“Want to seduce someone this Valentine’s Day?” asks Natalie MacLean, author of Red, White and Drunk All Over: A Wine-Soaked Journey from Grape to Glass. “Just share a glass of wine (or three) with your sweetheart.”

“Wine is liquid sensuality: Its heady bouquet stimulates the appetite and its velvet caress soothes that desire,” she observes. “What other drink is described as both ‘voluptuous’ and ‘muscular’? And when you pair wine with the mouth-coating luxury of chocolate, the combination is impossible to resist.”

The creamy flavors of chocolate go best with sweet, full-bodied, high-alcohol wines, MacLean notes. She suggests wines to complement 50 chocolate dishes in her online matching tool at http://www.nataliemaclean.com/matcher. Just click on “desserts” to find pairings for chocolate mud pie to chocolate cheesecake.

I got quite the (early) 30th birthday weekend over Thanksgiving weekend, whew! My family and Beth, especially, truly went out of their way to make my 3rd decade start off with a wonderful wine-soaked bang.

We had a very special start to the weekend with Thanksgiving night at my sister’s condo in Napa, where she provided a cozy and well-appreciated dinner aided by my mom and Beth.

The next day my family and I went tasting around the Napa Valley, starting at Cartlidge & Browne, one of the best value producers in the world of wine. My family first learned about C&B when they owned Ehlers Estate in St. Helena. I grew up going to many a tasty picnic at that winery. They’ve since sold off that label and winery and are now are based in their large warehouse in American Canyon. We tasted a few wines there, where I liked their Sauv Blanc and Stratford label Cab’s. Please use the links below to read my reviews log notes for the wines I mention in this post!

“No other holiday celebrates the gift of wine like Thanksgiving,” says Natalie MacLean, author of the bestselling book Red, White and Drunk All Over: A Wine-Soaked Journey from Grape to Glass . “Wine is a taste of the harvest along with all the delicious dishes on the table. But actually choosing a bottle can feel like a thankless task, especially with so many flavors to match.”

Relax. Have a drink. And try some of Natalie’s suggestions for great wines to pair with Thanksgiving turkey and all the trimmings. In Red, White and Drunk All Over, which has just been published in paperback, Natalie discusses wine and food pairing for Thanksgiving dinner. A new chapter in the book also addresses the five toughest matches for wine: vegetables, spicy dishes, chocolate, cheese, and fast food.

So you’re putting together a dinner party/family gathering/holiday meal/fill-in-the-blank-event and need to figure out how much wine/beer/liquor you will need. There are a bunch of factors to consider, so go through my simple list of prep questions. We’ve created a drink calculator gadget that you can use on our site or install on your iGoogle™ homepage. Check it out now »

Drink Planning Questions
How many people attending your event consume alcohol? Take your full guest list and put a check-mark next to each guest that you think will be drinking (it may be easier to mark people who will not be drinking). Some guides tell you to categorize guests by light, moderate, and heavy drinker, but I think it’s safe to assume the theory of drinkativity: “light drinker + heavy drinker = moderate drinker.” A simple Yes or No is sufficient.

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One of my favorite things about wine is its ability to encourage a very communal and sharing atmosphere. Yes, the alcohol in wine can, of course, kick the social aspect of a gathering into high gear, but I’m speaking more about the inclination for wine lovers to want to share their favorite bottles with friends and family.

I have many great bottles in the “cellared” portion of my Danby 75 bottle Wine Cooler and many others that are ready in the near-term, yet I rarely open those bottles on a normal weeknight. People save bottles of wine for special occasions all the time, it’s one of the main things you read about around the holidays in all of those adds for champagne and nice Napa Cabs or red Bordeaux’s.

Yet I’m speaking more about the people at a particular occasion, not the “occasion,” itself.

I was killing time today in between meetings and found a nice wine shop near one appointment. The Vineyard Wine Market is a nicely decorated wine shop with a decent selection. The old world meets new world decor was pleasant, especially the dog sleeping on his little bed near a leather couch in the middle of the store. Anthony, the owner, was very nice and answered all my questions.

Although the selection of cheap wines is nearly non-existent (I didn’t see any under $10 selections), there were several under $15. I decided to pick up a bottle of Coopers Creek Glamour Puss Pinot Noir 2005 to try as I almost finished my Shiraz from last night.

Valentine’s Day is approaching and there are many ways people express themselves and celebrate the holiday. Some choose a nice romantic dinner; others opt for flowers and cards, but how about some decadent chocolates and wine? Some will argue that chocolate and wine are not good mates, but Dezel thinks much differently; after all, my palate has never lied to me.

When paired correctly, chocolate and wine can be a match made in heaven. Continue reading for some suggestions on selecting the right wine and chocolate combinations.

Hallelujah! Grapecat has decided to make my Christmas wishes come true…kinda. Instead of giving me the vineyard in Napa Valley that was at the top of my list, she’s taking me to visit a few. But, for an east-coaster like me, it’s close enough Given that we know next to nothing about Napa and Sonoma, we thought we’d put out a call for advice to the WineLog community. So… here’s the short list of decisions that are currently overwhelming us.

Good Wine
Well I hope everybody is having a fantastic Holiday. Firstly I’d like to apologise as I have been stacked out with lots of things over the last few weeks…but hey that’s December for you. Christmas presents are always hit and miss don’t you think? Well I’d like to give a big thanks to […]