Napa Valley 2013 Harvest

Michelle Locke
Features
3 min read
The exciting news about the 2013 Napa Valley wine grape vintage is … that it was pretty darned dull. No killer frosts struck in the spring to menace tender new shoots. No monster heat waves mauled the ripening grapes in the summer. And even the labor shortage that growers had

Winetrepreneurs: Taken Wine Company

Kristina Anderson
Feature Stories
4 min read
Friends Josh Phelps and Carlo Trinchero had the idea to go into business together during Trinchero’s senior year of college. “Josh and I stayed in touch and simultaneously began getting into the wine business on our own. We both had that entrepreneurial spirit and wanted to start young and see

Ten Easy Tips to Make Delicious Cocktails

W. Blake Gray
Features
4 min read
I used to make lousy cocktails. Not anymore. I didn't go to a bartending class. Instead, I just paid attention to what good bartenders do, and took a few simple steps. Now I'm going to share. This is not going to be a cocktail geek piece. These are things anyone

Toss Those Tasting Notes

David White
Features
2 min read
Ever tasted a boysenberry? What about cat pee? Can you easily discern Irish breakfast tea from English breakfast tea? And do you ever drink kirsch, the brandy made from sour cherries? If you're anything like me, your answer to all these questions is "no." Yet descriptors like these fill the

The Team Sport of Trained Sensory Tasting

Erika Szymanski
Features
8 min read
[box] (and why electronic tongues are cool, but insufficient)[/box] Proteins in saliva bind tannins. Tannins are molecules responsible for astringency (and some bitterness) in red wine. When tannins bind with salivary proteins, which ordinarily keep your mouth feeling nice and slippery, your saliva becomes less viscous – dry-feeling – while

Tempranillo: Australia’s Next Shiraz, only better?

Lisa Johnston
Feature Stories
5 min read
To many, Australia is the producer of bold shiraz, fruity chardonnay and soft-drinking blends. Which is totally understandable when internationally, not much else features on the shelves. However, even some Australians are still oblivious to the fact that Australia is producing some exceedingly good wines from varietals that have only