A Free Wine Encyclopedia!Recently I took a cake decorating class from the pastry chef at Disneyland, George Geary. Not only was the class fascinating, it was a delicious experience as well. After decorating the cakes Mr. Geary had made, which ranged from a classic white cake to a rich chocolate truffle cake, my classmates and I were then… read more »
In 1874 the Navajas family founded the Bodegas Montecillo winery in the Alavesa district near the Rio Oja (“Oja River”), namesake of what has become Spain’s most acclaimed wine producing region. Montecillo was one of the pioneering wineries which adapted French (Bordeaux) wine-making techniques to Spanish grapes last century and in so doing created a… read more »
American Wine Merchants’ Cask One Sauvignon Blanc is yet another one of those “negociant” wines which we happily wind up with every now and then. The closest way to describe a negociant wine accurately is to call it a “brand”, as it is not a winery. Some of the most famous wine-makers in France are… read more »
A general knowledge of grape growing is valuable to those who would like to understand wine. Considering the great number of grape varieties and the many types of wine, it is fortunate for the student of wines that it is not possible to grow every variety of grapes and produce every type of wine efficiently… read more »
Before we had children, my husband and I thought nothing of hopping into the car and heading out to the latest “In” dining spot. We’d sit like critics for the local newspaper and scrutinize everything from the quality of the china to the selections on the wine list. As one might expect, we quite often… read more »
Penfolds was established in South Australia by Dr. Christopher Penfold in 1844. He had emigrated from England bringing with him his wife Mary and some wax-sealed vine cuttings. Four miles from Adelaide in Magill they built a white-washed stone cottage, naming it The Grange after Mary’s home in England. The doctor used his wines, grown… read more »
Although established in 1983, the Winterbrook Winery’s success with Zinfandel can be traced back to 1890 when the more than 100 wineries dotting the Amador County landscape specialized in Zinfandel production. The winery is located in the fertile Jackson Valley of the Sierra Nevada Foothills approximately fifty miles southeast of Sacramento. A three man partnership… read more »
Of the many natural enemies of the vine, one is the most destructive. It is a parasitical insect, the root-burrowing plant louse, phylloxera vasatrix. Many varieties of grape vines are fatally susceptible to its attack. Although phylloxera apparently has always lived in the eastern United States, native American vines like Concord, Catawba, and Delaware have… read more »
Ever since I was a little girl, I loved to cook and bake. I think I was the only person in home economics who took it seriously. It seemed so magical that one could mix together sugar, flour, butter and eggs and create cookies and cakes. I must say, I had a sweet tooth then,… read more »
Although the label reads, “Robert Allison”, this wine is a product of the Vina Santa Carolina winery which was founded in 1875 in Chile’s most famous wine producing district, the Maipo Valley. As one of the country’s “Big Four” wine companies it maintains 2,450 acres of premium vineyards under its control. The winery is serious… read more »