Dr. Liz Thach, MW

A Tasting of the 20 Top Wines in the Beijing Market

Last week I attended an interesting wine tasting in Beijing with 18 Chinese Millennials between the ages of 21 and 34. It was a tasting of the top 20 wines in the Beijing market priced between 200 – 350 RMB ($30 – 55 US). My friend Qin, a wine professor at the Chinese Agriculture University, organized the tasting as part of a research project. The Chinese Millennials were wine buyers, sommeliers, and wine educators working in Beijing. She is also planning on conducting a similar tasting with a group of consumers and comparing the results in order to understand why [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-02-01T22:40:37-08:00September 5, 2012|

Amazing Meal at Da Dong Restaurant in Beijing, China

August 27, 2012 – I am back in China again for the third time in the past six years. It is always enjoyable to arrive in this vibrant country with its ceaseless energy of millions of cars, people, colors, smells, and sounds teeming through the streets. My non-stop 12-hour flight from San Francisco arrived in Beijing at 3:30pm on Monday, August 27 and by 5pm I was already seated at Da Dong Restaurant in downtown Beijing. Qin and Shan met me at the airport and cheerfully pulled my luggage into Shan’s new SUV. Amazingly the traffic on the drive into [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2026-09-14T13:03:59-07:00September 3, 2012|

Visiting Southern Oregon Wineries – Rogue and Applegate Valley AVAs

August 2012 – This week I’m visiting Southern Oregon to participate as a judge in their World of Wine Festival. Though most people think of “pinot noir” when asked about Oregon wine, here in the much sunnier and hotter region of Southern Oregon I encountered some big and muscular reds, and was especially impressed with the tempranillo and malbec wines. Southern Oregon (www.sorwa.org) is home to 70 – 80 wineries including virtual wine brands. The area includes the 3 AVA’s of Umqua Valley in the northern region near the town of Roseburg, the Rogue Valley near Medford, and the Applegate [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2026-09-14T13:22:34-07:00August 21, 2012|

Iowa Wine: Visit to Cedar Ridge, White Cross and Ackerman Wineries Plus Amana and Amish Communities

July 2013 – Iowa is now home to 81 wineries according to www.Iowawineandbeer.com. I am in Iowa City for one week to attend the Summer Writer’s Festival, but had a free afternoon and morning to visit some of the local wineries and the unique Amana and Amish communities’ near-by. All are within a 20 or 30-minute drive of Iowa City. Cedar Ridge Winery – Celebrating Iowa Grapes In the afternoon I drove to Cedar Ridge Winery first because it has the largest vineyards in the area, boasting 10 acres of 10 different varietals. The winery itself is also big by [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2026-09-14T13:22:34-07:00July 23, 2012|

Route of the Cathars: Carcassonne and Renne Le Chateau With Wines of Limoux and Maury, France

June 2012 – Before leaving the US, I read several articles on the Cathars and their unusual and tragic history in the Languedoc-Roussillon area of France. Therefore, I was anxious to visit some of their territory, and was pleasantly surprised to find that the Route of the Cathars coincided with my planned visits to the wine towns of Limoux and Maury. (Wine was introduced into this region in 600 B.C. by the Phoenicians and Greeks.) The Cathars were an usual sect of Christians who were vegetarians and believed in reincarnation. Some of the ancient rumors – picked up by Dan [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2026-09-14T13:12:01-07:00July 15, 2012|

Charming Collioure France: Banyuls Wines & La Balette Restaurant

June 2012 - We have rented an apartment for a week in the seaside town of Collioure in the far southwestern region of France only 20 kilometers from the Spanish border. I visited here once before 15 years ago and fell in love with the charming little village with its calm bay surrounded by church, tower, chateau and stone seawalls. It has narrow streets with houses and stores painted in pastel colors and flowers are everywhere. It is the place where many famous painters came to paint including Matisse, Picasso, and Derain. In addition to sunbathing on the pebbly beaches [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2026-09-14T13:12:02-07:00June 21, 2012|

Loire Valley: Chateau Cheverny & Romorantin Wine

We are spending a week in a French gite an hour south of Paris in the tiny village of Thourey-Ferroutes near Fountainbleu. The gite is quite spacious with 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, full kitchen and living room. It is within the grounds of a large chateau, and the owner Sylvie, is very gracious and speaks perfect English. We are relaxing in the area and also taking day trips. So far we have visited Chartres, Monet’s garden in Giverny (stayed there the first night at a B&B), and took the train to Paris (leaves every 30 minutes from the delightful town [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2026-09-14T13:12:02-07:00June 9, 2012|

Why Millennials Don’t Read Emails

Last night we had our annual SSU Wine Club Board planning meeting at my house. This is usually a relaxed event where we identify the wineries we want to invite to campus next semester, and enjoy a BBQ dinner with many fun wines. This year’s planning dinner was equally enjoyable, but I was struck by our conversation about how we will promote our educational tasting seminars. “We will market the seminars via word of mouth and Facebook, of course,” said our new VP of Marketing. “Most college students never read emails.” As a college professor, I already knew this, but [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-02-01T22:40:58-08:00May 29, 2012|

Wine Galore! Five Wineries Pour for SSU Millennials – Silver Oak, Twomey Cellars, Corkscrew, Azari Vineyard and Dutcher Crossing

By Guest Author Jenna Riggan - The SSU Wine Sense club was fortunate enough to have five awesome wineries pour for us at the most recent Food & Wine Pairing! 50 students tasted wines from Silver Oak, Twomey Cellars, Corkscrew, Azari Vineyard and Dutcher Crossing. Our chefs prepared delicious food as usual, including tri-tip, asparagus and raspberry brownies. Favorite Wines The first favorite wine of the evening was a 2009 Dutcher Crossing Stuhlmuller Vineyard Alexander Valley Chardonnay. ($34.00) This wine was an instant favorite with its floral aromas, and lemon, vanilla and crème brulée flavors. Dutcher Crossing Winery is [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-02-01T22:41:17-08:00April 20, 2012|

What are Favorite Argentina Wines of SSU Millennials?

By guest author, Jenna Riggan - SSU Wine Sense goes to Argentina! We kick-started spring break with a special presentation of five Argentinean wines. SSU students enjoyed exploring new and different wine styles, accompanied by an internationally inspired menu. Our two chefs grilled two large pork loins, served with chimichurri sauce, multi colored potato salad, and dulce de leche crepes. Favorite Wines The first favorite wine of the evening won by a landslide. This 2011 Crios de Susana Balbo Rose of Malbec ($11.99) from the Mendoza region of Argentina wowed tasters with its bright red color, and just a touch of [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-02-01T22:41:40-08:00April 9, 2012|

B.R. Cohn and Shone Farm Shine With Millennials

By Guest Author Jenna Riggan - SSU Wine Sense welcomed Shone Farm and B.R. Cohn for the latest Food & Wine Pairing event. A total of 36 students enjoyed learning about both wineries, and a few attentive tasters walked away with a bottle of B.R. Cohn Estate Grown Olive Oil, and a bottle of B.R. Cohn California Golden Balsamic Vinegar thanks to a raffle hosted by B.R. Cohn’s Stephen Winston! Favorite Wines Shone Farm Winery, located in the heart of the Russian River Valley AVA, is where the Santa Rosa Junior College wine students have the opportunity to be involved [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-05T13:48:31-08:00March 24, 2012|

Blind Wine Tasting Battle with SSU Students and Quivera Winery

By Guest Author: Jenna Riggan - The latest SSU Wine Sense club meeting was full of conversation and member participation. Quivira Vineyards and Winery shared three of their lovely biodynamic wines with 23 students, who were both intrigued and impressed with the elements involved in biodynamic winemaking. Our chefs prepared a hearty meal of Lamb Shepherd's Pie, a mixed green salad with fig vinaigrette, and an insanely delicious rum cake to be paired with the Quivira wines. For a fun twist, SSU Wine Sense officers also organized a blind tasting competition, where SSU Wine Sense members (and Quivira guest Nicholas [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-02-01T22:42:53-08:00March 12, 2012|

An Intimate Tasting with Schweiger and Bouchaine Estate Wineries

The most recent tasting of the SSU WineSense Club was intimate and relaxed. Schweiger and Bouchaine wineries both presented and poured six of their beautiful estate wines. The group of 18 Millennials in attendance really opened up and felt more comfortable asking questions in the more intimate setting. Favorite Wines of the Evening The favorite wine of the evening from Schweiger Vineyards was the 2007 Schweiger Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Spring Mountain District, Napa Valley, Estate Bottled ($58). This was a rich, full-bodied Cabernet with dark berries, chocolate, and toasty oak. It has a very velvety mouth feel with a long [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-02-01T22:43:13-08:00March 2, 2012|

Millennials Toast Toad Hollow Winery

The Spring semester got off to a great start when Toad Hollow Winery agreed to host the first SSU WineSense Club tasting. A total of 46 millennials showed up that evening to learn more about the wines from this Sonoma County winery located in Healdsburg (http://www.toadhollow.com/). The students tasted and toasted to six Toad Hollow wines along with scrumptious food pairings. The wines included: 2010 Chardonnay - Mendocino County, 2011 Rose of Pinot Noir, Sonoma County, 2009 Pinot Noir - Russian River Valley, 2006 Pinot Noir Reserve - Russian River Valley, 2007 Merlot - Russian River Valley, and NV Risque [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-02-01T22:43:44-08:00February 7, 2012|

Why I Love Cabernet Sauvignon

Whenever I am asked that question: "if you were stranded on an island and could only have one bottle of wine, what would it be," my answer is always the same - a great bottle of cabernet sauvignon. Cab is always satisfying - big, rich, tannic with complex fruit and a wonderful accompaniment to meats and strong cheeses. A glass of Cabernet Sauvignon on a cold night near a warm fire is almost a comfort food. But I am not alone in loving cab, because it is now the number one selling red varietal in the U.S. market (Neilsen, Nov. [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-02-01T22:44:05-08:00January 9, 2012|

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