Cavas can be inexpensive, easy-going bubbly, but it can also be more than that. It’s worth checking out the higher-end cuvées from good producers to get a sense of that : far from being strictly creamy, with substantial pastry notes, they can also offer freshness, fine bubbles and a crisp
Dubuoef shows why it is such a dominating presence in Beaujolais. Medium purple color and nose of violets,anise, and blackberry with oak accents in the background. Tastes of dark cherry and toast on the palate with good tannic structure holding it up. Finishes well, but is not terribly lingering. A
In the world of marketing and sales, it's always good when you can keep things simple. Of course, this can be quite a challenge for an industry like the wine industry, where realities of place, grapes, vintages, styles, and terroir add up as so many variables to take into account—enough
The 2007 vintage Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is the inaugural wine from Guarachi Family Vineyards. Great choice. The wine showcases what a great winemaker, Paul Hobbs, can do in one of Napa's best years. The color is opaque, nearly black. The eighteen months it spent in new French oak show
The nose is very deep, rich with figs and espresso, with a background of cedar. The nose was only a hint of the depth of the palate. It opens with blackberries and black pepper, then opens broadly to add licorice, coffee, unsweetened chocolate, and sweeter blueberry. The wine is well-structured,
The color is very pale yellow with a caramel tinge, bubbles are small and moderately active. The nose is lovely, deep with an underlying umami richness beneath fresh pears and apples. On the palate tart apples take the lead, driven as much by bright acids as apple flavors. The apple
Cognac, the village and the AOC, is a quiet pastoral place. The village bustles at times, but primarily as a business hub and central marketplace for a largely rural community and only secondarily, it seems, as the world center for a unique iconic style of spirit. Outside of a relatively
Very pale in color, with a slight gold-green tint, and a tiny splash of bubbles that disappear immediately. The nose is a bit shy, as if two blocks away somebody cut the front yard and caught half a lemon in the mower blades. On the palate it is all citrus