Tasting notes for individual wines.
Today’s Cellar Note includes two varietal wines and a red blend that highlight the large number of grape varieties grown in Santa Barbara County. All are produced by Lucas & Lewellen Vineyards, a winery established and owned by two long-time friends and their families. All three wines, which we received as tasting samples, are sourced from Lucas & Lewellen estate […]
Are you a curious wine drinker? Do you have a keen eye for new wine regions, grape varieties or styles of wine? Then, if you haven’t already become acquainted, allow us to introduce you to the Portuguese wine region of Alentejo. This taste of five wines from Alentejo, which we received as tasting samples, includes one white and four red […]
Today’s Cellar Note takes us to the Marche region of Italy and provides a taste of Verdicchio, a grape variety closely associated with the region, which lies along the Adriatic Sea. We received both wines as tasting samples. 2017 Garofoli Macrina Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi Classico Superiore, Marche — pale straw in the glass with generous aromas of oat […]
As I sit writing this Cellar Note today’s temperature is expected to break the triple-digit mark. Strategies to keep cool will be needed. Umbrellas will be up on the patio and the misters turned on. Something cool in the glass will be required. We recently received three wines as tasting samples that will do nicely. These wines will keep you […]
The Rombauer Vineyards’ tasting room is situated overlooking the Napa Valley in St. Helena on the top level of the winemaking facility that is built into the hillside. The area is wooded and beautifully landscaped. It is the perfect place to taste and enjoy the wines of Rombauer Vineyards. I love tasting wine like this: unhurried and in a beautiful […]
Nerello Mascalese will forever be connected in my mind to Sicily and more specifically Mt. Etna. Not so much because it is, along with the white grape variety Carricante, the signature red grape of the Etna DOC (Denominazione di Origine Controllata), but because the striking natural beauty of Mt. Etna. Several years ago we spent three weeks traveling around Sicily. […]
If rosé consumption trends are any indication you may not need a reminder that this is the perfect time of year to drink pink wine. In the unlikely event that the rosé trend has escaped your notice, or if you are just looking for delicious rosé choices, then we’re pretty sure this group of rosé wines will be of interest […]
Godello, Doña Blanca, Mencía. Are these grape varieties familiar to you? They aren’t to most of us. All three are indigenous to the Iberian Peninsula and are represented in our Cellar Note today as components of the wines made by Bodegas Godelia. Godelia is situated outside the village of Cacabelos in the Spanish wine region of DO (Denominación de Origen) […]
As we become more serious about wine we find that it has become closely attached to the places we visit, the people we meet and meals we enjoy. Malbec is one of those wines for which we have particularly enjoyable memories. We were reminded of that close connection this weekend when we prepared a meal to enjoy with two bottles […]
The Lost Chapters is the name of a range of wines made by Paul Scotto and Mitch Cosentino. This dynamic duo of winemakers collaborate on twenty-odd wine labels under the Scotto Cellars umbrella of wines. Both winemakers are blending specialists. Paul considers himself a blendologist, using grape varieties to make wine with layers of flavors the way a chef uses […]
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.