The Soulful Mavis Staples and Loveblock 2013 Pinot Noir

This is the second consecutive vintage of Loveblock Pinot Noir 2013 ($37, 14%) that I've received as a sample and this New Zealand wine captivates me. The grapes are grown in Loveblock's high altitude "Someone’s Darling" Vineyard (Central Otago), which owners Erica and Kim Crawford have had accredited with  Sustainable Winegrowing (SWNZ). The wine is powerful, yet classy; exhibits fresh fruit, yet dusty herbs; and finishes with bright acids, yet smooth tannins.  A very complex wine that's a gem to drink. Another gem is R&B gospel singer Mavis Staples.  With each sip of the Loveblock, Staples's soulful, smooth, yet dusty vocals seemed to emanate from the wine, whether the gospel sound of One True Vine or the soulful R&B of Livin' On A High Note. And when the band breaks out the electric guitar and horns while she's singing gospel, that captivates me as well. And by chance Staples is traveling through New Zealand and Australia this spring. Cheers.

Book Review: Corkscrew The highly improbable, but occasionally true, tale of a professional wine buyer

For Christmas I treated myself to Corkscrew: The highly improbable, but occasionally true, tale of a professional wine buyer and my first impression is that, yes, it is an improbable story. But, as we all know, life is stranger than fiction and Peter Stafford-Bow's ties up all the improbably events into an ending worthy of a Seinfeld show. The story of Felix Hart's rise to wine buying summit starts a little slow, but over time I noticed I was reading longer into the night as I became entangled with the plot. Lesser covered regions are heavily involved in the plot and there's a wide breadth of wine consumed so readers will gain more insight into wine - particularly during the Worshipful Institute of Ministrels of Wine tasting test of 180 wines. To sum, this is a fun, interesting, and mildly suspenseful read.  Cheers.

Introducing theCompass Craft Beverage Finder Mobile Application

theCompass Winery, Brewery, Distillery Locator app has been re-branded the theCompass Craft Beverage Finder mobile application. The new name encapsulates the expanding craft beverage market from the major three industries (wine, beer, spirits) by including hard cider, mead, and sake.  This re-branding also includes a new website displaying the general functionality of the application. theCompass is available in Android, iPhone, and now Amazon Fire tablets ($.99 on each). The re-branding effort in the iPhone will not be released until later this year as it incorporates the latest iOS upgrades.

theCompass includes information on craft beverage producers in the United States and Canada. These establishments can be mapped using a radius search of the device’s location or by the establishment name, city, or zipcode. Users can also browse establishments by state for the United States or by province for Canada. All results can be filtered by industry type (winery, brewery, distillery, or cidery). On the Android application mead producers are displayed in the counts by country and sake producers are included with the wineries.


The Android version now supports separate interfaces for tablets and other large screen devices as seen in the image on the right. The establishment details view provides a section to view the current and projected weather at that location - necessary information when planning a trip to wine country.

Cusumano Nero d'Avola, Pizza, and Sarah Jarosz's Undercurrent

This month I received a unique sampling package of the 2014 Cusumano Nero d'Avola ($15) packaged with a pizza making kit. The obvious message is that this Italian red wine from Sicily pairs well with America's favorite food. The Cusumano Winery is operated by brothers Diego and Alberto Cusumano with the vineyards for the Nero d'Avola located in the dry and hot climate of southern Sicily - the grape's historic homeland

The Cusumano Nero d'Avola is a palate pleaser with it's strength due to its relative simplicity. You will not be overwhelmed from any one characteristic; instead the simple and straightforward nature of the wine works wonderfully. The nose is fresh and jammy, the palate red fruit and leather with light texture, and the tail comes across with light and tannins. And the wine's relatively high acidity provides the bond to pizza - cutting through the cheese and tomato. Here's W. Blake Gray explaining why at WineFix.

Sarah Jarosz had a big last week when her fourth album, Undercurrent, was awarded the 2017 Grammy for Best Folk Album. (Jarosz was awarded a second Grammy for Best American Roots Performance as well.) I immediately downloaded the album and soon realized that, like the wine, the strength of this release is also in it's simplicity. Most of the song's are simply Jarosz and her guitar, showcasing her sweet vocals and picking skills. When the electric guitar appears, it is present, but not overwhelming. My favorite tracks are House Of Mercy with Jedd Hughes, Everything To Hide, and Still Life with I'm With Her band mates Aoife O'Donovan and Sara Watkins providing exceptional harmonies. All songs worthy of a Grammy. Cheers.