Vino 101

It’s been rather calm and quite in Northern California of late. Mother nature is giving us a break from natural disasters and has turned her hell raising ways onto the continent of Australia. For months now Australia has been suffering with continuing wildfires which have to date destroyed over 10 million hectares. Phoebe French provides a list of events and organizations you can make donations to...

It’s been a tough couple of weeks for Californians. Bill and I can add evacuee to our resumes as residents of Sebastopol and many other areas of Sonoma County were evacuated due to the Kincade wildfire . Firefighters made their stand at the edge of the foothills as the fires moved downhill towards the densely populated town of Windsor . Many lessons have been learned since the Tubbs fire in the fa...

Sonoma County wine world recently lost another former winery owner. Chris Smith of the Press Democrat pens an obituary about Robert Rue , who was farming old Zinfandel/ field blend vineyards as a side hustle before the term was popular. We’ve suspected that litigation of this sort was on the horizon and now we have two sizable California vintners suing several insurance companies. The vintners cla...

Dorthy Vasser has been growing wine grapes in Redwood Valley for 53 years. Dorthy and her husband John started grape growing in 1964. John passed away in 2008 and Dorthy continued to farm their 26 acre Mendocino ranch. Dorthy has decided to sell her land and Lewis Perdue goes into great detail as to how Constellation Brands may have had a hand in her decision to get out of farming. It’s a very sad...

Wine journalist Jamie Goode recently posted a short blog about three of the world's largest wineries. Fred Swan felt that much of the criticism of the blog on social media was negative so he wrote a piece in defense of E.J. Gallo . Having visited several Gallo facilities in the past he offers some great insight into their operations. W. Blake Gray asks, "What's the point in fining a multi-billiona...

Bill and I start this weeks podcast talking about British Master of Wine Tim Atkin’s article Why You Shouldn’t Care Much About Wine. Exploring various topics Tim’s tongue-in-cheek writing style will bring a smile to your face. Jillian Kramer writes a post about What Happens To Your Body When You Quit Drinking. We have a good discussion about all the good things that happen when one abstains from a...

It’s summertime and Europeans have experienced some extreme temperatures. Highs which have eclipsed the torrid marks set by the heatwave of 2003, that killed thousands of people. A lot has been learned since 2003 and the European countries seem better equipped to handle the large high pressure weather systems that cover the continent during the summers. Marshall Shepherd writing for Forbes tries t...

Dr. Vinny of the Wine Spectator fields a question about whether or not one should swirl a glass of sparkling wine. It’s a touchy subject with sparkling wine afficionados. Are you a swirler? For some reason not everyone can do the right thing when it comes to business. A Baltimore businessman whose job was to safeguard wine which his clients where paying him to store is awaiting sentencing after be...

One of Sonoma’s favorite tourist spots the Ravenswood tasting room has closed. The Ravenswood brand was one of 30 that was spun off by New York based Constellation Brands and purchased by E&J Gallo, but the 12 acre property and the tasting room was not part of the deal. McDonald’s, Burger King and KFC are becoming increasingly more common sights in Italy’s urban centers. Jeremy Parzen pens a p...

The final week of February 2019 was a disaster for Sonoma County residents and for business owners in the recently developed Barlow center in Sebastopol , California. The Russian River Valley suffered some of its worst flooding in decades. Bill and I both live in Sebastopol and we have a lively discussion about the floods and what the future holds for the affected areas. Brent Young writes an arti...

After 45 years in the winemaking business Merry Edwards has decided to slow down. Merry and her husband Ken Coopersmith have sold all their wine holding to the Louis Roederer Champagne  house. Roederer, a family owned business already owns three wineries in Mendocino County and plans to keep Merry around through the transition. Bushfires in Australia have been difficult this harvest season, e...

The effects of climate change are prompting farmers to look more closely at how much water they use and need to sustain their crops. Bill and I start the podcast by discussing dry farming ; the pluses and minuses. Have you ever opened up a bottle of wine, poured a glass, tasted it and thought meh? It just seemed like something was off, or worse yet it was undrinkable. Maggie Rosenberg and Trevor H...

After watching a video by Julien Miquel, Bill and I jump off onto the topic of cork taint. Julien’s insight on “What is cork taint? Why are so Many Wines Corked?” is a must see video. The iconic wine retailer Bottle Barn now has an online presence. If you already buy wines online, do yourself a huge favor and put them on your list of suppliers. There’s a six bottle minimum, but the shipping is fre...

Have you ever wondered when is the best time to drink a wine and will it get better with age? This week Bill and I discuss an article written by Courtney Schiessl titled, how to tell if your wine will age . The Cotes du Rhone region is on a four year streak of excellence . For that matter so is much of Europe. Dave McIntyre pens a thought provoking piece for the Washington Post. The premise of whi...

On this podcast Bill and I discuss the lawsuit involving Opus One Winery and one of their barrel suppliers. Joe Wagner of Copper Cane Wines keeps moving forward and is putting the finishing touches on a new bottling facility in Fairfield California. Will he continue to make and bottle his Oregon wines in California? As if you didn’t already know. San Francisco is ridiculously expensive to live in...

On this podcast Bill and I talk about the economic impact of the past few years of fires on the restaurant and wine business in Northern California. Our favorite billionaire, Liquor/ Indian gangster Vijay Mallya , who now resides in London, is vigorously fighting extradition back to India. So far so good for him and not so good for all the Indian bankers that bankrolled his alleged money launderin...

We recorded this podcast on Veteran's Day weekend so  a little politics weaved its way into the content. Bill and  I talk about the wildfires we have experienced in California this year and eventually we got around to some wine talk. And yes we've got some good wine recommendations for you as always. Cheers! Referenced in the show For Veterans Day Watch: Fallen Read the XIII Amendment Wa...

Bill and I recently had the opportunity to chat with Alex Guarachi, founder of Guarachi Wine Partners.  Guarachi Wine Partners represents sixteen brands from six countries. During our interview Alex shares how and why he entered the wine business and how he sees the industry changing. Even though he's been in the business over three decades now, his enthusiasm and passion came forth as if he'...

Jackson Family Wines makes another investmentin Oregon . What's driving the move north? Are there more mergers and acquisitions on the horizon?  Alison Spiegel gets some of the nations coolest sommeliers to drop some insider secrets. Winemakers are preparing to mount a battle against the regional government in Chablis. A proposed tar plant is the source of the conflict. Peter Gago, head winem...

The former owner of Premier Cru wines a now defunct retailer in Berkeley, California has pled guilty to running a wine Ponzi scheme and has cut a deal with federal prosecutors .    There's gold in those hill. At least that's what famed grape growers Andy and David Beckstoffer are hoping for as they work to raise the quality and notorietyof grapes grown in the Red Hills of Lake County, Ca...

On the west coast of the United States it's fire season and the Soberanes fire near Big Sur , California and a wildfire near Prosser, Washington has caused lots of concern for farmers and winery owners.   Antonio Galloni pens a wonderful piece, while offering a sobering viewpoint on the recent sale of one of Barolo's gems, Vietti Winery to American businessman Kyle Krause. Mr. Galloni also ha...

Ste. Michelle Wine Estates makes another investment in Northern California, while Jackson Family Wines adds to its portfolio of Oregon wine properties. It looks like the Robert Rue label has been retired as Venge Vineyards has purchased the property  in Russian River Valley. We're number one or are we? Check out this graphic by Decanter Magazine highlighting the top 10 wine consuming countrie...

                                                         Supermarket Champagne Deals How low can supermarket Champagne prices go in the UK and what will be the net aftereffect? Joyce Lin puts together a guide to help understand Champagne labels . Can you...

Bill and I consider what may become of the tipping tradition in America's restaurants . The ever widening wage gap between front of the house restaurant employees and back of the house workers, pending government mandated wage increases and uncertainty of the direction in which current immigration policy may head, makes operating a restaurant, risky business indeed. Is restaurateur Danny Meyer a m...

Last week one of Napa Valley's legendary winemakers passed. Peter Mondavi Sr. was an innovator and was most proud of not having to sell out to corporate interest, he steadfastly worked to keep Charles Krug Winery in family hands. We send out our thoughts and prayers to the family. Open that bottle night has come and gone. Held on the last Saturday of every February and started by wine writers Doro...