Like out of a Sci-fi story, Carménère came back to life. The recently recognized Carménère turned 21 last year. Happy belated 21st birthday, you delicious red wine variety you. If you prefer to watch an educational video about Carménère, check out our YouTube channel: The extinction of Carménère Carménère, like its fellow South American gems Malbec and Tannat, came from France. It is one of the original Bordeaux varietals. In the appellations of Graves and Pessac-Leognan, whi

For most American wine consumers, Greek wine is as mythical as the demi-god Hercules. American consumers aren’t familiar with the names of Greek grapes or regions, which can make buying Greek wine a challenge. Part of the issue is that Greek wines have not been as plentiful on US soil as Italian and French wines. However, that problem is primarily due to Greeks consuming an astounding 95% of their native wine. With the limited number of Greek wines reaching our shores, most A

Barbera can make light and easy porch pounders as well as age worthy wines. Historically, the Italians have kept it for themselves and made rustic, mass produced wines that are consumed throughout Italy. Barbera is known as “the wine of the people” thanks to its affordability and long history in Piedmont. If you would like to sit back and watch a video to learn about barbera, I present to you, the Teakwood Tavern Youtube channel: Barbera 101 The Italian varietal barbera is kn

I spent 6 months in Australia. I was lucky enough to go wine tasting twice while doing a college study abroad program in Melbourne. Hell, I even spent my 21st birthday wine tasting in Yarra Valley (Thanks Lenore and Harley!). However, 12 years later, I realized I knew very little about Australian wines. Let’s start with Australia's most produced varietal, Syrah, which obviously we love since it came from Rhone. Except they call it Shiraz, and the state of South Australia prod

What wine related word does Tannat remind you of? Tannin, perhaps? This thick-skinned and highly seeded varietal is known for its strong tannin character, which has lots of positives: 1. Adaptable to many climates 2. Resistant to disease and pests 3. Full of antioxidants, making it as healthy as grapes come 4. Ages well Though it's been enjoyed for centuries in France and Uruguay, Tannat has only gained popularity in the US in the last few years. Great news for you because th

LET'S SEE HOW WELL YOU ALL KNOW ME. First question: What is my favorite movie? Second question: Where did I grow up? Last question: Of our wine stash, which grape varietal is represented the most? Let’s see how you did . . . Casablanca, San Antonio, and Pinot Noir. What if I told you that there is a magical place in Chile where two neighboring wine regions go by the name of Casablanca and San Antonio, and that both of those regions specialize in Pinot Noir? Now the title to t

We’re often asked which country is our favorite for wine. For me, it’s Spain. I’ve honestly been trying not to blog too much about Spain so I don’t blatantly show my bias. That stops today. We’re heading to northwest Spain. In particular, the wine regions of Bierzo and Ribeira Sacra, where we find the incredible black grape variety—Mencía. I’d always appreciated the few Mencías I'd tried in the past; however, it was during my visit to Spain last July when I really became a fa

Lambrusco may be the most misunderstood of all Italian wines. From its tragic history in the US during the 70s and 80s to its super confusing name; it's a wine that doesn't garner love in the way it should. Still, Lambrusco has a special place in my heart. This chilled sparkling red wine bursts with juicy berries and has lovely pink head. John and I love Lambrusco so much, we planned to serve it as our opening drink at our wedding ceremony. History The Lambrusco family of gra

While we aren’t talking about the Von Trapps in this post, we are discussing another Austrian family—a family of black grapes that is. Austrian white wines tend to get the majority of love in the US. Not that there is anything inherently wrong with that. Austrian Gruner Veltliner and Riesling are superb, and thus they have been well represented on wine lists and wine store shelves for the past two decades. We will definitely blog about Austrian whites another day. But today i

Continuing down the active volcano track from last week, I present our first Italian wine post. I clearly remember my first Etna wine. While at one of DFW's best wine stores, one of our favorite wine-mongers, who was all about showing us what was either new or unique, said “You have to try this Etna wine. It’s one of the best bangs for your buck in the whole world.” We went home, tried it, and ordered the remaining 6 bottles they had as quickly as we could. What is Etna, you

When researching wine, it is likely that you will come across a historical anecdote that you’ve never heard of before. Wine has been around for a long time so it happens. For example, during my research of wines from the Canary Island of Tenerife, I read about a letter from George Washington confirming his preference for Tenerife wine over beer for his troops during the American Revolutionary War. Take that Samuel Adams Brewery! Ok, enough with the history lesson. Let’s get b

For our FIRST OFFICIAL Wine Wednesday post, we are discussing one of our favorite wine regions and wine—Beaujolais. Beaujolais has been on a roller-coaster for the past four decades. It was trendy in the 70s and 80s thanks to Beaujolais Nouveau, which is discussed below, and then died out in the 90s and early 00s. However, it is coming on strong now and it's still a great bargain--if you know what to look for. But that's why you are here, right? So let's dive in . . . First,

Who knew that planning a wedding involved scheduling around a pandemic? We sure as hell didn't! So having to cancel our wedding and all of the festivities accompanying the wedding was quite a shock. But this isn't a post to gather sympathy points. We aren't heroes. We made a decision and then moved on with our life. Yes, life, singular. If anything, our wedding weekend (i.e., March 27-29) presented us with an incredible opportunity to love one another during this COVID-19 mes