Indian Summer Here it is the second week of October and we’re still experiencing our Indian summer. The weather is still warm enough to enjoy dinner on the patio and sip a little wine. Perfect for roast chicken and a glass of one of my favorites, Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Galévan Châteauneuf-du-Pape 2009 Winemaker Coralie Goumarre took over [...]
Viña Eguia Reserva Rioja 2007 A tempranillo reserve. Aged in in oak barrels for 24 months and another two years in the bottle. Ruby red color. Aromas of vanilla, red and black berries, with hints of leather and licorice. Flavors of cherry, plum and spice with hints of oak and vanilla. Medium bodied but well [...]
What’s Hot Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay have become yesterday’s news and Malbec and Riesling have replaced them as the most popular wines. There are several reasons. For one thing, wine drinkers are becoming more knowledgeable about wine. Newspapers have food and wine sections, and websites – like Twisting Vines, offer wine reviews and suggestions for [...]
Oprah’s Favorite Wine Being one of the world’s wealthiest people, Oprah can pretty much afford any wine she likes. Surprisingly, some of her favorite wines are produced by a boutique winery in Napa Valley. Blackbird Vineyards is a relative newcomer to Napa Valley – producing it’s first vintage in 2003. And, typical of the area, [...]
Paso Robles Zinfandel Opolo Vineyards was started by two wine lovers who lived next door to each other in Camarillo, CA. In 1999 Dave Nichols and Rick Quinn produced their first commercial crush under the Opolo label. Their first wines were Merlot, Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, Sangiovese, Zinfandel, and Muscat Canelli. Opolo now has 270 acres [...]
It’s Not Just The Weather The 2010 growing season is now being called the worst-ever harvest. Sonoma seems to have gotten the worst of it. Because the fruit was on the vine longer than normal, and the rainy season has begun, a lot of the fruit has suffered from mold. Some vineyards have suffered 100 [...]
Not Just Any Blend The world of wine is changing and like everything else, we enjoy wine trends. I’ve recently noticed that blends are becoming more popular. There are different reasons. For one, they can be more cost effective to produce than varietals – something the industry is thinking about these days. But the main [...]
A Crazy Year for Wine Just like California and Oregon, the Washington State wine grape harvest has been delayed – by about 2 weeks. The harvest reports that have come in are all very positive. The cooler temps, and longer time on the vine have made for very flavorful fruit. While California growers worried about [...]
Continue reading about 2010 a Great Vintage Year for the West Coast
2010 Could Turn Out to be One of the Best California Vintages in Years It was touch and go in August and September when vineyards were reporting that grapes were not ripening due to the unusually cool summer. Growers were worried that leaving the fruit on the vine until October could be disastrous if the [...]
Continue reading about The Great Late California Grape Harvest
From BBC News 30 September 2010 French thieves steal entire Cabernet Sauvignon vineyard Thieves in France have broken into a vineyard and stolen an entire crop of Cabernet Sauvignon grapes, say police. They struck in Villeneuve-les-Beziers on Sunday night, taking advantage of a full moon and using a harvesting machine to seize 30 tonnes of [...]
