Subject:

Napa Valley

  • Blogs

    May 23, 2012

    Woodlands Wine & Food Week to Take Place June 4 to 10

    Food and wine lovers, rejoice. Just a few short days away is a big-time celebration of gourmet cuisine and marvelous vino. The annual Woodlands festival, put on by the event-planning extraordinaires at Food and Vine Time Productions, and now in its eighth year, is slated to draw more than 10,000 att ... More >>

  • Blogs

    May 7, 2012

    Go Way Out to Eat: 5 Favorite Dining Destinations

    Food & Wine magazine recently featured a series of articles on culinary destinations, or "...the world's best food pilgrimages," as they put it. While it was indeed interesting, I must say that places like Bangkok, Rome and India are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to food travels. The ... More >>

  • Blogs

    May 3, 2012

    A Little Pork Fat and A Little Red Wine - Just What the Heart Needs

    Sunday night, 20 miles south of Houston, two culinary heavy hitters knocked it out of the park at the Revana Wine Dinner at Killen's Steakhouse. Chef Ronnie Killen and Chef Randy Rucker began preparing weeks in advance, tasting wines and developing recipes to pair perfectly with Revana wines. It w ... More >>

  • Blogs

    April 26, 2012

    Wine Fair Cy Fair: A Celebration of Wine, Beer and Food to Take Place this Saturday in Cypress

    There seems to be an unwritten rule that all top-notch food-and-drink festivals have to take place inside the loop. Lucky for us, the folks at Food and Vine Time Productions are slowly changing the rules; little by little, they've taken praiseworthy food-and-wine festivals to Houston suburbs that tr ... More >>

  • Blogs

    April 18, 2012

    Tasting Notes: This Week in Wine Blogs

    Eat My Words: This week Texas Monthly wine writer Jessica Dupuy gives a glowing review to new releases by the Duchman Family Winery, the Texas Hill Country winery owned by Houston's own celebrity cardiologist Stan Duchman. "I'll be honest," she writes, "I fell in love with all of these wines, which ... More >>

  • Blogs

    April 5, 2012

    Tasting Notes: This Week in Wine Blogs

    Vintage Texas: Top Texas wine authority Russ Kane chronicles the bankruptcy filing and botched sale of one of the state's leading wineries, CapRock, in Lubbock. According to his report, New Mexico winery Gruet has been ordered to pay $4 million for a breach of contract after bidding in a bankruptcy ... More >>

  • Blogs

    April 3, 2012

    A Wonderful Time at Brenner's on the Bayou's Wine Revolution

    This past weekend, beautiful Houstonians donning flats and bright resort-casual attire, per the event's invitation, skipped out on their Saturday country club visits and spa days in favor of Brenner's on the Bayou's third annual Wine Revolution. Set in tents under the bright sun, amidst Brenner's hi ... More >>

  • Blogs

    March 26, 2012

    Wine of the Week: Your Grandfather's Chianti But I Like It

    Italian wine is our thing. And when I say that, I don't mean that we don't like and drink French, Spanish, and Californian wine. But when it comes to the wine that my wife and I serve and drink in our home, that we drink most often when we go out, and what we stash away in our wine cellar, Italian w ... More >>

  • Blogs

    March 19, 2012

    Wine of the Week: Eyrie Vineyards Pinot Noir (Willamette)

    Of all the wine-growing regions in the U.S., none seems to make more sense to me than the Willamette Valley, Oregon (although the Finger Lakes in New York state comes in at a close second). When rich white dudes were inspired to plant French varieties in Napa like Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Ch ... More >>

  • Blogs

    February 22, 2012

    Tasting Notes: This Week in Wine Blogs

    Wine Thoughts: There's so much groovy stuff happening this week in the Texas enoblogosphere. But we just have to open today's post with a nod to one of our favorite and most balanced wine bloggers here in our state, Sandra Crittenden, author of Wine Thoughts, who writes about one of our pet peeves: ... More >>

  • Blogs

    December 1, 2011

    Messina Hof Has the Best Wine in Texas, According to the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo

    This year, more than 2,500 wines were entered into the annual Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo's International Wine Competition. Of those entries, 736 were from Texas wineries. And of those Texas wineries, Messina Hof swept up 20 medals and the coveted title of Top Texas Wine for its 2004 Solara, whic ... More >>

  • Blogs

    November 17, 2011

    10 Thanksgiving Wines (That We Actually Drink)

    Photos by Jeremy Parzen.Dolcetto can deliver character without overwhelming the palate or breaking the bank.​Yes, folks, it's that predictable time of year when everyone posts their Thanksgiving wine recommendations. Among the literally hundreds of blogs and feeds that I follow, one of my favo ... More >>

  • Blogs

    November 4, 2011

    Wine Time: Wine and Sulfur Dioxide

    Image via HomeBrewers.com.No, that's not cocaine. It's potassium metabisulfite, one of the many forms of sulfites employed by winemakers for a variety of purposes.​A post earlier this week ("Wine of the Week: A Wine with No Detectable Sulfites") inspired a lot of acidic (pun intended) discussi ... More >>

  • Blogs

    October 28, 2011

    Upcoming Events: Eat Noodles, Help the Homeless

    ​Still haven't made Halloween plans? Head to RA Sushi in Highland Village or at CityCentre, where the restaurant will be hosting its annual Boo Bash this Monday, October 31, from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. Boo Bites (appetizers) and Potent Potions (booze) will be on special all night, and guests are en ... More >>

  • Blogs

    October 18, 2011

    Wine of the Week: Another Oaky Buttery Chardonnay

    Photo by Jeremy Parzen.The marketing campaign by Educated Guess wines is one of the most successful in recent history.​Yesterday, after arriving at the Newark, NJ airport from Milan, Italy (where I admired a statue of Leonardo da Vinci across from the famous Scala opera house), I headed straig ... More >>

  • Blogs

    October 14, 2011

    Odd Pair: Top 5 Wines to Take to Burger Guys

    Photos by Jeremy ParzenDuck fat fries at the Burger Guys.​A few weeks ago, in the first part of this series, we quoted one of the top chefs in the U.S. today, Eric Ripert of Le Bernardin in New York, on the virtues of the fast food burger in our country. "There is something about these ingred ... More >>

  • Blogs

    October 12, 2011

    Tasting Notes: This Week in Wine Blogs

    ​Blue State Carpetbagger's Red State Wine Blog: When Tom "Bighouse" Casagrande's brother comes to town for a visit, the Houston-based wine blogger pulls out all the stops. But that doesn't mean that good value wasn't on his mind. Tom opened some good stuff for his bro, including a 2007 Story ... More >>

  • Blogs

    September 30, 2011

    Boz Scaggs & Michael McDonald: Smoothest Of The Smooth

    For fans of '70s classic rock, it was the equivalent of three comic book heroes coming together in one Super Smooth Team when Boz Scaggs, ex-Doobie Brother Michael McDonald, and Steely Dan's Donald Fagen announced last year that they would do a short tour as "The Dukes of September." The generous sh ... More >>

  • Blogs

    September 22, 2011

    Wine of the Week: $15 Is the New $10

    ​"What's your favorite wine for under $10?" If I had a nickel for every time someone asked me that question, I'd probably have about $15. When it comes to wine pricing, you'll often hear wine trade folks talk about "price points," in other words, a "maximum" price that allows us to categorize ... More >>

  • Blogs

    August 12, 2011

    Odd Pair: What Wine Do You Serve with Doritos?

    ​When asked what factors had shaped his palate and his wine collection when he first began collecting fine wine, rockstar (literally, not just figuratively) and winemaker Maynard James Keenan answered: "Mountain Dew and Doritos. Like most American kids, that's what I grew up on." This was a fe ... More >>

  • Blogs

    July 15, 2011

    Zelko Bistro Puts Female Winemakers and Craft Beer Front and Center

    Photo by Tam VoChef Jamie Zelko.​Zelko Bistro, although it's only been open for less than two years, has already garnered a reputation for its wine list: Aggressively priced, the list offers an excellent selection of wines between $28 and $46 a bottle. Chef and owner Jamie Zelko wanted it that ... More >>

  • Blogs

    July 13, 2011

    Tasting Notes: This Week in Wine Blogs

    ​Know a Houston-based blog we should be paying particular attention to? Leave the address in the comments section below. The Blend: We're not sure how we missed the photo (above) of Houston's top Italian wine specialist Joseph "Grappa Joe" Kemble, statewide wine buyer at the flagship Spec's. ... More >>

  • Blogs

    July 12, 2011

    Who Doesn't Like Heitz?

    ​If you've been following along here at Wine Time on the Eating Our Words blog, you know that we don't drink a lot of Californian Cabernet Sauvignon at our house. Fact of the matter is we rarely drink monovarietal (i.e., a wine made from a single grape variety) Cabernet Sauvignon at all. Ca ... More >>

  • Blogs

    June 13, 2011

    Highlights from the Wine Rendezvous Grand Tasting & Chef Showcase

    Mai PhamMini causitas by Chef Roberto Castre at Latin Bites Cafe​For me, this past Saturday was the culmination of a week's worth of anticipation and a day's worth of appetite-saving, a chance to taste more than 500 wines and sample 50 chef's tastings at HEB Wine & Food Week's Wine Rendezvous ... More >>

  • Blogs

    June 10, 2011

    Good Tequila Actually Does Come (Relatively) Cheap

    ​It's 4:32 in the afternoon and I have a box of booze and nowhere to be. A box filled with two giant bottles of Familia Camarena tequila, a brand that I am not familiar with. Lord knows I do love me some tequila, but testing out strange booze can be a risky endeavor. And strange tequila is per ... More >>

  • Blogs

    June 7, 2011

    Wine of the Week: A Cool-Weather Cabernet Sauvignon from California

    ​When we think of "California Cabernet," the next two words that come to mind are invariably "Napa Valley" -- the AVA (American Viticultural Area) that changed the way the world perceived American winemaking back in the 1970s. Since that time, "Napa Valley Cab" (oh, how I wish people would st ... More >>

  • Blogs

    May 25, 2011

    Tasting Notes: This Week in Wine Blogs

    ​This is the first of a series of wine blog roundups. Know a blog we should be paying particular attention to? Leave the address in the comments section below. Wine Camp: Craig Camp out on the west coast is always at the top of our Google reader feed. This week he ponders the nature of wine c ... More >>

  • Blogs

    April 25, 2011

    Wine of the Week: Truchard 2007 Carneros Pinot Noir

    At $11 by the glass, the Truchard 2007 Carneros Pinot Noir is a great value from one of California's most famous winemakers.

  • Blogs

    February 28, 2011

    Get Your Passport Stamped Along the Texas Wine Trails

    ​While the trail riders rode into town last Friday, you could be riding out one weekend soon to hit one of Texas's 11 wine trails just as the bluebonnets are beginning to bloom this spring. The fifth most productive wine-producing state in the nation, Texas features more than 200 vineyards wi ... More >>

  • Blogs

    February 21, 2011

    Wine(s) of the Week: Duel Napa Valley Chardonnay

    ​I had a couple bottles of Chardonnay sent to me from different wineries, and noticed they were both within a year's vintage of one another, in the same price range, and both from the Napa Valley. So, why not do a Wine of the Week, "Food Fight" style? It was on like Donkey Kong, only a little ... More >>

  • Blogs

    January 27, 2011

    Vintners Own Winery: Wine (in a Freaking Keg!) in the Heights

    Happiness is eight different wines on tap.​I called my most wine-savvy friend upon receiving the invitation to the event. "Did you know there's a freaking winery in the Heights, just a few blocks from your house?" This was followed by a string of expletives (apparently she was not aware). I co ... More >>

  • Blogs

    January 7, 2011

    More Than Margaritas at TQLA

    No, not champagne flutes, tequila tasting glasses at TQLA. ​As the name would suggest, TQLA is serious about, well, tequila. Bottles of every shape and size glow seductively along red backlit shelving covering much of the rear wall. One-hundred-and-sixty-seven varieties, to be exact, with eigh ... More >>

  • Blogs

    October 25, 2010

    Raise Your Glass to Texas Wine History

    ​The last few years I had the opportunity to live in both San Francisco and Napa Valley and work in the thriving California wine industry. Overall it was a very enriching experience; I learned a lot about the micro-climates that dictate Northern California's growing seasons, met some notable w ... More >>

  • Blogs

    August 25, 2010

    $50-Plus Wine for $10 (And How the Hell This Is Possible)

    ​A friend called about a week ago.  She excitedly relayed the details of a Cameron Hughes Wine presentation she had seen at Costco that afternoon. My reply: "That sounds great, but I think you're leaving something out. There is just no way this guy is buying up someone else's high-priced fin ... More >>

  • Blogs

    August 5, 2010

    Pop-Up Fever: The Just August Project

    Photos by Ruthie JohnsonAvocado pieces.​Pop-up restaurants are growing like mushrooms across the country. The small eateries have small menus and even smaller staffs. They "pop-up" for a finite time period, and then POOF, they're gone. Sound silly? Think about it this way: These temporary rest ... More >>

  • Blogs

    April 27, 2010

    Wine of the Week: 2007 Bouchaine Chene d'Argent Chardonnay, Estate Vineyard

    ​These 80 degree afternoons beg for a glass of crisp, white wine. Sipping a cool, refreshing white is the closest thing we get to a summer vacation these days. On this particular sunny afternoon, we decided to expand our horizons and choose an un-oaked Chardonnay from Napa Valley-Carneros. I ... More >>

  • Blogs

    April 2, 2010

    Bartender Chat: Mike Kurth of Cork Soakers

    ​Six weeks ago, the owners of Lucky's Pub on St. Emanual opened Cork Soakers wine bar across the street from Lucky's. A wine bar opened by sports bar owners? Yeah, we were curious, too. "The owners wanted to open a laid-back, unpretentious wine bar where people could come in wearing jeans and ... More >>

  • Blogs

    September 2, 2009

    A Cafe Bites Nibble

    Tom Schwab and Tom Brown built Vintage 46 Wine Bar (2418 Sunset, 713-524-6318) themselves. "We basically wanted to find a place to put our 401k," says Brown. "We were looking for something that we wouldn't have to work too hard at. Boy, were we wrong. We're working harder than ever. This is a very ... More >>

  • Blogs

    May 25, 2009

    Texas Traveler: Bluebonnet Wine Trail

    While in Navasota lovin' on some alpacas, Texas Traveler had a hankerin' thirst. So we got on our trusty iPhone and found the closest winery, a funky l'il shack called the Purple Possum Winery. While in the air-conditioned comfort of the Purple Possum's tasting room, we met a lovely couple we'd se ... More >>

  • Blogs

    March 24, 2009

    A Useful Idiot

    Photo courtesy of deep_schismic. Maynard James Keenan performing with Tool. Quality wine doesn't usually come from a vineyard named after a pubic wig (Merkin Vineyards) or a man called "Maynard" who happens to front one of the most popular metal bands in the world and who once carried busines ... More >>

  • Film

    August 7, 2008

    Send It Back: Bottle Shock's Corked

    Not Quite Ripe

  • Blogs

    June 23, 2008

    Not Quite Nascarbernet: Private Label Wines from Perry's Steakhouse & Grille

    Not Quite Ripe

  • Dining

    November 15, 2007

    5 Wines That Will Blow Your Mind

    Not Quite Ripe

  • Dining

    July 26, 2007

    5 Wines That Will Blow Your Mind

    Not Quite Ripe

  • Dining

    October 7, 2004

    Cowboy Cookin'

    After Grady Spears's departure, The Burning Pear still smolders

  • Dining

    February 13, 2003

    White Nights

    Pale wines grow up, and Houstonians take notice

  • Music

    April 5, 2001

    A Beat Ahead

    OrchestraX's quick success has been its blessing, and its curse

  • Dining

    September 2, 1999

    Urban Refuel

    Finally, downtown gets the groceries it deserves

  • Dining

    March 4, 1999

    Bang-up Bento Boxes

    Don Chang pushes the envelopeat Nara Japanese

  • Culture

    February 17, 1994

    The Most Happy Loesser

    TUTS presents a most happy production of Frank Loesser's complex and ebullient The Most Happy Fella

  • More >>
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