When I first learned about carmenere several years ago I was enchanted. The idea that this Bordeaux grape, which was thought to be extinct, was rediscovered in South America is a great story. Although I was enchanted, I soon found myself avoiding carmenere due to quality issues. In addition to being a rediscovered grape, it’s […]
Styles
Wachtstetter Pinot Noir
I’m surprised by how many people are surprised when I tell them Germany produces a good amount of quality pinot noir. I know a lot of riesling comes out of Germany, but that’s not all. German reds are worth exploring. This one comes from a producer called Wachstetter in the Württemberg region of Germany — […]
G. Stepp, Riesling
Quite often I review wines from the Rheinhessen, Rheingau or Mosel regions in Germany, but I’ve not written about as many wines from Pfalz. This is somewhat surprising as Pfalz is the second largest wine region in Germany by acreage and often the largest by volume of wine produced. It lies in the Rhine valley […]
Geil Scheurebe Kabinett Bechtheimer
“What the hell is scheurebe?” is the question most people I know would ask about this wine — aside from my wine geek friends. The answer is, it’s a white grape variety from Germany. According to Wikipedia, scheurebe is a grape variety created by viticulturist Georg Scheu in 1916. It’s a hybrid of riesling and […]
Leitz, Dragonstone Riesling
About a month and a half ago I was in Germany, exploring vineyards and tasting wine — among other activities. One of the places we visited is Rüdesheim am Rhein, a winemaking region along the Rhine river that is amazingly beautiful, produces fantastic wines and is classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The region sits […]
Bila-Haut, L’esquerda by Michel Chapoutier
I still remember the first wine I got truly excited about after launching this website over 10 years ago. It was a 2003 Yasa Garnacha and it was one of those finds that had me wanting more. But the following vintages didn’t impress me as much. Finding wine brands that are consistently good is one […]
Peter Zemmer, Pinot Grigio
I love Italian wine. I’ve said that countless times in my life. But in a way it’s a meaningless statement. After all, I don’t love all Italian wine and at the same time I also love French wine, German wine, Spanish wine, American wine, Georgian wine, South African wine, and on and on the list […]
Stella Pinot Grigio – Wine in a Can
The idea of wine in a can has intrigued me for some time. I’ve had a few and I’m seeing more and more wine sold in this format. I don’t know why it intrigues me. I guess I like the casual approach it suggests. I also like the light weight and easy portability of the […]
Rolly Gassmann – Amazing wines from Alsace
It has been a few weeks since I’ve posted anything here, the reason being that I’ve been off traveling. Some of that travel has been for my day job, but some has been wine-related travel to Germany and Alsace, France. One of the producers I visited on that trip was Rolly Gassmann, in Rorschwihr, France, […]
Nik Weis, Urban Riesling
If you’re a regular reader I’m sure you know I’m a die hard riesling lover. And if you’re one of those who says they don’t like riesling, I’d posit that you haven’t tasted the right riesling. While I don’t exclusively drink riesling from Germany, I would say that 90% of the time if I’m having […]