Educate | Explore | Experience
Geneviève Janssens Wine Director for Robert Mondavi Winery and Chairman of the 2017 Cincinnati International Wine Festival Doesn’t every story about the heart-stopping beauty and allure of Napa Valley need to start with a picture of this sign? It announces, with pleasure, “you’ve arrived”! The original sign was installed on June 30, 1950, to welcome…
It was a gray, chilly February morning in Napa Valley, too dank even for the season’s hearty bright-yellow mustard crop to light up rows of vineyards. Two dozen aspiring and accomplished wine writers braved the drizzly day for a tour of Robert Mondavi Winery (RMW) with Director of Winemaking Geneviève Janssens, and for the opportunity to…
If the phrase “Argentine paradox” had not already been coined to describe the country’s tumultuous economic and political history, I would certainly want to lay claim to it. It is essential to grasp the broad outlines of recent history as context for understanding what’s happening today in the Argentine wine industry. The schisms are wide and…
It’s amazing how long it takes for new realities to pierce the membrane of old truths and commonly held beliefs. That’s Chile in a nutshell. It’s time for the rest of the world to catch up with what’s really happening in one of the world’s most pristine wine growing countries. Entrepreneur Max Morales, owner of…
My first wine tour of South America begins today. In every region, everywhere in the world, there are always a critical few people who lead the shift from bulk to quality wines, and show the pathway into global markets. Absent major political and economic deterrents, it’s true that winegrapes can grow reasonably well without much…
Rick Sayre, Chairman of the 2016 Cincinnati International Wine Festival On a warm, sunny Sonoma day in January, Rick Sayre generously spent four hours touring, tasting and telling the story of his journey at Rodney Strong Vineyards. Toward the end of our interview, Rick confessed that he would have preferred to be fishing for…
Huh? Texas wine? Isn’t that the home of “Chateau Bubba”? Even though roughly 90% of all wine produced in the U.S. comes from California, today wine is made in all 50 states. It’s perhaps not surprising that Washington, Oregon and New York State (Finger Lakes, Long Island) are the other top producers of quality wine, collectively making up…
The Hilton Netherland’s Hall of Mirrors adds sparkle and festive vibes to any event. Monday’s holiday dinner for more than 100 members and guests of the Cincinnati chapter of Chaîne des Rôtisseurs was no exception. Greeted by glittering glasses of Roederer Estate Brut NV (Anderson Valley sparkling), canapes passed deftly by a charming staff among hugs and holiday…
Yesterday I had the pleasure of listening to a webinar sponsored by the French Wine Society featuring veteran Champagne expert Peter Liem. The subject was grower Champagne. I was most struck by Liem’s frankness, advising us not to be allured blindly by the market buzz of grower bubbly because it is (seemingly) artisanal, and not to…