Can You Taste Dirt? Soils & Sancerre
Tasting the Dirt There’s lots of discussion in print and online these days about terroir, soils and location vs. winemaker and who or what is more important. Do flinty, seashell filled soils produce mineral wines? I can assure you there are no actual stones in your wine. Here’s the important question: Can a regular person … Continue reading
The Red-Headed Stepchild of Sancerre #winophiles
The End of the Road for the French Winophiles Loire Valley Tour All good things must come to an end, but what a finish! Our virtual tour of the Loire Valley has taken us inland all the way to the towns of Sancerre and Pouilly-Fume. The climate here is fully continental, with no moderating influence … Continue reading
Paris Oyster
Paris Oyster Julie’s cousin, Kay, an American who married a (wonderful) French Banker has explained French Culture to us as an iceberg: 10% visible, 90% invisible, as we are learning, so true. Your first step to understanding French culture can be gained by a delicious visit to a tiny restaurant in Paris. Now, let’s visit … Continue reading
Another Face of Nebbiolo: Sforzato #ItalianFWT
Sforzato di Valtellina – One More Valtellina Gem Finishing up our visit to Valtellina, we have one more Chiavennasca (Nebbiolo) based wine to try: Sforzato di Valtellina. Ours was from the Nino Negri winery. Sforzato is something a bit different. Sforzato di Valtellina is made by the passito process in which the grapes are dried … Continue reading
Trofie al Pesto with Cinque Terre DOC #ItalianFWT
Fond Memories of Cinque Terre Two years ago, we had a lovely visit to the Cinque Terre, a series of 5 towns on the Italian Riviera in Liguria. We’re fondly remembering our visit with our Italian Food, Wine & Travel group today. Join our group as we virtually explore the region, scroll down further in … Continue reading
Under the Radar in Italy: Ligurian Wine
Under the Radar Italy: Liguria When you think of Italian wine, you think of Tuscany, or Piedmont, or recently Mt. Etna in Sicily. Liguria, where’s Liguria? Occupying the coast in the northwest corner of the nation, Liguria is isolated from the rest of Italy, as it’s protected by a range of coastal mountains and looks … Continue reading
My Love-Hate Relationship with Loire Whites – French #Winophiles
Warning: This is a rant, but it does have a happy ending. I hope you’ll read on. One-Two Punch Knocked Me Out In preparing for our French Winophiles virtual visit to Touraine in the Loire, I was hit by a double dose of love-hate for Loire Valley whites. First, I must say two things: I’m … Continue reading
Easy Spring Dinner with Pommes Gratin and Chinon – French #Winophiles
French Winophiles Take Touraine by Storm Continuing our virtual cruise up the Loire river, we’re picturing those fairytale castles as well as all the vineyards we’d like to visit. Moving inland, the main wine grapes remain Chenin Blanc for white and Cabernet Franc for red. However, we also start to see Sauvignon Blanc coming into … Continue reading
Taste Test: Wines for Spicy Food #WinePW
Wine Pairing Weekend Group Tackles Enchiladas Our Wine Pairing Weekend group is nothing if not brave. As we have gotten comfortable with our wine pairing explorations, we have started taking on tougher challenges and this month is one of our better ones: enchiladas. With wine as a daily occurrence at our dinner table, I have … Continue reading
Hazelnut Pork Tenderloin and Valtellina Superiore
Stuck in Valtellina Continuing on with our virtual exploration of Valtellina, I found a good looking recipe for chestnut coated pork tenderloin. In my quick tour around my usual local shops, I was unable to find chestnut flour, but hazelnut flour was available, hazelnut it is! We’ll pair the pork with a very nice introduction … Continue reading
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