Avina wine tools

Avina Wine Tools

I recently received two corkscrews as samples for review from Avina Wine Tools. Avina makes a variety of wine openers and a unique bottle stopper. When it comes to wine accessories, I have a very short list of items I use: 2 stage waiter’s corkscrew “Ah-so” two prong cork remover for old, delicate corks Drip-stop … Continue reading

Sauternes Village at sunrise

Tour the Quaint Village of Sauternes

The Bordeaux region is large, the village of Sauternes (namesake of the sweet wines of Bordeaux) is about an hour’s drive south from the bustling city of Bordeaux. Our Millesima hosts shipped us off to stay overnight in the village before our grand tour and tasting the next day at Chateau Suduiraut. Sauternes is one … Continue reading

Chateau Suduiraut Sauternes wines

Sauternes Vertical Tasting at Château Suduiraut

Tour and Tasting at Château Suduiraut Along with the En Primeur tastings, our Millesima hosts planned a variety of individual individual winery visits for us. We arrived bright and early one morning for a tour and vertical tasting at Château Suduiraut in Sauternes. Château Suduiraut is one of the Sauternes wineries awarded Premier Cru Classé … Continue reading

BlackMagnolia Willamette Valley Pinot Noir

Black Magnolia Pinot Noir

A New Willamette Valley Pinot Noir Choice I’m a big Pinot Noir fan, and one piece of advice that rings true with the vast majority of Pinot Noirs I’ve tasted is this: It’s very difficult to find high quality Pinot Noir for under $20 For my dollar, your best bet for a high quality Pinot … Continue reading

Two Shepherds Grenache Gris

A Well Stocked Refrigerator or Two

Elevate Your Monday Evening Even on a night when you’re rooting around the refrigerator and freezer for something to put together for dinner, a properly stocked wine refrigerator can elevate the meal. A variety of sparkling, white and rosé wines allow a great pairing with almost anything you can put together!

Portugese red wines and barbecue pork ribs

Exploring Portuguese Dry Red Wines with Pork Ribs

Portugal is More Than Just Port If you’re like me, your knowledge of Portuguese wines includes Vinho Verde and Port, but little else. Based on my enthusiasm for Port, the folks at Wines of Portugal decided I needed to see a few more wines from their country, and they sent me a couple of bottles … Continue reading

Bordeaux en primeur tasting

Sniff, Swirl, Sip, Spit, Repeat; A First Timer’s Bordeaux En Primeur

Millesima Blog Awards 2017 – En Primeur Week in Bordeaux Thanks to all you dear readers who voted, I recently went on a wine enthusiast’s dream trip: a week in Bordeaux during En Primeur. What’s En Primeur? It’s the yearly event wherein buyers and wine writers from all over the world converge on Bordeaux for … Continue reading

Loire Valley wines paired with spicy Thai green curry

Loire Valley Wines Take the Spicy Thai Challenge #Winophiles

#Winophiles Go All Cross-Cultural “What grows together goes together”.  This time-honored advice for wine and food pairing is one we often follow in our regional explorations with our #Winophiles group.  What about all those great dishes from other parts of the world? Especially the ones without wine grapes growing nearby, or even without a wine … Continue reading

A variety of bordeaux wines

Preparing for Bordeaux #MillesimaBA2017

Preparing for 2016 En Primeur Week in Bordeaux The big week is coming up! Thanks to all of your votes, I’m going to the 2016 Bordeaux En Primeur Week as a guest of Millesima, along with 5 other talented bloggers from the US and Europe. Of course, before any trip, you prepare. I thought I … Continue reading

Cork Dork by Bianca Bosker

Cork Dork: Will the Real Bianca Bosker Please Step Forward?

Punch Out and Be a Sommelier Many a wine enthusiast has the occasional Walter Mitty-esque dream of punching out of his/her daily occupation to become a sommelier. To be surrounded by wine, sharing the great stories with customers, hob-nobbing with winemakers. Ahh, the life! Well, Bianca Bosker did just that in her new book: “Cork … Continue reading