UNCORKED - now on DVD

The demographic of Americans who now consume wine on a regular basis is diversifying and growing at an incremental rate and by 2008, the US is projected to be the largest wine-consuming nation in the world. There are still, however, an enormous number of consumers who are hesitant, even scared, due to the intimidation that sets in upon opening a wine list or walking down the wine aisle at the market. Uncorked! Wine Made Simple, a new series now available on DVD, not only provides the essential knowledge necessary to select and appreciate wine, but does so in an entertaining, unpretentious and easy to watch medium that can be viewed in less than three hours.

Viewers of Uncorked!, which aired nationally on public television, are given virtual one-on-one access to a celebrity tour-guide with a unique ability to due justice to wine’s integrity, history and complexity while making it universally appealing and simple to grasp. Culinary expert, Ted Allen, has been taking the guesswork and the intimidation out of cooking and wine for more than a decade, initially as a journalist and more recently as a top national television personality, he now lends these talents to Uncorked!.

“People still seem to think that they aren’t good enough to enjoy wine or think that it takes years of education to be able to simply pick a bottle off the shelf,” says Allen. “This simply isn’t the case and Uncorked! helps take away the intimidation and mystery behind something that everyone should be able to enjoy.”

Uncorked! starts by sharing wine essentials ranging from terminology, production and tasting methods, debunking common myths in the process. Once viewers have been oriented, subsequent episodes include tours through California wine country and key regions of France and provide interesting facts that will impress and enlighten even those who think they know it all. Later episodes feature winery tours, informative interviews with winemakers, stops at noted wine festivals and more.

One element that makes the series unique is the vast range of personalities that viewers are introduced to. From Gina Gallo, wine maker for Gallo Wines and granddaughter of Julio Gallo to George Taber, who originally broke the news of the infamous Paris tasting of 1976 for Time magazine – viewers of Uncorked! get firsthand information from those who have lived in the crux of wine culture for decades. In episode one, we meet Lettie Teague, executive wine editor for Food & Wine magazine who shares the story of how she took a friend and colleague from utter wine intimidation to full proficiency. The friend is non-other than Peter Travers, senior editor and film critic for Rolling Stone magazine. Other key personalities throughout the series include writers, culinary experts, vineyard owners and perhaps most importantly, regular, everyday people who love wine.

Uncorked! Wine Made Simple is available in major retailers nationwide beginning this fall. The set consists of three DVDs with two, 30-minute episodes on each. Beyond the six episodes, the set includes fifteen intriguing and unique bonus features ranging from cooking demonstrations and wine pairings to maps and information on the use of wine as an anti-aging tool.

For up-to-date information about Uncorked!, visit the series’ blog at liveuncorked.typepad.com.
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Ted Allen is devoted to making good wine and delicious food accessible to everyone. On the Emmy® Award-winning NBC/Bravo hit Queer Eye, he helped guests and viewers sharpen their cooking and entertaining skills. He is the author of The Food You Want to Eat: 100 Smart, Simple Recipes, a cookbook for beginners that features easy, all-natural recipes. Ted also serves as the spokesman for Robert Mondavi Private Selection wines, is a contributing editor for Esquire Magazine and is a regular judge on Bravo's Top Chef and the Food Network's Iron Chef.