The Winery Azienda Agricola dell'Aquila of Salento of Pouilles

In the wake of the second destructive wave of the phylloxera bug in California in the 1980s and 1990s, Cabernet Sauvignon rose to such prominence and dominance (especially in Napa Valley) that I, like most people, assumed it must now be the most expensive grape variety in the state. Wrong. That would be Cabernet Franc. Top 20 California Cabernet Franc wines Slowly, steadily and quietly, Cabernet Sauvignon’s father has displaced its son* as the priciest grape to buy and the grape that is generati ...

According to China’s General Administration of Customs, the seized goods consisted of more than 1,000 bottles of Penfolds from Australia and over 100 bottles of top-end Bordeaux wine, including first growth labels such as Château Lafite Rothschild and Château Margaux. The Chinese customs authorities discovered the cases of illegally imported bottles by checking the amount of wine declared on the offending company’s documents against the actual number of items being transported. The smuggled good ...

San Luis Obispo Coast was awarded on 9 March, 2022 by the US Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau. The new AVA establishes a 97 kilometer-long strip along California that locals call SLO (slow) Coast, describing the Pacific Ocean’s influence on the area’s culture and lifestyle, terrain, and wines.  SLO Coast is located midway between two major California cities, San Francisco and Los Angeles, with Burgundy varieties making up a majority of San Luis Obispo Coast’s high-end wine pr ...