Category Archives: Alphabet Soup
M is for Marechal Foch
Marechal Foch, pronounced mar-esh-shall-fosh, sometimes with an accent (Maréchal) or just referred to as Foch, is a French hybrid grape. It was developed in Alsace by Eugene Kuhlmann, but its parentage has been disputed. Some cite Goldriesling (v. vinifera) as … Continue reading
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L is for ladybird
This is not a post about the First Lady of the U.S. from 1963-1969, a track on a Tears for Fears album, or the 1992 Rodney Dangerfield soccer comedy. Instead, it is about an insect pest new to North American … Continue reading
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K is for Kir
Kir, alternatively referred to as vin blanc cassis, is dry white wine mixed with blackcurrant liqueur. The drink is named after Canon Félix Kir, a priest and hero of the Burgundian resistance during WWII, who then went on to become … Continue reading
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J is for jiggle
I hope you don’t get the wrong idea based on my previous post. The jiggle I’m referring to here is from gelatin. Did you ever eat these when you were a kid? In the NYT this week, Pete Wells reminisces about … Continue reading
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I is for Incisa della Rocchetta
Mario Incisa della Rocchetta, of the Italian winery Tenuta San Guido, was the inspiration behind the ”Super Tuscan”. Not officially recognized by Italian wine law, these wines emerged in the 1970s as a result of restrictive wine laws, and decreased quality of … Continue reading
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H is for Haraszthy, Agoston
Many fallacies are associated with this man: he was the first to show the possibilities of grape growing in California, he was the first to introduce superior grape varietals into the state and he was the first to plant the … Continue reading
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G is for glassy winged sharpshooter
The glassy winged sharpshooter is a leafhopper from the insect family Cicadellidae. Originally from northeastern Mexico, these little buggers have migrated to the U.S. where they spread Pierce’s Disease, a bacterial infection that kills grapevines. Voracious eaters, they spread bacteria from … Continue reading
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F is for foxy
You may be a cute little heartbreaker, but the foxy I’m referring to today is a pretty negative term that folks use when a wine has aromas more like animal fur than fruit or flowers. The odor may also come across … Continue reading
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E is for egg white
Believe it or not, egg whites play an important role in the wine making process, particularly when it comes to fine red wine production. The albumen – from the Latin alba for white – found in egg whites are colloidal … Continue reading
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D is for Durif
In the late 1990s DNA profiling determined that Petite Sirah in California was a field blend of Peloursin, some actual Syrah and mainly Durif, which is a crossing of Peloursin and Syrah. Huh? Let’s break it down. Petite Sirah is … Continue reading
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