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How Did Grenache Get to the Island of Sardegna?
Dear Wine Witch: I enjoyed a wonderful Cannonau di Sardegna at a friend’s house and did a little research to learn something about the wine. I…
2 min
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Fattoria Nittardi, Leonardo Salustri & Antica Fattoria La Parrina – Italian Wineries October 2013
The Nittardi estate is located in the Chianti Classico zone on the boundary between the provinces of Siena and Florence and was originally a defensive tower,…
6 min
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Derby Wine Estates – California Winery of the Month October 2013
Since Ray Derby purchased the Farmers Alliance Building in Paso Robles, he has become a hero in the town of over 30 thousand people. The building…
14 min
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Castello d’Albola & Rocca di Montemassi & Donna Olimpia 1898 – Italian Wineries September 2013
These days, Francesco Zonin can be found peering out from full page adds in American food and wine magazines, his young Italian good-looks impossible to ignore.…
7 min
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Mahoney Vineyards – California Winery of the Month September 2013
Like anybody else, who lives long enough, Francis Mahoney has had his ups and downs. But from all outward appearances, they’ve been mostly “ups.” He would…
18 min
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Considerations for a Wine Gift
Some people seem to be particularly good at choosing gifts for others, some not. As a friend once pointed out to me when I said that…
3 min
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Giroiamo Russo, Antica Tenuta del Nanfro & Cantina Pedres – Italian Wineries August 2013
The tallest active volcano on the European continent, nearly 11,000 feet high, Sicily’s Mount Etna supports extensive orchards and vineyards on its lower slopes, blessed with…
10 min
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Bargetto Winery – California Winery of the Month August 2013
Celebrating 80 years at their family winery in Santa Cruz and over 100 as winemakers in the San Francisco Bay area, the Bargetto family takes the…
16 min
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Perry Creek Winery – California Winery of the Month July 2013
These days, visitors go to Fair Play to have fun instead of fight. During the Gold Rush, the town was a mining camp. Its name was…
11 min
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From Barrel to Bottle
When I write about a wine’s flavor profile, I usually include whatever a winemaker’s tech sheet states about barrel aging, how many months in barrel, how…
5 min