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1 week ago | 
grapecollective.com | Dorothy J. Gaiter |John Brecher
We began to enjoy the taste of wine soon after we met in 1973, but we began to love wine when we discovered its stories. Hugh Johnson’s “The World Atlas of Wine” gave it geographical context. Even more important to us was Leon D. Adams’s “The Wines of America,” which felt like a guided tour of people and history, like this section on Michigan:
“Two more wineries in Paw Paw offer tours and tasting.
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1 month ago | 
grapecollective.com | Dorothy J. Gaiter |John Brecher
We’ve all had those moments during our wine journeys. Whether we’re new to wine or old hands, some bottles touch us most deeply. They have something beyond great tastes, textures and noses. Something close to soul. We recently had that experience in a way we were not expecting.
We met Éric Taillet for lunch. He makes about 4,500 cases of Champagne in the Marne Valley of France from the “other” grape of Champagne, Pinot Meunier, which is usually a supporting player to Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.
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1 month ago | 
grapecollective.com | Dorothy J. Gaiter |John Brecher
We celebrated Open That Bottle Night with a bottle of Dad’s favorite Brunello. It was just as fab as the last time I drank it with him,
--Phil Masturzo, Akron
When we invented Open That Bottle Night in 1999, to persuade people to finally uncork the wine they’ve been saving forever for a special occasion, we had no idea we’d create a worldwide community. Every year, OTBN, on the last Saturday of February, is wonderful. But this year touched people more deeply.
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Jan 24, 2025 | 
grapecollective.com | Dorothy J. Gaiter |John Brecher
Michael Hirby and Schatzi Throckmorton, owners of Relic Wine Cellars in Napa, which makes complex small-batch wines using old-school methods, have a lot to celebrate this year. “It’s our 25th harvest. It’s our 10th year in our winery and it’s our 20th wedding anniversary,” Throckmorton told us when we called the other day to interview them.
As any couple who works together in any industry can attest, it’s difficult to be life partners and work partners.
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Jan 10, 2025 | 
grapecollective.com | Dorothy J. Gaiter |John Brecher
Every January, we smile at the first sightings, regular as clockwork: people in new running outfits, determined this year—after perhaps other false starts—to finally get into the habit of running. We nod at each other, recognizing the new class of hopeful souls, and silently wish them success.
New Year’s resolutions can be difficult to honor. Committing to the gear can only get you so far.
If your new interest is wine, you’ve selected a challenging time to dive in.
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Nov 1, 2024 | 
grapecollective.com | Dorothy J. Gaiter |John Brecher
When we were new to wine in the 1970s, before America really warmed to it, there was a lot of unusual stuff on shelves. We drank quite a bit of Bull’s Blood from Hungary, for instance, which was charmingly rough-hewn but inexpensive. U.S. winemakers were still experimenting, too. We will always remember the Napa sparkling wine pioneer Hanns Kornell at his tasting room, proudly pouring a traditionally made bubbly made from a grape called Muscat of Alexandria.
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Oct 18, 2024 | 
grapecollective.com | Dorothy J. Gaiter |John Brecher
We understand that baseball and wine is, unfortunately, an odd pairing. We wrote last year that the NBA and many of its players have fully embraced wine. Baseball, not so much. While there are some players who love wine – Rusty Staub of the Expos and Mets was the first we recall, long-time manager Dusty Baker has a winery, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts is a partner in the Red Stitch wine brand and former Cubs manager Joe Maddon is a huge fan -- baseball and beer seem synonymous.
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Oct 4, 2024 | 
grapecollective.com | Dorothy J. Gaiter |John Brecher
We remember when New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc was new and exciting. It was vibrant and pure. Drinking it was like ringing a bell. In time, too many became predictable and boring. They became paint-by-numbers wines — pleasant enough, but they could have been created in an AI lab if AI could create wine (hmmmm). But a few weeks ago, we went to a portfolio tasting of Vintus New York, an offshoot of the 20-year-old importer and wholesaler of family-owned, conscientiously made wineries around the world.
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Sep 20, 2024 | 
grapecollective.com | Dorothy J. Gaiter |John Brecher
We admire the notion that one can do well by doing good. And it’s especially great when a long-established business attempts to tack in a positive direction ahead of its peers and pulls that off.
We recently caught a bus and went to Harlem to Melba’s, a Black-woman owned restaurant that opened its doors in 2004. On the drinks list was a wine we’d only heard about: House of Brown, the second label of groundbreaking Brown Estate winery in Napa’s Chiles Valley.
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Sep 6, 2024 | 
grapecollective.com | Dorothy J. Gaiter |John Brecher
The clock just struck Beaujolais for us.
Beaujolais is a great year-round wine. It’s excellent with a wide variety of dishes, from seafood to outdoor grilling to hearty stews. And, of course, for one day in November, Beaujolais Nouveau is a great excuse for a harvest party. So, like Meryl Streep, it can be whatever you want it to be, without ever losing its own character.
