If this annual exploration of Merlot’s food friendliness has taught me nothing else, it’s don’t underestimate Merlot at the table…its unpretentious, approachable fruit flavors, moderate tannin, sensual texture, balanced acidity, diversity of styles and value make it more versatile at the table than Cabernet Sauvignon. October is International Merlot Month! Merlot Month unites passionate wine…
Author: Martin D. Redmond
A Taste of Esporão World for Portugal Day
In a nutshell, both the Esporão and Quinta dos Murças wines are made for the table and offer awesome quality for the price. The world of wine can be a funny thing. It seems more often than not that we are creatures of habit. In other words, we tend to drink the same kinds of wines, even…
Mixiote de Pescado Paired With Domaine Petroni Corse Rosé #Winophiles
This wine offers tremendous QPR, and a minerality…uncommon at its price point…It paired beautifully with our meal! This month our French Winophiles blogging group takes a virtual trip to the “Scented Isle” of Corsica, which is also known as Corse. Corsica, a mountainous island covered in vineyard, is located in the Mediterranean Sea between the southeast…
Book Review: Root Cause by Steven Laine
The history of wine is full of triumph and tragedy. Many of its triumphs have been happy accidents, including the discovery of wine itself, which is believed to have happened when early man gathered fruit, and stored it in containers of some sort. The juice would have settled to the bottom of the container, fermented and…
A Match Made in Heaven; Jurançon Sec and Instant Pot Shrimp Boil #Winophiles
This month our French Winophiles blogging group takes a virtual trip to the lesser known French side of the Basque region where the Pyrenees Mountains form the natural border between France and Spain. While the Spanish side is well-known (it has the highest per capita concentration of Michelin star restaurants in the world), the French offers a stark contrast of picturesque towns, and farms …
Wine of the Day: 2011 Carlisle Zinfandel Hayne Vineyard
This is one of the most memorable wines I’ve had this year! View this post on Instagram A post shared by martindredmond (@martindredmond) on Aug 2, 2019 at 9:24pm PDT Fruit for this wine was sourced from the Hayne Vineyard in St. Helena sub-AVA of the Napa Valley. Registered with the is Historic Vineyard Society,…
Wine of the Day: 2018 Birichino Cinsault Pétulant Naturel Bechthold Vineyard
This is a seriously fun Pét-nat that was a joy to drink! For the uninitiated, Pét-nat, or Méthode Ancestrale, is a method of sparkling wine production used all over the world. Unlike traditional-method sparkling wines, like Champagne, which add sugar and yeast to dry, still wine in order trigger a second fermentation and produce bubbles, pét-nat…
Grilled Garam Masala Lamb Chops Paired with Bodegas LAN Reserva #WinePW
We love our BBQ here in America and quite often we pair it with American wines. That’s cool, but what about wines from other places in the World? Can they pair just as well, or maybe even better with your favorite grilled fare? The theme for Wine Pairing Weekend blogging group this month is Rioja and BBQ. …
Getting to Know Prosecco Superiore #ItalianFWT
This month the Italian Food, Wine, and Travel bloggers are focused on Prosecco Superiore DOCG (Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita). And the heart and soul of Prosecco Superiore DOCG has its origins in Conegliano Valdobbiadene! About Conegliano Valdobbiadene The area of Conegliano Valdobbiadene is situated in hilly countryside about 50 km from Venice and around 100 km…
French Grilled Cheese and Drappier Rose de Saignée Champagne #Winophiles
This month the French #Winophiles, a group of wine and food writers with a passion for French food, wine and travel, are diving into French Wine and Cheese! Given my regular participation in the French #Winophiles group events, it’s not a stretch to imagine I have a bunch of French wine at my fingertips. I do…