The newness of fall brings exciting flavors sip after sip. From Moster Zin to a crisp VdP Chardonnay from the Barons de Rothschild portfolio. It's all about keeping your glass half full.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zif1EuElPHk Check out this video to finally learn how to use that beautiful decanter you got for Christmas, wedding or birthday gift...

One of the biggest complaints I hear from my students is that they cannot remember labels. We have all been there. You taste  great little value wine or even a premium wine and the next day, you cannot remember the name on the label. At Cellar Door, we hear often hear customers stuggle with labels and even try to paint a picture such as... "The wine had a blue label and a picture of a duck on it" with high [...]

Unlike any other grape I  know, Pinot Noir has nervous energy that (simply put) is addictive. Zesty, full of life and honest, this thin-skinned grape likes to grow in cool climates graced with plenty of sunshine. From Burgundy, France to Oregon to Central Otago region of New Zealand, Pinot Noir has mastered the art of expression. No other grape provides such "sense of place" in the glass. No other grape is as nervous. Here's why.In the vineyard, Pinot Noir presents a challenge for grape [...]

Last month, I chatted about pairing wine with chocolate and, as part of the Fabulous Food Show, teamed up Joel Fink of Fantasy Chocolate on the Wine Theatre stage. The tasting was a huge success. Earlier this month, Joel and I teamed up again, but this time on Ohio Authority's At Cellar Door wine video. Click here to check out the video. Cheers.

http://www.ohioauthority.com/articles/food-and-drink/at-cellar-door-exploring-spanish-wines A few months ago, I was approached by a former WSET student about a new on-line magazine he and a few of his past co-workers were creating after their employer, Northern Ohio Live, closed its doors. A testament to the adage - hard work pays off - the site is up, running and catching the eyes, ears and keyboards of thousands of viewers across the state of Ohio. Cheers to Ivan and the team at Ohio Authority! While the magazine [...]

The term wine bar just took on a new meaning...seems there is a new iPhone application designed to help wine lovers keep track of their wine purchases. Cor.kz, a leading wine application company, together with RedLaser, bar code specialists, developed the technology that allows users to scan the bar codes on bottles of wine using their iPhone. Doing so records the name of the wine with out the fuss of typing in long wine names. Best yet. The application works with [...]

Earlier today I was chatting with Mike at the WAVE 107.3FM radio about wine on our weekly Wine on the Wave segmnt. During our chat, he (like everyone else) wanted to know which bottle makes the best match with traditional fall cuisine. For me, the Thanksgiving tables poses a bit of a challenge when it comes to food and wine pairing, here's why.  Think about that sweet yam casserole along side sauteed Brussels sprouts spiced with pancetta and almonds followed by a buttery bite [...]

This morning, I teamed up with Joel Fink of Fantasy Candies to create the ultimate chocolate & wine pairing to be featured on the Wine Theatre Stage at this year's Fabulous Food Show in Cleveland. Joel specializes high cocoa chocolates with a fantastic 72% cocoa being his signature bar. For this tasting, Joel brought four bars each with a different percent of cocoa, 72%, 64%, 58% and a swiss milk chocolate at 23%. My job was to pair each up with the [...]

This past Friday and Saturday nights, we hosted an Oregon Pinot Party at Cleveland Wine School Cellar Door. The place was packed with Pinot sipping friends, each greeted at the Door with a glass of bubbles - Argyle Brut to be exact. I think most were amazed (and pleased) with the versatility of Pinot, namely its ability to morph into a new grape variety. One of the oldest vines on record, Pinot Noir is genetically unstable and likes to misbehave in [...]