In this video, Jane Brooks Heuck, managing director of Brooks Winery, tells the secret of biodynamically crafted 2017 Riesling ($20). The Riesling was delicious and dry, with gorgeous up-front grapefruit and lemon aromatics and flavors. Also tasted the 2015 Janus Pinot Noir ($38).
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Video 3: Naseem Momtazi of Maysara Winery
Naseem Momtazi is the national sales director of Maysara Winery and one of three sisters who work in the family’s wine business. The elder Momtazis emigrated to Oregon from northern Iran after the fall of Shah Pahlavi during the 1979 Islamic Revolution. They settled in the Willamette Valley where they farm more than 500 acres […]
Video 2: Winemaker Scott Shull, Raptor Ridge Winery
In this video, Raptor Ridge Winery founder/winemaker Scott Shull describes the conditions for making his Barrel Select Pinot Noir ($30) and Temperance Hill Pinot Noir in Oregon’s Willamette Valley.
Video 1: Gabi Prefontaine, Willamette Valley Vineyards (Oregon)
Boston’s Pinot in the City event held Thursday, May 2 at The Castle at the Park Plaza hotel was a spectacular smash. Sixty wine producers from Oregon’s Willamette Valley shared their world-class Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, Riesling and Chardonnay at a magnificent tasting. I couldn’t get to every booth in my three hours of tasting, […]
Goldschmidt Vineyards measures up on Cabernet Sauvignon
Whether Nick Goldschmidt is making a $10 Malbec in Argentina or a $100 Cabernet Sauvignon in Napa Valley, the wine promises to be luscious, flavorful and silky. It’s a mark of consistency for a winemaker in demand in seven different countries and who also crafts his own labels in California, Argentina, Chile and New Zealand. […]
Kentucky Derby weekend: Run for the (pink) Rose`s
We’re “Running for the Rose`s” this week in honor of Saturday’s Kentucky Derby, America’s greatest horserace. My party drink won’t be a mint julep, however. Instead I’ll be sipping a light, refreshing, delicious pink-colored rose` and pairing it with shrimp cocktail, spring rolls, crab Rangoon and a green saladtopped with fresh strawberries. While Provence put […]
Palates thunder at ‘Volcanic Wines of Southern Italy’ tasting seminar
Most American wine drinkers are unfamiliar with Falanghina, Coda di Volpe Bianca, Aglianico and Nero D’Avola, but in southern Italy these red and white grapes are revered for their historical and viticultural significance. What also makes these grapes special is their exclusive ability to grow in volcanic, mineral-rich soils. A sip of Falanghina ( FAH-lan-ghee-na) […]
Oregon’s ‘Pinot in the City’ extravaganza to rock Boston May 2
In the early 1990s when Boston’s restaurant renaissance was first in its glory, Bill Sweat and his future wife Donna Morris were Fidelity Investments managers by day and passionate food-and wine explorers by night. Their discoveries, both in Beantown and abroad, led to a life-changing relocation to Oregon’s wine country in 2006. Today, the […]
Toast Mother Earth at The Groton Inn’s organic wine event
Now here’s a novel way to celebrate Earth Day on Monday, April 22. Head down to The Groton Inn’s Forge & Vine restaurant for its special promotion on biodynamic varietals and organic wines. That’s right: plant a tree in the morning and then drink some very unique wines from sustainable farming wineries located in Italy, France […]
Expert presentation: A feast of 24 Easter wine suggestions
This blog’s sixth annual Easter wine list is diverse and vivacious, thanks to a knowledgeable and passionate group of experts who’ve forwarded 24 recommendations for your holiday table. All listed wines are available locally or online. (See Jim Campanini’s selections at: https://thewinenovice.com/jims-easter-picks-six-wines-for-the-senses/) A bottle of wine turns a simple meal into a feast, so pairing a […]
