David: It’s been a hot one over the past few weeks, which has brought up some interesting situations in our wine world. This month we’ve wanted to focus on what to drink when it’s hot hot hot, and how to keep those refreshing beverages cold cold cold.
Christian: My mouth is already watering at the thought of an icy cold drink. We’ve often preached against serving white wines too cold, but some will benefit from that extra chill. Personally, I love a good young champagne or sparkling wine at a very …

Christian: This time of year, three things are required to make a perfect evening: outdoor furniture, good company, and a refreshing glass of white wine. The early summer months can’t be beat. The drenching humidity and annoying bugs have yet to arrive. Everything is green again, and in full bloom. Ladies and Gentlemen, it’s porch time. It is with my easily attainable Zen moment in mind that David and I have created our list of early summer porch sippers. I find that no other grape fits the bill better than …

Christian: No that wasn’t “Ladies.” It’s “Laddies,” as in the bagpipes, kilts, and scotches of Scotland! David was invited to a single-malt scotch tasting, and thought it would be fun to share his experience in this month’s column. I did argue with my younger brother that scotch is not wine, but eventually David convinced me that scotch is a very important and potent beverage with complex characteristics. Personally, if there is no wine available, I am a Dewar’s and soda type of guy. But David has had a single malt …

By David and Christian Asam
Christian: When shopping for wine, I always try to buy from a locally owned wine shop. We are lucky to have a few stores in Jefferson County with a nice selection on their shelves. Allow me to send a special congratulations to Grapes & Grains on their new location and expanded selection.
David: Christian is right. The wine selection in town is fantastic, but let’s imagine something odd happened on German Street. Hmm, maybe like a water main break that sends water gushing down the sidewalks, or …

BY Christian and David Asam
 
David: Have you ever asked yourself, why are they pouring that wine into a pitcher, or why is that arrogant snob swirling the wine in his glass so vigorously? Well, there actually is a good reason. They are aerating the wine. The obvious next question is, why would you want to do that?
Christian: Well, since you asked . . . . Let’s start with the fancy pitcher, or decanter. There are two major reasons for decanting. Younger wines are decanted in order to more rapidly release …

Christian: Every December a great group of our friends gets together for our annual holiday wine tasting. A theme is chosen months in advance, and each person is required to bring a bottle matching that theme. This year the powers that be selected Italy’s Barolo. We booked the upstairs room at Stone Soup, tasted wine, and shared laughs as multiple courses of outstanding food continued to roll out of Liz’s  kitchen. I can still taste that lamb chop. It was divine!
David: We knew the food  would be good. That was the least of …

by Christian Asam and David Asam
David: As this is the December issue, we have decided to share our opinions on our favorite wines to go with a Traditional Turkey Dinner. No surprise that Christian’s favorites come from the New World, while I have stuck with the timehonored pairings of the Old World.
Christian: Mmmmm … Turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, roasted vegetables… Just what I need to destroy my Atkins diet. But at least we can wash it all down with some delicious wines. Each year David and I and …

By Christian and David Asam
David: A local charity recently auctioned off a dinner with the Grape Debate brothers, which Christian and I thoroughly enjoyed. The stage was set in the Bavarian Inn’s Rathskellar, where four people joined us for an evening of great food, conversation, laughter, and, of course wonderful wines.
Christian:  The design was a four-course menu for which both David and I paired a wine to go with each course. The goal was to see who chose the better wine, and also to see which wine went better with …

By Christian & David Asam
Christian: I recall a night early in my freshman year of college before I had found wine, beer pong, or kegs, before I had been invited to my first of many frat parties. My roommate and I were bored, lying in two single beds in our tiny dorm room unable to sleep. We started quizzing each other on state capitals. We went back and forth trying to outmatch each other, and did remarkably well. Then the stumper, we got to the great state of Maine, and …

By Christian & David Asam
David: Continuing last month’s column—Anything But Chardonnay—we thought we would give our thoughts on some more obscure red varietals. Because cabernet sauvignon is probably the king of red grapes, it’s much harder to bash than its white counterpart, chardonnay. Still, we hope to entice you into trying a few lesser-known reds.
Christian: Trying to cover the thousands of red grapes out there could be an endless topic, so we’ll limit our discussion to a few red wines that we find exciting right now. You really can’t bash …