Aaron Romano

2 months ago | winespectator.com | Aaron Romano

Andy Nusser, chef and partner at Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence–winning restaurant Casa Mono in New York, can’t stop talking about his fascination with pimentón, a seasoning essential to Spanish cuisine.

2 months ago | winespectator.com | Aaron Romano |Collin Dreizen

Who's behind it: San Francisco's Bacchus Management Group runs several Bay Area restaurants, including Grand Award winners Spruce and the Village Pub, as well as Best of Award of Excellence winner Selby's. The group has expanded its portfolio with Augustine and the adjoining Cafe Augustine on San Jose's Santana Row, a lively luxury shopping and residential district where Bacchus has operated Pizza Antica for more than 20 years.

Mar 20, 2025 | winespectator.com | Greg Warner |Julia Larson |Aaron Romano

Who's behind it: Restaurateur Stephen Starr and his Starr Restaurants group reopened, and reimagined, a legendary Washington, D.C., restaurant: the Occidental. Located in the historic Willard Hotel, just a block from the White House, the restaurant has been a dining destination for the country's political leaders since opening in 1906. Starr took over ownership a year and a half ago, following a pandemic-induced closure.

Mar 12, 2025 | winespectator.com | Mitch Frank |Aaron Romano

Could 2025 be a year of opportunity for Chilean wine in the U.S.? After rough years of slowing sales, 2024 brought big gains for producers sending their wines to the U.S., the South American nation's third-biggest market. And while value-priced bottles continue to be the country's main wine export to the U.S., wines priced between $10 to $20 per bottle are starting to gain traction. That price point just happens to be the most promising segment of the U.S. wine market right now.

Mar 6, 2025 | winespectator.com | Aaron Romano

Wine Spectator has learned that Cliff Lede Vineyards has acquired the 7.5-acre vineyard adjacent to the winery's Stags Leap District facility, increasing its estate vineyard holdings to more than 160 acres in Napa Valley. Since 2002, the Lede family had leased the vineyard and farmed it for its owners, the Andelin family. Lede's total production is 20,000 cases annually. "This was a generational opportunity," said general manager and COO Jason Lede.