And uncorking them can be a walk down memory lane, or, as it was for me tasting some spectacular Madeiras from the 18th and 19th century and German Rieslings spanning the 20th century recently, gorgeous time capsules to glimpse way back in history. Is mature wine relevant? And, most pointedly, why do young people hate mature wine? MORE >>

Here are some that moved me, along with a few impressions: 1995 Mount Eden Chardonnay Santa Cruz Mountains - if California wine tasted like this, I would drink lots of California wine. 1981 Bodegas Riojana Gran Riserva - I don't know which Gran Riserva this was, as there are several, but whatever it was, it was fantastic. MORE >>

The Valcarlos winery is sleek and modern and after an extensive tour of the vineyard and the modern winery we had a tasting of the line, followed by dinner. They grilled baby lamb for us on old vines, and tasted some fabulous vintage wine. Ah, Rioja! The wines were delicious as well! The evening was very hot. MORE >>

If I'm tasting blind, I can give you my thoughts and there's nothing tricky because I have no idea whether or not I'm supposed to like the wine. Overachievers: 1999 Domaine Leroy Meursault - Tough to get a handle on, but with time to re-taste and to think about the wine, it kind of blew me away. High expectations can color things. MORE >>

Stefano, I believe, was the first Italian biodynamist, having gone the way of Steiner in 1981. Stefano said before we tasted, "There is only one problem, her father is Italy's most important wine journalist." We pulled chairs around a long and narrow wooden table. To me right was Pascaline, next to her Anne-Claude. MORE >>