A few months ago, the manuscript for a soon-to-be published book arrived in the mail. The first sentence was: This is the story of how wine brought me back from the dead. With a sentence… Continue reading
Chris Carpenter has been the longtime winemaker of Cardinale, La Jota, Lokoya, and Mt. Brave—four top estates—all in the Napa Valley. Last year I asked him about wine’s connection to emotion. What is it about… Continue reading
I hope you splurged in December, my friends, because January is austerity month. Time to give that credit card a rest, or at least put a reasonable cap on your expenditures. I’m not talking about… Continue reading
I am so excited to tell you about these wines—wines that we fell in love with this past year. Some are expensive, but they are all so good that just a single bottle becomes a… Continue reading
As some of you know, I drink a glass of Champagne every night. For me, Champagne demarcates the day from the night. It says the evening has begun. And because I immediately “recork” the bottle with… Continue reading
Ridge has been considered one of California’s “First Growths” for more than half a century. Yet the story of Ridge’s rise to prominence is as improbable as it is fascinating. The details are compelling: How… Continue reading
Four years ago, the World Economic Forum reported that extreme, volatile weather events would cause 12 crops to be extinct within the next few decades. One of those crops was wine grapes. This can’t possibly… Continue reading
The new French Laundry lives—and it’s in the Willamette Valley of Oregon. Ok, it’s not the French Laundry (the Napa Valley restaurant owned by chef Thomas Keller). But the new restaurant ōkta in the small… Continue reading
I read recently about a dangerous animal quest. Two friends, a writer and a biologist, spend several grueling months trekking into the Himalayas to catch a glimpse of one of the world’s most elusive animals:… Continue reading
I wrote the following poem on the evening of September 21, 2022 after attending a “Conversation” at Ashes & Diamonds winery in the Napa Valley. The presentation—by five winemakers—centered around the topic of sustainability. But,… Continue reading
The first time I went to the Champagne region, a winemaker took me aside and showed me a glass of Perrier water. These, he said, were not “good” bubbles—not for Champagne wine anyway. The almost… Continue reading
One of the more exciting things that we at Karen MacNeil & Company did this past summer was a double-blind tasting of every California Cabernet Franc we could get our hands on. There are more… Continue reading
