Category: Education

  • HR 5034: What if Wine Were Peaches …

    HR 5034: What if Wine Were Peaches …

    All the people in other states still want your peaches. But they will not have the freedom to buy them. They will have no choice but to buy peaches from their own states, or whatever the peach distributors want to sell them. They will have no competition, so they can charge peach lovers as much as they want for their peaches.

  • If Passed, HR 5034 will Cheat Wine Consumers

    While most consumers hurried to finish taxes by the April 15th deadline, something sinister was afoot in the United States House of Representatives. A move to take away your rights to buy wine directly from the winery. To limit your choices to whatever is sold in your local store.

  • A Really Twisted Winery Owner

    Located in the Sierra Nevada Foothills of California, Twisted Oak is a terroir-based winery that specializes in delicious handcrafted wines made in the shadow of a 350-year old California Blue Oak tree. Not only is the tree the winery’s namesake, but its likeness appears on the label of Twisted Oak bottles. But it’s not just good wine that has made Twisted Oak so successful, but Stai’s clever use of a bit of “The Princess Bride” influenced themes in creating and promoting a wine persona that includes pirates, debauchery and rubber chickens.

  • Another Wine Byte 16: A Little Bit of Blarney

    Many a sommelier student has heard that Haut-Brion was named such by an Irishman named O’Brian or O’Brien, who wanted to make wine but knew that no Frenchman would consider wine made by an Irishman worthy of his palate. So he adopted a French spelling and pronunciation of the name.

  • Earthquake wreaks havoc on Chile’s Wine Industry

    Early estimates put the loss at $975 million due to spillage from barrels and storage tanks damaged in Saturday’s 8.8 magnitude earthquake in Chile. Not since Prohibition has this much wine been spilled in one day alone.

  • Are Wine Reviews Compromised?

    I see this relentless need to beat a dead horse as posturing and turf battles between bloggers who see themselves as citizen journalists, giving their opinions to those yearning for knowledge and entertainment, and writers, whose livelihood is threatened by the “insurgent” bloggers.

  • Not Just Another Wine Sample

    It doesn’t just apply when you’re promoting wine. Think of an e-mail like a knock on the door. The person on the other side may open the door just to see who it is, but she’s more apt to talk with you, and let you give your pitch if you at least appear to be interested in her, the person.

  • The Wine Review: Is it All Just Smoke and Mirrors?

    Does this mean we’re all victims of our emotions? Does it mean that wine and food critics are completely full of it and you shouldn’t trust anything we say? Because I’ll guarantee if the restaurant or wine bar knows there is a critic in the house — the critic will be fawned over like the Jonas Brothers in a room full of 14-year old girls. There is something more to consider, and it’s all about you.

  • Serving Temperature Can Affect Tasting Results

    Wines rated 90 and above by Robert M. Parker, Jr., Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, Wine Enthusiast and Wine Spectator’s Top 100 didn’t earn a medal. Wines rated much lower by the aforementioned sources were judged much higher by our competition judges. Serving temperature may have been a factor.

  • Be a Home Superstar Chef (Part 8 – Garlic)

    Garlic may seem ubiquitous and ordinary, after all it seems to be a staple in the cuisine of almost every culture, but knowing more about it can really elevate your cooking to new heights. On the other hand, mistreatment of this wondrous knob of deliciousness can ruin an otherwise fantastic dish. If you are serious about cooking great food, then garlic needs to be one of your best friends.