I wasn't always a wine drinker. The first thing I liked to drink was vodka: vodka with cranberry juice, or a Black Russian with a slice of lime. Now, though, I am entirely too hip to drink vodka. I sneer at vodka, and at people who drink vodka. If I
“This is the new part of the cellar”, says Nikolaus Saahs with a wry smile as we walk around the extraordinary gothic basement of his family's estate - Nikolaihof. It's “only” 400 years old, compared to the rest which dates from the Roman era (c. 1,880 years ago). I can't
Why doesn't a glass of water smell like anything? Or a bowl of sugar? And why does a glass of wine smell like so many things? For something to smell like anything, two conditions must be satisfied. One: it must contain volatile molecules. Two: those molecules must trigger olfactory receptors.
It was a great summer for drinking second wines. During Vinexpo in June, there was the vibrant 2014 Fleur de Pédseclaux, sampled from the barrel at the reawakened château’s dazzling new winery in Pauillac, just across the road from the Rothschilds. Then there was Silvio Nardi’s Rosso di Montalcino at a dinner
Perhaps the most vivid memory of my wine training is of repeated olfactory forays into containers stuffed with leather, lavender, grass, beef jerky, etc., in order to discover signature wine aromas and flavors. Though it may be cliche to use the term wine epiphany, I certainly had my fair share
That California’s Livermore Valley is largely off the radar for wine geeks and collectors is one of the more bizarre turns in the history of U.S. wine. While rarely mentioned in the same breath as Napa Valley, Sonoma County, or Paso Robles, it could easily be argued that no other
Do you know the grape balbiani? Ever read about a grape named sezannensis, or one called oiriki? Even if you’re an “expert” wine lover, curious to learn about everything in the wine world, it’s likely that you’ve never heard these names. Don’t worry if you don’t know about them. They
I’m not a trinket person. I don’t spend much time in gift shops looking for souvenirs to bring home. While bottles of wine purchased in a region can bring back great memories, once they’re gone they’re gone. For me, one way to preserve the memory of a trip is learning