Unfussy Wine Enthusiasts | Wine Reviews & Articles

Teetotalers Since finding out our family was growing by one our wine drinking volume has plummeted...sorry wine industry, we know it is hitting your bottom line right now. :) We have watched with envy at the recent wine and food festivals and tastings that have come and gone without our attendance.  We have lingered in the Liquor Store looking at the wondrous deals in the bargain aisle without making a purchase.  For Shannon the decision was easy not to consume any alcohol while pregnant and the end most definitely justifies the means but that doesn't mean it is easy for her. She has graciously allowed me to have the occasional glass of wine or beer while she patiently sits and watches and enjoys a cup of decaf green tea or non-alcoholic wine.  She is a Saint!  As an FYI to all the pregnant ladies out there, she has found the Ariel Chardonnay made by J. Lohr is actually not too bad.  The Cabernet is passable but the Chardonnay actually has that regula...

This video was linked to an article on WineBusiness.com that originated on the K&L Wine Merchants blog.  So if you can follow all that, we can say that it is an interesting online wine movie.  It has great production value and a calm and quiet soundtrack, but most importantly, it a really interesting eight minute look at what being a winemaker is all about. We especially loved the transition from the fields to the lab where winemaker Ernst Storm of Storm Wines transforms from farmer into chemist (wicked name for the Winery and the winemaker, btw).  Ernst bears more than a passing resemblance to Death Cab for Cutie front-man Ben Gibbard (glasses and all).  Once you get past that, you really see the dedication and work that goes into making wine.  The shots from filmmaker Dan Addleson are really....what's the word?  Graceful.  It is well made and certainly interesting to wine nerds like us. Kudos to Dan and his team. If you check out the K...

In trolling the Internet for our daily inspiration on wine and the wine business we saw an article on a fellow wine blogger's site the Wine Curmudgeon .  The gist of the article was that wineries could be helping themselves if they realized that most wine consumers are under-educated about the product they enjoy and that they need to make the selection decision dead easy for the average consumer and not worry as much about things like appellation and vintage.  At least that is what we got out of the article, and frankly, we can't argue too much about that.  That said, the comments below the article were interesting.  There were some wine folks who took great exception to the fact that anyone would consider 'dumbing down' things like terrior and vintage to promote wine to consumers, many of whom don't even know what those words mean.  Given the fact that some of the comments were so diametrically against this that we just had to submit our own (and we quote): ...

We have seen a definitely up-tick in the number of posts online covering Pinot Noir again. Could it be that the impending bursting of Spring has caused wine folks to shine a light on the lighter red?  Whatever the reason it is great to see.  Whether it be from France, California, Oregon, New Zealand, or Canada Pinot Noir is such a versatile and amazing grape.  When in cooler climates it makes a grassy and green tasting light red whereas when the growing season is warmer and longer it is a luscious and more elegant red (and darker). Seasoned wine writers like Steve Heimoff  are giving it more attention these days.  Plus, there is the everyday news coming out of the regions that grow Pinot Noir themselves like Oregon .  Makes us want to watch Sideways again...gotta check the listings and Netflix. So, in that light and given the fact we cannot wait for Spring, we wanted to highlight a few memorable Pinot Noirs that we have sampled over the last year whic...

This is not our family (or anyone we know for that matter), but they sure do look happy... As we have stated we are soon to be new parents and with that comes more lifestyle changes than we can even imagine.  Diapers, sleepless nights, doctor's appointments, and the list goes on and on.  Going from being married for a long time with no kids to having a baby in the house will be, shall we say....an adjustment. But, it also brings with it changes to our cherished wine tasting (and we mean that in the best way possible).  We will need to figure out how to enjoy wine all while still trying to be civilized parents. Now all the seasoned parents out there are probably either rolling their eyes in a 'gimme a break' kind of way or nodding in agreement.  There are enough products and images on web to prove our point that the changes that come from being a parent are all-consuming (which we know already) and that wine drinking quickly takes a back seat to cleaning up s...

We have a bit of a Wine Blogging conundrum on our hands.  What should you do when one of the wine reviewers is with child?  This is a wonderful and magical thing for sure and we are over the moon but from a wine tasting perspective we are in a pickle. So, what are we to do? Well, I am going to try and continue to review wines albeit at a much slower pace and potentially on weekends, as I do not need to be finishing off a bottle of wine in one sitting.  We will be supplementing our reviews with other content as you may have noticed over the last few weeks.  We have a bit of a transition to manage but once our new bundle of joy arrives we will start heading back to our European ways on wine.  Shannon can certainly use her eyes and nose as part of this but it is the tasting part she will not be engaging in.  I will try and hold up to her very high standards.  Her doctors have said that a little wine here and there is not a real danger but...

We rush everywhere we go.  We rush to and from work.  We rush through our work and our lives.  What we need to do is take time to stop and enjoy and really taste.  An after-work glass of wine goes way too fast, especially when enjoyed with friends. So, how do we slow things down when we can't leave work at work and the demands of family make it more and more difficult to shut down the transactional part of our brains?  Smartphones are going off while dinner is being prepared and the wine is being poured. We would like to say we are able to rise above all that and put time and attention towards tasting wine but that would be a lie.  Just like everyone else when it comes to taking time to truly enjoy the wine tasting process, the interruptions and distractions pile on.  That said, we have tried to take this blogging thing seriously and truly put our best and most attentive foot forward when it comes to reviewing wines.  There is a Slow Food Mo...