Only one way to celebrate Albariño Day, and that is with this guy: Whoops! Wrong guy… This guy: Albariño (or Alvarinho for our Portuguese friends). This botanically aromatic grape has become quite the rage in the wine world in the last few years, largely due to its acidity,…
It’s Albariño Day!
Ohio Wine
Happy Ohio Wine Month! Ohio has a rich history of wine production dating back to the 1820s in the Ohio River Valley. By the late 1800s, the Catawba grape was the most important grape in the state’s wine production, originally planted by Nicholas Longworth. Today, the Catawba grape…
Idaho Wine
Happy Idaho Wine Month! Yeah, you heard that right, there is wine in Idaho! In fact, there are 52 wineries currently operating in the state and the number continues to increase. In the ongoing search for new frontiers of winegrowing and terroir expressions, some in the Pacific Northwest…
Oregon Wine Month!
Happy Oregon Wine Month! Break out the Chardonnay! Break out the Pinot Noir! Break out the Pinot Gris! But save those Rieslings! Oregon, especially the Willamette Valley, is a cooler climate growing region and has developed some of the most astounding of the aforementioned varieties in wines. Hell,…
Michigan Wine
Happy Michigan Wine Month! With 13,700 acres under vine, Michigan is currently the 4th largest grape-growing state in the US with the #6 spot for production, just a hair behind Oregon. Most of the acreage is devoted to Niagara and Concord grapes for table use, which make up…
Understanding AOC: Alsace
The Alsace AOC of France makes it easy to figure out what is in the bottle (for the most part…more on that later in the post). As we mentioned a few times earlier in this series, the Alsace AOC is the only region that labels varietal wines. As…
Happy Maryland Wine Month!
The state of Maryland has documented winemaking beginning as far back as 1648, but sadly it wasn’t until almost 300 years later in 1945 when the state had its first winery open. The state of Maryland has 3 recognized AVAs & 4 distinct growing regions: Linganore AVA –…
New York Wine
March begins what is essentially New York Wine Month, known as NY drinks NY, culminating in a Grand Tasting in New York City later this month. New York has a rich history of growing and production stretching back to the 17th century when the Dutch began planting and…
Rogue Valley AVA
Nestled in the southern-most reaches of Oregon, riding the border of California and comprised of 3 adjacent river valleys is the Rogue Valley AVA (a sub-appellation of the Southern Oregon AVA). The area was originally planted by European settlers in the mid-1800s with the first official winery being Valley…
Understanding Italy: Alto Adige
Alto Adige, a wine producing region residing in the northernmost reaches of Italy, sitting just due east of the center, and producing a whopping <1% of the country’s wine production, a small, yet world-renowned region for wine production. The region is known for its Austrian influences not only…