freshly planted Albariño cuttings
In January 2019, this journalist (me!) embedded herself into a Ventura County winery, Clos des Amis, to better understand how wine grapes are grown and wine is made. And then in January 2022, she embedded herself even more literally by planting cuttings Continue reading
Voodoo Moon and Blue cheese burger
Voodoo Moon and Blue cheese
screen shot from a ZOOM on AUS Shiraz
in 2021, on the fourth Saturday of every month, the #WorldWineTravel group of wine writers did a deep dive into the wines of Spain with articles published on specific themes and a twitter chat at 8am Pacific: Continue reading
cover art for Slow Wine Guide 2022: Italy and US
“In the name of productivity, the ‘fast life’ has changed our lifestyle and now threatens our environment and our land (and city) scapes.” Carlo Petrini, SLOW FOOD MANIFESTO
Inspired by the Slow Food Movement which began in 1986 after a “demonstration on the intended site of a McDonald’s at the Spanish Steps in Rome,” and which advocates “a comprehensive approach to food that recognizes the strong connections between plate, planet, people, politics and culture,” The Slow Wine Guide and the Slow Wine Tour highlight those wineries that epitomize the “slow” approach which avoids chemical herbicides and instead promotes regenerative agriculture.
With a reliance on in-person winery visits and winemaker interviews, The Slow Wine Guide today evaluates over 400 different wineries in Italy and almost 300 in the US Continue reading
Clink different with sparkling wine secrets from around the world
Did you know Germany is the largest producer of sparkling wine in the world? And that they drink more sparkling wine per capita than any other country in the world? In 2014, Germans consumed five bottles of sparkling wine per person — FIVE times the rate in the US! With about two billion bottles of sparkling wine produced each year worldwide, one fifth are consumed in Germany which translated in 2017 to 400 million bottles of sparkling wine including Champagne, Cava, and Prosecco. In 2017, Germany produced 368.8 million bottles of Sekt– most of which the Germans enjoyed themselves. Austria comes in right behind, drinking four bottles of sparkling wine per person each year. The two countries represent the largest sparkling wine markets in the world, even though in 2020 they place fifth and 24th when it comes to exporting the bubbly: Continue reading
When you think of Provence, what comes to mind? Coastal breezes? Fields of lavender? Herbs of Provence? A fresh crisp rosé wine made from Grenache, possibly with some Syrah or Mourvedre or CInsault? So at first when you think of a different perspective in Provence, you’d think red wine, which are rare and lovely: of the 176 million bottles produced each year, 89% of the region’s production is rosé; only 7% is red and the remaining 4% is white. Read about biodynamic practicing and organic certified 2013 Chateau Guilheim Tournier “Cuvee la Malissonne” AOC Bandol, France, a red wine made with 95% Mourvèdre, 5% Grenache.
But the different perspective we’re talking about today is that of Continue reading
Clink different with sparkling wine secrets from around the world
Whether it’s called Cremant, Cava, Prosecco, Col Fondo, Champagne or Metodo Classico, sparkling wine is made in wine regions around the world from regional or international grapes and using various production methods. While we typically think about this bubbly beverage when we’re in a celebratory mood, it’s a great wine to pair well with many different dishes. During 2020, here on Wine Predator we explored sparkling wine pairings in a series of twelve articles which featured sparkling wines from around the world, which is also the theme for this month’s Wine Pairing Weekend.
wine predator.............. gwendolyn alley 