If you are looking for an adventurous red wine, try the 2013 Bila-Haut Occultum Lapidem from France’s Roussillon region. It’s a blend of Syrah (50 percent), Grenache (40 percent) and Carignane (10 percent) that delivers character and complexity often found in more expensive wines from Burgundy and Bordeaux. This is the third Bila-Haut vintage I’ve […]
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Wine-tastings you can warm up to in Feb., March
For the winter weary, but wine wicked, here are several key dates to put on the calendar. On Wednesday, March 4, I will be co-hosting an Italian Wine Tasting Dinner at the United Teen Equality Center in downtown Lowell with UTEC’s culinary team, headed by Chef Sam Putnam. Seating is limited to 40 persons, so […]
Romance can be this winter's ice-breaker
What do I want for Valentine’s Day? When the Wine Goddess asked, I didn’t hesitate a reply. I want one of those mammoth snow-melting machines that Gov. Charlie Baker just purchased for the Commonwealth. She didn’t laugh. Instead she felt my — our — pain. Since the new year, 77.3 inches of snow have […]
BostonWineExpo: Beat winter blues one sip at a time
(Note to readers: This article is three parts — general story on Wine Expo features, a tips box if you go, and ticket information.) We’ve reached the mid-way point of another snowy New England winter and just this week Punxsutawney Phil made it even worse: the furry rodent predicted another six weeks of winter. Unless […]
Chilean wines with divine inspiration
Chilean winemakers are turning out better wines every year, especially big, powerful reds like Cabernet Sauvignon that soak up the rocky, mountainous terroir and deliver a spicier edge than their California counterparts. Since 1987, the Montes Alpha winery has become a force to be reckoned with. You’ve probably seen its distinctive label: a Raphael-like angel […]
Wineries jump at chance for direct sales to Massachusetts
The Massachusetts out-of-state direct wine shipping law went into effect on Jan. 1, and already more than 100 wineries have obtained licenses to ship straight to your door. Here’s the link to my story published in The Sun of Lowell on Friday explaining the change. Mass. direct wine shipping law needed no time to ferment […]
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Carignano del Sulcis: Sardinia's hidden gems
Dottore Marco Santarelli looks like a young Italian actor, more suited to making movies than growing grapes. But the 32-year-old enologist is serious about his craft — winemaker for the Santadi winery in Sardinia’s Carignano del Sulcis region. “Winemaking is very easy if the grapes grow clean,” says Santarelli, noting the less interference from the […]
The amazing story of an ageless Amarone
“If I could save time in a bottle The first thing that I’d like to do Is to save every day till eternity passes away Just to spend them with you.” — From Jim Croce’s song “Time in a Bottle” The Wine Goddess was upset. We’ve shared nearly everything in our 25 years together — […]
Bledsoe, Baker bottles score big at charity auction
Tis the season for miracles, but who’d expect they’d come in the shape of wine bottles? The four signed wine bottles I wrote about in last week’s column brought in $6,500 at the WCAP Salvation Army Radiothon. Kudos to Saturday morning talk show host Warren Shaw and his WCAP crew, Fred Simon, Artie Sutcliffe, Jerry […]
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