The Spirit World

As noted in Part I of this article, the Stony Brook Center for Wine, Food & Culture, along with the New York State Grape & Wine Foundation and the Long Island Wine Council, hosted a two-day Symposium on the Art of Balance: Cool Climate/Maritime Wines in a Global Context.
Building on the momentum established the previous day, […]

I almost missed the sour cherry season this year—bad booze nerd! All the smart cocktail geeks know that now is the time to put up cherries for this winter’s Manhattan season. There are many different schools of thought as to how best to make these treats. What is universally agreed upon is that anything is […]

For the past week, the Long Island wine region (New York, USA) has played host to an international cast of winemakers. Hailing from as far away as Spain, Italy and France to as close as upstate New York, these winemakers came to share their perspectives on producing wine in a cool, maritime climate.
Their visit was sparked by […]

Brandon, the boy who takes care of me, was so kind to supply me with the rest of the Infusionique line. I’ve been pretty exhausted as of late, so I actually didn’t want to force making a drink with my newly received hooch. When I was nearing heading off to bed, the bottle of Angelique […]

Tales of the Cocktail is an annual event in New Orleans to celebrate the history and appreciation of cocktails, the spirits that go into them, and the people who make them. In July, they held their sixth conference, and this was also the second time they also held their “Spirited Awards” ceremony where they recognize […]

Do you know your Chardonnay from your Chablis? Your Loire from your Mosel? If you don’t, or even if you do and want to increase your knowledge of wine at no cost, then check out the following three quizzes.
Test your general wine knowledge over at Tom Cannavan’s Wine Pages. There are 20 questions in each […]

Ok, so I got really sick of having the choice of paying out the wazoo for true maraschino cherries or needlessly suffering through the lye-soaked mess that they pass off as “cherries,” so I made my own. I made a mishmash of brandied cherries and maraschino cherries, and they turned out fantastically.
Cherries A La Kincke […]

My latest artist pick (groovy wines under $10) comes from one of the oldest estates in the Jumilla region of southern Spain- - Finca Luzon — founded by the Gil family in 1916.
LUZON VERDE 2006 at the great price of $ 8.99 is certified organic and made from 100% Monastrell (a varietal also known as […]

If you didn’t have the foresight to attend Tales this year, you missed out on a whole mess of great stuff. Great people, great food, and most of all, great spirits. A number of companies are producing organic or all natural products which make for great beverages all around. One spirit, which I refer to […]

Sauvignon Blanc is one of the most versitile of wines when it comes to matching with food. Whether your bottle comes from the hills of Sancerre or from the coast of New Zealand the style of the wine is easy to match with food.  
My favourite ‘wine with food book’ - What To Eat With What You […]