WTN: Trying out a wine dispensing machine in Charlotte

I saw in the New Year in Charlotte, NC attending an Avett Brothers concert Dec. 30 (hot local group appearing with Jason Webley, who is a Seattle musician). Dec. 31st I dined at Fig Tree (a two-story home converted into a restaurant.) Also lunched at Pewter Rose Bistro on the 31st and visited Dean & Deluca wine shop and The Winestore on Governor Morrison St. (I had to call for directions because the street is a little hidden.)
The Winestore arranges their wines on display by medium-bodied reds, full-bodied reds, a romantic evening, etc. It also has two wine dispensing machines where you purchase a plastic card (like a debit card) for whatever amount and then swipe it for one-ounce tastes of the desired wine with the prices varying from 65 cents to over $3.00 a taste. I tried the
2006 CLEB-COLSON CANYON VINEYARD SYRAH, SANTA BARBARA COUNTY--red berries, nice aftertaste, not very peppery or spicy
2006 LUCIEN ALBRECHT GEWURZTRAMINER, ALSACE--
peculiar nose, a bit pungent or volatile perhaps? taste is a bit honeyed; as a package, not what I was expecting and lacked the spiciness I like in Gewurztraminer

1999 LE CONSEILLANTE, POMEROL, FRANCE
Noticeably funky (brett?) nose
Crimson with brown undertones
Horsy leather notes on the palate

QUATTRO MANI TOKAI, ITALY, EXTO GREDIC VINEYARD
light, airy, fruity; would be a nice aperitif in warm weather (I think this was the one at 65 cents a taste)

My favorite:
2005 AALTO, RIBERA DEL DUERO, SPAIN
100% Tempranillo
I assumed this was a modern-style Tempranillo which the salesclerk confirmed.
He mentioned the winemaker or grape grower--something like Mariana Garcia? Lovely nose--violets and dark raspberries. Semi-transparent purple-red color. Fruit and floral elements on the palate as well as the nose. Slight tannins towards the finish. Nice aftertaste. I bought one bottle at $55 although this is high for me (online I see it listed at $45-$50 in some locations.)
Fun experience and I will probably go back to the Winestore next time I visit Charlotte.

[David M. Bueker]

Those machines are fun. They have them at Lavinia in Paris (and some place in Brookline, MA - but Paris is clearly mroe fun).

Thanks for notes. Zachys has one of those Enomatic machines, though there's no charge (retail license)

That note on the '99 La Conseillante sounds to me like an off or cooked bottle. Including the brown undertones. That's not a great vintage of La Conseillante, but shouldn't be showing that age (and the brett is a little unusual,too), Too bad.

I believe Aalto is made by Mauro Garcia

Thanks for the correction, Dale. I didn't quite catch the name.
San Francisco also has a wine dispenser for tasting but I haven't been to that shop yet.

I see where Daniel Rogov rated this wine (the '05 Aalto) 95 points on his list of best wines he tasted in 2008.

As to the tasting machines in question, the first place where they were to be found were indeed in Paris, that followed closely at George du Boeuf's wine village and then, surprise of surprises, in Tel Aviv. The first local appearance was in a now defunct Italian restaurant qua gourmet shop and one could purchase a "credit card" for a certain number of tastings, each wine costing 1, 2 or 3 units. The machine proved very popular but alas, the food, service and overall ambiance of the place was on the rather catastrophic side, so before too long the owners folded up their tents and vanished into the night.

The machine was later purchased by what I can only think of as a "would-be" wine bar, that featuring wines entirely from Israeli boutique and garagiste producers. Alas, the owner managed somehow to select some of the worst wines available in the country and he too, like Omar, vanished into the night.

The machine is now sitting in a warehouse in Jaffa port, waiting for an adventurous enough entrepreneur to give it his try. One does begin however to think that this particular gizmo might come with a built-in jinx.

Actually, a great idea, the wine bottles continuously under Argon gas to prevent any oxidation, the method quite easy and the price by the glass right, especially if one wants to make a broad tasting. Personally however, I prefer the little old ladies at Pipus who pour the wines. They're nasty as hell but lawsy, lawsy, they do pour some nice wines.

Best
Rogov

Thanks for the correction, Dale. I didn't quite catch the name.
San Francisco also has a wine dispenser for tasting but I haven't been to that shop yet.

VinoVenue, AFAIK the one place in SF that had Enomatics, folded its doors over a year ago. I've used Enomatics in 3 different places (SF, Paris and Ormond Beach, FL) and my feeling is that they're OK, if a bit sterile. Lavinia's in Paris is by far the most interesting courtesy of the wines they put in them, but the ones in the Ormond Wine Company are accompanied by the best atmosphere and food, not inconsequential factors to me.

Mark Lipton

Edit: OWC has a kindofa website at Myspace

Machines giving tastes now? What will the world think of next?
Why not robots instead of waiters? Or a computer handheld for a sommelier?
Who needs people...

It depends on the circumstances. If you wanted to taste a 1-1.5 oz. pour of six different wines would you want to call the waiter over each time or have six glasses lined up in a confined space in front of you? Tbe machine works well because the wines are dispensed in the order you prefer and you just refill your glass at your own pace. For a flight of 3 oz. pours or such I prefer a human server.

It depends on the circumstances. If you wanted to taste a 1-1.5 oz. pour of six different wines would you want to call the waiter over each time or have six glasses lined up in a confined space in front of you? Tbe machine works well because the wines are dispensed in the order you prefer and you just refill your glass at your own pace. For a flight of 3 oz. pours or such I prefer a human server.

Except perhaps at a true wine bar, especially those in France and Italy as well as a few I know in New York where part of the pleasure is largely having the six glasses lined up on your table or on the bar and talking with the generally knowledgeable owners or waitstaff.

Best
Rogov

We came across a dispensing machine in Queenstown, NZ back in June, 2006. The wine store actually had at least 3 of them and about 30 wines were available for tasting. IIRC, the credit card contained money, not tastes. Each wine could be tasted in 3 different size pours, users deciding how much they wanted. And the machine allowed each wine to be individually priced. We thought the machines were pretty slick. We did miss the social aspect of standing around a tasting bar with other customers and the pourer exchanging relevant impressions and trivial banter. OTOH, 30 wines available by the taste is a pretty large selection where we come from.

I just learned that The Wine Merchant in Raleigh installed a WineStation dispenser back in May 2008. I've been in the store since then and didn't notice the machine! It has 12 bottles at a time and if the listing on their website is current there are three I would like to try--a Ferrand Chateauneuf du Pape, a Paloma Merlot, and a Domaine Serene Evenstad Pinot Noir.