A Passion for Pinot from California: Anderson Valley and Sta. Rita Hills

What’s your favorite Pinot Noir? And where’s it from? Continue reading →

La Farra Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG Rive di Farra di Soligo Millismato Extra Dry

“Like the lines of a novel, exciting and passionate, the rows of vines, clinging tenaciously on steep slopes or lying gently on the plains below, draw harmonious geometries.” La Farra 

When I recently returned from Italy, I was greeted with samples of La Farra Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG. I’d been invited to join a ZOOM with the producer, but I was en route to California, and missed the call. I learned from their website that the Nardi brothers Innocente and Guido grow their grapes in the hills of Farra di Soligo, located in the heart of the Conegliano Valdobbiadene DOCG since in 1997.

These days, everyone knows Prosecco, the Italian sparking wine from the Veneto that’s now widely popular and available. Or they think they do! But do you know the difference between Prosecco, Prosecco DOC, and Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG? You should! For just a little more money, you can buy a special sparkling wine — Prosecco DOCG promises character. As I tell my friends, the “G” means “Gwendolyn Guaranteed”!

But what makes a Prosecco DOCG? And what makes Valdobbiadene DOCG sparklers something to search for? Continue reading →

Pairing Albariño from Spain and Uruguay: Seek Seafood + Crab Cakes

Is Albariño the ultimate wine for summertime seafood? One of Spain’s most popular white wines, Albariño grows in Galicia on the north-western coast of Spain, and in northwest Portugal. If you’re looking for an aromatic, crisp wine to pair with oysters, crab, anchovies, scallops, swordfish, clams, even sole with beurre blanc…. look no further than Albariño, a light, bright white with sea fresh minerality that works well with seafood. While Albariño is most well-known from Spain’s Rias Baixas region where it has grown for 900 years, it’s grown in wine regions around the world including South America’s Uruguay which is producing Albariño along its coast. Albariño has a medium-sized, thick-skinned berry that’s susceptible to mildew. The wine can be made in several styles with bright acidity, floral aromas, and on the palate, peach, apricot, and citrus. grapefruit.

And what better day than today– Albariño Day, in the middle of summer, during a global heat wave– to pour this refreshing white wine into your glass? Continue reading →