How do you remove wine labels from bottles for collecting a scrapbook of wines that you have liked?

Signed,
Mad for labels

Hi Labels,

The quick answer is "With difficulty" I'm afraid.

Labels fixed with the traditional animal or fish glue can usually be removed easily by soaking to soften the glue - which allows the label to be peeled off. But most modern wineries now use synthetic water-proof adhesives that resist that technique.

Some of these are heat set and thus soften very easily if you warm the bottle gently by filling it with hot water and then heat it further in the oven until the glue softens and the label can be peeled away using a razorblade to lift the edge. Others use yet another type that has resisted all my efforts!

There is a proprietory label-saver kit that I have seen advertised that works on the principle of sticking a highly adhesive transparent sheet to the surface of the label so that the decorative part can be torn away from the body of the label but I have never used it and can't remember the maker's name. (I expect a search on the web would find it easily though.)

If you use the heat method to loosen that type of adhesive take care to wear gloves, don't heat the bottle too quickly or it may shatter and have some talc handy to dust on the melted adhesive or it will stick to any surface you put it down on!

Sorry I can't give a simple solution!

Dear Wine Doctor,
What is a rosé champagne? We had one the other night and I am curious to know what it really is.

Loves Bubbly

Dear Bubbly,
Rosé champagnes--pink champagnes can be vintage or nonvintage. Usually only Pinot Noir and Chardonnay are used, in proportions that vary from one house to the next.

Rosés are made primarily by including some red Pinot Noir wine in the base wine blend, although a few houses actually vinify some of their red grapes into pink wines for Rosé Champagne. Colors range from pale onion skin to salmon to rosy pink (the lighter-colored ones are usually better quality.)

Rosés are fuller and rounder than other Champagnes and are best enjoyed with dinner. They have become associated with romance.

BUT, here is my top ten list for drinking Rosés:

10. Valentine's Day
9. When you feel like putting ice cubes in your wine.
8. With ham or other pork dishes.
7. To celebrate the arrival of Spring.
6. With Sunday brunches and egg dishes.
5. To wean yourself off cola.
4. On picnics, warm sunny days.
3. With lunch--hamburger, grilled cheese samdwiches and so on....
2. When a red wine just seems too heavy.

and the number one reason for drinking Rosé wines:

1. When she is having fish and he is having steak or vice versa.

Enjoy!

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Dear Wine Doctor,
I often see folks examine and smell the cork. What is the purpose of doing so?

Thanks!
Curious and feeling left out

Dear Curiously Left Out,,
Smelling an unpleasant odor on the cork is rare, but may mean the wine is corky and would taste bad.

More important than smelling the cork I feel is visual inspection. If the cork is totally wet and shriveled, or very dry and crumbly - either situation suggests that air has gotten into the wine and therefore spoiled it. Also, you may check to see if the cork is a legitimate cork for that particular bottle of wine.

It's all part of the romantic ritual of having a bottle of wine with a meal.

However, as always, your tastes will be the final judge!

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Dear Wine Doctor,
Does the glass really matter when drinking wine?

Thanks!
Glassless

Dear Glassless,
If you are drinking wine as refreshment with your meal and you are not thinking about wine much as it foes down, the glass you use probably doesn't matter in the least. A jelly glass? Why not? Plastic glasses? We've used them dozens of times on picnics, not to mention in airplanes (where the wine's quality doesn't demand great glasses, anyway).

But, if you have a good wine, a special occasion, friends who want to talk about the wine with you, or the boss for dinner, stemware (glasses with stems) is called for. And it's not just a question of etiquette and status: Good wine will taste better out of good glasses. Really.

Compare wine glasses to stereo speakers. Any old speaker brings the music to your ears, just like and old glass brings the wine to your lips. But can't you appreciate the sound so much more, aesthetically and emotionally, from good speakers? The same principle holds true with wine and wine glasses. You can appreciate wine's aroma and flavor complexities so much more out of a fine wine glass. The medium is the message.

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"My friend and I had an argument at a club the other night when the bartender served us wine filled to the top of the glass. What is the proper etiquette on this?"
Thanks, Spilling

Dear Spilling,
"Fill 'er up" might be fine for your service station attendant, but not for the person pouring the wine. It always annoys me when servers fill my glass to the top. I guess they don't want to bother repouring the wine too often. Or maybe they want to give me my money's worth. But how can you stick your nose into full glasses without looking like an idiot? Once, a kid at a nearby table blurted out, "Look, Mom, that man is drinking with his nose!"

"To leave some margin of safety for swirling and smelling the wine, fill the glass only partially. One-third capacity, at the most, is the best fill-level for serious red wines. White wine glasses can be filled halfway, while sparkling wines can be three-quarters full. On the other hand, if you're using paper cups or jelly glasses, you might as well "Fill 'er up."

Cheers!