Portfolio tastings from big importers and distributors like Frederick Wildman & Sons can be daunting. Imagine 102 tables and up to 10 wines at each table, which was the lineup at the September 2011 tasting in New York. And if you limit yourself to about 60 wines, as I do, well, you have to pick your spots. So I picked...
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In the last newsletter, I highlighted some favorites from Winebow’s fall portfolio tasting. This time, some gems from Weygandt Selections, based in Rhinecliff, NY. (845-516-4175; weygandtselections.com) Looking for some good wines for Thanksgiving dinner? You can’t get much better than Gruner Veltliner and Riesling. Kurt...
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Winebow, an importer and distributor based in Montvale, NJ, has one of the bigger portfolio tastings in the fall. Here are some of my favorites at this year’s tasting in September. California has been getting a lot of press about its 2009 Pinot Noir vintage. But Oregon’s 2009 Pinots are no slouches. Chehalem 3 Vineyard Pinot...
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Frontenac, Marquette and La Crescent are not French Canadian explorers but grape varieties developed in Minnesota and Quebec to produce quality wines in Vermont’s climate. Yes, they do make wines in Vermont. And some of them are pretty darned good. If you want to find out more about Vermont wines, join me and Sean Buchanan,...
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While most Italian-Americans (like me) trace their roots to Southern Italy, much of what Americans know about Italian wine and food comes from Central and Northern Italy (Tuscany, for example). That’s changing. In September, I visited Calabria, the toe of Italy’s boot, with journalists and food and wine buyers as guests of the...
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Almost exactly 14 years ago, after attending a tasting at the monthly meeting of the Wine Media Guild in New York, I first wrote about New Zealand wines in my weekly column in the Newark Star Ledger. NZ wines were relative newcomers to the American market, so much so that when I was writing the column, I found out that many of the...
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