Blog Index

James Suckling

Real Deal Pinot Grigio and Dinner Alfresco at My House

Posted: 04:23 AM ET, 06/20/08

I had this year's first outdoor dinner in my courtyard in Tuscany last Wednesday. The weather has been so cold and wet so far this summer. As one wine producer told me the other night at dinner, “If the weather doesn’t change for the better, we are going to make water and not wine in 2008. Read more

James Laube

New Napa Cabernets Worth Seeking

Posted: 02:29 PM ET, 06/19/08

I have an answer to one of your pressing new-wine queries. But the other wine so many of you have been curious and patient about, well, it hasn’t passed my way yet.

Ovid 2005 is every bit as good in bottle as it tasted out of barrel a year ago. Read more

James Molesworth

Day 2: A New Quartet of Châteauneuf Domaines

Posted: 01:10 PM ET, 06/19/08

A second straight day of gloomy, rainy weather dogged Châteauneuf today, with each grower I visited touting the increasing need for the official arrival of summer later this week.

After bumping into Lucien Michel of Le Vieux Donjon on the street and chatting for a few minutes (his No. Read more

James Molesworth

Day 1: A Trio of Well-Known Estates

Posted: 04:00 PM ET, 06/18/08

I make an annual stop at Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe, so you can reference my previous Cellar Notes and blog entries for the basic background on this domaine, as well as the F. & D. Brunier-owned La Roquète and Domaine Les Pallières estates. Read more

James Laube

A Quick Tour of Londer Vineyards

Posted: 02:51 PM ET, 06/18/08

Larry Londer gave me a brief tour of his spectacular Anderson Valley vineyard on Sunday, and he paused to explain about how he got into Pinot Noir and share the view.

For those of you who’ve never been to Anderson Valley, in Mendocino, well, it’s a great place to visit, with lots of new vineyards and wineries. Read more

Maynard Keenan

Frost and Other Vineyard Issues: The Best Way Out is Always Through

Posted: 11:44 AM ET, 06/18/08

It appears we've managed to overcome our frost issues with our Merkin South and East vineyards. Last year, we installed a frost fan to move the cold air before it has a chance to settle on the vines and cause "winter kill." As an experiment, we only placed one fan in Merkin East and did our best in Merkin South to experiment with mounding along rows, grow tubes around young vines, both, neither—take notes, graph the results, scratch our heads, mutter some observations. Read more

Bruce Sanderson

A Day of Reds in Burgundy

Posted: 11:19 AM ET, 06/18/08

Monday started off a little brighter than the previous day of my Burgundy trip, but by 5:00 pm, it was raining again.

I began the morning with a visit to Domaine Michel Gros. Although Michel has been looking after the vines, making the vinifications and overseeing the aging of the wines of this 49-acre estate since 1975, until 1995, it remained under the label of his father, Jean Gros. Read more

Bruce Sanderson

Elegant Wines from Burgundy's Taupenot-Merme

Posted: 03:30 PM ET, 06/17/08

Sunday dawned in Burgundy with a steady rain. I spent most of the day with Romain Taupenot of Domaine Taupenot-Merme in Morey St.-Denis. He and his sister, Virginie, are the seventh generation to manage this family estate. The domaine consists of 32 acres in both the Côtes de Beaune and Côtes de Nuits; the vineyards have been farmed organically since 2001. Read more

Harvey Steiman

Can Great Wine Come With Funny Labels?

Posted: 12:14 PM ET, 06/17/08

The wine retailer was not amused. He was looking at a bottle of Mollydooker Shiraz Carnival of Love, with its garish red and yellow label, cartoonish font and, heaven forfend, a twist-off cap. The retail price was $90.

"I don't get it," he tsk-tsk-ed. Read more

James Molesworth

Off to the Rhône Again, and Keeping Two Streaks Alive

Posted: 01:31 AM ET, 06/17/08

I arrived in the Rhône this afternoon to start my tastings in Châteauneuf, and two streaks were continued. The Southern Rhône's premier appellation has been on a streak of good vintages lately, which will continue with both 2006 and 2007. Read more

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