Recycling, Reusing and Sustainability
Hmmm, it’s been quite some time since I wrote about recycling and sustainability! In fact it was over 7 years ago since I last wrote anything about it! See these old posts if you like: * Recycling wine bottles (Nov 2009) * More recycling of wine bottles (Mar 2010) * Yellow alert
Our Era of Wine
We’re living in an era of wine production that has moved far from the origin of grape wine. In the last several weeks three new products have come to light: a large blender designed to masticate grapes to a pulp in order to increase color; a yeast developed to
SIP (Sulfite Is Poison)
Any discussion, conversation, argument or no-holds-barred fight on the topic of “natural” wines has to start with the two winemaking practices most often used to define such wine: using natural/field-born yeast for the fermentation, and not using SO2. If SO2 is used anytime during the development or bottling of
California’s Meaningless Appellations
Californiaʼs well-known wine regions will never reach the pinnacle of international quality until real appellation control rules are made. In Europe, in theory, appellation rules protect quality and tradition. They generally revolve around varietals that have been proven to thrive in the soil and climate of a given region, and
First Loser
Another peculiar part of the American identity is always wanting to be first. In our professional sports leagues we don’t give respect to the runner-up, we venerate the champion. It’s all or nothing. If you’re not winning, you’re failing. The American psyche wants to identify with
Speakers' Corner NYC 2016 - Videos
As part of the New York 2016 edition of the fair, we hosted a RAW WINE Speakers’ Corner which saw all sorts of natural wine heroes give talks, tastings and do book signings – sharing their experiences and knowledge to help visitors get to grips with this extraordinary world. As promised,
Understanding Fine Cider
Good cider is a much greater rarity than good wine – J.M. Trowbridge, New York, 1890 Cider at it’s simplest, is nothing but juice and time. Yet while the time span of long slow fermentations bring with it things of depth and complexity, the longer arc of time has
Exploring Some of France’s Most Famous Appellations
Less well-known wine regions around the world have long been hotbeds for natural wine creation, as cheaper vineyard prices have meant that growers could set-up shop relatively easily and experiment without too much risk. But what people often forget is that great low-intervention wine also exists in some of the
