March, 02, 2015 California: Early Bud Break Brings Frost Worries

(Wines&Vines) - With bud break occurring in vineyards throughout California, it appears 2015 could be another early vintage and one that hopefully is not marked by frost. Bud break has now been reported from all of California’s key wine grape regions from Temecula Valley in the south t...

March, 02, 2015 Day-tripping pot-tour startups see wine-industry future

(SeattleTimes) - Jill Lane, master grower at Sky High Gardens on Seattle’s Harbor Island, uncaps jar after jar of golf-ball-size marijuana buds and allows her guests sniffs of Bubblicious, Super Silver Goo and Green Crack. “What kind of high is that?” asks Louise Avery, gesturi...

March, 02, 2015 How to Buy Napa’s Most Exclusive and Hard-to-Get Wines

(Bloomberg) - A group of four Swiss entrepreneurs snagged a prime lot at last weekend’s Premiere Napa Valley barrel auction, splashing out $115,000, or $1,917 a bottle, for the 2013 Brand Double Barrel 1588 Cabernet Sauvignon. “We’re each going to take 15 bottles and drink them...

March, 02, 2015 In France, Pesticides Get in Way of Natural Wines

(NYTimes) - The task ahead of me was a two-day tasting marathon of wines with a welter of confusing labels: natural, organic, organic practice and biodynamic. But for Jean Bardet, a semiretired chef with two Michelin stars to his name, there was little confusion about the worthiness of such bottles...

March, 02, 2015 Madeira: The Historic Portuguese Wine That’s Hip Again

(WSJ) - IS IT LIKE PORT? That’s the first question most wine drinkers ask when contemplating a glass of Madeira, according to Michael Scaffidi, wine director of Union Square Cafe in New York. His answer? “Madeira is so much cooler than Port.” More and more wine drinkers—f...

March, 01, 2015 Big Names Question Validity of Rioja DOC

(Wine-Searcher) - Prominent Rioja bodegas admit that the region's appellation system needs more emphasis on terroir, as Artadi quits the DOC. Rioja bodega Artadi's controversial decision to leave the Rioja DOC has been cautiously applauded by some fellow producers. From the 2014 vintage all A...

February, 27, 2015 Cork Versus Screw Cap: Which Preserves The Flavor Of Wine Better?

(Capradio) - In recent years, a growing number of wine makers are using screw caps rather than natural corks. The trend worries natural cork producers who have mounted an ad campaign targeting Northern California wine buyers. The natural cork industry – based primarily in Portugal -- is try...

February, 27, 2015 Red Wine Benefits Don't Make Up For All The Other Unhealthy Stuff You Do

(MedicalDaily) - Americans love wine. Over the last 50 years, our annual consumption has increased by nearly two gallons per person, from 0.93 gallons in 1963 to 2.82 gallons in 2013. But we don’t love all wines equally. Americans bleed red. We love red wine for many reasons. We love it for ...