We Wine Guys and Gals have a sacred duty to spread our love and deep knowledge of wine with those around us.  There is nothing we like more when sharing a glass of fine wine with a neophyte then seeing that look of delight in their eyes and you know you have just helped them understand that wine is more about the art than it is about the alcohol.  But I have also come to realize no matter how hard I try I will never see that look in the eyes of some people.   I love my cousin Guido.  We shared some great memories growing up playing army, shooting hoops, and getting into several varieties of trouble not appropriate to mention on a family oriented wine blog.  He helped me get through some rough patches in my life, and I in his.  He is one of the most important relationships in my life and there is no one I would rather share my love of wine with.  I got transferred to another town and had not seen Guido for a couple of years.  It...

Mrs. Andrea Bodine of Dermott, Arkansas writes: “Hey Wine Guy, I read your informative and insightful article about where to buy wine. I know you think I should go to an independently owned wine shop and avoid the super market but I just don’t have the time.  Why it is all I can do to run out to the Piggly Wiggly and back between episodes of House Hunter International to buy that nights dinner.  I’d much rather find out if they went with the beach house on the Timor or the ranch in the outback than spend a day looking for wine.  I’d just as soon buy my wine at the same time I am buying my fryer, yams, and okra.  Is there any way I can get a decent bottle of wine at the super market?” Well Andrea first of all thank you for recognizing how insightful and informative my article was.  After all I am the “Wine Guy” so you should expect nothing less.  That said if you insist on turning a deaf ear to my advice and buy wine at the super market here ...

One of the questions us wine guys and gals get asked most often is “Where is the best place to buy my wine”.  Like so many things in life the answer to that question is “It depends”. If you are unsure of exactly what you want but it is important for you to find a good bottle of wine you need to go to an independently owned wine shop.  Most of these shops only have room for a limited selection of so they generally only stock what the owner feels are the best examples of each wine.  For most of these owners it as much a mission as it is a business.  They have a deep knowledge of wine and care deeply that their customers enjoy the wines they purchase, and that their customers grow in their understanding and appreciation of wine.   There is nothing more they enjoy than answering questions and helping customers. The only drawback is that you will generally have to pay a little more for your wine, but most of the time it is not all that significant consi...

Albarino is a crisp, light, white wine that originated in Spain but in recent years has started to be produced in California and Australia.  It tastes like a a cross between Sauvignon Blanc, Viognier, and Gewürztraminer.  A perfect wine for summer it pairs well with seafood, especially shellfish, and is great to have with salad.  A bottle of Albarino will set you back between $12.00 and $25.00 so you can try bottle without risking your retirement or your kid’s college education.   Give it a try and let me know what you think.

I’ve made two trips to Willamette Valley over the past two years to taste Oregon wine from the area.   The wineries we visited were: Ayoub, Archery Summit,  Ayres,  Domaine Drouhin,  Argyle, Soter,  Penner Ash, Coelho, Roco,  Sokel Blosser, Cristom, Adelsheim, Left Coast, Domaine Serene,  Utopia, and Winderlea.  On one of the trips my wife and I stayed at the Ley Puy Inn .  The inn is owned by Lea Duffy and Andy Kosusko and we found the accommodations clean, comfortable, and the inn was nicely decorated and very well maintained.   The setting was relaxing and the breakfasts were unique and tasty. They  went out of their way to make us feel welcome and help us enjoy the area.  Lea  set up appointments for us at some appointment only tasting rooms and they made dinner reservations for us at Painted Lady , and at Recipe two restaurants that we thoroughly enjoyed.  Before I discuss the wineries in mo...

Valpolicella is grown in the Veneto region (North East Italy just outside of Venice) and has several personalities depending on how it is processed in aged.   Valpolicella is a wine region not the name of a grape.  A number of different grapes can go into a bottle of Valpolicella the most prominent of which is a grape hardly anyone has ever heard of called Corvina.  The most well known personality is basic Valpolicella.  It is a light bodied wine, has alcohol levels of 11-12%, and is a great wine to have with Pizza, lighter meats like veal, or heavier seafood like swordfish.   A bottle of Valpolicella should cost between $8 and $15. The most regal personality for Valpolicella is Amarone.   Amarone starts out with the same grapes as Valpolicella but before fermentation starts the grapes are dried out, traditionally on straw mats but now through a variety of processes, so that the juice that remains is very concentrated.  The wi...

If you have always wanted to  travel to some of the most interesting food and wine locations in the world check out:  http://www.foodandwinetrails.com/ .  They feature land based trips to many wine regions as well as wine focused cruises. Most of their trips feature special programs organized by wine makers and wine experts.  The prices are not for the faint of heart, but if you can swing it the trips should be great experiences and let you experience things through the eyes of the experts.

Want a nice glass of wine but just don’t want to pay a lot of money for it?   Use the following suggestions:    Good cheap white wine is easier to find. Because most white wines are made to be enjoyed right away, and many red wines are meant to be aged, your odds of getting a good white wine at any price point will be better.  It also takes a lot less work to produce a white wine (with the exception of Chardonnay more on that later).  For that reason, your odds of getting a good bottle of cheap white wine you will be much greater then getting a good cheap bottle of red wine. Buy wines that don’t need oak New oak barrels are expensive and lose most of their flavor after they are used once or twice so they constantly need to be replaced.  Because of that any wine aged in oak will be more expensive then wine aged in less expensive containers like stainless steel or cement.   Oak aging adds at least $5 to the price  of a b...

One of the things my friends have the hardest time with is which wine to pair with which food.  As a general rule you don’t want either the food or the wine to overpower the other, or when combined bring out the best in each other.  Everyone is different, if you enjoy it don't worry about what anyone else says. That said what follows is how I generally choose a wine to pair a variety of foods. The wine in bold is my primary choice, the following are choices that work also work well. There are always exceptions, and a lot depends on seasonings and sauces but if you follow the suggestions below you should be pleased: Beef Filet Mignon/Tenderloin:   Petite Sirah , Right Bank (Merlot Dominant) Bordeaux Blend, Merlot Grilled Steak : Cabernet Sauvignon , Left Bank (Cabernet dominant) Bordeaux Blend, Zinfandel Non Grilled Beef : Merlot, Syrah/Shiraz, Right Bank (Merlot dominant) Bordeaux Blend. Hamburgers : Syrah/Shiraz , Zinfandel, Merlot Corned Beef : Ca...