When you leave part of your heart in France ~ Château Sainte-Béatrice is partly responsible
What a charming little village Lorgues is, located in the Côtes de Provence region of France. This area bespoke France to me. It’s a region rich in viticultural history; and, is actually known to be the birth of Mediterranean wine grape growing. (From the Mediterranean Sea, the Romans entered France coming into this region.) Provence […]
Impulse buying, because you know…. Wine Marketing 101
I saw this bottle. I had no intention of buying any wine, I was just out to get some fruits and veggies, and a rotisserie chicken for my cat Buddy (in lieu of canned cat food). I was in Oliver’s Grocery Store in Windsor, California. As I turned from the rotisserie display, there it was… […]
“What Varietal is That,” A Beginners Guide to the Most Important Grape Varieties
What Varietal is That? A Beginners Guide to the Most Important Grape Varieties, written by Darby Higgs, is a great little reference book… something you take with you on trips into wine land places, to keep check of seeing the grape leaves, clusters, and vines, while reading about them and taking notes right then and […]
Kathleen Willcox – A Wine Writer’s Name to Remember, Read, and Enjoy
It’s been a while since I’ve shared information about other wine writers. There certainly has been a cadre of new people, I just haven’t been as aggressive as I was when I first started my blog, spending weekends and then scheduling for the week, as I did, starting in 2005. It was pre small and […]
Addressing Racism in Wine ~ From a Unique Perspective
Let’s just say, I have stories I can tell and some I can’t. It would rock the wine world with disclosures. So, yes, from a personal perspective it exists. I have a blended marriage, I married the love and light of my life, who also happens to be Puerto Rican. Our love is quite private, […]
Episode 5 – Kerry Damskey – Going into More Details of Making Wine in Israel
Kerry Damskey talked about his first adventure into Costa Rica in Episode 4, with his new partner and friend Niv Benyehuda. Together they create Nana. SIDEBAR FROM NIV’S WEBSITE: Niv, married to Costa Rican artist, Karen Retana Benyehuda, and father of Lee, Ben, and Dean grew up on the gentle shores of the warm Mediterranean […]
When Wine Spectator rises to the top again, you know the cycle is over
SUBTITLE: Wine Blogs Then (2005) and Wine Blogs Now (2020) ~ 15-year perspective THEN In 2004, as a wine publicist, I had heard rumblings about an Alder Yarrow. It seems he had a wine blog called Vinography. I had heard about Web 2.0, and this guy was doing it. Hum, I’ll have to check this […]
In the Wine Business, Can Women Easily Find Their Place?
It’s not always easy, and may even be more challenging, once we all get back to work… if the work is even there. I can give you that. Knowing how to play the “A-type Woman Brings Around the A-Type Man” isn’t always a cakewalk, either. A lot of it has to do with the emotional […]
Lucas & Lewellen Sustainably Crafted is Just So Fine ~ An Interview with Mike Lewellen
Lucas & Lewellen sustainably crafted is just so fine is not an overstatement, it’s what I’ve experienced and happy to write about it. First, I got the wine. Next, I tasted it, and found it to be really lovely. The elements of femininity really shined through. Then I discovered Lucas & Lewellen has a female […]
Episode 3 – Kerry Damskey – Winemaking in Bulgaria And China
In Episode 3, Kerry Damskey talks about his origin of wanderlust. Then he’s off to Bulgaria, seguing into China, before the French were even there. This is followed by being in ancient Israel, and then gives us a blink of Costa Rica at 25,000 meters (15.53428 miles) above sea level. It’s a fast five minutes […]
