Wine Review: Beronia Rioja Gran Reserva 2008

December is A Very Rioja Christmas on TheWineStalker.net! Beronia is named after the ancient Celtic tribe called the Berones that inhabited the land that is now La Rioja in the 3rd century BC. The Beronia winery, however, was established in 1973 CE by a group of Bosque businessmen and founders of a gastronomy society who visited Rioja and decided they...

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Wine Review: Beronia Rioja Reserva 2012

December is A Very Rioja Christmas on TheWineStalker.net! Beronia is named after the ancient Celtic tribe called the Berones that inhabited the land that is now La Rioja in the 3rd century BC. The Beronia winery, however, was established in 1973 CE by a group of Bosque businessmen and founders of a gastronomy society who visited Rioja and decided...

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Wine Review: Beronia Rioja Crianza 2014

December is A Very Rioja Christmas on TheWineStalker.net! Beronia is named after the ancient Celtic tribe called the Berones that inhabited the land that is now La Rioja in the 3rd century BC. The Beronia winery, however, was established in 1973 CE by a group of Bosque businessmen and founders of a gastronomy society who visited Rioja and decided they wanted...

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Wine Review: Maetierra Dominum QP Quatro Pagos Reserva 2009

December is A Very Rioja Christmas on TheWineStalker.net! Pictured: roasted chestnuts, goat milk gouda, wild mushroom brie, and Maetierra Dominvm QP Quatro Pagos Reserva 2009. Cheeseboard, accessories, and wine courtesy of Rioja. Here's the thing: I have minimal information on this winery. I've tried to dig up as much info as I can but it's just not...

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Wine Review: Bodega Ontañón Rioja Reserva 2005

December is A Very Rioja Christmas on TheWineStalker.net! Pictured: Ornament, decorative towel, bottle Santa hat, bottle scarf, and Bodega Ontañón Rioja Reserva 2005. All courtesy of Rioja. The family owned Bodega Ontañón goes back five generations, but it wasn't until the 1980's that this family decided to not sell its grapes to wineries and...

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Wine Reviews: Best of Fall 2017!

Tomorrow is the last day of Fall and Winter officially begins on Thursday. So here's the best of the wines that I reviewed for the season! #5. Left Coast Cellars White Pinot Noir 2016 Region: Willamette Valley, Oregon Review Release: October 8th, 2017 The color of the wine is a light copper. There's aromas of peaches, pear apple sauce, lime peel and dried oregano....

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Bordeauxing Rioja: The Origin Stories of Manuel Quintano & Luciano de Murrieta

December is A Very Rioja Christmas on TheWineStalker.net! MARQUÉS DE MURRIETA OAK BARRELS IMAGE CREDIT: expansion.com For my article this month I really didn't just want to do a "history of Rioja" or some expansive long read like that. I wanted a story. I wanted to write about a specific person or event with focus.  I found many interesting stories...

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Happy Saturnalia!

Never forget the reason for the season, mortal...

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Wine Review: CVNE Viña Real Rioja Gran Reserva 2010

December is A Very Rioja Christmas on TheWineStalker.net! The Viña Real brand was established in 1920 by CVNE (pronounced coo-nay). Viña Real is out of the Rioja Alavesa region of Rioja, as opposed to CVNE's main label out of Rioja Alta. The name of the parent winery is actually an acronym that stands for Compañia Vinicola del Norte de España....

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Wine Review: CVNE Viña Real Rioja Reserva 2013

December is A Very Rioja Christmas on TheWineStalker.net! The Viña Real brand was established in 1920 by CVNE (pronounced coo-nay). Viña Real is out of the Rioja Alavesa region of Rioja, as opposed to CVNE's main label out of Rioja Alta. The name of the parent winery is actually an acronym that stands for Compañia Vinicola del Norte de España....

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Wine Review: CVNE Viña Real Rioja Crianza 2013

December is A Very Rioja Christmas on TheWineStalker.net! The Viña Real brand was established in 1920 by CVNE (pronounced coo-nay). Viña Real is out of the Rioja Alavesa region of Rioja, as opposed to CVNE's main label out of Rioja Alta. The name of the parent winery is actually an acronym that stands for Compañia Vinicola del Norte de España....

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Wine Review: CVNE Rioja Gran Reserva 2011

December is A Very Rioja Christmas on TheWineStalker.net! This winery goes by both CVNE and Cune, Cune being a typo that stuck. The name is pronounced coo-nay and it's actually an acronym that stands for Compañia Vinicola del Norte de España. It was founded in 1879 in Haro, Rioja and has been a leader in progressive winemaking and modernization...

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Wine Review: CVNE Rioja Reserva 2013

December is A Very Rioja Christmas on TheWineStalker.net! This winery goes by both CVNE and Cune, Cune being a typo that stuck. The name is pronounced coo-nay and it's actually an acronym that stands for Compañia Vinicola del Norte de España. It was founded in 1879 in Haro, Rioja and has been a leader in progressive winemaking and modernization since...

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Wine Review: CVNE Rioja Crianza 2014

December is A Very Rioja Christmas on TheWineStalker.net! This winery goes by both CVNE and Cune, Cune being a typo that stuck. The name is pronounced coo-nay and it's actually an acronym that stands for Compañia Vinicola del Norte de España. It was founded in 1879 in Haro, Rioja and has been a leader in progressive winemaking and modernization since its inception. This...

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December Wine Pick: Campo Viejo Rioja Tempranillo 2015

December is A Very Rioja Christmas on TheWineStalker.net! That's right! A whole month of Rioja red wines! And because I've got so many to get to, all of them will (probably) be short and sweet. So you won't have to deal with me babbling on or going off topic too much. Deal? Deal. So let's start it off right with my Wine Pick of the Month! I've got an affordable,...

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Distill Wars Episode VI: Triple Sec Triple Threat! Stock Gran Gala vs Cointreau vs Grand Marnier Cordon Rouge

I was reminded that it's been awhile since I did a Distill Wars post when Episode V: Beefeater vs. Tanqueray started trending a few weeks ago for some reason. Yeah, it's been awhile since the last installment... but a whole year and a half? Damn, man! I've been slacking on Distill Wars! Let's fix that right now! I have purchased three nips of orange liqueur,...

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Wine Review: Karmei Yosef Winery Bravdo Merlot 2012

The Shoseyov's have been in the viticulture business for 130 years. Even with Israel's insanely long history with wine, that's quite a family legacy. In 1999, Oded Shoseyov teamed up with his former professor Ben Ami Barbado to create a winery right smack dab in the middle of one of the Shoseyov's family vineyards. It's located right next to the community settlement of...

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Wine Review: Mercer Malbec 2015

I'm reviewing three wines by Mercer this month. I love this winery, guys, because they make good wine in the most comfortable of price ranges for the average fine wine consumer. They're a relief to see on a wine list full of Mirassou's and Dark Horses (aka fermented Pixy Stix), because you know they're going to be solid. I also love Mercer because I love Horse Heaven Hills....

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Wine Review: Mercer Sauvignon Blanc 2016

I'm reviewing three wines by Mercer this month. I love this winery, guys, because they make good wine in the most comfortable of price ranges for the average fine wine consumer. They're a relief to see on a wine list full of Mirassou's and Dark Horses (aka fermented Pixy Stix), because you know they're going to be solid. I also love Mercer because I love Horse Heaven...

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Wine Review: Mercer Sharp Sisters Red Blend 2015

I'm reviewing three wines by Mercer this month. I love this winery, guys, because they make good wine in the most comfortable of price ranges for the average fine wine consumer. They're a relief to see on a wine list full of Mirassou's and Dark Horses (aka fermented Pixy Stix), because you know they're going to be solid. I also love Mercer because I love Horse Heaven Hills....

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Heroes of Wine: André Tchelistcheff (1901-1994)

They called him "the Maestro". By definition this means "a distinguished musician, especially a conductor of classical music" or "a great or distinguished figure in any sphere". He was great. He was distinguished. He conducted beautiful music in the form of wine. Earlier in his career they called him "the doctor" because of his scientific approach to winemaking and his...

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Wine Review: Moraga Estate Red Wine 2013

To learn about this winery out of Bel Air in Los Angeles, California, check out my review from Sunday for their 2015 White Wine. Their 2013 Red Wine is a Bordeaux-style blend made from primarily Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot as a secondary, with splashes of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. It saw eight to ten months in 100% new French oak and two years of bottle a...

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Wine Review: Moraga Estate White Wine 2015

Moraga Estate is located in the middle of Los Angeles. It's in Bel Air to be exact. And don't worry, I'll spare you the eye roll and not make the obvious joke about that 90's sitcom. The land that would become Moraga Estate was a horse ranch when it was purchased by Ruth and Tom Jones (the CEO of Northrop Grumman and not the singer) in 1959. After retirement, they...

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November Wine Pick: Cooper & Thief Red Wine Blend 2014

This WINE PICK of the month was written for the Luke's of Cape Cod website. I’m not one that has really enjoyed the “let’s age everything in Bourbon barrels” trend that’s going on. Especially when it comes to wine. So I was shocked when I tried Cooper & Thief’s Red Wine Blend and absolutely loved it. This is a blend of 38% Merlot, 37% Syrah, 11% Zinfandel,...

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Wine Review: Matchbook The Arsonist 2015 Chardonnay

For information on Matchbook, you can read all about their great story in my article "A Brief History of Matchbook Wine Company". The Arsonist is a subset of Matchbook Wine Company's Matchbook label. It's kinda like their higher tier of wines, and there's only two right now: Chardonnay and Red Blend. The labels feature Prometheus, the Titan from Greek mythology that...

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Wine Review: Matchbook The Arsonist 2014 Red Blend

For information on Matchbook, you can read all about their great story in my article "A Brief History of Matchbook Wine Company". The Arsonist is a subset of Matchbook Wine Company's Matchbook label. It's kinda like their higher tier of wines, and there's only two right now: Chardonnay and Red Blend. The labels feature Prometheus, the Titan from Greek mythology that...

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Jack & Ice Wine

And here we see the majestic ice wine harvester in his natural environment. Such beauty and elegan...

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The Dueling Montepulcianos: Vino Nobile vs d'Abruzzo

One thing that often follows the common "I was at a restaurant last night..." beginning of a sentence from a wine consumer to a wine professional is its completion with "and I had a Montepulciano." This is one of those I love my job moments because now I get to completely geek out with a customer so I can help them. Not only do I need to dig for clues to figure out...

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Wine Review: Oyster Bay Hawkes Bay Merlot 2014

Oyster Bay is swooping in for a quickie on Thirsty Thursday! This spot was reserved for a really cool wine from a less traditional place, but it was unfortunately corked. I cried, as I always do with faulty bottles, and I went to the wine fridge to pick out an emergency bottle not already scheduled on my calendar. So here it is! As you probably know, Oyster Bay's Sauvignon...

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Wine Review: Seven Hills Walla Walla Valley Red Wine 2014

This blend out of the Walla Walla Valley in Washington State is 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Malbec, and 5% Petit Verdot. It spent 23 months in French, American and European oak barrels (35% of which were new), and has an ABV of 14.7%. But you know what? This wine came with a really nice letter from Casey McClellan, the winemaker, so I'm going to post it here for you to...

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Conglomerate Acquisition

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Pennywise & Apothic

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Wine Review: Left Coast Cellars White Pinot Noir 2016

Left Coast Cellars is back on the blog! It was just this past March that I reviewed their 2014 Cali's Cuvee Pinot Noir and their 2015 The Orchard Pinot Gris. Well, a new vintage of that Pinot Gris is out so a few days ago I reviewed their 2016 The Orchard Pinot Gris, and today I'm reviewing their their 2016 White Pinot Noir! Left Coast Cellars...

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Wine Review: Left Coast Cellars The Orchard Pinot Gris 2016

Left Coast Cellars is back on the blog! It was just this past March that I reviewed their 2014 Cali's Cuvee Pinot Noir and their 2015 The Orchard Pinot Gris. Well, a new vintage of that Pinot Gris is out so now I'll be reviewing their 2016 The Orchard Pinot Gris, and also in a few days their 2016 White Pinot Noir! Left Coast Cellars of Willamette Valley, Oregon was...

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My thoughts on Las Vegas

I refrained from posting on my Wine Stalker social media accounts since the Las Vegas massacre until tonight. I didn’t want to ignore that this happened but I also needed time to let the rage and sadness level out so when I did speak about it, it wouldn’t be a nonsensical rant. You know I’m very liberal so you can imagine my feelings on this and where I stand on the...

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