The recent financial meltdown and economic worries are affecting just about everyone worldwide. Maybe some of us have not been hit as hard as others yet we still have concerns. People everywhere are changing their buying habits, looking for bargains, putting off large expenditures and staying away from big tag items. Just about every retail market has been hurt by sales declines and the wine industry is among them. The December issue of Wine Spectator has two articles on this subject titled “Wine Industry Worries About the Economy” by Tim Fish and “What Now for Wine Lovers?” by James Laube. The first tells how wine retailers and restaurant sommeliers around the country are worried about the upcoming holiday season, the busiest wine-consuming... »View More

Added Saturday, November 15, 2008 in Interesting Articles Add a Comment

The October issue of Wine Spectator magazine has a short article in the UpFront column reporting a new wine label to be released by Green Bay Packers corner-back Charles Woodson. Normally an article like this would not surprise me, another sports star with money and a love of wine decides to get involved in the wine industry, why not? His label, Twenty Four, a Napa Valley Stags Leap Cabernet will be released this November. The surprising part is an NFL rule passed by Commissioner Roger Goodell that forbids players from endorsing alcoholic beverages. The article states Woodson gave an interview at the release party for his wine and the league offices notified him he is not allowed to promote the wine in any way. Now, I love the NFL and spend... »View More

Added Saturday, September 13, 2008 in Interesting Articles 1 Comment

Just read a great article written by Joel Stein in the September 8th issue of Time Magazine. In the article Mr Stein relates how after finding out that all fifty U.S. states make wine, he set out to try a wine from each state “to see if, as I increasingly suspected, good wine can be made anywhere.” I don’t think I personally agree with that statement but Mr Stein does make some good points. One of which is how many wine regions have trouble gaining respect for their wines as the Europeans, and Californians of late push the fact that their vineyards sit on specific soils which give their wines distinctive flavors that can only come from that region. While I do agree with that belief, I also believe that good winemakers can make... »View More

Added Wednesday, September 3, 2008 in Interesting Articles Add a Comment

Wine Spectator magazine for April 2008 offers an excellent write up on “Great California Values”. Best wines to drink now from $8 to $50. The article contains far too much for us to report on here, so I suggest if you are a true California wine lover, get out and purchase a copy of Wine Spectator April 2008. We will provide you with some of the criteria they used just too wet the appetite. Written by wine writer James Laube, one of my favorites, he states “How to beat high prices and find the best the Golden State has to offer. The article profiles 190 “Outstanding Values” of red, white and sparkling wines. While they have a list of wines in the 90-100 point quality scale with a price ceiling of $50. There are also 51 great values... »View More

Added Friday, April 27, 2007 in Interesting Articles Add a Comment