Ten months ago I decided to move to Champagne. Immersing myself in Champagne has been a slow process; it has taken time to scratch beyond the surface to find my way amongst the myriad traditions, rules and regulations that are the backbone of this region. But living here has allowed
Serenaded by drum, tambourine and accordion, workers clad in navy shorts and red plaid shirts march around the concrete tank of port grapes, a few couples clasping arms and gamely waltzing in the knee-high purple soup. The evening treading session during harvest at the Quinta do Vesuvio owned by the
Sour beers, with their bright acidity and vinous, funky qualities, start to bridge the gap between beer and wine. It took a trip to the Great American Beer Festival and several brewery visits (just to be sure…) for me to get a grasp on the movement that presents beer, tarted
The restaurant Philippe is at one end of a contemporary multiuse building in Houston’s upscale Galleria area. At the other is the very popular RDG + Bar Annie from the city’s most famous chef, Robert Del Grande. Valet stands just thirty yards apart both see a heady percentage of shiny
I recently polled a few friends to get their quick take on Austrian reds. Replies ranged from “Yum!” to “Huh?”—but heavily weighted toward the latter. True, Austria’s better known for crisp whites like Grüner Veltliner, but red grapes are grown everywhere, too, and make up a third of vineyard plantings.
It’s a self-evident truth, not to mention a basic principle of homeostasis, that what goes in must come out. Around this time of year, huge trucks full of grapes go into wineries. Months or years later, the bottles of wine that come out of those wineries look a lot smaller
Thanksgiving strikes fear in just about every host. Preparing a giant bird is a herculean task. Cooking gravy, stuffing, and cranberry sauce is always more complicated than expected. Then there’s the anxiety of any family gathering — will politics or off-color jokes derail the dinner? Add wine to the list
Understandably, Nebbiolo Prima, an annual press and trade event in Alba, Italy, is all about tasting tight, tannic Nebbiolo; but, it is the afternoon visits that offer glimpses into what these wines will become and the people behind the wines that make it magical. A Tale of Two Terroirs While