When was the last time you read a critics review of a movie, book, play, restaurant, television show or anything else for that matter that didn’t have an author’s name associated with the review? Better question is why would you read, let alone take seriously, an anonymous critique of a creative effort? This is the problem with Consumer Reports wine reviews. They don’t list their "expert" critics. In the latest issue Consumer Reports takes on wine, as they annually. It’s…

Have you ever wondered if all the talk, debate, careful swirling, sniffing, sipping and the following ratings and reviews of wine is really just about justifying an excessive "love of of the buzz"? A way of putting an intellectual cover on regular intoxication? I think a lot of people who see wine geeks do things things and talk the way we do have this suspicion about us. I know I had the same suspicion when I read an article in…

For a good while now Anderson Valley, a remote valley not far from the Pacific Coast in Mendocino County, has been my favorite Pinot Noir producing region. Everything about the narrow valley conspires to produce Pinot Noir of great character. Today, the SF Chronicle’s wine section has a review of a number of Pinot Noirs from Anderson Valley. The set of reviews includes those wineries that worked to make a name for Anderson Valley Pinot such as Handley Cellars, Husch…

Love Pinot Noir? Just getting into it? Then you need to read the latest excellent article on that most flirtatious of wines from Forbes wine columnist Nick Passmore who offers up "25 Great American Pinot Noirs" to his readers. Nick takes on the really thorny question: Just what is the difference between California and Oregon borne Pinot Noirs. I like his answer. I’ll let you read the story to get at it. But, what does Nick love about pinot? "Pinot’s…

I received the following email today: "Tom, wonderful blog. But I don’t understand why you don’t review wines. You seem to have lots of wine experience. Why not give us a few reviews to chew (sip?) on?" Frankly, I’ve always been one of those people who respect critics. Theater, art, movie, wine, critics of all sorts. There is a special brand of critics that make a profession out of understanding the discipline they review and critique. They understand the history…