Slow Food Columbus: Ohio v Michigan

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I realize that college football gets folks all riled up around here. Me? I’ve never really paid attention to it. But that puts me in the minority.

The upcoming Ohio State v Michigan game has inspired Slow Food Columbus to host a wine competition tonight. They contacted me mid-last week and asked me to judge. So, with my head still in a California time zone, Kevin & I are driving up to Columbus tonite. I bet money we drive back home tomorrow. The winning wines will be celebrated at a dinner on Nov 20.

Drinklocal
Image from Dr. Vino

Here’s the information:

The
third Thursday of November also coincides with a special local
tradition—the OSU/UM football game. Slow Food Columbus has captured the
spirit of this rivalry with the first annual Ohio vs Michigan Wine Clash.

Earlier in the week, panels of local judges in Columbus and Ann Arbor
will convene to compare the wines both states have to offer. The
primary goal is to find wines to put on your table whose carbon
footprint is low and whose quality is high—just in time for
Thanksgiving. But like the game that Saturday, a winner shall triumph
and be revealed at a dinner at Alana’s Food & Wine on November 20th.

On
the night of Thursday November 20th, Alana’s will be offering the most
noteworthy Ohio wine* by the glass and Slow Food members will receive a
complimentary glass. Please join us to capture the local spirit of
wine, autumn harvest and tradition. Contact Alana’s at (614) 294-6783
to make reservations.


*
We regret that we can only offer Ohio wines, as there are no wines from
Michigan available through Ohio’s distribution channels. This will not
affect the outcome of the judging process, as all wines will be judged
blindly and impartially. The glass of wine is compliments of the
Benefactors of Slow Food Columbus.

Now, it’s not lost on me that part of their movement is to reduce the carbon footprint of wine (they have a particular issue with Beaujolais Nouveau) and they’ve asked me to drive 4 hours round-trip to judge the wine. However, I’m not one to turn that down, so it should be fun. Tonite we’ll be judging around 40 Ohio wines and I’m excited. Ohio wines, especially the vinifera, have such great promise. I also really hope there is an icewine category, as the wineries along Lake Erie have a special gift for that sweet ending.