Last week I had the pleasure of attending the Sonoma Summit under the guidance and auspices of Evan Goldstein, his team from Full Circle Wine Solutions, The Sonoma County Vintners Association and the Sonoma County Wine Grape Commission.
Less than 48 hours were jammed packed with tastings, seminars and even an Iron Sommelier Competition!
Day One: The very first night we were taken to Francis Ford Coppola's new digs…
I am still recovering from an epic trip to Champagne, only a portion of which I still remember. The Ruinart team hooked us up big time! There is no way that the experience and knowledge that we garnered as Ruinart guests could come from textbooks and web sites. What I found so striking and what will endure for me is the way that Ruinart accommodated us. They took a page out of the hospitality book; they got into our heads…
This is an article that I am posting at Geoff’s request. It’s a little longer than an average blog post, but I hope that you find it worthwhile. Thanks to Geoff for the invitation to participate here.
Magnums of Avize chardonnay in Bollinger's cellars, to be used as reserve wines
Champagne is arguably the most famous wine in the world, yet while few people dislike drinking it, it often happens that even…
I want to extend an enormous thank you to the Guild of Sommeliers and Ruinart for making the trip to Champagne a reality; it was truly an honor to be a part of such an experience. To give future competitors some insight to the itinerary we all experienced I thought I might write about some of the highlights:
When I first sat down to the examination with 19 other competitors in the Chicago area, I hadn't the slightest…
A very special and heartfelt thanks goes out to Leslie Rudd! It was my great honor to be selected as one of the MS to participate in the Rudd Roundtable last weekend in Napa Valley where the some of the best and brightest talent in our industry gathered together to study and share some great information about preparing ourselves and each other for the Master Sommelier Diploma Examination and for excellence in the roles…