Travel & Tasting Notes From A Couple of Wine Lovers
Underrated. Unappreciated. Overlooked. That’s Umbria. Always playing catch-up to neighboring Tuscany, with its celebrated Chiantis and Brunellos and swoon-worthy medieval hill towns. Umbria's wine culture “dates back to the Etruscans, from the 8th to 1st centuries BCE,” but Umbria has yet to claim its place in the pantheon of Italy’s picture postcard wine regions. It's… Continue reading Discovering Umbria: Italy’s Hidden Wine Gem
Fast food, quick-service, grab-and-go…the world of food seems to be less about enjoyment of a meal and more about the speed at which we can eat and run. The Slow Food movement has been working to change this dynamic since 1986. Founded in Italy [of course!] it promotes “the enjoyment of good, clean, and fair… Continue reading Slow Down & Sniff the Bouquet: Slow Wine Expo 2025
When wine lovers hear "Abruzzo" they think Montepulciano d'Abruzzo, the popular powerhouse red from the Italian region of Abruzzo. When chefs hear "Pecorino," they think of Pecorino Romano, the cheese perfectly suited to grating over home-style Italian meals. But after a recent wine tasting, when VinoDuo hears "Pecorino d'Abruzzo" we'll now think, "Oh, that zingy… Continue reading Why Pecorino d’Abruzzo Deserves Your Attention
It's been a hot and humid summer in Massachusetts. Not a great backdrop for big red wines or oaky Chardonnay, but the perfect setting for crisp, white wines and mouthwatering rosés-- from palest salmon to deepest cherry. With August approaching, it's time for a mid-summer round-up of the best we've tasted so far. Most are… Continue reading Top White and Rosé Wines for Mid-Summer Tasting
Part 1 - White Wines VinoDuo took a trip to the South of France in October for a wine-tasting adventure in Bordeaux and Languedoc. During tours and tastings we visited 19 wineries and tasted more than 150 wines, winding our way South from St. Emilion to Bordeaux and then east to Montpellier. We'll have plenty… Continue reading A Trip to France Yields Beaucoup Bottles to Recommend
Normally I would start a late-March post with "It's been a tough winter with cold and snow and we were stuck inside tasting new wines." I can't use that excuse this year, as our winter was remarkably temperate and dry. In fact, it was the perfect weather for seeking out new wines. Here are a… Continue reading Recent Favorites
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
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
We wrote our last blog post on the cusp of 2020, praising the whites and rosés from the Basque region and considering a visit to this Northern Spain region. What a difference six months makes. We're not traveling to any wine paradise, at least for the foreseeable future. Between Covid-19, the economy and the nightmare… Continue reading First Post of 2020 – How’s the Year going for You?
We know Spanish wines...a little bit. Rioja, of course. Priorat for sure. And we've dabbled a bit in Sherry from Jerez. But the Basque region? Nowhere on our radar until last summer, when I savored fresh and fizzy glasses of Txakolina (cha’-kō-lee-nah) rosé at two of Boston's hipster restaurants, Chickadee and Pagu. Txakolina is a… Continue reading Uncovering the Basque Wine Region
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