evalu8.org Welcomes Internationally Recognized Wine Expert as New Feature Writer

Seattle, WA, November 03, 2009 --(PR.com)-- evalu8.org's Managing Director, Anne Garber announces a new and highly prestigious addition to the consumer-support site's food-and-drink writing team: Michel Moulherat of the Paris-based "La Cave de l'Insolite (freely translated: "The eccentric's wine cellar").

In a city like Paris -- a crossroads with perhaps the highest concentration of "cavistes" selling artisanal, organic wines in the world -- Monsieur Moulherat has the privilege of frequently being singled out as the most knowledgeable, and most approachable of the lot. Moulherat has been interviewed on virtually every form of media, blogs, podcasts, restaurant tasting events, expert panels and organic wine-and-food demonstrations too numerous to mention. He has been a restaurant manager, co-owner of a wine-bar and the sommelier of "Le Crillon" for five years. Stated simply, Michel Moulherat is the world's premier expert on selecting and pairing hand-crafted, organic wines.

Moulherat runs what is likely the best natural wine shop in Paris, and definitely the friendliest. Far from the cliché of the Parisien wine-snob, Moulherat is infinitely patient, sincere and absolutely candid in his comments about the wines he sells. His passion, he says, is "preaching for winemakers who work as closely as possible to the soil and the grape, who do their vinification themselves, who really think about what they do."

Moulherat stocks an impeccable selection of genuinely natural wines, many of them priced at under ten Euros (about $15 US).

Moulherat's store and cellar -- "La Cave de l'Insolite" -- is located in the 11th arrondissement not far from République. The wine store boasts a list that varies between 400 and 450 artisan wines from all corners of France. Michel regularly hosts artisan wine-makers who make the pilgrimmage to Paris to show their wines. Michel's preferences in wines include lesser known regions like the Jura (five such artisan vintners represent that area), the Vendômois or the Côteaux du Giennois. People like Thierry Allemand, who tends his vineyard by hand, or Fréderic Forêt (from the Juras), or Eric Souhaut, or Christophe Foucher (from the North end of the Loire Valley), or Christian Venier in Cheverny (La Soulas Table Wine, Gamay-Pinot-Noir) are among those who visit. Michel is always on the hunt for new wines to add to his list.

Free tastings are generally held on Saturdays or on the occasional weekday when a vintner's schedule allows a special visit (often in conjunction with a new delivery of that wine-maker's best wine). 30, rue de la Folie-Mericourt, Paris (generally closed Sundays and Mondays); 11e, Mº St-Ambroise, tel: (33) 01 53 36 08 33.

True to his calling as a friend to the small-scale, organic wine-grower and vintner, Moulherat does not have a website, or even e-mail, but now that he will be a regular contributor to a major website, his fan-base is sure to expand.

Michel Moulherat's first mission for evalu8.org is to create a month's worth of food and wine pairings for evalu8.org readers under the twin banners of "By Hand, Nose & Palate" and "Sips & Bites." The first such item appeared on evalu8.org November 1, just in time for Christmas meal-planning.

Anne Garber commented: "So many consumers are at a loss about how to match their cooking with the right wine -- without breaking their budget. What I really enjoy about Michel Moulherat's approach is that he is truly unpretentious, he supports the organic, no-chemical approach, and the wines he helps promote are affordable, even during these tough economic times. We are simply delighted to welcome him aboard."

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