(Originally published August 2008) If you’re prone to denouncing all things Chardonnay – here’s more fodder for you. The Livermore Valley. Just 30 miles east of San Francisco, this 15-by-10 mile AVA boasts the type of stony gravel soils that is home to the storied Sauvignon Blancs and Semillons of Bordeaux’s Graves region. And indeed, [...]

(Originally published August 2007) For years, if not centuries, France’s Languedoc wine region was known for its vast, flat vineyards and the massive quantities of thin, ordinary wine that came from them. Today, it is still France’s most prolific wine producing region in terms of volume of wine produced, but the quality has taken a [...]

(Originally published December 2006) A recent visit to Portugal’s Douro region was a fabulous introduction to the beautiful landscape, hospitable locals and up-and-coming wines of the area. Long known for being the home to most of Portugal’s port production, the Douro Valley’s dramatic mountainside terraced vineyards are becoming increasingly significant for bold red table wines. [...]

(Originally published August 2006) Next up on our tour of Spanish wine is Rioja — probably the most familiar region to consumers. With a slew of wine – mostly red, but also white and rosé – coming out of the area, wine consumers latched on to prolific Rioja as the go-to Spanish wine region. Located [...]

(Originally published April 2006) The first stop on our tour of Spanish wine is the lush, cool, rainy, coastal Galicia in northwest Spain. And actually, this part of the country is less “Spain-like” than any other part of Spain. Quite close to Portugal, and separated from its nearest Spanish neighbor city by mountains, Galicia’s pre-Christian [...]

(Originally published April 2005) In the second installment of this new feature, we drop in on exciting wine regions around the world and bring you the latest wine reviews and other happenings. Last time we were in Australia’s Yarra Valley — now we’re moving to the McLaren Vale! The McLaren Vale wine region is about [...]

(Originally published January 2005) Welcome to the debut World Wide Wine column! In this ongoing feature, we’ll drop in on exciting wine regions around the world and bring you the latest wine reviews and other happenings. Our first stop is Australia’s Yarra Valley! We recently had the opportunity to visit Australia’s Yarra Valley and explore [...]