another wine blog

Okay, the site move is complete and we are back in business! I am finally rid of the terrible hosting company that caused me so many problems. I have been advised not to rip on them by name, not due to that being against the law, but due to the cost of defending against a [...]

As I have mentioned before, this site is being hosted by one of the worst server farms on the planet. That is about to change soon. I have already moved all of the files and the database to another server with a different hosting company that has a much better reputation. As it can take [...]

Wine tasting events are all the rage these days. They are held as everything from home parties to mixers to fund raising events. These events are almost always a lot of fun, and are typically much less pretentious than many people imagine. However, if they aren’t something that you attend very often they can be [...]

Viognier is showing signs of becoming a trendy wine. It has all the richness and big flavor of a Chardonnay, but isn’t typically subjected to all of the manipulation that can make that varietal so flabby at times.
The 2006 Eberle Viognier is an excellent example of how good Viognier can be. This a very full-bodied [...]

A frequent visitor (Hey Chuck!) to this site sent me this message and these recipes:
Two recipes with the same question: what wine should go with them?
As part of this whole new “getting fit” thing, I’ve dug out a cookbook I got for Christmas a few years back that features healthy recipes in smallish portions [...]

In the 1970’s Sutter Home Winery started producing and selling White Zinfandel wine. They were crappy wines that obviously had a great press agent. Despite the huge amount of it sold, it was actually created due to an accident occurring to what was basically waste product.
Sutter Home was producing red wine from the Zinfandel grape [...]

I don’t usually link to someone else’s blog post without much comment, but I thought this one about Robert Parker over at MustLoveWine was well worth it.
A short excerpt:
So why do I say Bob rocks? Say what you will about the guy who rates wines – a subjective bit of work if ever there is [...]

I am blessed to work at a place that employs people from many diverse cultures. When Chinese New Year came around I was invited to lunch to celebrate. There was some teasing that went on about the food and whether I would be able to eat it. It was all in fun, and the food [...]

Braising is a cooking method that sounds difficult, but is actually easy as pie. Actually, as anyone who has ever made a pie from scratch, it is much easier. The basic technique is to sear a piece of meat and then finish the cooking in a liquid. As simple as that is, it produces some [...]

Eric Asimov recently had a very thought provoking article on his NYT’s blog entitled “Should Wine Be a Family Affair?” where he discussed allowing children to have a little wine with food at the family table.
For generations of parents and children growing up in the world’s wine regions this has never been a difficult question. [...]

I swear that this will be my last article about asparagus for a while, however I did promise some cooking and serving methods, so here they are, along with some other tidbits.
Asparagus is an extremely nutritious vegetable which is high in folic acid, potassium, fiber, vitamin B6, vitamins A and C, and thiamine. It has [...]

My last article dealt with how to pair wine with one of the bad boys of the culinary world, asparagus. Here are two wines that I really like, and that go wonderfully with it.
Both the 2006 Blanco Nieva Sauvignon Blanc and the 2006 Margerum Pinot Gris are wines that I got from Ferry Plaza Wine [...]

As the weather starts to get nicer and Spring begins to assert itself, the home chef starts to think about asparagus. Despite being available year round these days, it is at this time of year when you can find this magnificent vegetable as it was meant to be eaten. Those green spears and Spring are [...]

There have been other attempts at creating online communities built around wine, some good, some not good, but they have all lacked something. Most have been stuffy places that only allow users to review wines. That is until now.
Check out Must Love Wine and join the party. If you do, make sure and add Houstonwino [...]

At 12:01 a.m. Eastern April 7, 1933 the Cullen-Harrison Act went into effect. One of the very first acts of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, this act allowed the return of legal beer sales in America, and marked the beginning of the end for Prohibition, although that national embarrassment would not be officially over for months, and [...]

Recently I stopped in a Houston wine bar called “Cova” and had a great time. The staff was knowledgeable and the selection was very good. Our server for the afternoon was named Alex and he did an excellent job. This is a first class wine bar, in my opinion. I can’t wait to visit again.
The [...]

Last night my wife and I attended a wine tasting that benefited Bering Omega and the Human Rights Campaign. It was hosted by the Rainbow Lodge, one of Houston’s better and more interesting restaurants. The event paired a variety of South American wines with some very tasty food.
These are my thoughts on the wines and [...]

Is your choice of wine saying something about your sexuality? Maybe your wine glass knows more about you that you do yourself. A winemaker in France things so.
This week, Franco D’Eusanio, who operates an organic vineyard in the Abruzzo region, introduced the “masculine” red wine ‘Is,’ the feminine white wine ‘Ea’ and the rose ‘Id’, [...]