An old idea + new technology = a wine revolution* The most seasoned (read: oldest) of those reading this might remember ‘draft wines’ from the 70’s and 80’s. Usually in flavors of ‘Chablis’ and ‘Burgundy’ in 15 gallon beer barrels, they were innocuous, inoffensive (usually) wines that were great for …
Think you’re a Geek? Let’s talk about the ‘other’ 1350 grape varietals and see what you’ve got… Jancis Robinson, OBE/MW is irrefutably one of the greatest wine writers living (or dead for that matter). Her mastery of the subject matter is legendary plus she has a compelling writing style that …
The Wine Geek is old enough to remember when most of the ‘good’ wine we Americans drank was French wine. And not just us Americans – other than that small handful of other European wine-producing countries that mostly drank local (Italy, Spain, Germany for instance) most of the world’s restaurant …
Attention Restauranteurs: Ok, so the wine business isn’t exactly the ‘tech’ business, moving at the speed of light, but this business does seem to evolve pretty rapidly lately. Are we running so fast that we’re leaving money on the table? At Great Lakes Wine & Spirits, we are extremely proud …
It appears that super-premium/higher-priced/allocated wines are making a comeback Happily, there are signs that ‘super-premium’ priced wines are staging a comeback. Perhaps not to the level of those halcyon days of 2000 to 2007, but way more interest than last year. It makes sense too: once one has tasted the …
Red, White and Green Yes, for us American consumers it all started as a cost savings move by value-oriented mass-production wineries. The wines were serviceable – never great, but never bad really. Of course, the perception was bad; it didn’t matter what it tasted like, it was in a box…how …
Beautiful, romantic, and historic, Italy is the site of much lore and, alas, many historical tragedies. Pompeii is a glaring example of such an historical tragedy, and of course the tragic play Romeo & Juliet is known by all – ok maybe this one is fiction (though you can visit …
Earlier this year, a group of California vintners formed an alliance (actually a non-profit company) called The Historic Vineyard Society. The purpose of this group is to bring awareness to Calfornia’s oldest vineyards. Unfortunately, every year, California loses another piece of vinous history; vineyards up to 100 years old get …
Unless you don’t own a television or radio, and choose not to read anything at all, you surely know about the ‘devaluation’ of the U.S. dollar (formerly known as the almighty dollar). Even if you don’t plan on renting a villa in Tuscany this summer, it will still impact your …
Wine is a wonderful thing. And taste is a highly subjective thing. These two tenets are what make selling wine fun: there are no finites and virtually every wine made has a potential fan somewhere (and likely a detractor or two as well). Because of this, we find it interesting …