Wine Grapes, the huge new encyclopedic work by Jancis Robinson, Julia Harding, and José Vouillamoz covering 1,368 varieties of grapes used to make wine around the world, is at once full of surprises and unsurprising. It is full of surprises because it is full of information about the secret life
Traditional wassails were—and still are, I suppose—seasonal hot drinks made with wine or beer, sugar, spices, eggs, and bits of toast floating on top. Today, we’re far more likely to find toasty, bready flavors in a more fashionable (and still seasonally appropriate) beverage: methode champenoise sparkling wine. How those characteristic
Comfort food. It's polenta and pasta, roast beef and beef stew, pot pie and Shepherd’s pie and macaroni and cheese. It’s hamburgers, French fries, and toasted cheese sandwiches. It’s Chinese takeout and sushi and Chili con Carne; Osso Buco, Braised Short Ribs, and Fish and Chips. And, of course, bacon.
It is that time of year, once again. You have probably muttered to yourself a few times and shared it out loud with your friends, “This year went by so fast!” This week marks the mad dash to Christmas. But before you start making shopping plans for black Friday, take
The informal yet quality-driven wine bar is a concept that is gaining traction with thirsty locals in Boston. Having spent the last few years immersed in the New York City wine scene I had become reliant upon places that offer large by-the-glass lists. Places where the idea is to learn
Turkish wines are historic, interesting and in many cases pretty good. And the Islamic ruling party would be happy for you to take more of them away from the country. Turkey is a fascinating place for wine researchers because it appears to be the birthplace of wine. The center of
The history of enology in Italy is rich in fairy-tale-like stories like this one. Once upon a time, there was a young Italian nobleman who loved two things: racehorses and French wines. His name was Marquis Mario Incisa della Rocchetta. In 1929 he was finishing his degree in agriculture at
“Well,” I said, slapping my hand playfully on the side of a brand new American oak barrel in the heart of Silver Oak’s nearly-as-new Napa Valley barrel room, the thump resonating through a state-of-the-art stone and steel structure that’s been built to withstand movement from California’s not-infrequent seismic events; “this