2010 Grape and Gridiron Classic: Where wine and football meet!

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2010 Grape and Gridiron Classic: Where wine and football meet!

The Texas Department of Agriculture (www.gotexanwine.org) will host the 2010 Grape and Gridiron Classic this monday evening at El Centro College Food & Hospitality Institute in Dallas, Texas. When the whistle sounds that evening, head-to-head play will start involving a blind tasting of eleven specially selected Texas vs. New York state wines in celebration of the Cowboys vs. Giants football game that will be held the same evening in Dallas, Texas.

The tasting challenge, led by noted wine bloggers Russ Kane (VintageTexas) and Jeff Siegel (The Wine Curmudgeon and Drinklocalwine.com), will help guests vote on their favorite wine in each of eleven pairings of Texas and New York wines. The results will determine the 2010 Grape and Gridiron Most Valuable Wine from each state.

Participants are encouraged to tweet their tasting notes, comments and results on Twitter using the hashtag #GOTEXAN. So, you can follow the “play by play” as the tasting progresses and have instant access to the “post game analysis and expert commentary”.

In attendance will be a contingent of wine industry and media representatives, including representatives of the Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association and Texas wineries and special guests who will taste and vote their preferences. This group will also including a delegation from New York and the U.S. East Coast including New York Wine and Grape Association President, Jim Tresize, Richard Leahy from Richard Leahy’s Wine Report and Fred LeBrun from the Albany Times Union.

Russ Kane and Jeff Siegel collaborated to select the starting line-up representing the “Team Texas” wines and Jim Tresize assembled the starting line-up for New York. Both sides also selected an additional six “Special Teams” wines that will not be poured, but that have received superior accolades in competitions and have garnered distinction from wine aficionados within their respective states.

According to Russ Kane, “These Special Teams wines could be starters in Texas, New York and, frankly on any state or regional wine team. Too bad there are only eleven positions on a football team.”

The eleven categories of wines included in the 2010 Grape and Gridiron Classic are:

Chardonnay (dry/unoaked)

White Wine (dry/off dry)

Riesling (off-dry to 2.5% RS)

Hybrid/Native Varietal Wine (white/off-dry to semi-sweet)

Rose’ (dry)

Cabernet Franc (dry)

Red Varietal or Blended Wine #1 (dry/light body)

Red Varietal or Blended Wine #2 (dry/medium body)

Red Varietal of Blended Wine #3 (dry/full body)

Dessert Wine (sweet)

Stay tuned to Twitter (#GOTEXAN) for the play-by-play and tasting results from the 2010 Grape and Gridiron Classic.

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Just in case you need something to get your Monday night juices flowing, here’s a video clip with the NFL theme song and some NFL highlights. Remember – No illegal blocks or tackles and it’s the performance in red zone that counts. Let’s go out there and have a good clean Monday night wine tasting!