When you talk to Jamie about wine, his passion for wine and his community shine through! He loves the Santa Barbara region and the wine community there. Jamie, like many wine makers did not start out his adult life as a winemaker. He was an entrepreneur. Up until the early 2000s he ran five radio…
We have a “wine night” with friends pretty frequently and it recently dawned on me that I’ve never written about how that works. For some, or even most of you, you have some experience with this: you invite pals over, everyone brings a bottle or two to share over dinner, and you talk about the…
Once again, as I sometimes do, I get an invitation so remarkable I share the details with you. This is one of those times. Three cases of award-winning Italian wines to be tasted and reviewed over three zoom meetings in two weeks. This was literally the best two weeks I have spent over the last…
When you think about your favorite wine regions, Arizona might not be the first state to come to mind! However, Arizona boasts a thriving wine industry dating back to the Spanish missionaries of the 16th century and features three prominent wine regions: Sonoita, Willcox, and Verde Valley. Not only have these regions produced award-winning wines receiving…
Last month I got another look at the whynot wine saver (2019 article) and benefitted from the expert knowledge from the North American Sommelier Association president Diego Meraviglia, on what the heck a Super Tuscan is and how it came to be. The invitation is below, then my notes of what I learned and photos…
Coming Home to J Dusi Wines We hadn’t visited J Dusi in some time, but in our quest to share with our family members what makes Paso Robles special to us, it seemed almost a requirement. After all, the name Dusi is practically synonymous with Paso Robles. Janell Dusi [the J in J Dusi] has…
No, I didn’t just go to Maria’s and order dinner and write a post about it. There was one, maybe two, more steps. The first step was that was when I was there ordering dinner I spied some really cool items in their freezer: Ziploc bags of meatballs, cheese ravioli and spinach ravioli. About a…
A Triple Itinerary of Understanding the Wine, Land & History of Tuscany While Experiencing the Unparalleled Beauty of an Outdoor Excursion TUSCANY WINE and BIKE (TWB) announced their new 2014 Wine Tasting & Culinary Biking Tour Itineraries effective April 26, 2014 through September 27, 2014. Led by local freelance oenologist and Winemaker Carlo Travagli and…
Admittedly, my wine knowledge is pretty focused on California. So, when I get an opportunity to add to knowledge outside of my primary area of expertise, especially when it is in a great environment, I do my best to jump at that. The Kobrand Tour d’Italia 2013 wrapped up its eight-city tour at the Hotel…