The Spirit World

Tales of the Cocktail is an annual gathering of spirit and cocktail experts in New Orleans, which is now in it’s sixth year. In addition to the regular sessions, seminars, panels, tastings, as well as general partying, last year they added a new element, the “Spirit Awards” to identify and recognize significant achiements and efforts in various […]

Australia’s icon wine Penfolds Grange, in magnums no less, will be up for auction. Three sets of Grange from the first bottled magnum, 1979, through to 1998 will be available, unreserved. 
Each collection includes all 20 wines, potentially valued at up to $25,000. While Penfolds Grange has been available on GraysOnline in previous sales, CEO, Cameron […]

If you’re not a captain of industry or you don’t have celebrity status, then you might want to check out my Artists Picks, great moderately priced wines under $10. I’ll be reviewing a different wine in each post, describing the terroir, region and providing tasting notes.
The Douro Valley in Portugal is a spectacular landscape of […]

A Japanese whisky has been voted the best in the world.
Yoichi 20-year-old is the first variety outside Scotland to win the coveted single malt award from industry bible Whisky Magazine, scotching the hopes of dozens of other varieties, including last year’s winner, Talisker 18-year-old, from the Isle of Sky.
Yoichi, which is distilled near Sapporo City […]

I think Frank is having an affair. He mutters her name constantly – sometimes lovingly, sometimes not so much so. Her picture appears in books on the coffee table, on the dashboard in the truck, even pinned on the bathroom mirror with some unintelligible  scribbles and notations below it. I know he sometimes even  takes […]

Anyone who’s read our Blanc de Noir blog for long knows we’re both huge fans of Italian wines.  There’s just something about the diversity, quality, and sheer fun factor of Italian wines – whether it’s a casual summer patio sipper or a robust vintage to accompany a big, festive dinner or one of the meditative […]

We can rationalize anything.  Or it certainly seems that way sometimes, doesn’t it?  Dark chocolate is good for us for its antioxidant properties, and there are proven health benefits to drinking wine.  All things in moderation, of course.  The American Heart Association’s research says that there are health benefits from “moderate wine consumption,” which is […]

Last August, I participated in the Bordeaux International Educator program held outside Boston. Returning to New York via Amtrak, I had occasion to meet Gilat Ben-Dor, CSW, MBA, whom had participated in the program as well. A relative newcomer to the world of wine, Gilat has had an eventful introduction to the industry, reinforcing her […]

How do you keep up to date with the wine world these days? I’ve found out what works for me although I still suffer from information overload some times. My interests are as follows –

current hot topics such as closures, global warming, harvest expectations and so on
recommendations on wines to try and buy
educational material especially […]

The latest edition of Decanter (March) came out this week, and several articles caught my eye.  The first was entitled Start Your Own Wine Cellar. As I’m often torn between buying bottles to drink and those I think I may like to keep for a special occasion, I was drawn to the profiles of the […]