The U.S. Open of Wine? Jun 19 There are many wine competitions across the country that judge single varieties, wines of a particular region, that associate themselves with state fairs, and those that have specific sorts of wine people doing the judging. But in my 20 years of working in the wine industry, there has never been any wine competition anywhere that was acknowledged as the most prestigious.

Breaking Down the Bitchy Relationship between Wine Magazines and Wine Retailers {plus: Showcasing a Trio of True Independents} Jun 19 The patchwork quilt of wine retailers across America and traditional (print) wine media enjoy a rather peculiar relationship. It began to take shape, like the wine boom itself, in the 1990s, when several magazines decided that their primary role was to respond to the burgeoning supply of wines by pouring on the ratings.

The care and feeding of wine writers (Well, this one, anyway) Jun 19 ...Well, this long-winded intro is a way for me to let P.R. people, winery execs and others whose job it is to promote their winery know how best to work with me, to help me do my job so I can help you do yours. In an ideal world - and why should ours not be ideal? - P.R. and wine writing both would benefit.