Aug 27, 2007
So it was French and Italian researchers who have assembled the first complete genome of the grapevine. That seems apropos to me. It also seems to me that this kind of research will eventually lead to a variety of things. Not least among them is that in time grapes will be grown in more places than they are now as varieties are created to produce usable wine grapes. That means more books being published. More seminars on wine regions. More…
Aug 27, 2007
I’ve always been a "Gillette Man", thinking their razors are far better and more effective than the Schick variety. This last Saturday would have been the perfect opportunity to test out my preference. Had I possessed one of each variety, I would have happily tested them on my wrists as I sat through eight hours of Traffic School. My ass and head still ache from sitting on a hard chair for the day as I listened to a middle aged…
Aug 3, 2007
It appears that the future of wine labels may include a hefty dose of Ugly. A little "ugly" never hurt anyone, but a hefty dose of ugly is just down right….ugly. It appears there is a serious move to force nutritional labels on alcohol bottlings, including wine. It’s a Bush Administration proposal that is supported fully by The Center For Science in the Public Interest…the folks who spent time particularly in the 1990s explaining to us all why we will…
Jul 26, 2007
Do you know who Randall Dunn is? For those of you who do, bear with me. Dunn is one of the most respected winemakers in America. He built Caymus Special Selection. He defined the meaning of mountain-grown Cabernet. He helped put Howell Mountain on the viticultural map. He consulted for the likes of La Jota and Pahlmeyer. His Dunn Vineyards Howell Mountain Cabernet was identified by Jim Laube as one of a very few produced at the time to be…
Jul 20, 2007
For anyone who has not been following the attempt in Illinois to re-write the wine distribution laws in that state so that distributors are granted even more power than the state already grants them, a new development has occurred. A new association of wineries calling themselves The Illinois Winemakers Alliance has formed in part to oppose Illinois House Bill 429. HB 429 does a variety of things: 1. Allows out-of-state wineries to ship to Illinoisans2. Allows in-state wineries to ship…