“Who cares, it’s just a Chianti”, responded the sales rep at one of the wine chain retail stores when I asked about the storage condition of the three older bottles of Chianti Classico that were on display. After engaging in a short conversation with her (and purchasing something else), I wondered if this was a common perception of the popular Tuscan wines among both wine … Continue reading Chianti Classico: The black rooster is back
Spanish wines are undergoing a Renassaince, fueled by a newly-found self-belief in the unique combination of their land, their grapes, and the traditional know-how of their people across generations.Up to the recent past, Spanish winemakers always looked up to France as the gold standard and noticed how Italians used their deft marketing skills to build the image of Italian wine worldwide. During the last few … Continue reading Spanish Winemakers are embracing old traditions
From the country that gave us Mozart, Klimt, Falco, The Sound of Music, and yes… Governor Schwarzenegger; we find world-class wines that combine intense fruit purity with a distinct signature style. In the last few years, Austrian wines have increasingly gained recognition by wine lovers and sommeliers alike, and should be on the radar for any wine enthusiast. In a previous post on Germany and … Continue reading Austrian Wine: Grüner and Beyond
Ask any casual wine drinker to give you the name of a Spanish white grape, and Albariño would most likely be at the top of the list. And no place is more closely identified with the variety as Galicia, in particular the region of Rias Baixas in the far northwest part of the country. The Land Galicia is part of an area known as “España … Continue reading Rias Baixas: The Cradle of Albariño
I’ve been a fan of Spanish wines for quite some time. I admire the long winemaking tradition, wide diversity of regions and grapes and a large number of unique styles – from ethereal finos and manzanillas, elegant mature Riojas and bold and muscular Riberas del Duero. Overall, they represent great values in the market across all price points. During the last few years, there’s been … Continue reading Four exciting trends in Spanish wine
Up until recently, my perception of Australian wines was of jammy, over-ripe fruit bombs with an entire zoo of cute critter labels (kangaroos, koalas and porcupines, to name a few). However, that image is long gone as I’ve come to realize the new tidal wave on the country’s wine scene, as Australian wines are reinventing themselves with a revived emphasis in balance and elegance, while … Continue reading Australian Wine Discovered
We hear every day about the reality of climate change and its future impact in world’s viticulture (all facts well-substantiated), though one of the positive side effects of this has been the ability of high-latitude, cool climate regions to grow and mature grapes consistently (Swedish Pinot Noir anyone?). One of the countries that has benefitted from the recent temperature increase has been Canada, in particular, … Continue reading The Beautiful Okanagan Valley in British Columbia
Glaciers, Gauchos, Football, Tango and the best Steaks in the world. As if these were not enough reasons to go to Argentina, there’s one more that makes it all worth it: Vino! Vitis Vinifera arrived with Spanish settlers to the River Plate in 1541, and it experienced its fastest growth in the late 1800’s with the completion of the railway between Buenos Aires and Mendoza … Continue reading Argentina: A guide to Mendoza wine country
It happened one evening at Nelson Mandela Square in Johannesburg. I was having dinner with a South African colleague and he happened to order a South African Pinot Noir to go with our meal. Pinot Noir? From South Africa? Up to that point, I’d only tasted bottom-of-the-shelf wines from that country and my expectations were quite low. The wine, from Hamilton Russell in the … Continue reading South Africa: Wines at the end of the world
I have to admit it: My name is Alberto… and I love Sherry… And this spring I had an opportunity to get an in-depth education and fulfill one of my wine dreams: I traveled to Jerez and became a Certified Sherry Educator – one more reason to feel even closer to this unique land and their magical wines. This program is organized by the Sherry … Continue reading A Deeper Dive into Sherry: Becoming a Certified Sherry Educator
Vino Interiano 