Don’t get your hopes up just yet, as they’re only planning to roll this idea out in a few stores in California and Atlanta at the end of 2012.

The one good thing about January however, is the fact, if you’re like me; you’ve fortunately been given plenty of bottles of wine over the festive period! As everyone knows I’m into Wine in a big way and enjoy the occasional odd bottle (or two!!).  I tend to get given a few, what I would call, decent bottles, which is a bit of a result. I’m lucky though, because I’ve got a nice big traditional wine rack at home where I can place them all to drink in the coming weeks and months.

We actually always consistently see an upturn in sales of wine racks in January and February and we can only put it down to this situation in that customers have acquired numerous additional bottles over the Christmas and New Year period and then have nowhere to put it or lie it down in order to enjoy it whenever required in the future!

In other news this week, wine corks are now seemingly no longer loved by UK wine consumers. In a survey conducted by Wine Intelligence for its 2011 Closures Report, 85% of the UK wine drinking population has now accepted screwcaps compared to just 41% in 2003. That’s a massive growth in only 8 years and could spell the end of the rumbling through the door for a waiter’s friend corkscrew! Admittedly, it’s now much easier to open a bottle of a wine with a screwcap but there’s just something endearing and plainly just nice about uncorking a bottle yourself, hearing the pop and the ensuing aroma of wine pouring from the bottle.

So after 40+ games in one of the finest sporting nations in the World, the Rugby World Cup is coming to its climax. It’s been a fairly disappointing and quite frankly, laughable campaign from an English perspective what with allegations thrown left right and centre, a gum shield incident and then a swimming race! (Why is it always us?!) At least however, we’ve got two nations in the final that we can connect with in the wine world, the old fashioned and claret driven French against the white wine lovers and young red guns of New Zealand.

The French produce a vast amount of different bottles and vintages of fantastic red, white and sparkling wines, from the world renowned regions of Bordeaux, Burgundy, Champagne, Rhone, Alsace, Loire etc. Their old, traditional habits are still visible and recognisable today and the stubbornness of certain regions not to join in with the modern ways of screw caps and to continue, in vast numbers, with corks, is one I agree with. Their production methods are becoming better every year and are based in the modern era, although traditional values are kept and are the equal of other wine producing nations as they pump out 7 to 8 billion bottles of wine per year.

Their Southern Hemisphere opponents New Zealand, most wine consumers think, play slightly second fiddle to their greatest rivals Australia a lot of the time and the Wine World is no exception. The Australians produce fantastic Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon, whilst New Zealand takes the white wine option of perfecting Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc. Oz Clarke is big admirer of the Kiwi’s Sauvignon Blanc and has described it as “arguably the best in the world” and this area is undoubtedly 100% one of the world’s Premier Sauvignon Blanc producers.

So as we’re talking wine, I think France rule the world and therefore they win this battle by default, but if we’re talking Rugby I think New Zealand are going to tear the French apart and celebrate being the World Champions in their own back yard. I’m just glad the final wasn’t Namibia V Scotland!

Riedel Vinum Two Glass Bordeaux Set (Code: 6416/0) Was: £39.90 / Now: £31.92

The iconic Riedel Vinum range is the bestselling and most popular collection from Riedel. The Bordeaux shape and size goes perfectly with most drops of the red side of things, a must have for any wine enthusiast.

Spiegelau Soiree Champagne Glass x 6 (Code: 407-00-29) Was: £36.00 / Now: £28.80

The Soiree range from the Riedel owned Spiegelau consists of a vast array of glassware that not only look good, but work wonderfully too. The Champagne glass in the Soiree range is one of my favourites as it looks and feels magnificent once you’ve got it full with a bit of bubbly!

Nachtmann Bossa Nova – Glass Cake Plate / Chip and Dip (Code: 77809) Was: £45.00 / Now: £36.00

Nachtmann’s Bossa Nova collection of the Dancing Stars patterned tableware look fantastic when served on the table with my favourite from the range being the Cake Plate / Chip and Dip. The multi usable glass plate can either be used for serving your special ones birthday cake or when turned upside down for dipping crisps into a great salsa mix!

It’s that time of year again where the middle of February brings loved ones together to celebrate Valentine’s Day. We’ve listed a few items below that we think would be ideal for both him and her to share on the special day. From elegant Champagne Flutes to bright red Corkscrews.

LSA Salsa Champagne Flutes x 4

The elegant red swirled Champagne Flutes measure at 240mm high and can take 250ml of the sparkling stuff! Each piece is individually handmade and mouth-blown and the box of 4 is supplied in a pictured gift box.

Box of 4: £ 45.91

Vertical Rabbit Corkscrew – Candy Apple Red

This modern designed Corkscrew from Rabbit is extremely quick at extracting the cork, 3 seconds in fact! The corkscrew includes a Foil cutter and an extra spiral and also comes with a 10 year warranty should anything go wrong.

Price: £50.00

L’Atelier du Vin Chic Lady Pink Corkscrew

You can’t lose this Corkscrew, considering its bright Pink! This gift would be much more suited to her, rather than him!

Price: £29.21

Glencairn Official Whisky Glass Twin Pack

With the last item being more suited to the girls, this gift is a bit manlier. Every bloke enjoys a glass of Whisky every now and then, so with the Glencairn Official Whisky Glasses you can’t go wrong! The glass sits perfectly in your hand allowing you to swirl the liquid around the glass releasing the aromas and is easy to hold allowing you to drink with ease.

Price Per Twin Pack: £13.23

So there you have it, a few Valentines Ideas for the both of you, but also some pointers on what’s good for her, and ideal for him!

These are not our words, but the words of T3 Magazine! We have been featured in ‘The best websites for gift buying’ in the 2010 December issue, alongside the likes of Figleaves and KJ Beckett. 

Click here for the T3 website, but if you’ve purchased the magazine, page 36!

3DTV (the next big in thing is television) is here! So what many people will say, how will this technology improve my life In fact some may argue the technology will do nothing other than cost money as the home entertainment equipment in homes up and down the country is upgraded.

So what value does 3DTV bring to wine? Well, actually none! That said, I would be quite happy watching Masterchef in 3D and viewing the dishes in tantalising 3D. This led me to think about what is coming next for TV? Could the day ever arrive when smell will be able to be transmitted by technology? Would this not be more 4DTV rather than 3D TV?

For wine connoisseurs this might provide a really welcome use of technology. After all, when wines were being reviewed/discussed on a programme you could actually perceive a sense of smell and not just take the work of the presenter (who has the fortunate task of describing the wine to those watching the programme). Just image the beautiful the fragrances of a deep red or fruity white wine making it to you as you watch the programme, fantastic!

Will smell ever jump from a TV like a picture?

Can you image being presented with a beautiful fragrance of red wine whilst watching a food programme? Just think you could wake the family up with smell of bacon without actually having to cook it!
I think it’s fair to say not to expect your SKY HD box to be upgraded to feature a smelly spray any time soon, but I really find the idea of a your family LCD TV featuring smelling sensors quite appealing, although maybe not for all TV programmes.

Of course we’ve all seen bottle collars before, scrappy bits of card held on by a piece of elastic or a piece of paper which fastens on ok but the text is still barely visible to the naked eye. Well, this printed booklet does away with that; as the name suggests, they can fit a whole Little Book onto every bottle and as it folds out to many times its original size you’re not confined by space meaning your message can be read easily, kept, and referred to again and again.

Basically just before Obama’s recent visit to china in November, the Chinese Internet users were asked to submit their questions to the 44th President. These questions were all collected by the state news outlets of Xinhua and Peoples Daily, and were to be presented to Barack Obama on his visit;

These are some of the selection;

o Would you play Truth or Dare?
o Do you eat Kung Pao chicken?
o Can you use chopsticks?
o Does the government pays for the first lady Michelle Obama’s wardrobe?
o Do you like to drink?
o How do you maintain a happy marriage?
o Can you add me on Facebook?

Obama visiting Shanghai

Whilst visiting Shanghai, Obama answered a lot of the questions put to him by the same web users, but the questions above were filtered out by the U.S state department’s website, so these more interesting ones were unfortunately scrapped.

So I thought we’d answer at least one question for them.

Does Obama drink?

Is Beer his favourite?

Well, yes he does drink, there are lots of pictures of the U.S president drinking and smoking, and as a self confessed drinker and smoker, this doesn’t come as a surprise.

obama drinking a beer

There are loads of pictures of the U.S president drinking beer at Wizard games, candidacy drives and with friends, but is beer Obama’s drink of choice?

obama drinking a beer

He caused quite a storm when he drank a bud light at a White House meeting with a Harvard professor in July. American Brewers all clamouring to know why he had chosen to drink a beer made by a Belgian / Brazilian, rather than a good American brewer. Maybe he likes the taste guys?

He did have a special beer brewed for the inauguration, but we aren’t sure if the President sampled it on the night.

obama beer

“A Belgian-style brewery based in upstate New York, has launched a beer in honour of the new US president Barack Obama. Known as Ale 2009, the beer was specially brewed for the inauguration on 20 January.”

The website ‘discountmugs.com‘ showed their celebration of the 44th president with these rather lovely USA made beer mugs.

obama glass beer mug

Are spirits his favourite?

So, we know that Obama likes a nice cold bud light, but what about spirits? What smooth malt blended spirit does the 44th president like to sip and savour, on a cold Xmas eve?.

obama happily having a drink

As we can see here, the president does enjoy the odd tipple now and then, but if he is waiting for something extra special the Cooley Distillery in North Co Louth are already preparing for his last day in the White House.

Irish Saveur create Obama Whiskey

“Today an American wood cask has been filled with a special blend malt whiskey which will be put in storage to mature before being given to the US President-elect when he eventually leaves the White House.”

Is Wine his favourite?

After 8 years of having no wine drinkers in the white house, wine makers are poised for change with news that Obama’s other home has a 1,000 bottle wine cellar.

Also with his positive impact on American youth, they are all hoping for a new wave of wine drinkers to emerge.

Wine experts have been making all kinds of suggestions as to the type of wine the new president should drink. He may well have the midas touch for Wine Brands, any wine he touches will turn instantly to gold.

obama wine

A few wines that the experts have recommended for him are;

• Biltmore Sparkling
• Lynfred Seyval Blanc
• Lieb Cellars resrve merlot
• Wild Blossom sweet mead

Of course sustainable wines are also been scrutinised by the green vinters, who are looking to Obama for that vote.

It has also been suggested, after the whole Bud Light fiasco that Obama will be looking at sending a message with the type of wine he drinks, so we might be seeing the likes of Napa Valley Chardonnay and Zinfandels gracing his dinner table.

obama and first lady drink wine

Tracy Kellner of Provenance Food & Wine in Chicago said she has had brisk sales of a South African sparkling wine made by Graham Beck after the Obamas reportedly poured it on election night. When People magazine wrote about a bottle of Kendall-Jackson chardonnay on the Obamas’ kitchen counter, the delighted California winery sent two cases of their best Vintner’s Reserve chardonnay to them.

If you wish to be ‘more of an American’ you could try sipping your Napa Valley wine in this lovely 10 ounce wine glass.

We thought this was rather cool, and Obama inspired wine rack.

Obama wine rack

Is Water his favourite?

Of course during the election run, the new president became synonymous with bottled water, which did get him into hot water with the climate groups.

obama drinking bottled water

It did however make Butxon water of from the UK very happy indeed, when Barack was spotted drinking the brand on stage.

Obama drinks buxton water

Is Fruit Tea his favourite?

But it does look as though the president’s drink of choice isn’t alcoholic at all, it’s reported that he has developed an addiction for fruit tea, and not just any fruit tea ‘Honest tea’. His favourite flavours of the drink are ‘black forest berry’ and ‘green tea’, and he has even stocked out his presidential helicopter ‘marine one’ with bottles of the tea.

marine one presidential helicopter

But how do we know it’s his drink of choice? Well he sent an aide to find a bottle of the drink and it took the aide 2 hours to find the exact one.

Now Bammers are buying up the drink like it’s going out of fashion, and CEO Seth Goldman of ‘Honest tea’ is delighted and said that “We had a great January, and thanks to Obama’s unofficial endorsement, there’s no question that Black Forest Berry was sold out,” Goldman was also invited along to the President’s address on the economy Wednesday at Obama’s invitation.

honest tea bottles

However Goldman has said that ‘Honest Tea’ won’t be cashing in on the support with a commemorative ‘Obama berry tea’. Although they did make some one off ‘Barack Forest Berry’ for the inauguration.

So what do you think? are we right, is ‘Honest Tea’ Obama’s drink of choice? CLICK THE IMAGE

What does Barack drink poll

I’m just going to go grab some of these yummy Obama cakes

obama cakes