Wine Travel Stories

In-depth Tales of Winery Visits Around the World

Miolo Winery – One of the Most Beautiful Wineries in Brazil

(June 2018) The first view of Miolo Winery almost takes your breath away. It seems like a fairytale winery with its impressive gates and tall tower, all nestled amongst flowing vineyards and sleeping mountains filled with fog. I took this photo of Miolo Winery from my hotel room on the first morning of my visit to Brazilian wine country. Since I arrived late at night, I had no idea what I would see when I opened the curtains in the morning, but this was the view. At the time, I didn’t know it was Miolo Winery, but was very pleased [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-22T22:27:29-08:00August 2, 2018|

Casa Valduga – Brazilian Wine So Rare Thieves Steal It

(June 2018) It was a bright sunny morning when I visited Casa Valduga in the Serra Gaucha wine region of Southern Brazil. Elisa Walker, Export Coordinator, met us at the front door with a large smile, gesturing for us to enter the spacious tasting room and retail shop. Immediately I was reminded of Robert Mondavi Winery in Napa Valley, not only for the large size of place with countless different types of wines for sale, along with grape-based cosmetics, glasses, and souvenirs, but because the winery was the first in the region to focus on tourism – just like Robert [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-22T22:27:53-08:00July 24, 2018|

Pizzato Winery – Waterfalls and Cool Climate Merlot in Southern Brazil

(June 2018) Pizzato Winery is halfway up a very windy road in the Serra Gaucha wine region of Southern Brazil. I had to hold onto the side of the car as we twisted and turned around mountain bends, with long drops into a tree filled canyon below. Finally we arrived at a small tasting room perched on the side of a hill, with a large deck overlooking a magnificent range of mountains with a long white waterfall in the distance. To the left were rows of vineyards stretching out across the hillside and fading into the distance. What a beautiful [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-22T22:28:15-08:00July 21, 2018|

Cave Geisse – Home of Highly Ageable Sparkling Wine and Burrowing Owls in Brazil

(June 2018) We arrived at Cave Geisse in the late morning, when the fog was just beginning to lift from the long green rows of chardonnay and pinot noir vines. Nestled in the Serra Gaucha wine region of southern Brazil, Cave Geisse is one of the oldest and most prestigious sparkling wine producers, with a cellar full of vintage sparkling wines made in the Champenoise method. The winery and it surrounding vineyards are ideally located in the Pinto Banderia GI, which is a cool climate area dedicated to sparkling wine production. It is also an area rich in bird life, [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-22T22:28:38-08:00July 14, 2018|

Fun Facts about Brazilian Wine

If your only reason to go to Brazil is to play on white sandy beaches and drink caipirinhas, think again. Instead consider heading further south to the Brazilian wine region of Serra Gaucha, about 375 miles north of the Uruguay border in a cool hilly region that looks like Northern Italy. Indeed this region was settled by immigrants from the Veneto and Trentadoc regions of Northern Italy in the 1880’s, and, of course, they planted grapes and made wine. This region of Brazil also has many excellent Italian restaurants, as well as Brazilian steakhouses to celebrate the fact that this [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-22T22:29:00-08:00July 10, 2018|

Don’t Shake That Sherry at Bodega Delgado Zuleta

(June 2018) Bodega Delgado Zuleta is located on the outskirts of Sanlucar, Spain in an industrial area with plentiful parking. They are one of the largest sherry wineries in Spain, and are the producer of the famous La Goya Manzanilla brand. Their partner winery, Barbiana, is also housed at this complex. Established in 1744, the winery has over 1,000 hectares of vineyards, and produces millions of bottles of wine each year. I arrived in the afternoon and was met by Eva Jimenez who is a sherry expert living in the area, and also a great tour guide and [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-22T22:29:23-08:00July 7, 2018|

Bodega Hidalgo: A Visit to La Gitana Vineyard and the Tambourine Gypsy Lady

(June 2018) I was thrilled when I learned that Fermin Hidalgo, youngest son and director of the family operated Bodega Hidalgo in Sanlucar, wanted me to meet him at the La Gitana Vineyard. The only problem is that both Google and Apple maps do not know where the vineyard is. When I explained this dilemma to Inma at the Wines of Sherry Office, she said “Just look for Exit 17 on the highway between Jerez and Sanlucar. Then you will see a large building surrounded by vineyards with the words “La Gitana” painted on the side of it.” [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-22T22:29:44-08:00July 6, 2018|

Bodega Gonzalez-Byass: Home of Tio Pepe and the Sherry Drinking Mouse

(June 2018) After circling the cobblestone streets around Bodega Gonzalez-Byass in Jerez, Spain twice, I gave up on finding street parking, and finally descended into the large underground parking lot nearby. At the gates of the winery I was welcomed by Simon Leth-Nissen, International Brand Manager, a fluent Spanish and English speaker originally from Denmark. As we started our walking tour, a brightly colored red train trundled by filled with tourists. Simon explained that they receive thousands of tourists every year from around the world. This is due, primarily, to the great success of their bread and butter brand, [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-22T22:35:08-08:00July 5, 2018|

Bodega Tradicion: Home of Low Interventionist Sherry and Famous Paintings

The entrance to Bodega Tradicion is along an old cobblestone street and then through a wooden door into a simple tree shaded courtyard with a few welcoming benches. We were greeted by Eduardo Davis, Export Manager, who provided us with an excellent tour and an overview of the bodega’s history. Bodega History and Production Originally established in the 1650’s by the Rivero family, the bodega had many prestigious years until it was sold to an investment firm and later fell into bankruptcy. The family was able to buy it back and in 1995 changed the name to Bodega [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-22T22:35:30-08:00July 4, 2018|

“Wine That Travels” – A Short History of Sherry

(June 2018) It was so exciting to finally arrive in the land of sherry – that famous fabled wine that has traveled the world. We caught an 11:30 flight on Iberia Airlines from Madrid to Jerez, and by 1pm were already departing the small airport in our Hertz rental car. As we drove towards our resort hotel on the ocean just south of Sanlucar, we passed rolling hills covered in bright yellow sunflowers and green verdant vineyards filled with palomino and pedro ximenez grapes. The blue sky and warm temperatures in the mid 70’s was welcome after the cooler temperatures [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-22T22:36:18-08:00July 4, 2018|

Vega Sicilia – The Ultimate Iconic Winery of Spain

(June 2018) There are certain times in life when you taste a wine that is so magnificent that it transports you into another century. That is what happened to me the first time I tasted Vega Sicilia Unico Gran Reserva a few years ago. We were attending a pool party at a friend’s house, when one of the guests approached me with an open bottle of 1986 Vega Sicilia. “My company is relocating me to Europe,” he said, “but I cannot bring my wine collection, so I’ve decided to share some of my favorite bottles with friends here tonight.” [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-22T22:36:39-08:00June 25, 2018|

Visiting Marques de Riscal – A Bucket List Item Achieved

(June 2018) For many wine lovers a visit to Marques de Riscal Winery in Rioja is a bucket list item. It definitely was for me, and not just to taste the delicious wine, but to stay overnight in their masterpiece hotel designed by Frank Gehry. With swirling patterns of pink, purple and silver, the famous architecture feat appears to be a decadent piece of salt water taffy floating on a sea of green vineyards. The chance to stay in such a magnificent location, now operated by Starwood as a luxury resort, compelled me to consult my SPG loyalty points and [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-22T22:37:11-08:00June 21, 2018|

The Best Wine Sales Person in the World – from Vietnam!

“Hey, lady, do you want to buy some wine?” A female voice with a Vietnamese accent called out to me, and I glanced over the side of our boat to see a small woman in a bright orange shirt holding a bottle of wine. She was standing up in one of the many small “grocery store” boats that we had seen sailing around Halong Bay all day. These boats were filled with different types of food, drink and household supplies to sell to the tourist boats and locals who lived on boats in the Bay. Lady Selling Wine from [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-22T22:37:35-08:00June 6, 2018|

Will America Soon Have a Rosé Wine Aisle Like France?

My sister adores rosé wine, so when we visited France recently, I took her to one of the many large French grocery stores and introduced her to the rosé wine aisle. She nearly swooned in delight. Various-pink and salmon hued bottles of wine were lined up on both sides of a very long aisle. The wines were from all regions of France, including Provence, the Rhone, Languedoc, Bordeaux, Burgundy, Alsace, and other locals. In fact, the rose wine aisle in French grocery stores is usually similar in size and length to the red and white wine aisles, because 35% of [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-22T22:37:58-08:00May 27, 2018|

Cattin Winery in Alsace – Creating Captivating Cremants & Great Wine Tourism Experiences

(March 2018) On my most recent trip to Alsace, my friend Coralee took me to visit Cattin Winery. Established in 1720, the winery is now operated by the 12th generation of the family – husband and wife team Jacques and Anais Cattin. What makes Cattin distinctive is their line-up of captivating cremants, as well as their unique wine tourism experiences. Modern Tasting Room at Cattin Winery Cattin’s Modern Tasting Room in the Village of Voegtlinshoffen After a delicious lunch in Colmar at Restaurant Maison de Tetes, we drove about 20 minutes to Voegtlinshoffen - one of the many [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-22T22:38:20-08:00April 8, 2018|

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