Author W. Blake Gray

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W. Blake Gray
Staff Writer
Wine writer W. Blake Gray is Chairman of the Electoral College of the Vintners Hall of Fame. Previously wine writer/editor for the San Francisco Chronicle, he has contributed articles on wine and sake to The Los Angeles Times, Food & Wine, Wine & Spirits, Wine Review Online, and a variety of other publications. He travels frequently to wine regions and enjoys coming home to San Francisco.

Wines of the West Bank

W. Blake Gray
Features
8 min read
Israeli fine wine has a Palestinian problem. This is a recent development. While Israelis have been making wine in the country since before it became a nation, the industry was focused on making lots of cheap wine until the 1990s. To make cheap wine, undisputed Israeli territory in the warmer

The world’s most pathetic wine grape

W. Blake Gray
Features
6 min read
This story is about the world's most pathetic wine grape. Its history is exaggerated. It was used for a few decades to play one role that is no longer needed, yet still people grow it – though even its proponents don't think it has much virtue. It reminds me of the

My Month of Malbec

W. Blake Gray
Features
4 min read
Malbec is one of my least favorite varieties. However, I spent most of December in Argentina and Antarctica, and you know what that means: My Month of Malbec. It's daunting to spend a month in a country where you dislike what everyone else drinks, and in Argentina, Malbec is more

Coombsville could expand Napa terroir… but does it?

W. Blake Gray
Features
4 min read
There's really only one county in the U.S. where most Americans care about appellations: Napa. And to Napa Valley's credit, its appellations actually make more sense than almost anywhere else. So when Napa Valley added Coombsville as an appellation in 2011, it promised to be an area that actually has

Going clear: Appreciating vodka

W. Blake Gray
Features
5 min read
I wasn't always a wine drinker. The first thing I liked to drink was vodka: vodka with cranberry juice, or a Black Russian with a slice of lime. Now, though, I am entirely too hip to drink vodka. I sneer at vodka, and at people who drink vodka. If I