Albariño has its origins in the northwest corner of the Iberian Peninsula along the Atlantic Ocean near the border between Portugal and Spain. In Portugal’s Vinho Verde region, Alvarinho is often made in a lighter style and bottled with a bit of effervescence. In Galicia’s cool, wet Rias Baixas region the wines are known for their complexity and brilliant acidity. […]
Sauvignon Blanc is having a bit of a moment. Demand is so strong that, according to a recent article in the San Francisco Chronicle, some California wineries can’t keep up. The article goes on to note that Chardonnay is still the most popular white varietal wine by quite a bit, but the demand for a fresher style of white wine […]
White wine with bright, sunny flavors and rosé loaded with berry flavors pair as well with cozy sweaters as they do with a warm afternoon on the patio. We know this firsthand as we have just finished sipping two such wines from Esporão. As an added bonus both wines are an extremely good value. We received both wines as tasting […]
Cabernet Sauvignon is so well known in the wine world it’s commonly referred to by just its first name: Cabernet, or even just Cab. It’s best known as a major component of Bordeaux blends and is successfully planted worldwide. Terroir in Chile has proven to be perfect for Cabernet Sauvignon. At just over 99,000 acres, Cabernet Sauvignon represents 20% of […]
One of the many lessons I learned during weekly wine tastings at a local wine shop is that there are many very expensive bottles of wine that taste really good, especially from Napa Valley. It isn’t particularly difficult to find those wines, but what takes a bit more effort is to find those really good wines for less money. What […]
There is so much to respect about the Barra family’s commitment to growing grapes and making wine in Mendocino County. In a business climate that is seeing family operations gobbled up by large corporations at an alarming rate, BARRA of Mendocino and Girasole Vineyards remain family owned and operated after nearly seventy years. In the vineyards, the Barra family have […]
Bella Union is a brand that was established by the partners of Napa Valley’s well-known Far Niente and Nickel & Nickel wineries in 2012. The art of blending Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is the focus of the Bella Union winemaking team, in contrast to the single-variety, single-vineyard wines of Nickel & Nickel and the estate wines of Far Niente with […]
Coeur de Vigne Cabernet Sauvignon is a delicious reflection of Napa Valley’s Rutherford sub-AVA and Sullivan Rutherford Estate. The estate was established 50 years ago, with the assistance of esteemed winemaker André Tchelistcheff, a friend of the original owner, James O’Neil Sullivan. This is the second vintage of Coeur de Vigne Cabernet Sauvignon we have tasted. As with the prior […]
Hawk and Horse Vineyards is situated in California’s Red Hills Lake County AVA. Seven Lake County AVAs surround Clear Lake, one of the oldest geological lakes in North America. The Mayacamas Mountains lie to the west of Clear Lake and the Vaca Mountains to the east. Complex soils in the AVA were formed by a combination of volcanic and tectonic […]
ETTORE is an organic winery located in the Sanel Valley near Hopland in California’s Mendocino AVA. The 64-acre estate, with 35 acres of vines, has been certified organic since 2005. Today we are tasting two wines from the 2018 vintage, which we received as tasting samples. The Sanel Valley lies along the Russian River in the southern part of the […]
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.