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Events

A collection of 121 posts

A horizontal retrospective tasting of 2016 shows it's a vintage with something for everyone

A horizontal retrospective tasting of 2016 shows it's a vintage with something for everyone

We kick off each year with comprehensive tasting of the wines we made ten years ago. In terms of overall quality, we can't remember another vintage that we thought showed as well from beginning to end as these 2016's did.

Choosing an older Esprit Blanc for Vinous Icons

Choosing an older Esprit Blanc for Vinous Icons

In February, I'll be heading to New York to pour at the third annual Vinous Icons event. This event is a big honor for us; last year's guest list reads like a "who's who" of the great wine estates of the world. We have an opportunity to pour an older wine the second night. But which vintage?

Reimagining the Rhone Rangers Experience

Reimagining the Rhone Rangers Experience

I've been on the board of the Rhone Rangers since 2004. A lot has changed, for the organization and the world, since then. We've decided 2026 is the moment to shake up our signature event, in three ways.

Grenache Through the Years: A Study of Delectation

By Chelsea Franchi Wine, at its very core, is about joy. Even within the most lauded, serious, imposing bottles, there’s a spark of elation to be found and savored. There is joy in the wine itself, of course – but just as much in the hearts of those who share

An appreciation of one of the most ambitious and exciting wine dinners I've hosted... and the remarkable Master Sommelier behind it

I just got back from two weeks on the east coast. This most recent week I was in Washington DC representing the members of WineAmerica, meeting with the offices of our senators and representatives, advocating for policies that will help American wineries. The week before, I was in New York,

Social media used to be a lousy way to promote wine events. Then we started thinking of it like we were a band on tour.

Last year I started thinking differently about one of the ways that we use social media at Tablas Creek. What spurred it was my own effort to get out and see more live music now that our kids are getting older and are mobile on their own or out of

Lessons from My "Be Your Own Influencer" Panel This Week

This past week I made the long drive up to Sacramento to be a part of a panel at the California wine community's most important trade show, the Unified Grape and Wine Symposium. The panel was titled "Be Your Own Influencer" and was organized and moderated

Tablas Creek Through Three Eras: Tasting Every Esprit de Beaucastel and Esprit de Tablas, 2000-2023

There are two ways that we try to work systematically through the collection of wines in our library. At the beginning of each year, we taste every wine we made ten years earlier. These horizontal retrospectives give us an in-depth look at a particular year, and a check-in with how

What separates a great wine dinner from the many good ones?

I've hosted a lot of wine dinners the last few months. Restaurants, understaffed and overwhelmed in the aftermath of Covid, are starting to have the bandwidth to refocus on special events. Add to that the fact that after a few years where yields were low and demand was

Celebrating 25 years of Dianthus… and the return of rosés with color

A couple of weeks ago, I got an email from two of my wine writing heroes, Dorothy Gaiter and John Brecher, long time wine columnists for the Wall Street Journal, creators of “Open that Bottle Night” and authors of Love by the Glass1. They had brought a bottle of our