If you live in Spain, you may have noticed that your drinking habits have changed. You and your friends are drinking less Spanish wine! Who is taking up the slack? Those of us living in other parts of the universe are actually drinking more wines from Spain because they have gotten better. Holding Tightly onto Tradition The […]
Sparkling Wines from Spain Challenge “The Other Guys”
The French have spent many marketing dollars conditioning us to equate Champagne with good times, simultaneously encouraging us to believe that all sparkling wines are French. Results? Champagne has become a word that is ubiquitous. If we have an urge for a glass of sparkling wine our brain immediately latches onto the word Champagne, and […]
Spain Ups Its Wine Game: Much More than Sangria
In 2020, worldwide wine drinking dropped by 2.8 percent, although there had been optimistic reports of people stocking up on wines. This is the third year in a row that worldwide wine intake has declined. Despite general population growth, worldwide wine drinking is at its lowest level since 2002 (wine-searcher.com). Even in China, wine consumption […]
Wine Rich Italy Nothing New: Grapes Go Native
Italy is the only country in the world with viticulture in all its regions, extending from the damp sea coast to the foot of the Apennine Mountains, the Italian Alps and the Dolomites. Vines grow from a latitude of 36 degrees on the southernmost island of Pantelleria to about 47 degrees in the Alpine valley […]
Drink More Wine. Help to Grow the World Economy
The year was 2020, and I, among others, spent US$326.6 billion on wine. Thanks to the pandemic, we wine drinkers are finding solace by drinking more wine, pushing revenue to a projected US $434.6 billion by 2027, representing an increase of 4.3 percent between 2020-2027. Dessert wines (i.e., Sauternes/France; Tokaji Aszú/Hungary; Muscat/Italy) are a growing category […]
Is Medical Tourism Safe?
At first blush, Medical tourism seems like a good idea. Travel to Thailand, UAE, or Germany – and while exploring the culture, food, wines and shops, make a stop at a local hospital for a tummy tuck, a kidney transplant or a hip replacement. What is Medical Tourism? Medical tourism (also known as health tourism, medical […]
Tourism in a Time of Chaos
Chaos Theory Chaos is a term used to describe the world when nothing makes sense; when 2+2 does not equal 4, leaving us completely and totally confused. Sometimes the “butterfly effect” is used to explain the phenomenon: the idea is that the flapping of a butterfly’s wings in Argentina could cause a tornado in Texas […]
Does Crime Take a Holiday?
Watching more TV news than ever? Thinking the country is overrun with bad guys looting and destroying storefronts? Thanks to the current elected officials… you know them, they occupy buildings and residents paid for with tax dollars and are totally clueless on how to contain COVID-19 while maintaining full employment – we have large amounts of unscheduled […]
If Living is a Priority, Should You Cruise?
Although it is hard for me to believe, each and every year approximately 30 million people spend time and a great deal of money ($150 billion yearly) on cruise ships, although it creates the perfect environment for the spread of infectious diseases. Empowerment Cruise ships bring large numbers of people together in crowded, relatively small […]
Wine from Kosovo – Not Costco
Searching for a WOW to pour into your wine glass? My suggestion: Wine from Kosovo, especially the 2018 Stone Castle, Rose, Pinot Noir, Rahoveci Valley. Don’t Get Puzzled Some people confuse Costco with Kosovo. Recently, as I was pouring wine into a glass, and brought attention to the beautiful coral hue, I mentioned that the wine was from […]