Ah, San Francisco… sourdough, trolley cars, wine competitions… If you're so inclined, you can now browse the medal-winning results from the 2016 San Fransisco International Wine Competition in which I was fortunate enough to have taken part once again (for more details, see the 2014 and 2015 results write-ups). Judging in that event has...

So, like, what is this stuff, anyway? I taste a bunch-o-wine (technical term for more than most people). So each week, I share some of my wine reviews (mostly from samples) and tasting notes with you via twitter (limited to 140 characters). They are meant to be quirky, fun, and easily-digestible reviews of currently available […] Grab The 1W...

Know how to get a cavalcade of seasoned (read: potentially jaded) wine writers, winemakers, wine growers, and wine industry insiders to go as quiet as mice (I'm talking pin-drop-sounds-like-a-jet-engine-on-fire quiet), and as stupefied as deer in the headlights? I do. I saw Robert Mondavi Winery pull it off a few weeks ago in Napa Valley. […]...

So, like, what is this stuff, anyway? I taste a bunch-o-wine (technical term for more than most people). So each week, I share some of my wine reviews (mostly from samples) and tasting notes with you via twitter (limited to 140 characters). They are meant to be quirky, fun, and easily-digestible reviews of currently available […] Grab The 1W...

There was so much that I didn't want to like about Sonoma's storied Williams Seylem. The too-cool-for-school exclusivity of their mailing list. The imposing fortress-like facade of their "barrel-evoking" tasting room and its "wall of bottles." The fact that they used terms like "barrel-evoking." That current owners John and Kathe Dyson were former ...

Pssst! Hey! Wanna vote Naked? I was recently a judge for a contest that Naked Wines is running, in which winemakers made video pitches describing what fantasy/dream wine they would create if they had an extra $100Gs laying around (for more info. on what Naked Wines is all about, check out the interview we did […] Grab The 1WineDude.com Tasti...

So, like, what is this stuff, anyway? I taste a bunch-o-wine (technical term for more than most people). So each week, I share some of my wine reviews (mostly from samples) and tasting notes with you via twitter (limited to 140 characters). They are meant to be quirky, fun, and easily-digestible reviews of currently available […] Grab The 1W...

How many of you caught the recent diatribes by both Guy Woodward (of Harpers) and Monika Elling (of Foundations Marketing Group in New York City) regarding the under-representation of women in the wine biz? This quote from Elling summarizes the view pretty succinctly: "I’ve been in the business some time and experienced it from several […] G...

So, like, what is this stuff, anyway? I taste a bunch-o-wine (technical term for more than most people). So each week, I share some of my wine reviews (mostly from samples) and tasting notes with you via twitter (limited to 140 characters). They are meant to be quirky, fun, and easily-digestible reviews of currently available […] Grab The 1W...

With warmer weather finally upon us in the Northern Hemisphere, my latest for Fix.com ("Grilling and Grapes") focuses on what wine grapes to keep in mind when you're firing up the grill. Wine-and-seasonal-food-stuff-pairing articles are nearly as annoyingly omnipresent as drink-rose-in-the-Springtime articles these days, but because this is my writ...

So, like, what is this stuff, anyway? I taste a bunch-o-wine (technical term for more than most people). So each week, I share some of my wine reviews (mostly from samples) and tasting notes with you via twitter (limited to 140 characters). They are meant to be quirky, fun, and easily-digestible reviews of currently available […] Grab The 1W...

I'll be hitting the judging circuit this week at the 2016 San Francisco International Wine Competition, so it seemed a good time to get a jump on the June wine product round-up (my monthly attempt at working a path through the product samples that I receive that aren't drinkable). This month, I'm happy to report […] Grab The 1WineDude.com Ta...

So, like, what is this stuff, anyway? I taste a bunch-o-wine (technical term for more than most people). So each week, I share some of my wine reviews (mostly from samples) and tasting notes with you via twitter (limited to 140 characters). They are meant to be quirky, fun, and easily-digestible reviews of currently available […] Grab The 1W...

Voting for the 2016 Wine Blog Awards is now open, so you need to get yer digital ass over to their website and cast your vote to help determine the winners. Before you ask – no, I am not a finalist this year. I was a judge, and therefore requested that 1WD be recused from […] Grab The 1WineDude.com Tasting Guide and start getting more ...

The wine media world has been tripping over itself to cover the recently-announced ceasing of operations by In Pursuit of Balance (IPOB), an organization of producers that held tastings of wines that fit what the organizers and their tasting panel deemed to be New World wines of particularly elegant expression. In other words, wines that […] ...

So, like, what is this stuff, anyway? I taste a bunch-o-wine (technical term for more than most people). So each week, I share some of my wine reviews (mostly from samples) and tasting notes with you via twitter (limited to 140 characters). They are meant to be quirky, fun, and easily-digestible reviews of currently available […] Grab The 1W...

Back in March (yeah, yeah, I know…) I attended, as a media guest, the 2016 edition of the well-executed but unfortunately-named L'Anteprima Lazise (seriously… how many of you knew that was a town near Lake Garda in N. Italy?).  The event marked the first time that the nearby winemaking regions of Chiaretto, Lugana, and Bardolino […...

In what will come as a surprise to no one, Fix.com has published the companion piece to my Italian White Wine Grapes article, The Grapes Behind Italian Red Wines. That one definitely fits right into the saw-it-coming-from-a-mile-away-bro category. Having said that, I think that the geeky among you will be pleasantly surprised by my grape […] ...

So, like, what is this stuff, anyway? I taste a bunch-o-wine (technical term for more than most people). So each week, I share some of my wine reviews (mostly from samples) and tasting notes with you via twitter (limited to 140 characters). They are meant to be quirky, fun, and easily-digestible reviews of currently available […] Grab The 1W...

While I extend my procrastination streak gather together my notes in anticipation of (finally) getting around to writing up my most recent wine jaunts, I figured I'd get a jump on the wine product roundup for May (part of my monthly attempt to put some wine product samples through the wringer). First up this month […] Grab The 1WineDude.com ...

So much of the material upon which 1WD was built consists, essentially, of opinion pieces (in fact, four or five years ago I sat on a panel focused specifically on opinion writing alongside Lettie Teague and Jon Bonne, about which I imagine both of whom are still scratching their heads). But over the years, I've […] Grab The 1WineDude.com Ta...

So, like, what is this stuff, anyway? I taste a bunch-o-wine (technical term for more than most people). So each week, I share some of my wine reviews (mostly from samples) and tasting notes with you via twitter (limited to 140 characters). They are meant to be quirky, fun, and easily-digestible reviews of currently available […] Grab The 1W...

As I'm recovering from mouth surgery, I am currently into my second consecutive week without a sip of vino. This scenario has created something angry and sinister very deep inside my psyche; the type of thing that is best left in its evil slumber and not forced upon the fragile, gossamer-like veil that separates what […] Grab The 1WineDude.c...

  I often joke that I'm a shining example of how not to run a freelancing career. For starters, here on 1WD, I write about whatever moves me (rather than the conventional "discover what your audience wants and tailor to suit" style of blogging that is apparently much more likely to attract pageviews), and I […] Grab The 1WineDude.com Ta...

So, like, what is this stuff, anyway? I taste a bunch-o-wine (technical term for more than most people). So each week, I share some of my wine reviews (mostly from samples) and tasting notes with you via twitter (limited to 140 characters). They are meant to be quirky, fun, and easily-digestible reviews of currently available […] Grab The 1W...

So… remember when I did that whole Domaine de la Romanée-Conti 2010 tasting that I attended? You know, back in the day? I know… you still hate me for that one, right?   Well, if you makes you feel any better, I've not tasted a recent vintage of the fabled DRC since that NYC gathering. […] Grab The 1WineDude.com Tasting Guide...

So, like, what is this stuff, anyway? I taste a bunch-o-wine (technical term for more than most people). So each week, I share some of my wine reviews (mostly from samples) and tasting notes with you via twitter (limited to 140 characters). They are meant to be quirky, fun, and easily-digestible reviews of currently available […] Grab The 1W...

My first reaction to the recently-published study/synopsis on "Wine O’Clock" issued by the new firm Enolytics: Well… yeah… no sh*t! My second reaction to the recently-published study/synopsis on "Wine O’Clock" issued by the new firm Enolytics: Wait… holy crap! This is actually important (and I am an idiot)! At first blush, you mig...

So, like, what is this stuff, anyway? I taste a bunch-o-wine (technical term for more than most people). So each week, I share some of my wine reviews (mostly from samples) and tasting notes with you via twitter (limited to 140 characters). They are meant to be quirky, fun, and easily-digestible reviews of currently available […] Grab The 1W...

I was recently a guest on the We Like Drinking podcast (episode 66), hosted by wine blogger Jeff Eckles and beer brewer Jim Myers. Which, in a few moments, will have me talking about expensive Cabernet, Michael Fassbender, and new American Viticultural Areas. Just maybe not in that order. Anyway… You can listen to the […] Grab The 1Win...

My latest for Thrillist.com is now available, titled How to Level Up Food and Wine Pairings. Is there anything new regarding food and wine matching offered in this piece? Probably not; just about everything that need be said about pairing up food and wine has pretty much been said. Having said that, the article is […] Grab The 1WineDude.com ...

So, like, what is this stuff, anyway? I taste a bunch-o-wine (technical term for more than most people). So each week, I share some of my wine reviews (mostly from samples) and tasting notes with you via twitter (limited to 140 characters). They are meant to be quirky, fun, and easily-digestible reviews of currently available […] Grab The 1W...

The April edition of the wine products round-up brings us two new items from the sample pool, both of which I can recommend with some reservations. How's that for an endorsement?!? First up is the Vinturi Champagne Opener. Yes, you read that correctly. Vinturi has branched out from their popular aerator, and now has a […] Grab The 1WineDude....

As reported by Dr. Vino (and elsewhere), much-celebrated (and almost-as-often-maligned) consultant winemaker Michel Rolland was recently asked if there was an antidote to "Bordeaux-bashing" (i.e., a backlash against the Bordeaux region in general – and its most storied houses, in particular – for producing wines that are increasingly to...

So, like, what is this stuff, anyway? I taste a bunch-o-wine (technical term for more than most people). So each week, I share some of my wine reviews (mostly from samples) and tasting notes with you via twitter (limited to 140 characters). They are meant to be quirky, fun, and easily-digestible reviews of currently available […] Grab The 1W...

Sometimes, the wine sample pool giveth, sometimes the wine sample pool taketh away (usually it taketh away my hope), and sometimes – very rarely – the wine sample pool giveth and then giveth some more. Today's focus is the latter; two Pinot Noir recent releases that are downright exceptional. Exceptional enough that I drank the […...

Let's start with the short version: we all need to calm the hell down. If social media reaction is any indication, the wine world is losing its shiz over the potential implications of an interesting study highlighted recently on The Academic Wino blog by Becca Yeamans-Irwin. Why we seem to go through this in April […] Grab The 1WineDude.com ...

So, like, what is this stuff, anyway? I taste a bunch-o-wine (technical term for more than most people). So each week, I share some of my wine reviews (mostly from samples) and tasting notes with you via twitter (limited to 140 characters). They are meant to be quirky, fun, and easily-digestible reviews of currently available […] Grab The 1W...

[ Editor's note: This piece was originally written for my old Playboy.com gig, was purchased, but due (I think) to staff turnover there, was never published. I've attempted multiple times to buy this back from PB, because I really liked how it turned out, but never heard back from them. So… I'm reprinting it here, […] Grab The 1WineDud...

Forthwith, I present the March 2016 wine product roundup, this time on time, but only juuuuust! This month, I've got two items from the sample pool to present, one of them a bit of a miss, the other potentially a hit (in both the it-totally-works and the painful-punch-to-the-gut senses of the word, which will make […] Grab The 1WineDude.com ...

So, like, what is this stuff, anyway? I taste a bunch-o-wine (technical term for more than most people). So each week, I share some of my wine reviews (mostly from samples) and tasting notes with you via twitter (limited to 140 characters). They are meant to be quirky, fun, and easily-digestible reviews of currently available […] Grab The 1W...

Ahhh, Dallas, where the rain is big, the convention center is even bigger, and the wine competitions are downright huuuuuuge. I had such a splendid time judging alongside the consummate professionals at the 2016 TexSom International Wine Awards that I didn't even mind that Dallas is totally dirty with Cowboys fans (Go Steelers!). Hell, I […] ...

A quick update today to let you know that my inaugural wine piece for online food, drink, and travel juggernaut Thrillist.com (seriously, their numbers are sick) is now available. The article is a quick run-through of what to look out for when hunting down a good, inexpensive ($15-and-under) bottle of wine, and is geared towards […] Grab The...

So, like, what is this stuff, anyway? I taste a bunch-o-wine (technical term for more than most people). So each week, I share some of my wine reviews (mostly from samples) and tasting notes with you via twitter (limited to 140 characters). They are meant to be quirky, fun, and easily-digestible reviews of currently available […] Grab The 1W...

I think I'm still a bit in shock. In a good way. My recent press trip to Madeira was an amazing experience; pretty much exactly what a long-time Madeira wine geek (remember, I once compared Madeira to Iron Man) would have hoped it would be. And while my palate, brain, and soul are all still […] Grab The 1WineDude.com Tasting Guide and start ...

So, like, what is this stuff, anyway? I taste a bunch-o-wine (technical term for more than most people). So each week, I share some of my wine reviews (mostly from samples) and tasting notes with you via twitter (limited to 140 characters). They are meant to be quirky, fun, and easily-digestible reviews of currently available […] Grab The 1W...

Last month, I was a media guest for VINO2016, the annual Italian multi-day info-tasting event held in New York City. As it was last year, this year's incarnation proved an enlightening experience, both in terms of the breadth of Italian wine offerings not yet widely available Stateside, and in the informative nature of the panel […] Grab The...

The 14th (holy crap! have we really done fourteen of these already?!??) episode of my Furmint Adventures has recently been published, so I'm sharing it here to give you a five-or-so-minute distraction from working. And a beautiful distraction it is. Hungary's Béres Winery has recently won awards for its construction, and their vineyard site is [...

So, like, what is this stuff, anyway? I taste a bunch-o-wine (technical term for more than most people). So each week, I share some of my wine reviews (mostly from samples) and tasting notes with you via twitter (limited to 140 characters). They are meant to be quirky, fun, and easily-digestible reviews of currently available […] Grab The 1W...

In the words of the Violent Femmes, "it's just a habit." Seriously, this late-monthly-product-review thing is becoming a bit embarrassing. But late again I am, because, well, my life is kind of bonkers. Awesome, but bonkers. Anyway, today I present my take on another wine product sample, a take that was technically meant to be […] Grab The 1...