BLOAPP IPHONE VERSION

The Now And Zin Wine Blog is now available in an iPhone-optimized form, through a free app called Bloapp.  It presents the Wine Blog - and others so optimized with Bloapp - in a format which is very easy to read on the iPhone.  There are a couple of hoops to jump through, but the process is relatively easy.

1.  Click on the link below to go to the iTunes AppStore and download Bloapp.  It's free. 

Download Bloapp 

2.  Then, use the app to scan this QR code and get the Now And Zin Wine Blog installed, also free.  Here's the QR code: 

 

Just scan the image above with your iPhone.  It's really easy, and it worked like a charm when I did it.  Presumably, other bloggers will utilize this app to make their blogs iPhone-optimized, too.  All the blogs optimized this way will appear within the Bloapp app on your iPhone.

Let me know how it works for you - or, more importantly, if it doesn't work for you!  You can always email me at nowandzin@gmail.com or hit me up on Twitter, @randyfuller1.

Thanks for downloading, and for reading the Now And Zin Wine Blog.  I'm happy to make it a little easier on the eyes!



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WHAT TO PUT ON A TRISCUIT? AN IPHONE APP FOR THAT!

When you’re tasting a wine at home, it’s always great to be able to pair it with food and find out what it works with, or what it doesn’t.

I often don’t have a nice meal in front of me when I’m evaluating wines, so I end up grabbing a handful of almonds, or fishing an olive out of the jar to have some edible reference point.

Apparently, the folks at Wine Spectator like a little snack food with their wine, too.  Wine Spectator School and Triscuit have released the Recipes For Wine Lovers iPhone App.  The app allows you to select one of 20 wine-friendly Triscuit recipes.  The great wheel of snacks spins around and - clink! - down drops a glass containing just the right wine.

According to the app, for Italian salami and cheese on a Triscuit, select a Cabernet.  Hot, sweet, bubbly cheddar on a Triscuit calls for Riesling.  Bubbly four-cheese tomato on a Triscuit demands nothing less than Pinot Noir.  You get the idea.

If any of the snacks strike your fancy, tap on it and a full screen recipe for that treat appears.  Of course, it’s usually not much more instruction than, “take the stuff and put it on a Triscuit, then eat it.  With wine." 

You can find the Triscuit Small Plates app in the iTunes App Store for free.  If you have no iPhone, you access the information by website at the same low price.

WINE PAIRING: TUNA SALAD

Browsing through my iPhone's wine apps - of which I probably have far too many - I checked with one called Wine Steward, which is also available online, to find out what they advise as a pairing with tuna salad.

Grenache gets a 100% vote of confidence from Wine Steward and is branded as an "excellent pairing."  Grenache makes versatile, fruity wines.  Great rosés are made from Grenache grapes, and that would be my choice for the tuna salad.

Sauvignon Blanc gets 80%.  If you feel the need to pair a white wine with fish, this is a great choice.

Sancerre, at 79%, comes from France's Loire Valley.  A Sancerre would probably be a Sauvignon Blanc as well, as that is the grape predominantly used in Sancerre.

Chardonnay gets 71%.  A big California Chardonnay may have the mark of oak in it, while a less buttery flavor will come from France, like a white Burgundy or Chablis.

A host of other wines are mentioned by Wine Steward, in declining order:

Nero d'Avola, a big red wine from Southern Italy
Rosé
Riesling
Cabernet Sauvignon
Dry Gewürztraminer
Sangiovese
Syrah
Merlot
Red Bordeaux
Sparkling Wine
Cabernet Franc
Viognier
Beaujolais Cru
Roussanne
Pinot Gris
Off-Dry Gewürztraminer
Albariño
Carignane
Pinot Noir
Zinfandel

Of this last bunch - mostly labeled as "adventurous" choices by the app - I'd go with a Roussanne, a full-bodied and food-friendly white wine with a nice high acidity.

APP-PROPRIATE WINES FOR CHRISTMAS DINNER

Christmas dinner is one of the classic American family traditions.  Brothers and sisters and aunts and uncles come in from all over that place and crowd the fancy dining room to the breaking point.  The stress of having everybody around can make tempers go there, too.  There's no need to stress about what wine to serve at Christmas dinner, especially if you got an iPhone for Christmas.

Download The Wine Steward from the app store, and you'll have no worries about which wine to serve with whatever you are serving.

First, what's on the table?

Let's say you're serving ham.  Enter that into the Wine Steward and... Pinot Noir is the choice!  Merlot and Grenache get honorable mentions, and as for whites, Albariño and Roussanne battle it out.  Oddly, there is no mention of Gewürztraminer.

If you're carving a turkey for the Christmas feast, enter "turkey" into the Wine Steward and...Pinot Noir again!  It also likes Grenache and Merlot.  For white, Chardonnay gets a mention way, way down the list, just after rosé.

If your goose is cooking, Wine Steward suggests - not really a surprise - Pinot Noir.  Merlot and Zinfandel get secondary nods with goose.  For white wine, the app says try Roussanne or sparkling wine.

Let's say you have a prime rib dinner planned.  Enter that into Wine Steward and ... yeah, I know you see it coming.  Pinot Noir again.  Merlot and Zin get mentions too, as do sparkling wine and Albariño, although whites really don't match up too well with heavy beef.

For dessert, if it's chocolate, Wine Steward says go with Merlot, Zinfandel or Pinot Noir.  With pumpkin pie, Sauvignon Blanc or Sancerre.  With pecan pie - that means Christmas dinner to me - Wine Steward advises good ol' Pinot Noir.

So, to sum it up, the Wine Steward app on the iPhone seems to think you should lay in a case ofPinot Noir for Christmas dinner, or maybe mix a case with some Grenache and Merlot.

Happy holidays!  I hope whatever you're drinking over this festive season, you're drinking with family and friends.

WINE.COM IPAD APP

Apple's popular iPad device is already being used in many wine bars and restaurants as a high-tech wine list.  Now you can have the wine experience on your iPad at home.

Wine.com has debuted a free app for the iPad which allows users to browse the site's inventory in much the same way you can browse album covers in the music world.  Swipe your fingers across the screen and the wine labels go flying by.  When you want a closer look, just click on the label and the app shows a page with all the information you could possibly want about the wine, the winery, the grape or the wine-growing region from which the wine comes.  You can even take a virtual tour or explore a wine region by way of Google Earth.

You can save your search in your personal Wine Cave, or buy the wine and have it shipped to you right from the app, depending on whether or not you live in a state where wine can be shipped to you.

All the items in your Wine Cave sync to your Wine.com account, so they'll be available wherever you happen to log in.

Wine.com also has an app for the iPhone, it's just not as showy.