April is the time of year when wine people start pricking up their ears, scanning for news from Bordeaux. A few actually go there for the en primeur tastings of the latest vintage in early April, while the rest wait around until their tasting notes are made public. Occasionally, we
Franco Biondi Santi, the patriarch of the family credited for having laid the foundations of the prestigious Brunello di Montalcino appellation, died last weekend at the age of 91. A staunch guardian of the tradition started by his grandfather Ferrucio, both by the style of the family estate's wines and
British wine critic Jancis Robinson has something of a romantic debt to American wine. Not only was her first British national wine story about American wine, but she met her husband, Nick Lander, when they organized a tasting of American wines in London. At the time, wines from the US
Hardy Wallace gave himself one year to sell through his first significant release of wines from Dirty and Rowdy Family Winery in late August, 2012. It would be work, hand selling, lots of travel. If they could sell out in a year, it would be a sign that maybe this
If you’re like most people, the light-bodied, refreshing Vinho Verde is what comes to mind when you think of wines from Portugal. Few today can name a producer making a “serious” red wine or describe its grapes or style. The fact is, most of these wines are consumed within Portugal
There is a new kind of wine region becoming part of the landscape and a “must not miss” element on a wine tourist’s itinerary. Unlike traditional wine country, the landscape of this up-and-coming region is not littered with grape vines; instead its fields are full of skyscrapers. This is urban
Tonight marks the fourteenth annual Open That Bottle Night, the truly original wine holiday created by Dottie Gaiter and John Brecher. What will you be drinking tonight and why? Perhaps even more important, with whom will you be sharing it? Tell us about your own Open That Bottle Night, and
t’s true. Sleepy Paso Robles wine country has an alter ego — haven for vagabonds, virtuosos, and visionaries. A maverick region, with winemakers and wines to match. Of Vagabonds and Virtuosos Once famous for its healing sulfur springs, Paso’s spring waters soothed the infirm, including renegade Jesse James, on