Right now, there’s a lot of sex in the vineyards. Strictly between the grapes of course. Cultivated vines are hermaphroditic (the reproductive organs of both sexes are simultaneously present). Thus, come spring, grapevines pollinate themselves.… Continue reading
I’ve heard it said a hundred times—women are better at wine tasting than men. But can that possibly be true? In honor of Mother’s Day, I decided to find out. First I interviewed 70 winemakers… Continue reading
Of wine, it is often said that with age comes beauty. And one might add—expense. A bottle of Chateau Margaux 2000 (which is probably drinking exquisitely as it approaches its 18th birthday) is now about… Continue reading
In 2009, WineSpeed reader George Caloyannidis visited Emmerich Knoll, whose sensational grüner veltliner was the Wine to Know in last week’s WineSpeed. In this guest blog, George writes about his remarkable encounter. By George Caloyannidis… Continue reading
By Karen MacNeil I’m guilty (like just about everyone else I know), of drinking Beaujolais once a year. Right now in November, when stores all over announce Le Beaujolais Est Arrivé! (The Beaujolais Has Arrived!)… Continue reading
By Karen MacNeil October 24, 2017 N95 meant nothing to me three weeks ago. But then the menacing smoky wildfires ringing Napa and Sonoma began. By the third soupy gray day, I owned an N95… Continue reading
When a lot of people think about California, they think about bikinis. But when those of us who live here in wine country think about it, we think about down jackets. There are more than… Continue reading
One of the first things I remember learning about Champagne was that small bubbles were better than large ones. Now, shockingly, that notion has been turned upside down – or at least sideways – by… Continue reading
The words “low-alcohol wine” make anyone who has ever tasted one, shudder. The wines are that bad. But maybe not for very much longer. As most wine drinkers know, the high alcohol levels… Continue reading
Wine has often been the beverage of seduction, no surprise there. But the other day, I read a fascinating study which that suggests that a person’s behavior when drunk is similar to that of a person… Continue reading
Wine’s closest companion for the last 8,000 years has been food. The two are so close that they are often thought of as inseparable. In Italy for example, when someone drinks too much, they don’t say,… Continue reading
