Category: Boutique Wines
The Secret Grapes of the Willamette Valley
An ironic dichotomy characterizes many young wine regions around the world. Lacking the hundreds or even thousands of years worth
The Rockstar Vintage: Tasting 2016 Cabernet at Premiere Napa Valley
Some people run a marathon once each year. That’s not my speed. Instead, I knuckle down and taste 200 Cabernets
New Zealand’s Heart of Limestone: The Wines of Bell Hill
While I have found a great deal of truth in the saying that “wine only grows in beautiful places” not
Pinot and Syrah With a View: Some Current Releases from Peay Vineyards
As a wine reviewer who gets paid next to nothing for his work, I have the luxury of only reviewing
15 Years of Argentina’s Finest Malbec
There was a time early in my wine drinking life that I did not care for Argentine Malbec. I frankly
The Evolution of Furmint: Tasting with Zoltan Demeter
I returned to Hungary this past Spring, and on my brief visit to the Tokaj region, I didn’t miss the
Tokaji Barta: The Old King in a New House
Few traditional wine regions in the world can avoid something of a sneer when contemplating those with new money and
Jamie Kutch and the Refinement of California Pinot Noir
“I was always a hobby person as a kid, but I I would push them beyond where anyone would normally
The Lodi Zinfandel Revolution Continues
Let me begin with total honesty. I fell out of love with Zinfandel. When I first got into wine, I
Small is Beautiful: The Champagnes of Savart
The famous designers Charles and Ray Eames, in the employ of the then young company named IBM, once created a
Lost Treasures in the Sierra Foothills: The Wines of Renaissance Vineyards
Soon after gold was discovered in California in 1848, and word spread east, more than 80,000 prospectors descended upon the
Tasting Integrity: 25 Years of Corison Napa Cabernet
“This is how integrity tastes,” I found myself concluding as I tasted through 25 years of Cathy Corison’s efforts to
Drink Different: Highlights From the 7% Solution Tasting
One of the “worst” mistakes any wine lover can make involves the wine drinking equivalent of getting stuck in a
Drinking Time Itself: The Champagnes of Anselme Selosse
The world’s greatest winemakers almost always have something in common with their wines. This would be expected, of course, as
A Singular Expression: The Champagnes of Cédric Bouchard
When I first met the improbably youthful Cédric Bouchard six years ago on his first visit to the United States,
A Man, an Island, and a Bottle of Grüner: The Wines of Rudi Pichler
“I am not a modern winemaker,” says Rudi Pichler, as we walk through his compact, and yes, very modern winery
The Superb Grace of Old Vines: Drinking Janasse
In a region where castles crumble to ruins on the hills, and the vines outlive their farmers, one of the
Flirting with the Ecstatic: The Wines of Nikolaihof, Austria
There are certain places in this world that feel as if they exist outside of time. Or perhaps they exist
Setting a New Bar for Oregon Pinot: Brittan Vineyards
Expressed briefly, making a great wine is rather simple. You find the right piece of ground; you put the right
