In the following articles I will address questions such as: what is in the wine you drink, why as a rule ten to thirty dollar wines are better and generally better for you, the differences in yeasts, what are tannins, discuss the many different varietals of grapes and where they are grown, how to serve (nope no chugging), taste notes, and many more as well as responses to your questions. My blog is meant only to educate so wine lovers can enjoy fine wine for under thirty dollars a bottle. It is not meant for marketing wine, wine-related merchandise, or retail of any products. My onetime fee is to offset by the maintenance of this blog. My goal is for you to enjoy and be able to be knowledgeable about what you drink. Plus, how to avoid the sulfate headache blues.

Terroir is at its most basic the effect that soil and climate have on the way a wine tastes and how it can differentiate in quality in a given year. Grape vines don’t like to be pampered. For example, moderate water stress can be particularly good for the plant and the making of a good wine. It forces the plant to send its roots deep into the soil, sometimes thirty feet to better utilize the water supply. The effects of high temperatures and lack of water will elevate the sugar content producing a higher alcohol content. Higher temperatures cause a reduction in acidity making the wine less favorable and a short shelf life. With moderate stress the synthesis of the aromatic components in the grape can alter flavor. Extreme high temps alter the pigment in the grape that gives red wines their color. Different wines comfort zones, hence, some varietals do better in some areas than others. Take France, grapes for Champagne prefer the northern regions while Shiraz prefers the southern Mediterranean region. Zinfandel is almost entirely grown in Californian and themed coast region produce the best quality wine from the grape. A South African cab will be different than a California cab because of its terroir and all grapes very from year to year from climate effects. So not only where, but when a wine is produced effects its quality.

Each week as we progress, we will explore something new about wine. I will review three wines each week and answer your questions as well as an informing article. The wine cellar will be stocked with my own reviews and expand as we go on week by week. I hope to enhance your pleasure in consuming wine as well as your knowledge of wine and your selecting of it.

— Your Wine Guy

This Napa wine is everything a great Sauvicnon Blanc should be. Summertime porch sipping, or with veal, fish, chicken, or cheese, this is a wine of substance that satisfies the palette every time, with a bright fresh taste with aromas and tasting note of peach, lemon curd, white grapefruit, and passion fruit, balanced with stone fruit. It is full bodied in mid-palate with a full and lengthy crisp finish. You’ll wonder where the bottle went when the last drop has disappeared. It is a product of 40 years of skilled wine making. Rated at 92 points, it comes in the 18-20 dollar price range.

This is another stunner from that same California mid-coast region. It is a big bold wine yet very pleasant on the palette: rich, full bodied burly wine with lite peppery spice lingering at the finish. Bake cherry pie aromas fill your senses with chewy flavors of berry, plum, vanilla, and herb notes. It will be your next big love affair and like Daou carries a 91-93 rating. I believe both wines would be rated higher if they came from an old house and less snobbery. Generally priced between 25-28 dollars a bottle.

This is a cab that has taken away medal after medal from the big Napa cabs. It comes into your mouth lush with ripe fruit expanding to rich black currant, a tantalizing blackberry before melting on your tongue like chocolate as your pick up that tastes while it slides down in a velvety smooth finish. If your wife doesn’t like those big cabs you enjoy, she’ll love this one and you will too. Best of all it’s priced between 20 and 25 dollars depending on your retailer

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