Decanter

A little less than a year ago, three of our editorial team – Georgie Hindle, Tina Gellie and myself – embarked on a classic American road trip. We based ourselves in Napa, taking short side trips to Sonoma and St Helena among others, then a cross-country dash to New York via San Francisco. And we came back with three things. The first, of course, was crippling jetlag, but that wore off relatively quickly. The second was a greater understanding and appreciation of the American wine scene, thanks to the hospitality of many winemakers. That hasn’t worn off, and it’s unlikely ever to do so. And the third was a list of American writers and editors. They included Clive Pursehouse (now our US Editor) Jonathan Cristaldi (our Napa expert) and many…

BRIANNE COHEN is a Los Angeles-based event producer, wine writer, judge and educator working in both in-person and virtual settings. Also a certified sommelier, she writes for various titles and publishes at briannecohen.com MAIAH JOHNSON DUNN is a writer and educator based in the Finger Lakes region of New York. Formerly in events marketing, she focuses on wine and hospitality, publishing her own work at maiah.com JONATHAN CRISTALDI is a widely published writer on wine, spirits and beer. Based in California, he is editor-at-large for both The Somm Journal and The Tasting Panel magazine, contributing to various other titles including Food & Wine LAUREN MOWERY is a widely published, US-based travel and drinks journalist, photographer, wine educator and consultant. Among many others, her work has appeared in Forbes, Wine Enthusiast…

First premier cru Beaujolais from top sites in Fleurie? Beaujolais winemakers in the Fleurie appellation have backed a proposal to seek premier cru status for top vineyard sites, in a potentially groundbreaking move for the French region. More than 85% of Fleurie wine-growers voted in favour of the premier cru plan, said local officials. Those present accounted for 60% of the appellation’s surface area. An application will now be made to national appellation body INAO (Institut National de l’Origine et de la Qualité). ‘It’s exciting for the region,’ said winemaker Grégoire Hoppenot, secretary of the Fleurie appellation. Seven Fleurie lieux-dits, or sites, out of more than 40 candidates will be proposed for premier cru status: Grille Midi, La Chapelle des Bois, La Madone, La Roilette, Les Garants, Les Moriers and…

In St-Estèphe, the owners of Bordeaux second growth Château Cos d’Estournel, Michel Reybier and family, have bought neighbouring fifth growth estate Château Cos Labory from the Audoy family. No fee was disclosed. Reybier said he would ‘perpetuate the estate’s independence while pursuing the level of excellence made possible by this great terroir of St-Estèphe’. In the 19th century, Cos d’Estournel founder Louis Gaspard d’Estournel briefly owned Cos Labory, after buying it in 1847. Wine drinkers in the US have cemented their country’s status as the world’s biggest Champagne export market. Shipments to the US hit 33.7m bottles in 2022, said the Comité Champagne. That’s down about 1% versus 2021, but up 31% since 2019, before the Covid pandemic. Americans are ‘increasingly seeking out new moments for Champagne consumption outside celebrations…

It’s dark, but you’re in the spotlight. Four thousand people are watching you. Intently: they can see every bead of sweat, via a giant screen. You’re miked up. The audience hears every short breath you take, every gulp, every stumble, every mispronunciation. You’ve been handed two anonymous glasses of red wine (which just happen to be Petrus 2012 and 2003). Is the former, you wonder, a top Ribera del Duero? Could the latter, um, be a Hermitage from the 1990s? Well, probably not – if you’ve got this far. Welcome to the sole moment in the wine calendar (and this one only happens every three years) when wine truly becomes a spectator sport: the final round of the Best Sommelier of the World competition, organised by the Association de la…

Along Sonoma Coast’s Bodega Highway, morning fog in summer can feel as wet as a rainstorm. The area is populated by redwoods, trees that feed on such moisture to create a microclimate of cool, damp air. Their needles gather humidity, dripping it onto the ground below over the course of the day. Vineyards in this southwest section of Sonoma County grow tucked within the forest, enjoying an extended growing season compared to outlying areas. The trees moderate the heat and reduce the impact of drought in a state without summer rain. Pinot Noir began to appear in the region at the end of the 1970s, but only significantly expanded almost 20 years later. Since, Sonoma’s coast has developed into one of California’s pre-eminent, cool-climate wine-growing regions. Pinot Noir and Chardonnay…