Regulated by French law, Beaujolais Nouveau can be released no earlier than the third Thursday in November.  That date is six weeks after the grapes are harvest, and mark the date when this “new” wine is ready to drink.  As part of world-wide Beaujolais festivities, at one minute after midnight, bottles of the wine are open and consumed.
Paris Las Vegas has teamed with Georges Duboeuf, one of the largest wine merchants in France and well known his product of Beaujolais wines, for a special Beaujolais uncorking package.  This is a perfect getaway for the wine enthusiast to enjoy a …read more

Think of wine, and you likely think of the Bay area of San Francisco.  Think a little more, and you probably think of Napa.  But if you stop there, you’d be missing out on a whole lot of great wineries – located on the other side of the bay in Sonoma County.
Wine related travel is a popular part of Sonoma County, with its 13 American Viticultural areas, each with distinctive characteristics.  The Pacific coastline, redwood forests, fertile valleys, and mountains all add to the mix in producing some truly outstanding wines.
Take a day trip from Oakland or San Francisco, …read more

Ten years ago dandelions would have been one thing on my list of things I’d never have considered eating. I mean, who eats weeds, right?
With the popularity of home cooking shows, celebrity chefs and a huge amount of information about them on the internet, , though, I’ve become a little more accepting of the cute little yellow pests as a form of nourishment. This doesn’t, however, mean I’ve tried them yet!
So when I came across the video series at MonkeySee about making your own dandelion wine, I was intrigued. I’ve heard of it before in more a passing kind of …read more

You might have guessed by my post about the wine pairing  app for your iPhone,  that I’m a wine fan. I’m a beginner, no real wine knowledge to speak of, but I’m learning. I joined Raley’s Wine Club a few months back and they send me information about pairings, tips for wine parties, and information on special buys and deals. If you live near a Raley’s, BelAir or Nob Hill, take a look at the company website and check out the wine club.
Some of the Raley’s stores here in California offer tastings.  My local Raley’s doesn’t offer this, but it sounds …read more

Natalie MacLean, of Nat Decants, and bitHeads have worked together to develop a Drink Matcher software application for the iPhone, iPod Touch, Blackberry Bold, and the Blackberry Curve. The Drinks Matcher offers pairings for wine and cheese, wine and appetizers, wine and deserts….. basically which wine goes best with whatever you happen to be hungry for.

The Nat Decants Drinks Matcher is available for only $2.99. For Apple products, visit here. If you’ve got a Blackberry, click here.
Here are the Top 10 Cheese & Drink Matches from the Nat Decants Drinks Matcher:
1.      Camembert or brie with Champagne
2.      Gouda with Spanish Rioja
3.      …read more

People say we have only two seasons here in the South – winter and summer. This year I think we found spring. This week the weather struggled to reach the mid 70s. It has rained and rained and rained until we were beaten down and miserable. Where is my unbearably hot summer? The pool was supposed to open this weekend, but no body swims when it’s 70 degrees … and raining! Not us, at least.

Everyone knows that when the weather sours here in the South, good Southern boys pour bourbon. If the boy has been influenced by his wife, he …read more

My OB owned an upscale French restaurant where his family’s live-in chef made a lobster bisque so rich and lush you wanted to bathe in it. That French cuisine was paired with some lovely wines, as I recall. It was a short-lived business venture for my OB, but a pleasant one that provided my doctor and me plenty of conversation in the months leading up to the birth of my son. He knew, too, of my affection for wine and consoled me by saying it would just fine if I wanted to have 4 ounces of wine a day.
Four ounces? …read more

We’re celebrating this week for many reasons –my husband’s good health, our wedding anniversary, plus, Truman’s T-ball team is 2-0. And there’s something about the early days of spring that just screams “party!”
So we broke out Perrier Jouet Grand Brut. The experts say this Champagne is “poised and stylish” and “layers sharp citrus fruit with spicy wood and light toast.” All I know is when I’m walking around with a glass of this, I’m loving life. At about $30 per bottle, this jewel is great for sitting curbside with neighbors and watching 5-year-olds race Big Wheels in the driveway.
“I only …read more

The other day my son whined all day long! It was not unlike Coco Conundrum when she was in heat. (By the way, if you take your cat to the vet to get fixed while she is in heat, it will cost you $10 more because they have to cut a larger incision since her uterus swells to four times normal size! Gah!)
My friend Suzanne likes to tell her kids, “I don’t understand Whinese,” but that trick wasn’t working here. It was time to bring out the reinforcements. I call it fighting fire with fire – or fighting whining by …read more

Nat Decants, online home of Natalie MacLean, expert sommelier, now offers a widget that will help you to chose the very best wine or beverage to compliment your meal.
For example, I chose…
“Mushrooms: Chanterelle” and the Wine & Food Matcher widget gave me, “Other drinks: Tea:Assam, Vodka” and “Red Wine: Barbera, Pinot Noir Old World/Burgundy, Shiraz” and “White Wine: Chardonnay: New World (Full-Bodied, Fruity).
Then, I’m given more options – I can click to find a list of wines available to match the dish or find more recipes with complimentary ingredients.
If you really like the Matcher Widget and you want to have …read more