The Wine Idea

Would it please you to know that you may well be a better judge of wine than you imagine? That you — casual, untrained, occasional wine drinker that you are— may … Is it Red or White? (No peeking)Read more

We’re living through a period just now when the more natural a wine is, the more cachet it enjoys. We have no argument with this, exactly, except insofar as . . … Pardon the AnthropomorphismRead more

Some years ago, finding myself stranded in Greenfield, Massachusetts by the wrath of hurricane Irene and looking for supper and a bit of company I popped into The People’s Pint, a … It Came from the LabRead more

By definition, etymology and inclination, sediment is just stuff that settles.  Most often, it refers to solid particles suspended in and carried along by a fluid, before they’re drawn inexorably downward by … It’s Sedimentary, My Dear WatsonRead more

The dinner party differs from the cocktail party in one very important respect. Hemmed in as you are by a dinner party place setting, it’s generally not possible to seek new … Getting to Know YouRead more

The chattering classes of the the food and wine world find plenty to argue about, but it’s safe to say that there is today near-universal agreement on one point: We all … Balm for the Old WoundRead more

  Lovers of wine and the vine can be found all over the world, in every known clime and every inhabited continent. Meanwhile, the places where wine can actually be produced … HeartlandsRead more

It may be the most viewed, most talked about, the most influential medical-related segment the long-running CBS newsmagazine show 60 Minutes ever produced. It was 1991 and host Morley Safer brought Americans some almost … The New French ParadoxRead more

There was a time when the tasting note was a wine insider’s tool. Sommeliers, cellar masters and wine brokers, whose job it was to make purchasing decisions made use of them … Pour Me Another Tasting NoteRead more

One of the things we learn as we become more acquainted with the wide world of wine is that there’s almost no end to its variety — that it can be … Fat and Skinny Had a RaceRead more

The twentieth may have been the American century, but it was during the eighteenth that we made the transition from an ethnically uniform but marginally viable colony of the British Empire … What Yankee Doodle DrankRead more

An American’s first wine encounter in Europe can elicit surprise. It’s not that Europeans keep the best for themselves — a strangely persistent canard. Rather, it’s the temperature at which wine is … The Hand TestRead more