Becky Sue Epstein

1 min read

Fattoria Paradiso sits in Emilia-Romagna, a region of Italy that is just east of Tuscany, so it is not surprising that many of their great wines are made with the same grape as Chianti, Montepulciano and Brunello: sangiovese. In this case, the wine is made with sangiovese grosso, the traditional Read More

2017 Gary Farrell Russian River Valley Pinot Noir, Sonoma County, Martaella Vineyard

Becky Sue Epstein

Features

1 min read

After my one night stand with Gary Farrell’s Pinot Noir from McDonald Mountain Vineyard, I was ready to settle down by the time I got to Martaella Vineyard. And it is a more settled type of wine, with more body and gravitas. This is pinot noir with many of the Read More

2020 Gorgo San Michelin – Custoza DOC, Vino Biologico

Becky Sue Epstein

Features

1 min read

A classic white wine blend from a little-known area near the famed Lake Garda, in the Veneto region of Italy. The wine is medium-light bodied, with a whisper of pineapple in the aroma, more light tropical & citrus notes on the palate, and a lightly-mineral, crisp finish. This is an Read More

2017 Gary Farrell Russian River Pinot Noir, Sonoma County, McDonald Mountain Vineyard

Becky Sue Epstein

Features

1 min read

Drink up, and move on. Have you ever fallen in love with someone’s beauty and vitality, enjoyed them to the hilt all evening – only to find the attraction had dissipated by morning? That’s the experience I had with this Pinot Noir by Gary Farrell Winery, wonderful as an aperitif; Read More

Penelope Bourbon: How to Create Your Own American Whiskey

Becky Sue Epstein

Spirits

3 min read

Why does someone start a bourbon brand named Penelope Bourbon? Are you sitting at home in New Jersey, thrilled that you and your wife are going to finally have a baby, talking with your childhood best friend, and the subject of bourbon just happens to come up? Perhaps. And if Read More

How Did the “Tokay” Grape Disappear?

Becky Sue Epstein

Wine Spotlight

2 min read

Twenty years ago, there were three different, fairly well-known European grapes commonly referred to as “tokay” (with various spellings); today there is only one. These three grapes came from three separate countries: Italy, France and Hungary. With the launch of the European Union in the mid-1990s, grape names have been Read More

An Unexpected Italian White Wine: Friulano

Becky Sue Epstein

Features

2 min read

From the organic Aquila del Torre Winery in the extreme northeastern region of Italy Imagine a wine that is layered and deep, echoing the soil and the hillside terroir where it is grown. And this is a white wine – perhaps not exactly what you might be expecting, since more Read More

2019 Los Vascos Cromas Carmenère Gran Reserva

Becky Sue Epstein

Reviews

1 min read

You’re going to need a bigger glass. Not just because you’ll want to drink more of this wine, but because it shows much better in a glass with a large bowl. Though the carmenère grape in this Chilean wine originally came from Bordeaux (as does the parent wine company, Barons Read More

Author Becky Sue Epstein