There are many who welcome springtime, especially after our soggy winter, with open arms. Yet there are those who still crave lighting the evening fire, feeling a nip in the air and sipping a warming libation to banish the chill. When a wine can warm your heart and stay fresh four weeks after opening, that …
Ah, the ups and downs of red Zinfandel. Not so long ago, nobody was sure where it originated (it is genetically identical to southern Italy’s primitivo), although it was found throughout California. Next, nobody seemed to care about it anymore, so acre upon acre of old vines were torn out, replaced predominantly by cabernet sauvignon, …
I remember a visit to Southern Season by Cosimo Taurino, one of Italy’s best producers of the Puglian red wine, Salice Salentino. Seems we were selling more of his wines than anybody in the American Southeast! The reason was simple; they were excellent, sound, flavorful wines that we were bringing into North Carolina through a …
Many of you know the Charles Krug name as Napa Valley’s oldest winery. Established in 1861, during the very distant American Civil War, it has had a storied but checkered history. The Mondavi family, owners since 1943, endured a split between sons Robert and Peter. Robert left in 1965 to start his own eponymous estate, …
What is pinot noir supposed to taste like? Do pinots that taste wildly different from French Burgundy deserve a place in the wine world? Pinot noir is one of those grapes that doesn’t do well just anywhere. And the results can be just horrific – the smell of burnt rubber, flavor of red Twizzlers, heavy/oaky …
One of today’s trends worldwide is to make wine using indigenous grape varieties. Badia a Coltibuono is a famed Chianti Classico producer using the traditional (and indigenous) sangiovese grape to produce outstanding wines. But a few years back they began bottling a red wine made from sangiovese and a handful of other indigenous grapes. Eight others, …
Lovers of all kinds, but perhaps Prosecco lovers, might like to try today’s bubbly as a fun alternative. Riesling is no stranger to sparkling wine, with Henkell German sparkling a perennial favorite. Today’s wine comes from Argentina and is comprised of 80% riesling and 20% torrontes, Argentina’s well-known, brisk white grape. Amalaya Brut Nature is …
The Anderson Valley is, more and more, a ”go-to” county for seductive pinot noir. And that goes for brilliant rosés made from the pinot grape as well. Today’s example is from the small estate of Long Meadow Ranch Winery. Winemaker Stéphane Vivier works beautifully with these grapes that carry the California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF) …
Instead of a Whole Bouquet, Try a Valentine’s Rosé! Read More »
The scuttlebutt in the southern Rhône region of France has been 2016. This wonderful vintage of richness combined with freshness has tickled the fancy of value-oriented consumers. But 2015 and 2017 have also contributed to a “no miss” situation. However, the 2015’s are backward and require patience. The 2017 vintage seems an amalgam of the …
It was 15 years ago that the movie “Sideways” put the kibosh on merlot. It made for a good story, but many pundits and customers alike still avoid it without good reason. (Just why do some people stand in line to pay hundreds of dollars for Italy’s “Masseto,” a merlot wine?) Markham Vineyards, with 350 …
