Studying for the Certified Wine Educator (CWE) exam has required me to dust off a few of my old favorites, though unfortunately, I’m talking more about books than bottles these days. Certainly, the one book that really helps to jog my memory about Italian wine is 2005′s “Vino Italiano,” which was authored by Joseph Bastianich and David Lynch. Folks who are Food Network junkies may have already seen Bastianich on his mother’s cooking series, “Lydia’s Italian Kitchen” (Bastianich usually appears at the very end of the program, just in time to taste the food and recommend a wine — [... read more ...]
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I've been rediscovering Berkeley lately, and will report on lots of great local restaurants. Do stay tuned.
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I once had an English professor at UCLA who claimed that the purpose of being an English major was to learn how to write essays about books that you’ve never read. This comment was as cynical as it was correct: I winged way too many midterms on a plot summary and a prayer. Sometimes it worked, and sometimes it didn’t. Frankly, I was far more interested in devoting my time to the student newspaper, writing stories for a sports section that always garnered top national awards (I was surrounded by super-talented folks, and will only take a minimal share [... read more ...] Much better than my wishy-washy review, but still… From time to time, I’ve mentioned a few of the “secret handshakes” that can easily distinguish the wine aficionado from the casual drinker. The term “phylloxera” definitely belongs in this category, since few people would ever encounter this word without reading about the history of wine. On the other hand, phylloxera has had such a profound impact on the modern wine industry that it has also become one of the first terms that people learn when they decide to look beyond the bottle and into a book. In author Christy [... read more ...] I realize that Memorial Day is all about remembering those who served our country, but since I also had the day to go wine tasting, I decided it would be somewhat appropriate to visit a few of the pioneering wineries here in the Napa Valley, in order to sample the current releases from such stalwarts as Grgich Hills, Heitz Cellars and Duckhorn Wine Company (I had Chateau Montelena on my itinerary as well, but they were closed for the holiday). Since I have lived here in the Napa Valley, I have visited each of these three wineries countless times [... read more ...] For a wine geek like me, old and out-dated wine books can sometimes be fascinating time capsules. I was rummaging through a used bookstore in Berkeley the other day, when I uncovered an old copy of “The California Wine Book” by Bob Thompson and Hugh Johnson. Published in 1976, this book has now become irrelevant for the most part, especially in terms of its original purpose, which was to provide a contemporary assessment of California wine. Considering how much the California wine industry has evolved over the last 30 years, the introduction to the book is almost mind-bogglingly quaint, [... read more ...] |
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