French Wines

Domaine la Barroche now in its new cellar

by  |  13-04-2016

Passing down from the north of France and after stopping off to judge in Lyon I made a quick stop to Châteauneuf-du-Pape to taste at Les Printemps as well as visit the brand new cellar... more »

AOC Lirac: Wine worth crossing the river for

by  |  09-04-2016

AOC Lirac isn't a name that rolls off most wine drinkers' tongues when talking about the Southern Rhône Valley. Honestly, it wasn't one that rolled off mine either given that most people talk about Châteauneuf... more »
The layout of the judging hall

Judging the Concours International de Lyon

by  |  05-04-2016

Last weekend, after a whirlwind, crash course, sink or swim, trial by fire trip (I'm sure a few more idioms could be tossed in there...) through Burgundy with a quick pass through Côte Rôtie and... more »

Chablis Throwdown: Domaine Nathalie & Gilles Fèvre

by  |  27-02-2016

Chablis is Chardonnay. Chardonnay is Chablis. This simple statement is one of the defining aspects to this northern part of Burgundy viticulture. Naturally, anyone who has in front of them a bottle of say, Californian... more »
First Growth, redacted

Bordeaux takes off the blinders

by  |  09-02-2016

There has been a bit of a controversy brewing with the forthcoming Bordeaux en primeur tastings in that the Union des Grands Crus or essentially, the powers that be, have banned blind tasting for any... more »
Terrace overlooking the countryside

Riberach wine hotel, Roussillon

by  |  25-01-2016

To know the land of Roussillon is not to drive briefly through it, deftly avoiding Perpignan via the A9 highway either heading to adventures more northern in France or more southern in Spain. The real... more »

The thing about Burgundy, Louis Latour Côte de Beaune Villages 2013

by  |  18-01-2016

There are but a few French region names that elicit such exuberance as Burgundy and more specifically, the Côte d'Or. You can't really go wrong with that name. Even in English, "The Golden Slope" is... more »

Adrien Vacher – Roussette de Savoie Cuvée Réservée 2014

by  |  07-01-2016 ~ 1 Comment

For Christmas, I don't usually ask for much but this year I said, "Okay, my tasting experience in French whites is flabby on some fronts. Get me a box of the following AOPs..." Said box... more »

The rest of 2016

by  |  05-01-2016

Continued from yesterday, a few more observations about what's to come in 2016 in general and outside of Catalonia. Southern France I just received an email from Michel Blanc in Châteauneuf going on at length... more »

Cava versus Champagne

by  |  30-12-2015

With New Year's Eve just around the corner and having slogged through multiple bottles of sparkling wine during the Christmas meals, I felt it a good time to talk about Champagne and Cava. One should... more »