U.S. Moves Up in Wine Consumed ... Tastings are Everywhere

By: Michelle Arean





Wine tastings. Those two words usually bring up thoughts of Nappa Valley or maybe Paris, but hardly thoughts of Miami come in.

However, the United States is fast climbing the latter and getting on the wine bandwagon. Right in our own backyard, we now have a winery in the Redlands. Schnebly’s, which celebrated it’s 2-year anniversary this past October, takes advantage of the warm tropical climate of Miami and it’s exotic fruits and gave wine a twist. Tropical fruits wine is the creation of Schnebly’s, a family-owned winery.

According to the Wine Institute, family-owned wineries are popular tourist attractions in certain regions of the United States. Miami is lucky to have its own little treasure in town. The tropical fruit wines at Schnebly’s are tasty and unexpected; with flavors such as: mango, lychee, guava and passion fruit, the flavors of Miami come to life. Schnebly’s, which has only been opened for a couple of years, is constructing a $2 million project, which will have a larger outdoor wine tasting area by a gorgeous waterfall cascade along with a party area.

Wine tastings are popping up everywhere in Miami, from charity events to tastings at local restaurants - wine is in.

“Miami is the crossroads of the Americas and part of that influx has been savvy wine lovers from across the globe,” said Larry Carrino, Vice-President of Brustman Carrino Public Relations and Co-Chair of the South Florida Chapter of The American Institute of Wine & Food. “This, coupled with America’s rising interests in fine wine and food, has led to the rise in wine appreciation.”

According to the 2007 edition of The U.S. Wine Market: Impact Databank Review and Forecast, Americans will drink more wine than Italians for the first time ever, by the end of this year. Americans are only behind France in overall wine consumption and is expected to surpass France as the world’s largest wine market before 2015.

“Wine outsold beer for the first time last year and the U.S. will soon overtake France as the number one wine consuming nation in the world. France will lose this title for the first time ever,” said Joy Etuks, a personal consultant for The Traveling Vineyard. “Health consciousness in the U.S. has helped the wine industry. A glass of red wine a day is great for the heart and the soul,” said Etuks. “Miami is a city that is made up of people who want to live a certain lifestyle. Miami residents are health conscious and trendy. Wine is really a perfect fit into the culture of the city.”

Miami is a city, which is expanding itself and becoming more diverse in culture, which is evident in the opening of the Carnival Performing Arts Center. Wine is usually prominent in social and cultural affairs.

“I think a city’s wine consciousness is a good indicator of what its cultural concerns are. Cities with a large or powerful wine community usually have strong cultural communities as well. You could extrapolate this to make connections to a city’s economic state of affairs as well,” said Carrino. “Miami’s food scene is only about two decades old, whereas cities like New York have been involved in haute cuisine and fine wine for over a century,” said Carrino.

Wine it Down, a new restaurant in Kendall, focuses its menu on tapas and wine. The location has been a hit for those who live in the Kendall area because they don’t have to travel much to enjoy a glass of wine.

“Finally it’s right next to our house,” said Sonia Blandon, 24 year-old from Kendall.

Every Thursday night Wine it Down holds a wine tasting from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. The tasting is done privately at your own table. If you decide to participate in the tasting, the waitress brings a bottle of each wine being demonstrated that night to your table so you can enjoy it with your friends. Although Wine it Down has only been open for a few months, it has already recruited regulars. John Leal, 42 and Javier Pineda, 37 were both enjoying the tasting and said they cold be found there almost every Thursday night. As they interact with the owner, Isa Samanez, they seem like old friends, yet Loyal said he only became friends with the owner by going to the restaurant so much. Loyal said the people and the service are excellent and it’s why he continues to come back.

Jaguar in Coconut Grove also offers Thursday night wine tastings as well as many other venues in the city. Tastings have become very popular and are a great publicity opportunity for new restaurants.

“It draws a great demographic into the restaurant and allows them to experience the restaurant in a controlled setting where the owner/chef can directly cater to and romance them,” said Carrino. “Wine tastings or wine dinners are wonderful PR and marketing opportunities and can help build or augment one’s client base.”

Tastings have not only become a way to promote a new venue but are also great for networking and socializing.

“Certainly there are folks who attend them primarily as an opportunity to network and mingle and wine lovers are nothing if not social animals,” Carrino. “There is a select group of Miamians who make up our wine community but it is steadily growing.”

A new form of the wine tasting is hosting a wine tasting in your own home. The Traveling Vineyard, one of the companies which hosts these complimentary tastings in homes, brings five world class wines to the home and teaches the group how to taste wine. Usually about 10 – 25 people attend each of these tastings.

“The diversity is amazing. Anyone who enjoys wine and wants to learn more about wine will host,” said Etuks. Wine tasting is a special event in itself.”

Wine tastings are also being used as fund-raisers for charities.

“As a culinary publicist, I handle the media relations for a number of high-end food and wine fundraisers, including March of Dimes Signature Chefs & Wine Extravaganza, Miami Wine & Food Festival and the Food Network South Beach Wine & Food Festival,” said Carrino. “I think they’re wonderful as long as they make sense. Not everything should be, or need be, a food & wine festival. I think the drive to build in a wine element, or more pointedly a food and beverage element is natural; they make events enjoyable and social but it shouldn’t be the go to concept for a fundraiser.”

Wine enthusiasts and wine tastings have broadened in age range and in concept. Wine tastings are being held anywhere from your home, to charity events, to restaurants, to wineries in the middle of a farm in the Redlands.

“The majority of folks who regularly attend the high-end events tend to be older professionals, businesspeople, CEOs, leaders of industry, 40 years-old and over. Then you have a second tier of burgeoning wine lovers, young professionals mostly, who are beginning to make the rounds and attend the food & wine fests, if not the incredibly expensive, exclusive wine dinners,” said Carrino.

“Wine tastings bring people of all ages together. Wine tastings create a fun environment where friends and family can laugh and learn together,” said Etuks. “Miami is a city that is very diverse and is full of art and culture- just like wine. Wine is about art - wine makers are artists; culture - wine is from all over the world; history -wine has been made for centuries; and wine is very trendy- just like Miami.”




To find a local wine tasting, click here:
Miami Tastings:
http://www.localwineevents.com/Miami-Wine/
South Florida Tastings:
http://www.aiwf.org/southflorida/chapter_calendar/details.html?date=2007-11

Health Benefits of Wine:
http://nutrition.about.com/od/guestarticles/a/healthandwine_2.htm
http://archives.cnn.com/2000/HEALTH/alternative/03/31/wine.heart.wmd/

Miami Dade College's Kendall Campus Celebrates 40 Years

BY: MARIANA GUERRERO
mariana@livingmiamistyle.com

Many things have changed over the years at Miami Dade College's Kendall Campus since it opened its doors 40 years ago, and it hasn’t just been a name change. The South Campus of the then called Miami Dade Junior College, has influenced the community and helped its growth by educating thousands of local students yearly.

Click here to go to complete story

The deadly bottle//Yedica Leal

The deadly bottle

A few years ago, buying bottled water was not very common. Today, it is a $15 billion industry in the U.S alone. American consumers have become obsessed with “the bottle” and this new obsession is not about cleaner, safer water, but about keeping up with the “water trend”. So next time you grab a water bottle think again. Think about the millions of people who don’t have potable water and what you are doing to contribute to this problem.

Bottled water companies are privatizing water by claiming water rights in many countries around the world. These companies are buying the land where water streams are located and are selling something that is meant to be free. The Fiji Natural Artesian Water Company imports water from the Fiji islands, where people are struggling to find potable water.

“It is the lack of water, the privatization of water, the diversion of water from some of its natural purposes into a commodity we can buy and sell”, said Dominican Sister Patricia Siemen, an attorney who directs the Center for Earth Jurisprudence, a collaborative project between Miami’s two Catholic universities, St. Thomas and Barry at a conference that took place last month.

In an effort to increase their profits, American bottled water companies have launched a campaign alerting U.S consumers of the dangers of drinking tap water. These companies are concerned with the well being of millions of Americans but don’t care about the people who they are leaving without water.

“Haiti’s water quality was ranked 101 out of 122 countries”, said Teresita Gonzalez, coordinator of Amor en Acción (Love in Action), a missionary group that reaches out to the poorest regions of Haiti and the Dominican Republic. “Haiti has only 48 % potable water coverage”, she adds.

These are the people who need water purifiers not the people the bottled water companies cater to. According to the Miami-Dade County Water and Sewer Department the quality of our drinking water is “first rate”. Exceeding both state and federal drinking water standards. The water is tested more than 100,000 times a year and has won the “Best Tasting Water” distinction issued by the Florida Section of the American Water Works Association two years in a row (2005-2006).

“I’ve been drinking tap water for 53 years and look at me, I’m in perfect health”, said Jose Medina, 77, who moved to Miami from Cuba in 1954. “My kids grew up drinking tap water and we never had any problems”, he adds.

Most developed countries have high quality drinking water that is subjected to the same treatments as bottled water. The bottled water companies were bottling tap water from public sources and selling it. Aquafina (Pepsi) and Dasani (Coca-Cola) were both accused of selling tap water in the U.S and Britain. In a scientific study done by ABC’s 20/20, tap water from a drinking fountain in the middle of New York City was tested and compared to five bottled water brands. The scientists couldn’t find a different.

“I only drink bottled water”, said Teresa Martinez, mother of two toddler girls who says she can tell the difference between the good stuff’. “I feel more at peace knowing my girls are drinking clean water”, she adds.

Not only should Americans worry about water resources outside the U.S, but in their own back yards. Every year, water restrictions are implemented in various parts of the country due to the over consumption of water and lack of rain. About 80percent of Florida’s population lives south of Orlando, but only 44 percent of the rain falls in that southern portion. Similarly, the Great Lakes hold 95 percent of the U.S.’s fresh water, but only 8 percent of the population lives there. According to the Center for Earth Jurisprudence, human beings need a minimum of 13 gallons of water per day. Floridians on average use 174 gallons per person per day, with the Sarasota area at the low end with 90 gallons and Orange County at the high end with 250 gallons. The U.S. average is 180 gallons per person per day.

“What we do together about this water crisis not only affects us. It’s about people in Haiti and people throughout the world,” Gonzalez said.

For more information:
• Miami-Dade County Water and Sewer Department: www.co.miami-dade.fl.us/wasd/
• Center for Earth Jurisprudence: www.earthjuris.org.

Photos courtesy of: Teresita Gonzalez


Tasting 1: Got it wrong.
Tasting 2: Got it wrong and then admitted not being able to tell the difference.
Tasting 3: Got it wrong and then admitted not being able to tell the difference.
Tasting 4: Got it right. She would only drink tap water.