Chianti Tasting with Famiglia Cecchi Wines One of the great perks of blogging about wine is the opportunity to attend private tastings hosted by wineries from all over the world. The invitations stopped cold in March 2020 as COVID swept across the country. In a hopeful sign of the “new normal,” we were invited to… Continue reading Tastings Return!
Author: CotuitGal
Wide World of Rosé
Long-time readers know I’ve got a thing for rosé wines, particularly the robust ones from Italy and Spain. Usually, I’m a fan club of one amid a crowd of Napa Cab drinkers. But when friends who share a taste for serious rosé came to visit, I whipped out the mats and cups and had a… Continue reading Wide World of Rosé
Our Favorite Puglian Wine has Landed in the US!
Our last wine tasting trip to anywhere except the local Packie [a quaint Massachusetts term] was in 2019, when we visited Puglia, in the heel of the Italian boot. During a memorable five-day bacchanal, we visited six wineries and tasted more than 40 wines. One of our favorite wineries was Tenuta Giustini, whose young winemaker… Continue reading Our Favorite Puglian Wine has Landed in the US!
Checking In on Napa Cab Faves
A friend heading to Napa for a few days asked us for recommendations on our current favorites. Like Gary, she's a Napa Cab fanatic, so it didn't take long to generate this list: Sullivan Vineyards Pine Ridge Vineyards Trinchero Orin Swift Turnbull We can't vouch for the quality of the tasting rooms, but we can… Continue reading Checking In on Napa Cab Faves
Mexican Wine? Si!
When Americans hear “Mexico” and “alcohol”, we think Tequila. Then maybe Mezcal. Beer too. Wine, not so much. But Mexico has been producing wine since the 1520’s, when homesick conquistadors planted vineyards across Central and South America with cuttings from Spanish vines. Whatever devastation Spain wreaked on the countries it conquered, it left a legacy… Continue reading Mexican Wine? Si!
Our Top 10 Wines of 2021
After the wreck of 2020 all eyes looked towards 2021 for, what? Normalcy? Comfort? How'd that work out? As we look ahead to 2022, let's revisit the 10 wines that brought us the most joy while we all suffered the slings and arrows of an outrageous 2021. WHITE/ROSÉS Favorite WhiteZeltinger Sonnenuhr Riesling Feinherb Spatlese, $25Selbach-Oster,… Continue reading Our Top 10 Wines of 2021
Seven Summer Surprises
As we turn the clocks back into darkness and careen towards winter, we thought a quick post on seven great wines we discovered over the summer would keep the warm feelings going a few days longer. These are not "summer" sippers; we just happened to find them while staying sane through Covid, family health issues,… Continue reading Seven Summer Surprises
Another Misunderstood Grape – Riesling Tasting
We're always banging the drum for lesser-known wine regions and misunderstood wines. We visited Temecula, CA and Woodinville, WA 20+ years ago, before each became [or hoped to become] the "next Napa." Gary pushed Ruggero Di Bardo's Susumaniello from Puglia just as Trader Joe's put it on its shelves in 2018. I've been nagging friends… Continue reading Another Misunderstood Grape – Riesling Tasting
Napa Cab 2017 Blind Tasting
Napacab. One word, three syllables. Celebrated all over, often over-priced and occasionally over-hyped, it’s the pour of choice among one-half of Vino Duo and most of our wine-loving friends. Last month, we gathered these friends for a blind tasting of four moderately-priced ($50 - $100) 2017 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon wines, along with a ringer—a… Continue reading Napa Cab 2017 Blind Tasting
Some Napa Cab Lovers Walk into a Rosato Tasting
Rosé wines get a bad rap. Damned with faint praise as a “great summer sipper” and showcased by wine shops from June thru September, rosé wine is lumped in with pop top wine spritzers and sweet, beach-ready whites. I think rosé still suffers from the dreaded “blush” wine craze of the 1980’s—remember ‘White Zinfandel’?—and from… Continue reading Some Napa Cab Lovers Walk into a Rosato Tasting
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