… okay, so it’s really a luxury to invest in the high end wines, so you can imagine why Chateauneuf-du-Pape is typically not an everyday dinner type of wine. Especially since you can find (and I certainly do find!) many very complex, concentrated, delicious wines under $20 made from similar grapes (grenache, syrah, mouvedre) [...]
Eric Titus Tonight I had dinner with Eric Titus of Titus Vineyards in the Napa Valley and talked about his Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Franc, and Sauvignon Blanc while tasting through several flights. The dinner was held at the illustrious Jean-George Vongerichten restaurant Perry Street, which is very hip and cool (think white on [...]
Michael Aptein Madrid is one of the most sophisticated regions in Spain in terms of gastronomy and art, so you can imagine it must be the center of wine as well. Yet why is it that we seldom hear of the Vinos de Madrid D.O? Apparently, The D.O. of Madrid has been producing wines [...]
Ah, the life of a vintner! Ten years ago, Ms. Kim Longbottom and her husband bought property in the Australian region of Padthaway, part of the Limestone Coast in the southeast of South Australia, and called their estate Henry’s Drive in honor of a long-ago postman from the area. Kim cleverly named the wines, [...]
Ah, the life of a vintner! Ten years ago, Ms. Kim Longbottom and her husband bought property in the Australian region of Padthaway, part of the Limestone Coast in the southeast of South Australia, and called their estate Henry’s Drive in honor of a long-ago postman from the area. Kim cleverly named the wines, [...]
Perrier Jouet “On Valentines’ Day I would always buy boxed sets of Perrier-Jouet Champagne with matching glasses so my guests would have a memoir of the evening,” said a well-connected restaurateur at a recent lunch to celebrate past and present vintages of the House of Perrier-Jouet Fleur De Champagne Portfolio. Of course, you know [...]
Quick! Imagine you are presented with a "blind flight" of Sauvignon Blanc wine (or Chardonnay for that matter). Do you think you can pick out a wine from New York’s Long Island against wines from Sancerre or New Zealand? Assume that all wines have the same color, and for the most part, a similar [...]
Michael Thurner So what is it about Austrian wine that has attracted what seems to be the entire high-end wine-writing community of Manhattan into the quaint Seasonal Restaurant on west 58th street for a tasting – and new news – about Austrian wine? For one thing, the Austrian wine industry has been struggling for [...]
“No!” the passionate Frenchman says, starting a heated discussion about the Poulsard grape among a group of vignerons in the opulent dining room of the two-Michelin-star restaurant Jean-Paul Jeunet. We are in the Jura region of France, a wildly beautiful and rugged expanse of land with well-trained vineyards, spotted cows, and sleek horses [...]
Today marks my first day in the Jura, a remote and very historical area of France known for its famed Vin Jaune wines. Like Burgundy, Jura offers the international Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, yet it also offers the white Savagnin and two delicious red grapes, Trousseau and Poulsard. As the region is just two hours’ [...]
…. so by now, you’ve seen the film Sideways, tasted Pinot Noir, and count yourself as one of the varietal’s many fans. Yet do you like Pinot Noir from around the world, or just certain locations? Have you taught yourself to tell the difference between a Pinot from New Zealand and Burgundy? The [...]
Ambassador Kathryn Hall … so the first time I met Kathryn Hall was at Per Se, where she announced that her California winery was becoming certified Organic. I remember tasting the Cabernet and finding it quite rich, layered and complex. Yet Wednesday night September 30 I was able to taste the 2006 HALL "Kathryn Hall" [...]
Ambassador Kathryn Hall … so the first time I met Kathryn Hall was at Per Se, where she announced that her California winery was becoming certified Organic. I remember tasting the Cabernet and finding it quite rich, layered and complex. Yet Wednesday night September 30 I was able to taste the 2006 HALL "Kathryn Hall" [...]
… Zinfandel is California’s ‘signature’ grape. Why? Possibly because this is where the Zinfandel grape finds its truest expression. If you are new to the world of wine, it may be difficult to understand why ‘terroir’ - the speciffic weather and soil of a vineyard – is so important. The vines for this Zinfandel are grown [...]
