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Passionate about Pinot? Come to the Pinot Noir Summit.

by Eric Hwang on February 8, 2010

pinot shootout at boudin 008Do you love Pinot Noir? If you answered yes without hesitation, you definitely should be attending the 8th Annual Passion for Pinot Noir Summit. On Saturday, February 27, 2010, consumers, press, trade and an extraordinary array of palates will gather at the Osher Marin Jewish Community Center in San Rafael, California to evaluate “the best of the best,” from the 8th Annual Pinot Noir Shootout that was held during the past two months.

Yours truly was one of the judges on the diverse tasting panel comprised of wine industry professionals from varying disciplines including restaurant and retail trade, winemakers, wine writers, wine educators, and viticulturalists. Do you trust my palate? Come to the summit and challenge the judges’ conclusions. Taste 40 of the top Pinots from around the world in a blind tasting and be a wine judge for a day.

IWA is a Summit Sponsor

This year, International Wine Accessories is proud to be a sponsor and donating Ultima Burgundy glasses for use at this fabulous event. Our exclusive Ultima stemware is brighter, stronger and more durable than other glasses on the market. Lead-free and machine-made these glasses are extremely resistant to chipping and breaking, and are dishwasher safe. Ultima glasses are the stemware of choice for this prestigious wine event. They’re also perfect for everyday use in your home.

IWA will also be giving away some great door prizes, once every half-hour from 6:30PM to 8:00PM. Be sure to stop by our table and enter our drawing for your chance to win one of four fantastic prizes.

Click on the banner below to register. Here are the details:

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Passion for Pinot Noir Summit

Saturday, February 27, 2010
12:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Osher Marin Jewish Community Center
200 N. San Pedro Road
San Rafael, CA 94903

Noon – 3:30 PM
Pinot Noir Shootout – The Final Showdown

3:30 PM – 5:45 PM
Pinot Noir Workshops

6:00 PM – 8:30 PM
Pinot Noir Reception and Awards Ceremony

Read more about Pinot Noir, the judging process and the results from last year’s Pinot Noir Summit.

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Custom Wine Cellar Examples

by Eric Hwang on January 28, 2010

Here are a few great examples of custom wine cellars. If you’re looking for some practical tips, be sure to check out the other article in this series, Custom Wine Cellar – Step-by-Step.

A Great Closet Conversion

Barry Southard is a man of many talents. Besides throwing pottery, baking and planting a vineyard (as if that isn’t enough), Barry is pretty handy around the house and converted a very unusual small closet space under the stairs of his house into a beautiful wine cellar that not only preserves his wines, but showcases them in grand style. Not only did he have to work around providing access to crawl spaces leftover from the original closet, he also had to deal with the unusual angles under the stairs. Here’s a few before and after photos of his wine cellar.

Original closet door Original closet with access to crawl space Drywall removed, looking up at the underside of the stairs
Looking down (note the vapor barrier around the studs) The finished cellar with insulated glass door & sidelight Inside the cellar. The small access door holds one of his pots.
Racks angle up to use all the space Vintage View rack combined with traditional wood racks BreezeAir 2200 with airflow diverted upwards
Barry emerges from the crawl space. Plan view Side elevation view

Ron Gaffe’s Fabulous Wine Room

Ron’s wife gave him a wonderful birthday gift—a wine room with storage, seating for four and a lockable door. She ordered the racks from IWA and found some terrific old doors at an architectural warehouse. One was cut down the middle for a base for the wine racks and the other placed on higher legs for a counter to open and serve wine. The walls of the room are finished in a copper-toned Venetian plaster, making the room cozy and warm. These photos show that you don’t need to spend a fortune to have a wonderful spot to store and serve wine.

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Custom Wine Cellar, Step-by-Step

January 21, 2010

So you’ve decided to convert that spare closet into a wine cellar. Great decision, but now what will it take to do this? Let’s break the project down into three steps.
Select a Cooling Unit
You’ll need to do this first because the rough opening in your cellar will depend on the size of your cooling unit. [...]

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Custom Wine Cellars, Part 1

January 12, 2010

At what point does someone go from being a wine drinker to a wine collector? When they decide to build a custom wine cellar. So why would you ever need a wine cellar? Does this sound familiar to you?

It’s the weekend, let’s visit some tasting rooms.

Mmm, I really like this wine.

Let’s get a case of [...]

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Happy New Years!

December 30, 2009

New Year’s Eve is almost here. It’s time to celebrate the end of not only this year, but of this decade. And to paraphrase Prince, “Tonight we’re gonna party like its 2009.” Hmm, that doesn’t roll off the tongue as gracefully as the original lyrics. Anyway, if you haven’t already watched my video on champagne [...]

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How NOT to open Champagne for the holidays

December 23, 2009

New Year’s Eve is just around the corner. (Can you believe it; it’s almost 2010.) And we all know that New Year’s Eve is synonymous with Champagne and sparkling wine. But do you know the proper way to open and serve sparkling wine? No worries, because I just produced this video to help you open [...]

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IWA Gives Back to the Community

December 17, 2009

Holidays are all about giving. I’m grateful that I have a job and can afford gifts during these tough economic times. With the highest unemployment rate in decades, not everyone is so fortunate and it’s especially tough for families with children. Every year, during the holiday season, the employees of International Wine Accessories give toys [...]

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Best-Selling Gifts for Every Budget

December 11, 2009

There’s now two weeks till Christmas. Are you finished with your shopping? If you’re still struggling to find the perfect gift, I’d like to offer a few suggestions that will make the recipient stop and say, “WOW,” while staying within your budget.
What budget?
If the sky is the limit and you really want to say, “Merry [...]

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Nice Racks & Big Units

December 4, 2009

I’m talking wine cellar racks and cooling units. Why, what did you think I was talking about? I know that around this time of the year everyone’s attention is focused on gifts for the holidays. But have you considered giving a wine cellar for a gift? I know I would be thrilled [...]

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BIG Wines, mini-Cellar

November 30, 2009

Vintage Wine Estates Family of Wineries
Sure, IWA has some of the finest wine accesories, but did you know that we also sell wine? Not just any ol’ wine, though, but some of the finest wines from Northern California’s wine country. Connoisseur or neophyte or anywhere in between, for holiday gift-giving, there’s nothing more well received [...]

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