Is a glass or two of wine good for you or bad for you? Experts: It is good for you, you will live longer. Experts: It is bad for you, it will shorten your life. Continue reading “Wine and health debate continues 8-16-2023”
Category: Recent Columns
Big wine 8-9-2023
Most wine is produced by a small number of large wineries. At the same time, most wineries are small producers. Continue reading “Big wine 8-9-2023”
Rise of rosé 8-2-2023
As this gruesome summer of heat domes burns on, incidents of rosé slurping likely have increased in your wine world. Rosé has long been considered a quintessential bellwether of hot weather, so global warming is a boost to the rise of rosé. Continue reading “Rise of rosé 8-2-2023”
Old vines celebrated 7-26-2023
“Old vines”—marketing hype or a real and important thing? For the creators of the Old Vine Registry (OVR), old vines are a real and important element of the wine world. Continue reading “Old vines celebrated 7-26-2023”
America’s first AVA 7-19-2023
American Viticultural Areas attempt to tie wines to places. Ideally, vineyards in a specific AVA share similarities in soil, climate, geology, and elevation. Those various things, along with human interaction, comprise what winemakers call “terroir.” Continue reading “America’s first AVA 7-19-2023”
Beat the heat with wine 7-12-2023
If you live in the southern part of the USA, summer 2023 has been a horror. Record-breaking high temperatures, the sort of records no sane person wants to brag about. Continue reading “Beat the heat with wine 7-12-2023”
Wine and hot weather 7-5-2023
John Steinbeck, riffing from Shakespeare’s Richard III, wrote: “Now is the winter of our discontent, made glorious summer by this sun…” Continue reading “Wine and hot weather 7-5-2023”
Wine texture 6-28-2023
Wine descriptions often refer to “texture.” What the heck does that mean? There is a texture difference between silk and sandpaper. There is a texture difference between a crisp apple and creamy mashed potatoes. Wine is a liquid. Liquid is liquid texture, right? Continue reading “Wine texture 6-28-2023”
Back to basics 6-21-2023
Arcane knowledge is the bane of wine writers. While we fulminate over nuance differences between bâtonnage and pump-over, readers roll their eyes over esoteric words with obscure, oddly accented letters. Continue reading “Back to basics 6-21-2023”
Wedding Champagne 6-14-2023
Last week we argued Champagne was a poor choice for a wedding reception. Too many people, too high prices, too much cacophony to appreciate expensive French bubbles. Continue reading “Wedding Champagne 6-14-2023”