Vino-Lok

The other night we opened a bottle of the 2007 Weinhof Scheu Grauer Burgunder Kabinett Trocken, $16, Savio Soares Selections, a wine made from grapes perhaps better known to most of us as Pinot Gris. Imagine my surprise when there was no cork, no Stelvin (screw cap) closure either, no synthetic cork, but a little glass top that was vacuum sealed on the bottle. A little jiggling and it came out easily enough. And unlike a synthetic cork, I could easily re-seal the bottle using the same glass top.This thing is great, I think. Easy to open, easy to re-seal, much classier than a screw-cap, in my opinion. I wonder if allows a bit more oxygen than a screw-cap does to penetrate the seal? Anyway, I have never seen this kind of seal before. A little bit of searching the interwebs reveals that this alternative closure is called a Vino-Seal or a Vino-Lok. I prefer Vino-Lok, as it reminds me of a 1980's rapper's nom de guerre. In fact, I think that some one like Lyle Fass should seriously consider changing his name to Vino-Lok. That aside, I had never even heard of this. Apparently it's made by Alcoa, the aluminum production giant. And it costs more than other alternative seals.Like the screw cap, I'm sure this is meant for young-drinking wines, not the cellar-worthy stuff. I really liked it - the feel of opening and closing it, the look of it, the weight of it in my hand. And the wine was excellent too, which I'm attributing purely to the closure. Anyone else out there run into Vino-Lok? I don't mean the MC, I mean the alternative wine closure. Thoughts?

Excellent Pinot Noir...Under $20 ???

I was happy to read Aric Asimov's article about what he calls a "rebellion" in California Pinot Noir. I have always believed that the preponderance of syrupy fruit bombs among made-in-the-USA wines is more about decision making than about terroir. I've had graceful and complex Oregon Pinot Noir, energetic and resonant Long Island Cabernet Sauvignon, and balanced and delicious California Chardonnay. But those are the exceptions - the rule seems to be jammy sleep-inducing wines with little balance.

This rebellion notwithstanding, the problem for consumers continues to be one of price. The American wines that I'm referring to are all expensive, sometimes very expensive. Is it truly impossible to make excellent wines in the balanced and energetic style, that retail for under $20?

I looked at Asimov's list of producers he recommends at the conclusion of his article, and only one of them offers a wine that retails for under $30 - Au Bon Climat. What's up with that? Burgundy isn't cheap either, but most producers make a Bourgogne or even a village wine that retails in the $20 range - and these can be fantastic wines.

So here is a challenge for American producers of Pinot Noir: make a wine as good as this one, a beauty from the Pfalz in Germany, the 2006 Weinhof Scheu Spätburgunder, $17, Savio Soares selections. This wine is airy and fresh and it offers what to me is the essence of Pinot- ripe and juicy fruit, but elegant and energetic. It has great balance and acidity and although it isn't a complex wine, it is an absolute pleasure to drink. Low in alcohol at 12%, it compliments many types of food. I can honestly say that this is the finest under $20 bottle of Pinot that I've ever had. And Savio Soares brings in natural wines, so although I don't know the exact details, I'm sure that there is no weedkiller spraying, acidification, chaptalization, spoofulation or other 'izations' or 'isms' going on here.

How does Weinhof Scheu make this great of a Pinot, ship it to America, and sell it for under $20? I don't know. But surely our cool climate Pinot producers can match this feat. Can't they?