LikeWine: Sonoma Wines for Springtime

Springtime is swing season, when white and rosé wines become more tempting, particularly for brunch-time meals and Easter. The additional sunlight of daylight saving time encourages the firing up of grills — a siren call for Zinfandel. Sauvignon Blanc For Easter If you like: Quivira Vineyards 2014 Refuge Dry Creek Valley Sauvignon Blanc ($28) A […]

Cheaper Options for Sonoma County Wines

The holiday season is here and it’s time to bring out the big guns, to splurge on worthy bottles for both gifting and to help soothe us on the chilly nights of approaching winter, with hearty fare on the table. With football on the tube, Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas and more to celebrate, this is no […]

Sauce Slut: A Glossy, Crimson, Zinfandel Reduction

I confess, I'm a total sauce slut: My wife could legitimately accuse me of infidelity, if only she had thought to proscribe lustfully leering at the 5 mother sauces in our vows, and I might happily eat a shoe, if only it were first slathered with a demi glace of sufficiently high quality.

A Rainy-Day Braise: Ancho Chilis, Zinfandel, and Beets

I think this is a killer one-pot dish for a dank, inclement night although, in point of fact, I'm cheating, because neither beets, nor my protein of choice - young goat shanks, from the Owen Family Farm up in Hopland - are technically in season right now. But the mild heat and smoky undertone from the chilies, together with the spicy-sweet peppery jam of the wine, seemed a natural bedfellow for dense, rich, and slightly gamy flavors...