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 ... Read More »
Wine Reviews
Affordable everyday Wine review: Smoking Loon 2009 Zinfandel California
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 ... Read More »
Wine review: Chappellet 2008 Signature Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley
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 ... Read More »
Sparkling wine review: J Winery Cuvee 20 Brut
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 ... Read More »
Sparkling wine review: Schramsberg Blanc de Noirs Brut 2007
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 ... Read More »
Wine review: Vietti 2007 Barbera d’Asti Tre Vigne
Barbera is an unfortunately overlooked red grape/wine from the Piedmont region of Italy. But it’s SO tasty. Plenty of fruit but also high acidity, making it a quintessential food pairing experience. You’ll find Barberas from the Asti sub region, which often have often a more feminine style ... Read More »
Wine review: Penfolds Bin 128 2008 Shiraz Coonawarra
Most consumers have heard of Penfold’s, and unfortunately have mostly tasted their somewhat generic, everyday Cabernet and Shiraz blends. But their Bin Series bottlings, made from a more exclusive, higher tier of fruit, are simply breathtaking (and worth the extra $8 or so). Established in 1962, ... Read More »
Wine review: Castello d’Albola 2007 Chianti Classico
Chianti is one of the classic food wines of Italy. In this wine-soaked country, regional foods are designed to pair with regional wines. [Read about my foodie trip to Italy). They’re crafty that way. Like Garanimals back in the day. In Tuscany, the locals sip Chianti, Chianti Classico and Chianti ... Read More »
Wine review: Delas 2009 Cotes du Rhone Saint Esprit
It seems even the traditionalist French are caving to the new consumer tastes — producing fruity wines like their “New World” competitors that they used to deride. Perhaps the musty, dusty, fruity-free style has simply been overtaken by the up-and-coming wine buyer tastes. The Delas ... Read More »
Tempting Tempranillo: A grape whose time has come in America
Supply and demand is a wondrous and beautiful thing. Guarding the secret of a juicy wine discovery allows you to skip to the store and snatch it up for practically nothing. It worked this way pre-Sideways, when you could practically steal high quality domestic Pinot Noir, but then people, mesmerized ... Read More »
Wine review: Quivira 2009 Zinfandel Dry Creek Valley
I was a bit hesitant to write about Quivira’s Zin that I recently tasted blind, since I reviewed the 2008 vintage in April of this year. But I thought, what the hell, they deserve to get kudos twice in one year. These guys rock the Zinfandel. And, farming biodynamically, they’re stewards ... Read More »
Wine review: Elena Walch 2010 Lagrein Alto Adige (Italy)
For a few years now, the Alto Adige wine region in northeastern Italy has been a darling of mine. With a cooler climate than the rest of the heated Italian countrysides, the Pinot Grigios taste crisper, the eclectic reds are more refined and they grow a whole slew of interesting grapes from this rich, ... Read More »