A Free Wine Encyclopedia!The history and legacy of the Rioja district in Spain is rich in tales and stories. I would suggest, if your are interested, a book by Jan Read “Wines of the Rioja”. I was captivated by the accounts of not only Rioja, but of the capital of Rioja, Logrofio. The Rioja district of Spain is… read more »
Chris Bogle is the fifth generation of Bogies to farm the fertile Sacramento River Delta region of northern California. In 1968, Chris helped his father, Warren, plant their first vineyard. Then, in 1973, they formed Bogle Vineyards. With nearly 650 acres under vine, the winery is virtually self sufficient in fruit. In some cases, however,… read more »
This wine comes from the largest mountainous wine-growing region in Hungary, Mátraalja, in the foothills of the Mátra mountains. Running from east to west, this mountain range offers ideal viticultural conditions to about 30,000 acres of grape vines which thrive on its sunny, south-facing slopes. There are three major quality strata in Hungarian wines. Vin… read more »
The venerable French wine producing firm Moillard was founded in 1850 by Symphorien Moillard. It is now managed by the fourth and fifth generations, and remains a family owned and operated concern. While 60% of Moil-lard’s turnover is achieved in France, its wines are sold internationally in over 30 countries. The elite part of the… read more »
In opening, Columbia Winery practically represents ancient history, as far as domestic wines go. Founded in 1962, it is Washington State’s oldest premium winery. Home winemaking buff Professor Lloyd Woodbourne of the University of Washington, in concert with a few similarly inclined colleagues, set up a “cooperative” winery in his garage. They called it “Associated… read more »
In the year 1647, on top of a hill that slopes down to the Mediterranean, in what is now the province of Cataluna (Catalonia) in Spain, someone constructed a farmhouse in the likeness of a mediaeval fortress. Two hundred years later, this imposing property became a winery, Las Cavas Jaume Serra. Surrounding the cavas (caves… read more »
In 1974, the Smith horse ranch and the Hook cattle ranch were converted into vineyards. A good 250 acres of vines were planted there, split between Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Thus was the Smith and Hook Estate created as a Cabernet Sauvignon “chateau”. Our selection comes from the Lone Oak Estate, a separate… read more »
About 150 years ago, Dr. Christopher Penfold left England with his wife Mary to settle in South Australia. They built a whitewashed stone cottage in Magill, four miles from Adelaide, and named it after Mary’s home in England, “The Grange”. The doctor had brought with him some wax-sealed grape-vine cuttings. He planted these over the… read more »
Martin Van der Kamp, a native of the North Coast wine country, was a home winemaker there for many years. In his youth he had done a stint as an employee at Napa’s famous Schramsberg Champagne Cellars. Bitten by the bug, he took several trips to some of the top Champagne houses in France. It… read more »
Matt and Nancy Santino, along with Nancy’s father, Joseph Schweitzer, founded Santino Wines in 1979. Mr. Schweitzer remained as owner when the younger couple left the operation some time ago. The winery is located in the heart of California’s Shenandoah Valley in Amador County, adjacent to the oldest known producing Zinfandel vineyard in California. This… read more »