Archive for the ‘Wine Education’ Category
I knew next to nothing about American grown Fiano, Montepulciano and Aglianico. And I'm willing to bet the vast majority not only of wine drinkers, but winemakers, know next to nothing about American grown Fiano, Montepulciano and Aglianico. This next-to-nothing-knowledge is part of what drove Arthur Przebinda to create three new websites: Enjoy FianoEnjoy MontepulcianoEnjoy Aglianico As Arthur puts it: "These sites are intended to connect passionate North American growers and winemakers with wine enthusiasts who may or may not…
I'm been thinking a lot about Time Travel of late. I've determined that it isn't possible. But a curious mind's best reaction to "it isn't possible" really must be "the next best thing". Having what I like to think of as a curious mind, I got to thinking, maybe old wine is the next best thing to traveling in time. At first glance, this line of reasoning seems promising. Assuming the wine is relatively undisturbed since its bottling, what you…
Here's something very interesting that could not have been done in the pre-digital age: Crowd Sourcing Winemaking Decisions. This is what Silversmith Vineyards, located in Mendocino County's Redwood Valley, is doing and it looks like a pretty cool project. Imagine outsourcing to your crowd decisions like: 1. What varietal to make2. When to pick?3. Pump over or punch down4. What type of yeast to use?5. When rackings of the wine should happen6. Should the wine be filtered and if so,…
It is a truism that to understand where we are, one must understand where we were. For folks who wonder just how the American system of alcohol control and regulation became the protectionist racket it currently is and how wholesaler middlemen in every state came to control which laws and regulations are enacted, you could do much worse than watching Ken Burns' new three part documentary, "Prohibition". The first installment of "Prohibition" aired last night and undertook to explain the…
Wine Country beckons to Bay Areans looking for a nearby getaway as well as wine lovers the world over. But if you are like most visitors to Grapeland, your weekend will have you lined up elbow-to-elbow at well-traveled winery tasting rooms, browsing and buying grape-shaped trinkets and eating at the same fancy Wine Country restaurants as the couple that muscled by you at the bar at the last tasting room you visited that day. The solution is to get off…
