Summer is here, which means ’tis the season. No, not the season for crisp, chilled white or rosé wines. Well… I guess that too, but that’s not what I’m writing about today. I’ll get to those soon. What I’m talking about today is it ’tis the season to fire up the grill and make a […]
Varietals
Review: Pisano, RPF Tannat
A few weeks ago, I wrote about Garzón Tannat and highlighted the fact that seeking wines from ‘under the radar’ wine regions can yield exceptional values. However, I neglected to mention the fact that the grape in this wine, Tannat, could also be considered an ‘under the radar’ grape! Tannat is not as obscure as […]
Domaine Bousquet Cabernet Sauvignon
Inflation. Everyone is talking about inflation. It’s true, many things have gotten more expensive over the past couple of years. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t still deals to be found. Case in point: This Cabernet Sauvignon, made from organic grapes, which has a suggested retail price of a mere $13. Ten years ago, before […]
Review: Garzón Reserva Tannat
I’ve been writing about value wines since 2007 and one reliable trick I’ve used over the years for finding wines of exceptional value is to look for wines from under the radar regions. It comes down to simple supply and demand. If you buy wines from the most well-known wine regions, you’re probably going to […]
Review: Gaia Malbec Nouveau
I was intrigued when I first saw the name of this wine, Malbec Nouveau. The “Nouveau” part of the name, I assume, is an homage to Beaujolais Nouveau — which is a French wine released each fall as a first release of wine from that vintage. Nouveau translates to mean “new” in English. In the […]
Review: Morandé, Vitis Unica Carménère
I’ve recently been doing a short series on Carménère, highlighting the new styles winemakers are producing from this once thought to be lost grape. It was once one of the grapes used to produce Bordeaux until 1867, when a pest called phylloxera destroyed most of the vineyards in Europe and completely decimated Carménère vineyards there. […]
Review: In Situ Reserva Carménère
Last week I published a post about Luma Chequén Gran Reserva Carménère and highlighted the new approach many producers in Chile are taking with Carménère. In a nutshell, producers are embracing the pyrazine qualities of Carménère to showcase the true essence of this grape. So as not to repeat myself, you can read that previous […]
Luma Chequén Gran Reserva Carménère
Let me begin by saying, “I was wrong about Carménère.” This is not the first time I’ve had to admit being wrong and it won’t be the last. But fortunately, I’m willing to own up to it when I’m wrong and change my thinking… which, in my humble opinion, is more important than being right […]
Review: Virgen, Organic Red Blend
It’s interesting to think about the idea of organic products when you look at it through the history of time. 100 years ago, most things that you could buy in a supermarket would be considered organic, by current standards, but they weren’t marketed that way because it wasn’t something people thought about at the time. […]
Masciarelli, Colline Teatine Rosato
Rosé can be made from any red wine grape. It’s produced by pressing the grapes and fermenting the juice without the grape skins. Red wine, on the other hand, is fermented with the skins of the grapes along with the juice, and the deep red color comes from the skins. Although rosé can be produced […]
