Wine Blog from The International Wine of the Month Club

Wait a minute … who manages this thing?

December 1, 2011 by Kristina Manning

I’d like to take a moment to introduce myself, Kristina Manning, C&H Clubs Customer Service Manager. I am proud to say we have a top notch Customer Service Team! I’d like to share with everyone C&H Clubs Customer service mission statement as it’s what drives our focus everyday we clock in: “We are committed to providing excellent customer service through knowledge, enthusiasm, courtesy and attentiveness. Meeting our customers’ expectations is our top priority.”

Companies talk about the importance of customer service all the time, but we truly believe in it. We here at C&H Clubs believe that besides the quality and variety of our wines, our customer service is just as important as the beautiful selections we choose.

We love hearing from our members about their experiences with our wines, so give us a call anytime to share your thoughts on the wines you have tried from us. Wine is in fact one of my passions and I will share with you what I thought about a wine from time to time and maybe some fun and random things going on out there in the wine world.

Give us a call if you ever have any concerns about our selections or delivery of your wines to your door. That’s what we’re here for!

Cheers,

Kristina Manning

Customer Service Manager

800-625-8238

Check out our Wine Events Calendar!

November 22, 2011 by Kris Calef

Hey fellow wine enthusiasts! We just wanted to share with you our Wine Events Calendar on our site which will always keep you in the loop about all kinds of wine events and expos going on. We update our events on the 1st of every month, so be sure to watch for it. We also send off a reminder on our Facebook page every time we update our calendar, so please visit our page and like us to stay in the loop!

And if you ever have any you don’t see and would like to share, just send us an email at [email protected]!

Don’s November Collector’s Series Top Picks

November 22, 2011 by Don Lahey

November presented me with some especially tough choices. I really enjoyed the 2005 Croze Cabernet Sauvignon (November’s other feature), but since Joseph Perrier’s outstanding Cuvée Royale Brut Champagne and Pasanau’s 2008 Ceps Nous Priorat offer such an ideal combination of wines to plan a dinner party around, I couldn’t help but give them top billing this month. Joseph Perrier (not to be confused with the less expensive and more commercial Perriet Jouet) produces traditional non-vintage Champagne of the highest order. Also, I have always found the quality of Joseph Perrier’s Cuvée Royale to be extremely consistent.

Meanwhile, Pasanau’s 2008 Ceps Nous sheds a new light on Priorat, a wine that is enjoying considerable favor at the moment. Priorats are full-bodied Spanish wines that offer tremendous flavor, but they can at times be tough and brooding, especially when young. Conversely, Ceps Nous offers our members an authentic Priorat experience without having to wait years for enjoyment. There is a certain sophistication in Ceps Nous, too, that is absent in many other Priorats. Moreover, the 2008 Ceps Nous will continue to improve in bottle for years to come, which excites me.

A Votre Santé!

Don

Don’s November Premier Series Top Picks

November 17, 2011 by Don Lahey

My November Premier Series special features of the month are a delicious red blend called “1448” from Jeff Runquist, one of California’s premier producers of Petite Sirah, and Torre Oria, an exuberant, flavorful Spanish Cava. The 2009 Runquist “1448” is blend of Petite Sirah, with sizeable percentages of Barbera, Petit Verdot, and Syrah added for good measure. “1448” is big, bold, and to my taste quite beautiful, and it’s only just begun its life. Torre Oria’s non-vintage Brut Cava is precisely what good Cava ought to be: lively, delicate, and flavorful without an edge.

As of late, Torre Oria’s Cava has enjoyed considerable critical acclaim, but more important in my opinion is consumer reaction to this wine: Torre Oria’s Brut Cava has been a real crowd pleaser at classes, tastings, and dinners I’ve attended over the last year.

A Votre Santé!

Don

Don Lahey on the Task of Posting His Top Picks

November 17, 2011 by Don Lahey

Each month we post our featured wines in each level of our service both on our web site and on our Facebook page so that members that eagerly await their next shipment have the opportunity to check them out before they arrive. I’ve been asked to highlight which of our featured wines are my personal favorites each month and have to say that choosing a favorite monthly feature is akin to “Sophie’s Choice.” It causes me true anxiety, leaving me with a guilty conscience and profound sense of paternal betrayal. Why? Choosing one wine over another tends to diminish the character and quality of the other features, which is never my intention.

There isn’t a monthly feature our tasting panels choose that I wouldn’t drink and enjoy. However, I do have personal preferences, and therein lies the source of my guilt – preferring one child over the others. No matter how much you love a child or a wine, you may like one better on any given day. Consequently, we will be highlighting two wines each month, one from our Premier and one from our Collector’s Series. These wines are Don’s choices, either because of personal preference or some special attribute on the part of the “favored child.”

A Votre Santé!

Don

The Wonders of Spanish Wine

November 17, 2011 by Don Lahey

At a recent panel tasting, we were truly blown away by the quality and incredible value of the Spanish wines we tasted. It is no secret that for a decade or more Spain has been the source of some of the very best red wines made anywhere in the world. And the outstanding offerings from Rioja, Ribera del Duero and Priorat we tasted that night from top bodegas were no disappointment. In fact, they were truly outstanding. Yet, what impressed us the most were wines from lesser known regions and relatively obscure red and white varietals. An old vine Bobal from La Mancha, a blend of Syrah, Merlot and Graciano from Aragon, and Godello and Mencia offerings from Bierzo were some of the evening’s favorites, and not one of those wines has a retail price of more than $17.00.

This recent experience just reinforces our belief that no matter how hard the marketing gurus try to convince us otherwise, we can never drink a label or a price tag. Moreover, wine drinkers will find a treasure trove of interesting, tasty, well made wines from names and places they have never heard of, and nowhere will their search be more fruitful than in Spain. Look for some of these gems to appear as upcoming monthly features. In the meantime, happy hunting!

Welcome to The International Wine of the Month Club’s Blog!

November 17, 2011 by Kris Calef

It’s been a long time coming and we’ve given this one quite a bit of thought. Many of our loyal customers participated in a survey a few months back, the primary focus of which was to help us determine exactly what kind of content you’d like us to cover on our blog and on our Facebook page.

You’re feedback was quite clear and with it in mind, you can look forward to posts from Don Lahey, the head of our wine tasting panel, highlighting some of his personal favorites of our featured selections, notes from recent panel tastings, and insights on changes in the industry such as the move from corks to screw caps!

We’ll be digging up information on national wine tasting and other wine related events, exploring the many wine regions represented in the club, and sharing some of our most favorite recipes that we found married perfectly with our featured selections.

The future direction of our blog content will be largely influenced by our members and we’re eager to learn from you how we can continue to add value to your overall experience with The International Wine of the Month Club.

A Votre Sante!

Kris Calef

President

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