One word: Delicious. If you’re one for lovin’ on sweet-ish, juicy smackin’, full-bodied reds, RUN, don’t walk, to pick up this bottle.
... Read More »Red
Reviews of red wines
Wine review: Palarea 2005 Tinto Tierra del Castillo w/winemaker interview
Paul Clear is a brave, passionate man. He’s been in the wine business since he was 18 and it only took him ten years to realize he wanted to make his own wine. But it wasn’t like he jumped a plane to Cali, pumped some juice into a bottle and slapped his name on it. He’s a hands-on, ... Read More »
Italy’s vino reinvention: How wine has changed in the old country
The Italians love their traditions. Multi-course, carb-laden lunches scattered with wine bottles give way to the traditional mid-afternoon nap. It’s an enviable way to live and they’ve done so for millennia. But things are changing.
... Read More »Wine review: Los Alamos 2009 Malbec Mendoza
A darling of the critics for a few years now, this Los Alamos Malbec from Argentina’s Mendoza region has one great thing going for it: It costs under $12, sometimes even under $10.
... Read More »Wine review: Luchador 2007 Shiraz South Australia
I’d heard rumors about this wine before encountering it in my glass. Shazam, this is a BIG wine. Concentrated and inky (almost opaque) like a cup of espresso, except made with grapes. I think.
... Read More »Wine Review: Carina Cellars 2007 Clairvoyant
I met Carina Cellars during a trip to Santa Barbara wine country back in 2003 after they’d just started. Founders David Hardee and Joel Tensley knew their wines weren’t sold in the states where my column was published but they wanted feedback. So I gave it to them, as my friends know I’m ... Read More »
Wine reviews: 2006 Dead Letter Office Shiraz and Pillar Box White 2008
Unless you’re a rabid fan of wine critic Robert Parker (who loves them), you may not know these wines…but you should. Made by a winery called Henry’s Drive in Australia, owner Kim Longbottom paid a visit last week (as many Aussies are wont to do in their wintry off season) to show ... Read More »
A New Pinot in Town: Cru Wines
I, like so many others, am in love with pinot noir. Its finickiness, its ability to reflect its roots and deliver varying styles remind me of, well, me (in a cute, lovable way of course). One thing I’ve noticed in my nine years of writing about wine is that the best pinot comes from boutique ... Read More »
Corporate wineries: The best of the worst
I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with wines produced by massive corporations, but as I’ve harped on before, the little guys generally make better wine, displaying more heart and soul. Both attempt to produce income but corporations exist solely to do so. So I already have a ... Read More »
Poll: What do you drink in the summer?
Around this time of year, I find myself with a dwindling supply of white wine in my house. The mack daddy cabs and merlots tend to gather dust (and cat hair) while I’ll occasionally reach for a pinot noir (after I chill it down). Although intellectually and professionally, I feel compelled to ... Read More »
Sam’s Club releases its own wine label: Infinite 2008 Spanish Red
I suppose it was bound to happen. That partytrain known as wine sales had to arrive in Generica, stopping at the Sam’s Club station. Like the last guy at a party to realize his fly is open, Sam Walton’s masterminding crew has released its own private wine retail label. I should’ve ... Read More »
Is a $6.99 wine worth buying?
In the U.S., more has always been better. More expensive, nicely-packaged anything tastes/looks/feels better and a low cost product cannot possibly be better than the one $4 more, right? Sometimes, in wine, that’s true. But the recession is converting less-is-more into more-for-us. Coupon-ing ... Read More »