Stepping Up to Rose
*Disclaimer: I received this wine as a sample from Cornerstone Cellars. Today turned out to be a gorgeous day in the nation’s capital, so it seemed a perfect time to bust out some Rose. I plucked the 2010 Cornerstone Stepping Stone Corallina Rose from it’s resting place in the basement to join us on the...
Licensees should have the opportunity to accept or reject each third party wine order
Editor’s Note: The following is the first post in our series on the Third Party Providers In the quickly evolving world of third party wine marketing, it’s important that marketers and licensed sellers work together in such a way that puts the licensed seller in full control of all aspects of each transaction. One of...
2009 Jordan Chardonnay
*Disclaimer: I received this wine as a sample from the winery. As a prelude to our recent CA trip, I pulled this bottle of 2009 Jordan Chardonnay from the basement, since we had plans to visit Jordan while in the area. The wine has a real cork closure, clocks in at 13.5% alcohol by volume,...
Pizza and BBQ Ribs and Wine
Pizza and barbecue ribs don’t have much in common; the first is a form of savory flatbread, while the second is pure meat and bones; the first cooks quickly, the second luxuriates in long, slow heat. Of course pizza often has some form of meat as a topping (certainly the case at my house; I...
Back to the Ranch
Sorry for the radio silence this past week. Mr. Wannabe Wino and I took our annual trek out to Sonoma last week and I tried (as much as possible for someone as addicted as I am) to disconnect from the computer. Helped along by spotty wireless, it wasn’t that difficult! To start back down the...
Quick Sip: Martin & Weyrich 2010 Moscato Allegro
Hello Friends,
First it was sweet red wine, then chocolate wine (go figure), and now, Moscato seems to be one of the new hot topics in wine today. Moscato’s rise in popularity is largely fueled by hip-hop culture and millennials. Also known as Gen...
Damn, This Was Good! (#14)
I wanted a deftly handled chardonnay to drink with LL’s roasted sea bass and pancetta with braised leeks, sweet potatoes and black garlic, so I plucked a bottle of Trefethen Estate Chardonnay 2010, Oak Knoll District of Napa Valley, from the fridge, and it delivered all the purity and intensity that I was looking for....
Quick Sip: Joseph Jewell 2009 Floodgate Pinot Noir
Hello Friends,
I recently had an opportunity to taste the Joseph Jewell 2009 Floodgate Vineyard [ Russian River Valley ] Pinot Noir during another fun and informative Cellars of Sonoma TV Tuesday Live streaming broadcast. Joseph Jewell, started by tw...
Quick Sips: Picket Fence 2010 Russian River Pinot Noir
Finding standout California pinot noir under $20 is a real challenge, and this $18 wine proves the point. Oak is heavy handed here and dominates the equation, providing spice, as the back label suggests, but barely permitting a cherry note to come thro...
Quick Sip: Gann Family Cellars 2006 Petite Sirah
Hello Friends,
Petite Sirah is often times deeply colored, spicy, peppery, and assertive. Yet, most of the time it’s a grape variety that’s underappreciated. Petite Sirah is also the source of confusion for some. First off, the name can be misl...
Third Party Providers are Here…To Stay
Last month I had the privilege of addressing a group of control state regulators, industry attorneys and key industry executives that gathered just outside Washington, DC for the National Alcohol Beverage Control Association’s (NABCA) Annual Legal Symposium. The topic of my panel was one that we have put significant focus on here at ShipCompliant and...
Old-School California Cabernet, XIX: Mount Veeder 1998
I happened upon a local Mom-and-Pop wine and liquor store recently with which I was unfamiliar. Right inside the front door stood the “Beaujolais Nouveau est arrivé!” sign, four months late. The shelves and racks held a typical selection of wine and spirits genres, brands and labels. Oh, well, I thought, doing a little exploring,...
