Musings of a Wine Maven

Musings of a Wine Maven

Are you ready for a wine cellar in 2018?

A wine cellar can be defined in various ways. In its basic element, I define it as a place to stash wine. My first was a nine-bottle wooden rack placed at the back of a clothes closet on the seventh floor of an air-conditioned apartment building in New York City. Since that humble beginning, my storage space has hitched itself to my business-related moves to no less than fourteen [...]

Musings of a Wine Maven

My Favorite Seasonal Window Display in New York City

I no longer wait in that endless line to meet Santa at Macy's flagship store on Herald Square in Manhattan, but I do indulge in other seasonal delights in the city. Good friend and wine importer Jacques Navarre joined me in the Apple recently. Beginning at Saint Pat’s under the lights, we crossed Fifth Avenue to see the giant tree and the skaters at Rockefeller Center, followed by the famous department store windows, including a peek at Saks’ windows (always stunning during the holidays). [...]

Musings of a Wine Maven

Most Laid Back Wine Competition of the Year Award Goes to “Rosé Today”

I guess I am beginning to become a little numb when considering all the wine competitions held around the globe each year. Could there be 100, or closer to 1,000? Let’s just say that there are so many that when I enter a tasting room and see a slew of certificates, ribbons, trophies, etc. I totally ignore them. Surely the vineyard is proud of these accolades, or they wouldn’t be displayed. But what do they really tell me? Not all that much. I will know in short order after I start tasting and
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Musings of a Wine Maven

Lord Save Us, Martha Stewart is Selling Wine Again

Never a quitter, Martha has shaken off the debacle of her failed venture with Gallo a decade ago to come back at the unsuspecting wine consumer with a new wine marketing scheme. Unable then to successfully sell her Martha Stewart Vintage label at fifteen bucks a bottle, her name is now attached to a box of six of her favorite selections for $59.99, served up in a wine club framework. Hmmm, if a fifteen buck wine made for her by Gallo couldn’t sell, why then these ten buck finds (introductory price) from California, Spain, Italy and France?

There are at least two rosés from Provence, the region that has taken the U.S. by storm with its immensely popular pink wine
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Musings of a Wine Maven

Something Corked about Wine Spectators’s Best Value 2016 Wines from Provence

Earlier this month I spent a considerable amount of time perusing the new issue of Wine Spectator (Jan. 31 – Feb. 28, 2017). I love lists, and this edition's cover caught my attention with its bold text proclaiming “Ultimate Values: 1,236 Wines 90+/ $30 or Less.” I was in the local bagel shop at the time and errands begged to be done which limited my taking the time then to go through their winners from beginning to end. But what did draw me in immediately was that of the eleven wines from Provence that made the cut, six were rosés.

I enjoy rosé well enough, but I imagined had it been me blind-tasting the presumed several hundred Provence wines tried during the [...]

Musings of a Wine Maven

A Rosé Gives Me Street Cred in France

Having a passion for wine is wonderful. Yet if people think this appreciation has turned you into some kind of vinous savant, then beware. As I write the story of my recent experience that led to this caveat, I am reminded of a scenario from an old Hollywood western—I am a longtime movie buff—in which some folks envision you as the fastest gun around the OK Corral, and they would love nothing better than to outdraw you.

I had such a “quick draw” moment earlier this fall in Bordeaux. It was totally unexpected, as it came in the very agreeable environment [...]
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