From time to time, I am reminded why ordering wine in a restaurant by the glass is sometimes better than by the bottle. Last night was one of those times.  I met a few friends at Fire (Shaker Square on the eastside) for dinner and  - as usual - we looked at the wine list before the menu. Having decided on a bottle of Pinot Noir from Oregon (Joseph Drouhin), we moved on to the menu. Here's where the reminder comes [...]

Every wine magazine or newsletter I pick up seems to have a fair share of ink devoted to the closure debate and screw caps are seemingly in the lead. Most wine professionals around the globe believe that American consumers still think wines sealed with anything but a natural cork are cheap - not inexpensive, but cheap. I wonder if that is really true? As American wine sippers become more educated, their bais against screw caps is naturally softened. Let's face it, while natural [...]

Went to a great educational tasting today (trade  only) at Metropolitan downtown. The CEO of Napa-based winery St. Supery, Michaela Rodeno, was in town to present a unique tasting of classic Sauvignon Blancs (SB) from around the world. (In the small-world-getting-smaller scenerio, Michaela has Cleveland connections via her husband's side of the family.) The tasting started with a barrel -fermented Sauvignon Blanc from Duckhorn  and ended with a medium wt Mulderbosch from South Africa. In between, we sampled a yummy stainless steel [...]

As the weather heats up and we finally swing into summer mode - my mind goes right to the pink stuff. In fact, sipping a glass of rose under my favorite tree in the backyard makes me think I am away on vacation. Here's the scoop on rose. While many people think pink means white Zin, the truth is rose wine is awesome (usually dry with crisp acidity) making it a far cry from the sugary plonk called white Zin. Plus, rose is [...]

As an intro post to my blog, I thought is best to let you know what I have in mind for the site. Basically, I will post the latest wine news, trends, interesting facts, seasonal suggestions, event reviews, wine reviews, restuarant reviews and local events that come across my desk.  If you have a question or a topic you would like me to write about, please feel free to e-mail it to me at mfrantz@clevelandwineschool.com and I will be sure to [...]