“We want to have elegance be the main focus of our wines. The biggest fear for me is over-extraction.” Tenuta Argentiera winemaker Nicolò Carrara is right to be a little afraid. He is dealing with ripening and fermenting grapes in Tuscany’s Bolgheri, after all, where sunlight and the potential for big levels of ripeness—not to…
Author: 1WineDude
Blogger. Wine-O. Bass Funkifier. Hiney Shaker.
“The Difference” (A Villa Rosa Chianti Classico Gran Selezione Vertical)
Over the years, I’ve had the pleasure of bumping into Cecchi fourth-generation wine family icon Andrea Cecchi a handful of times at locales all over the globe, but earlier this year (2025) marked the first time that I had a virtual sit-down with him over Zoom. Not as fun as our usual face-to-face run-ins, but…
Wine Reviews: Mini Round-Up for May 26, 2025
2024 Roseblood d’Estoublon Rose (Coteaux Varois en Provence): Utterly delicious. Rose petals, wild red berries, and equal parts fun and refinement. $27 B+
2023 Domaine de Cabasse ‘Le Rose’ (Mediterranee): Floral and earthy, and very round in the mid-section. $NA B
2022 Bodegas Ontanon Tempranillo Blanco (Rioja): Lotsa honey, lotsa oranges, lotsa wood. $15 B…
“We’re Cooler Than You Think” (Livermore Valley 2025 Tasting Report @ Cristaldi & Co.)
I’m excited to share something that I’ve been working on over the past several weeks (months?), which is one of the first available tasting reports at Cristaldi & Co. Spearheaded by my longtime friend, biz partner, and super-cool Decanter writer buddy Jonathan Cristaldi, this tasting report covers 9 Livermore Valley wineries and 160+ of their…