Wine Enthusiast Magazine August 2020

Adam M. Strum PUBLISHER Susan Kostrzewa EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Jacqueline Strum ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER MANAGING EDITOR Lauren Buzzeo TASTING DIRECTOR Alexander Peartree CREATIVE DIRECTOR Marco Turelli DIGITAL CREATIVE DIRECTOR Julia Lea EDITORIAL ASSOCIATE MANAGING EDITOR Layla Schlack SENIOR ASSOCIATE EDITOR Sarah Daniels TASTING ASSISTANT TASTING DIRECTOR Fiona Adams TASTING COORDINATOR Craig Chamberlain DIGITAL ASSOCIATE MANAGING EDITOR Emily Saladino SENIOR DIGITAL EDITORS Dylan Garret, Siobhan Wallace SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER Elyse Estrella SOCIAL MEDIA COORDINATOR Marco Bruno DESIGN ART DIRECTOR Monica Simon ASSOCIATE DIGITAL DESIGNER Eric DeFreitas VISUALS PRODUCER Jesse Reiter ASSOCIATE PHOTO PRODUCER Tom Arena CONTRIBUTING EDITORS EUROPEAN EDITOR Roger Voss ITALIAN EDITOR Kerin O’Keefe WINE Michael Schachner, Paul Gregutt, Virginie Boone, Jim Gordon, Matt Kettmann, Sean P. Sullivan, Anna Lee C. Iijima, Anne Krebiehl, MW, Christina Pickard SPIRITS Kara Newman BEER John Holl FOOD Nils Bernstein TRAVEL Lauren Mowery LIFESTYLE & ENTERTAINING Mike DeSimone and Jeff Jenssen EDITORIAL OFFICES HEADQUARTERS 200 Summit Lake DriveValhalla, NY 10595 TEL: 914.345.9463 editor@wineenthusiast.net CALIFORNIA Virginie Boone vboone@wineenthusiast.net; Jim Gordon jgordon@wineenthusiast.net;…

The wine retail shop, whether brick and mortar or virtual, is one of the most essential and accessible avenues in which to explore, discover and purchase wine. Now more than ever, we rely on innovative retailers to provide us with the best of the bottle, lending their expertise to turn a potentially overwhelming experience into an enjoyable one. According to Nielsen, as of press time, retail wine sales by dollar value are up 30.7% during the pandemic, and sales are up 27.7% by volume. This month, our first-ever America’s 50 Best Wine Retailers list (page 39) celebrates those who educate, excite and broaden the minds of the wine-drinking public, taking their influence seriously and doing the legwork to offer the deep knowledge and insight that puts them a cut above the…

QUESTION EVERYTHING Ever been afraid to ask a question about wine? You’re not alone. We talked to five wine-shop pros about the questions they hear most. Find their answers at winemag.com/RetailQuestions HOW TO FIND THE BEST DEALS Wine lovers know that high prices don’t always mean the best bottles. Embracing satellite regions and making friends at the shop will help you discover your next hidden gem. Learn the secrets at winemag.com/RetailTips WINE LABEL CHEAT SHEET Wine labels can read like code—how do you know which terms are necessary and which are nonsense? Your guide on what to absorb and what to ignore is at winemag.com/WineLabels WINE, ONLINE It can be hard to top the vast selection offered by online retailers. Where should you start? From wine clubs to wineries offering direct shipping, discover new ways to shop…

This issue, we cheer retailers for providing one of life’s simplest pleasures: wine at home. Beyond relaxing, sipping in our most comfortable settings allows bottomless escapism for practically zero effort. Ahead, editors’ picks for sensory retreat. “The 2019 Piquette from Troon Vineyards is both truly unique and the ultimate garden wine. Just 11% abv, lightly spritzy, bone dry and a gorgeous persimmon hue, it’s a swoon-worthy, day-brightener that instantly takes my wife Karen and me to rows of flowers, shrubs, ornamental and heritage trees, not unlike our own expansive gardens.” —Paul Gregutt, contributing editor, Oregon STAYING POWER EDITORS' GETAWAY SIPS Whether visiting far-flung wine regions or drinking in our own neighborhood, Wine Enthusiast editors like to get out and go. But we’ll let you in on a little secret: One of our favorite things about…

Riesling flourishes worldwide, but nowhere does it inspire as fervent focus as in Germany, its birthplace. Cultivated throughout the country’s 13 wine regions, it mirrors the fascinating diversity of local terroir. Bottlings can range from bone dry, or trocken, to delicately or even lusciously sweet, and can be featherlight or buxom, still or sparkling. The Mosel is best known for slim, spine-tingling expressions, wafting of blossoms and apple, yet anchored by slate and steel. In the Rheingau, Riesling is often a bit richer, offering pristine apricot and white-peach flavors with a firm, stony undertone. Kabinett and the intensely aromatic, honeyed late-harvest wines designated by degree of sweetness such as spätlese, auslese, beerenauslese or trockenbeerenauslese are historic to both the Mosel and Rheingau regions. Increasingly warm climates, however, have made fuller-bodied, dry-style wines…

♦ BUTTERY Avocados are sometimes used more for texture than flavor. Their silky flesh can even be substituted for butter in baked recipes. A very crisp wine will cut through all the richness and cleanse the palate. White Vinho Verde has spritzy lemon and lime flavors that make it a no-brainer with avocado toast. ♦ SPICY An avocado’s flesh is very high in beta-caryophyllene, an aromatic compound found in cannabis, as well as cloves, black pepper and rosemary. Though avocado doesn’t taste of these things, they make a nice complement. Zinfandel, known to feature these flavors, has moderate tannins that will play well with the fruit and help cut through its fat. ♦ CITRUS Just as butter has a lactic tang, avocados have a citrus undertone, almost like a lemon or lime without the mouth-puckering…