Zinfandel, at its best, is full-bodied and brimming with ripe red and black fruit flavors, followed by a long, peppery finish. The 2006 growing season produced fruit that gave us just that. Full Article at The Wine Spies

Snow is falling on l’Astrolabe, which is being hit by gale-force winds up to 45 knots an hour, while westerly swells pound with four-metre waves and southerly swells hit with two-metre waves. Full Article at Reuters

Hillside vineyards are not the norm in Chile. The country has a plethora of alluvial valley floors that are always the first choice for planting because they're the lowest effort places to stick vineyards, and the cheapest to farm. Full Article at Vinography

I recently gave a class on Holiday Wine Gifts. We tasted a baker's dozen and I threw in one more for a total of fourteen. I also gave the students a list of Best Holiday Wine Gifts. Full Article at Seattle Wine Blog

Travel supply stores have made a fortune selling things you can get for free. A number of items you might typically throw away, from old towels to empty yogurt containers, make excellent replacements for expensive specialty travel products. Full Article at MSNBC

Fine dining is an enjoyable and often looked-for experience for many. Who would not enjoy the music, excellent cuisine and often intimate environment of muted conversation and classy service? Full Article at Healthy Eating World

When I first met Thea, the Luscious Lush, she raved and raved about Russian River Valley Pinot Noir. Full Article at Another Wine Blog

Whoa -- It seems like we're back with our blog. Sorry to leave you up in the air while we were absent, but for some reason we lost access to our blog, then we got busy with other things, then we kind of forgot about it. Full Article at Sail Blogs

DALLAS Even if you're not a wine drinker, you're probably aware of Blackstone. Full Article at Pegasus News

Developing wines with that rare flavor which lingers with the wine connoisseur for long after it has been served is what sets it apart from the rest. Full Article at Healthy Eating World

Ahh, South Africa on the mind, so I should write some notes on my favourite South African wine to date. One of my Top 50 Cellar Picks, and amongst my all-time wine favourites for price:quality, the Meerlust Rubicon. Full Article at Joe's Wine

“Heady violets, rich plum, huckleberry and Darjeeling tea aromas are accented by complex and exotic aromas of lemongrass, cilantro, ginseng, bay, Seville orange, and white pepper, which develop an amazing bouquet of cedar, sandalwood, and tobacco... Full Article at Balloon Juice

I stood out on the deck late one night. I sipped from a glass of good merlot. The dog snuffled round my leg, wondering what I was doing. Full Article at New Zealand Herald

I have been in love with Bill Bailey for some time now. Full Article at The Independent

“ H oarding” has such selfish connotations, and “stockpiling” makes me think of the Bay of Pigs. Let’s call today’s topic “party planning.” Call it anything, actually, but the time is now to shop for your holiday entertaining needs. Full Article at Globe and Mail

The 2006 release of the Long Island Merlot Alliance is a technical achievement. Full Article at The New York Times

The holiday guide to Riedel giftware features a collection of elegant stemware, barware and giftware all ideal for seasonal giving. Select from among quality made non-lead crystal glasses, decanters, accent pieces and more. Full Article at Associated Content

As much as we love our fare-share of shrimp cocktail and hot artichoke dip at holiday parties, what we really don’t want to see this holiday season is a line-up of the usual suspects on the wine bar (e.g. Chardonnay, Merlot”I will not drink MERLOT!”)... Full Article at Chicagoist

After recovering from the depressive breakdown inspired by our Fifth Avenue window shopping extravaganza, and after picking up another of those $9 magnums of Merlot, we took a second holiday stroll—this time through Soho. Full Article at Racked