Category: Ramblings and Rants
The Appellation System is Meaningless?
This belongs in the “throwing the baby out with the bathwater” category of silly panel findings and institute resolutions. According
How Much Alcohol Is Too Much?
This article has been out for a while, but I thought I’d point readers to a nice piece in the
Taste Testing The Mondovino Premise
If you’ve been poking around here the last few weeks (or anywhere else in the wine writing world) you’ll know
Thoughts on the James Beard Writing Award Nominees
I’ve never paid much attention to the James Beard awards, apart from a casual browsing through their ranks to see
Burgundy vs. The World: Matt Kramer Calls The Fight
I really like Matt Kramer. As far as I’m concerned he’s the best thing that the Wine Spectator has going
Giving A New Meaning To “Wine Geek”
I’m STILL laughing about this. I’ve never seen a more perfect synergy of tech geek and wine snob than this
A Free Wine Course From The CIA
That’s the Culinary Institute of America, by the way, (not the Central Intelligence Agency). Thanks to a tip from Amy
It’s Not Parker’s Fault, It’s Global Warming
With Mondovino out in theaters in the US now, there’s no shortage of finger pointing and arguments about who’s responsible
The Future Of Dining: No Food, Only Scents
For those that have seen and experienced everything comes the latest innovation in dining experiences. Forget architectural food, that’s so
Now THAT’S a Penal System
Thanks to a tip from This Heaven Gives Me Migraine, we learn just how culturally advanced the Europeans actually are:
Wine Vocabulary Examined, er… Chronicled
The San Francisco Chronicle is certainly one of the most food and wine friendly, if not focused, newspapers in the
Terroir Doesn’t Exist and Parker Is Pricey
This just in from the Royal Economic Society of Britain: The traditional French concept of terroir is a figment of
Vinography in The San Mateo Daily Journal
Vinography was mentioned in a recent article by Nino Marchetti, who rounded up some of the best resources for food
No Barrique, No Berlusconi, No Bartolo
I read today about the passing of Italy’s Bartolo Mascarello, often referred to as the patriarch of Barolo. I actually
Mondovino: The Other Wine Movie
In an effort to stop all of this endless post-marketing about the movie Sideways and its effects on the wine
The Strangeness of Having a Blog
Having a blog is an interesting way of observing the world around you. I keep track, as most do, of
Vinography in The Chronicle
The San Francisco Chronicle published a very nice story yesterday about San Francisco Food (and Wine) bloggers which included a
Is The Test Getting Easier? Ask The 11 New Master Sommeliers.
Lots of people ask me if I’ve ever considered “going for my Masters of Wine,” as if it’s a class
Gastronomy Behind The Scenes
There are a bunch of food and dining related public forums out there on the Internet, and I don’t have