News and Press

One of the most appealing aspects of wine is that it can transport one to another place, another time or another culture. Therefore, my travel wish list and my wine drinking wish list are much the same. I hope to be exploring and drinking wines from older wine-producing cultures such as Portugal, Greece, Turkey, Armenia,…

Concurrent with the fashion for amber wines, Simon Woolf’s highly readable book explores the history and production of the wines in their spiritual homes: Slovenia, Friuli and Georgia. Included is an extensive list of recommended producers across the globe, but Woolf’s primary investigation remains on the countries where skin-macerated wines are the tradition, not the…

Clay vessels have been used to ferment and age wine since ancient times. Neolithic Age wine vessels recently found in the Republic of Georgia were tested and confirmed to be the world’s oldest. “Almost every ancient culture, from the Canaanites to the Egyptians to the Assyrians to the Greeks and Romans, vinified in pottery vessels,”…

“Through the last few years of the amber wine trend, the tiny country of Georgia largely escaped notice outside of insider oenophile circles. Last year, that changed when scientists found evidence of winemaking on 8,000-year-old pottery shards unearthed in Georgia. Wine geeks and archaeologists alike buzzed with the discovery, and interest in Georgian wines spiked.…

“In Leningrad, back in 1990, the Georgian bars were the place to be. While the Berlin Wall was falling, the reality hadn’t really sunk in for most Russians; basic necessities like food and shoes were still hard to come by, and it wasn’t clear at the time if life would get any easier under the…

Last fall, having just returned with a suitcaseful of spices from an inspiring trip to Georgia, I decided to take a group to this former Soviet republic bordered by Turkey, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia. When I threw out the idea in my newsletter, I received dozens of e-mails from students, subscribers and friends who were…

Super fermented natural wines are on the rise. Although these white wines are now trending, Georgia ( the country not the state) wineries have been producing wine this way since the very beginning. Georgia, the tiny former Soviet republic, is known for its unique white wines and is finally being noticed around the world for…

When archaeologists last year found traces of winemaking on 8,000-year-old pottery shards in Georgia, the tiny former Soviet republic claimed the crown as the world’s oldest wine producer. It was an affirmation for many long-standing fans of the country and its winemaking tradition, which is ancient and, at the same time, a grassroots movement. Georgia’s…

Apart from the aforementioned growers, my highlights included qvevri wines from the Republic of Georgia, like Gotsa Wines and Tibaani. Domaine de l’Ecu from the Loire and Fleury from Champagne also left an impression. Displaying beautiful pure wines in a range of styles were Austrian producers Meinklang, Claus Preisinger, Alexander Koppitsch, Matthias Hager, Johannes Zillinger,…

“The Raw Wine Fair was held in Brooklyn recently and attracted throngs of attendees eager to taste authentic wines from 140 passionate winemakers. The program’s location at a sprawling, industrial space — 99 Scott Avenue in Bushwick — added to the edgy vibe of these sometimes polarizing beverages…” 

“On a trip to Georgia, while retracing the footsteps of a modernist Russian poet for a dissertation, Goldstein realized Georgian food had to be written about. “People were smiling, there were lemons, there were watermelons, there were sun, and I realized I had to write about it,” said Darra. Georgian cuisine had yet to be…

“Vinotheca sets itself apart from all the others by having a friendly staff that loves and knows wine. It is also not bound to one specific company and offers a wide range of family as well as larger company wines. There are natural wines, conventionally made wines, some aged in kvevri, others in oak or…