“I’m trying to make sure that everyone feels empowered to try wine, and to feel confident when tasting,” Zidanelia Arcidiacono, the 36-year-old assistant winemaker at Sonoma-Cutrer, says. Her goal is to democratize wine for people of all backgrounds and professions, especially within wineries.
Send all questions to advice@vinepair.com. Is it bad manners to bring another brewery’s growler to a taproom? Absolutely not. I realize some breweries have a policy that they will only refill their own growlers. I find that policy not only ridiculous, but also completely hypercritical — if you self-identify as “craft” you should also care […]
Kyle Hilla has a special touch. At the Statler, a recently restored hotel in downtown Dallas, Hilla’s interactive cocktails span the Fine China’s Sino-French Connection, which requires a French press, and Bourbon and Banter’s “most Instagrammable cocktail,” which necessitates the use of a tiny hammer. While his creations may sound playful, Hilla’s attention to detail […]
We all have a friend who just loves Pinot Grigio. It’s their go-to order, popping up at dinner parties, nights out, brunch, summer rooftops, and majority of their Instagrams. Who can blame them? Pinot Grigio offers solid value — you can find many for less than $20 — and is generally pretty crowd-pleasing. The downside? […]
Sherry has a PR problem. Much to the chagrin of its enthusiasts and producers, sherry has a reputation for being sweet, dessert-like, and out of style. On many American wine lists, it’s an afterthought at best. The ironic reality is that the fortified wine from Spain’s Jerez region, also known as the Sherry Triangle, is […]
Craig Sindelar was drinking beer with his father when the lightning bolt struck. Sindelar, a sommelier with some 20 years in the industry, most recently at three-Michelin-starred Alinea in Chicago, had impulsively ordered a nice malt whiskey to sip with his beer. He was taken aback by how well the two went together. “My job […]
Taittinger’s non-vintage brut Champagne is a refreshing, fruit-driven bottle of bubbles. You’ve no doubt come across it in your local wine store, given that the Champagne house is one of the region’s largest producers. You may, however, be less familiar with the proper pronunciation of the brand’s name. Or, it may come as a surprise […]
Craft beer bars are everywhere these days. There are good ones, and there are bad ones. Then, there are great ones. The abundance of beer-focused establishments is a natural progression in the U.S., considering most of us live within 10 miles of a brewery. But not all beer bars are created equally. Some are stuck in […]
In June 2018, Brooklyn’s Other Half Brewing hosted Green City, a beer festival dedicated to “all thing hoppy.” Some of the hottest names in the industry attended, including Los Angeles’s Monkish and Richmond’s The Veil. All brought several of their of-the-moment, New England-style IPAs (NEIPAs).
