Texas Travel: My Visit to Alta Marfa Winery and Vineyard Tasting Room plus Mystical Marvelous Marfa

3 Alta Marfa wines with pairings for Texas Wine Month

Texas is a big state with a diverse landscape across its territory so believe it or not, there’s plenty of places that wine grapes grow– including near Marfa in west Texas! 

TBH, with all the BS in Texas with regards to women’s reproductive rights and immigrant rights, etc etc, I’ve been saying NO WAY JOSE to Texas travel and wine samples. But so many Texans are standing up, and with friends headed to TX in April for the eclipse, I decided to go, and of course I wanted to include wine tasting on the trip. With October being Texas Wine Month, I figured it was time to write about the wines of Alta Marfa.

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From Coppo’s UNESCO Cellars: Nizza and Gavi Paired with Shrimp Ceasar and Duck with Winter Squash Gratin

Coppo’s UNESCO Cellars: Nizza and Gavi

Nizza? Gavi? Are these nicknames for winemakers or grapes or places or what? If you’re really into Italian wines, you may already know that just like Barolo is a high quality Nebbiolo grape made into wine from certain areas of Piemonte, Nizza is a high quality Barbera grape grown in certain areas of Piemonte and made into Nizza wine, while Gavi is a high quality wine made from the Cortese grape grown in certain areas of Piemonte. Simply put, a a Nizza Barbera is a guarantee that is is possibly the best Barbera you’ll find and taste!

In the case of Coppo, Continue reading

Champagne Day 2024 with a Couple of Seniors: La Grande Dame b. 1979 and Nicolas Feuillatte b. 2005

1979 Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin La Grande Dame and 2005 Nicolas Feuillatte

When I saw a bottle of 1979 Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin La Grande Dame at a neighborhood garage sale, I noticed right away that the level of liquid on the bottle was well below the cork– NOT a good sign! You want to see the the bottle is pretty full so that the liquid touches the cork. But I figured for the right price it would make a good story. When he said Continue reading

Surprise! Italy Wins RVF’s 2024 World Wine Tasting Championship!

On Saturday, October 12, Château Dauzac in Margaux France hosted the 12th World Wine Tasting Championship sponsored by French wine magazine, La Revue du Vin de France. Italy made a surprising win by a huge margin of  28 points over Switzerland and Taiwan who tied for second place with 140 points. Japan came close with 138 points.

Looking for the 2025 results? Look here.

A record breaking total of 39 teams traveled from around the world to compete. Team USA came in Continue reading

Fall 4 Biodynamic Oregon Wines: Brooks Riesling, Cowhorn Viognier, Troon Rose, Montinore PN + Menu

4 Biodynamic Oregon Wines with pairings: duck breast with blueberry sauce, fall salad, squash and mushroom risotto

We’re falling for biodynamic wines from Oregon this autumn paired with a fall menu of favorites. We have four very different but all stellar wines from four wineries that have been leading the United States in biodynamic and organic practices. Bonus: Continue reading