I know this a wine blog but Italy does something every January that really means a lot to me. Yes Vino 2011 means a lot to me of course but I'm not talking about wine. Every January 27, Italy officially remembers the Holocaust. I remember it most days. I lost 80 relatives in the camps.... Continue Reading →
Vino 2011 – Italian Wine Week Is Here
Vino 2011 or Italian Wine Week is here and I am truly excited. I'll be taking part in some of the initiatives but couldn't get into some great seminars. Everything filled up so quickly. I guess that's a testament to just how interested people continue to be in Italian wine. That's no surprise to me... Continue Reading →
Napa Vintners In New York – A Nice Change of Pace
Next week is Vino 2011, otherwise known as Italian Wine Week, and I will be completely and happily immersed in Italian wine once again. Before I go down that route, one that is very familiar to me and where I feel at home, I want to write about a land which feels very foreign to... Continue Reading →
Austrian Voyage Continues: Gruner Veltliner Rediscovered
My Austrian immersion continued as I sampled my way through great whites and reds in St. Anton. The restaurant in this picture had a truly extensive wine list. What was fascinating to me was the obsession that they are all obsessed with Italian wines, much less so with French wines. We sat down and the... Continue Reading →
Posts of Interest, Wine of the Week: Umathum Blaufrankisch 2004
One of the things I find so hard these days is trying to stay on top of everyone's writing. I get irritated when I can't read the entire New York Times or never finish a New Yorker or my latest and favorite subscription to the Financial Times. I haven't even gotten into the wine publications,... Continue Reading →
Italian Restaurants: Ai Fiori
I have decided to expand the blog to include reviews of Italian restaurants. Here's one that I wrote for the Alta Cucina Society website on Michael White's Ai Fiori in the Setai on 5th Avenue and 37th Street. White has created a mini empire in New York restaurants as the owner of Osteria Morini, Ai... Continue Reading →
Drinking Austrian Riesling in St. Anton
I´m finally in St. Anton, a ski paradise in Austria. We had great weather yesterday as you can see from the color of the sky in this picture. New Year´s Eve in ski towns all over Europe are generally the same, fireworks everywhere, much revelry and prix fixe dinners. I went to the Hotel Montana... Continue Reading →