. .

News

Is That the Death Rattle of Wine Writing I Hear?

The purpose of any honest writing competition can only be to support and encourage the craft and industry of writing. Unfortunately, the times we live in now require three crucial words to be added to that statement. The purpose of any honest writing competition can only be to support and encourage the craft and industry of writing by human beings. …

Read More »

New Wine Marketing World With Gino Colangelo, Part II

New Wine Marketing World So, New Wine Marketing World With Gino Colangelo, Part II If I wanted to get into wine and lived in New York City – Bam! I’d be on his doorstep until I got the job. If I’ve learned anything in my communications with Gino Colangelo, it’s how down to earth and […] The post New Wine …

Read More »

Wine News: What I’m Reading the Week of 9/20/26

Hello and welcome to my weekly roundup of the wine stories that I find of interest on the web. I spend each week exploring the internet for everything published about wine online, and here’s all the stuff that I think would be worth your valuable time. Did a Chatbot Just Win a £3,000 Writing Prize?The kerfuffle in the wine writing …

Read More »

Vinography Images: Fog of Riesling

A wall of vines appears out of the morning fog across the Mosel River in Germany. The famously steep slate slopes of the Mosel produce some of the world’s most riveting wines and are among the most notorious to work. The combination of incline and slippery shards of loose slate makes the vineyards both difficult and dangerous. But the Riesling …

Read More »

Landing The Boss Gino Colangelo, Was An Oh Yeah!

When You Land The Boss It had to happen… Landing the boss Gino Colangelo was an Oh Yeah! It was quietly lovely to have him tell me that he was aware of who I was (never occurred to me). I don’t know my outreach, but I do know It was a small moment with a […] The post Landing The …

Read More »

Hip-Hop Doesn’t Need Wine, But Wine Just Might Need Hip-Hop

Despite the fading evening light on Lankershim Boulevard, I had to squint a bit in the dim light of the club. The wide-open floor was already beginning to fill up with fashionably dressed people as the sounds of hip-hop coursed through the club’s speakers at a relatively subdued volume. A glance around the room suggested the action was on the …

Read More »

In “Savour,” Kristiane Westray reveals: Is smelling whisky different from smelling a glass of wine?

Introduction Is smelling or nosing whisky different from smelling a glass of wine? How did a 1960s marketing campaign convince generations of whisky drinkers that single malt was better than blended whisky? What is it like to step inside a working whisky kiln and experience peat smoke firsthand? In this episode of the Unreserved Wine Talk podcast, I’m chatting with Kristiane …

Read More »

Wine News: What I’m Reading the Week of 9/13/26

Hello and welcome to my weekly roundup of the wine stories that I find of interest on the web. I spend each week exploring the internet for everything published about wine online, and here’s all the stuff that I think would be worth your valuable time. Tariffs Hurt the Wine Industry. Did the Refunds Stop the Bleeding?Definitely an improvement. Why …

Read More »

Vinography Unboxed: Week of 9/6/26

Hello and welcome to my weekly dig through the pile of wine samples that show up on my doorstep asking to be tasted. I’m pleased to bring you the latest installment of Vinography Unboxed, where I highlight some of the better bottles that have arrived recently. This week I received a couple of wines from Shared Notes Wines, the Sauvignon …

Read More »

Vinography Images: Growing The Shire

A spring-green view of the home vineyard at William Downie’s Guendulain Farm in the Gippsland sub-region of Victoria, Australia, where he stubbornly works to produce Pinot Noir that meets his high standards in very challenging conditions. This region is known locally as The Baw Baw Shire, the name Baw Baw coming from the local Yarra-Yallock, Gunna-Kurnai First Nation. The exact …

Read More »

How Did The Launch of the Super Premium Rosé Whispering Angel from Château D’esclans Change Provence?

Introduction How did Sacha Lichine’s launch of Garrus and Whispering Angel from Château d’Esclans, which now exceeds 10 million bottles a year change Provence? What happens to a wine region when historic family estates are increasingly bought by wealthy outsiders and corporations? How can classifying wine by colour get in the way of understanding what’s actually in the glass? In …

Read More »

Wine News: What I’m Reading the Week of 9/6/26

Hello and welcome to my weekly roundup of the wine stories that I find of interest on the web. I spend each week exploring the internet for everything published about wine online, and here’s all the stuff that I think would be worth your valuable time. Standing Up for Cabernet SauvignonEric Asimov likes underdog grapes. Bet he never thought he’d …

Read More »

Napa’s Singular Loire Love Affair

In 1996, after long careers working in Napa’s wine industry, John Skupny and his wife Tracey did something quietly radical: they started a small wine label dedicated exclusively to Cabernet Franc. They named it Lang & Reed, using the two middle names of each of their sons, J Reed Skupny and Jersey Lang Skupny. These days, especially in California, Cabernet …

Read More »

Vinography Unboxed: Week of 8/30/26

Hello and welcome to my (usually) weekly dig through the pile of wine samples that show up on my doorstep asking to be tasted. I’m pleased to bring you the latest installment of Vinography Unboxed, where I highlight some of the better bottles that have arrived recently. This past week included a set of wines from a project called Geographic …

Read More »

Vinography Images: Palimpsest

The well-used work board at Bass Phillip Estate in the Gippsland Region of Victoria, Australia easily earns the label of palimpsest, a surface (originally a skin or parchment) which bears the traces of much previous writing and erasing. One of Australia’s legendary Pinot Noir estates, Bass Philip was purchased in recent years by investors led by Burgundy legend Jean-Marie Fourrier, …

Read More »

Why Has Rosé Wine Struggled To Be Taken Seriously By Professionals Despite Its Popularity With Consumers?

Introduction How is Provence far more diverse as a wine region than just Rosé? Why has Rosé struggled to be taken seriously by wine professionals despite its enormous popularity with consumers? Does Provence make the best Rosé in the world or simply the best Rosé in its style? In this episode of the Unreserved Wine Talk podcast, I’m chatting with Liz …

Read More »

Wine News: What I’m Reading the Week of 8/30/26

Hello and welcome to my weekly roundup of the wine stories that I find of interest on the web. I spend each week exploring the internet for everything published about wine online, and here’s all the stuff that I think would be worth your valuable time. An English rival to Prosecco?There’s something happening in Kent. The Vines that Survived the …

Read More »

Why South Africa Is the Most Exciting Wine Region on the Planet, Part II

This is Part II of a lengthy piece on South African wine. Read Part I here. In Part I, I used the anarchic camaraderie of the Zoo Cru to illustrate something fundamental about South African wine: its unusual culture of collaboration. But collegiality alone cannot explain the country’s astonishing momentum. South Africa’s excitement comes from a convergence of ancient landscapes, …

Read More »