Wine and Romance

In This Email:
Roses are red...=20
Great Wines and Gifts=20
Wine and Romance=20
Wine Team Picks=20
In the Cork Boards: Red Wine and Headaches=20

Roses are red...

...chocolates are sweet. And when it comes to Valentine's Day, bubbly=20
can't be beat. Et voila: come February 14, we recommend Champagne &=20
Truffles, the most romantically indulgent couple since Scott=20
and Zelda.=20

On the other hand, if hearts and roses make you think red, Merlot &=20
Chocolate will surpass the most beautifully bittersweet ecstasy=20
you're capable of conjuring.=20

After that (and a glance at the selections offered below), you and=20
your love dove are on your own. Swirl, sniff, sip, taste, savor,=20
relax, and enjoy.=20

To learn more about each item listed below, simply click on its name.
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Great Wines and Gifts

Heart Stopper, $18.00
This hand-cut, valentine-shaped stopper is a wonderful gift for a=20
wine lover. No invitation to cardiac arrest, it nevertheless shows=20
your affection for saving wine. Arrives boxed.=20

Toujours Provence, $49.00
Few places are as seductive as Provence but if you have to stay home,=20
this lovely, lavender-scented collection of treats will transport you=20
in spirit to the south of France. It includes a bottle of Cotes du=20
Ventoux, olives with Provencal herbs, French sausages, Dijon mustard,=20
toasts, sweets, and a rustic market basket.=20

Addicted to Love, $29.00
This wonderfully suggestive love kit includes a luscious Cabernet=20
Sauvignon, an Aromatherapy candle called "Seduce," a container of=20
Chocoholics body frosting, and a paintbrush. As the wine's label=20
recommends: Light the flame, swirl the wine, spread the sweetness,=20
and taste the love.=20

Champagne and Truffles, $49.00
If Champagne is the most luxurious wine and chocolate is the most=20
sensual sweet ... well, you do the V-Day math. In the realm of=20
hedonistic indulgence, this pairing of exotic Vosges Haut Chocolat=20
truffles with a rich Medot Brut Champagne is off the charts.=20

Two to Tango, $24.00
You can sip a grande latte by yourself, go to work, or fry an egg by=20
yourself. You can answer all your email on your own. There are a lot=20
of things you can do alone. But a solo tango? Ay caramba, NEVER! So=20
put the moves on your dance partner with this ripe and sultry tasting=20
trip to South America.=20

White Hot Love, $35.00
When it's freezing in the Northern Hemisphere, it's steamy Down=20
Under -- so we've put together a pair of white wines to stoke the=20
February flames: a stylish Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand, full=20
of fruit and finesse, and a crisp, satisfying Aussie Chardonnay.=20

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Wine and Romance

Everybody seems to agree that wine and romance go hand in hand, so we=20
asked our Wine Team - a seasoned group of experts boasting 150 years=20
of collective experience - exactly why and how love and wine are=20
linked. Here are their professional observations.=20

Lee Codding:
Wine is made with care and passion, which can't help but transmit=20
itself to the drinker. It's only natural for wine to have a central=20
place in romance, because love is an essential ingredient in=20
its production.=20

Peter Granoff:
Candy may be dandy and liquor quicker, but nothing extends a romantic=20
moment like a fine wine.=20

Maire Murphy:
When we describe wine, we describe its body, texture, taste, and=20
experience. That, in itself, is romantic.=20

Diana Jacklich:
Ever wonder why wine language is rife with such adjectives as sexy,=20
seductive, smooth, velvety, and lush? Because wine is one of the last=20
legal sybaritic pursuits.=20

Carolyn Dempsey:
Wine evokes sensory pleasure and sustenance, which lift the spirit=20
and return us to what really matters. Whether it's the nourishment of=20
breaking bread and sharing stories, or simply the nurturing nature of=20
wine itself (which eases the mind and soothes the soul), it's about=20
taking time to savor the beautiful.=20

Maire Murphy:
There exist some dessert wines that must be sipped only from a=20
woman's navel. If that isn't romantic, what is?=20

Julian Davies:
Of course, no woman in her right mind would drop her laundry without=20
half a bottle of '47 Cheval Blanc down her....=20

Peter Granoff:
Wine lovers are wrong when they say that great wine is like sex.=20
Great wine is sex. The delicacy and tenderness involved in opening a=20
fine old bottle of wine is a kind of foreplay, and great wine, like=20
the act of love, engages us on many levels: sensory, emotional,=20
and intellectual.=20

Diana Jacklich:
"The soft extractive note of an aged cork being withdrawn has the=20
true sound of a man opening his heart" (William Samuel Benwell).=20

Jeff Prather:
Wine makes us giddy with youthful energy; it makes us feel warm and=20
fuzzy; it causes us to say silly things and mean them; it reduces our=20
inhibitions; it's a sensual magnifier; it's a powerful muse; it makes=20
everything taste better. Oh, did I say wine? Well then, wine must be=20
bottled love.=20

Peter Granoff:
Romance engages all the senses -- as does a fluted glass of=20
Champagne, especially when savored by candlelight. It's a sensory=20
treat in all respects: It sparkles like the eyes of your beloved,=20
offers the same delight to the nose as the object of your affection,=20
and when you bring it to your lips....=20

Taking Peter's cue, Tim Gaiser provides further dining advice:
If Champagne is our most romantic wine, there's no better occasion=20
than Valentine's Day for a Champagne dinner. It enables you to (1)=20
serve everything at the same time and (2) not do any cooking=20
whatsoever. Just pick up a bottle or two of your favorite bubbly,=20
plus an assortment of caviar, cheeses, pates, fresh shellfish, smoked=20
trout/salmon/scallops, chocolates, and any other finger food that=20
strikes your fancy. Invite that special someone to the table, open=20
the first bottle, and simply let nature, romance, intimate=20
conversation, true love, and amateur wrestling take their course.=20

For ideas on which wine to have in your corner, check out wine.com's=20
full selection of Champagne and sparkling wine.

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Wine Team Picks: Peter Marks on Super Bowl Wines

If you're hosting a big bash on Super Sunday, check out our Super=20
Sixer. But if you're just looking for a bottle to bring to a party,=20
here are five great possibilities. There's something bubbly (the=20
Cremant de Limoux), something familiar (Chard), something unusual (a=20
South African blend), something old (the old-vines Zin), and=20
something new (the '99 Rhone).=20

=01=071997 Dom. J. Laurens Cremant de Limoux Clos des Demoiselles Tete de=
=20
Cuvee, France, $15.00
=01=071997 Beaucanon Chardonnay Reserve, Napa Valley, California, $12.00
=01=071999 Le Riche Merlot-Cabernet Sauvignon, Stellenbosch,=20
South Africa, $16.00
=01=071998 Dry Creek Zinfandel Old Vines, Sonoma County,=20
California, $18.00
=01=071999 Andre Brunel Cotes du Rhone Cuvee Sommelongue, Southern Rhone,=
=20
France, $9.95

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In the Cork Boards: Red Wine and Headaches

Does wine make your head hurt? It does for MJBNYC. "Whenever I drink=20
California wine ... a migrane is triggered and I wind up in severe=20
pain," he wrote recently on the wine.com Cork Boards. "Does anyone=20
know what is present -- or not -- in CA wine that initiates my bad=20
reaction?" Cork Boarders have already presented a variety of=20
theories. Click here to join the discussion.=20

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