He is a mega-star and having him talking about his new wine from California is not just good for California wine, it’s good for all of wine in China. The domestic industry is stepping up their game and in that regard Professor Li Demei is highly influential (Chinese Agricultural University) as well as Professor Ma Huiquin.

The New York Times magazine ran an infographic on Sunday that compiled the picks of 18 wine industry types. But the list raised questions for Ray Isle of Food & Wine, since he tweeted: The lack of California wines is understandable for a couple of reasons. Yes, California makes a lot of wine and much of it is under $12.

Bruce Stephens is the CEO of Wine Bottle Renew, a California startup that washes and reuses wine bottles profiled in today’s Wall Street Journal. Chief Bottle Washer: the title is no longer just a punchline. “You take a bottle and you empty the bottle, and my God, why would that only be a one-time bottle?&#

Dr. Frank’s vision, knowledge and determination are credited with elevating the New York wine industry from a state of happy mediocrity to a level that today commands world attention. The talented group includes winemakers from California, Australia, France and Germany. am just interested in the cold wine. riesling Keuka Wine Trail

Apparently Mr. Merret was a pioneer in the nascent industry. Come to think of it, California sparkling wine doesn’t have a category name. The mere thought of “English wine&# may sound like an oxymoron. But 400 vineyards now produce grapes for wine, much of it sparkling. What do you think? winespeak

Cristobal Undurraga Marimon is a member of the family known in the Chilean wine industry as “the pioneers,” who were among the first in the 1980s to bring the country’s fine, value-priced wines to the attention of the world. What's interesting about Christobal is that the family sold their original holdings in 1986. Kolye Reserve Syrah.

It's too hard to get a real sense of the wines when you quickly taste 80 of them, especially amidst the cacophony of an industry tasting. tasted none of the Jenny and François Languedoc wines, almost none of the Rhône wines, none of their interesting Bordeaux selections, nothing from Italy, not one of Tony Coturri's California wines, etc.

The moves notably included promoting Antonio Galloni to a greater role, as Galloni took over reviewing California wines from Parker himself as well as adding coverage of Burgundy (ex-Beaujolais) to his beat that already included Champagne and all of Italy. Which California wines excite you the most? His unedited replies follow below.

But the rate may actually be higher than with young wines since the cork industry has taken some steps to reduce cork taint in recent decades.) But I think it’s worth pausing on California wines since it gets to the question of young people and old wine. Is mature wine relevant? Drinking mature wines has many inherent risks.

My articles are usually warehoused in the articles section, but I though this one on Leafroll Virus in the vineyards of California was worth taking up space here. The blood-red leaves in California's vineyards are appearing earlier and spreading more widely. Next post up, by the way, The Great Laureano Serres. a It's not imagined.

have a difficult time accepting the reality of California's new world the industrial approach to winemaking, the surrogate mother approach to winemaking, the disconnected approach to winemaking. To hell with local and industrial, if it's local and hand tended, I'm interested. It's on going. We corresponded.

The theme, apparently, was California wines with ties to Mexico. Given that, here’s the range of California wines they could choose from: almost all of them. The California wine industry would produce few bottles of wine if it weren’t for the work of Mexican viticultural laborers. Citrus Vinaigrette.

The Silicon Valley Bank released their annual report on the California wine industry. SPIT: extortion. In what seems to be a caper ripped from the pages of a Peter Mayle novel, a bumbling criminal tried to extort Domaine de la Romainée Conti for about $1.5 million by threatening to poison vines at the revered estate. Telegraph ].

Recently, the wife and I have been discussing a possible trip to California next year. The past few months I have been tasting, or should I say consuming, some really fantastic California wines from many different AVA's. Tags: California Petite Sirah red wine few of the issues are for how long and where. Suggested retail is $15.

I was reading this months Wines & Vines something struck me about the piece entitled California Wineries Get Certified.' movement that has had such power over the wine industry only has 64 certified wineries and vineyards in the world? For a moment they had me. But I questioned my own knowledge. How is that possible?

Could California’s wine excise tax increase 12,600 percent? While excise taxes might be the type of strong brew that a few politicians can raise, it’s unlikely that voters would really want to raise these taxes in such a drastic manner both out of their own self-interest and protecting the local industry.

The wines are sourced from preeminent and emerging wine growing regions including Monterey County; California Central Coast; Marlborough, New Zealand; Spain and Hungary. Monthaven Chardonnay is made in California's largest small-lot winery," notes Jeff. It truly delivers artisan wine, a glass at a time," says Richardson.

As a chaser, check out Tom Wark’s “manifesto for change in the wine industry&# over on Fermentation. The aftershocks of the earthquake that rocked Chile and its wine industry continue to be felt. Three wine makers from California who were victims of the recession receive profiles in the LAT. SPIT: reform in Maryland.

Chile’s wine industry is digging from the massive earthquake. They state that the industry’s exports “will return to normal within a very short period of time and without major difficulties.&#. Consumers have filed a class-action lawsuit in California against E&J Gallo over the faux pinot, Red Bicyclette.

Magali Delmas and Laura Grant, of UCLA and UCSB respectively, examined 13,400 California wines from an eight-year period ending in 2005 to reach their conclusions, which will appear in a forthcoming issue of the journal Business & Society. “ Eco-labeling Strategies and Price-Premium: The Wine Industry Puzzle.&# Delmas, M.

The Chilean wine industry attempted a concerted move upmarket a few years ago. SPIT: California bargains. Mike Steinberger contemplates the puzzle of why so few “superstar&# winemakers in California make wines under $20. SPIT: a move upmarket. But the strong peso and weak global economy have crushed those plans. NYT ].

The highlight of this afternoon was a dynamic talk by Vic Motto, Chairman of Global Wine Partners, on the current recession and ideas of how the industry can dig its way out of a "recession mentality." so on my previous post I mentioned I have been coming here for years to catch up with fellow professionals throughout the world.

It’s the story of a young man who discovers a love of wine during a trip to Germany in the late sixties and who subsequently moves to a fictional California town to make great wines. But unlike our own (ig)noble experiment, at least they haven’t crippled a burgeoning wine industry, the effects of which took generations to repair.

Some California wineries are going all Rioja and consciously holding wines back for bottle aging–sometimes a decade or more–at the winery. The New Zealand wine industry faces challenges, as bulk exports rise and prices fall. SIPPED: number crunching. WS editor Tom Matthews responds to the research. Revolutionary!! NYT ].

believe this is my first from the Paso Robles' region of California. A4C has released three wines from Central Coast California: a Sauvignon Blanc, Zinfandel, and a Merlot-Cabernet Sauvignon blend. Tags: Cabernet Sauvignon California red wine Paso Robles Zinfandel Now Cabs I have no problem with.

Pierre was California bulk red wine, bottled at a factory in Beijing. And apparently for decades, Chinese wine was made in “enormous, state-run industrial wineries [that] blended grapes with chemicals and coloring.&# Donald St. Here’s a taste of the early days: When the St. The family was Canadian by birth, but St.

The NYT summarizes the effect of the recession on the California wine industry: “Brutal.&# Michael Broadbent, founder of the wine department at Christie’s, has sued Random House publisher of The Billionaire’s Vinegar ( buy on amazon ). Random House will defend the lawsuit. Image: The Daily Mail). SPIT: sales. LoHud ].

After all, no one has the money for $300 cabernet sauvignon from California, and even alluding to Cult Wines, let alone drinking them, is so out of fashion that one hesitates to mention the plethora of emails arriving daily intra-continentally. Flights are delayed. Market volatility remains high. just can’t bring myself to do it. Never again.”

visited a winery in California once and calculated just how much it cost to make the wine using expensive techniques–new barrels, farming technique, plant material, labor–and figured it was about $10 worth of wine they were selling for $300. Industry replies, part I. It’s a strategy of luxury cuvees.

Patrick Campbell of Laurel Glen winery in Sonoma, makes a tasty $10 California wine, REDS, billed as “a wine for the people.&# By contrast, several imported wines in the price range have appeal despite having to be transported and pass through the importer’s company as well. Over 30 of you had your say in the post from last week.

Franzia had this to say about the flags in the story: “No California flag–they’ve screwed us too many times. Fred Franzia, creator of Two Buck Chuck and founder of Bronco Wine Co, has a somewhat laudable if self-serving goal: no wine should sell for over ten dollars a bottle. We shouldn’t fly the US flag, the bastards.

Or "I'm sending this guy my California Roussanne that I think he'll find interesting, based on the other wines he likes." now have friendships in the wine industry, although I don't think that this influences how I review or do not review their products. I have no statement of ethics anywhere on my blog, but I'm going to add one today.

use to think all US wine came from California or New York. Knowledgeable of the industry, well written, opinionated and fun to read. I am sitting here feeling bad because I missed adding a new post last week. Had a lot to do, kept busy but did check in on my favorite bloggers. Let's hope, that is my retirement venture. know I can't.

I've been wondering recently what it would mean if Hanzell, which planted the first pinot noir vines in California in 1953, received 95+ points from the major trade press regularly. I didn't expect to like this 2004 Chardonnay from Hanzell Vineyards as much as I did. The 2004 is now five years old and tastes like a young Kongsgaard The Judge.

SIPPED: industrial waste over Givry. The Burgundy village of Givry has to contend with plans for a new industrial waste treatment plant on the outskirts of town. California’s legislature approved a new budget without increasing the excise tax on wine. SPIT: Bordeaux futures. SIPPED: Bordeaux past. Bloomberg ].

» Chardonnay in California: Part Five January 19, 2009 When I got this assignment a friend in Portland said, "Al, its going to kill you." Even though she didnt taste them all, but a good spectrum of about 50 wines from all over California, shes of the opinion that there are more styles of the wine available than a decade ago.

So buckle up and get ready to hear his thoughts on what’s wrong with Riesling from Austria and Australia, screwcaps and their problems, the Loire, California cab then and now, indigenous yeasts, roto-fermenters, small oak barrels, wines over 14% alcohol and why he uses scores! California cabs from the 70s. German Riesling.

Steve Heimoff recently linked to my California Cult Wine Release Schedule post, and I need to take the time and space to clear up a couple of his readers' comments. So for the wine industry’s own good, the list will grow. It costs about $34 as a future. Well, google "SLAKED Cult Wine" and there you go. well, that’s your own problem.

Turns out it was the 1998 Mont Mains and the Napa-based wine industry guy shared the wealth, he called it Chardonnay. California Chadonnay. have had nothing that excited me, except the recent night sky with the moon squaring off with Venus and Jupiter. Then I get an email from a friend about that 1947 Louis Martini. JEALOUSY! JEALOUSY!

» California Dreaming: the debriefing December 03, 2008 Now that the wine blogging for the Times is put to bed, I am admitting to some withdrawal. One of the reactions Ive kept in the shadows is the extent of how much California perplexes me. am sure California and some Californians feel misunderstood by me. Acme bread.

Our business model is built around what we call in the industry the "spot" market for super/ultra premium bulk wines. Lot 86, a 2006 Lodi Zinfandel from California: Nose: warm, wood, jammy on the sweet side of dry, juicy and chewy, also very nice. Our focus is on buying at the high-end, small available 'Lots' of super premium wine.

California? will talk about the history of the wine industry and how it got to the point where it will soon blow up on our market (at least that is what I feel). When you think of wine what parts of the world come to mind first? France? Italy? Maybe Argentina or Spain? What about Greece? Wait a second Keith.Greece? Greece. Red please.

Not only that, but they set up a wine tasting table for me (and a fabulous industry collegue from "Bacchus - Wine Made Simple") right on the 10th hole.  We poured some amazing wines from Israel and California and the guests LOVED THE WINES.  I spent my day today at an amazing event.  and there is a "Rally to Stop Iran.  rally flier.

Laurie Daniel writing about all the wine books that have been released of late (at least 3 by NY based wine industry professionals - one of whom I have had coffee with). San Fransisco Chronicle article about Italian varietals in California (I have had some amazing Napa Sangiovese). Or California Pizza? Are they all the same?

Washington state and its predominance of $20+ bottles (as reviewed in the two articles), its relative obscurity as a wine producing region, and its comparison to the Rhone valley reminded me a lot of.yup, the Israeli wine industry. So instead, I want to bring up wines from another not-too-discussed wine region - Washington state.

The point of view seems wrong to me as most California and New World wines are made for the market -- the most obvious taste--than the product of a carefully matched grapevine to land and climate and a passionate winemaker who is part artist/philosopher and part scientist. Are there exceptions to the awfulness of California wine for you?

and "California promotes wines that dont suck" Um.since when did fresh herbs become weird?! And millions of people think that California wines dont suck.but that certainly isnt an indication of greatness. Doesnt the fellow realize there would be no California wine without Europe? Now, what could make the fellow happier? Sheesh.

The California wine industry that welcomed a wine-novice Wine Tasting Guy with open arms is under attack. Alice Feiring, a warm woman whom I met & spoke with at length shortly after transitioning into the wine industry, is under attack. But in her LA Times OpEd piece " California Wine? Sure controversy sells.

While the New World producers (specifically California) are using all sorts of alternative technologies and products to make wines that lose that something special. I just read a recent post by Eric Asimov of the New York Times on his blog The Pour. My take on all of this falls somewhere in the middle. Until then, happy WHATEVER wine tasting.

Making my way past the French wines I landed in the California section. But the lure of the reds grabbed me and it was the California reds and people I either knew or recognized who convinced me that white time was up. Got back from the West Coast this morning and I hope to write up about day 1 of my wine country trip tomorrow.

An industry answer to Fast Food Nation and Kitchen Confidential, the book paints a distressing picture of a world full of Frankenwines (my word, not Ms. If tales like that sound familiar, you may recall Mondovino, the 2004 Jonathan Nossiter documentary about globalization in the wine industry. Then theres the hardware. Welcome to Ms.

Other factors leading to higher prices throughout the industry are the drought in Australia and the illegal worker act in California.  I bring up the "surge" in European wines as a result of reading an article in the NY Post.  All these factors are leading to higher costs that are now being passed along to the consumer.

But as the wine industry has matured (vineyards & wine making techniques have improved) and customers have become more sophisticated, the wines of Gamla have improved by leaps and bounds. I have been asked by countless people which wines I would recommend they check out for Passover, so I thought it appropriate to blog for the masses.

tasted California wines, Oregon wines, French wines, Italian wines, young wines, sweet wines, old wines (I had an AMAZING 1967 Barolo that was very much alive & a 1993 Chardonnay that sadly tasted oxidized). When speaking to many people in the industry, their love of wine and passion for it is very evident. What an amazing tasting.

realize that as I have immersed myself in this industry I have become quite particular. Part of this "snobbery" or "high expectation" comes as a result of time spent in Napa (and surrounding California wine country) where they do it. I went to a wine bar last night and there were a few things that disturbed me about this place. 

He fumed at the EUs stupidity for not allowing the Spanish wine industry to "adjust for global warming." home : wine recommendations : wine girl for hire : bio : articles : contact « Global Warming & Wine Conference: M. February 19, 2008 The Climate Change in Spain, was a rather emotional panel. His response drew applause.

Does California Gets the Message?) February 01, 2008 Its unbelievable how they got away with it, but annual Unified Wine and Grape Symposium in Sacramento, California went on without me. Well, yes, I suppose but I think the statement is about finding terrific wine and California has fallen down on the job. Witty. Sharp.

The first settlers were the Spanish and they brought with them the mission grape via California. Actually, Mendoza was founded in 1561 and from the late 1500's to about the early 1800's a domestic, commercial wine industry blossomed to the north in a city called San Juan and subsequently spread south. The answer is yes we do. Ca-what?"

Where does it come from and why is it so popular and plentiful in California and not so much everywhere else. And if Primitivo from Apulia is closely related to Zinfandel how did Zinfandel become so popular in California? Okay, so now we know where the grape came from but how did it get all the way to California? in most wine).

Generalizations are just that, general statements that are never 100% true, but for the most part the people that choose to get into the Wine Industry seem to be people who generally love wine and get into the business so that they can love what they do. It is after 3AM and I have not slept much since getting to Israel 5 days ago.

And last but certainly not least we head west to California. Yes the poor thing has been over industrialized and exploited in the U.S. The producer is Cycles Gladiator located in the downright awesome central coast of California. So the Alphabet City Wine Co. has been open for about a month now and all is well. Can you tell?

Industry tasting : Terry Theise Grower Champagnes at the Michael Skurnik tasting. This is my 200th post here at the ol' Brooklynguy blog. That's a lot of writing about wine and food. Kind of hard to believe. looked through the blog recently and I think there is some stuff worth reading, whether for entertainment or for information about wine.

If you want to know if merlot is red or white we will tell you with a smile that it is a wonderful red varietal or grape originally used a blending varietal in French Bordeaux and has since made a name for itself across the globe being very prominent in California. Yes my friends I have been out of commission for quite some time now. month?

Organic" WAS conventional, in that it was just-the-way-things-were-done, up until about a half century ago when chemical companies began calling on farmers (I interviewed one of the patriarchs of California agriculture recently, and he was the one who turned on that lightbulb for me. Main | Hearty Burgundy at Sanford? Do check it out.

Although it is a Monday, the deadest night in the food/beverage industry, we waited about 20 minutes for a place to sit. The waitress recommended a California Pinot, but at $80 bottle, kinda steep, especially for someone who is not a big fan of California Pinot - too fruity!  On to the wine. The lady I was with likes sweet wine.

When shopping for wine in a place like Sam's Club one should focus on bottles not from California (unless the wine buyer caught the wine geek bug one day and ordered some boutique stuff that is quite good and in that case stock up before it is gone) but -in my experience- South American and certain Spanish and Italian wines of good quality.

And with all this talk of merlot in my head I thought I would break out one of my California Wine Club offerings. It's kinda cool because when my wife and I were out in California one of the first tasting rooms we stopped at was Gainey so it was a pleasant surprise to see it in the mail recently. This wine was great.

catching on to this dilemma in the next couple of years realizing that the industrialization of the little pinecone can only go so far. Then it caught on and became a kind of demented obsession for the mass market as producers in California began to industrialize one hundred percent merlot to the point of lunacy. It just worked.

Clearly his arguments must be taken with a dash of salt, as he has California leanings. Is it reasonable for a top Grand Cru wine to sell for hundreds (or thousands) of dollars, and for that wine to be snapped up in its entirety by the industry and several filthy rich buyers? In Did You See That? Have things gone too far in Burgundy?

Stag's Leap is one of the most prominent wine producers in California. tend to focus on the under twenty-dollar range but if I were to go above such limits in the California category this producer would on the short list. love hearing groups of wine geeks bantering about the industry. I'm just a wine geek. How do I begin?

It is not from California and it is not from Europe. had to try this bizarre mutation of industrial wine marketing. I had never seen anything like it. couldn't believe it was true but there it was in front of me. I'm sure we have all heard of "wine in a box" and we all know the craziness that is two-buck Chuck. shouldn't even continue.