A special thanks top Jeremy Kosmicki and Founders Brewing Co. for joining us on the Beer Theater. Here’s the recording of our 10/21 tasting.

We did run into one snag (first time) with this recording in an intermittent hiss/static… it’s a touch distracting from time to time, but I know you’ll forgive us since this is still a work in progress (think of it as a reason to attend in person so you can drink the beer too!).

If you would like to skip through or listen to a portion of the event. I suggest you start the video and pause it to let the entire video load. Then you can skip to these markers:

Centennial IPA 2:48, Harvest Ale 4:08, Red’s Rye P.A. 12:23, Porter 16:06, Breakfast Stout 23:02 and Old Curmudgeon Ale 26:50

Please let me know what you think in the comments.

Cheers!

Here’s the recap of our Virtual Winemaker event with Matias Mayol. I’ve decided to keep it as one uncut video – if you think it would be better to cut the video into smaller bits please let me know in the comments. Here are the time breaks if you would like to fast forward to a particular wine:

Sauvignon Blanc 4:33

Bonarda 8:23

Malbec 16:40

Cuatro Primos 24

Finca Montuiri 36

Cheers and Enjoy!

Ladies and Gentlemen it is my esteemed honor to publish our first Beer Theater recording for your enjoyment. This is an MP3 recording of our conversation with Mitch Steele of Stone Brewing from September 18th. Cheers! This is just the first of may to come!

The actions begins about 1:30 in…

Last night Paul Cluver visited Wine and Beer Westpark to taste some of his fabulous wines from South Africa. Check out the video below, we think you’ll enjoy Paul as much as we do. And, of course, his fabulous wines (all for under $20) are available at WBW.

Just completed a test run for the Virtual tasting last night and I think you’re gonna be floored!

The Salient Features:
 Friday June 5th Join us at 5:00 for a tasting with Reed Renaudin via the Internet!
We’ll see Reed on our flat screen and Reed will be able to see you all through our webcam. Reed will lead us through X’s Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Red Blend, Napa Cabermet & Merlot.
 
Please arrive at 5, as we’ll start tasting promptly at 5:15. Hopefully we’ll finish up with a short Q&A.
 
Please pass this along to anyone who might enjoy the event!
 
Wine
X Winery presents some fine classic California styles… Robert Parker had this to say after reviewing some recent wines,
 
“The most obvious question with respect to X Winery and proprietor Reed Renaudin is how can these wines be this good at these prices? Everyone is looking for good values today, and here are some exceptional bargains.”
 
Join us Friday at 5 for the Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Red Blend, Cabermet and Merlot.
 
Please Note, because of our Friday event, we’ll not have our usual Thursday tasting.
New Beer News…
Beer fans don’t fret, I have a something good in the works for you as well! In the meantime join us Wednesday June 3rd from 5:30 to 7ish for our monthly beer tasting:
 
Birrifico Montegioco Rex Grue
Birrifico Montegioco Tibir
Hitachino Classic Nest
Hitachino White
Legend Hefeweizen
Southern Tier Iniquity
St Peters Organic English Ale
 
Ran into to beer steward Eric Delia last night at An’s World War Beer, and I promised I would give a shout out. I’m happy to do it since Relentless Thirst is a well manicured and tended blog – Like beer, have time?
 
http://relentlessthirst.wordpress.com/
 
In other news, we will soon have a guest writer on the Weekly. Spencer will join us every couple of weeks for Spencer’s Spotlight – a quick update on Spencer’s newest, favorite wine and perhaps some info on the state of the Italian wine nation or cuisine pairings. Stay tuned!

Below is our latest, exclusive video interview with Gonzalo Perez representing Maipe Wines.

Thanks to Gonzalo for visiting and taking to the camera like a superstar and thanks to distributors Kysela Pere et Fis for bringing Maipe Wines to Wine and Beer Westpark and organizing Gonzalo’s visit. Stop by soon to try these gems (lower case) from Mendoza, Argentina. But you’ll only find Gonzalo here. Cheers!

Peter Mathis is the head wine maker for the Ravenswood Winery in Sonoma, Cal.. Last month, while visiting Virginia to promote his personal venture - Mathis Grenache - Peter was kind enough to stop by Wine and Beer Westpark to share some thoughts on the journey to producing his first personal wine.

Check out Peter in the video below and be sure to keep an eye out for the distinctive Mathis label – coming soon to a fine Richmond wine retailer near you. Thanks Peter! And thanks to Cobblestone Cellars coordinating Peter’s visit.

Below is a video that covers all six wines we tasted with Andreas Bender of German Hill winery, who was in town for just a few days from his native Germany to taste with the fans and friends of Wine and Beer Westpark. Andreas is a real treat and the video showcases some terrific German wines from the LEO label. A special thanks to Cobblestone Cellars for helping to arrange this special tasting event.

We hope to do more videos in the future – comments and suggestions welcome, please post them below. You can also find the video on our YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKpfnSWm6Uc. Cheers!

p.s. our rookie videographer – (ahem!) – didn’t quite get the audio quality we were hoping for, you’ll have to turn the sound up to hear everything. That element will be fixed in the future. Thanks for your patience.