Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category
A lot has been learned in a short time since the massive fires hit wine country. We learned just how completely a community can pull together. We’ve learned how generous neighbors can be. But I have to say, there was one lesson that was unexpected: It’s never too soon to exploit a tragedy for your own agenda. In a recent Napa Register article concerning a very controversial proposed “Oak Woodland Initiative”, one of the authors of the initiative thought it was…
The longer you live in the paradise known as Napa Valley, the more you appreciate the benefits and downside of being a resident of paradise and the more apparent the “Quality of Life Equation” becomes. And there is an equation. On The Positive Side: CLIMATE: There simply is no arguing this point: The climate in Napa Valley is a near perfect environment for humans. The air is dry, save for the quickly developing and dissipating fog, which is itself moderate and…
More Wine & Cannabis News to chew on: According to a survey of 10,000 California Cannabis users, 87% have reduced their consumption of alcohol in reaction to their cannabis use. Meanwhile, 13% have completely ended their use of alcohol. First, there is no way to spin this as good news for the wine industry. Second, anyone who is surprised by the finding that legal cannabis will negatively impact the wine industry should ask themselves how reduced sales of wine is…
In today’s New York Times Sunday Review section writer Bianca Bosker pens a very coherent defense of processed wine. In doing so, however, she notes the thing that has always confused me about Natural Wine champions. Bosker observes that adherents of the “Natural Wine” movement make a point of insisting that the wines they produce are nothing like and are an alternative to the “industrialized, big brand, manufactured, nothing-but-alcoholic-grape-juice wines”—as the Naturalistas have deemed big brand wine. It has always been a bashfest of…
Clarke’s Third Law States: Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. I take a certain comfort in the fact that Arthur C’s adage is entirely unlikely to apply to wine. And that’s a good thing because I think it applies to nearly everything else from entertainment to baby making. Sitting on the couch yesterday I looked up at my 4k Ultra, 60 inch TV screen and was entirely struck by how completely different its image is from the screen…
