First Report – Grand Jours de Bourgogne 2012

  Having just returned from a recent week of tasting in Burgundy where I met with more than a hundred producers and personally sampled (what seems like) nearly a thousand wines, I am now embarking on organizing my notes. As this process will undoubtedly require several days to complete – and considering how excited I [...]

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A Life’s Work

It was the late 1980s… Our “unabashed Francophile” leader – as he has been described by the local wine writers in Houston – was just beginning his career in the wine business working in one of the most upscale dining establishments in the Dallas area – Riviera. Christopher Massie found himself under the wing of [...]

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Oh, for a Glass of Wine

Another excruciating day comes to a close, witnessing me once again crunching the numbers on this business plan as we make ourselves ready for the first printing.  Thus far, only a handful of our closest allies are primed for the first draft of this 60+ page business plan.  And the pages are indeed impressive.  My [...]

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Daniel Barraud – “The King of Maconnais”

For four vintages now, I’ve been singing the praises of not only the man himself, but of every single bottle of wine that emerges from the cellars of this incredible white wine producer in the southern reaches of Burgundy.  Located in the southern Burgundian region known as the Maconnais, just a short drive south of [...]

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Twenty Four and At the Door – My Afternoon at DRC

My wife and I tucked our daughter into bed last night, our evening’s ritual resulting in our collapsing on the couch as we gathered our reading materials and flipped a coin to select our delivery menu for dinner.  We wouldn’t change our routine for the world, for these are the times in our life that [...]

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Thinned-Skinned II – Chardonnay too has a Soul?

Continuing on now with this journey, this quest to expose the willing to these wines of ebullient character, character derived from decades making wine with nature as a wine-maker’s guide, I find myself ever eager to hold your interest.  Straying too far off course as I speak of the virtues of a wine that many [...]

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Encountering Becky Wasserman & The Story of H. Lamy

The year was one in the very early 1990′s, I believe 1991 or ’92, and it was a typical New Orleans’ day; cloud covered, so humid one could barely breathe, and with the sounds of “Uptown N’awlins” reverberating through my head.  I was living in New Orleans for a short period in my professional life, [...]

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Michael Corso Selections II

One of America’s Top Boutique Importers, Con’t   One underlying and consistent aspect to Corso’s selections is their balance.  Each offer, as I discussed with Corso, offers the drinker pleasure without interference; you drink these wines and your senses are rewarded.  Corso’s response after I applauded his “style”?  “I like to eat”… “And I like [...]

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