The cooler days are now here, and you’ll need to have some red on hand. Chateau Pegau’s Cuvée Maclura Côtes du Rhône ($22) brings out blackberry and black pepper notes in this blend of 60% Grenache, 20% Syrah, 10% Mourvedre, and 10% Cinsault. So good with comté cheese: nutty and creamy but sharp at the same time. They say …
Was in Venice recently and learned about Select—described as something between bitter Campari and sweet orangey Aperol, but to me was extremely close to Campari. The slight differences: Select was created in 1920 in Venice (not Milan, where Campari is from), has 17.5% alcohol (not Campari’s 24.5%), and is a proprietary blend of 30 botanicals like juniper and rhubarb which …
Most people think of party wines and spritzes when they think of Prosecco. But Prosecco took on a different hue on a recent trip to explore Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG wines, which make up about 20% of all Prosecco production and have stricter production rules. It’s a mouthful to say, but rather than lots of Italian …
I was expecting the hyper-colorful doors, bountiful flowers pouring over balconies, and rustic beaches. But I was not expecting the incredible cocktail scene in Cartagena! In general, Cartagena had an impressive design aesthetic, with bold interiors and amazing attention to detail in shops, hotels, and restaurants. Given that, it made sense that would travel into …
I recently went to Sicily, not to follow the White Lotus life but to explore the wines of Etna, whose official DOC was formed in 1968. All the vineyards are situated in a half-ring at the foot of the volcano, whose eruptions have completely shaped the land and infused the soils, grapes, and wines with a bold, ashy …
In other sport GOAT news, David Beckham gave Lionel Messi a Methuselah (equal to 8 bottles) of 2008 Catena Zapata Malbec Argentino for his 37th birthday. Voted the World’s Best Winery of 2023, Catena makes some truly incredible wines. Made from the best vines on the estate, the Zapata grapes are hand-picked and the production is low. According …
Have as much fun learning about wine as you do when you’re drinking it! We share what wines you should drink for each month’s biggest events, whether it’s for the Super Bowl or the super moon, the premiere of Stranger Things or the finale of Succession, Tuesday night values or Saturday night splurges. So sign …
The grapefriend wine totes have arrived!!! They’re totes amazing (get it?), and not just because they hold wine. I lug a lot of wine around. A lot. To friends, to dinners, to events, away for the weekend. I was tired of trying to find bubble wrap or random pieces of cardboard (liquor store style) to stuff in …
I recently went on an expedition for Bordeaux Wines to see how you could navigate wine store shelves to pick some great Bordeaux bottles for all different tastes. With over 40 appellations, Bordeaux can be a confusing wine region but it’s totally worth exploring to find the incredibly complex and extraordinarily delicious wines. whites Bordeaux wines are all about the … Continue reading
It’s happy hour and maybe you’re distracted or maybe you’ve had many sips – have no fear, now everyone can keep track of their glass with these cute bunny ear glass markers. You can also liven things up and put them on the rim for real rabbit fun. (Actually, that would be great for Easter! … Continue reading
California wine country produces a ton of wine and food, but I like when it inspires non-wine products too – and Olive & Poppy has taken grapey accessories to the next level. Love their totes ($76) – spacious, rugged, and stylish with three cool grapefriendy features: 1) It has an inner attached wine pocket to … Continue reading
One of the best parts of being a houseguest is getting treated to a homemade breakfast. But any good grapefriend would never show up to the table empty-handed. We show up with the proper gifts that add a grapey touch to the meal. I mean you can have some regular blueberry jam, but what … Continue reading
It’s summer time, and that means getting invited to lots of fun things like BBQs, pool parties, and summer house weekends! Fun will be had and wine will be drunk, but you don’t want to show up to your host’s house empty handed. So this week we’re going to be giving some great grapey recommendations … Continue reading
Randall Grahm is one of the coolest winemakers. Not only does he do a ton of experimenting with his Bonny Doon wines, but he has a ton of fun with the names (like the 2013 I’m Not Drinking Any £#ƒ€!¢ Merlot!) and gives them whimsical labels with alien spaceships (full story on that here). He recently launched a crowdfunding … Continue reading
You probably haven’t had a ton of wine from Virgina. Maybe you haven’t even had any. But with over 200 wineries and 7 AVAs, Virginia’s the 7th largest winemaking region in US and the 5th largest wine grape producer (not wine, but wine grapes). A lot of the wine produced there isn’t awesome, but a handful of … Continue reading
Check out this excellent halibut I made! Was so easy too! Just butter and loads of black pepper on the halibut, then roast it over tomato slices and basil leaves. Recipe here but definitely add some fresh basil on top once it’s out of the oven! Perfectly paired with some crisp Sauvignon Blanc. This one … Continue reading
Mick Rock is a British photographer who’s shot everyone from the Beatles to Blondie, and is still clicking away. In this new show On The Record With Mick Rock, Mick heads to the hometowns of musicians like Kings of Leon and The Flaming Lips to see what’s inspired them. Well aside from awesome music, we all know what … Continue reading
We’ve made it all the way to the #1 rosé of the summer: Chateau d’Oupia! Man, this is a KILLER rosé! Absolute perfect balance of fresh strawberry and raspberry juice with an excellent nerve of minerality. So I’m sampling and sipping away and thinking this is probably in the $20 or even $30 range. But … Continue reading
