Wine Wired

With Lent ending and Easter here, we celebrate with the traditional Easter dinner. For those of you having ham, I have a few recommendations. With the saltiness of the ham, I would shy away from anything tannic. My white wine recommendation is a Riesling, preferably dry (Troken) or slightly sweet (Halb-troken). If a red wine […]

I know I usually write about wine, but I had a physician I know ask me a great question yesterday.   He said that he had been to multiple wine and spirits tastings and asked a question about the difference in whiskey, Tennessee whiskey, bourbon, etc.  He was given a “politician” type answer and said […]

Many people mistakenly call all sparkling wines “Champagne,” which is technically incorrect.  That term is reserved for sparkling wine made from the traditional method within the boundries of the Champagne region of France and using only Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier.  There are, however, sparkling wines made with this traditional method in other countries and […]

Just the other day I had someone ask me about a pairing with Asian cuisine and my knee-jerk response was Riesling. The person responded by saying, “I don’t like sweet wine.” I have heard this statement about Riesling before. I knew, at that moment, I had to come to the defense of this often misunderstood […]

South Africa’s wine has matured greatly over the last 20 years. This is largely due to a flood of foreign investment monies and foreign winemaking knowledge. One of the early legislative decisions, back in 1973, was the creation of the “Wine of Origin” concept. The country, it seems , has caught up with and may […]

The federal law created the American AVA in 1978 to supplement the existing appellation system. Many confuse the AVA as a quality indicator, which it is not. The AVA is a guarantee of source and, if mentioned on the bottle, 85% of the grapes came from that area. Variety is another misleading factor on the […]

As stated in my previous article on Bordeaux, I was invited to sample a friend’s 2008 en premier right and left bank purchases. This is the first of those wines sampled that evening and reminded me of why right bank, merlot heavy, Bordeaux can be so delicious. Without getting ahead of myself, I want to […]

I have been lucky enough to get an invite from a good friend that buys Bordeaux futures, or en primeur. His shipment of 2008 Left and Right Bank wines has arrived and we are chomping at the bit to examine them. Before diving into the information about the Chateaus and wines, I wanted to get […]

II know people don’t normally associate Myrtle Beach with wine, but I feel wine is good any time and any place. I once drank wine at a funeral, but I digress. A few days ago some friends joined me at my timeshare in Myrtle Beach for some dinner and drinks. I made Bolognese lasagna, and […]

Variety:  Blend (Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Petite Verdot) Country:  France Region:  Bordeaux Sub-region: Left Bank Appellation: Margaux Producer/ Vineyard: Chateau Lascombes Chateau Lascombes is one of fifteen classified as Seconds Crus (Second Growths) in the original Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855.  It is located in the Margaux area, left bank, of Bordeaux.  Where right […]