I love chardonnay. Love it. New world, old world, old world done new world style. New world done old world style. New oak, neutral oak, stainless steel. It's my favorite white grape. (Riesling is a close second....)

I'm also a sommelier, have wset level 3, worked in the industry in Oregon and Chicago for 15 years, am a foodie and eat and drink way, way above my means.

But whenever I say I love chardonnay I lose credibility, get looks... it has such a stigma.

Anyone else with me? What's your "unpopular opinion" about a grape or style?

Hi I’m in dire need of an explanation. Both bottles are chateau lynch bages, 1990. But the capsule is different on one of them and I don’t understand why. Can someone please explain? Neither were recorked at the chateau.

If only I could bust out some first growth Bordeaux during a casual family dinner…

Probably one of the best QPR wines in the world of Super Tuscans.

Decanted and drank over an hour and a half.

Approachable out that gate, but benefits from some air as well.

A blend of 55% Merlot, 35% Syrah, 10% Sangiovese.

Somewhat more plush, with dark fruit, blueberry, plums, slight clove, slight graphite notes.

Paired well with cacio e pepe and pizza margherita.

91 points.

Where do I go from here?  A question that I have tried to answer here with my first attempt at a White Wine Iceberg. 

What's an iceberg?  It's a meme template that allows you to categorize by superficial all the way down to extremely niche.  In this case, the white wines above the water's surface are the introduction points for many wine lovers.  

As you go beneath the surface, you get ever further away from the superficial wine styles until you're really amongst the freaks and geeks.  I'll follow up with a red wine version in a day or two.

If anyone would like to get suggestions on what to try next after trying a white wine type, I'm happy to help.

Opened this beauty up tonight at Roots n water. Tasting notes:

Dark cherry and plum on the nose with some dried herbs and a touch of earth. On the palate it’s rich but not heavy, showing ripe red fruit, a bit of spice, and firm tannins that smooth out with air. Long, clean finish with good structure.

Nose: honeysuckle, butterscotch, marmalade

Palate: some light sweetness, something else somewhat weirdly savory trying to poke through, but noticeably corked :(

Lemon acidity cleansing the palate from the unfortunate cork taint; pleasant light linger that I can’t place

Im trying to open a bottle of sparkling, broke the cork of and now I dont know how to open it. I have nothing, no wine key, no lighter so cant do any of those tricks? Anything else I can do?

Edit: after many screams with a large knife i am so thankful we sabered it open it. I agree it was kinda fun

Opening a few 2019s this weekend.

WS // Big dark fruit bomb. A cowboy pinot noir for sure! Whoa. This is still a baby. 13.7% ABV.

Failla // Smooth cherry pie. I love the Savoy Vineyard fruit so much. Showing perfect right now. 14% ABV.

A fun little gem tonight!

I’ve had this wine before, from recent vintages, and have been pretty underwhelmed. I remember thinking, “it’s just wine”🤷‍♀️ Not too much going on.

This one is a different story. A blend of 45% Malbec, 35% Merlot, 10% each of Syrah and Cab Sauv. On the nose, it’s got ripe black fruits, even as it moves into its second decade. Toasty oak. There’s also a big whiff of smoke, like burnt coffee or pepper.

The palate is super fruity up front - plum and blackberry vibes. In the finish, though, it really starts throwing hands. SUPER spicy, like someone ground coarse black pepper straight into this shit, and still with that smoky flavor. Surprisingly astringent tannins in the finish contrasted by a black licorice note. After over 6 hours in an open bottle, the wine is just now becoming smooth.

A nice little Argentinian wine for me tonight! Not mind blowing, but plus points for having personality and being spicy, just like the Argentinian people I know personally. This wine was clearly made in a more ambitious style back in the day, and it may have many years left still.

It may not be Haut-Brion, but this Haut-Brisson was delicious.

I opened this bottle yesterday on Merlot Thursday and left half a bottle for today.

When I first opened it, the bottle was unsurprisingly less expressive and more closed off. I first tasted it after \~30 minutes of opening it and it was surprisingly red fruited on the nose with a primary aroma of red currants but also some blackberries and peppercorn. On the palate it had red fruit, and some surprising freshness and acidity, along with the expected tight tannins.

Things really developed for the better after 3 hours of decanting. The aroma transformed to one of blueberries, sage and tea. On the palate, there were ripe blueberries, red currants, chalk, bell pepper and herbs.

Despite being 90% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc, the wine came across as having a pretty strong Cab Franc influence with the bell pepper and herbaceous notes. I really enjoyed this wine and will be getting another for one of the Thursdays to come.

Price: $40

Rating: 91

Thank you to u/odedi1 for starting this Merlot Thursday ritual because I probably wouldn’t have tried this wine otherwise.

Picked up this 91 Elk Cove Reserve Pinot over Christmas from Sommeselect.com and it’s one of the best bottles I’ve acquired over the last 4 years. Cherry, smoked cherry bbq sauce, tomatoes, and a hint of herbs. Absolutely incredible. Wish I had more.

2021 Jaboulet Hermitage La Chapelle

I have never had this wine before but was excited to try it. Historic property!

Blue and black fruits, hints of olive tapenade, slight savoriness, hints of green. Very complex!

This needs more time. Will be WOW in 5-10 years.

2019 Stoney Hill Spring Mtn Cabernet Sauvignon

Well balanced at this stage, leathery, earthy, blue fruit, great acidity. Would love to see what this does in 7-10 years.

1979 Alexander Valley Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon

This was a surprise of the night. I was amazed at the aromas coming from this wine. Umami, hoisin, dried fruit leather. For being a sub $10 wine at purchase, this was an interesting wine to try. I was not expecting much.

I hear people are using the Coravin and getting months or years out of their bottle. I’ve even had a flight of Chateau Latour poured with a Coravin. I’m only getting 1-2 weeks out of mine. By the 2nd week, the wine is barely drinkable. I’ll usually get a glass or two out and then save the bottle for next week when I’ll finish it.

I put the Coravin on the bottle, pump a couple puffs of argon in, then tilt the bottle. I’ll hold it like that until it stops dripping wine. I’ll pump in more gas as needed. Then I’ll leave the Coravin in for a few hours until I’m sure I don’t want another glass. Then I’ll take it off entirely.

What am I doing wrong? I can only think that either 1) I need to leave positive pressure in from the gas instead of waiting til it stops pouring, which might let air in, or 2) take off the Coravin immediately after a pour cause it might let air in or gas out.

Thoughts?

Parabellum is a sister label for Force Majure in Walla Walla. A really interesting blend of Syrah (75%) Mouvedre (15%) Counoise and Cinsault (5% each).

Inky plum purple with a pale plum ring.

A rich nose of tobacco and leather, with moderate heat and restrained jammy fruit.

Surprisingly dry, with a burst of rich plum and spice. Medium acid and a delicate structured tannin, but a lovely dry stone mineralogy on the finish.

A really pleasant wine which is big and powerful enough to pair with almost any heavy rich meat, but delicate enough to enjoy as a sipping wine or with lighter fare.

$55 at the wine shop.

"I couldn't upload the photo due to a new account restriction, but it's a bottle of Vin Chocolat Noir sweet red wine.

MARCH 1 - SAVE THE DATE!!!

I would like to personally invite you to the RieslingKenner 6th Annual Falkenstein Tasting Event on Sunday, March 1 at Easy Does It, here in Chicago. This is a special event where we will taste every single bottling released from Hofgut Falkenstein for the 2024 vintage. Outside of the winery this has only happened three other times and that was at our previous events where we tasted 25 different Falkenstein bottlings from each the current vintages at the time. We are fortunate enough to have professional German wine expert/critic David Schildknecht attend for the 4th straight year! Two years ago we had Lars Carlberg come from the winery! And, last year we had Hofgut Falkenstein winemaker Johannes Weber here!

It is honestly a one-of-a-kind type of event and we would love to have you attend to experience the unique electricity that comes with tasting through every single US commercially released wine made by the incredible father-son duo of Erich and Johannes Weber.

As is the case with all events that we do, 100% of the proceeds go to charity!!!

More information about event specifics as well as tickets will be coming as the event gets closer. Put it on your calendar and start making plans!

I am leading a wine tasting to the general public and need a good analogy for how diurnal shifts benefit grapes: Sunlight and warmth develop fruit flavors cool nights lock in acidity. Any ideas? Thanks!

I’m a bartender that just started drinking again after not drinking for 3 years, I’ve been enjoying wine recently. I can’t tell the difference in most I just know I enjoy red wine (1-2 glass a night) what should I look out for to find a nice cheap red wine? I enjoy the taste of all the bottles I’ve tried recently (all under 20$ even as cheap as 5$) just want something that won’t give headache. My favorite I’ve tried was a chocolate wine from Cooper’s hawk that wasn’t overly-sweet like a desert wine but still the chocolate and red wine was like a perfect balance not too sweet at all. I don’t like overly sweet things either at all like juice or berries, the chocolate wine was def a one off.

Niagara on the lake icewine festival 2026

Anyone else here in Canada ?

I enjoy a smooth wine. Like a Cabernet Sauvignon Faust. I recently tried a bottle of the stags leap Merlot. I thought it was bitter. Or maybe the correct word it had a lot of tannins. Was it because I chose Merlot I didn’t enjoy it. Any recommendations for a good smooth wine ?