Last night, one of my students asked "does wine have a season." We were tasting a flight of Chardonnay at the time and the flavor profile of the oldest vintage (2000) prompted the question. While some sippers assume that whites are for summer and reds for winter, this offered a perfect opportunity to bust the myth. The class agreed that the bottle maturation certainly altered the flavor profile of the Chardonnay making it winter-worthy and a perfect partner for a wintery mushroom soup [...]

Open any wine magazine these days and you will be sure to find an article on the economy. Just yesterday, I received a "wine alert" that, while US wine sales were up by 1% in 2008, last year marked the slowest growth in the past decade. Seems the industry grew by 4% in 2007. Further, the sales of lower priced wines are positioned to soar in 2009 leaving high-end wines in the dust. And if the media keeps spreading the news [...]

Just started a Daily Wine Question. To participate, simply scroll down to the link under my blogroll and click on Daily Wine Question. Also, started a wine group on Facebook called Vine Verve. By joining the group, you can chime in on various discussions about wine with like-minded people. So Friend me up and join Vineverve! I want to hear from you. Cheers.

This weekend in New York City, I made it my goal to sample a few varities that step out of the wine box. Lucky for me, we went to The Modern (located on the garden level of MoMa)to celebrate a friend's birthday and their wine list offered a great selection of unusal varieties. Managed by Belinda Chang, the list offered an interesting read with many regions and price points represented.  I settled on two bottles for the table, a 2006 Paul [...]

Over the years, I have become a big fan of alternative wine vessels. From cement fermentation vats to bubbles in a can, I adore both old and new methods of making, storing and serving wine. In fact, I am in Atlanta right now to speak on behalf of Schott Zwiesel, maker of fine wine glasses and decanters, during a trade show at AmericasMart. That said, last night I went to this great restuarant called Two Urban Licks with my friend - and fellow Aussie [...]

If I could rewind the tape and go back to this scene, I would do it in a heartbeat. Picture this. I am having dinner with friends in a local restaurant. The wine list ended up in my hands so I stopped talking to take a mental note of the entrees ordered around the table - beef, pork, duck, fish and fish. Based on the protein and preparation of each dish, I decided to order a medium -bodied New Zealand Pinot Noir. Before doing so, [...]

Last night, I attended a festive wine dinner with friends put on by Grovewood Tavern & Wine Bar, a well-established eatery in the Cleveland area. Known as a neighborhood joint with good food and an even better wine list, I was pretty excited about the opportunity to sip and sample bubbles and canapes all night long. While the dinner carried the EU protected name Champagne, most of the wines on the menu were not Champagne at all - fine with me but [...]

Every Wednesday, our Cleveland Plain Dealer celebrates food and wine in a special section of the paper called Taste. Today, my article on the 75th anniversary of the Repeal of Proibition is featured. Since this is the first time an article of mine has been published by the Plain Dealer, I thought I would share the link with you. To read it, click here. Cheers.

This week marks the 75th anniversary of the repeal of prohibition. For winelovers, the 1933 ruling gives reason to celebrate. And while I plan to celebrate on Dec 5th by opening a nice bottle with friends, the upcoming anniversary made me think of how easy it is to grab a glass these days. Last night for example, I went to Moxie the restaurant (located just four doors down from our Cellar Door) for dinner with my husband. Typically I sit [...]

I just came back from a fantastic week in NYC devoted to tasting Spanish wines. The semiars were led by the president of The Wine Academy of Spain, Pancho Campo, MW. Having just passed the Masters of Wine exam this past Sept., Pancho was pretty enthusiastic about his new title and shared lots of information on Spain as well as the Masters program. And rightfully so, he is the first and only MW in all of Spain! Did I mention that he was [...]