Author: Nancy (CSW)

Photo of Brancott Estate Flight Song Sauvignon Blanc bottle of wine and glass of wine on a table with a lemon tree in the background

Exploring Brancott’s Low ABV Sauvignon Blanc

We have posted two wine reviews during January this year, so clearly we did not participate in Dry January. We do have an appreciation for wines with lower alcohol, however, and it factors significantly in the wines we choose to drink. Some critics will say balance is more important than ABV and don’t list ABV in their reviews, but both […]

2015 Avignonesi Late Release Vino Nobile di Montepulciano special packaging with an illustration by Carlo Stanga of Montepulciano farms and vineyards

Avignonesi Vino Nobile di Montepulciano Late Release 2015: Artistry on the Label and in the Bottle

Our wine year is beginning in a delicious way with the tasting of a late release Sangiovese. Not just any Sangiovese, but a Vino Nobile di Montepulciano crafted responsibly by a winery that takes its social commitments as seriously as its commitment to biodiversity and healthy soils. And the Avignonesi Nobile di Montepulciano Late Release 2015 wine bottle label, and […]

Picture of the cover of the book Stikky Wine

Discovering Stikky Wine: A Fun Guide to Wine Basics

It was my curiosity about the meaning of the book’s title, Stikky Wine, that led me to accept a copy for review. What did the title mean? Was it a book about sweet wines — stikky being a playful spelling of stickies, the Australian slang for sweet dessert wines? I doubted that. So what is Stikky Wine all about exactly? […]

Photo of eight of Starfield Vineyards wines lined up on a table with soil samples, and Sierra Spice with trees in the background

Starfield Vineyards: Mountain Wines from California’s El Dorado AVA

Over the years we have tasted many interesting wines made from mountain vineyards. It takes extra work to grow grapes at elevation, but mountain locations can provide significant elevation change, variable sun exposure, slope and soils all within a single estate. Starfield Vineyards is located in just such a special place. We recently received a selection of eight of their […]

Photo of Graham's 10 and 20 Year Old Tawny Port with a glass of each on a black counter

Two Tawny Ports to Warm You on a Chilly Evening

There is no denying a change of seasons is underway. Leaves are changing color and beginning to fall from the trees in earnest. Mornings are cool and damp, and although afternoons are still relatively warm, evenings are downright chilly. This is just the time of year when I begin to think about reaching for a little glass of something sweet […]

Photo of Rutherford Wine Company wines: Predator Sauvignon Blanc, Predator Chardonnay and Scott Family Estate Pinot Noir

A Taste of Predator and Scott Family Estate Wines from Rutherford Wine Company 

Rutherford Wine Company, based in Napa Valley’s Rutherford AVA, makes wine from Napa Valley and beyond. Their California portfolio includes Rutherford Ranch, Scott Family Estate, Predator, TORCIA, Rhiannon, Round Hill and Four Virtues. Today we are tasting wines from Predator and Scott Family Estate, which we received as tasting samples. Rutherford Wine Company (RWC) is owned and managed by the […]

Featured photo of a bottle of 2022 Tenuta Perano Chianti Classico DOCG and a glass of the wine on a table with a wooden chair in the background

Tenuta Perano Chianti Classico: Sangiovese with a Generous Splash of History

Today we are tasting a Chianti Classico made by Marchesi Frescobaldi, a Tuscan family with 700 years of history in the region. Tenuta Perano blends that long family history with Chianti’s traditional grape, Sangiovese, made in Chianti’s most historic region. We received this wine as a tasting sample.  The People The 30th generation of the Marchesi Frescobaldi family now manages […]

Photo of wine book "Exploring Wine Regions – México" by Michael C. Higgins, PhD on a striped tablecloth

A Wine Book Review: Exploring Wine Regions – México

Beer, tequila and mezcal may be the alcoholic beverages you most closely associate with Mexico, but Mexico is also home to wine that is pretty darn tasty according to Michael C. Higgins, PhD in his new book, Exploring Wine Regions – México. Yes, wine regions pleural. I was only aware of Mexico’s Valle de Guadalupe in Baja California before reading […]