Author Archives: Don Lahey

Posts by Don Lahey

• Don’s May Premier Series Top Picks

  This month’s first Top Pick has to be the 2009 Torre Oria Cava.  This is a sparkling wine that both refreshes and stimulates.  Furthermore, it’s a proven crowd pleaser.  Equally important, it doesn’t pretend to be French Champagne or something it’s not.  It’s Spanish Cava through and through.  It tastes wonderful au naturel or as Read More

  Posted in Featured Selections

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  • May 20, 2013
  • by Don Lahey

• Looking Forward to Penticton

  If you are like most folks, you’re asking yourself a question: What’s Penticton?  Penticton is a beautiful city in the Okanagan Valley of southern British Columbia, a special place framed by two large mountain lakes that just happens to be blessed with a dry, sunny climate that’s ideal for growing grapes.  Penticton is also home Read More

  Posted in Notes from the Panel

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  • May 17, 2013
  • by Don Lahey

• Some Reasons to Drink Cava

  Cava is Spain’s answer to Champagne, although a case can be made for Cava offering more of a rebuke to Champagne than a retort.  After all, Cava hails from a different climate and terroir than Champagne, and Cava is produced primarily or entirely from indigenous Spanish grape varieties such as Xarelo-lo, Parellada, Viura, and Macabeo, Read More

  Posted in Interesting Wine Info, Notes from the Panel, Wine Education

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  • May 14, 2013
  • by Don Lahey

• Don’s April Collector’s Series Top Picks

  We have several inspired offerings in store for you this month, but I have to admit the French really did their homework this time around.  Consequently, my two Top Picks this month go to Château Laplagnotte Bellevue’s stunning 2010 St. Emilion Grand Cru and Verget’s outstanding 2011 Pouilly-Fuissé.  For starters, Château Laplagnotte Bellevue is a Read More

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  • April 30, 2013
  • by Don Lahey

• Don’s April Premier Series Top Picks

  This month’s Top Picks provide a little personal drama.  For starters, Querciola’s Barbera d’Alba and Domaine de la Collonge’s Macon-Fuissé have been perennial favorites, but then so have Casa Silva’s delicious Reserva Carmenère and Lawson’s Gewurztraminer.  Yet, I have to admit that one would be hard pressed to find a better Barbera d’Alba than Querciola’s Read More

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  • April 26, 2013
  • by Don Lahey

• Bordeaux: What’s in a vintage?

  In some wine regions of the world, the quality of wine doesn’t vary tremendously from year to year.  The reason is that the weather in some wine areas remains fairly consistent and predictable.  In other wine lands such as Bordeaux, vintage means everything.  The weather in Bordeaux varies enormously throughout the growing season and from year to Read More

  Posted in Interesting Wine Info, Wine Education, Wine Regions

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  • April 16, 2013
  • by Don Lahey

• Some Random or Not So Random Thoughts

  I often wonder why some wines are more popular than others.  At first, the answer seems obvious and quite self explanatory.  After all, quality, like cream, rises to the top.  And given a choice and some experience, most seasoned wine drinkers choose the quality product, especially when price is not influencing their decision – either Read More

  Posted in Notes from the Panel

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  • April 9, 2013
  • by Don Lahey

• It’s about time!

  It’s about time that New World wineries caught up with consumers’ tastes.  What do I mean by that?  Several things!  First, more and more wineries in Australia, California, and elsewhere now make proprietary wines, which means wineries are no longer exclusively beholden to varietal bottling (whereby 75%-100% of a given wine comes from a single Read More

  Posted in Notes from the Panel

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  • April 3, 2013
  • by Don Lahey

• The King of Wines, and the Wine of Kings

  Barolo has affectionately been referred to as the “King of Wines, and the Wine of Kings.”  In a fine vintage and in the hands of a skilled winemaker, Barolo is unquestionably a noble wine fit for a king and the rest of us commoners, too.  For savvy consumers who are patient enough to afford Barolo Read More

  Posted in Notes from the Panel

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  • March 27, 2013
  • by Don Lahey

• Don’s March Premier Series Top Picks

  This month’s first Top Pick goes to Pietra Santa’s 2009 Sassolino.  Winemaker Allesio Carli has fashioned an exemplary Super Tuscan style red in California from Sangiovese and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes that should absolutely not be missed.  And although this year’s Sassolino could be labeled as Sangiovese (as it contains 80% of that varietal), Pietra Santa Read More

  Posted in Featured Selections

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  • March 14, 2013
  • by Don Lahey