Some bottles prompt more than just tasting notes. These are the musings — on time, memory, family, and the way a great wine has a way of making us think about the life we’re living.
Why Texas Wine—and Benjamin Calais—Deserve a Second Look I’ve been fortunate to taste wine in some of the great regions of the world. From the Rhône to Barolo, from Paso Robles to Hunter Valley, I’ve stood in cellars old and new, listened to growers talk about soils and seasons, and learned to appreciate how deeply…
There are wines you analyze—and wines you enter. Châteauneuf-du-Pape has always belonged to the second category for me. Not because it demands reverence, but because it invites memory. The story begins in the early 14th century, when the papacy relocated from Rome to Avignon. Pope John XXII looked across the Rhône Valley and saw a…
In the realm of the oenophile, there exist moments when the essence of the grape transcends the mere act of tasting, becoming an ethereal experience that intertwines with culture, art, and the sensory tapestry of life itself. Such was the nature of my sojourn into the heart of Valpolicella, where viniculture is less an industry…
As the autumn leaves begin to paint the landscapes with a palette of auburn and gold, I find myself embarking on a journey—a pilgrimage of the senses, if you will, through the rolling vineyards of Italy. My adventure begins in the storied region of Valpolicella, a place where the vines whisper tales of tradition, passion,…
Winter hasn’t quite loosed his steely grip on the Chesapeake Bay area. Although this evening ended in a brilliant sunset with clear skies levelling golden rays through the still leafless trees in our back forest, it began with a cold, damp drizzle. But that was okay because Lisa pulled out some leftover cassoulet from the…
In my mind I’m immediately transported back to many evenings in Italy where the wine, the conversation, the poetry, the music all dissolved into a perfect starlit Tuscan sky.
Okay, I’ll admit it. I don’t always make the best decisions regarding wine purchases. I taste a lot of different wines from a lot of different wineries from all over the world, and I have rarely ever met a wine I didn’t like. Couple that with the idea that if I taste at a winery,…
Wine can make us reflective . . . thoughtful. It can help us celebrate, facilitate good conversation, and enhance our appreciation of food, music, and art. It even aids in the interpretation of poetry and literature. Can it teach us anything about life? I’m sure you won’t be surprised that I will argue that it…
A few years ago I was in the home of a friend who was a member of my church (remember, I’m Southern Baptist) and noticed a box of Black Label Cabernet Sauvignon on their kitchen cabinet. Knowing that I was a “progressive” Southern Baptist (at least when it comes to alcohol consumption), they insisted that…
It was in my fortieth year that I discovered (seemingly from nowhere) my passion for wine. Perhaps it would be more correct to say that I discovered my passion for the culture of wine. Lisa and I had carried on both of our families’ traditions of zero alcohol for our twenty years of marriage (a…