The current fashion in wine, certainly in New World wines, is for ripe, fruity flavors and the massive alcohol that invariably accompanies them. Consumers looking for alternatives need to look outside the mainstream. Wines from New York State, which certainly qualify as “outside the mainstream,” offer an extra touch of ripeness that is the New World’s signature, while retaining vibrancy that a cool climate imparts.… Read more
Category Archives: WRO Articles
Selecting Wine in a Restaurant
It is the part of restaurant dining that most people dread. You are with a group of colleagues or friends, or perhaps on a special date. The conversation is flowing, everyone is relaxed and having a good time. Then, the waiter gives you the wine list.… Read more
Reserve Wines Score, But at What Price?
Bait and switch, an unsavory tactic in the used-car business, is finding its way into the wine industry. Think of the bait as a New World reserve wine that is produced simply to generate a 90-point-plus score from a top wine critic.… Read more
Who Says New World Wines Don’t Develop?
The major criticisms of wines from the New World are that they have too much fruit and alcohol and too little subtlety and elegance. Critics go on to say that these wines are unbalanced and fail to develop complexity and layers of non-fruit flavors as they age.… Read more
Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough: A True New World Terroir
The French speak passionately about terroir, a concept maintaining that the character of a wine comes from the unique climate and soil where the grapes are grown. They claim grapes are mere vehicles for transmitting the flavor of the earth into the wine from which they are crafted.… Read more
A Conversation with Christian Moueix, Part II: Dominus Estate
Christian Moueix, perhaps the most influential wine figure in Pomerol and St. Émilion where he oversees his family’s ten properties, also owns Dominus Estate in the Napa Valley. During a recent trip to California to supervise activities at Dominus, he stopped in Boston and we met and tasted for three illuminating hours in my kitchen.… Read more
A Conversation with Christian Moueix
Perhaps people who spend their entire life with Merlot become like the wine: easy-going and charming, without hard edges. That describes Christian Moueix, a man who is remarkably straightforward, especially for someone so important and influential in the world of wine.… Read more
2002 Red Burgundies: Catch Them While You Can
Although they may lack the cachet of wines from small growers, such as Lafarge or Mongeard-Mugneret, the Burgundies made by négociants, especially in 2002, are not to be missed. Négociants are companies, either large or small, that buy grapes or newly made wines in bulk from growers.… Read more