Introducing the Prairie Wine Stem Program
We're promoting the concept of "learning
by experience" with our new Prairie Wine Stem program. On the second
Saturday of the month, starting in July, we'll conduct extra tasting
demonstrations with Riedel glassware, which is specifically designed to enhance
the flavors of particular types of wine.
(For more information on the
difference glassware can make, read the feature article below.)
Plan to attend our first Prairie
Wine Stem event, featuring Shiraz wines, on Saturday, July 10, from 1 - 7
pm. The Prairie Wine Stem tasting will be held at our back tasting table,
separate from and in addition to our regular Saturday tasting.
We will serve six customers at a
time, and those participating in the Riedel demonstration will be able to
purchase the featured glassware at 15% off on that day only.
(Prairie Wine Club members get 20% off the featured glassware the day of
the promotion.) Best of all, if you buy 12 bottles of the featured
wines of the day, you will receive two stems of the featured glassware at no charge!
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In this issue:
The Difference of Glassware
Upcoming Events
June 17 Cellar Master:
Focusing on California!
Gift Ideas
Email Changes
Legal Notice on Ordering Wine
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Feature Article
The Difference a Glass Can Make
There’s an extra
sparkle at Wine Expressions these days. Have you seen it? That’s Riedel®
stemware gracing the back shelves, and we couldn’t be more excited about
introducing our friends to the pleasures of fine wine experienced in a
glass perfectly suited to the wine’s personality.
The idea of pairing wine with food to
enhance its best qualities is familiar to most people. Pairing wine to a
glass, however, may not be something that is practiced quite so often,
beyond the basic “red, white, or sparkling.” Have you given much thought
to how the size and shape of your wineglass can affect your enjoyment of
the contents? The Riedel Glassware Company of Austria has given little
thought to anything else since introducing its revolutionary Sommeliers
stemware collection in 1973.
Developed by then-president and 9th-generation
glassmaker Claus Josef Riedel (rhymes with “needle”), Sommelier
wineglasses gave proof to Riedel’s theory that the design of the glass
could profoundly influence the experience of the wine contained within it.
It was Claus Josef’s son, Georg (“Gee-ork”) Riedel, though, who brought
his father’s germ of an idea into full flower. An avid oenophile, Georg
experimented with variations in bowl diameter and volume, rim
circumference and shape, to get the maximum performance from his
wineglasses. It was a radical idea, and a hard sell to Europeans enamored
of their heavy, cut and colored crystal. But the winemakers got it, and
they persuaded the restaurateurs, who educated the public, and Riedel
glassware found itself at the forefront of a revolution in the crystal
industry.
Americans were slower to buy into the
concept, but the tide is turning. The winemakers at Robert Mondavi
initially dismissed Riedel’s claims as so much nonsense until challenged
to test their wines in Riedel glasses vs. their own winery stems.
Mondavi’s conversion was immediate and complete, and he’s been an
enthusiastic promoter of Riedel to American wine enthusiasts ever since.
Our own Jack Thew and Randy Russell had a similar experience at a Riedel
demonstration in Chicago several months ago. One wine, served in 5
different glasses, showed remarkable changes in character, flavor and
aroma. “It was amazing”, said Jack. “I wouldn’t have believed it if I
hadn’t experienced it myself.”
The design of a Riedel glass (and there are
69 of them) is based upon three key factors: the type of glass, the size
of the glass, and the shape of the glass. Each glass is specifically
tailored to the wine or spirit it is intended to hold. Riedel glasses are
almost universally smooth, transparent, colorless, unadorned, and thin
(owing to their belief that a thick rim creates an unconscious
anticipation of a coarse wine).
The size of the glass directly affects how
we experience the wine’s bouquet: large glasses expose more surface area
to oxygen, releasing its aroma, while smaller glasses serve to concentrate
and direct a more delicate bouquet.
Finally, the shape of the glass directs the
wine’s contact with our palate to an astonishing degree. For example, the
gently curved lip of a Riedel Rheingau or Pinot Noir glass delivers the
wine straight to the sweet-receptors on the tip of the tongue, enhancing
the fruit and toning down the naturally high acidity of these wines.
Myriad variations on the classic egg-shaped glass serve to highlight the
fruit, tannins, and acidity of a given wine; there is even consideration
given to the differences between young and mature wine.
The Sommelier series, comprised of 33
different glasses mouth-blown to exacting standards, is the benchmark of
the industry. But at $50 to $90 per stem it represents quite an
investment. The Vinum line of machine-made lead crystal stems presents a
more affordable entrée into the world of Riedel glassware, with 22 styles
precisely tailored to the world’s most popular wines. Wine Expressions
offers an assortment of the most popular Vinum glasses, with additional
styles (and the Sommeliers collection) available by special order.
We hope you’re intrigued, and we invite you to experience Riedel
glassware for yourself through our Prairie Wine Stem tasting program. (See
details at the top of this newsletter.) Each month will highlight a
different Riedel glass, and these styles will be promotionally priced that
day.
Bring your sense of adventure to our July
10 tasting and see for yourself. We think you’ll be surprised to see what
a difference an upscale glass can make.
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Store
Location
We
are located in downtown Lisle at the southwest corner of Burlington Ave.
& Main St.
Extra
parking is available behind our building.
Hours of Operation
Mon
- Sat 10am - 8 pm
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About
Our Mailing List
The
mailing list for this newsletter was gleaned from the personal email
archives of Wine Expressions' owners and from direct requests received
from our customers.
We
hope you enjoy the newsletter and decide to remain on our distribution
list. You are welcome to pass this newsletter along to a friend, or
select this option to be removed from our lists.
By
the way, we never share your email or address information with anyone
else.
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Email Address Changes
Be
sure to send us an email when your address changes, so that our records
stay current and you keep receiving our newsletter!
Use
this link to send us your updated email address.
Great Gift Ideas
Whether it's for Father's Day, a college graduation, wedding or other
occasion, stop by our store to put together a unique and elegant gift.
Choose from our selection of gift boxes, create your own, or consider a
Wine-of-the-Month-Club subscription.
We're happy to help you put together a custom gift that's perfectly
matched to the recipient!
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Schedule
of Events
We look forward to seeing you soon at our events:
Prairie
Sampling:
Friday,
June 18, 4 - 6:30 &
Saturday, June 19, 1 - 6:30: Wines from Oregon
Friday, June 25, 4 - 6:30 &
Saturday, June 26, 1 - 6:30: Weiss Beers
Friday, July 2, 4 - 6:30 &
Saturday, July 3, 1 - 6:30: Wines from Australia, Part
III
Friday, July 9, 4 - 6:30 &
Saturday, July 10, 1 - 6:30: Wines from the Rhone Valley
Friday, July 16,
4 - 6:30 &
Saturday, July 17, 1 - 6:30: Wines from Spain
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Ladies Night Out: July 5
Our July Ladies Night Out will be about "Everything Red." We'll
celebrate some great red wines, so plan to join the fun, and wear
something red if you really want to get into the spirit of the event!! The evening includes a tasting of seven wines with
gourmet hors d'oeuvres from The Upper Crust bakery in Lisle. Cost is
$20
per person, and the deadline to register is Thursday, July 1.
Order early, we sell out every month!
Ladies Night Out:
Monday, July 5, 7:30 pm
$20 per person
Call for Reservations: 630.435.9463
or toll-free 1.888.656.9463
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Lisle Golf Club
Tasting
Our
tasting series at The View restaurant of the Lisle Riverbend Golf Club
continues. Join us on Tuesday, June 29 for Wines from Chile, paired
to appetizers. The tasting begins at 7 pm. Cost
is $20 per person. Call the Lisle Riverbend Golf Course to register,
at
630-968-1920, or call us at 630-435-9463. |
