Our 2nd annual hosting of a wine, food and music weekend in the city with our fellow recovering oenologists has come and gone. This year's 3 days of quite serious activities involved the 3 elements of our blog, plus a bonus of a boat tour for some, a lot of walking and a trip to the art museum for others. In the end we shared a lot of food, music, wine and just had a great time and learned quite a bit about some new wines and enjoyed some old favorites mixed in. We are trai

Friday could not have come soon enough. So how did we mark the arrival of the weekend? With a Burgundy from one of our favorite winemakers, Fatien Pere et Fils . The 2010 Nuits St.Georges 1er Les Terres Blanches emerged from the bottle, sans decant, a bit more brick in color than the last times we enjoyed a bottle in August 2025 and January 2026. The wine needs nothing more than a few swirls in the glass to open up and for the beautiful, refined and elegant nose and palate

We needed no better excuse than to welcome the arrival of spring to grab a quick dinner (and wine, of course) before heading off for a night of Italian opera selections at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra . To keep it simple we opted for rather last-minute reservations at Cindy's Rooftop , which was full of other like-minded diners and post-work revelers welcoming the new season with a stellar view of Millennium Park and Lake Michigan. The meal was simple; a shared Kale Caesar

2025 started with a memorable journey through 13 wines with friends. The year ended with a less memorable, and wholly unworthy taste of a 2026 “French” Merlot, courtesy of the JW Marriott Seoul (more on our Tokyo and Seoul trip later). We will focus on the happy memories of 1 January 2025 for now and look forward to a fresh year of wine, food and travel experiences in 2026.

Expiring travel award points meant a quick trip to Las Vegas. Some rest, some shopping, some time at the Bellagio tables and, of course, food and wine. A highlight of our dining was at Lago . Our time at the tables didn’t pay off so we skipped the full bottle option of DRC and instead sampled a Veneto sparkling, a Brunello and a Super Tuscan. For our meal we sampled the delicious caviar, an endive salad and gnocchi. Sitting with a stunning view of the Bellagio fountains

What did we select for our Thanksgiving wine of 2025? A Grand Cru Clos-Vougeot of course! This 2002 was a pop-and-pour, and was still holding onto acid, some fruit and the exquisite experience of an older burgundy. More please!

This is a post a long time in the making. We're finally getting our report on our time in Paris in 2024, just as we get ready to return in 2026. We'll keep this short, just the highlights. Paris came at the end of our incredible tour of Champagne and Burgundy . Bidding farewell to Beaune we headed to Paris with our trusty VinGarde packed full of champagne, pinot noir and chardonnay (we won't mention how much more we had shipped). Maison Delano was our hotel for the durat

We happily discovered The Gage offering up Burgundy month in November, and jumped at the chance to revisit one of our favorite regions while staying a bit closer to home. The special menu did not disappoint! This runs for November only, so perhaps we'll visit again next year. We selected the Delice De Bourgogne (with house country bread, fig preserves, herbed salt) along with a glass of Cremant - J. B. Jessiaume “Eminent” Blanc de Blancs and Chardonnay - La Tour-Perrier “V

September 2025 saw us travel out to Portland, OR (by air, not on the wagon trail) for our very first experience being in Willamette Valley.

We're taking a look back at our 2024 visit to France, starting with Champagne and Burgundy.

What a way to start 2025 by sharing so many great wines with friends! The 2025 New Year's Day Selection