Everyday Wine…At Everyday Prices!

Consumers of wine will sometimes turn down assistance from a sommelier or wine specialist because they don’t want to bother you for an “Everyday Wine” which to them means $9.99 or under and they believe their only options are for generic supermarket brands that are large production wines. They couldn’t be further from the […]

Super Value, Super Tuscan

Under The Tuscan Sun My first trip to Cortona. Yes I know I was about 10 years younger and I had different glasses but I will never forget that visit to La Calonica winery and the picture taken by Esther Cattani the wife of Fernando and mother of Giovanni right as the Tuscan Sun was […]

Learn These Words: Grand Cru !!

Many of my customers and blog followers are regularly reaching out to me asking me which Burgundy, Which Bordeaux, Which Champagne should they buy when there are so many choices. Many parts of France like Champagne or Burgundy use the word “CRU” which means a vineyard or specific village where the grapes come from. […]

Unoaked Young Douro Provides Value!

A Lot Of History In The Douro Located in a prime spot in the Douro Demarcated Region in Northern Portugal, Quinta do Crasto has been in the family of Leonor and Jorge Roquette for more than a century. Like all the other great Douro estates, Quinta do Crasto dates far back into ancient times. The […]

Easter And Passover On Same Days!

It doesn’t happen every year but this year it did. Both Easter weekend starting with Good Friday falls on the same date as the first Seder night for Passover. As far as wine pairings, kosher wines for Passover are only utilized or required by the very Orthodox Jewish people. They may get together […]

Golfer’s Pinotage Is Par For The Course

Celebrity Wines Are Not All Bad Unlike many athletes or celebrities who lend their name to a wine brand, David Frost and his family have been in the wine business in South Africa for over 60 years. His father’s vineyard was the first place he hit balls and the pocket money he made from picking […]

Let’s A-Gris To Not Diss-A-Gris!

Constantly about 99% of consumers looking for a white wine especially from Italy ask for a Pinot Grigio. Italians have so many wonderful diverse white wines and yet in Italy very few drink Pinot Grigio. For the most part, with few exceptions they are boring and not complex. Pinot Gris (Gree) is the original […]

The “Mercurey Is Rising In Burgundy

A Unique Area Of Burgundy, Mecurey In 2011, Benoît Eschard, an “Arts & Métiers” engineering graduate, decided to take over Domaine Jeannin-Naltet in Mercurey, from his uncle who was looking for a successor.Benoît’s motivation for taking it over was a more personal one. He was taking on, not just a family heritage, but a vineyard, […]

Don’t Say The “S” Word !!!

The poor communication between Sommelier and Customer as to what style of wine they really want has been an age old dilemma. Many people want a Red or White Wine that isn’t big and tannic and is just soft, and silky and fruity. They Mistakenly ask for a wine that has a HINT of […]

D-Collection Champagne, D-elicious!

All In The Families This is the home of Champagne Devaux. Founded in 1846 by brothers Jules and Auguste Devaux, Champagne Devaux was then managed by three inspiring women who led the family winery with remarkable energy and talent in equal measure. The first woman, Claude-Joseph Devaux (born Ducray), widowed at 39 years old, founded […]