It is axiomatic to oenophiles that you have to sit on some wines for awhile so the wine can develop in the bottle. I am coming to the conclusion that this is just one more corollary to the magic chef and the hallowed ground marketing themes that have created the Parker/Rolland two headed monster. Wine does age in the bottle. But does it get better? Recent pourings/tasting have concluded otherwise. The 1996 Burgundies flopped like Vlade Divac taking a charge. And here we have some pinot noir bottlings from the fabled Santa Rita Hills that also fell well below high expectations when purchased on release. (more…)

Please take a look at David McMillan’s youtube video that got picked up by the LA Times a couple weeks back. David is wonderfully talented and pretty dang funny. And I happen to know he likes wine and stogies. Don’t tell his grandma.
Mouse sent some wine picks under or around $20. Mouse is the King of sub-20 wines. He begged me for years to try grenache blanc. Being a pinot apostle at the time naturally I thought he was silly. Cute. And here he is again suggesting any white blend from southern France. Believe him. I have a couple photos I took in a snooty LA wine shop yesterday of their sub-$20 wines. We are a movement!! (more…)