I’m happy to see Cambria wines back at Costco. They seemed to have disappeared from the stores near me for a while. My first spotting was back in November when I found and reviewed the excellent 2012 Julia’s Vineyard Pinot, which offers big time value for under $20. This Chardonnay, priced at $16.99, carries that same theme of nicely struc
Costco Wine Cartoons by Doug Pike #20
Doug Pike is a member of the National Cartoonists Society and the author of Gone With The Wine and Dining Out — Way Out!
The Farm Winery: Superb 2011 Releases from Paso Robles
Once again, The Farm Winery in Paso Robles is offering three magnificent new releases of handcrafted wines that have been winners since we first tasted them. The trilogy consists of Touchy-Feely, a Grenache-Syrah-based blend, The Big Game, a Bordeaux/Rhone blend, and LPF, a single vineyard hillside, 100 percent Cabernet Sauvignon from old vines.
Carlisle Winery’s Exceptional Old Vine Zinfandels and Rhone Wines from Sonoma
Kendall & Mike Officer Mike and Kendall Officer launched their Carlisle Winery and Vineyards in 1998 with the goal of creating small lots of distinctive, world-class wines from some of California’s most special and unique vineyards—the old vine Zinfandel and field blends found throughout California and especially in Sonoma County. While prepar
Sonoma County Winegrowers & Vintners Release IWR Report on The Wines of Sonoma County
The Sonoma County Winegrowers and Sonoma County Vintners have made our Report #44 The Wines of Sonoma County available free of charge on its web site along with the following press release: Last summer, the International Wine Review spent two weeks here in Sonoma County meeting with grape growers, winemakers, and other industry leaders for a major
2012 Sonoma County Releases from Willowbrook Cellars
Started in 2001 by winemaker Joe Otos and two partners, Willowbrook Cellars in Sebastopol produces small quantities of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Zinfandel and Syrah. The other partners include retired technology executive John Tracy and retired sales executive Ed Sillari. While the winery’s main focus appears to be Pinot Noir, the Zinfandel
US Rosé Imports Grow Exponentially
Rosé, especially premium rosé, remains one of the hottest wine categories in the US, as we’ve reported in earlier articles. Premium rosé (>$12/bottle) imports in 2014 increased 41{b2e123e9138e25ff8232216a74205959533a608968f4eba7854f63b9364ed57d} by volume and 53{b2e123e9138e25ff8232216a74205959533a608968f4eba7854f63b9364ed57d} by value. This co
Corison Cabernet 25 Vintage Vertical Tasting
Coriston Cabernet 25 Vintage Vertical Tasting Cathy Corison celebrates 25 years of her eponymous Napa Valley Cabernet with her current release of the 2011 vintage. In a special event hosted at the Corison winery some of us were able to taste all 25 vintages. 4 of the first 5 vintages were poured from magnum. The remaining 21 wines came from 750s. I
Champagne & Patisserie: An Interview with Cheryl Wakerhauser, Pix Patisserie
Champagne & Patisserie An interview with Cheryl Wakerhauser of Portland’s Pix Patisserie by Elaine Chukan Brown Walk into Cheryl Wakerhauser’s red damask–walled Portland patisserie, and the first thing you’ll notice are the empty Champagne bottles surrounding counters filled with multicolored macarons, chocolates and fancy desserts. “Bubbles ex
The Launch of a New Label: Grimm’s Bluff
Grimm’s Bluff Vineyard, Happy Canyon of Santa Barbara looking into Grimm’s Bluff Vineyard & olive grove from the hilltop above, Nov 2014 Before he and his wife Aurora planted it, “this was all native grasses,” Rick Grimm tells me as I step onto their ranch, Grimm’s Bluff. Grimm’s Bluff stands at the southern
The Billy Collins Writing Challenge: Wine Writers Taking Themselves Seriously (and Making Fun) #WWS15
Writing as Writers Last week wine writers and editors from around the world flew to Napa Valley for the Napa Valley Wine Writer Symposium to learn together how to better our work as writers. We were urged by Dave McIntrye, wine writer of the The Washington Post, to remember that wine is the adjective that modifies the noun writer. Our job first is
Seek the Love of Strangers: Billy Collins on Writing
Billy Collins on Writing Last week Billy Collins addressed the Napa Valley Wine Writer Symposium in a key note address with his thoughts on writing. Following are some ideas he shared. What it Means to Write In considering various forms of writing, Collins admitted to differences in his level of comfort versus insecurity. “The prose writer in
Furmint Adventures Episode 10: Gróf Degenfeld Winery
Checkmate, lushes! I have very fond memories of filming this week’s episode of my Furmint Adventures. But then, if you can’t recall a beautiful day in Tokaj, eating gourmet fare and drinking Gróf Degenfeld wine at their historic hotel with lovely winemaker Vivien Ujvári (who, incidentally, is into prog rock; for that alone, she is a cha
DOMAINE MARCHAND FRÈRES Gevrey-Chambertin Vieilles Vignes 2012 $65 (Wine Spectator)
A silky, beautifully pure Burgundy red
QUINTA DO VALE MEÃO Douro Meandro 2012 $25 (Wine Spectator)
A sinewy, taut, lithe Portuguese red
WINE & SOUL Douro Pintas Character 2012 $40 (Wine Spectator)
A silky, luscious, dense Portuguese red