Kevin Zraly Windows on the World Complete Wine Course

Windows on the World was an instant success and booked up months in advance. Within a few years, it was the number-one dollar-volume restaurant in the world and also sold more wines than any restaurant in the world. What made it so great? Was it the 60-second elevator ride? The menu concept? The youthful, energetic staff? The extensive and outrageously low-priced wine list? The most spectacular view in the world? For me, it was all of the above. My 25 years at Windows on the World were some of the supreme joys of my life, and creating the Windows on the World Wine Course was one of my proudest accomplishments. (Location 436)

RED GRAPES AND WHITE WINE The color of wine comes primarily from the grape skins. By removing the skins immediately after picking, no color transfers to the wine, and it will be white. In the Champagne region of France, many of the grapes are red, yet most of the resulting wine is white. California’s White Zinfandel wine comes from red Zinfandel grapes. (Location 1687)

“I like to think about the life of wine, how it is a living thing. I like to think about what was going on the year the grapes were growing. How the sun was shining, if it rained. I like to think about all the people who tended and picked the grapes. And if it’s an old wine, how many of them must be dead by now. I like how wine continues to evolve, like if I opened a bottle of wine today it would taste different than if I’d opened it on any other day because a bottle of wine is actually alive. And it’s constantly evolving and gaining complexity, (Location 1769)

Wine is both training ground and playground for all five of our senses, our memory, and our intellect. Consequently, our enjoyment and understanding of the full wine-tasting experience improve dramatically if we observe, smell, taste, feel, analyze, and remember more carefully. Good wine demands that we stop and savor each taste to allow its rich, sensuous story to unfold more completely. Every wine deserves the attention of all five senses. But smell, with its ability to evoke memory and feeling, matters most. (Location 2040)