Blog Index

James Laube

Your Thoughts on What Matters wIth WIne

Posted: 01:32 PM ET, 06/04/08

Last night I hung out with a bunch of Sonoma wine folks at Wine Spectator's "Bring Your Own Magnum" party, held at the Healdsburg Hotel, home of Dry Creek Kitchen and chef Charlie Palmer, in Healdsburg, Calif. Read more

Harvey Steiman

That's Some Spicy Shiraz

Posted: 10:40 AM ET, 06/04/08

When Harold McGee, writing for the New York Times' food section, mentioned that Australian wine researchers have identified the chemical component that makes some Shiraz smell like peppercorns, it sent me to my own tasting notes to see how many times I used "pepper" as a descriptor. Read more

James Laube

Two Aces from a New Napa Winery

Posted: 04:22 PM ET, 06/03/08

You never know where the tips will come from.

Mitch Johnson, the golf pro at Napa Valley Country Club, introduced me to Shibumi Knoll winery, and I’m glad he did.

“Hey, you should try this Cabernet,” Mitch insisted a couple of weeks ago. Read more

Kim Marcus

Big Plans and Dreams, and an Impressive New Red in the Douro

Posted: 06:49 PM ET, 06/02/08

Just north of Portugal's city of Regua, the gateway to the Douro, lies Quinta do Vallado. This is one of the estates that I visited six years ago, and today it reflects the scale of change that is sweeping the Douro. Since 2002, majority owner João Ferreira has overseen an impressive expansion and modernization of the winery, as well as the addition of guest rooms and culinary programs. Read more

Harvey Steiman

Nuts for Pizza and Wine

Posted: 01:41 PM ET, 06/02/08

Inspired by my pizza odyssey earlier this year, I have been playing around with baking pizza in my kitchen. I know, I know. There's no way I can generate enough heat in my electric oven to make a true Neapolitan pizza, but I can use a pizza stone and turn out a tasty version of a margherita, employing good Italian San Marzano tomatoes, fior di latte mozzarella, fresh basil, excellent extra-virgin olive oil and Peter Reinhart's detailed recipe for pizza dough. Read more

James Molesworth

St.-Joseph by the Ton

Posted: 11:32 AM ET, 06/02/08

“Like it?” I asked, my standard question to Nancy when I pour her a wine. I always serve the wines blind, not as trickery, but to ensure an honest opinion.

“A lot,” she said, with a big smile before issuing her usual response: “How much?”

“Under $30 when you buy by the case,” I said. Read more

James Suckling

Cults Shine in 2003 Against Top Bordeaux

Posted: 10:33 AM ET, 06/02/08

I am not so sure what it proved, other than that California cult wines are as good, or better, than the best of Bordeaux in a given vintage. But it’s fascinating to see how, in a blind tasting, the top wines from the two different regions can be very, very hard to differentiate from one another – especially when the Bordeaux come from a hot and ultra-ripe vintage such as 2003. Read more

Bruce Sanderson

Innovation in Hungary

Posted: 10:28 AM ET, 05/30/08

In my 15 years with Wine Spectator, I have often heard rumblings about improvements in the quality of the wines of Eastern Europe. Most of my tastings of these wines over that period proved disappointing. However, one area has moved forward by leaps and bounds (thanks in large part to foreign investment): Hungary's Tokaj region. Read more

Kim Marcus

Big Reds with a Lot of Soul

Posted: 10:01 AM ET, 05/30/08

On Sunday, I meet Sandra Tavares and her husband Jorge Borges at the Douro’s most exciting new restaurant, called D.O.C., which borders the river in the small village of Folgosa. It is run by a chef of bantam-rooster energy by the name of Rui Paula. Read more

James Laube

The Dirt on Unworthy, Funky Wines

Posted: 02:08 PM ET, 05/29/08

A couple of weeks ago I shared some of the superlatives I typically use in tasting notes to describe outstanding wines, those that score 90 points or higher.

A reader asked for and shall now receive some of the terms that typically show up in reviews for wines that dip below the 80-point mark. Read more

- Page: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 -