Taylor Eason | February 18th, 2011
For the average wine drinker, a grape is a grape. That is, if a bottle’s label says Pinot Noir, then that’s the grape the wine sprang from. ‘Nuff said. But geeky swillers know there are rules which allow for minimal percentages of a given grape to be labeled by its variety. But what most people have not been schooled on is that for almost all grapes, like the clans of West Virginia, there are many different clonal cousins of said grape.
Read more: Send in the clones: Wine grapes and their offspring
Taylor Eason | February 13th, 2011
Of all the French wine regions, Alsace (ALL sass) is the easiest to understand. Unlike other regions, it labels its bottles by varietal name, making the selection — and pronunciation — less problematic. This Pinot Gris from Zind Humbrecht is nearly perfect.
Read more: Wine review: Zind Humbrecht 2009 Pinot Gris
Taylor Eason | January 31st, 2011
Full-bodied and elegant, La Craie Vouvray explodes with fragrant fruit: peaches and apricots drizzled with honey, earthy chamomile. It has a burst of sweetness on the tongue but finishes dry and luscious. The best of both worlds.
Read more: Wine review: La Craie 2009 Vouvray
Taylor Eason | January 7th, 2011
This California winery boasts a fantastically talented French winemaker who crafts decidedly European-style white and red wines. In essence: food wines with more acidity. This is a “grown-up” Sauvignon Blanc.
Read more: Wine review: Matanzas Creek 2009 Sauvignon Blanc Sonoma (California)
Taylor Eason | December 23rd, 2010
Esca Wines is the brainchild of Mario and Anna Monticelli, winemakers for two other well-known Napa Valley wineries: Trinchero and Pina. While working for ‘da Man, they decided to make a few bottles for themselves and the idea grew from there. And grew well.
Read more: Wine review: Esca 2006 Syrah Napa Valley
Taylor Eason | December 10th, 2010
As the American outpost of the famed French Champagne house Taittinger, vintage after vintage, Domaine Carneros the best way to drink Champagne-ish on a craft beer budget. Great value for the money.
Read more: Sparkling wine review: Domaine Carneros 2006 Brut Cuvee
Taylor Eason | December 8th, 2010
I’m not ashamed to admit that I respect and admire Paul Dolan, his biodynamic and organic farming philosophies and his vision for the future. The hard work shows up in the glass bottle after bottle, including this one.
Read more: Wine review: Paul Dolan 2008 Sauvignon Blanc Mendocino
Taylor Eason | December 3rd, 2010
Yes, there’s definitely something sensual, sexy and seductive about a glass of Champagne. And if it has a tint of salmon pink color to it, it give me chills like I’m about to enjoy well… you get the point. The result in this French bubbly yields red fruit on the tongue… tart red cherry, red apple and strawberries. Not sweet but zingy.
Read more: Duval Leroy Rose Champagne Non Vintage
Taylor Eason | December 1st, 2010
Petite Sirah, the re-emerged bastard French wine child from royal pedigree, is called Durif in many parts of the world. It was engineered in the late 1800s by a French guy named — you guessed it — Durif. He cross-pollinated the venerated syrah grape with an obscure French peasant grape called Peloursin and created a highly marketable, mildew-resistant variety. Foppiano Vineyards has been growing and bottling Petite Sirah since the early 1970′s, so they’ve had a few years to get it right.
Read more: Foppiano 2008 Petite Sirah Russian River Valley
Taylor Eason | November 19th, 2010
The fancy name — Pouilly Fuissé — might scare people off from checking out this wine, but don’t be intimidated. With fruit and acidity like this, it’s not scared of you. Pouilly Fuissé is a subregion of Maconnais in France’s Burgundy area (this might make it clearer: France > Burgundy > Mâconnais > Poully Fuissé), where Chardonnay roams free from oak aging. This makes it great wine for pairing with food.
Read more: Wine review: Louis Latour 2008 Pouilly Fuisse
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