The wine scene in Philadelphia is bursting with lesser-known and intriguing grape varieties, styles, and regions of origin — and the choices are only getting better

The past two decades have seen vast changes in the world of wine. Before 2000, the classics were clear: classified Bordeaux, grand cru Burgundy, top Champagnes, Napa Valley Cabernet, a few others.

Frequent fliers have spent the past year mentally teleporting themselves into exotic corners of the globe, epic natural wonders, hell, even vacation destination just a stone’s throw away (thank you, COVID-19). Some people scratch the itch by diving into travel-themed Netflix shows or scrolling through far-flung Instagram geotags. Others find respite in planning their next getaway. But for many, reconnecting with travel is as easy as stepping into the kitchen. How? International cookbooks.

These days, winemakers all over the world are enthusiastically producing orange wine, and the sheer number and variety of wines, flavors, textures, and styles is mind-boggling.

Olivier Trégoat traveled roughly 100 days per year before the pandemic, dividing his time between Asia and South America.

Despite the pandemic rattling last year’s global wine market, imports of Georgian wines to the U.S. continued to thrive. Figures from The National Wine Agency of Georgia show that for six consecutive years, Georgian wine exports to the United States have averaged +31% year-over-year by volume.

Last weekend and Monday, amid an insular country disconnected from most of the world by two prudish oceans, in an event called “Madness” only one nation has hatched and cherished, a Swiss man had an aria of a stat line. A Canadian son of Nigerian immigrants had numbers like a daydream. His Dominican teammate had a near-sonnet.

At Night + Market, Kris and Sarah Yenbamroong show you a whole new way to pair wine and Thai food.

To converse with Steven Spurrier was to feel as though you’d known him all your life. He was generous with his friendship, his wisdom of wine and art, his joy of life. Wine is a generous drink, and wine lovers tend to be generous people. Spurrier was wine’s generosity personified.

On the first anniversary of the COVID-19 pandemic, Foodie & The Beast was joined by a range of guests in the hospitality industry whose quick wits and imaginations helped them to pivot to new business models that in many cases saved their businesses or helped save others.