W. & J. Graham’s “Six Grapes” Special River Quintas Edition Reserve Porto Douro, Portugal For those of us who love travel, the last half year has built our wanderlust into a growing, gnawing creature of torment. Yes, my horror writer side crafted that description. 😉 But it’s apt—the longing to visit countries I’ve yet to
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Little did I know that when we convened for the 2016 Vintage Port tasting, another Vintage Port declaration would follow in 2017. I was surprised to find an invitation to attend this year’s preview tasting in my inbox, and I can safely say that the pre-eminent Port producers represented — Symington, Fladgate, and Quinta do
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Quinta De La Rosa Extra Dry Non-Vintage White Port Douro, Portugal ABV 19.5% One of my surprises at last year’s Vintage 2016 Porto Tasting was being handed a tasting glass of Fonseca Extra Dry “Siroco” White Port. Readers, I am unashamed to admit that I did not know white port existed until that moment. As
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Dow’s 2012 Late Bottled Vintage Porto Douro, Portugal The Review Obligatory disclaimer: This bottle was free to me for review. Ports like the Dow’s 2012 Late Bottled Vintage Porto are why I know I must take a tour of the Douro Valley someday. Rosy floral notes wind through the labyrinth of a cut open fig—you
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A highlight of my blogging year was attending the 2016 Vintage Port Preview Tasting at the Fairmont Hotel this past June. Obligatory disclaimer: That means this tasting experience was free to me. I’ve been drinking wine for about a decade and a half now, and I knew from my first sip of Port, or Porto,
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Vale do Bomfim 2015 Red Wine Blend Douro, Portugal 13.9% ABV I’m about to leave for the 2017 Wine Bloggers Conference in Santa Rosa, and I thought, before I take off, I’d post one of my regular features since I started this blog in 2007: the simple wine review. Wine blogging has changed a lot
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Graham’s Six Grapes Reserve Port Douro, Portugal Obligatory disclaimer: This review is based on a sample bottle. I love port. The richness, depth of flavors, and luxurious mood that port imparts are always a wonderful way to end a meal. They are the last crescendo that confirms you have witnessed something glorious this evening. Graham’s
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Halloween is my favorite time of year and port is close to my favorite type of wine, so when I was contacted to do a post on port pairings with Halloween treats, I had to say yes. Obligatory disclaimer: That means I received these wines for free. But not the pairings – I made those!
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Fat Grape Winery 2010 Merlot Northern California I posted recently about what I’d recommend for a foodie day trip to Treasure Island. Fat Grape was the sulfite-free winery we visited that offers a zillion different types of wine to taste for free. The Fat Grape 2010 Merlot was one of two wines that impressed me,
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Kinston, NC, Blogging: Chef and the Farmer This is the third and final installment on our recent day trip to Kinston, NC. Blog 1 covered the various ways we amused ourselves by the Neuse riverfront last month. Blog 2 was on Mother Earth Brewing, which we were delighted to discover is based in downtown Kinston
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