Tasting notes for individual wines.
Including the word family in a winery’s name is the most direct way to indicate the enterprise is a family operation, but it’s certainly not the most creative way to do so. Eight at the Gate, however, might be the smartest way I’ve seen to include family in a winery’s name. How is that you might wonder? Well, when two […]
Brothers Stu and Charles Smith have been making wine on Spring Mountain above Napa Valley since the early 1970s. The mountainside location sets Smith-Madrone apart from the valley and so does the brothers’ winemaking style. They make Cabernet Sauvignon in an elegant, old-world style along with lively, oaked Chardonnay and Riesling — yes, Riesling, because they both really love Riesling. […]
Franciacorta is a small wine region that lies in northern Italy’s Lombardia (Lombardy) region. Only sparkling wines made here using the traditional method, metodo classico, may be called Franciacorta. Chardonnay, Pinot Nero (Pinot Noir) and Pinot Bianco are the main grape varieties. Erbamat, an indigenous white variety with naturally high acidity levels, has also been approved recently. Why should you […]
A glass of wine can be so many things. Wine can simply be a libation to quench your thirst, or it can be celebratory, or it can accompany a meal and go unnoticed. If you’re really fortunate a glass of wine will make you take note because of its style, its background story or the opportunity to learn about a […]
Every year, Beaujolais Nouveau Day falls on the third Thursday in November and celebrates the end of harvest in Beaujolais. The early release date gives consumers a first taste of the vintage. Les Vins Georges Duboeuf has been a big promoter of Beaujolais Nouveau over the years and makes a Beaujolais Nouveau, Beaujolais Nouveau Rosé and Beaujolais-Villages Nouveau. This year […]
Can you believe it is already time to begin planning for Thanksgiving? Depending on the size of your gathering you will need one or more wines to accompany your meal. Whether you plan a traditional Thanksgiving menu or one that is more modern, Domaine Bousquet has at least one wine from their broad portfolio of wines to accompany your meal. […]
When the Symington family decided to expand beyond the Douro, where they have spent five generations establishing themselves as makers of quality Port and dry red wines, they chose Portalegre. In 2017 they purchased an estate they have named Quinta da Fonte Souto. The 511-acre property has just over 100 acres of vineyards at elevations between 1600 and 1800 feet […]
Today we’re taking a virtual trip to one of my favorite Portuguese wine regions: Alentejo. This large inland region is known for sunny days, cork trees, agriculture and its wines. As with other regions in Portugal most wines are blends, but unlike other Portuguese wine regions the use of amphorae in winemaking has persisted since being introduced by the Romans. […]
Today we’re thinking of Provence, pretending we’re sitting at a shady table on a warm afternoon watching the sea and sipping rosé. We’re waiting for lunch to arrive and planning a lazy afternoon. Well, a girl can dream can’t she? The second best thing to being in Provence sipping rosé is sipping a glass of Provençal rosé at home on […]
Are you familiar with California’s Suisun Valley AVA? We weren’t until we drove an alternate route home from Napa Valley that took us over the mountains south of Napa’s Atlas Peak AVA, to Wooden Valley Road, Suisun Valley Road and through picturesque Mankas Corner before joining Hwy 12 in Fairfield. It was the Welcome to Suisun Valley AVA sign that […]
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.
