau Oktoberfest from Germany and Victory Fest from Victory brewing company in Pennsylvania. Victory Fest is probably my favorite. People will tell you that no American brewery can make an Oktoberfest beer as good as the German ones, but these people are wrong. Victory Fest is better than most of them, even in Germany.

Arriving unexpectedly early is the Weyerbacher Imperial pumpkin ale. There was a shortage of pumpkin ales last year, and we hope that doesn’t happen again. Weyerbacher’s is one of the best.

Next is the Brooklyn Local 1 from the Brooklyn Brewery. This beer is a Belgian-style ale that doesn’t neatly fit into any particular category. It tastes like a cross between a saison and a tripel. It’s also 100% bottle fermented – they put the beer in flat with some yeast and let the magic begin.

I have to admit it.I’ve become somewhat addicted to social networking. Or at least the concepts behind it all.And it’s not just me. My wife, daughters and son all participate in on line social networking in one way or another.Web sites like Facebook, L…

This weather we’re having is a glimpse of heaven in August, which is usually a month best spent indoors, grumbling about humidity and the cost of gas to the beach. Since we’ve been granted a temporary reprieve from both annoying August bugs — and it feels like early fall — what to do? What’s on your list before summer is truly over?

Ride a bike. Float down a river. Take the rocking chair out onto the front porch (take along this month’s Six for Sixty, Chair Wines). Run through the sprinkler. Fish. Borrow a convertible. Eat raspberries. Handpick tomatoes at the farmer’s market. Go to Carl’s. Nap on a hammock. Hold hands. Wander down William Street.

Stop by the wine bar.

New patio hours: Tuesday – Thursday, 5pm-9:30pm (last seating)
Friday & Saturday, 3pm-10:30pm (last seating)

I’ve always felt strongly the NFL is America’s best sports league, so I’m happy to have a whole bunch of Skins games to shoot this year. We’ll be doing slideshows from games with a snazzy template and big pictures. Here’s the first one.

A regional force of 100 law-enforcement officers arrested more than a dozen people on drug and other charges yesterday in a dawn raid on four houses in Colonial Beach and Westmoreland County.I was not allowed to shoot the actual raids, but I shot pictu…