Corks and Caftans

A goodbye to a good town. Carey fired-up the stove for the last time tonight and I picked the last bottle of wine out of the fridge. I poured a glass and sat down on the couch and asked Eli to join me for a talk. “E, it’s time we told you. If you haven’t noticed, [...]

A worthy wine and a pretty lady on a snowy Vermont night. Not so bad. I like photographing wine bottles—they stand still and don’t talk back—but it can be predictable so I turned my camera on the crazy Aquarian.

A sinister snowflake? A sparsely-spined sea urchin? A magnified mini Koosh?  Nope! The artwork for Alta Maria Vineyards features hand-hewn iron nails used by homesteaders in Santa Maria before the Industrial Revolution introduced mass-produced, machine-cut nails. Despite its lowly function, each nail is unique from the next according to the conditions in which it was made [...]

Gypsy Dancer first caught my eye when a glut of bottles, the A & G Estates Pinot Noir and the Cuvée Romy Pinot Noir, appeared on WineBid.com. They sat for months, getting chipped away at, before I plucked a bottle for myself. It wasn’t until it got home did I realize what that atypical quantity available for [...]

This intensely fruity and distinctive Port was produced from a specially selected section of our home vineyard on Taplin Road and bottled December 2007. Bottle no. 7446 of 8026. I have to admit, when Carey and I arrived in Napa on the 3rd day of our honeymoon, I really had no concept of the scene [...]

It’s restrained (at times), floral, and light of tannins. Intensely cherried, tobacco and chocolate-packed, with a base of ripe stewed tomatoes. You will notice very little oak, a hefty yogurt-covered raisin, sans the raisin, on the mid-palate, and pencil lead metallic all over the nose and palate. This Cabernet thrives on variants—it’s multidimensional and complex, [...]

Shea Wine Cellars, Ken Wright, St. Innocent, Penner-Ash, Alexana, Panther Creek, Berström, Auteur, Sin Qua Non, Loring Wine Co., Raptor Ridge, J.K. Carrier, Elk Cove, Patricia Green, Stevenson Barrie, Westrey, Rex Hill, Broadly and Beaux Frères. All these wineries have, or have had, something in common, and that is: Shea Vineyard, one of America’s great vineyards. I [...]

Go cheap. Go Washington. If you find yourself in a grocery store with a $20 bill in your pocket and happen to need a six pack of Bud Light Wheat and a bottle of wine but just don’t feel like swiping the plastic, I have a solution. Actually, a few solutions. Cheap wine is the [...]

There are probably only a handful of producers growing and bottling this ancient grape in the United States. Seghesio is obviously one. Caparone Winery and Jacuzzi Family Vineyards are two other players that come to mind. Aglianico is bold and tannic, late ripening and incredibly age worthy. Most importantly, it gloriously resides under the warm [...]

We drank a lot of wine this summer—some great, but most good. For the first time in a while, I had little interest in taking risks. Schedules were insane and time was precious—my tolerance for sifting through bargain fails to find the occasional gem was fleeting at best. I found myself relying more on repeats [...]

Track season has passed here in Saratoga Springs. Small town life has returned. Don’t get me wrong; the booze still flows on Caroline Street, just with a more personal, homey vibe. More familiar faces in the room. Restaurants are once again approachable. Reservations for times other than 4:30 and 10:00 can be had, and in [...]

Monday morning, 7:00 am. I drive 50 miles to Vermont for work, avoid hitting deer in rut while listening to audio books on my Kindle. [The author used the word "phallus" today, which I revealed to a giggly Carey when I got home.] 4:00 pm. I drive 50 miles back, tail the honey wagon toting cow [...]