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Chianti Classico

For many years, Chianti Classico has wanted little to do with Chianti. From 1932 until 1996, Chianti Classico was legally a subzone of Chianti. Chianti Classico, however, felt and continues to feel that Chianti blemishes its image. The overall standard of quality of Chianti is lower than that of Chianti...
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Revisiting the French Paradox

Not quite the solution to the french paradox. Just before Christmas 2OO1, the research group led by Roger Corder, PhD, at the William Harvey Research Institute in London, stimulated a flurry of excitement by publishing a brief communication in nature. proposing an explanation of the French paradox and of the...
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Beer’s Future

THE HOP CRISIS The celebrations of craft beer producers have a darkening cloud hanging over them. The talk among brewers and distributors in recent months has turned from their recent successes to the possibility of a severe shortage of raw materials for use in the brewing process. While craft brewers...
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IT’S BEER by a BUBBLE

AFTER A RATHER DISCOURAGING couple of years, beer has something to cheer about. The annual Gallup Poll recently reported that beer edged out wine as the adult beverage of choice in the US. The percentage of Americans who drink any type of alcohol is stable, though the poll shows that...
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Cognac

Here, at the beginning of 2004, I confess to feeling like a total square. After weeks of research and interviews for this current, annual, in-depth Cognac category profile, any conceit that there might still be something hip and contemporary about me has been quickly shattered. By ROBERT BRADFORD I always...
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A Visit With Frank Duboeuf

We’ve all heard of the terrible, torrid summer of 2003 in Europe. It was not wholly a bad thing, for some good wine will come out of it. By HARVEY FINKEL Franck Duboeuf, son of Georges, the highly successful and respected Beaujolais negociant, visited recently, and I was able to...
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Brunello di Montalcino

Italy remains, by far, our number one source of imported wine in the United States. However, because consumers at the luxury end of the market remain largely unfamiliar with its multiplicity of names, regions and grape varieties, Italian wine is rarely a first choice at business gatherings or celebrations unless...
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Argyle’s Graig Eastman

Pulling holiday wines from the cellar brought to mind last spring’s tour of Willamette Valley, Oregon. (Argyle’s crisp and nutty 1997 Brut and plummy 2001 Pinot Noir would be gracing my festive sideboard of All-American entries.) By FRED BOUCHARD A visit to Argyle Winery, middle-aged by Oregon’s youthful standards at...
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Can Tradition Be Saved?

I’ve been thinking about the movie Silent Running a lot lately when I look at the shelves in my favorite beer stores. The 1971 sci-fi classic was the story of an ark in space, studded with artificial habitats to save examples of Earth’s plants and animals from a world ravaged...
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