An icon in California wine, Talley is a family-run farming operation who’ve been growing and bottling classic Pinot Noir and Chardonnay wines from the Central Coast since the 80s. This is their 33rd harvest since they began, back in the day when they were the first growers of Pinot and Chardonnay in the region. I talked to Brian about cooking, food, wine, and the holistic approach that is the backbone of his family business.
Read MoreTucked in the northeastern corner of Napa Valley, just south of the Palisades Mountains is the legendary Eisele Vineyard. Long recognized as one the finest Cabernet Sauvignon vineyards in Napa Valley, this stunning site owes its success to its various owners over the last century, each who contributed significant influences to the quality of vineyard. It is no surprise then that the new owner, François Pinault from Château Latour, is likewise elevating the standards that were already so remarkable. As the 2015 vintages are being released, we are starting to see these new influences, and it’s pretty exciting.
Read MoreA much overlooked region, the Finger Lakes are rich in history and are producing wines that are better than ever. Our colleague Muriel Sarik recently took a trip to the region and found that while Riesling rules, there is wonderful depth that wine lovers of varying palates will adore. Join her for a tour of some of the top wineries, some beautiful scenery, and a few unexpected discoveries. As she says, “they will make the best wine they possibly can.”
Read MoreBack in March of 2018, we ran a small piece detailing the full cycle of the K&L Spirits single barrel program. Our spirits buyers, after tasting through dozens of samples/barrels at the source, hand select the best single casks from Bourbon country to be bottled up and sold a few times a year. Occasionally, we end up with the empty barrels which we hand deliver to local breweries. This program really gained steam in late 2014 when David OG from K&L hooked up his childhood friend Jacob McKean of Modern Times. Don’t miss this thrilling new release!
Read MoreWhen K&L Champagne Buyer, Gary Westby, asked if I had any thoughts on a cocktail for using the Baron-Fuente Grande Reserve bottles I knew I had a shortlist of recipes that I wanted to try, but I ultimately settled on the Champagne Old Fashioned, or as I fondly refer to it: That Old Fashioned Champ. As its name implies, it riffs on one of the most classic of all cocktails, and just as the traditional Old Fashioned relies on simplicity of function to let the few ingredients shine beautifully, this Champagne version takes the same approach so you can appreciate each element that contributes to the beverage.
Read MoreYou may have already heard this, but the 2015 vintage in Bordeaux is outstanding. According to our resident Bordeauxitarian in Hollywood, Jacques Moreira, everything that needed to happen happened. The stars aligned, the heavens opened, and the sunshine/rain/cool breeze combo proceeded exactly as needed to get the fruit to its most perfect state. Now that the wines are in-stock, it is a vintage that deserves any discerning wine drinker’s attention.
Read MoreLuca’s family has been there through the last 40 years of evolution in Montalcino, but are very rooted in Pierluigi’s original vision. His grandfather understood the importance of Sangiovese, and was an early ambassador for it. He prized the idea that the wine is born outside of the cellar, and that the Sangiovese Grosso grape is what makes Montalcino special. Luca says it’s “a wonderful grape, and we have the best expression of it in Montalcino.”
Read MoreJeff says his family are farmers, that’s their identity. It’s not hard to romanticize that connection to the land—that’s what us wine geeks go in for, right? The beauty of how a glass of wine connects us to the weather and the soil and the people? But there is something so rooted and real about this family in this place. It’s a different California wine story than, say, much of Napa, where people came from elsewhere to stake their claim on winemaking. The Pisoni story happened from the ground up: a family already connected to the land with one visionary and a crazy idea.
Read MoreThe temperature was a beautiful 78F, the sun shone brightly, and a delicate wind rustled the surrounding trees. I opened my car door and was immediately embraced by the comforting smell of smoky BBQ wafting towards me from the large outdoor grill. The soon-to-be snack- shack Airstream trailer was occupied by a catering crew preparing an array of delicious Spamburgers and spicy grilled shrimp. I checked in, poured a glass of rosé and observed the finished space. The new building is gorgeous…
Read MoreDelphine Brulez, winemaker at Champagne Louise Brison, hails from the Aube, a southwestern enclave in Champagne that has always had a touch of a rebellious streak. Closer in geography, soil, and spirit to Burgundy than to Reims, many winemakers here are leading the grower-producer revolution that is focusing on terroir—that is, single-vineyard, single-vintage, even single-varietal Champagne—in a region where blending has defined the style for centuries. The Aube is, at the very least, making us rethink what we know about Champagne.
Read MoreTerroir is a complex concept. It’s commonly translated as “a sense of place,” and most understandings of the term are largely dependant on how the vine’s physical environment affects the expression of the resulting wine. Soil type, aspect, climate and farming regime all contribute to the raw material—grapes. Then it’s over to the winemaker to preserve these distinctive markers of that particular place and encapsulate them in a bottle. Very few times in my life has this concept of a more holistic definition of terroir made more sense than on a recent trip to visit Ordaz Family Wines in Sonoma.
Read MoreHitching Post II is famous for more than just its role in Sideways, of course. Owners Frank Ostini and Gray Hartley serve a mean steak and have been making their own wine since 1979. We were treated to some of their generous hospitality, and we got a sneak peak of their upcoming tasting room, which will be opening any day now! They are putting the finishing touches on a property directly next to their current restaurant, which includes an airstream trailer soon to be a kitchen for small bites
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