ARE YOU DRINKING ENOUGH CHAMPAGNE?

NEW RESEARCH SAYS AT LEAST THREE GLASSES OF CHAMPAGE PER WEEK CAN IMPROVE YOUR MEMORY Introduction The article below was written by Contributing Editor, Greg McCluney. It speaks to research that Champagne not only tastes good, but that it is good for you. And, Champagne is especially good  for us older folks. So that makes […]

REMEMBERING ROUSSANNE

  Introduction This article on Roussanne was written by contributing editor Greg McCluney. Greg has been writing about wine, beer, spirits, food, travel and restaurants since 1988 from his home bases in Atlanta, Georgia and Tampa Bay, Florida, traveling most of the world’s wine regions to research and taste for his reports. (To read Greg’s biography […]

PURSUING MACHU PICCHU AND THE FOOD AND WINE OF PERU

Long on my bucket list of places to visit, Peru’s City in the Clouds, Machu Picchu receives thousands of visitors from around the world every year. Twenty thousand years of history and a Wonder of the World, Machu Picchu and the lands surrounding it were home to a scientifically advanced Incan civilization.

A Mediterranean Cruise For Wine Lovers

Sipping–not shuffleboard–is the game on this boat The thought of being held captive on a ship in the middle of the Ocean sounds like a sentence of confinement for many. But things have changed on the high seas, from luxurious amenities to exotic ports of call. Cruise lines are making customized itineraries for the likes […]

Surprising New Wines from Old-World Spain

Grape growing and winemaking in Spain need little introduction. Spain is an ancient wine-producing country second only to France and Italy in production. Spanish wine is at least 3,000 years old, with vines in the Sherry region planted around 1100 BC (although the Islamic Moors put a stop to it for nearly 800 years until their defeat in 1492).

But international recognition was slow to come to Spain. The Franco regime—which was rumored to have drunk mostly French wines—did nothing to rebuild the traditions or improve the quality; in fact, the regime retarded innovation and the development of modern winemaking techniques that had swept through the rest of Europe. For this reason, most American consumers have never tasted a Spanish wine and are confused by the labels and quality laws. Since the 1970s, though, there has been an influx of new thinking, equipment and winemaking.

A Grand Experience on Michigan’s Famous Mackinac Island

Many renowned hotel properties fail to live up to their press releases, but as I would discover during my four-day visit, the world’s largest summer hotel, does not disappoint.

Forget resort casual attire. It’s coat and tie for men and dresses for the ladies (only recently were pants approved) in the Grand dining room, truly a step back in time when guests dressed for cocktails and dinner each night when on holiday. But I had been invited to the Grand for more details on their wine and food program and to meet Executive Chef Hans Werner Burtscher and the new head sommelier, Sebastian Ruggieri – not to review the dress code. I know of no other single resort that pops more than 50,000 corks in just a six-month season.

I should note that the Grand, built in 1887, stands alone in formality on this historic island summer playground. The island hosts millions of visitors during the short summer season from May through October each year, and most bring shorts, tee shirts and flip-flops in their back packs and duffels. They may pay the small fee to tour the Grand’s lobby, but they won’t be visiting the Grand Dining room.

Is Beer the Next Wine?

If you’ve slowly moved away from drinking beer toward the more interesting and varied world of wine and spirits, it may be time to revisit the beer aisle—but it won’t be for just another six-pack of Bud or Mille Lite. Things have changed in the beer world. Although U.S. wine consumption recently outpaced that of beer for the first time ever, most of that gain came from the mega brands, in terms of lost market share.

Several forces are at work to get you back to the joys of beer drinking. Local brewpubs are nothing new but they have expanded to the suburbs in most cities, bringing fresh, interesting “craft” brews to more people. And the quality seems to consistently improve. Import lines increase every year. From Belgian Ale to Oatmeal Stouts and Smoked Beers, things are getting a lot more exciting. In the case of “Extreme” beers with unheard of alcohol levels, some as high as 20 per cent, things get much more exciting.