I attended the North Coast (California) Chapter of the Rhone Rangers (“NCRR”) tasting last month. The tasting was held in Oakland, at Campovida’s Taste of Place Oakland. With the Rhone Rangers riding into the Bay Area next week, April 5-6 for the 17th Annual Rhone Rangers San Francisco Bay Area Weekend Celebration of American Rhones, I thought I’d share some of my favorites…
Category: Wine
Saké 101 and SakéOne Tastings
Last month I had the pleasure of participating in a virtual tasting (a group of tasters, tasting the same beverages, interact with a host and one another) hosted by SakéOne. SakéOne is an importer of Japan’s finest saké as well as America’s premium saké company. For more than a decade, SakéOne has been crafting junmai ginjo…
Wine of the Week; 2009 Gérard Bertrand Saint-Chinian Syrah/Mourvèdre
Every Thursday I feature a wine I particularly enjoy, whether it’s something new and different, is a great value, or from a producer worth checking out. For this week, my Wine Of The Week is the 2009 Gérard Bertrand Saint-Chinian Syrah/Mourvèdre, and it’s a fantastic value! I picked up this wine at my local Costco for $11.59….
A Taste of Smith Madrone
Smith Madrone Vineyards and Winery, a family run, estate-bottled winery located in St. Helena, California was founded in 1971 by brothers Stuart and Charles Smith who are the Managing Partner/Vineyard Manager, and Winemaker respectively. The name of the winery is a tribute to the Smith brothers and the predominant tree on the ranch. The Madrone is an evergreen with a…
Wine of the Week: 2008 Ridge Lytton Springs
Every Thursday I feature a wine I particularly enjoy, whether it’s something new and different, is a great value, or from a producer worth checking out. For this week, my Wine Of The Week is the 2008 Ridge Lytton Springs. The Winery Ridge Vineyards is a California winery with two estates, Monte Bello in Cupertino, and Lytton Springs in Healdsburg. They…
Book Review – Buy The Right Wine Every Time by Tom Stevenson
I’m a wine geek. Most of my friends are not. In fact, the vast majority of folks who enjoy drinking wine don’t want to put much thought into it beyond – what’s the occasion, and how much am I willing to spend for it? Wouldn’t it be nice if such folks had a handy-dandy reference…
Wine of the Week; 2011 Quimay Pinot Noir
Every Thursday I feature a wine I particularly enjoy, whether it’s something new and different, is a great value, or from a producer worth checking out. This week’s wine is the 2011 Quimay Pinot Noir. I recently dropped into my local BevMo on a whim, and found this bottle of wine on sale for $17.95. Since retail is $29.95,…
La Paulée Burgundy Week Tasting
Since I got into, as I call it, “the wine thing” about 10 years ago, I’ve sought out and tasted wines from the world’s major (and a few not so major) wine regions – France, Italy, Spain, California, Oregon, Washington, Argentina, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Chile, Portugal, Greece, and even Croatia. All to varying…
T.G.I.F. Champagne And The Like…NV Mionetto Cartizze Prosecco
I drink more than my fair share of sparkling wine. By my count, last year I enjoyed 50-60 bottles of sparkling wine. Which type of sparkling wine I chose is driven by my mood, the food, and my budget. I tend to like Cava, and Prosecco for my “weeknight” sparklers, while enjoying more expensive sparkling…
A Taste of Fields Family Wines
From time to time I receive samples from wineries. It’s mostly been from large wineries represented by public relations firms. So it was a bit of a surprise when I received an email out of the blue from Ryan Sherman, Winemaker for Fields Family Wines, asking if I would mind if he sent over some…