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Review: Cantine Due Palme “Pillastro” Primitivo Puglia IGP (2022)
Sometimes, in the midst of all the tasting and study that is my new wine life, I just want to drink something liquid and red. I keep a modest stash of bottles just for this purpose. Sangria wines, pasta-night wines–wines you drink with your mouth and not your nose. “Please don’t be gross,” I whisper…
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Napa Zin for the win: A visit to Robert Biale Vineyards
Trying to choose just one winery to visit in Napa Valley is a torturous exercise, like buying a single scoop from an ice cream shop with dozens of bins. Whatever you pick, it’s sure to be good. But choosing Pistachio means passing up Boysenberry and Black Walnut and Lavender Honey–there’s only so much flavor you…
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Costco Advent Calendar Wine #7: Queen’s Gambit Zinfandel (California)
I’m ripping into the Costco advent calendar early, like a naughty kid at Christmastime. Except my advent calendar is full of wine instead of candy, and there’s no grown-ups here to scold me. Today I’m pouring up Bottle #7, “Queen’s Gambit.” But is this California Zinfandel fit for a queen, or should it be banished…
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Robert Biale Vineyards tasting at The Wine Authority (Richardson, TX)
In the Cabernet-obsessed realm of Napa Valley, Robert Biale Vineyards is an outlier: A heritage winery focused mainly on Zinfandel. When commercial winemaking was restored in California after Prohibition, the Biale family, as immigrants from Northern Italy, chose to cultivate (only) this flavorful and hardy grape. Aldo Biale’s homemade wines were sold–illicitly at first–beginning in…
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Rombauer Vineyards tasting at The Wine Authority (Richardson, TX)
It was a Rombauer power hour at The Wine Authority last Tuesday. A Rombauer Vineyards rep stopped by to pour a whole slew of their wines to a thirsty afternoon crowd. Picks included their well-known Napa Valley Cabernet, along with a super-premium version of the Carneros Chardonnay and the single-estate “El Dorado” Zinfandel. (Apologies for…
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Balletto Vineyards tasting at The Wine Authority (Richardson, TX)
I love my Wine Authority membership because I get to try all kinds of stuff I wouldn’t find on my own. Premium wines, small-production wines, overlooked grapes and regions–you never know what’s going to be on the tasting bar. This week was a Russian River Valley tasting. I order a Russian River Valley Pinot Noir…
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California Uncorked: Napa Valley & Beyond (Total Wine class review)
Nothing helps smooth the path to the weekend better than a midweek wine or spirits tasting. And so, I frequently take Thursday evening classes at the Total Wine in West Plano, Texas. It’s like an educational version of a Thirsty Thursday happy hour! Last night’s class was “California Uncorked: Napa Valley & Beyond.” It’s an…