When I have the opportunity to meet winemakers from the Languedoc, I grab it because there is no wine region in France that is as dynamic and more misunderstood as the Languedoc.  The tasting I attended at the SF Yacht Club recently was hosted by Gerard Bertrand, a tall, tan and rugged-looking man that one would think  would better represent Nice or St. Tropez instead of the Languedoc, but he is indeed a son of Corbieres and Georges, who was one of the first generation of winemakers in the 20th …

Not your “everyday” wine

With the proliferation of value wines from around the globe, it’s challenging to find one that is not just a “fruity and fresh” everyday wine.  This weekend, I discovered an inexpensive red wine that was a departure from your standard fruit-driven wines by simply staying true to tradition.  What a novel idea.

The wine was a Fronton rouge from the South West of France.  The South West of France is a large region south of Bordeaux comprised of unique red wine appelations such as Madiran (tannic reds from …

Thomas Jefferson was the first distinguished American connoisseur of wine.  He travelled widely throughout Europe, tasting and collecting wines, and became particularly enamored with the wines of France during his appointment as Minister to France between 1784-1789.  He would later plant cuttings of vitis vinifera at Monticello, unsuccessfully, and build a dedicated wine cellar to store the international wines he imported.  The wine cellar at Monticello was restored and re-opened to the public just last year.
Jefferson appreciated the finest Bordeaux wines, recording upon his visit to Chateau Haut-Brion on May …

Women don’t make better wine, or more feminine wines, they just have a different approach.  As I wrote last year, consortiums of women winemakers like Wine Entre Femme were “borne out of the desire to reach out to other women and do what we do so well – help each other.”
In France, there is an organization called Femmes de Vin (Women of Wine) which consists of regional groups of over 90 women winemakers from Burgundy, Beaujolais, Rhone, Provence and Languedoc, among others.  They forged a unified front at the recent …

It only takes 10 days to get a real sense of the unpredictability of Burgundy weather and why vintages matter so much here.  Unlike Bordeaux, whose climate is relatively moderated by its coastal location, Burgundy is semi-continental with only about 25″ of rain per year – much less than Napa Valley’s average.  But unlike Napa Valley’s predictable rainfall during the winter and spring, Burgundy’s precipitation can also fall during the growing season – and with force.
Until the day I arrived on June 4th, Burgundy had been experiencing a two-month “drought” …

The Champagne Bureau, the official US representative of the Champagne Wine Council (Comite Interprofessionnel du Vin de Champagne, or CIVC),  completed its first official Champagne Grand Tasting tour in San Francisco on Wednesday to a packed audience at the Westin St. Francis hotel.
Over thirty prestigious Champagne Houses poured their best wines to some of the most important members of the West Coast wine trade.  While the CIVC’s successful campaign to communicate the singular message that Champagne only comes from the region of Champagne in France, the tasting highlighted that House …

Everyone knows that Champagne is wonderful all-year round, for all meals and courses and for any occasion.  Rosé Champagne is particularly enticing this time of year when the weather warms up and we’re entertaining outside.   Pink Champagne was the only Champagne category to increase market share in 2009 and 2010 and the US was a major reason for the growth.
But have you ever thought of cooking with it?  It may sound luxurious to do so, but one can find a good bottle of pink Champagne for $30-40 and for a …