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While most people think Pinot Grigio is the white wine of Italy, I beg to differ. Softer and rounder, Soave white wines from northeastern Italy complement a wider range of food, have an exceptional depth of flavors, and are quite versatile. Like the Rocca Sveva 2009 Soave Classico. Read more: Wine review: Rocca Sveva 2009 Soave Classico I haven’t tasted many Soave white wines from Italy; maybe because Italy isn’t particularly known for high quality white wine. When you think Italian wine, Chianti, Barolo and Super Tuscans pop into your head, right? Maybe Pinot Grigios? But so many of these popular, light-bodied whites exported to the U.S. feign quality disguised in pretty bottles. Pinot Grigios aren’t white wines Italy really boasts about yet. But Soave [so-AH-vay -- same way it’s pronounced in the video, by the way] just might be the next big thing out of Italy since the Super Tuscan was born. Read more: Soave: Move over Pinot Grigio, here come some of Italy’s best white wines I admire when a winery steps outside the annoying conservative boundaries of the wine industry. Randall Grahm of Bonny Doon fame (an interview with him), The Three Thieves and their ground-breaking Bandit wine in a small box and chalk up another win to the folks at Oregon’s King Estate (reviews of their other wines), who created this Washington State-based project, North by Northwest. These guys have the chutzpah to do things differently. Read more: Wine review: North by Northwest 2010 Riesling Horse Heaven Hills 
When people talk about “everyday” wine, I’ve sometimes wondered exactly what they mean. Is it a wine that goes with all sorts of food so it can be consumed without care? Is it a simple wine that that can appeal to many different palates? Or is it an inexpensive wine that you can afford to sip everyday? Family-owned by Sonoma County’s Sebastiani and Sons, Smoking Loon wants to be all that and more. Read more: Affordable everyday Wine review: Smoking Loon 2009 Zinfandel California When Chappellet Winery opened its doors in 1967, 32 wineries operated in Napa. Robert Mondavi – now owned by corporate wine company Constellation – was number 31. Today, over 400 wineries share the same valley. Early on in this recession, Chappellet began combating the sales spiral by concentrating on the customer — they lowered their prices. “We wanted people to feel the love,” said Cyril Chappellet, 2nd generation winemaker. But they also stayed true to their history. This 2008 Cabernet effort tastes like it. Read more: Wine review: Chappellet 2008 Signature Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley So with such a prolific, daily wine tasting habit, distilling the thousands I evaluate every year down to nine is a tough challenge. (Thankfully, however, I keep track by placing these in the “Almost Perfect” section of my Wine Review pull down menu). But here are my top nine wines of 2011, in no particular order — all judged by their price/value ratio. Read more: In my opinion: The top nine wines of 2011 A dear friend gave me a 1.5 liter magnum of this elegant sparkling wine for Christmas and I almost peed my pants. (Available to buy online only, by the way). There’s nothing quite like looking at a family-sized bottle of bubbly and savoring the ensuing drinking fantasies. I haven’t opened the behemoth yet but the little 750-milliliter brothers of the California sparkler are a staple in my house. A blend of 49% Chardonnay, 49% Pinot Noir and 2% Pinot Meunier grapes, Cuvee 20′s new, sleek packaging celebrates Judy Jordan’s 25 years of making sparkling wine in Sonoma’s Russian River Valley. They’ve had some time to get it right using the same production methods and grape varietals established in France. Sure, not that long in French Champagne terms but, hey, we’re a new country full of zeal, still finding our wine way. My history with Napa Valley’s Schramsberg Winery goes back a few years. Back in 2006, I spent a day during harvest in 2006 with their former winemaker, Craig Roemer, and a few days at their incredible sparkling winemaking immersion course, Camp Schramsberg, in 2010. So you might say I possess an affinity for their outstanding bubbly. It’s elegant like French Champagne, remains family-owned and their quality is consistent like the sun setting. Read more: Sparkling wine review: Schramsberg Blanc de Noirs Brut 2007 Raise your hand if you’re tired of the holidays already. The rude traffic, the tackle-football shopping, and the inescapable holiday jingles make me want to curl up with a bottle and emerge when it’s over. Perhaps I have a case of seasonal dysfunction, but since I can’t afford to check into Betty Ford, I can use her alcoholic coping mechanism as a mood enhancer. Yes, I believe wine can mellow holiday annoyances, like so: Read more: The 12 annoyances of Christmas and how wine can help |
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