Drawing on interviews with winemakers at The Ojai Vineyard’s Adam Tolmach and Fabien Castel, with Gretel Compton and Bruce Freeman of Clos des Amis, and Dominic O’Reilly at Topa Mountain and Pacific View wineries as well as Pacific View owner Patti Mitchell, the October 2020 issue of Ventana Monthly Magazine is hot off the presses and landing in mailboxes and newsstands with my photographs and article on the 2020 wine grape harvest on the cover! Continue reading
Varietal or variety?
What makes many wine writers I know crazy?
The misuse of the terms varietal and variety. Continue reading
image from La Revue‘s Facebook page of the preliminary rankings
UPDATE: If you’re looking for the results of the 2021 championship, go here.
According to the World Blind Wine Tasting Championship organizers La Revue du Vin de France, the team from France once again placed first in this year’s competition which took place yesterday, 10/10/2020 at Château Smith Haut-Lafitte in Bordeaux, France.
With a formidable lead after the first round of eight wines with 142 points, France held on to place first for the second year in a row, and China stayed in second place after the second round. Continue reading
#MerlotMe with meatloaf! How could it take us so long to try this combination? Continue reading
Competitors in the 2019 World Blind Wine Tasting Championship at Chateau Chambord, Loire, France.
This weekend at Château Smith Haut Lafitte, in Pessac-Léognan, competitors from around the world will gather to compete in the 8th edition of the World Tasting Championship. Organized by the Revue du vin de France and its partners, this year’s competition will feature far fewer competitors than last year when 30 teams competed. Continue reading
In general, I try my best to stay focused on wine, food, and wine related travel here on Wine Predator, with a solid side of sustainability: biodynamics, organic, climate change. Over on Art Predator, I’m not as silent: there’s more politics, environmental and other issues (plus writing tips, music, art, literature, and film reviews… when I’m not too busy her on Wien Predator!).
But I can’t stay silent about this election longer .
It’s time to say Bye Don. Continue reading
There were only a few short rows for the final harvest today at Clos des Amis– a late harvest riesling.
wine predator.............. gwendolyn alley 