-
Champagne Laurent-Perrier tasting at Pogo’s Wine & Spirits (Dallas, TX)
I used to credit most of Champagne’s popularity to marketing glitz. It’s all about the image, right? I guzzled cheap Cava and grocery-store Crémant, feeling smug and wise. But I was wrong. Good Champagne, alas, occupies its own tier of deliciousness among sparkling wines. The bubbles are finer, the texture richer, the flavors brighter and…
-
Flâneur Wines tasting at The Wine Authority (Richardson, TX)
We caught the Flâneur tour for sure at The Wine Authority last night. Who can resist a parade of premium Willamette Pinot passing though town? As a special treat, Flâneur founder Marty Doerschlag was behind the bar, answering questions and opening bottles of these beautiful wines. Established in 2013, Flâneur Wines makes organically farmed Willamette…
-
Southern Italy (Campania & Puglia) tasting at Corner Wines (Plano, TX)
Wine, at its best, is both a teleporter and a time machine. The right glass can whisk you away to distant locales visited long ago (or never), to historical moments remembered or imagined by the yearning, eternal soul inside each of your tastebuds. This is why we drink wine. That, and because it’s a tasty…
-
The wines of South America (Total Wine class review)
Last night, my ass was in class for “Exploremos América del Sur” (Let’s Explore South America). This two-hour workshop is occasionally taught at Total Wine and focuses on the wines of Argentina and Chile. I tasted ten South American wines (four whites and six reds) from Total Wine’s Winery Direct lineup. In this post, I…
-
Review: Berlucchi ’61 Extra Brut Franciacorta
Celebrations require bubbles…even if all you’re celebrating is that it’s finally 5 PM. For At-Home Happy Hour today we have a lovely bottle of ’61 Extra Brut Franciacorta by Guido Berlucchi & C. Franciacorta–as I’m sure many of my readers already know–is Italy’s answer to Champagne. It’s made in a similar style/method to French fizz,…
-
Review: De Chanceny Crémant de Loire Brut
I can’t afford to drink Champagne every day, alas–but at least there’s Crémant. I always keep a Crémant or two in the fridge, and open them without a second thought. If Champagne is designer evening gown, hanging in a closet and awaiting a gala occasion, then Crémant de Loire is like a favorite sundress: Floral,…
-
Review: Saint-Hilaire Blanquette de Limoux Brut (2021)
Our wine topic today is a budget sparkler with a cool story. The year was 1531. At the abbey of Saint-Hilaire at the base of the Pyrenees, some monks noticed that bubbles appeared in casks of fermenting white wine. They documented their findings and worked out methods for production and distribution. Thus, Saint-Hilaire is France’s…
-
Not a bubbly mood: 4 ways Prosecco lovers can cope with tariffs
It has not been a festive year for the wine industry. Climate-related worries, buzz-killing medical research, and an overall decline in drinking among young consumers are just a few of the worries keeping wine people up at night. Now, the wine business is bracing for the possibility of Trumpian tariffs on European imports. Winemakers of…
-
Review: Louis Bouillot Perle de Vigne Crémant de Bourgogne
Cleaning out the wine fridge after New Year’s, and I find this bottle shoved all the way in the back. Quel dommage! I forgot to serve it at the party. I opened a bag of leftover cheese cubes, pulsed all the extra charcuterie-board olives into a tapenade, and popped that cork for me and my…
-
All the Southwest Airlines in-flight wines, rated
To all of us wine nerds flying basic economy, be prepared to stow your taste and curiosity along with your roller bag. Since airlines restored alcohol service after the pandemic, the focus has been on efficiency and catering to the broadest swath of the flying public. Menus are getting smaller, prices are getting higher, and…
-
Two-ingredient wine cocktails to make for the holidays
Ah, the holidays. ‘Tis the season of 12-ingredient punches, smoked and spiced cocktails, artfully strained Christmas cookie-tinis. Time to round up the party supplies. Time to drive to five different grocery stores, clean a bunch of specialty glassware…and oh, where did I put the sugarplum bitters? Okay Martha, calm down. Wouldn’t it be nice to…
-
The Amtrak Mimosa Hack
The Amtrak Mimosa Hack. Hey, that rhymes! So, have you ever been cruising down a wide open plain while someone else is driving, looking at cows, looking at clouds, looking at garbage fires in people’s yards, four hours to go until your destination and thought, “Well, this is fine…but it would be better with a…