davidmcduff

In case anyone has been wondering, no, I haven't stopped drinking and enjoying wine. Since the beginning of the New Year, journeys in Friuli aside, I've just been struggling to find the time to write about it. With that in mind, I hope you'll forgive me the indulgence of a few quick tasting notes, as dinner with friends last night afforded the opportunity to dive into a few interesting bottles. We kicked things off with a pair of 2005 Muscadets to accompany a killer pot of salmon rillettes... Read Full Story

I hate to say it but yes, after a week of silence, this is just a teaser post.  This Thursday, February 24, I'll be conducting an Introduction to Burgundy class at Tria Fermentation School in Center City Philadelphia.  The session has been sold out for weeks; nonetheless, I thought I'd share what I'll be pouring for any who might be attending and can't wait to find out, as well as for those who might like to research, shop, drink and/or drool along. Here's what I'll be pouring.  It's a... Read Full Story

At the top of a hill in Corno di Rosazzo, just steps across the border from the Collio into the Colli Orientali del Friuli zone, lies the estate known as I Clivi ("the slopes," in ancient Italian).  I Clivi occupies one of the more privileged sites in the COF zone, with vines rooted in a soil base rich in calcareous marl, known locally as ponca (or flysch), an ideal environment for traditional Friulano varieties and a terroir that lends an intensely mineral signature and compact, focused acid... Read Full Story

---------- Original content published at McDuff's Food & Wine Trail . All work copyright David McDuff and licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NC-ND Works 3.0 Unported License . Read Full Story

As I mentioned yesterday and as many of my colleagues have also reported, each day of our trip thus far has begun, at least in the "official" capacity, with a thematic tasting organized by the staff of the Consorzio dei Colli Orientali del Friuli.  Thus far, we've worked our way through fairly extensive lineups of Friulano (day one), Sauvignon (day two), as well as Schippettino and Pignolo (on day three). The 2006 Pignolo from Conte d'Attimis-Maniago was one of the standouts, for me, of... Read Full Story

The highlight of yesterday's itinerary, for me, was an all too brief visit at Ronco del Gnemiz .  More on that later.... This morning I'll have to let the pictures do most of the talking, as I've just enough time for a quick post before heading off to the Consorzio to taste a lineup of Schioppettino and Pignolo.   The dogs were cute; the 2009 Sauvignon "Peri" was gorgeous. ---------- Original content published at McDuff's Food & Wine Trail . All work copyright David McDuff and... Read Full Story

Our first official winery visit of the COF2011 (this was on Monday, mind you) took us to Azienda Agricola Valentino Butussi, in the hamlet of Corno di Rosazzo neat the southern boundaries of the Colli Orientali del Friuli.  It should come as no surprise that we tasted many a wine over the course of lunch; a welcome surprise, equally as pleasant, came in the form of a lesson on the history of the region that wove its way through the conversations during our midday repast. The river Judrio... Read Full Story

After a long flight from Philly to Paris, what seemed like twenty laps around Charles de Gaulle airport in a terminal transport bus, and another short flight (which happened to feature some truly stunning views of the Vosges and the Alps as "my" jet passed over Strasbourg and Grenoble before taking the slight bend down toward Italy), I finally got to greet my patiently waiting cast of fellow wine warriors with a big hug for each as we united in the Venice airport. Another ninety minutes... Read Full Story

In just a few hours, I'll be boarding a plane to Paris, final flight destination Venice, where I'll be meeting up with my friends Jeremy, Wayne, Alfonso, Samantha and Nicolas.  From there, it's on to our digs in Colli Orientali del Friuli, where we'll be spending a week getting better acquainted with the region's vines, wines and some of their growers. I'm looking forward to meeting our "handlers" from the Consorzio dei Colli Orientali del Friuli tomorrow.  Above, from left: Director... Read Full Story

Given that I've been maintaining strict radio silence here for well over a week, I figured it's about time to make a little noise... even if it is just to put in a somewhat self-promotional plug. On Thursday, February 24, I'll be returning to the podium at Philly's Tria Fermentation School to lead an overview of the wines of Burgundy .  Here's the plug for the class (I wrote most of it, so I figured it'd be okay to lift it) taken directly from today's announcement of Tria's February... Read Full Story