Port wines are made from grapes grown in Portugal’s Douro wine region. The Douro was established as one of the first wine regions of the world in 1756. The region, which takes its name from the Douro River that runs through it, is home to vineyards planted along the river’s impossibly steep banks. The river begins its westward course in […]
Honestly, sometimes a wine comes along at the exact right time. Such is the case with the recently released 2021 Smith-Madrone Chardonnay. It tastes just like what I’m ready for — springtime. After tasting several vintages of this wine, I have a certain expectation: Chardonnay that expresses the vintage with only a gentle guiding hand from the winemakers. Every vintage […]
Three wine estates sit under the umbrella of San Felice in Tuscany representing three different regions. San Felice is comprised of 370 acres of vines (and 15,000 olive trees) in Chianti Classico. Campogiovanni sits in Montalcino with approximately 57 acres of vineyards, 34 of which are dedicated to making Brunello. Bell’Aja is located close to the ocean in Bolgheri where […]
Avignonesi was established in 1974 and sits in Tuscany’s Vino Nobile di Montepulciano denomination. Sangiovese is, of course, the focus of its Nobile wines. Viticultural practices embrace organic and biodynamic principles, and not just in word. Avignonesi is certified organic and biodynamic, which means they fulfill the required record keeping and inspections; it’s rigorous, time consuming and expensive, but good […]
We’re in that brief period of time between holidays when many of us can relax for a few days after the rush of Christmas before gearing up for New Year’s Eve. Those celebrating Hanukkah get to continue celebrating right into the new year. By early January we will all be happy to slow down and finalize our New Year’s Resolutions. […]
Asti DOCG wines are made in Piedmont’s Asti Province. White wines, sparkling wines and dessert wines may be made under Asti DOCG regulations. Today we are tasting a white wine and sparkling wine, both of which we received as tasting samples. About Moscato Bianco Moscato Bianco is the undisputed star of the wines made in Piedmont’s Asti DOCG where it […]
This time of year more emphasis is placed on gathering with friends, and certainly for many the pace of gatherings increases substantially. But most of us gather with friends regardless of the season and when we do it’s likely that the folks we gather with will have different wine preferences. Some will prefer white wines or bubbles (that would be […]
Vermouth might seem like a step away from wine, which is the focus of Pull That Cork, but 9diDANTE isn’t just any vermouth. It is a wine-focused vermouth. According to European law vermouth must be 75% wine and 9diDANTE founder, Alex Ouziel, takes the wine component of his vermouths as seriously as he does the 27 botanicals that are also […]
CV Wines takes its name from the Continental Vineyard, a 2500-acre property located 13 miles east of the city of Paso Robles. The vineyard was planted before the establishment of the Paso Robles AVA in the belief that the region was capable of making high-quality wines. In 1973 a group of Hollywood actors that included Wayne Rodgers, James Cann, Jack […]
Sicily lies just off the toe of Italy’s boot. Having just enjoyed watching more than two weeks of Olympic sports, I can’t help but think of Sicily as the rugby ball (or misshapen soccer ball) at Italy’s toe. Sicily is more correctly described as the largest island in the Mediterranean and is home to a variety of indigenous white and […]
We enjoy wine, food and travel. Pull That Cork is a chronicle of our wine adventures, the food and wine pairings we create and our travels which are increasingly organized around wine.
