Judith Smelser Tastings, Wine Experiences, Wine News

Orlando Wine Community Alum Brings One-of-a-Kind Sonoma Tasting to Digress

Wine writers tend to overuse words like “special” and “unique.” I’m as guilty as anyone.

But Tuesday night at Digress Wine in College Park, Orlando’s wine community experienced something truly singular — a tasting of limited-production experimental wines from Sonoma producer Gary Farrell, many of which can’t be sampled even at the winery.

Orlando Wine Blog helped organize the event in partnership with Digress. We dubbed it “The Geeky Side of Gary Farrell,” and I couldn’t be prouder of Orlando’s wine community that an event with that name was a sellout.

But the real credit for its success goes to Gary Farrell Estate Sommelier and Wine Educator Tiffany Kuhn, who brought some truly unique bottles and provided great context to help us understand them.

Continue reading “Orlando Wine Community Alum Brings One-of-a-Kind Sonoma Tasting to Digress” →

Judith Smelser Tastings, Wine Experiences

Sardinian Wine, Donut Pairings, and Geeky Sonoma Wines Headline an Eclectic Orlando Wine Week

Orlando winelovers, get ready for a blockbuster of a week in wine events! In addition to the ones in the headline, there are tastings of viognier and Spanish wine, a harvest festival, and much more. Check the Calendar Page for the full list, and read on for a few highlights.

ORLANDO’S WEEK IN WINE

Continue reading “Sardinian Wine, Donut Pairings, and Geeky Sonoma Wines Headline an Eclectic Orlando Wine Week” →

Judith Smelser Tastings, Wine Experiences

Celebrate Your Love of Wine with Valentine’s Events

Ah, Valentine’s Day. Or, as it could be known, the day of the prix fixe.

Orlando’s wine events calendar is a little lighter this week, as local vino-focused establishments make way for the crowds of couples dining out on Thursday. But many are also planning V-Day themed tastings, so get ready to fall in love with wine – especially bubbles and reds – all over again.

Keep reading for all the highlights!

Continue reading “Celebrate Your Love of Wine with Valentine’s Events” →

Judith Smelser Tastings, Uncategorized, Winemakers

Orlando’s Parade of Winemakers Continues

UPDATE: Thursday’s tasting with Daniel Cohn of Bellacosa Winery at Tim’s Lake Mary has been cancelled. 

‘Tis the season for winemakers and other visitors from wineries around the world to show off the fruits of their labors to Florida’s wine lovers. Franco Massolino (pictured above) visited from Barolo a couple of weeks ago and presented his lovely wines at Digress in College Park.

Last week, we had three more winery visitors at events around town; this week we’ll have six! And they’ll have competition from a plethora of other wine events on tap too.

Once again, you have some tough decisions to make, so pour yourself a glass of Sunday Champagne (they say it’s good for your brain), put your thinking cap on, and feast your eyes on the smorgasbord that is …

ORLANDO’S WEEK IN WINE!

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Judith Smelser Beyond Central Florida, Tastings, Wine Experiences, Wineries

Where to Go in Sonoma: The Blockbusters

Note: The wineries in this post followed the common industry practice of waiving tasting fees for bloggers and other media. 

Is a trip to wine country on your list of resolutions for 2018? If so, Sonoma County should be on your agenda.

Sonoma is sometimes an afterthought – nothing more than a quick stopover between San Francisco and Napa. But this diverse county is a worthy wine destination unto itself, offering everything from stunning tasting rooms with breathtaking views to flip-flop-casual samplings in out-of-the-way vineyards. Most importantly, though, Sonoma offers plenty of good wine.

In this post, we’ll explore three blockbuster wineries that hosted me for tastings on a visit to Sonoma last fall. Next time, I’ll unveil a few of the region’s hidden gems.

Continue reading “Where to Go in Sonoma: The Blockbusters” →

Judith Smelser Beyond Central Florida, Tastings, Wine Experiences, Wine News, Wineries

Successful test run for Jordan Winery’s new caviar & wine tasting

Jordan Vineyard & Winery occupies a rambling French-style “chateau” in Sonoma’s Alexander Valley. Since its founding in 1972, the operation has been almost as much about food and hospitality as it has been about its French-inspired wines. Each tasting experience at Jordan involves wine and food pairings, and the estate even has its own executive chef.

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Judith Smelser Beyond Central Florida, Wine Experiences, Wine News, Wineries

Wine Country faces long recovery, but fire damage largely hidden from tourists’ view

“If you didn’t know,” Patsy McGaughy with Napa Valley Vintners told a group of wine writers last week, “you wouldn’t know.”

She was addressing the tenth annual Wine Bloggers Conference in Santa Rosa, a place many called ground zero for last month’s wildfires.

“The valley floor is just as beautiful as ever.”

She’s right.

Continue reading “Wine Country faces long recovery, but fire damage largely hidden from tourists’ view” →

Judith Smelser Tastings, Wine Experiences, Winemakers

New Orlando Wine Events: Napa winemaker dinner, Italian pairing dinner, and more!

The Upcoming Wine Events page has been updated with lots of new happenings around the region, including:

  • Italian pairing dinner hosted by Jean K. Reilly, Master of Wine
  • Wine dinner with Napa winemaker Julie Lumgair, hosted by Central Florida Women for Winesense
  • Tasting with Sonoma winemaker Ben Papapietro

Don’t miss these great events coming up next week:

  • Fat Tuesday party with high-acid whites at Swirlery
  • Everyday Italian tasting at Tim’s Wine Market Lake Mary
  • Australian wine class and tasting, also at Swirlery

As always, there’s no excuse to go thirsty in the City Beautiful!

Judith Smelser Wineries

A Florida Oenophile in California Wine Country: Part 6 – The Last Day

About this series: After years of loving (and semi-seriously studying) wine, I finally took my first trip to Napa and Sonoma this summer. It was a wonderful week of sunny days, cool nights, beautiful views, and beautiful wines. These are the impressions, discoveries, favorites, and surprises from my journey.

Part 1: Chateau Montelena, CADE, Pride
Part 2: Frog’s Leap, Heitz, Mumm Napa
Part 3: Y. Rousseau, Antica, Failla
Part 4: Stony Hill, Domaine Chandon
Part 5: Fort Ross, Gary Farrell

Day 7, Part 2 – Friday, Aug 5

We had no more appointments after Gary Farrell, but it was our last day in Wine Country, so …

Joseph Swan: No Fountains or Gardens, Just Great Wine

I looked on the map and noticed Joseph Swan was just down the road. I’ve enjoyed their pinots in the past, so I gave them a call to see if we could come by.

“Sure!” said the nice male voice on the other end of the line. “We don’t have the views they have up there at Gary Farrell, but we’ll be here!”

Continue reading “A Florida Oenophile in California Wine Country: Part 6 – The Last Day” →

Judith Smelser Wineries

A Florida Oenophile in California Wine Country: Onward to Sonoma – Fort Ross & Gary Farrell

About this series: After years of loving (and semi-seriously studying) wine, I finally took my first trip to Napa and Sonoma this summer. It was a wonderful week of sunny days, cool nights, beautiful views, and beautiful wines. These are the impressions, discoveries, favorites, and surprises from my journey.

Part 1: Chateau Montelena, CADE, Pride
Part 2: Frog’s Leap, Heitz, Mumm Napa
Part 3: Y. Rousseau, Antica, Failla
Part 4: Stony Hill, Domaine Chandon

This being my first trip to California Wine Country, I focused mainly on Napa, but I couldn’t leave without a little taste of Sonoma too. We managed to fit quite a lot into just a day and a half, including a few well-known places and one hidden gem.

Continue reading “A Florida Oenophile in California Wine Country: Onward to Sonoma – Fort Ross & Gary Farrell” →