Casidy Ward & Timothy Milos - Hidden Ridge Vineyard, Napa, CA http://www.hiddenridgevineyard.com/
(tasted: 2004 Hidden Ridge Sonoma County Cabernet Sauvignon, 2005 Hidden Ridge Sonoma County Cabernet Sauvignon, 2006 Hidden Ridge Sonoma County Cabernet Sauvignon)

Eric Greenspan - The Foundry on Melrose, Los Angeles, CA http://www.thefoundryonmelrose.com/
(tasted: Wines of The Accidental Wine Company http://accidentalwine.com/: 2008 Domaine du Tariquet Ugni White Colombard http://www.tariquet.com, 2007 Montebuena Rioja)

Dan Dunn - The Imbiber (Author: Nobody Likes a Quitter and other reasons to avoid rehab: The Loaded Life of an Outlaw Booze Writer) http://www.theimbiber.net/, http://www.playboy.com/imbiber

Steve Livigni - La Descarga, Hollywood, CA http://www.ladescargala.com/
(tasted: Rhum J.M Agricole, Martinique; Ron Diplomatico Anejo, Venezuela http://www.rondiplomatico.com/; Zaya Gran Reserva 12 Year Old Estate Rum, Trinadad)

Adam Leemon - Adam the Wine Guy http://www.adamthewineguy.com/
(tasted: 2006 Slipstream Fastback Shiraz, 2006 Heartland Director's Cut Shiraz http://www.heartlandwines.com.au/, 2006 Massena "11th Hour" Shiraz Barossa Valley South Australia http://www.massena.com.au/)

To grab a beer, Israel Arrieta doesn't just stroll to the fridge; he has to walk out his back door to the side of the house, where he pries a chicken-wire screen off a basement window and scrambles, crab position, down a wooden ladder.

Several minutes later, he emerges cradling half a dozen cool, dusty bottles of beer.

Arrieta, 27, keeps his beer in the closest thing to a cave: the crawl space under his parents' North Pasadena house. To test it out years ago, he crawled down on a 100-degree afternoon holding a thermometer. It read 60 degrees.

"Light and temperature are going to be your enemies," Read more...

Despite strong aftershocks that continued to rumble Wednesday in devastated areas of Chile following Saturday's massive 8.8 earthquake, the wine industry is beginning to get a clearer picture of its situation.

"We are estimating a loss of 125 million liters of wine [about 14 million cases] with a value of approximately $250 million," said René Merino, president of Wines of Chile, who met earlier today with the association's board, comprised of representatives from Chile's largest wineries. The winery-funded group represents 95 percent of the Chilean wine industry.

"While the number might seem high, it is in fact only about 12 percent of what the 2009 harvest was, by comparison.  Read more...

Adam Leemon - Adam the Wine Guy http://www.adamthewineguy.com/
(tasted: St. Francis Winery Chardonnay Behler Sonoma County 2007 http://www.stfranciswine.com/, Château Julien Barrel Aged Merlot 2006 http://www.chateaujulien.com/ , La Fenêtre À Côté Cabernet Sauvignon 2008 http://www.lafenetrewines.com/, Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi Zinfandel http://www.woodbridgewines.com/)

Derek Buono - Beer Magazine http://www.thebeermag.com/ & Brian Lenzo - The Blue Palms Brew House, Los Angeles, CA http://www.bluepalmsbrewhouse.com/
(tasted: Oskar Blues Brewery Mama's Little Yella Pils http://www.oskarblues.com/, Caldera Brewing Company IPA http://www.calderabrewing.com/, The Bruery Saison Rue http://www.thebruery.com/, Dansk Mjod Viking Blod Mead http://www.mjod.dk/)

David Breitstein - The Duke of Bourbon, Canoga Park, CA http://dukeofbourbon.com/
(tasted: Orin Swift Cellars Saldo 2008 http://www.orinswift.com/, Le Bon Climat -Dick and Marg Denny Pinot Noir 2006 http://www.aubonclimat.com/, Castillo Labastida Rioja Crianza 2005 http://www.winebow.com/, Rioja Vega Reserva 2004 http://www.riojavega.com/)

Tom Leykis is returning to local radio. Starting Feb. 25, he will be on KGIL/1260 AM – “Retro 1260 AM” - from 8 to 10 p.m. Thursdays with his lifestyle program called “The Tasting Room.”

Leykis was among those who lost their talk shows when KLSX 97.1 FM switched to the Top 40 AMP format in February 2009.

KLSX also dropped his syndicated show “The Tasting Room,” which Leykis’ Web site – www.tastingwithtom.com – describes as a “lifestyle-themed program for men with a taste for the finer things life, from fine wine, high-end spirits and craft brews to first-rate dining and premium cigars.” 

When I left CBS, we also severed the relationship...Read more...

TOM DAVIES was driving last fall down Highway 29, the two-lane blacktop that serves as the Napa Valley’s main drag, when he saw something that literally stopped him in his tracks. “There was a sign on the side of the road that said, ‘Cabernet Grapes for Sale,’ ” he recalled, still incredulous that economic desperation had forced a Napa grower to hawk the region’s hallowed fruit like a load of zucchini.

In the 30 years that Mr. Davies, the president of V. Sattui Winery and Vineyards, has worked in the Napa wine business, he has never seen a sight quite so unsettling. “Grapes were left hanging on the vine last year,” he said.

This unusual predicament is not easily remedied at a time when vintners are awash in wine. Read more...

Barry Walsh - Australian Premium Wine Collection http://www.tapwc.com.au/ & World Wine Headquarters http://www.worldwinehq.com/
(tasted: Isabel Estate Sauvignon Blanc 2009, Isabel Estate Pinot Noir 2006, Altivo “Classic” Torrontes 2008, Altivo “Reserva” Malbec 2006, Elderton “Ode to Lorraine” Cab/Shiraz/Merlot 2005, Elderton “Command” Shiraz 2005)

Jonathan Mitchell - The Palm Restaurant, West Hollywood, CA http://www.thepalm.com/
(tasted: Rock Sake http://www.rocksake.com/, 2007 Alta Vista Torrontes & 2006 Alta Vista Single Vineyard Malbec http://www.altavistawines.com/, Oasi degli Angel Kurni Montepulciano http://www.kurni.it/)

Adam Leemon - Adam the Wine Guy http://www.adamthewineguy.com/

Aidan Demarest - The Edison. Los Angeles, CA http://www.edisondowntown.com/

Lyons Brown - Altamar Brands http://www.altamarbrands.com/
(tasted: Right Gin http://www.rightgin.com/)

Winter is quiet time in wine country. Which makes it a very good time for a visit.

With harvest over and future bottles of wine resting peacefully in barrels and tanks, your chances of chatting with a winemaker when you visit a winery is higher. And as temperatures drop, so do crowds and prices, making a getaway less stressful on your psyche and wallet.

Cooler weather — temperatures can be in the 40s and 50s in January, warming up to the 60s in February and March — transforms the valley from exuberant summer splendor to a moodier hue. Winter rains turn hillsides deep green; in the vineyards dormant vines lift spindly arms to misty skies.

It all makes for some good eating weather. Now's the time to feast on the hearty braises and roasts that go best with Napa's... Read more...

David Breitstein - The Duke of Bourbon, Canoga Park, CA http://dukeofbourbon.com/
(tasted: 2005 Silver Oak Cellars Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon http://www.silveroak.com/, 2006 Trivium Cabernet Sauvignon http://www.triviumwine.com/, 2007 Decoy Merlot, 2007 Decoy Cabernet Sauvignon http://www.duckhorn.com/)

Gillian Conway - Conway Family Wines, Arroyo Grande, CA http://www.conwayfamilywines.com/
(tasted: 2008 Deep Sea Sauvignon Blanc, 2008 Deep Sea Viognier, 2008 Deep Sea Pinot Noir, 2008 Deep Sea Syrah, 2007 Rancho Zinfandel 'Dry Farmed')

Natalie Bovis-Nelsen - The Liquid Muse http://www.theliquidmuse.com/
(tasted: The Aviation)

Blood Into Wine, the forthcoming documentary about Maynard James Keenan (front man for Tool, Puscifer and A Perfect Circle) and vineyard partner Eric Glomski's mission to bring notoriety and credibility to Northern Arizona's burgeoning wine industry, begins its theatrical run on February 19 at select theaters across the United States.

Blood Into Wine was co-directed by Ryan Page and Christopher Pomerenke, the team behind critically acclaimed documentaries Moog and The Heart Is a Drum Machine). The documentary was shot using multiple Red One cameras, allowing cinematographer Cary Truelick to capture the craggy landscape surrounding Keenan's vineyards in stunning detail. Editor Robert Beadle skillfully worked with over 200 hours of footage to help craft the story of two pioneer winemakers in an unforgiving region. Read more...