The Wine Voyage

Table of Contents - What Is a Piña Colada? - Where the Piña Colada Comes From - Piña Colada vs. Mai Tai vs. Mojito - How to Make a Proper Piña Colada - Building a Group Tasting Around the Piña Colada - Common Questions - Bringing a Cocktail Tasting to Your Team - Further Reading I've now written guides to the Negroni, the Martini, the Manhattan, the Cosmopolitan, the Paloma, and the Mojito, and there's one cocktail that kept getting passed over for being "too simple" or "too touristy" to deserve its own treatment: the piña colada. That's a mistake. It has a real, documented origin story, it's the official national drink of an actual country, and like most cocktails with a bad reputation, the bad version everyone's had at a resort bar has almost nothing to do with the real thing. This guide covers what a properly made piña colada actually is, where it genuinely came from, how it compares to the cocktails it gets grouped with, and how to build it i...

Table of Contents - What Is a Piña Colada? - Where the Piña Colada Comes From - Piña Colada vs. Mai Tai vs. Mojito - How to Make a Proper Piña Colada - Building a Group Tasting Around the Piña Colada - Common Questions - Bringing a Cocktail Tasting to Your Team - Further Reading I've now written guides to the Negroni, the Martini, the Manhattan, the Cosmopolitan, the Paloma, and the Mojito, and there's one cocktail that kept getting passed over for being "too simple" or "too touristy" to deserve its own treatment: the piña colada. That's a mistake. It has a real, documented origin story, it's the official national drink of an actual country, and like most cocktails with a bad reputation, the bad version everyone's had at a resort bar has almost nothing to do with the real thing. This guide covers what a properly made piña colada actually is, where it genuinely came from, how it compares to the cocktails it gets grouped with, and how to build it i...

Table of Contents - What Is Sylvaner? - Where Sylvaner Comes From - Sylvaner vs. Riesling vs. Pinot Blanc - Food Pairings - Building a Group Tasting Around Sylvaner - What to Look For When Buying Sylvaner - Common Questions - Bringing a Sylvaner Tasting to Your Team - Further Reading I've poured a lot of white wine flights over the years, and Sylvaner is one of the few grapes that consistently gets waved off before anyone's even tasted it — usually with some version of "isn't that the cheap one?" It's a fair reaction given the grape's history: for decades Sylvaner was planted for bulk production in both Alsace and Germany, and its reputation never fully recovered even as serious producers started treating it with real care. That's a shame, because a well-made Sylvaner is genuinely one of the more food-friendly, quietly satisfying whites you can put in a glass. This guide covers what Sylvaner actually is, where it comes from, how it compares to its more...

Table of Contents - What Is Sylvaner? - Where Sylvaner Comes From - Sylvaner vs. Riesling vs. Pinot Blanc - Food Pairings - Building a Group Tasting Around Sylvaner - What to Look For When Buying Sylvaner - Common Questions - Bringing a Sylvaner Tasting to Your Team - Further Reading I've poured a lot of white wine flights over the years, and Sylvaner is one of the few grapes that consistently gets waved off before anyone's even tasted it — usually with some version of "isn't that the cheap one?" It's a fair reaction given the grape's history: for decades Sylvaner was planted for bulk production in both Alsace and Germany, and its reputation never fully recovered even as serious producers started treating it with real care. That's a shame, because a well-made Sylvaner is genuinely one of the more food-friendly, quietly satisfying whites you can put in a glass. This guide covers what Sylvaner actually is, where it comes from, how it compares to its more...

Table of Contents - What Is Godello, Exactly? - What Does Godello Taste Like? - Godello vs. Albariño vs. Chardonnay - How to Taste Godello with Intent - Food Pairings for Godello - Common Questions About Godello - Running a Godello Tasting for a Group - Bringing a Godello Tasting to Your Team - Further Reading I keep a bottle of godello on hand for exactly one purpose: watching people who think they've tried every interesting white wine realize they haven't. This is Galicia's other great white grape — the one that lives in Albariño's shadow despite arguably making more serious, age-worthy wine — and every time I pour it blind against a Chardonnay or a Viognier, the reaction is the same mix of confusion and delight. Godello deserves a much bigger reputation than it has, and I think that's finally starting to change. This guide covers what godello actually is, where it comes from, how it tastes, how it compares to Albariño and Chardonnay, and how to build it into a ta...

Table of Contents - What Is Godello, Exactly? - What Does Godello Taste Like? - Godello vs. Albariño vs. Chardonnay - How to Taste Godello with Intent - Food Pairings for Godello - Common Questions About Godello - Running a Godello Tasting for a Group - Bringing a Godello Tasting to Your Team - Further Reading I keep a bottle of godello on hand for exactly one purpose: watching people who think they've tried every interesting white wine realize they haven't. This is Galicia's other great white grape — the one that lives in Albariño's shadow despite arguably making more serious, age-worthy wine — and every time I pour it blind against a Chardonnay or a Viognier, the reaction is the same mix of confusion and delight. Godello deserves a much bigger reputation than it has, and I think that's finally starting to change. This guide covers what godello actually is, where it comes from, how it tastes, how it compares to Albariño and Chardonnay, and how to build it into a ta...