Archive for the History Category

• REAL Value on a Budget - August 27th, 2010

  My ears perked up… like a deer. What I was listening to was the thought in my mind for a particular taste in wine. As I moved in the direction of action, I realized my wallet was not in sync with the thoughts spreading from my mind to my taste buds. The $18 for the [...]

• A Bloggin’ Slideshow - August 1st, 2010

  Images from the Wine Blogger’s Conference 2010, a 3 day extravaganza, from June 24-26, that included 300 Wine Blogger’s tasting, talking, writing, blogging, tweeting, eating… and occasionally sleeping. This occurred all in one building, with the exception of several outings in and around Walla Walla, Washington. Images of wineries and vineyards visited in this video [...]

• 10 Things About… - July 30th, 2010

  Wherein we give you 10 tidbits about the topic dujour – factoids & ideas, sometimes a specific winery, region, conference or workshop. But always something to get you thinking. . Here we start with 10 things (nuggets and personal take aways) from a workshop on bees taken at a biodynamic farming program at the Rudolf [...]

• Ciel du Cheval, s’il vous plait - July 27th, 2010

  Three days of running around with 300 passionate, witty, wild and crazy wine bloggers (at the 2010 Wine Blogger’s Conference in Walla Walla, WA) with hardly an exhale …and I was cooked! Honoring a pre-conference enthusiasm that didn’t know the definition of enough, I had signed up for a post-conference excursion. In the moment, thoughts [...]

• We’re Rebuilding the Website - November 22nd, 2009

  Changes are in the air… ConsciousWine has a new business partner. His name is Vinny Liscio. I (Jeff W.) met him as a customer of the wine shop (Suburban Wines & Spirits in Yorktown Heights, NY) that I was the wine director of from ’98-04. Our mission statement is to support future generations by making [...]

• A Farmers Market Story - August 14th, 2009

  I was visiting Hollywood Beach, Florida. Walking on the boardwalk, I discovered Josh’s Organic Market and Juice Bar. After a totally refreshing mostly green vegetable juice, I started to look around at the vegetables themselves. They were glowing in colorful delight and something seemed a little strange. The washed out shades of veggie colors from my supermarket shopping habits were nowhere to be found. I noticed a sign said, …

• Finding Biodynamics Part 1 - June 20th, 2009

  As a NY retailer, I gathered a dozen high end California Cabernet lovers to taste 9 high end California Cabernet-based blends. The wines were presented in numbered paper bags. This event occurred at Peter Pratt’s Inn in Yorktown Heights, NY. Wines included in the mix were rock stars Bryant Family, Colgin, Harlan, Araujo, Pride Cab Reserve and Quintessa. No Screaming Eagle since we wanted to keep the noise level down.

• Our Scoring System - June 1st, 2009

  As a buyer for a large wine shop in the NY area, I needed a way to decide if the wine I was considering purchasing for the store was a good buy for the consumer I wanted to sell it to… and whether the odds were good that they would come back and buy it again.

  In my early days of school 65 was a passing grade, 70 worthy of an exhale, 80 meant competent, 90 was ask the parents for something, …

  With that In mind I created the following as a 10-point scoring system to evaluate wine.

• How I Got Started - April 1st, 2009

  My Mom & Dad went to Italy two years in a row when I was 12 & 13. That led to a bottle of wine on the dinner table every night. In high school, I was blessed with a mythology teacher who dated a friend of mines’ Mom, who was French… and of course could [...]

• Losing my Virginity As a Wine-Educator… - March 24th, 2009

  I was working wine wholesale in NY, and a retailer friend asked me to speak for his wine society. I agreed. I forgot to consult my nerves on the decision, and come the night of the tasting, they were particularly tangled up. The gathered group was just over 30, and I was alone on the [...]