Category: Ramblings and Rants

Welcome to the Era of Single-serving Wine
It’s quite common among wine journalists to end the year (or begin a new one) with predictions for the coming

How Long Does a Bottle of Wine Last After It Is Opened?
Would you be surprised if I told you I get this question a lot from random people who find out

Smoke Taint Looms Large in CA
It has now been six weeks since the successful containment of the Glass Fire, a 67,484-acre (27,310-ha) blaze that burned in both

Vinography’s 2020 Holiday Gift Guide for Wine Lovers
Figuring out what to get the wine lover who seems to have everything can be a source of great anxiety

Improving E-mail Ethics in the Wine Industry
Fair warning: this article is going to be a bit of industry navel-gazing that likely holds little interest for consumers.

Mastering the Graphic Design of Your Wine List
When people think of designing wine lists, chances are they’re thinking about the decisions surrounding which wines appear on the

California’s Latino-owned Wineries Mushroom
The first people to make wine in California were almost certainly Mexicans. In the latter half of the 18th century,

The Wine World Owes Women More Than an Apology, It Owes Them a Reckoning
Horrifically depressing is really the only way to describe it. Yet even in the midst of that hollow-in-the-pit-of-your-stomach combination of

Wine List Design: Avoiding the Pitfalls
I will admit it. I’m one of those people who really enjoy reading through restaurant wine lists. I suppose that’s

US Wine Finally Embraces Politics
For the longest time, the American wine industry has managed to maintain an apolitical veneer, steering clear of endorsements or

Napa Licks Its Wounds and Holds Its Breath
As of this morning, the Glass Fire, which burned more than 67,000 acres in Napa and Sonoma Counties is 97%

Napa Wineries Ask ‘What now?’ As They Survey Glass Fire Wreckage
The following is the introduction to an article I penned for Club Oenologique, a fantastic new online magazine out of

The Next 48 Hours May Shape Napa Valley For Years to Come
At 9:32 AM this morning, the Napa County Office of Emergency Services issued its latest set of evacuation warnings in

Napa and Sonoma Burn Again. Horribly.
I don’t know how coherent this particular piece is going to be, as I watch the social media evidence of

Harvest of Fear
Writing a column about the state of harvest on America’s west coast in the face of historic wildfires seems to

Donate to the 2020 Wine Country Fire Relief Fund
Donate Now Wine country, and the people that live there are hurting. Badly. Covid-19 was a sucker punch to the

The Unsung Urban Wine Hero
His name doesn’t appear on wine bottles. He is not a winery employee. He doesn’t even make his living in

Hungarian Wine Authorities Don’t Seem to Know Anything About Wine
The people in charge of Hungarian wine seem to believe that orange wine, pétillant naturel, natural wines, low-sulfur wines, and

Channeling Bob Ross to Bring You “The Joy of Wine Tasting”
It’s been months since I’ve had a haircut, and not one to miss an opportunity, I thought I might as