Great Napa vineyards? Check! Low yield? Check! Dry hot summer and fall? Check! Nearly two years in 80% new French oak? Check! More than 90 points in the big magazines? Check! Okay everybody, it's Cult Wine Time! Let's sell this stuff for $175 a bottle! That was a great plan in 2008, when the
A thick tome, 132 years old, has survived to tell the story of Piedmont's grape-growing past. That is, if you can decipher the flowery penmanship and wade through the anachronistic turns of phrase. There, in a section on grape varieties in the book called “Wine Production and Oenology in the
The nose opens with white flowers, pears, and a background of lemon zest. On the palate the acids are positively zingy. Pears, tart apple, and lemon all play over a background of ginger snaps and white pepper. Drink with fried tenderloin. Recommended. DH WHO: Sybille Kuntz WHAT: Riesling WHERE: Germany,
One thing is certain about Natalie MacLean: she can sure spin a yarn. Unquenchable, the latest book by this popular Canadian author with a keen sense of self-promotion and a remarkable level of energy, is full of entertaining stories. For example, there is a hilarious, semi-terrifying car ride with German
This chardonnay is the product of grapes from an exceptional vineyard, yes, but also of a high-powered alliance between Rajat Parr (wine director for the Mina Group of restaurants, including RN74, in San Francisco), Charles Banks (former owner of Screaming Eagle, no less), and Sashi Moorman (a winemaker who worked
Having had a delightful lunch on the terrace at Chateau de Parenchère last fall, I was pleased to see their 2008 Bordeaux Supérieur had recently arrived in the States. I opened it before dinner one night. I inhaled, I sipped -- and I just wanted to drink it, not analyze it. It's a well-made wine with
The holidays are a crucial time for retailers to meet their year-end budgets, and wineries are no exception. Many turn to marketing strategies ranging from the simple to the complex to help them drive holiday sales. At their core, successful marketing campaigns drive sales by answering the unique needs of
In a previous article, here on Palate Press, I wrote just how impressed I’ve been with the sparkling wines from Nova Scotia, in Atlantic Canada. After visiting the province in August, while judging at the Canadian Wine Awards, I discovered many other good bubblies, as well as the Tidal Bay