For so small a country (about the size of Colorado), New Zealand certainly has made a splash in the world’s wine glasses.

Italy—a country three-quarters the size of California—makes one-fifth of all the wine in the world.

If one good thing came from the years of Communist control in Hungary, it was to hew Hungarian winemaking to its traditions.

Three seas wash the shores of Greece—the Ionian, the Aegean and the Mediterranean—and they mean everything to the history of her wines and winemaking.

Let’s clarify one thing right away: Not all German wines are sweet. In fact, few are.

Chile is topographically unique. For a winemaker, such geographic isolation is ideal.

Each year, 20 million bottles—about 12%—of all Cognac produced just vanishes into thin air.

Armagnac is not Cognac.

Year after year, California grapevines bask in this generosity. Their grapes ripen without fail and give voice to the saying that, in California, “Every year is a vintage year.”

For wine sippers and food lovers both, France is a resource as rich as a Carnegie's cupboard.

Along with Australia and the Americas, South Africa can correctly be thought of as a “New World” wine country (as distinct from “Old World” wine countries such as France or Germany).

No surprise that Washington State is renowned for growing great fruit—like wine grapes.

How to care for your fine wine stemware.

Cork and cork alternatives are just about preventing the oxidation of wine.

Trumping whatever esthetic value that a wine label may have, its main function is to impart information to the consumer.

The seductions of Viognier are its heady perfume and sexy texture.

Sauvignon Blanc does one thing overwhelmingly well—it stands out in a crowd.

It is a blessing that Sémillon has so little native flavor and aroma—because it sometimes it transforms into some of the world’s greatest (and most spight-after) wines.

Pinot Gris/Grigio grapes at harvest in the vineyard. Note the deep pinkish, even copperish, color of the skins. Photo from Stefan Schauberger on unsplash.