As you may know if you follow this blog, I’ve been contributing to Visit Lodi! Conference & Visitors Bureau blog. Visit Lodi is the official travel website for Lodi, California. From time to time I share the blog posts I’ve written for Visit Lodi here. My latest piece written for Visit Lodi is entitled Get to Know…
Author: Martin D. Redmond
What Grows Together, Goes Together – Slow Cooker Cassoulet Paired With Affordable Occitanie Wines #Winophiles
This month the French Winophiles are exploring Occitanie – formerly Languedoc-Rousillion; and in particular the AOPs of Minervois and Corbières. And what better way to explore a wine region that simultaneously exploring its gastronomy. Certain wines are always paired with certain dishes because they come from the same “paese” or region, and therefore have traditionally been served…
Wine of the Day: 2014 Smith-Madrone Cabernet Sauvignon
This is an alluring, harmonious wine that offers terrific value for a top-shelf Napa Valley Cab! This wine is crafted from 100% estate fruit from vineyards sitting at 1,800 ft elevation. The vines are planted on very steep slopes (up to 35%) and dry- farmed. It’s a blend of 85% Cab, 8% Cab Franc and…
Wine of the Day: 2014 Lumen Wines Grenache
…definitely one of the best Grenache in recent memory for me! This wine is 100% Grenache sourced from Martian Vineyard (54%) and Camp 4 Vineyard(46%) in Northern Santa Barbara County. It was fermented in open top vats and aged in small oak barrels Color – Translucent ruby Aromas – Enticing rose petals, cranberry, strawberry pie, wet clay and a…
The Singular Beauty Of California Field Blends
If you’re a wine enthusiast, you’ve heard it a thousand times – Great wines are made in the vineyard, or, great wines are made in the field. What if that maxim applied not only to the fruit used to make the wine, but also the process by which the wine is made? When it comes to wines that are…
Sparkling Wine Dinner Series; Ferrari Brut Paired with Creamy Seafood Risotto
Sparkling wines are the ultimate wine of choice when it comes to celebrations of special occasions. But sparkling wines are too often neglected, and vastly underappreciated when it comes to pairing them with food throughout a meal – from appetizers to dessert. I strongly believe that sparkling wine has a bigger role to play at…
Wine Of The Day: 2016 Concha y Toro Sauvignon Blanc Terrunyo Los Boldos Vineyard Block 5
This wine shows an intensity and focus that is uncommon for Sauvignon Blanc in my experience. The most memorable Sauvignon Blanc of 2017…! Terrunyo means ‘terroir’ in Spanish. They are wines are made from very specific blocks within Concha y Toro’s best single estate vineyards, in which they have identified a unique and complex character…
2010 Cave de Rasteau “Signature” Vin Doux Naturel and Brutti Ma Buoni #Winophiles
As our last installment of 2017, the French Winophiles (#Winophiles) will feature dessert wines from France. It seems a fitting end to a year in which we covered a wide scope of topics that took us around the country through food, travel and history as much as tasting wine. Just as a dessert wine beautifies…
A Match Made in Heaven: Blandy’s 10 Year Malmsey Madeira And Quesillo!
One sip of Madeira and I asked myself “why don’t I buy and drink this wine more regularly?” That question was the first thing that popped into my head when, after five years (according to my tasting notes) I opened a bottle of Blandy’s 10 Year Malmsey Madeira . It was one of two sample…
Wine of the Day: 2013 Bumgarner Cabernet Sauvignon #WBC17
Last month, I attended the 10th Annual Wine Bloggers Conference, which was held in Santa Rosa, California. The conference is a great opportunity to connect with my fellow wine writers, learn about ways to improve one’s writing, social media influence, photography, etc. Of course there is wine! Lots and lots of wine! As if we…