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Terry Robards, a longtime reporter and wine writer for The New York Times who later served as a columnist for Wine Spectator, died last month at the age of 84. The cause was heart failure. Robards wrote his best-known works between the 1960s and 1980s, at a time when many Americans were just discovering wine.

Stoked by warm temperatures and windy conditions, several wildfires broke out in California over the weekend, including one in Sonoma’s Dry Creek Valley, northwest of Healdsburg. The Point Fire ignited on the eastern shores of Lake Sonoma the afternoon of June 16 and quickly spread, nearing wineries and vineyards along West Dry Creek Road. As

Who’s behind it: Catch Miami Beach is the eighth restaurant from Catch Hospitality Group and co-owners Tilman Fertitta (the owner of hospitality leader Landry’s, Inc.), Mark Birnbaum and Eugene Remm. It joins Wine Spectator Restaurant Award–winning Catch locations in Las Vegas and New York, as well as Catch Steak locations in New York, Aspen, Colo.,

Where can you find more than 250 of the world’s greatest winemakers, plus some of the titans of fine dining, all in one place for an entire weekend? Wine Spectator’s New York Wine Experience is returning to Times Square Oct. 17-19, and tickets are now on sale for weekend packages that offer wine lovers 3

Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits chairman Harvey Chaplin, a self-made entrepreneur who turned a modest Florida spirits and wine distributorship into a national, multibillion-dollar powerhouse, passed away Sunday, June 9, of natural causes at the age of 95. “Harvey was undoubtedly one of the great pioneers and visionaries in our industry,” said Marvin R. Shanken,

Winemaker Warren Winiarski, founder of Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars and owner of Arcadia Vineyards, has died at the age of 96. In 1970, Winiarski purchased a 50-acre fruit orchard and ranch in Napa Valley and began planting Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. He started making wine from those plantings, along with some existing Petite Sirah vines,

Anglophiles, royal watchers and Port lovers have a rare chance to add some delicious pieces of British vinous history to their cellars. From now until June 20, Christie’s in London is holding an online auction featuring Bordeaux with royal ties, Vintage Port from the cellars of a 14th-century castle and more. The auction includes six bottles of

The Napa Valley Vintners (NVV) trade association held the latest iteration of the Collective Napa Valley Auction Weekend from May 31 to June 1. The evolving series of festive events raised $4.8 million, including a revamped live auction that brought in $2.4 million, and the proceeds will support youth mental health programs in Napa County.

For seven generations, the Pasquero-Elia family has made wine for their Paitin label in Barbaresco. They’ve also acted as stewards of the Serraboella vineyard, a menzioni geografiche aggiuntiva (MGA), or designated vineyard, making intense, long-lived Nebbiolos from their Sorì Paitin parcel. This year they will release wines from outside Barbaresco for the first time thanks to

One of Burgundy’s power players has bought an iconic name in California Pinot Noir. Four years after acquiring a minority stake, Domaine Faiveley has purchased a majority share of Williams Selyem, the Sonoma-based winery founded by Burt Williams and Ed Selyem in 1979. The sale includes the brand, inventory, winery and more than 135 acres

Canned wine is the fastest-growing segment of new wine container innovations on the market, with their lightweight convenience, creative designs and recyclability all appealing to younger consumers. Sales are especially strong in spring and summer, when outdoor social events favor easily accessible, single-serving vessels over the classic glass bottle. But as canned wine becomes increasingly

Who’s behind it: Chef and restaurateur Michael Mina continues to grow his Mina Group, the culinary force behind a dozen Wine Spectator Restaurant Award winners, including his namesake restaurant in Las Vegas and seven Bourbon Steak locations. For the eighth Bourbon Steak, Mina is partnering with JW Marriott Essex House on Central Park South, taking

The Destin Charity Wine Auction Foundation (DCWAF) had another strong showing at its annual auction in support of northwest Florida children in need. On April 27, the event gathered over 600 wine lovers at Grand Boulevard Sandestin Town Center in Miramar Beach and raised more than $3.3 million for 17 children’s charities. The auction, which

Patz & Hall co-founder James Hall is still pinching himself: After selling the iconic California Chardonnay brand in 2016, Hall was able to buy it back earlier this year. He tells us how he did it, and then takes us all the way back to landing his first winery gig in Napa … by pretending

California wine company O’Neill Vintners & Distillers is creating a new luxury division and starting it by purchasing a Sonoma winery. Shanken News Daily (SND) reports that the 1.8 million case company has purchased Ram’s Gate Winery in Sonoma for an undisclosed sum. Ram’s Gate is known for upscale Pinot Noir and Chardonnay retailing from

A Paris tribunal has found Qu Naijie, the 63-year-old founder of Chinese corporation Haichang Group, guilty of money laundering, sentencing him to a three-year suspended prison sentence, a €1 million fine and the confiscation of nine of his Bordeaux châteaus, worth an estimated €35.5 million ($38.4 million). The case has stunned Bordeaux. Qu was one

Decades of research has found that people who drink light to moderate amounts of alcohol enjoy better cardiovascular health than abstainers, but that benefit quickly disappears as consumption rises into heavy drinking. But in recent years, a vocal group of public health advocates has argued that no level of drinking is safe. Now, a new

Shovels went into the ground May 17 as Napa Valley College (NVC) celebrated the groundbreaking for the Wine Spectator Wine Education Center. Funded by a $10 million gift, the largest donation ever made by the Wine Spectator Scholarship Foundation, the center will dramatically expand and update the teaching facilities of NVC and its Viticulture and