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by PINK LADY We LUPEC gals enjoy gathering around the punch bowl at literally any time of the year, but there is something extra special about a punch party at the holidays. Any cocktail can be made into punch if you build it big enough, so live your life. However,... Read More

by KIRSTEN AMANN The holiday shopping season is upon us, a time for celebrating and relaxing with friends and loved ones . . . or is it? For many of your customers, this is a harried and hectic time of year that will be over before they know it. Why... Read More

by SANDY BLOCK, MW Any attempt to delineate California “First Growths” is by nature subjective, but there are a finite number of Cabernet-based wines that by reputation, track record, and the price they command should be in the discussion. Trying to narrow it down is a pointless exercise. Each of... Read More

by HARVEY FINKEL What’s on offer today? How about big, juicy, multifaceted, ageable reds that you may never have heard of, that are less costly than their neighbors, that are bidding to imminently materialize in the American market? Montecucco, in the northeastern corner of Tuscany’s Maremma, immediately south of more... Read More

by PINK LADY As New Englanders don sweaters and light coats suiting up for crisp fall temperatures, many drinkers among us will pivot away from the gin & tonics and White Claw that captured our fancy as summer porch pounders, back towards brown spirits. Welcome back, whiskey! Ease your way... Read More

By Kirsten Amann The Massachusetts beverage industry lost one of our brightest innovators and boldest leaders in June with the passing of Michael Brody, Executive Vice President, Spirits for M.S. Walker. Michael was a 46-year veteran of the industry who spent his career shaping the company and culture at M.S.... Read More

By Andy Crouch The journey of hops as mere preservative to dominant flavor and aromatic ingredient in beer has been a windy one. Once cast aside as purely offering unpleasant bitterness, American beer enthusiasts and brewers have embraced hops to all ends of the spectrum. Brewers now routinely work with... Read More

By Harvey Finkel Alicante Bouschet, a blue-collar, red-fleshed grape variety of waning popularity in southern France, has achieved elite status in southern Portugal’s Alentejo region. Officially named Alicante Henri Bouschet, this cross of Garnacha (Grenache) with Petit Bouschet was developed by the eponymous Henri Bouschet in the Hérault in 1855,... Read More

By Pink Lady As summer started late in these parts, we predict that you should extend your summer-y cocktail sipping plans well into early October. The days may get shorter and your bar or store might be getting busier (hallelujah!) but there’s no telling if a September afternoon will be... Read More