Vino

"WOW!" wines

Thanks to all the friends who made a difference in my wine education! Tonya Iles and Shane Pruyne, fellow wine explorers in that magical summer of 1995. Erik Liedholm, for turning me onto Pinot Noir and teaching me about wine in general, as well as giving me the opportunity to taste dozens of amazing wines. Denise Garrett, wine sparring partner and self-described “wino friend”. And finally Kevin Cronin, who learned about wine about the same time I did... without him I may never have discovered the exciting, complex, and immensely satisfying world of wine.

I worked in the restaurant industry from 1989-1997 at various restaurants in Ann Arbor, Michigan where I went to graduate school, and wine became one of my main interests. While in Ann Arbor, I was fortunate enough to work with a knowledgeable and exciting sommelier by the name of Erik Liedholm, who did more to open my eyes about wine than any other single person. Erik is currently a very prominent sommelier in the Seattle area, and is pursuing his Master Sommelier accreditation. I wish Erik continued success and consider him a major influence in my wine education. I was also fortunate to work with Ron Edwards, who achieved his Master Sommelier accreditation in 2005. Way to go Ron!

The Court of Master Sommeliers is an organization established to encourage improved standards of beverage knowledge and service in hotels and restaurants. Education was then, and remains today, the Court's charter. I passed the Introductory Sommelier Course in September 2000 in Chicago. I found the course extremely worthwhile – it dramatically changed the way I approach wine, and it really focused my wine vocabulary! I have no current plans to take the more advanced courses, as they generally require the student to be working in the wine or restaurant industries and can be more challenging than the actuarial exams!! As of July 2011, there are 105 professionals who hold the title Master Sommelier in North America (90 men, 15 women).

Because I no longer work in the restaurant industry, I do not get to taste as often as I used to, but I still relish the opportunity to taste exciting and new wines! In this section you will find my tasting notes, organized chronologically. I debated long and hard as to how to organize these notes – by date, region, or varietal. In the end, organization by date seemed most logical, as I didn’t have the breadth of tasting experience to make organization by region work.

You’ll notice I don’t have scores attached to my tasting notes. I realized from the very beginning that as my wine knowledge increased, my scoring would not be uniform across the years. Even today, there are regions (like Burgundy) I know so little about that I could not fairly put a score to them.

Miscellaneous Tidbits – Ken’s Favorites!!

Ken’s favorite reds to date: Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande 1986

Archery Summit Pinot Noir 1994

Leonetti Cabernet Sauvignon 1994

Araujo Eisele Cabernet Sauvignon 1994

Ken’s favorite whites to date: Kistler “Sonoma” Chardonnay 1994

Grgich Hills Chardonnay 2005

Ken’s favorite sparklings to date: J Lasalle Brut NV

Egly Ouriet Premier Grand Cru Brut NV

Billecart Salmon Brut NV

Wine Ken wants to taste the most: Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande 1982

Most overpriced and overrated region: California Cabernet

Best value region: Tuscany (Brunellos, Super-Tuscans, Chianti Classicos)

Whites from New Zealand, Australia, Spain, Austria

Region Ken knows the least about: Burgundy

Preferred whites: Gruner Veltliners from Austria, Albariños from Spain, Alsace wines