Category Archives: Wine Articles
They’ve Got a Mission
There’s a gem of a wine region within a day’s drive of Ohio, and if you haven’t been there, start making your plans now. Michigan’s Old Mission Peninsula, a stone’s throw north of Traverse City, is making some of the most exciting wines in the Eastern United States.
This stunning peninsula juts 18 miles into Lake Michigan’s…
Read Entire Article...Give These a Try
Does Verdelho even stand a chance in a world where hordes of Chardonnay drinkers are loath to try something new, much less something they can’t pronounce?
Pedro Lopes Vieira is banking on it. North American sales manager for Esporão, a winery in Portugal’s Alentejo region, Pedro was in Ohio recently to promote his wines made primarily from…
Read Entire Article...Demystifying French Wine
France has set the standard for some of the finest wines and wine types of the world. This is in part due to the phylloxera root louse that decimated French vineyards in the late 1800s. When mass replanting on resistant rootstocks was undertaken, the most appropriate grape or grapes were selected for planting in each region.
This…
Read Entire Article...The Lowdown on Lodi
Pop open a wine labeled “California,” and you can be almost certain some of the grapes that went into that wine were grown in the Lodi region, which lies in California’s Central Valley east of San Francisco.
Lodi vineyards have been producing grapes for over a century, and for many years these grapes were the unsung heroes…
Read Entire Article...Hand Crafted in California with an Italian Touch
Cheryl Indelicato’s new line of California wines, HandCraft Artisan Collection, is making its debut in Ohio. Affordable and well made, these could serve well as “house” wines for everyday enjoyment. In a personal nod to her family’s heritage each wine is enlivened by a touch of an Italian varietal.
HandCraft Chardonnay, made with small amounts of Viognier,…
Read Entire Article...Argentina’s Vin Fatale: Susana Balbo
“Wine is in our culture. We have strong European roots,” explained Susana Balbo, the owner and winemaker at Dominio del Plata in Argentina’s Mendoza region. She’s also Argentina’s first female winemaker and a dynamic figure on the international wine scene.
Read Entire Article...Ohio now offers wine-degree program
Suppose you’ve had thoughts – serious thoughts – about becoming a winemaker or maybe starting your own vineyard. In years past, you would have to look out of state for a college that offered an enology (winemaking) or viticulture program. Now, however, Ohioans won’t have to leave the state at all.
From the Wine Geek Files… Grapevine Clones
Since man domesticated grapevines, he has manipulated plants for improved quantity and quality. Site selection, spacing, fertilization, tilling, pruning, irrigation, grafting rootstocks, selection for traits like pest and disease resistance and the isolation and propagation of plants with the best performance (mass selection or Selection Massale) all have been effectively used.
Read Entire Article...Got Game? Pair it with Napa Cellars and Folie a Deux
“I’m trying to frame the fruit but not mask it,” remarked Joe Shirley, director of winemaking at Napa Cellars and Folie a Deux winery in Napa Valley. Shirley recently visited Ohio to spend time with fans, and I was fortunate enough to sample some with a savory bison burger smothered with goat cheese at Gamekeeper’s Taverne in…