Ten Bordeaux And California Reds Head-To-Head

Remember the last time you heated a frozen pizza in your toaster oven? Your expectations were relatively low, but it tasted decent enough. Now imagine if, lined up against a pie from a famous Brooklyn pizzeria, the frozen version comes out the winner.

That's more or less what happened in 1976, in a blind tasting of French and California wines that's since become known as the Judgment of Paris. France had the reputation; California was an unknown entity. All the expert judges were French, and that day they chose California wines as their favorites, unintentionally kick-starting what would become the massive American wine industry.

Were the French judges out of their minds? Not at all, says George Taber, author of the book Judgment of Paris, and the only journalist who attended the '76 tasting (he was a reporter for Time magazine).

Two fabulous wine bars in San Francisco

The first one I checked out was down at The Embarcadero -- the Ferry Plaza Wine Merchant. I've checked this place out many times before when visiting the city and it never fails to disappoint. I didn't opt for a wine flight this time around. Instead, I had an Italian Sangiovese. It wasn't bad, but didn't completely knock my socks off, either, so I wanted to try something else. Surprisingly, none of the California wines really grabbed me, so I opted for a sparkling wine from New Mexico instead. New Mexico, you say? Yes! And it was great -- I was pleasantly surprised. If you're curious, check out the winery's Web site here and order some yourself if you can't make it down to the City by the Bay. Before I move on to the next wine bar, however, you might want to check out this video on the Ferry Plaza Wine Merchant.

Another wine bar I've visited before that is always worth a visit is the California Wine Merchant in the Marina District. They've got wine tasting events every Monday night, so check it out if you happen to be in town. I sauntered in on a quiet afternoon and chatted with the guy behind the bar and had a wine flight consisting of a Grenache, Zinfandel and a Red Blend. If it weren't for the airlines being so picky these days, I would have definitely bought a bottle from this guy and taken it home. But alas. I guess I will just have to go back someday.