Grape Collective

08/17/2024

During the Greek financial collapse in 2010 Yannis left a career in finance in London to return to his the family vineyards in Santorini. His Assyrtiko based wines are bright, rich with an intense minerality, and hints of salinity.

Santorini has played a major role in the modern revival of Greek wine with Assyrtiko becoming regarded by many as one of the world’s great white wines. Santorini is a volcanic island whose current caldera was formed 1610 BC, the last major eruption was 1950. The wines of Santorini first became famous in the Middle Ages when it was politically under the Republic of Venice and was famous for Vinsanto.

Vines in Santorini did not fall foul of Phylloxera, due its volcanic soils and therefore are own rooted and grow as bush vines. There are many vines on the island whose age exceeds 100 years. The vineyard soils are very poor and are composed of volcanic ash and and calcareous subsoils.

08/16/2024

Domaine Mont Bessay: Rethinking Excellence in Beaujolais
‘Pascal and Marko were attracted to the Beaujolais Cru area for its high-quality terroir and relatively affordable land prices compared to Burgundy. At Mont Bessay, they apply the same meticulous approach as at Cellier aux Moines, including organic farming, whole cluster fermentation, gentle extractions, and extended barrel aging.’ By Lisa Denning

Domaine Mont Bessay: Rethinking Excellence in Beaujolais

08/15/2024

Darioush Viognier: A Surprise Hit from Napa, Even With Mom ‘What we mean is that Viognier, as a varietal wine, is often kind of cumbersome, lacking enough complexity to keep us interested beyond the first few sips. We can understand why Viognier is often used as part of a blend, generally to add aromatics.

There are exceptions, of course, as there always are in wine, and then there is Exceptional: Signature Viognier from Napa Valley.’ read at grapecollective.com

08/13/2024

Great visit with George and Dimitris Skouras. Harvest came two weeks early this year, so the winery was full throttle. Skouras is one of the pioneers of modern Greek wine starting out as a bootstrapped winery in the 80s then becoming one of the leading advocates for Greek wine generating awareness internationally for native varieties Moscofilero and Aghiorgitiko.

08/12/2024

Is heroic viticulture real? Tending to these bush vines on steep slopes in the Patra region of far north of the Peloponnese George, Vaso, Filippos and winemaker Panayiotis are making some stunning wines from organically grown native varieties such as the white Lagorthi and the red Mavro Kalavrytino. Aside from the uniqueness of the wines it is a surprise how moderate the alcohol levels are at around 12 percent and also how affordable such unique hand crafted wines are at under $20 a bottle.

08/11/2024

Great to chat with Leon about his amazing journey advocating for Greek wines in the early days and the incredible growth in terms acceptance of Assyrtiko and Agiorgitiko within the international wine community.

08/10/2024

Darioush Winery - Napa Valley Viognier: A Surprise Hit from Napa, Even With Mom
"There are exceptions, of course, as there always are in wine, and then there is Exceptional: Darioush Signature Viognier from Napa Valley. This has been a favorite for years. We just tasted the 2023 and we believe it was our best yet from the winery. How excited were we?" By Dorothy J. Gaiter and John Brecher

Darioush Viognier: A Surprise Hit from Napa, Even With Mom

08/10/2024

Was Socrates drinking Savatiano from Attica bush vines when he was chatting away creating the future of western civilization as described by Plato in The Symposium? It is certainly possible as these vines seem to be so completely part of the landscape. Chatting with Stamatis and Vassilis about the incredible history of wine in Attica and the incredible aging potential of Savatiano (a grape that had its detractors due it be used in Retsina)

08/09/2024

Lee .pai chatting with Delphine Cherrier who alongside her brother is the taking over the reigns from their father François at the family estate in Sancerre. She is committed to using natural products with their vines and excited about the use of horses in the vineyard.

08/08/2024

Winemaker Lynne Fahy on the Finger Lakes’ Ambitious New Winery - The estate started really from a vision of Paul Hobbs and his family. His parents met in Ithaca when they were going to Cornell. Paul was raised in Buffalo, and his brothers still live in Rochester. Around 2011 or 2012, they suggested that he come take a look at the Finger Lakes as a potential place to put a Riesling vineyard.’ Read and watch the video at grapecollective.com

08/06/2024

Great to see Seyit in NY - had visited him at his estate near Izmir - super interesting native varietals that are unlike any other grapes - so unique ~ met at an amazing wine and cocktail on Washington St in the West Village which had by the glass a very interesting Turkish wine made from the Emir grape native to Cappadocia

08/05/2024

Moochie had a ‘grape’ time visiting today. 🍇🦮
And like the volcano, he’s very active! 🌋

08/04/2024

🍷🍷🍷

08/03/2024

Winemaker Lynne Fahy on the Finger Lakes' Ambitious New Winery Hillick & Hobbs
"The estate started really from a vision of Paul Hobbs and his family. His parents met in Ithaca when they were going to Cornell. Paul was raised in Buffalo, and his brothers still live in Rochester. Around 2011 or 2012, they suggested that he come take a look at the Finger Lakes as a potential place to put a Riesling vineyard."

Winemaker Lynne Fahy on Finger Lakes Ambitious New Winery Hillick & Hobbs

08/02/2024

‘What is the most important thing?

When thinking about this, my mind takes me back to the beginning of my wine drinking journey. Everyone starts somewhere near zero as a wine lover, and I have had probably more than a few gaffes that may sound funny now but were probably gut wrenching at the time. ’ by .pai read at GrapeCollective.com

08/02/2024

What is the most important thing?

"When thinking about this, my mind takes me back to the beginning of my wine drinking journey. Everyone starts somewhere near zero as a wine lover, and I have had probably more than a few gaffes that may sound funny now but were probably gut wrenching at the time." By Lee Pai

The Most Important Thing… About Wine

07/30/2024

Twelve Bucks a Liter? A Rosé With Alluring Texture? Believe It - ‘Rosé is easy – and hard. Clearly, it’s easy to pump out oceans of OK rosé, since there are so many on shelves. But making a good rosé – a wine with character, a beverage that earns the right to be called wine – is.’ Read the column by at grapecollective.com

07/26/2024

Twelve Bucks a Liter? A Rosé With Alluring Texture? Believe It
"Rosé is easy – and hard. Clearly, it’s easy to pump out oceans of OK rosé, since there are so many on shelves. But making a good rosé – a wine with character, a beverage that earns the right to be called wine – is another matter." Dorothy J. Gaiter and John Brecher

Rosé is easy – and hard. Clearly, it’s easy to pump out oceans of OK rosé, since there are so many on shelves. But making a good rosé – a wine with character, a beverage that earns the right to be called wine – is another matter.

07/25/2024

Morocco has a fascinating wine history starting in Roman times and more recently a byproduct of colonialism- now there is a revival with .wines at the heart of it - read and watch the interview with winemaker Stephane Marriot at grapecollective.com

07/24/2024

Domaine Ouled Thaleb winemaker Stephane Marriot on the history of wine in Morocco
https://grapecollective.com/articles/domaine-ouled-thaleb-winemaker-stephane-marriot-on-the-history-of-wine-in-morocco

07/20/2024

“Diversity, equity and inclusivity. I hate those words together. That’s a program, that’s a seminar for 30 minutes you get from your corporation,” said Ikimi Dubose-Woodson. She’s executive director of The Roots Fund” by read the full Colin at grapecollective.com

07/16/2024

The Roots Fund Is Done with Diversity Talk. It’s Time to Work
“People and institutions had the best intentions. Everyone wants to help until they realize the full scope of what is needed,” Dubose-Woodson said." By Dorothy J. Gaiter and John Brecher

The Roots Fund Is Done with Diversity Talk. It’s Time to Work

07/12/2024

Making Wine From Nature: A Conversation With Josef Mantler of Winery by

07/09/2024

Making Wine From Nature: A Conversation With Josef Mantler of Weingut Mantlerhof
"Josef Mantler visited Grape Collective to discuss the changing climate, a topic that keeps him up at night. Yet, he’s optimistic about the future of winemaking in Kremstal and excited about some very promising developments in the Austrian wine industry." By Lisa Denning

Making Wine From Nature: A Conversation With Josef Mantler of Mantlerhof Winery

07/05/2024

Posted • Today, at the Montclair location from 4 to 7pm, we will be tastings 3 of Ntsiki’s Aslina wines including her sauvignon blanc, chardonnay and ‘Umsasame’ Bordeaux blend. Being from Zululand, Ntsiki overcame many obstacles to grow a dream and beyond in South Africa, now an award-winning winemaker world-renowned. Come hear her story and taste her outstanding wines!*******************************************************

07/04/2024

Let’s just admit that some wines are yech - ‘Over time, we’d guess the chart of our wines would look like a snake that swallowed something large: Most wines fit in the middle. From time to time, we have a wine that we find Delicious. Of all the wines we taste, just three or four each year rate Delicious! That means the wine didn’t just taste great and was beautifully made and seemed intentional, but that we found it genuinely exciting. ’ read the column by at grapecollective.com

07/01/2024

Great to visit and chat with winemaker Lynne Fahy. The land was purchased in 2103 by Paul Hobbs who grew up on a family farm in nearby Niagara County. The absolutely stunning vineyard site overlooks Seneca Lake. While a relatively new Finger Lakes winery, 2019 being the first released vintage, the wines are lively, bright and delicious. The farming avoids herbicides and the wines are all fermented using indigenous yeast.

06/28/2024

‘You Call This Wine?’ Let’s Just Admit That Some Wines Are Yech
"When we had our Yech wine recently, though, we had an epiphany: We have had fewer wines in 50 years that rated Yech than Delicious! " Dorothy J. Gaiter and John Brecher

‘You Call This Wine?’ Let’s Just Admit That Some Wines Are Yech

06/27/2024

Next Generation Success in Sonoma County featuring by Lucia Albino Gilbert and John C. Gilbert read at grapecollective.com

06/25/2024

Great to see so many amazing Armenian producers .nyc and talk about the complex wine history of this country and especially talking with Veronika and the inspiring story of how they lost their family winery which is now behind enemy lines and part of Azerbaijan and how they are restarting and trying to replant Sereni (also known as Khndoghni) which has traditionally only been grown in Artsakh. Apart from anything else the wines are exciting, and delicious.