Kris Chislett

Pairings July 3, 2012

Grilled Chicken and Stuffed Avocados Paired with Washington Hills Riesling.

I hadn’t actually intended for this to be a “true pairing,” at least, not on the scale of the pairings I usually post. This one is short and sweet. I’m a firm believer that food and wine pairings don’t need to be these hugely well thought-out, extravagant and time-consuming affairs. If I’m going to be completely honest, the time it takes to cook the meal for my regular pairings, photograph it (usually taking around 50…

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Giveaway July 2, 2012

Win a Soiree Sport Edition Luxury Wine Aerator!

It’s been a little while since my last giveaway, so I’m going all-out on this one! For those of you that aren’t familiar with my personal favorite wine aerator (that I use almost daily), the Soiree: Is made of Boro-silicate glass (aka Pyrex) watch out for cheap/plastic imitators! Works with all kinds of wines, as well as all shapes and sizes of bottles! Prevents dripping. Aerates your wine as you serve it, therefore no waiting!…

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News July 1, 2012

Precept Wine Brands Views Idaho As The Next Big Thing in Wine.

Seattle-based Precept Wine has made headlines in the last few weeks with its purchase of Idaho’s largest winery, Ste. Chapelle, from the bankrupt Ascentia Wine Estates. The deal adds another 150,000 nine-liter cases to the Precept portfolio, which should be just under a million cases by the end of 2012, according to company founder and CEO Andrew Browne. Founded in 2003, Precept made the transition from being purely a sales and marketing firm, to a…

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News July 1, 2012

Hand Harvesting Grapes: Not Everything It’s Cracked up to Be?

The theory view that hand harvesting of grapes produces the best wine is being challenged by new research from the University of Auckland. It shows that machine harvesting produces higher levels of the aromas characteristic of award-winning New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. “There’s always been the issue that perhaps the best wines need to be made only from hand-picked grapes. But this shows that with sauvignon blanc you really are getting the most intense Marlborough style…

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Reviews June 29, 2012

Rendez-vous Chenin Blanc, Clarksburg, California.

Grapes 100% Chenin Blanc   Facts Chenin Blanc! Not exactly the first grape that springs to mind when you think of California! Some people may even say that, as a winemaker, you would have to be CRAZY to bother with a grape which has a relatively low level of consumer recognition. This, when you could much more easily make/market Cab or Chard etc. This leads nicely to my next point… The founder of the Rendez-vous…

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Interview, News June 28, 2012

Ovinte: A Return to the Wine Bar Business for Chad Munsey.

Disclaimer: This interview is normally only something I would post on my sister site: JacksonvilleWineGuide.com, since most of the discussion is very focused towards Jacksonville. However; I think that even if you don’t live in Jacksonville, there’s some very interesting topics of discussion here…   Chad Munsey has been a friend of mine for quite some time, and so when I heard he was opening a new wine bar (in the old Original Pancake House…

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Facts June 26, 2012

Thinking about Buying a Wine Fridge? Read This First!

Over the last couple of months I’ve received a few emails/Facebook comments/carrier pigeons with notes attached to them, from people looking for advice on purchasing a wine fridge. I’m therefore going to defer to the superior knowledge of my good friend Curtis Dahl, co-owner of Joseph & Curtis. His company builds some of the best wine cellars known-to-mankind, and they also stock an impressive selection of wine coolers (as in refrigerators, not the drink…that would…

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Reviews June 25, 2012

Ramsay Petite Sirah, North Coast, California.

  Grapes 100% Petite Sirah (sometimes written as Petit Syrah, although it refers to the same grape).   Facts Petite Sirah is a wine you can’t take lightly. You to be in the mood for it. That’s because Petite Sirah typically has about as much subtlety and restraint as being awoken in the morning to a 300lb man in a dark purple suit, jumping up-and-down on your bed, singing Bohemian Rhapsody, while he simultaneously throws…

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News June 22, 2012

Steve Carell used to be a Wine Telemarketer?

According to a recent interview in Parade.com, funnyman Steve Carell wasn’t always in the acting biz. Responding to the question: “What was your worst pre-fame gig?”  Steve answered with: “At one point, I was a wine telemarketer. Talking people into buying wine on the phone is not an easy job to begin with, but when you don’t know anything about wine and you really don’t drink it, it becomes even more difficult.” Click here for…

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News June 22, 2012

The Donald Fires Patricia Kluge from her Own Winery.

  Mr Donald Trump has once again uttered his famous catchphrase “YOU’RE FIRED!!!” to the one-time famously wealthy socialite Patricia Kluge, and removed her from her own former Kluge winery. Kluge — who famously won a divorce settlement in 1990 from billionaire media mogul John Kluge — proceeded to spend her $100 million dollars on a 1,000 acre Charlottesville, Va wine estate, complete with mansion. With the downturn in the economy and even at one…

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