Wine 101

Posted May 14 at 12:00am

Barolo 2008 Revisited

Taking another look at this surprising vintage

With just a few days to go before my departure for Piedmont, I was thrilled to have been able to join in Antonio Galloni’s brilliant La Festa del Barolo this year. Featuring a tasting of 2008 Barolo, it was perfect timing; a chance for me to revisit this excellent vintage, and to help set the stage for my upcoming tastings from the 2009 vintage. In case you missed my report last year on my tastings of the 2008 vintage, which you can find here, let me just say that I was thrilled with what I tasted in Piedmont last year. Wine after wine showed a lean, racy character with terrific perfumes and pure, bright, crystalline fruit. The wines were fairly structured early on, if not large-scaled, and I had hoped that they would continue to gain weight and depth in the bottle, as Nebbiolo based w...

Posted May 13 at 12:00am

Chianti for Every Day

It's time to revisit this wine lover's staple. Better than ever and still great values.

Often overlooked, and suffering still from its days in straw covered fiasci, Chianti continues to offer great value to the savvy shopper. A large region of Tuscany is devoted to the production of C...

Posted May 8 at 12:00am

PVA White Wines of Italy Seminar

Four great views on a broad selection of the white wines from The Boot

Italy, the land of vines, it's confusing as heck, right? You bet it is, which is why I took advantage of the opportunity to conduct a tour of the white wines of Italy during our recent People's Voi...

Posted May 8 at 12:00am

Live from Lodi

Where in the heck is Lodi? Find out as I'm joined by Lodi Winegrower's Commision Program Director Stuart Spencer and Macchia Winery owner and winemaker Tim Holdener

Lodi California has slowly become a real powerhouse in the California wine scene, but it's not a region that gets much attention. Slowly but surely, generations of farmers in this plain state-like ...

Article

Bedrock Vineyards

Preserving old-vine Zins and old school winemaking

Bedrock, a word filled with connotation, and one well-chosen for Morgan Twain-Peterson's fledgling wine company. The son of one of California's Zinfandel heroes, Joel Peterson of Ravenswood fame, M... Read More »

Article

Morellino di Scansano

A Sangiovese Secret

It's relatively easy to find superior, satisfying wine if you’re free to pay top dollar. But for most of us that's usually not the case. Instead, we have to find alternative ways to consistently fi... Read More »

Article

An Interview with Achaval-Ferrer's Eclio Dumon

Celebrating World Malbec Day

World Malbec Day, April 17th is considered to be the founding date of the modern Argentine wine industry. Celebrated around the world, though closely associated with Argentina, World Malbec Day is ... Read More »

Article

PVA Ribera del Duero

Reports From Our Favorite Writers

Our series of articles on our recent People's Voice Wine Awards Wine Writers Seminar Series continues today with a round-up of reports on a great lunch we enjoyed accompanied by the wines of Ribera... Read More »

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Italian White Wines for Spring

Wines to expand your horizons, from the land of vines

Enotria, the land of vines, was the ancient Greek name for Italy and a very appropriate one at that. Today much of Italian white wine is dominated by a handful of white wine varieties, yet it remai... Read More »

Article

Beringer Vineyards

Finding history, quality, and perspective in one of Napas oldestand biggestwineries.

Those of my ilk tend to perpetuate certain notions. For example, the idea that smaller or newer is better, as if merely being either bestows some magical ability. It's a symptom of our society, wit... Read More »

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The Wines of Brazil

Discover Brazilian wine through the experiences of 5 top wine writers

Next up in our series of Snooth Peoples Voice Awards Wine Writer Seminar portfolios (that's a mouthful) are reports on the little known wines of Brazil. I've been fortunate to visit Brazilian wine ... Read More »

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Dunn Winery

How variations on the Napa Valley model yield some unmatched wines

The wines of Randy Dunn really need no introduction. First with Caymus Vineyards, where Randy was the winemaker from 1975 through 1985, and then with his eponymous Dunn label, whose first release w... Read More »

Article

Sonoma, aka Pinot Country

How Pinot Noir is coming into its own in a diverse appellation

In some ways, California is an odd place when it comes to wine. Regions tend to become associated with a particular variety: Napa with Cabernet, Santa Barbara with Pinot Noir, Lodi with Zinfandel. ... Read More »

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The Wines of Scarpa

Gathering wine writers in a Chinese restaurant to taste some of the finest wines of Piedmont

Casa Vinicola Scarpa is a venerable house, producing, among other wines, Barolo and Barbera that virtually no one in the States is familiar with. Not imported for the past two decades, Scarpa has n... Read More »

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1015486334 dave i would like to learn what tasteing notes mean to a beginer.. how do you define the "oak" what are "tannins" along withthe other commentarie words like berry smoke ect.. many of us like me have tasted a wine we liked a lot and would like to know more of how to find things we like by understanding what you experts mean. me i dont like wine with a hint of vingar or tart were your mouth feels dry i tryed one that said sweet and fruty but .. it was not so come on you experts what does all this mean to a beginer?
318028Ritab70 Dave I certainly empathize with you and would like to know that as well. I was lucky enough to buy a lot of vintage bottles of Red Bordeaux and I know what tastes delicious and what does not but to say it has a smoky taste or the berry smell I don't get it.