December 2017 - Wine & Spirits Magazine

December 2017

INSIDE THE ISSUE

December 2017

California Cabernet Sauvignon

Editor’s Note
North Coast Fire Relief

Editor’s Note

Contributors

Fined & Filtered
Tasting Climate Change by Tara Q. Thomas

Happenings

Books: Peter Liem’s Champagne

Knechting the Dots: Red Light
by David Schildknecht

Wine by the Bay:
Outakes from the W&S Top 100

Tastings


Year’s Best

Champagne
US Cabernet Sauvignon
Barolo & Barbaresco
Rioja

Focus On

English & US Sparkling
Porto

New Releases

Best for $13 or Less
North American
Imported

Editorial Features


Oyster Options

Oyster Options

Few foods reflect the diverse places where they grow as distinctly as oysters—so why do we tend to pair them with only Sancerre and Muscadet? The W&S team unearths a range of drink options for a wide range of oysters and tastes.

Dosage in Champagne

Dosage in Champagne

Dosage isn’t all about sweetness, says Peter Liem. It’s more akin to the salt used in cooking, a seasoning that enhances the balance and flavors of a Champagne.

Alto Piemonte

Alto Piemonte

In the 19th century, vineyards blanketed the high hills of northern Piedmont, their wines more prized than Barolo and Barbaresco to the south. Stephanie Johnson reports on a renaissance in Alto Piemonte with its fresh, brisk nebbiolo.

Wildfire Ecology

Wildfire Ecology

David Darlington looks at the forces contributing to the most destructive wildfires in California’s history.