Author: Nancy (CSW)

Second Brumaire Feature Photo

The Second Brumaire: A Tasting of Natural Wine

Quite by accident I stumbled upon the announcement of an upcoming natural wine tasting in Oakland, California on March 12, 2017. The event, called The Second Brumaire, will be held at the Starline Social Club from 12 – 5 pm, is open to the public and costs $20 to attend. Below is a list of wineries from Europe and the […]

Adler Fels Wines

Adler Fels Chardonnay & Pinot Noir: Making a Case for Blending Between Wine Regions

When I think of a blended wine, I think first of a wine made by blending different varieties, as in a Bordeaux or in a Rhône-style wine. Blending multiple varieties allows for greater complexity and balance in the finished wine. Blending of vintages, as in the production of a non-vintage Champagne or sparkling wine, allows for consistency from year-to-year…a house style. But, it is also possible to blend wines of the same variety from different regions to produce wines of balance and elegance. This is the tack taken by negotiant winery Adler Fels, established in 1979, with great success in the two wines we tasted.

Jansz Premium Rose and Cheese Sables

A Savory Pairing for Your Valentine

Yes, savory. If you’re looking to pair wine with something sweet (other than your Valentine) then you’ve landed on the wrong blog post. Another search will yield lots of articles giving you wine pairings with chocolates or desserts. In fact, you will probably find lots more pairings with something sweet than savory. That’s the very reason I’m suggesting a savory […]

Brandade de Morue and Lirac

Brandade de Morue and a Lovely Lirac #winePW

Cindy Rynning who blogs at Grape Experiences, threw down the challenge for this month’s Wine Pairing Weekend group of bloggers: Comfort food and wine. This should have been really easy, who doesn’t love comfort food? I certainly do. The problem for me was choosing just one dish. So many came to mind, I couldn’t focus on just one. I delayed, […]

Luxury Wines from Bodegas Salentein

This is the third group of wines from Salentein we have had the pleasure to review. In all, we have tasted nine wines produced by Bodegas Salentein from their high-elevation vineyards in Argentina’s Valle de Uco. This last group of wines is from their Luxury Range of wines. We have saved the best for last!

Super Bowl Wines

Wine to Accompany Your Super Bowl Celebration

Let me just get this out of the way at the very beginning of the post. We are not football fans. Heresy, I know. Football fans, please forgive us. We just don’t watch the game faithfully, every Sunday, during what seems like an ever-expanding season. We do, however, look forward to the Super Bowl. We whip up some of our favorite munchies and, there is always wine.

Windhoek Featured Photo

Welcome to Namibia: Exploring Windhoek on Foot

  That first gin and tonic, sipped in the rooftop bar of the Hilton Windhoek Hotel tasted better than any in recent memory. It wasn’t because the gin was handcrafted in small batches, rather, it was because after 35 hours of travel we had reached our destination. Namibia. We were lured back to Africa by the expansive beauty of the Namib […]

Salentein Reserve Wines

Reserve Wines from Bodegas Salentein

I have to say, after tasting this range of wines from Bodegas Salentein, I’m developing a affection for Argentinian wine, at least for those made by Salentein. This is the second collection of wines we’ve tasted (their Killka wines were the first), and we have one more group after this. With each group of wines we have gained an appreciation for the style and quality of the wines produced by Bodegas Salentein.