Author Archives: Sarah

On Syrah

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If you asked yourself which were the great red grapes of the world, and Syrah didn’t come to mind, please read on. If it did, read on anyway.


A deeply colored grape, rich in anthocyanins and a compound called rotundone that imbues fresher expressions with a powerful peppery note, Syrah is one of the world’s most noble grapes. Known for savory, almost meaty notes, high-toned hints of black pepper (from that same compound rotundone), black-fruited character, and at times even floral aromas, its myriad layers lend itself to producing wines of great intensity and expressiveness of place. In the best versions, wines made of Syrah can be hauntingly aromatic and seductive. Continue reading →

Anosmia

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I never knew how much I loved my sense of smell until I lost it. I’ve always thought I had a rather terrible nose — either overly sensitive (ack, perfume!) or can’t pick out a violet from a gardenia. Turns out, it was working just fine until I got COVID.

I didn’t fully understand what it meant to lose your sense of smell. I didn’t occur to me that, while of course I can still inhale just (mostly) fine, in the place of aromas and/or odors, there is just absence. Complete and total absence. I can’t smell a thing. Not  homemade pho, not a burning candle, not the eucalyptus extract that I bought in Morocco to clear my sinuses (think essence of Vick’s Vapo-rub), not even a whiff of gasoline.

homemade phoFor someone whose life pretty much revolves around cooking and eating and drinking Continue reading →

Truffles & Nebbiolo: The Perfect Pairing

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Sarah Bray, Associate Director of Wine Education at The Learning Center at Meadowood Estate, lived in Italy for many years and has a deep love for the Nebbiolo grape, especially when paired with truffles. She has compiled a list of Barolo and Barbaresco vintages and wines that are in an ideal drinking window now, in time for the tail-end of the glorious season of tartufi bianchi, or the famed white truffles of Alba. Continue reading →

A Sense of Place

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noun: place
  1. a particular point in space.
  2. a portion of space available or designated for someone.
  3. the role played by or importance attached to someone or something in a particular context.
  4. Middle English: from Old French, from an alteration of Latin platea ‘open space’, from Greek plateia (hodos) ‘broad (way)’.
verb: place
  1. to put in a particular position.
  2. to find a home for.

I think a lot about words and their meanings, in different languages and different contexts. One word I’ve spent a great deal of time thinking about throughout my life is place: spaces, contexts, communities, cultures, homes. Often in the context of: what places inspire me? where do I see my place in the world? where is my place? I’ve been searching for the answers to those questions all of my life. And a massive amount of thought went into the decision to move to California, and to Napa, to try to make this place mine, and it’s been for most of this strange year a place that has finally made me feel at home. So this week of fires has been psychologically a difficult one to take, as I’ve seen friends lose their houses, businesses, and minds. Continue reading →

Wine-spiration from small producers on the west coast

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I’ve received a lot of requests from people asking about small producers making interesting wines out here on the west coast, so I thought I’d compile a list of some of the wines that have been inspiring me since my move out to Napa in February. All of these micro producers have an eye toward sustainability and working directly with the farmers they source from. They are keen to produce high-quality, distinctive wines at relatively fair prices given the costs of production out this way. Each has a unique story to tell, and many have incorporated lesser-known grapes into their portfolios, although not all. I’ve highlighted my personal favorite wine from each maker below, but definitely check out the other wines these winemakers are producing. Continue reading →

Exploring the White Wines of Sicily

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5259057A-6334-447B-9BE0-16165235166DLong the breadbasket for every empire that passed through the Mediterranean, Sicily’s still wine was once considered nothing more than bulk juice to be shipped to backfill poorer vintages in more northerly regions, or cheap wine mostly intended for immediate consumption, often tending toward oxidation and lacking complexity. Today, however, things are changing. Attention has been drawn to regions like Vittoria and Etna for years, but as growers move ever more toward a focus on indigenous varieties and the unique differences in growing conditions throughout the island, Sicily is increasingly becoming a treasure trove of selection and price-quality opportunities for drinkers and buyers of wine. And for all of the great red wines of Nerello Mascalese—and, yes, site-specific Nero d’Avola—being produced, the white wines of the island are as complex, varied, and interesting as their red-skinned counterparts.

Full article at GuildSomm.

 

12 Lovely Small Towns in European Wine Country

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Vacation among the vines at these small-in-size but big-on-wine destinations in France, Italy, Portugal, and beyond. Full article published on AFAR.

France's historic Saint-Émilion claims a viticultural history dating to Roman times.

What’s better than a perfect pour of vino? Enjoying it in a scenic wine-centric European town or village, where you’ll feel like you’ve wandered off the path just enough to have been let in on a wonderful secret. Hit any of these 12 small-scale spots for the best of the continent’s riches—history, art, food, local tradition, and, of course, the vineyard backdrops and nectar of the gods you need to truly satisfy your wine-fueled wanderlust. (Take note: Appointments when visiting European wineries are advised.)

Continue reading →

First Podcast! Interviewed by Drinking on the Job

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dotj podcastA pleasure to talk to John Coyle of the podcast Drinking on the Job about how studying languages has taken me far from my Atlanta roots and led me into wine, my work with the Tenuta di Trinoro and Passopisciaro wineries and what makes Mt. Etna so special, and real talk about the work I’ve been doing with the Bâtonnage Forum to start new conversations about women and diversity in the wine industry, diving especially deep into the questions about sexuality in wine sales. Plus, it was fun to shout out about my favorite places to eat including Monaci delle Terre Nere on Etna and Miller Union in Atlanta. Obviously, we covered a lot, but if you fancy a listen, the link is here.

(PSA: the second half includes some graphic language in case you have kids around)

Austrian Wine Country

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I had so much fun on the Austrian wine trail along the Danube last January that I thought I’d write about it for AFAR magazine. It’s such an easy day trip from Vienna, but it’s worth a longer visit too; I was based in Krems, which is an adorable and centrally located town. Here are a few of the wineries I’d recommend to give an overview of the Wachau, Kamptal, and Kremstal. Oh, and the Austrians are the nicest people to boot! Published on AFAR.com.

Continue reading →