July 2007
Posted: Jul 30, 2007 12:04pm ET
While I spent a few days in Alto Adige tasting through a hundred or so whites, mostly 2006s from most of the top cooperatives in the region, I began thinking about how cooler regions may soon become warm regions, suitable for all sorts of different grape types and wine.
Read More
Posted: Jul 27, 2007 2:35pm ET
Just got back from the vineyards of Franz Pratzner in Naturns, in Alto Adige. His 12 acres of vineyards are steep slopes overlooking the Venosta Valley at about 2,000 feet above sea level. It reminds me of some of the steep vineyards in Germany’s Rhiengau and Mosel.
Read More
Posted: Jul 25, 2007 2:09pm ET
Boats and Champagne: It’s a nice combination in the summer. I was hanging out with some friends last weekend on their Leopard Sport 18 on the Tuscan coast and the ice-cold Champagne was going down just right.
Read More
Posted: Jul 19, 2007 1:09pm ET
I tasted about two dozen Vin Santos today in my office in a blind tasting, and I was wondering, how many of you out there drink these unique wines from Tuscany? I occasionally pull a cork on a bottle for dessert during a dinner party with friends, but I must say that I am not a big drinker of them.
Read More
Posted: Jul 17, 2007 10:50am ET
I had lunch with a friend in Tuscany last week who is also a big-time wine trader in blue chip Bordeaux, and he brought a magnum of 1976 Cheval Blanc to lunch. We had this after a couple of gorgeous bottles of 1996 Barolos including a Roberto Voerzio Brunate and Pio Cesare Ornato with about a dozen or so people including a couple of wine producers.
Read More
Posted: Jul 13, 2007 11:46am ET
I had some friends over for dinner the other night, about 16 in all! And I decided to serve only magnums from my cellar. Most were 1997 Super Tuscans, including Castello dei Rampolla Toscana Sammarco , Tenuta dell’Ornellaia Masseto , and Fonterutoli Siepi.
Read More
Posted: Jul 12, 2007 10:41am ET
Announcing that France's 2007 harvest is ruined seems a little exaggerated – at least for Bordeaux. But news reports, particularly in the British press, have been saying that the consistent rains and cold weather this summer have almost completely destroyed the young crop.
Read More
Posted: Jul 11, 2007 1:54pm ET
This thought-provoking comment was posted in response to yesterday's blog. "User Name: Peter Chang, Hong Kong Posted: 12:12 PM ET, July 11, 2007 It's funny to continue to see the animosity towards the French for raising prices on a less-than-stellar vintage, especially from the Americans.
Read More
Posted: Jul 10, 2007 11:03am ET
In between tasting hundreds of Tuscan wines for the magazine over the last couple of weeks, I have been hearing some interesting things about 2006 Bordeaux futures. The US distributors I have spoken to say that they haven't sold a thing, and that consumers are totally uninterested.
Read More
Posted: Jul 3, 2007 11:37am ET
I just heard that the 2006 Cheval-Blanc came out today in Bordeaux. It's very expensive—perhaps as much as $700 a bottle as a future. Yikes. I am not sure what to say about that. It made me think of another St.
Read More
Posted: Jul 2, 2007 11:05am ET
I finished off the evening yesterday with a few glasses of Graham 10-year-old tawny Port and a cigar—Ramon Allones Specially Selected. I was looking out at the stars, having a conversation with one of my best friends, and thinking what a great deal this Port is.
Read More
