WHERE HAS NAPA VALLEY GONE?

LONG TIME PASSING WHEN WILL WE EVER LEARN? As I look back on the changes in Napa Valley over the last 40 years since my friends and I first started going there in the early 1970s, I cannot help but reflect on the great Pete Seeger song “Where Have All The Flowers Gone?”. This song […]

THANKSGIVING PAST – 2011

Thanksgiving has come and gone for another year. I trust all of you had a wonderful celebration. We certainly did. As I promised in my Thanksgiving article (to read that article which includes recipes click here), here are notes on the wines we enjoyed with our Thanksgiving meal and other wines that we enjoyed with […]

Five Lovely Red and White Wines from Northern California

The five wines tasted here from Northern California were a delightful surprise to me. My palate usually leans toward European wines. I like earth, unadulterated purity, varietal correctness, balanced alcohol and wines that are made to be aged.

Is “Sanity” Returning To The Market?

Is “Sanity” is returning to the market? Recently I have received offers on 2006 Petrus and Ausone that are down about two-thirds from the peak. These are wines that received scores “only” in the low to mid-90s. So far four figure pricing only holds in Robert Parker-anointed, best of the century (frequently twice, thrice a decade) vintages.

Retrospective Review: Volume I, Number 2 (October-November 1979)

California Chardonnay

After taking California Pinot Noir in our first issue, we turned to California Chardonnay as the focus of our second issue. But, unlike Pinot Noir, Chardonnay was already wildly popular as a generally fruity, oaky, easy-to-drink beverage.