Big Fat Wine

Come visit our list!

It’s Official! We now have the most comprehensive Big Fat list on the web of celebrities that have chosen to venture into the elegant business of wine production! Many “thank you’s” to all of your suggestions and comments! Celebrities  sure know what to do when they want to enjoy life!

Below are two more additions to the BigFatWine listing of celebrities who own commercial wineries, wine brands
or vineyards. 

Richard Branson

Sir Richard Charles Nicholas Branson
British Industrialist
Virgin Wines
Mendocino, California

Emilio Estevez

Emilio Estevez
American actor, film director, and writer
Casa Dumetz Wines
Malibu, California

(If you are a celebrity who owns a winery, wine brand or vineyard or you know of one that we’ve missed, let us know and we will add you/them)

Many “thank you’s” to all of your suggestions and comments! We’ve added more celebrities to our page and will continue to add more as we find them!

Celebrities  sure know what to do when they want to enjoy life!  Below is yet another addition to the BigFatWine listing of celebrities who own commercial wineries, wine brands or vineyards.

Frank Sinatra
American singer and actor
Sinatra Family Estates
Napa Valley, California

(If you are a celebrity who owns a winery, wine brand or vineyard or you know of one that we’ve missed, let us know and we will add you/them)

The weekends have been so perfect here lately, that’s rare. When the sun shines, we look for the biggest wave, leap in and paddle to our hearts content metaphorically speaking. Scheduling as many activities as we can into two days isn’t difficult, actually following through is!

Saturday, we ventured into Burien. Jona grew up was raised in that area but we never seem to visit often. Some good friends mentioned a wine bar there few years ago and we’ve been meaning to go, so off we went. Vino Bello!, It had such a cool name it had to be great, and it was. 152nd in Burien is actually quite quaint nowadays. The little shops and eateries bring a certain charm to the block and it was an awesome summer evening to walk hand in hand down the sidewalk.

Vino Bello Wine Bar was a gem! Bottles and local art  lined the walls and the music was pleasantly unique. We have often discussed the ambiance in wine bars and that we would really  appreciate some music that didn’t make us feel like our parents.  Led Zeppelin played at a socialable level in the background, rock and wine make a perfect combination.  Plus, we enjoyed the tasting, “Wines of Argentina”. These were great big tastes!

The one that stood out for us both was the Tomero Petite Verdot Reserva 2006. The Tomero Wines are made in Argentina and named for the TOMERO. The TOMERO became a part of the vineyard livelihood in 1883 and his presence continues today. His job is the distribution of irrigation water in those vineyards which, by law, are entitled to use the river water.  The TOMERO is hired by the landowners, and his job is to open and close the “Toma De Agua” (water intake channel) of each estate according to the number of water hours assigned.

This wine is reportedly aged in French Oak for 15 months and its  color is a deep dark purplish  black.  Nicely balanced would be an understatement, and quite honestly, that is what made this wine stand out. Full-bodied red with black plum and blackberry aromas.  Very  concentrated but not heavy. Perfect for beefs of all varieties.

We highly recommend Vino Bello in Burien.  We plan on returning soon and taking friends and family with us. The service was perfect! They were there when we needed them and they kept us in their vision in case we had that thirsty look in our eyes. Like I said before, the music was great and it made the wine and evening that much more pleasurable and complete. We ended up keeping our tasting to one hour because we wanted to go get dinner. We could have stayed later but trying to find a good meal after 10pm in Washington is a challenge to say the least. Does everyone really go to bed that early? Can’t we just stay up a little while longer?

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Being Washington natives, we often had the same curiosity the rest of you may have….”It rains every day in Seattle, how could they grow any grapes at all?”  But the state is separated into two major regions by the Cascade Mountains. The west which includes the wet and rainy climate we are  not so happily known for, and the east which only averages 8 inches of rainfall (compare to 60 inches in the west). In 1970, there were only 10 wineries compared to more than 500 today! The growth in popularity has been phenomenal, in fact this year the annual Wine Blogger’s Conference took place in Walla Walla, Wa. This was the first time this gathering of approximately 300 wine writers was held outside of the state of California. If it had not been sold out, we would definitely have attended. Are you kidding me? Right next door and we couldn’t get tickets. That will never happen again! The feedback observed so far, has been extremely positive and we believe the attendees were pleasantly surprised at what Washington has to offer in terms of wine production, cultural experiences and outstanding focus on quality and industry practices (and FUN!).

Official Portal for Washington State

Washington has the nations second highest number of Wineries (511), which ranks them second only to California.

Wine Regions (AVA’s) of Washington: Yakima Valley / Walla Walla Valley / Columbia Valley / Puget Sound / Red Mountain / Columbia Gorge / Horse Heaven Hills / Wahluke Slope / Rattlesnake Hills / Snipes Mountain / Lake Chelan

An AVA, or American Vinticultural Area, is a specific grape – growing area within a state or a region recognized by and registered with the federal government. AVA designation began in the 1980′s and is a system styled after the European system (AOC).

*NOTE: If an AVA is listed on the label, at least 85% of the grapes must come from that region.

Major Grapes:

White – Chardonnay (6,000 acres)          Riesling (4,400 acres)          Sauvignon Blanc (990 acres)           Gewurztraminer (630 acres)

Red – Cabernet Sauvignon (6,000 acres)          Merlot (5,800 acres)          Syrah (2,800 acres)

We have two favorites which we strongly encourage you to explore on your own. One is Chandler Reach Vineyards who make a delicious Parris Estate Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon. Their “Villa” is in the Yakima Valley (AVA) and you won’t be disappointed during each and every visit. The Villa has a great story behind it and every time we visit, it just keeps getting better!

Our other favorite, not necessarily in that order, is the Chateau Ste. Michelle Winery located in Woodinville. Their full bodied reds, annual membership concerts and romantic atmosphere at the winery is something you must experience on your own!

Fact: Chateau Ste. Michelle is the world’s largest producer of Riesling.

If you want further information on specific wineries, vineyards or wine bars in Washington, this is a great place to start…

View Larger Map

Alot of the above information was acquired from the following resources; “Windows On The World” Complete Wine Course by Kevin Zraly and The Washington Wine Commission WashingtonWine.org.

From day one, starting Big Fat Wine, we decided to take a “no rules” approach to the entire wine lifestyle. That doesn’t mean there aren’t certain rituals that go with the experience but if you get too carried away with proper etiquette you miss out on some of the romance. Following the basic rules about enjoying wine and sharing the joy with your friends is of primary importance. Don’t get bogged down in jargon or complex rules. Don’t pretend to know it all because you can spend a lifetime learning about wine and yet not know enough.

People, who let themselves get intimidated by wine and let that stop them are missing out. They’re missing out on good conversation because each bottle comes with a bit of history and a slice of geography. There’s no other beverage that excites as much animation at the dinner table. They’re also missing out on really enjoying the full experience of good food, nothing enhances good food like good wine.  It’s one beverage that brings out the best in chefs around the world. There is always a wine that is waiting to be paired with just about everything we eat, with the exception of… (nothing I can think of). That’s what makes the wonderful world of wine so exciting, so full of discoveries that take you by surprise.

But you can spoil the party for others by being a wine snob, dropping jargon that other people find hard to understand. There are no rules of wine etiquette, but there’s definitely an unwritten code, and topping it is the commandment that requires you not to bore the hell out of others

You won’t see us displaying or flaunting our wine certifications or degrees in enology here at Big Fat Wine. For one, they simply do not exist. Secondly, to quote Tommy Boy, “I’d rather take a
butcher’s word for it”. Translation: Listen to your friends that truly enjoy wine. Ask them what they like and why they like it. Practice – practice – practice. Try new wines wherever you go. You will only know what you like by identifying what you don’t like. Comparison shopping made simple.

This is not my private vigil to demean education. By all means, listen to the educated. I have read more material this past year than in my entire life! In fact, plans do exist, to register in some educational courses in the future. So I can flaunt my own sommelier red badge of courage? I think not. Just the idea of  learning more about a subject matter that I am so passionate about is extremely exciting! If the credentials come, it will obviously provide a feeling of accomplishment but I presume it will also be a constant reminder of what I still don’t know and have yet to learn.

And lest  we forget…

Rest in peace Chris Farley! We miss you.

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In September 2007  Joel  and I had the opportunity to spend 10 days in Paris.

We arrived in the afternoon after almost a full day of travel so it was time for food and a nap.  We ate in a cafe around the corner from the hotel, fell into bed and slept.  The time difference really does mess with you.  Once we came out of hibernation it was time to explore.  We didn’t get a car because driving in Paris is way more of an adventure than I was ready for plus the metro system can get you anywhere in the city easy, cheap and fast… okay so it’s a bit crowded and there are some pretty interesting smells down some of the dark corridors but I still felt safer down there than I would have in a car considering the driving style.

We were warned, before we left, that the French were not exactly friendly to Americans and if we don’t speak French (which we don’t) people would be down right rude.  That wasn’t the experience we had.  The French people that we encountered were wonderful and very helpful.  We had a few interesting experiences when we tried to order but thank goodness everyone knew what we were saying when we ordered “house red.”

We never had a bad glass of wine or a bad cup of coffee while we were there.  Not once.

We did all the regular stuff, the Louvre, Notre Dame, Jim Morrison’s grave, but I think the best thing we did was hang out in the shadow of Sacré Coeur in the little community of Montmartre.  We just walked and ate and drank cheap wine and absorbed the local color.

This trip was amazing and I would go back today if I could.

By the way, Paris truly is the most romantic city on the planet.

As Always,

Love, Laugh, Learn… LIVE!

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