Wine, Travel & Food News From Vino-Sphere: June 13, 2018

Jam In The Trees Releases 2018 Schedule

Jam In The Trees, an annual music festival nestled in western North Carolina's Blue Ridge Mountains, just outside of Asheville has released the full schedule the lineup for the 2018 festival, which will be held on August 24-25.

The annual music festival returns with a diverse lineup for the third year to Pisgah Brewing Company in Black Mountain, North Carolina. The roster includes legendary artists The Travelin’ McCourys, Jerry Douglas, Shooter Jennings, Elizabeth Cook, Gangstagrass, and Jim Lauderdale, and ever popular artists The Steel Wheels, The Stray Birds, Fireside Collective, The Po’ Ramblin’ Boys, The Slocan Ramblers, Jane Kramer, and Andy Buckner.

Why Different Wine Calls for Different Glasses – And Why You Don’t Need Them All

That awkward moment when the server brings an extra-tall wine glass for you, a tulip-shaped one for your dining partner, and narrow ones to the next table. It makes you wonder if you’ve been doing it wrong all along.

“The world of wine glasses can seem intimidating,” acknowledges Gabe Geller, a top sommelier and Director of Public Relations for Royal Wine. “The varieties are endless. The truth is, it can be as simple or as complex as you want it to be.”

It’s all about physics, says Geller. “The bowl of the glass is designed with surface area in mind. Red wines generally need to breathe, so a fuller, rounder bowl with a wide opening suits them best. Whites stay cooler in bowls that are straighter on the sides.”

Rosés can be served in white wine glasses because the two are produced similarly. But, says Geller, there are glasses made specifically for rosés. They have shorter bowls that are slightly tapered and sometimes have a flared rim. “The rim affects the way you sip,” he explains. “The flair helps direct the wine directly to the tip of the tongue.”

Before you go online for a wine glass spending spree, Geller adds, “A good universal wine glass is perfectly suitable for anything, from your summer afternoon Roman Cardova Rosado to a vintage Bordeaux such as Baron de Rothchild Haut-Medoc.”

Mango Festival Slated in Miami

The first ever of its kind, South Beach Mango Festival, is being unveiled on August 5 at South Beach’s beautiful, white sandy beach in Lummus Park, adjacent to Ocean Drive. With the mango craze hitting an all-time high, ranging from mango shampoo to mango beer, South Florida wants to commemorate and celebrate the importance and peak of its famed fruit. The event is aimed at tropical fruit lovers and culinary enthusiasts, as well as the domestic and international visitors who flock to South Beach. The event will also benefit a vital non-profit philanthropic organization, Big Brothers and Big Sisters.

There will be a farmer’s market offering more than 40 varieties of juicy, sweet, locally farmed mangoes; mango tastings; cooking classes for kids and adults, featuring the golden fruit; a children’s play area; and an entertainment area with live music and dancing; top chef demos, and a memorable mango-mixology competition. 

Pour Yourself A Glass of Soju or Hemp Milk

Korean soju is the number one selling distilled spirit in the world, outselling vodka by nearly three to one.  While nearly all soju in the U.S. is imported from Korea, West 32 Soju is one of the only Korean-style soju made in the U.S. Made in New York City, the product is available in New York, California, New Jersey, and Washington D.C. West 32 Soju is also the only soju in the world made with distilled corn. It is both gluten-free and all-natural.

BOM BOM Brands, is introducing Fully Baked, a creamy blend of chocolate chip cookie and brownie flavors with premium Caribbean rum and hemp milk. Other flavors include Coco Mochanut and Nilli Vanilli.

Our Favorite Vegetable? I Demand A Recount!

New survey findings name broccoli as America's favorite vegetable. In an open-ended survey timed to National Eat Your Vegetables Day (June 17), Green Giant® polled nearly 4,000 Americans to determine the most popular vegetable in each state.
Key survey findings include:

• Broccoli is the most popular vegetable in 47% of U.S. states
• Corn is the second most popular vegetable, chosen as the favorite in nine U.S. states
• Idaho, known for its potatoes, was the only state to choose peas as the favorite veggie
• Onions, peppers, celery and spinach are noticeably absent from the list of favorites

Roller Coaster Fanatics Hail New RailBlazer Ride

The wait is over for those ready to ride the groundbreaking new single rail steel coaster, RailBlazer, at California's Great America. Opening to the public on Thursday, June 14, the much-anticipated coaster is the first of its kind on the West Coast, featuring a single rail track.

The design requires the rider to straddle the rail, creating an extremely low center of gravity that amplifies every move and enables more dynamic turns and rotations than have ever been possible on a coaster. With an eight-passenger single file train hugging the rail, riders will speed smoothly over the twisting track as they experience an abundance of airtime and steeply banked turns. 

Features of the ride include: a maximum height of 106 feet, a 90-degree, face-down first drop, over 1,800 feet of track, a top speed of 52 miles per hour and three inversions, including a zero-gravity roll.