Really fabulous wine for any occasion … gorgeous rose color, charred bread on the nose … Elegant sparkler in the french style with crisp acidity, a long finish, and gorgeous color and aroma.

  Very excited to visit Schloss Schonborn again this week as a student in the Masters of Wine education program. The first time I went was on a trip sponsored by the German Wine Institute and the European Union for its Destination Riesling program. I remember being very impressed by the Schloss and our host [...]

markus schneider belvini … so on the trip, our group will also be stopping at the winery of Weingut Markus Schneider. According to the web site (a rather creative and loose Google translation) Schneider likes to make fresh, concentrated wine with more mineral than fruit and works on the principle (“less is more.) Red wine [...]

  What can you say about an excellently turned out Chardonnay? I am sitting at a table in the elegant Lambs Club with Mr. Jose Antonio Galante, Chief Winemaker at Salentein Family of Wines. Mr. Galante has an extensive history as a winemaker, having started at Catena Zapata which is credited for the currant quality [...]

  “Roasting a barrel is like roasting coffee,” says colorfully-spoken winemaker and GM of Bouchaine Vineyards, Michael Richmond. We are talking about the influence of French oak on the 2008 Pinot Noir, and as is the case when wine geeks get together, the conversation turns to toast (not the kind you have at breakfast) and [...]

Joshua Greene with Movia owner/winemaker pointing … topic: natural wine movement Wow, talk about a wine education! While everyone else was enjoying the delicious wine at the Top of the List Tasting, I was attending three fabulous seminars with the luminaries in the wine world. Santorini Beyond Greece W&S senior editor Tara Q. Thomas lead [...]

Greg La Follette of La Follette Wines Porterhouse was the elegant venue for a tutored tasting of La Follette wine lead by winemaker Greg La Follette (formerly of Flowers, de Loach) who recently launched a new winery last year called La Follette. The morning began with an introduction by vivacious Master Sommelier Evan Goldstein — [...]

Kim Crawford Wine Bar Lincoln Center was the place to be for Manhattan fashionista’s … and wine afficianados. For the second season in a row, Kim Crawford Wine will be the exclusive wine sponsor for Mercedes Benz Fashion Week at Lincoln Center. The brand,  known for celebrating individual style, is hosting the Kim Crawford Wine [...]

  Have you tried a themed tasting? In studying for my MW (Master of Wine) program, I typically ask wine stores to send wine blind (wrapped in bags) to try them with a friend before dinner and deduce what they are. Just recently, I decided to ask the stores to create "themed" tastings, which is [...]

  Quick! When you think ‘Carneros’ what varietal comes to mind? The appellation was officially created in 1983, as its cool climate is excellent for creating Pinot Noir and Chardonnay with a Burgundian tone of delicacy and finesse. Recently I’ve tried the 2009 Saintsbury Pinot Noir which is dark purple with a bit of violet [...]

Elyssia Pinot Noir Did you realize that rose-colored sparklers is the trend of the moment? Freixenet has a new pink sparkler called Elyssia made from the Pinot Noir grape. It is a gorgeous color as you can see from the picture, and goes even better with a bouquet of valentine’s day flowers. Pinot Noir, it [...]

  Jean Marie de Champs with her Rose Guy Charlemagne Champagne On a recent visit to Burgundy for the Hospice du Beaune I was so delighted to meet one of its top negociants, Jean-Marie de Champs of Domaines et Saveurs Collection. If you love fine wine – yet have never been to Burgundy – your [...]

Celebrations surround Hospice de Beaune in Burgundy, France, quite possibly the longest running wine auction in the history of the world. Funds raised are used to support the hospital (known as the Hôtel-Dieu) which received its first patient on 1st January 1452. In the last sixty years, however, the level of bidding is seen as an indicator of the prices growers and negociants can get for their wine.

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 [...]

monterey Whether you love or hate the character named Miles in the film Sideways, chances are you do have an appreciation for the Pinot Noir grape. So the question isn’t really if you like Pinot Noir, but a question of provenance. For example, this morning in my blind tasting session with other wine scholars, I [...]

Part 1: Tale of Two Pinot Noir One of the pleasures of those who love Pinot Noir is blind tasting various producers and deciding if they are Old World or New World, and then trying to pinpoint the producer’s exact…

Pinot Noir? Yawn. Been there. Done that. Sure, this finicky grape had more than its fifteen minutes of fame in the film Sideways, where the film’s characters got teary-eyed just thinking about this thin-skinned black grape varietal. Few people, however,…

… the good news is that the harvest this year looks great. Wine Spectator wrote an amazing report, but it’s by subscription so I’ll try to cite as much as legally possible … – Unusually mild weather this year has…