For our last stop on my ongoing series of discovery of some of the great wines of California, we visited Paso Robles for a robust red wine. The 2021 Impromptu produced & bottled by Crush Vineyard was a blend of tannat, syrah and viognier. We're headed to Lodi today for this red wine: 2022 Tievoli Cabernet Sauvignon produced & bottled by Oak Farm Vineyards (Lodi, California). This wine is mostly cabernet sauvignon (78%) blended with petite sirah (15%), merlot (5%) and petit verdot (2%). Following fermentation, the wine was aged for 14 months in French oa ..read more

(Photo Courtesy of Casa Azul) Every Sunday, I'll post some of my favorite local stories from the worlds of food, wine, beer, cocktails and spirits. This week on the Nittany Epicurean, I wrote about the 2019 Arrowhead Spring Vineyards Estate Cabernet Franc, the 2021 Colomé Estate Malbec and the 2020 Mercer Bros. Cabernet Sauvignon. Mr. Galarneau wrote about the delicious, first-rate Mexican cuisine to be found at Casa Azul [Four Bites] The owners of Remedy House have found that a union workforce helps grow their business [Four Bites] Francesca told u ..read more

Toward the end of last month, we returned to Mercer Wine Estates as part of my series bringing you some of the best wines from across Washington. At time, we tried an aromatic white wine - the 2022 Mercer Small Lot Sauvignon Blanc produced & bottled by Mercer Wine Estates. We're going back to Prosser now for this red wine from Mercer Wine Estates: 2020 Mercer Bros. Cabernet Sauvignon produced & bottled by Mercer Wine Estates (Prosser, Washington). This wine is mostly cabernet sauvignon (75%) blended with small amounts of merlot (13%) and syrah (12%). The fruit ha ..read more

We began this month with a return visit to Argentina. When we returned, we tried a white wine from Colomé - the 2023 Colomé Estate Torrontés produced & bottled by Grupo Colomé S.A. We're headed back to Valle Calchaquí now for this red wine from Colomé: 2019 Colomé Estate Malbec produced & bottled by Grupo Colomé (Valle Calchaquí, Salta, Argentina). This wine is 100% malbec from Valles Calchaquíes. Following fermentation, the wine was aged for more than a year in French oak barrels. It comes in at 14.5% ABV. Here it is in the glass: Another look ..read more

We ended last week with another wine from Bedell Cellars on Long Island as part of my continuous effort to bring you as much great wine from my home state of New York as possible. That wine was made with a grape native to Spain - the 2022 Verdejo grown, produced & bottled by Bedell Cellars. Let's head to Niagara for this red wine: 2019 Estate Cabernet Franc grown, produced & bottled by Arrowhead Spring Vineyards (Lockport, New York). This wine is 100% estate grown cabernet franc. It was fermented in small lots separated by vineyard block and then aged for 24 months in a va ..read more

(Photo Courtesy of Jay's Artisan Pizza) Every Sunday, I'll post some of my favorite local stories from the worlds of food, wine, beer, cocktails and spirits. This week on the Nittany Epicurean, I wrote about the 2020 Starmont Vineyards Chardonnay, the 2021 Crush Vineyard Impromptu and the 2022 Bedell Cellars Verdejo. Mr. Galarneau wrote about the word class pizza that can be found at Jay's Artisan Pizza [Four Bites] Chef Lamont Singletary II offers Korean-Cajun fusion at Far East Bayou [Four Bites] Chef Michael Dimmer, owner and chef of Marble + Rye ..read more

Last week, we enjoyed a wine that was 100% muscadet made from one of the first plantings of its kind in the United States from Bedell Cellars - the 2022 Melon de Bourgogne grown, produced & bottled by Bedell Cellars. We're going back to the North Fork of Long Island today for another exceptional white wine from Bedell Cellars: 2022 Verdejo grown, produced & bottled by Bedell Cellars (Cutchoge, New York). This wine is 100% verdejo from a small two acre plot in the winery's Corey Creek Vineyard. It comes in at 12% ABV. Here it is in the glass: Another look: One more: Th ..read more

Just over two weeks ago, we visited the Napa Valley as part of my ongoing series of discovery of some of the great wines of California. While there, we enjoyed another great wine from Cuvaison Wine Estates - the 2021 Cuvaison Chardonnay Hedon estate grown, produced & by Cuvaison Estate Wines. Let's head back to California today for a wine from a winery new to this series: 2020 Starmont Vineyards Chardonnay bottled by Starmont Winery (American Canyon, California). This wine is 100% chardonnay sourced from vineyard sites situated in Mendocino, Monterey and Napa Counties. It ..read more

(Photo Courtesy of 007 Chinese Food) Every Sunday, I'll post some of my favorite local stories from the worlds of food, wine, beer, cocktails and spirits. This week on the Nittany Epicurean, I wrote about the 2019 J. Christopher Basalte Pinot Noir, the 2023 Colomé Estate Torrontés and the 2022 Bedell Cellars Melon de Bourgogne. Mr. Galarneau told us how we can experience dim sum at 007 Chinese Food in Hamburg [Four Bites] Andrew also told us how chef/owner Jeffery Dalfonso offers Puccia, a bread from Puglia, for his store - Dalfonso's Italian Import ..read more

We tried our first wine from Bedell Cellars situated on Long Island's North Fork early last month as part of my continuous effort to bring you as much great wine from my home state of New York as possible. That wine - the 2022 Pinot Gris grown, produced & bottled by Bedell Cellars - was well-balanced and fruit forward. Today, we'll go back to Bedell Cellars for another white wine: 2022 Melon de Bourgogne grown, produced & bottled by Bedell Cellars (Cutchogue, New York).  This wine is 100% muscadet made from one of the first plantings of its kind in the United Sta ..read more