What follows are links to articles I wrote for Ram’s Gate Winery. I’ve included excerpts from each, but if you want to read the entire article, you’ll have to go to the Ram’s Gate Winery Blog to do so. They have several other great articles that I didn’t write, so I hope you spend some time browsing around their blog. If you’re ever in Sonoma County and have the time and budget, drop by their tasting room for a real treat. It’s got a great atmosphere and the staff there is among the most pleasant I’ve encountered.
What is Biodynamic Wine?
Biodynamics has roots in both mysticism and holistic elements and biodynamic wine also stems from the same philosophy. In the 1920s, before the organic movement that we’re familiar with began… [Read More]
Wine Bottle Anatomy and Types
Cute artistic stylizations aside, you may never have paid much attention to the shapes of wine bottles except for noting small differences here and there. Sure, a bottle of Chianti or other Italian table wine has a distinctly bulged bottom and a straw basket. But generally speaking… [Read More]
Explaining Wine Glass Types
Learning about wines can be tricky enough without complicating it with all the peripherals with decanters, openers, storage options, etc. For a simple tool, wine glasses can be overwhelming for consumers… [Read More]
What Does a Sommelier Do?
Generally speaking, wine industry experts and amateur aficionados alike use a lot of fancy terms. While most people probably have a basic understanding of what sommeliers do, let’s explore the word a bit. Borrowed from a Middle French word for “a butler,”… [Read More]
How to Pick Wines for Hosting a Gathering
Finally, you’ve done it. You’ve agreed to host a dinner night for friends and family. You’ve polled everyone for the preferences, sensitivities, allergies, and hard nos. From that polling, you’ve curated a wonderful menu that will surely please everyone… [Read More]
What Makes Wines Sweet or Dry?
What makes wine sweet is intuitive: sugar. That is to say, naturally occurring sugar—mostly fructose, but glucose to an extent too. Glucose is more readily consumed by yeast than fructose is. But what makes a wine dry?… [Read More]
How Does a Drought Impact California Wine?
California’s last twelve months have been the driest in a century. Sonoma County, where Ram’s Gate Winery calls home, is one of several counties to be declared in a drought emergency in 2021. We’ve talked before about how fires affect California wine (specifically the smoke taint… [Read More]
In Conclusion
As of this summary’s publishing, I have written twelve articles for Ram’s Gate Winery and they have published seven of them. If they happen to publish the other five, I’ll update this list. Given that I was paid for the full dozen, I believe RGW owns the rights to them all, so I have no plans to publish the remaining ones anywhere else.
The other topics I covered are:
- Oak vs Steel Barrels
- Should I Age My Wine?
- Should I Worry About Sulfites in Wine?
- How California’s Fires Affect Wine
- Meet Joe Nielsen (General Manager and Winemaker at Ram’s Gate)
