Pedro Ximenez is an interesting dessert wine from Spain (although it is sometimes made into a dry wine as well). Typically, the grapes are allowed to dry out to effectively become raisins prior to fermentation, and the result is an intensely sweet wine that is subsequently fortified into a sherry. A sweet, sweet, almost syrupy-like … Read more
While studying for my WSET Diploma, I found myself enrolled in the fortified class (D5) and studying all things sherry, port, Madeira, and VDN to name a few. Historically, I have to admit not being too fond of sherries as the traditionally lower acidity and unique flavors from maturation (in particular the biologically aged fino … Read more
Have you ever been in a wine store and confused over the sheer volume and types of wine? We’ve been there. Thankfully, when you stop to think of it the world of wine can be simplified down into a handful of core styles. So let’s break down the various wine types you may see and … Read more
We always have a soft spot to try orange wines as they typically offer a unique flavor profile that is a bit unlike anything else you can find. Throw in the fact that they can often be made of grapes (or blends of grapes) that are a bit more unusual to see and in some … Read more
When it comes to celebrating Valentine’s Day, we love nothing more than staying in, cooking a good meal, and opening up a great bottle of wine. So if you’re like us, you may wonder what type of wine to pair with your meal. Whether you’re cooking up some fancy seafood or steaks, something vegetarian, or … Read more
If there was a module of WSET Diploma I was looking forward to, insofar as one can look forward to studying at this intense level, it most certainly was D5: Fortified Wines. Part of this was because I simply adore fortified wines and was looking forward to studying (read: drinking), part was because I knew … Read more
WSET Diploma’s D5 module is all about fortified wine. On the surface, this one sounds like a somewhat straightforward module if only because there aren’t that many fortified wine categories and styles out there in the world. But, as with all things WSET, simply stating this fact makes the program easier said than done. The … Read more
At the heart of The Grape Pursuit is our quest to try every grape varietal in the world. On the surface, that seems like an easy quest to define- seek out and drink as many wines with new varieties as possible. This means all red wine types and all white wine types that are out … Read more
