For If you’re holding a Memorial Day cookout this weekend, consider making Napa Valley’s Purple Heart red wine the guest of honor. It’s not only good, it serves a worthy cause. The Bordeaux-style blend recognizes the sacrifice and service of U.S. military members and promotes the Purple Heart Foundation, a nonprofit which provides assistance to […]
Flavor of the day
Lefty or Righty?: Six seductive Chablis Premier Cru
There’s Chardonnay and then there’s Chablis, a dry white wine and also the name of the Bourgogne’s northernmost district from which it comes. Chablis is a wine that easily accentuates a sense of place (terroir). While Chablis typifies feminine elegance — seductive floral aromas, pure flavors — it’s structured around high acidity (a result of […]
Wine for the course: 14 Hands Kentucky Derby Red Blend
jcampanini@lowellsun.com The 142nd running of the Kentucky Derby is 16 days away, and I’m excited. That’s because I already have a winner — not the winning horse — but the winning wine. Once again, I’ll be drinking 14 Hands Winery’s Limited Release Kentucky Derby Red Blend with grapes sourced from Washington State’s Columbia Valley. The […]
Missing mom and her toast of Sauvignon Blanc
There’ll be one less one wine glass on the Easter dinner table this year. My mother, Dorothy May (Fuscellaro) Campanini, passed away during the final week of January. She would have turned 97 on March 15. The architect — and cook — of every family celebration and holiday meal for 70 consecutive years — mom’s […]
Easter wines? Experts make their selections
If you’re looking for Easter wine selections, here are 19 to consider from my team of local experts. Buy local and enjoy! Andrea DiFiore, Andover Classic Wines • Vietti Barbera d’Asti Tre Vigne, $19.99 — The Tre Vigne Barbera has a gorgeous ruby-purple color with ripe red cherry aromas followed by hints of mineral and […]
Unique grapes that yield stunning new wines
I consider spring a time of rebirth for lots of things, including my palate. Searching out exciting new wines is a favorite past-time, especially those made from unfamiliar grapes and innovative winemakers. Here are three discoveries to put on your white wine list. • Zymé From Black to White, Veneto 2014, $19.99 — Celestino Gaspari […]
Bixio Poderi's brave new world of Italian reds
If I had to select a Best of Show at the recent 2016 Boston Wine Expo, it would be Bixio Poderi, a small family owned winery (7.2 acres of vineyards) located in the heart of the Valpolicella Classico zone in Italy’s Veneto region. In truth, I sampled less than 3 percent of the 800 wines […]
Domaine Drouhin wines thriving in Burgundy, Oregon
Can “New World” Oregon wines match the quality of “Old World” Burgundy wines? For Veronique Drouhin, the winemaker for Domaine Joseph Drouhin’s global operations here and in France, the answer isn’t complicated. It’s not a competition of Burgundy vs. Oregon, she says. Instead, it’s bringing out the best of two uniquely different terroirs located a […]
Boston Wine Expo 2016: Something special for everyone
For those of you who’ve never been to the annual Boston Wine Expo, this is the year to make your debut. It’s the 25th anniversary of this classic event and its founders, the Boston Guild of Oenophilists, have come up with a spectacular program for the weekend of Feb. 13-14. Come to think of it, […]
Balletto Pinot Noir is worth the adventure
I had the good fortune of tasting several wonderful wines over the holidays, and it is with a sense of sadness I see all the decorations coming down. The parties are over… but the palate lives on! Drinking good Pinot Noir remains one of my lifelong pursuits. Finding the most sensuous, enduring taste — at […]
