Wine Bloggers Conference

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WineFashionista is a Finalist in The Wine Blog Awards! Please Vote!

I am super humbled and honored that this blog WineFashionista is a Finalist in the Wine Blog Awards for Best Writing on a Wine Blog.  The Wine Blog Awards are given out each year at the Wine Bloggers Conference.  I am in great company in my category with some of the best wine writers in the country.  This is my first time being a finalist. To be named a finalist, my blog had to be nominated.  There were 100+ nominees in my category.  Then a panel of judges, basically a panel of wine writing peers, voted for the top six blogs.  Somehow mine was one of those six.  I was quite surprised and thrilled. Now the general public gets their say.  This is where you my dear readers, come in. Click on this link, then click on the big red VOTE button.  Voting ends June 19th at 11:59 pm. I would…

The Evolution of Sokol Blosser Wines

Alison Sokol Blosser is in Portland, Oregon at the Wine Bloggers Conference (WBC) instead of being on her honeymoon.  She just got married on the August weekend before the start of the conference at her family’s winery in Oregon’s Dundee Hills AVA,which is about an hour outside of Portland.  As the winery’s Co-President along with her brother Alex, she’s at WBC to pour for nearly 400 bloggers during an activity called live blogging, which is more like speed dating.  Then she’s hosting a busload of bloggers from the conference at Sokol Blosser Winery for a dinner with several other local wineries pouring.  With all that going on and with harvest underway, Alison says she’ll go on her honeymoon after the fall craziness is done. 

Speed Wine Tasting and Blogging in Portland

You know about speed dating, but what about speed wine tasting?  In Portland at the annual Wine Bloggers Conference we’re tasting Oregon whites and rosés at a breakneck rate, and blogging about it live as it happens.  10 wineries showed up to pour, trying to convince us that their wines are blog worthy all in five minutes.  Is this a good way to try wine, or just a gimmick?  Let’s go…

First up – Amity Vineyards.  Matt from Amity offers a 2009 estate dry Riesling.  91 cases made.  Old vine Riesling – some planted in 1971.  There’s petrol and flowers on the nose and it is super dry with lots of citrus.  Not bad for $20, but you have to get it at the winery.  This one has potential. The bell rings for a winery change.  Go!  

Virginia is for Viognier Lovers (not Earthquakes)

In July I went to the annual Wine Bloggers Conference, held in Charlottesville, Virginia. I’d never been to that area of the country, but had always heard it was beautiful, with Thomas Jefferson’s home, Monticello, and the University of Virginia. Throw in wine, and to me it was a trip not to be missed.

If you’re a Viognier lover like me, you want to get to Virginia wine country as soon as possible or seek out some pretty amazing bottles. It’s about time the really good wines – especially the Viogniers – get the recognition they deserve. Read more

Top 10 Takeaways from the Wine Bloggers Conference

Did you know that there are enough wine bloggers to hold an annual conference? There are actually about 1500 of us more or less. Approximately 300 bloggers, me included, showed up in Charlottesville, Virginia for the 4th Wine Bloggers Conference last week. It was a big deal to Virginia. The Governor taped a special hello. There were banners in downtown Charlottesville welcoming the bloggers. We even had a special wine reception on the hallowed grounds of Monticello. Oh yeah, we were big in Virginia.

I had never tasted a Virginia wine, and knew nothing about the state’s wineries. Now that I’ve been to six Virginia wineries, and tasted dozens of the state’s wines, I can tell you that Virginia is on its way to being a player in the wine world. Not all wines were good, and they do make a lot of sweet wine. Even so, you must get to know the wines coming out of this state.

When all is said and done, there are 10 takeaways from my time at the Wine Bloggers Conference, on Virginia wine and on blogging. Read more

DRINK – Why I’m not at the Wine Bloggers’ Conference

Everything comes down to choices and priorities. That’s why I’m not attending the 2010 Wine Bloggers’ Conference (WBC) in Walla Walla, Washington this weekend. The reason is perfectly clear: Wine Women & Shoes is happening in Napa, and there was no way to attend both. Yes, shoes win out over wine. In fact, I always compare what something costs to how many pairs of shoes I could buy. An $800 bottle of Screaming Eagle? That’s at least two or three pairs of shoes. Personally I’d rather have the shoes. Oh don’t get me wrong, I love wine and spend way too much money on it as it is. But shoes you can wear more than once, and perhaps even for years. Wine is a one time deal. Once you pop the cork, it’s gone. Anyway, that’s my reasoning. Anything to justify buying yet another pair. No doubt I’ll be following…

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