Wine Weekly

Zeta Garnacha 2005 Navarra, Spain A few things made me buy this bottle. First, the striking, shiny red and silver label caught my eye and insisted attention. I know, I know, you can’t judge a wine by its package any more than a book by its cover, but it seemed to be screaming for me [...]

The simple yet succulent Sunday dinner: roast chicken. It’s one of my favorite dishes to prepare, because it’s so easy (see this simple roast chicken recipe). It’s similarly easy to pair roast chicken with wine — though it depends on how you personalize the preparation. If you stay simple, using little other than salt, pepper, [...]

Often you may read a wine review that states the wine’s nose or palate is “closed”. Generally speaking, you’ll see this term applied to wines that are on the more expensive side (well, to me they’re expensive — we’re talking $20 and up). Reading through the review, you may also find the taster describe the [...]

This is a 100% Aglianico, the second wine of Ars Poetica’s trademark Aglianico del Vulture. A remarkable value, it has the flavor, body, complexity, structure, and finish of a Super Tuscan in the $30-45 range. Named for the extinct volcano (Mt. Vulture) that overlooks the vineyards, Vulcano is a medium-bodied red wine displaying ripe fruit [...]

In the spirit of Earth Day this week, Sokol Blosser Winery has been recognized by the City of Portland, Oregon, for its commitment to “green” practices. As part of the city’s 15th annual “Businesses for an Environmentally Sustainable Tomorrow”, Portland’s Office of Sustainable Development granted Sokol Blosser with the “BEST Practices for Sustainability—Small Company” award. [...]

Wine bags have come a long way. Twenty years ago, you’d likely carry your bottle in a brown paper bag on your way to your favorite BYOB restaurant. Or someone might have given you an canvas thing that was embroidered with absurdly awful renderings of grapevines. Today, your vessel of choice can be made from [...]

It’s hard to find a good Pinot Noir under $20. Most of the ones that have entered the market in the under-$20 range since “Sideways” are Pinot Noir in name only, and display little — if any — of the grape’s pure character. Like Merlot before it, inexpensive Pinot Noirs are simple grape juice from [...]

Austere is a major geek term that is often used to describe a young, expensive wine that critics assume will evolve into a blockbuster. The term austere is actually difficult to pinpoint; it is a vague definition of a wine that has a high level of acid and/or tannin, which currently overpowers the fruit, but [...]

Italy may be best known for Sangiovese, the base grape of some of the country’s greatest wines, such as Chianti and Brunello. Rivaling Sangiovese is Nebbiolo, the fruit producing Barolo and Barbaresco. A third, lesser-known (at least, outside of Italy) yet just as supreme grape is Aglianico (ahl-YAHN-eh-koe). Grown primarily in the southern part of [...]

Rock Rabbit is a winery in California that makes two wines: Syrah and Sauvignon Blanc. That’s it. In other words, they’re specialists, and winemaker Alex Cose has a finite focus. With the Syrah, his goal is to make a rich, jammy, New World style wine that tastes more like Australian Shiraz than old school Hermitage. [...]