If you’ve been inside the shop the last several months, you might have noticed our Slow Food DC Snail of Approval certificate. What is Slow Food? The roots of the Slow Food movement took hold in Italy, sprouting from concern about the fast growing popularity of fast food. The instigating incident was the opening of a McDonald’s near the historic Piazza de Spagna in Rome in 1986, just adjacent to the city’s iconic Spanish Steps. Worried that the proliferation of fast food would threaten local restaurants and culinary traditions, Italian journalist Carlo Petrini organized a protest against the f ..read more

If you’ve shopped at Weygandt Wines before (and we suspect you have, if you’re reading this page), you’re in on one of the best kept secrets of buying wines as a consumer: shopping by importer. Wines that are sourced from outside the United States must be brought in by a wine importer. These individuals and companies are important conduits between you and non-American producers. They always on the lookout for products that their audience will find interesting, following the pulse of emerging wine regions and producers.  More often than not, the producers an importer represents will r ..read more

Sweet is often thrown around as a casual descriptor of wine. But while there are undeniably sweet—and sometimes very sweet—wines, the term is often unintentionally misused. It’s not uncommon to hear a wine described as sweet even if, objectively speaking, it is not. So, when is a wine sweet? What the Pros Say Sweet does have a technical definition: when a wine has more than 30 grams per liter of residual sugar (often referred to as RS). Wine with less than 10 grams per liter of residual sugar are considered dry or the opposite of sweet. Anything in between is  ..read more

You might not have any wine “resolutions” for 2022—or any resolutions at all—but setting a casual goal or two around wine might improve your overall drinking enjoyment.  What does a wine resolution look like? You can start by considering what would make wine a more pleasurable experience for you personally. Maybe it’s a better understanding of how wine is produced, or a deeper sense of what flavor profiles suit you best. There’s no “right” way to taste wine and there’s no “right” wine to like, but as succinctly put by sommelier Meghan McNamara on personal blog: “Ultimately ..read more

In the Weygandt Wines universe, we think it’s always a good time to drink champagne but like many specialty categories, there can be quite a bit of jargon to wade through. We’ve put together a brief overview of the category to help you find your best bubbles for any occasion.   The Basics—How Magic is Made Located about 80 miles northeast of Paris, the Champagne region guards its prestigious reputation closely. Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier account for 99.7% of the region's grapes and of these, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir are used most often. In addition to its instantly re ..read more

The 2018 vintage was a challenge throughout Austria, but the Wachau fared better than many other wine regions. A cool February and March was followed by the second-warmest spring on record, leading into a hot dry summer. There was significant rain in September affecting when growers harvested. By the end of October, almost all the grapes had been brought in, with only a few Wachau producers bringing in the last of their grapes at the beginning of November. The Wachau is the coolest and highest elevation in Austria, as well as being one of the westernmost wine regions in Austria, positioned on ..read more

The third Thursday of November elicits both cheers and jeers from the wine world. But no matter how you view the glass, this date means the arrival of freshly labeled Beaujolais Nouveau. Beaujolais Nouveau—directly translated as “new Beaujolais”—is the very first release of new wine made from grapes picked just six to eight weeks before bottling. The practice started as a way for locals to enjoy the fruits of their labor after an exhausting harvest season, and the cheap and cheerful wine filled the bars and bistros of nearby Lyon. Eventually, perhaps inevitably, a savvy marketin ..read more

For many folks living in the Northern Hemisphere, including those of us in the Washington, DC area, the arrival of autumn brings new clothes out of the closet and different foods to the table. Often, the type of wine in our glasses changes as well, reflecting the colors, sights, smells, and even the feelings of seasonal change. Perhaps these are wines that capture the last of late summer fruits, matching the appearance, taste, and texture of apples, pears, and fall squashes. These could also be wines with more weight and texture match the feelings of warmth a ..read more

Biodynamic wines are increasing in both availability and popularity, even though they still comprise a small percentage of global wine production. While there are similarities between organic and biodynamic approaches, mainly the avoidance of pesticides and synthetic fertilizers, biodynamic methods go further by employing a holistic approach in the vineyard.  In principle, this means no—or minimal—external inputs are introduced, with each part of the vineyard supporting and contributing to the other parts, creating a closed loop ecosystem. In one example of how this might look in practice ..read more

Condensation forming on the outside of your beverage. A smoky tickle in your nose from a charcoal grill. The pop and whistle of fireworks. These are a few of the sights, smells, and sounds associated with summer, a season when many of us give the outdoors our full embrace. But as Washington, DC residents – and those elsewhere – are well aware, beastly heat and humidity can challenge the joy of outdoor life. This is where the tastes of summer – namely our favorite wines – step in to save the day. We asked a few experts in mastering heat and humidity – both local and a bit further ..read more