Category Archives: Merlot

Regional Profile: Eden Valley, Australia

Posted on January 24, 2013 by stevie

Where: Start in South Australia’s Barossa Valley and move about 300 meters up — not north but east: literally up, into the hills.    What: Historically, the Eden Valley was just an extension of the Barossa Valley. Though the first … Continue reading →

Regional Profile: Barossa Valley, Australia

Posted on January 22, 2013 by stevie

Where: Barossa Valley is a “Geographical Indication” (or GI, basically an appellation) set within the Barossa zone in the state of South Australia. It’s a valley set back from the coast, following the North Para River and surrounded by the … Continue reading →

Regional Profile: Hunter Valley

Posted on January 17, 2013 by stevie

Where: Hunter Valley is technically a “zone” within the state of New South Wales (on the southeastern side of Australia, a quick two-hour jaunt north of Sydney). It’s a river valley in between the Tasman Sea and the Brokenback Range. … Continue reading →

Regional Profile: Casablanca Valley

Posted on November 13, 2012 by laura

Where: About halfway down the length of the skinny, seaside country of Chile, the Casablanca Valley rests only 20 miles from the ocean. It’s technically a sub-region of the larger Aconcagua region.   What: Vines weren’t even planted in Casablanca until the … Continue reading →

Grape Files: Merlot

Posted on October 17, 2012 by laura

Color: Red   Grown in: Bordeaux, Languedoc-Rousillon, Southwest France (France); Friuli, Trentino-Alto Adige, Tuscany (Italy); California, Washington (U.S.); Spain; Bulgaria; Chile; Australia; New Zealand   Profile: This plushly fruited, blue-black grape is the most widely planted in the French wine … Continue reading →

Winery Profile: Château Chasse-Spleen

Posted on January 26, 2012 by stevie

Who: Château Chasse-Spleen   What: The Cru Bourgeois That Could   Where: Moulis (Haut-Médoc, Bordeaux, France)   Why: Because Chasse-Spleen went utterly unrecognized in the 1855 Classification — the ranking of big-name Bordeaux that’s remained in place to this day. Because … Continue reading →

Winery Profile: Lewis Cellars

Posted on August 25, 2011 by laura

Who: Lewis Cellars   What: Driving through Life in the Fast Lane: Napa via ‘Napolis (Indianapolis)   Where: Napa Valley, CA   Why: Because former Indy race car driver Randy Lewis and his wife, Debbie, took their winning mindset and … Continue reading →

Winery Profile: Tenuta di Trinoro

Posted on August 4, 2011 by laura

Who: Tenuta di Trinoro   What: Wild Child’s Wine Playground in Tuscan No Man’s Land   Where: Province of Siena (Tuscany, Italy), roughly east of Montalcino and shortly before the border with Umbria. Or, according to proprietor and winemaker Andrea … Continue reading →

Winery Profile: Château Haut-Brion

Posted on June 30, 2011 by laura

Who: Château Haut-Brion   What: Royal First Growth Favorite Repping the Other Side of Town   Where: Pessac-Léognan (Graves, Bordeaux, France)   Why: Because it is one of the original four and still one of the only five First Growths … Continue reading →

Regional Profile: Walla Walla

Posted on May 2, 2011 by laura

Where: An AVA (American Viticultural Area) located in southeast Washington State, about four hours from Seattle, partly spilling into Oregon, in the larger Columbia Valley AVA, which sits in the rain shadow to the east of the Cascade Mountains.   … Continue reading →