Wine Producers, Growers, & Labels

In recent years, wine reviewers have taken notice of the quality wines coming out of Argentina, particularly malbecs. The malbec grape, originally from France, flourishes in Argentina, particularly in the Mendoza wine region. In fact, some people believe that Argentinian malbecs are just as good as –and in some cases superior to – malbec wines from France.

Richmond, Virginia has long had its roots in the Revolutionary and Civil Wars. Surprising to most, its wine industry also has roots dating back to Thomas Jefferson’s time. Richmond, the capital of the Commonwealth, is undergoing a cultural resurgence and one of the main driving factors has been the wineries near Richmond and Charlottesville.

Champagne is a sparkling wine made in the Champagne (AOC) region of France. Some of the most famous wineries in the world are located there. They deserve their fame for consistently producing some of the most ethereal wines anywhere. These wines can be expensive so it is important to have a strategy in mind when making purchases. To learn the history of Champagne, the region and the developments in Champagne, please see Part One of this series. One issue with buying Champagne is storage. Champagne is delicate and improper storage can easily hurt the wine. When a consumer sees a bottle either in a store or on a restaurant’s list, how do they know what condition the bottle is in. Of course, in a restaurant setting, the patron, if they have enough confidence, can send the bottle back, although that is not always easy to do.

Very few wines are as universally known as Champagne. While a wine lover may certainly know the names of Napa, Bordeaux, Burgundy, or even Chianti, even the most ardent teetotaler surely recognizes the name Champagne. Champagne is a wine that is intertwined with history and at least the last 300 years of civilization.

Coonawarra, one of Australia's best-known wine regions, began as a grazing range. Settlers who came from other parts of Australia and from Scotland bought up land in order to raise sheep. Somewhere along the way, an enterprising farmer noticed a strip of land with paprika-red soil. Today, that famously red earth, Coonawarra's terra rossa, is the foundation of the region's fame.