Week of May 21st – May 27th
Meg Maker posted a well-written and very informative article on tasting wine. You can also check out my handy resource on “How to Taste Wine“.
With Moscato gaining popularity (also here and here) (Gamliel Kronemer recently reviewed some good Israeli Moscato wines (all better than the blue-bottled abomination), also providing a few nice Moscato-based cocktail recipes), Bev Media explores the recent surging popularity of sweet red wines. Interestingly, Gary Vaynerchuk predicted this years ago on Episode #204 of now defunct Wine Library TV. It appears that, sadly, he was right…
As more and more [Israeli] wineries (like Tzora) are focusing on the importance of terroir, Robert Joseph discovers how little the average consumer actually cares.
As screw caps turn up on more and more quality wines, recent research yielded the ability to put a screw cap on a bottle of sparkling wine. While I appreciate the scientific progress, personally I’m a sucker for the romantic popping of Champagne Corks.
W. Blake Gray discusses how much influence ones personal taste has in wine judging. While it shouldn’t be influential, it would be nonhuman for it not to…
In his typical style of cutting to the chase, The Wine Curmudgeon lays bare the truth behind five wine “untruths”.
Navigating the hoopla, Tom Wark philosophizes about the purpose of wine and comes up with the simplest reason of all: “wine is for pleasure”.
Period of May 7th – May 20th
I was profiled in Adam Montefiore‘s round-up of writers who are currently covering the Israeli and kosher wine world.
Some truly thought-provoking articles (here and here) on the ethics and potential conflicts of interest in today’s wine writing & criticism by Steve Heimoff & Andrew Jefford
Rating wine = bad science? @1WineDude discusses the fallacy of scores from a scientific perspective.
Benjamin Wallace, author of the Billionaire’s Vinegar (which is being turned into a movie starring Brad Pitt), tackles the most interesting wine fraud controversy of the hour – the Rudy Kurniawan saga
Eldad Levy continues his quest after Israel’s Icon Wines with a great write-up and detailed vertical tasting of one of Israel’s iconic wines – the Yarden Cabernet Sauvignon
I was interviewed on WineGuyMike’s radio show about kosher wine.
Very informative piece on the Champagne process BEFORE the bubbles “Secrets of Champagne’s Vins Clairs”
Decanter’s Andrew Jefford pens a great article on the importance behind the where & why of vineyard location: “Vineyard Existentialism“. A bit more on the importance of terroir.
The always biting and funny HoseMaster takes on Wine Tasting Etiquette with his personalized Guide to Tasting Room Etiquette
The Wine Curmudgeon discussed the importance of quality wine glasses, but cautions against going crazy with more on that here. My own article on the topic agrees with him.
With the release of his new book The Juice: Vinous Veritas, Jay McInerney sits down with Slate’s Troy Patterson for a discussion on life and the fruit of the vine.
With more and more wine purchasing moving online, Tom Wark provides a quick and helpful primer on buying wine online.
Week of April 30 – May 6th
While we have discussed wine and food pairing in the past, Eric Asimov of the New York Times pens a great article on pairing cheese with red wine.
Lettie Teague at the Wall Street Journal discusses various wine-storage options and explains the pros & cons of each. I use a Euro Cave in the house and have a natural off-site cellar at a relative’s house. What do you use?
Deemed one of the most powerful people in the wine world by CNBC during a show on the “Costco Craze“, Costco’s wine buyer Annette Alvarez-Peters indicates that “wine is no different than toilet paper“. Wine enthusiasts go nuts (also here, here & here) and Stephen Eliot provides an intelligent and thoughtful round-up.
Responding to a handy little Wine Glossary unfortunately titled “You too can talk like a wine snob“, Jo Diaz pens a thoughtful discourse on wine snobbery.
As Steve Heimoff discusses Robert Parker’s waning influence, in an interview for Sommelier magazine, the world’s most powerful critic, discusses his worldview (subscribers only), the future of the Wine Advocate, his recent scandals and lashes out at Alice Feiring calling her a charlatan and likening her to a snake-oil salesman for her push of “natural wines”. 1 Wine Dude (great blog BTW) discusses.
Basking in Hip-Hop love, Moscato continues to surge in popularity with the blue bottled abomination selling 400,00 cases annually. In a bald-faced attempt to capitalize on the popularity, Gallo decries May 9th as National Moscato Day.