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Perhaps Casa Vinicola Bertani’s logo should be Janus or the twins, Castor and Pollux. The Veronese house annually produces, on the one hand, almost 1.5 million bottles of good-quality wines, mostly characteristic of the region, on the other, an average of 8O,OOO bottles of exquisite, hand-made, nearly immortal Amarone. Neither... Read More

Without a doubt, 2OO9 is the finest Beaujolais vintage that I have ever experienced. As a major fan and long term advocate for the region’s wine, I conduct semi-annual blind tastings to ferret out the gems, but with 2OO9 the quality across the board was so exceptional that deciding on... Read More

Don’t know if you’ve noticed, but when you walk into most craft beer-focused bars these days, the taps run a little bit on the heavy side. 7% IPA, 8% double amber ale, 9% imperial IPA, 6% weissbier, 12% imperial stout . . . I’ve been in places where there were... Read More

Take a close look at beverage menus around the country, and you may start noticing an interesting ingredient in cocktails – beer!  The popularity of craft brews has been growing steadily over the years, resulting in a larger share of shelf space as well as expanded beer lists at bars... Read More

Summer will be upon us in Boston with high temperatures and humidity to match.  For those days when it feels too swampy to even move, we suggest lounging about with a Roof Garden Cooler in hand.  The drink, which comes to us by way of David Wondrich’s Killer Cocktails, is... Read More

LEN ROTHENBERG 63Owner, Federal Wine & Spirits, Boston Federal Wine and Spirits has been Len Rothenberg’s baby for 25 years, and he still thinks of it in terms of a congenial 197Os folk club.  Federal has become a hangout for wine enthusiasts, a ‘coffeehouse’ for the exchange of enthusiasm and... Read More

Our blood vessels are not simply passive conduits, but are actively engaged in self-preserving defenses against the stresses they must put up with every millisecond. This is particularly true of arteries, vital carriers of blood laden with oxygen and nutrients to our tissues under high pressure and often amid punishing... Read More

Marco de Bartoli was one of the key protagonists in the development of a quality Sicilian wine industry. Without the support of the Marsala wine trade, he proposed a version of Marsala that harked back to its historic roots and made no compromises to quality. He awakened Italy to the... Read More

Through an informative recent visit, I have had the pleasure of becoming acquainted with a winery previously unfamiliar to me, Niner Wine Estates. Located in Paso Robles, it again confirms that each of California’s Central Coast winegrowing areas is distinctive. Paso Robles, about half way between Los Angeles and San... Read More