Liquors News:
First came fire, then rain. As if recent devastating wildfires hadn’t caused enough suffering for the beleaguered Malibu Coast wine region, an unexpected severe storm dumped an estimated 2 inches of rain on Southern California yesterday. Mud and debris flowed down from the fire-scorched Malibu hills onto the Pacific Coast Highway (PCH) during the morning commute, forcing officials to close the road until late afternoon. (The storm also dumped several inches of snow on a stretch of Interstate 5, ...
Searching for the perfect holiday gift for the wine lover in your life We’ve got ideas for everything from stocking stuffers (you can never have too many corkscrews!) to gifts for gadget geeks and professional-grade wine region maps for the true student of wine. Pulltap’s Corkscrew$7, iwawine.com The classic waiter’s key is a marvel of simple, efficient design, and these double-hinged versions are Wine Spectator tasting department–approved. They’re also simple to tuck into...
The Bay Area is joining the NBAs wine league with a splash. The Golden State Warriors are partnering with Silver Oak, and the Napa and Sonoma Cabernet house announced it will be providing the teams official in-seat pours at Oracle Arena and releasing an etched set of five Warriors-themed Cabernet bottles. Courtesy of Silver Oak The starting lineup suits up. Platinum–ranked Silver Oak first came to Golden State in 2015 through All-Star Draymond Green. The power forward a...
In South Korea’s Konjiam Resort, La Grotta delivers a wine-centric experience inspired by vineyard dining. Named for the Italian term for “the cave,” La Grotta is located in an actual wine cave, carved into the side of a mountain to create natural temperature control. The space protects an inventory of 30,000 bottles supplying the 800-selection, Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence–winning wine list. Overseen by wine director Hyo Keun Lee, the program is strongest in Bordeaux, with numerou...
After the stress of 2017, Sonoma winemakers hoped for a more relaxed harvest this year, and Mother Nature gave it to them. Last year brought scorching temperatures that triggered picking on Labor Day weekend. And that was before the wine-country wildfires began. But 2018 brought moderate temperatures and a long growing season, leading to relaxed picking and promising wines.Welcome to Wine Spectators 2018 Wine Harvest Report, our coverage of Northern Hemisphere wine regions. (Our Southern Hemisph...
In 1979, Michael McCarty was getting ready to open his inaugural restaurant, Michaels, in Santa Monica, Calif. It would become a beacon of the California cuisine movement. (If McCarty flies under the radar as a founder of the genre, his pioneering influence is nonetheless unmistakable; Wolfgang Puck notably opened Spago three years later, in 1982.)1979 was a busy year for Michael: He and his girlfriend, artist Kim Lieberman, were also renovating their Douglas Rucker–designed post-and-beam house ...