DAVIES VINEYARDS | “FERRINGTON VINEYARD” PINOT NOIR 2014

(Anderson Valley, Calif.) $65 (750ml)

Much has been made of the sexiness of pinot noir—the way it can feel (satiny), the way it can smell (bed sheets in the morning), the taste (leaving this one to your imagination). And I think that a certain unconscious attraction may be true. After all, most of us aren’t driven mad by pinot because it tastes like cherries. The Davies Pinot Noir from Anderson Valley’s Ferrington Vineyard is one such wine. In addition to all the sexy stuff, it smells simultaneously old (cedar chests) and new (fresh forest). Drink it slowly. As with so many things, it’s better that way. (14.3% abv)

94 points KM

Available at Wally Wine

Three of the following Loire Valley appellations make wine from the same grape; one appellation makes wine from a different grape. Which appellation is not like the other three in terms of the grape grown?

  • A. Quincy
  • B. Montlouis
  • C. Savennières
  • D. Jasnières

Scroll down for the answer!

“In our case, patience is in our DNA. The wine world is a business where the results you expect to see are not in a few years but in a generation.”

—Albiera Antinori as quoted in Wine Enthusiast, upon becoming the 26th generation (and first woman) CEO to lead the Antinori wine empire, until now headed by her famous father Piero. The Antinori wine company began in Tuscany in 1385.

CAN BUBBLES BE CORKED?

Popular misconception has it that sparkling wines and Champagnes cannot be corked because carbonation inhibits the formation of the taint TCA (trichloranisole). Not true. Sparklers can be tainted with TCA and can take on the telltale odor that makes wine smell like a wet sheep dog. In fact, according to the French consulting oenologist and TCA expert, Dr. Pascal Chatonnet, TCA is easier to smell in bubblies than in still wines. The bubbles have the effect of volatizing the compound, making it smell more pronounced.

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ENOLOGY

The science and study of winemaking, differentiated from viticulture, the study of grape growing. Also spelled oenology, it is derived from the Greek oinos meaning “wine.”

A.Quincy, an appellation in the eastern Loire, produces racy, dry wines from sauvignon blanc that are similar to Sancerre or Pouilly-Fumé. Montlouis, Savennières and Jasnières are all Loire appellations that make dry white wine exclusively from chenin blanc.

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