Glossary of Wine Terms

May 12th, 2016|0 Comments

There are thousands of words associated with wine, but this is a good overview. For a more in-depth source, check out the Wine Lover’s Companion. Acid A vital part of wine, necessary to help achieve

How to Taste Wine

May 12th, 2016|0 Comments

Following a few simple steps will lead to a greater understanding of what you’re drinking, and hopefully help you put some words to what you experience when you drink wine. 1. Look at the color

Pairing Wine with Food

May 12th, 2016|0 Comments

With the great variety of both cuisine styles and wines available today, the old rule of “red wine with meat and white wine with fish” doesn’t cut it any more. Is the “fish” sushi or

Vermouth is undergoing a revival

February 25th, 2016|0 Comments

Vermouth is no longer seen as an unfashionable tipple and is undergoing a revival It wasn't so very long ago that vermouth seemed irredeemably unfashionable, the butt of tongue-in-cheek jokes on TV ads and doomed

Course 73-Wines of Argentina

February 10th, 2012|2 Comments

Great things are happening in Argentina’s wine industry.  A growing number of wineries have changed their philosophy and now concentrate on producing higher quality wines rather than manufacturing large quantities. Until recently, Argentina was more interested

Course 72-How and Why Wine Ages

January 27th, 2012|2 Comments

Aging is most noticeably the process of the tannins in the wine reacting with other components until they are unable to stay in solution, where upon they become sediment (precipitation). While this is happening, the

Course 66 – How to read a German Wine label

August 3rd, 2011|0 Comments

1. Appellation of origin - Wine Growing region To identify the region compare with the following list of the 13 German wine growing regions: Ahr, Mittelrhein, Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, Rheingau, Nahe, Pfalz, Rheinhessen, Franken, Hessische Bergstrasse, Württemberg,

Course 59 – Pacific Northwest Wines

August 3rd, 2011|0 Comments

America’s Pacific Northwest Wine Appellations Washington and Oregon are premier wine growing regions, each with diverse geography, climates and soils. Combined, the states have 20 American Viticulture Areas, where high quality grapes are grown and

Course 55 – Blending: Why and How

August 3rd, 2011|0 Comments

Blending is one of the most important steps in making fine wine with a distinct and unique character. Complexity is probably the number one reason that most winemakers blend their wines. Blending often will give wine a

Course 51 – Comfort Wine

August 3rd, 2011|0 Comments

The bad news is we've been enduring some really harsh winter weather lately. The good news is that this is some of the best weather for drinking wine, especially with the rich, slow-cooked foods that

Course 50 – It takes a Village

August 3rd, 2011|0 Comments

France is the world's second largest producer of wines (barely edged out most years by Italy), most of which comes from big-name regions like Bordeaux, Burgundy and Rhone. But tucked within bigger appellations are small

Course 49 – Beaujolais Nouveau 2006

August 3rd, 2011|0 Comments

Le Beaujolais Nouveau est arrivé! ("the new Beaujolais has arrived!"). Well, it hasn't arrived yet but it soon will, kicking off one of France's most celebrated unofficial holidays which has spread throughout the world. Beaujolais

Course 47 – Ahhh…Rosé

August 3rd, 2011|0 Comments

Long, hot summers like the one we've been "enjoying" are tough on wine lovers. A lot of the wines we savor all winter are just not that appealing when the temperature spikes and humidity becomes

Course 45 – The Art of Wine

August 3rd, 2011|0 Comments

With the thousands of bottles competing for consumer attention on wine shop shelves these days, it's no surprise that many winemakers have turned to clever labels to set their wines apart from the masses. Who

Course 44 – Spain Gets Hot

August 3rd, 2011|0 Comments

Until recently, most wine drinkers outside of Spain associated the country primarily with Rioja, which was saddled with the reputation of being simply cheap and easy drinking. The country's winemakers have worked hard to ratchet

Course 43 – Aussie Wines

August 3rd, 2011|0 Comments

Since the early 90s, Australia has been known simply for making decent quality, easy drinking wine that could be had for way below $10 a bottle. But with demand for Australian wines at an all

Course 39 – Wine FAQ 2006

August 3rd, 2011|0 Comments

The new year brings 365 fresh opportunities to learn about wine. Whether you're a connoisseur or you've recently discovered the world of vino, the Detroit Wine Organization hopes to spend this year expanding your knowledge

Course 34 – The Rhône Valley

August 3rd, 2011|0 Comments

The Rhône Valley in southern France is one of the world's most famous wine regions, home to appellations like Chateauneuf-du-Pape, Côtes-du-Rhône, Côte Rotie, Hermitage and Tavel. The Rhône region is actually split into two areas

Course 33 – Kosher Wine

August 3rd, 2011|0 Comments

Those who want to enjoy wine with their seder may be pleasantly surprised by the range of high-quality kosher wines now available to them. It wasn't long ago that Manischewitz and similar sickly-sweet wines made

Course 32 – Petite Sirah

August 3rd, 2011|0 Comments

Despite its rather delicate sounding name, Petite Sirah is a gutsy bulldog of a wine, deep and dark with an appropriately mysterious past. Petite Sirah's ancestry and name origin confounded the wine world for decades.

Course 31 – Exploring Terroir

August 3rd, 2011|0 Comments

In wine, like real estate, it very often comes down to location, location, location. Or, maybe we should say terroir, terroir, terroir. Terroir, the French word for "soil," is a wine-world term used to describe

Course 28 – The Santa Ynez Valley

August 3rd, 2011|0 Comments

For years, the Santa Ynez Valley AVA (American Viticultural Area) in California's Santa Barbara County quietly produced excellent wine while being dwarfed by the imposing shadow of the Napa and Sonoma Valleys to the north.

Course 26 – Dessert Wine

August 3rd, 2011|0 Comments

The holiday season is the perfect time to explore the wine world’s most decadent product: dessert wine. This luscious treat usually has both a higher residual sugar level and alcohol percentage compared to table wine,

Course 24 – Beaujolais Nouveau

August 3rd, 2011|0 Comments

There are lots of important dates in November: Election Day, Veteran's Day, Thanksgiving. But November 16 is the date circled in bright red on most wine-lovers calendars. Beaujolais winemakers begin shipping about 70 million bottles

Course 4 – Champagne

August 2nd, 2011|0 Comments

The New Year is quickly approaching and bubbly wines are on every store shelf, so it seems appropriate to talk about them.  In keeping with our pledge to explore the various wine producing regions in

Course 2 – Oak

August 2nd, 2011|0 Comments

In our last edition, we started the discussion of oak fermentation and aging...Unlike fruit flavors or sweetness, which come from the grape, oak flavors in a wine come from the winemaker.  Master Sommelier Andrea Immer

Course 1 – Naming Conventions

August 2nd, 2011|0 Comments

Bordeaux vs. Cabernet Sauvignon - what's the difference?  Chablis vs. Chardonnay?  Sancerre vs. Sauvignon Blanc?  In most cases, the difference is the naming convention.  Some wines are named for their grape variety.  Others are named