With all of the wonderful characters that wine represents to us including culture, cuisine, conviviality, celebration, and the winemaker’s art and the vinegrowers’ dedication and toil to the soil and its vine wine also represents another side of the human experience: greed, hoarding, elitism, snobbery and status symbol. I mention greed because as much as [...]
What is a “private label”? You see it almost everywhere these days. It isn’t exactly as the words translate, as the wine that is in the bottle is open to the public to enjoy. What it means is that the wine is made only for a specific retailer or restaurateur, or even a private party. [...]
I’m sure you’ve heard the saying, “There is more than one way to skin a cat.” I honestly don’t know where that saying came from. I personally am not fond of cats, but I never wanted to skin one. I’m not sure why anyone would want to. A similar saying is applicable in wine. There [...]
When my wife and I make new acquaintances and they inquire what I do for a living, she most often tells them that I am a master sommelier. She is understandably proud of my accomplishments, and I owe so much to her. She makes me smile every time she says it. Most people don’t actually [...]
I didn’t invent the term, but I think “cork dork” is a pretty good name for those of us who are passionate about wine. Cork has a long history with wine and has its own secret life. Corks are so important to the world of wine and yet quite the fragile link. Cork is made [...]
Can you taste culture in wine? Maybe an even more basic question is, can you taste culture at all? it is easy to visit or live in a foreign land and be immersed in its nuances, customs, terroir, language and people. You get to see the land, the people’s attitude and world view, their way [...]
To all the brides to be – be honest with yourself. Have you been obsessed with the royal wedding between Prince William and Miss Catherine Middleton? You probably stayed up until 3 a.m. to see the happy couple all the way through to their first ride home in the car. In that case, I’m sure [...]
Some of the fastest-growing segments in the wine world today aren’t the “classic” red wines with pedigree and history. no, these wines are all about flavor – sweet flavor. So what do you get when you cross riesling and 7-Up? You get Moscato. this is one of my wife’s favorite wines, and it is one [...]
If you don’t already know, there is a bill on the move in the state Legislature to increase the taxes on all alcoholic beverages. this is one of the proposed increases in “sin taxes” that our elected officials are proposing in order to make up for the government’s annual budget shortfall. they had even proposed [...]
I have been dreaming about a perfect wine world – a wine utopia – and thought it would be fun to share. It might make you smile, chuckle or even let out a gut buster! But if you lived in my wine utopia, you certainly wouldn’t want to leave. 1) All wines would be served [...]
