Becky Sue Epstein

2016 Edna Valley Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc – a white wine to ease you into dinner

July 17, 2019

Start as an aperitif, and pour another glass for lunch or your first course at dinner. Some earthiness and creaminess mixed with herbs in the aroma. Clean and light on the palate, with a subtly citrus, refreshi...

2017 Olema Pinot Noir, Sonoma County – a lightly exuberant wine

Becky Sue Epstein

July 16, 2019

Tasting Notes

In the glass, the wine’s pinkish red color and clear edges indicate that this California pinot noir has a touch of French style, too. An aroma of red berries flows into the flavors the palate, with some sharp b...

The Sweet and The Bitter: Ambrosia Aperitivo

Becky Sue Epstein

June 21, 2019

Tasting Notes

If you’re new to embracing the Italian style of aperitifs, the new Ambrosia Aperitivo is a good place to start. It’s on the sweeter end of the bittersweet style, with an emphasis on aromatics and flavorings inc...

Everywhere you go there is wine being made: should there be?

Becky Sue Epstein

May 1, 2019

Features

The Promise of Extreme Northern Wines -- One Case, Anyhow It seems to me that too many people are trying to make wine in extreme locations around the world. Case in point: I was quite surprised -- and somewh...

The Approachable Juggernaut Wine: 2015 Juggernaut Hillside Cabernet Sauvignon

Becky Sue Epstein

April 17, 2019

Tasting Notes

At the risk of sounding like a Captain Obvious, this is a juggernaut of a bottle: it’s taller, broader, and much heavier than the average wine bottle today, which lends the wine a certain feel of grandeur. In f...

Does this wine remind you of Sting? There’s a reason: 2016 “When We Dance” Chianti DOCG

Becky Sue Epstein

April 11, 2019

Tasting Notes

This is the wine that opened the mind of a white-wine-lover to red wines. (Go, Oliver!) From the beginning, he noticed it was a lighter color, and less likely to hit him over the head with the first sip. Wha...

Character without Attitude: 2016 Matchbook Estate-Bottled Petite Sirah

Becky Sue Epstein

March 20, 2019

Tasting Notes

So this French Canadian family moves from Quebec to California’s Central Valley over 150 years ago, in search of better land to farm. Fast forward to the 1970s when two brothers (descendants) come home from col...

NV Piper Sonoma Select Cuvée Brut

Becky Sue Epstein

March 6, 2019

Tasting Notes

While it’s always best to drink non-vintage sparkling wines within a year or two of release, I have a feeling this bottle was lost on a store shelf somewhere before I bought it – but it turned out to be wonderf...

White Burgundy that will save some green

Stags Leap: A Hidden(ish) Piece of Paradise Within Napa

Has Italian Rose Finally Arrived?

Two Winemaking Couples Embody Oregon Wine’s Spirit of Collaboration

2007 Thumbprint Cellars Russian River Valley Chardonnay

2016 Edna Valley Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc – a white wine to ease you into dinner

2017 Olema Pinot Noir, Sonoma County – a lightly exuberant wine

The Sweet and The Bitter: Ambrosia Aperitivo

It’s Not Unusual to Love These Single-Serve Wines

Kin’s Quest for Booze-Free Euphoria

The Approachable Juggernaut Wine: 2015 Juggernaut Hillside Cabernet Sauvignon