Our Southern California Wine Council welcomed the holiday season by tasting and pairing four whites and four reds from the Livermore Valley American Viticultural Area (AVA), just over an hour east of San Francisco. With a climate consisting of warm days and cool nights, the area has been conducive to wine grape growing since the late 1800s.
Omega Road Winery Gratia, 2019 ($23) was our first tasting. Omega Road Winery is run by father-daughter team Ken and Alexandra Henkelman. A flavorful
Are you thinking of what to do during the holiday? Well, a wine tour is an ideal thing for you. As you plan for the significant experience, Major Vehicle Exchange is readily available to sort your transport need by providing you with amazing secondhand tour buses. Used buses for sale are there for you ensuring that your tour remains memorable and worth the time. Before making a move, this what you need to know.
Why go for a wine tour?
Depending on where you have decided to visit with family member
Paris and Lile аrе undеnіаblу twо of the world’s grеаtеѕt сіtіеѕ but Itаlу’ѕ hеаrt lіеѕ іn France. Rolling hills tорреd with mеdіеvаl towns and wіndіng rоаdѕ lіnеd with cypress gіvе France a tіmеlеѕѕ арреаl but to rеаllу experience
France уоu’vе gоt tо еxреrіеnсе it’s wіnе. Going оn a wine tоur іn France tорѕ many Itаlіаn trip wіѕhlіѕtѕ but wіnе tasting іn France іѕ a bit dіffеrеnt than іn the Unіtеd States. On a recent trір tо Paris I got tо explore France’s rich hеrіtаgе on a рrіvаtе France fоо
It all began when the Becker family began searching for a log cabin to renovate for their Texas Hill Country getaway from their main residence in San Antonio. Inspired by travels abroad where they developed a passion for wines, the Beckers felt that central Texas was ripe for supporting more top quality vineyards. They purchased a cabin in 1990 on 46 acres of raw land and quickly discovered that native mustang grapes left over from German settlers grew abundantly in the fallow f
The lovely tropical garden of two of our members’ home in San Diego was the recent setting of Wine Council’s end of summer review of wines. We tasted a Pinot gris and a rosé from Cameron Hughes and a Pinot gris and a rosé from Mount Beautiful, plus three Pinot noirs from Talawind Ranch. Each member was assigned a wine to research and was asked to bring an appetizer or dish that would pair well with his or her assigned wine.
We started our tasting with the two Pinot gris. Cameron Hughes is neit
A region within the province of Brescia in northern Italy's Lombardy region, Franciacorta is renowned for panoramic village views, castles, and rolling hills that naturally inspire artistic expression and overall joie de vivre.
For 16 days in 2016 during the months of June and July, over one million visitors "walked across water" on a pop up art installation on Lake Iseo called Christo Floating Piers. A 1.9-mile modular floating dock system constructed of 220,000 high-density polyethylene cubes c
Southwest France is defined by a wide range of geographical distinctions yielding diverse landscapes ranging from river plains, gently sloping hillsides, mountain foothills to sandy heaths each with their own unique microclimates producing a total of 300 grape varieties, 120 of which are native to the area.
Throughout much of Europe, the wine trade had its origins in 1189 when Santiago de Compostela was consecrated as a holy town by Pope Alexander III, encouraging waves of pilgrims over the ensui
The act of drinking wines is to literally taste specific locations across the globe. I never cease to be amazed by how wines provide such an in depth lens into a particular country and culture. By far the best way to experience them is to of course travel where they're produced and visit the vineyards in person. But lack of time and/or money sometimes make this impossible. For those times, plan for some armchair traveling by tasting some reasonably priced and increasingly available local varieta
Downtown Eugene, Oregon is decidedly more laid back and outdoorsy than much larger and more renowned Portland to the north. The University of Oregon's extensive in-town footprint and streets packed with local non-chain shopping make it a pedestrian haven. Strolling here especially on weekends during the warmer months envelops you in the city's music scene like a sax player belting out tunes under a cavernous overpass enhancing the acoustics and gritty blues guitarists busking on street corners.
Yountville, California embodies many quintessential visions you undoubtedly have when planning a Napa Valley excursion. It all started in 1836, when George Calvert Yount founded the town planting Napa Valley's first official vineyard. Today, vines
stretch from the Mayacamas mountains to the Napa River. Yountville's compact layout, clustered around Washington Street, is also perfect for biking not only on the existing street grid but along the ever expanding Napa Valley Vine Trail which when com
Renowned as one of the United State's most signature historic destinations, America's Historic Triangle (Jamestown, Williamsburg, and Yorktown Virginia) is packed with opportunities for gaining a more informed insight into how the American Revolution unfolded, shaping the world's great democratic experiment. The Historic Triangle is also becoming increasingly known as a mecca for craft food and beverages with historical tie ins as well as making history of their own.
Geographica
Thursday, May 10, 2018 / Manhattan
13th Annual Taste of Hope is the American Cancer Society’s signature culinary, wine, and spirits event, featuring some of New York’s most popular restaurants and beverage vendors. Guests enjoy a walk-around tasting where they can sample signature dishes, premier wines, and spirits. Now in its 13th year, the event has raised over $1.8 Million to support the American Cancer Society’s mission and goal of eliminating cancer as a major health problem.
Sarabeth Levine
It isn't often that Frankfurt tops the list of Germany's must-visit cities due to its often misunderstood reputation as a staid financial services center. One of Frankfurt's most visible distinctions contributing to stereotypes like this is its impressive skyline most dramatically viewed from MaiN ToWer's rooftop observation platform. While World War II bombings obliterated downtown's original architectural treasures and footprint, they also gave the city a clean slate for reconstruction largely
The state of Washington consists of many diverse microclimates--from the rainforest of the Olympic Peninsula to the eastern portion of the state averaging around eight inches of rain. The craggy Cascade Range separates the western and damper portion of the state from the eastern and drier side. All of these microclimates provide the 900 wineries unique areas to grow more than 40 different varietals of wine, making Washington State the second-largest premium grape-growing region in the nation.
All within reach by an hour train ride west of Frankfurt along the Rhine River, Germany's Rheingau is a patchwork of historic villages, vibrant cities, and the country's most distinctive Reisling wine-growing region.
Wiesbaden
Gateway city Wiesbaden serves as cultural and transportation hub to the Rheingau. Even if you're exploring by foot, the 200-mile Rheinsteig hiking trail head begins next to the Baroque palace of Schloss Biebrich on the banks of the Rhine taking you past numerous vineyards,
This year I have fallen, head over heels, for nuanced seducers and seductresses, earthily robust, sometimes slightly bubbly, always true to their origins, offering sensations of mountain and sea. Bracingly refreshing, sometimes rounded, feminine whites, powerful masculine reds: I am speaking, of course, about today’s Greek wine, much of which is made by the men and women in the photo above. Since the late 1970s Greek winemakers have reborn Greek wine. I can still find retsina a truly acquired
Surrounded by mountains and numerous topographical features resulting from a turbulent geological past, France's Roussillon wine region is cradled in a massive amphitheater-like bowl nestled in the South of France between Spain and narrow valleys spidering outward among the Pyrenees and Corbières Mountains to the Mediterranean Sea. Distinct micro climates, many of which have earned their own AOP certification, receive more than 320 days of sunshine per year balanced by heavy autumn rains. Combin
New Zealand is home to some of the world’s most beautiful landscapes - rugged mountain ranges, lush rainforests, and tranquil coastlines. What you may not know is that New Zealand’s unique terroir yields crisp, vibrant, and lively wines reflecting the very essence of this island country. Recent harvests were not only markedly bountiful (34 percent above usual yields) but grapes were exceptionally high-quality. Small estate wineries like Catalina Sounds, Crowded House, and Nanny Goat were direct
It’s that time of year again: la vendimia, the harvesting of grapes in various parts of Spain, from Jerez to Rioja and Rías Baixas to Penedés. And north of Madrid, winding 115 kilometres (miles) through the heart of the region of Castile-Leon (and of the entire Iberian peninsula, for that matter), the Duero River traces a route through not only some of Spain’s finest vineyards, but some extraordinary cultural, historic, and natural heritage. In short, a European wine country package par excelle
