Wine in the News

French Wine consumption has dropped by three billion bottles. "Regular wine consumption over meals has been replaced by the French drinking wine occasionally rather than frecuently, often on nights out," (The Telegraph).


Diageo to seal landmark China drinks deal. This deal "will clear the way for Diageo to grow its share of China's rapidly growing market for 'baijiu' - the fiery white grain spirit beloved of Chinese," (The Telegraph).


The LA Times reports on the perfect poolside or picnic wine, a wine with a cheery disposition.

Kirk McKoy / LA Times

Don't forget our weekly contest!

Don't forget our weekly PHOTO CONTEST! Email a picture that in some way relates to wine, be creative! I will post your photo on the blog with a little blurb about it and then we wait and see...Who will get the most comments on their photo!? Whoever has the most comments by Wed June 29 at 3pm wins 2 bottles of wine.  Lets have fun with this one! Start sending in photos!!! I can't wait to see what you all come up with!

We have a WINNER!

Drumroll please!
The answer to the contest questions IS...
There are 2 1/2 lbs of grapes (btwn 550-800 grapes) in one average bottle of wine! Good guessing!

We had a lot of correct answers on diferent social media sites, so we drew a name! And the winner is... Kari Samlaska from Facebook! Congrats!!

Email katie@touringandtasting.com to accept your prize and get the details. Thanks to everyone who participated and come back for more contests!! We love giving prizes!

SANTA BARBARA WINE FESTIVAL TICKET GIVEAWAY

Win TWO tickets to the Santa Barbara Wine Festival June 25 at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History. Answer Touring & Tasting's contest question correctly by Wed June 22 to enter!

HOW MANY GRAPES DOES IT TAKE TO MAKE ONE AVERAGE BOTTLE OF WINE?

Blind Tasting

What are you doing tonight? Why not a Cabernet Sauvignon Blind Tasting!

Photo: www.merryvale.com

This can be a party with lots of friends or a small gathering of roommates and neighbors!

Have your guests bring a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon in a paper bag and give a price limit, say each bottle needs to be under $25. Have one person open all the wines and label the paper bags A, B, C, etc. Make sure there are enough glasses for everyone, have guests bring their own if you don't have enough. Give everyone a pad of paper, have your guests write down what they like and dislike about each wine. Make sure to provide a bucket so your guests can pour out any excess wine. Set out bread and cheese, make sure the cheese is not too full-flavored! At the end, vote on which was the party's favorite, and unveil!

Have fun and let us know how it goes!! Which wine won?

Weekend Wine Answer!

TRUE! Montepulciano is both a city and a grape!

Montepulciano is a medieval and renaissance city in Tuscany, Italy. Montepulciano is known for its spectacular wine, cheese, pork, "pici" pasta, lentils, and honey.

Montepulciano is also a red Italian wine grape variety planted in central and southern Italy. The grape produces wines that are deeply colored and have moderate acidity.

Photo from: www.letsgodine.com

Weekend Wine Quiz

Ready for this weekend's wine quiz? Well, ready or not here it is :)

TRUE or FALSE: Montepulciano is the name of a place AND a grape?

Hope you all have a wonderful wine-filled weekend...cheers!

Wine Quiz Answer!

For everyone who has been anxiously awaiting, the answer to the Weekend Wine Quiz is...

A. Brut is most likely to be the driest designation!


I love Gloria Ferrer's Sonoma Brut! Do you have a favorite? Leave a comment telling us your favorites!

Weekend Wine Quiz

Hey Folks!

It's Friday!! That means it's time for the Weekend Wine Question. The way it works: I ask a question, you comment your guess, and on Monday I give you the correct answer. Let's see how many of you can figure it out!

Here goes...

Which champagne designation is most likely the driest?

A--Brut

B--Cuvee

C--Extra Dry

D--Demi-Sec

Have a good weekend and start commenting!

Contest Winner!

Guy, a 2nd Grade teacher from Las Flores, CA is the Photo Contest winner for this week! He will recieve the International Wine Sampler! Thanks for your great photo Guy!! Congrats!

Tasting in Mariposa - Photo Contest

Guy from Las Flores, CA sent in this photo saying "Salute! Amazing Mariposa, CA, has wine tasting rooms. When visiting Yosemite, be sure to stop downtown and have a toast."

I love Yosemite! I will make sure to stop by some tasting rooms next time I visit. What about you, have you ever tasted wine in Mariposa, CA?

Hemingway on Spanish Wine

"Wine is one of the most civilized things in the world and one of the most natural things of the world that has been brought to the greatest perfection, and it offers a greater range for enjoyment and appreciation than, possibly, any other purely sensory thing"
-Ernest Hemingway

This quote is found in Ernest Hemingway's non-fiction book Death in the Afternoon regarding what Hemingway consideread the "magnificence" of Spanish bullfighting. He fell in love with bullfighting after watching the Pamplona Running of the Bulls in the 1920's.

His fictional novel The Sun Also Rises deals similarly with bullfighting and Spanish wine.

"This wine is too good for toast-drinking, my dear. You don't want to mix emotions up with a wine like that. You lose the taste."
-Ernest Hemingway

Which of Hemingway's quotes do you like better?