This curiously successful wine is a blend of five different grapes from four different vintages. It was broadly distributed as samples upon release in 2013, so we decided to hang on to a bottle to see how it lasted in the cellar. It did well. Cherries, graphite, and a hint
The United States is a growing wine market, and several wine events this year highlight the relationships between these countries. Also, full disclosure, I’m a Francophile, a lover of Italy, and I write for international wine publications that include the U.S. and China. A few years ago I had dinner
Red fruit and grippy tannins will pair well with any baked pasta dish. Cherry, cranberry and leafy herbs show on the nose. Dark cherry, cranberry, leather, and black tea work well together on the palate. Hint so tea and chocolate covered cherries sneak out on the mid-palate. Tannins are very
Rich, luscious and deep, this is a big mouthful of joy. Black currant and black cherry waft up from the glass. Deep black fruit and loads of dark chocolate and espresso coat the entire mouth, huge, rich, and round. The mid-palate adds a touch of tart blackberry, adding acid-bright freshness.
In Sicily, the Diodoros Project focuses on really old world wine. On a day that trembles between sunshine and showers, shafts of early morning sun slice through the clouds to light up the vineyard of Nero d’Avola grapes growing in this quiet corner of Sicily. It’s not a particularly unusual
Pair this succulent sixteen dollar gem with peppery fried chicken, and it's a picnic any time of year. The nose shows baked apple, honey, and a touch of ginger. It is sweet, but not cloying, on the palate, with 9% alcohol and 47 grams of residual sugar. That attack starts
The color is dark, almost opaque at the center. On the nose, black currant and unsweetened chocolate take the lead. The real action is on the palate. Huge black fruits, deep, but not jammy, erupt, followed by unsweetened chocolate, espresso, mint, cedar, and a meaty umami. It's chewy and fat,
Is the battle over wine alcohol level over? Is it time to climb out of our World War I-type trenches? Last month, Constellation Brands unveiled a huge 8-country survey that asked regular wine drinkers whether they have bought, or would buy, lower-alcohol wine. Of respondents, 38% said they have and