For better or worse, the image of Sonoma is defined largely by the marketing campaigns of big brands or corporations owning a portfolio of wineries. As a result, most visitors do not experience the best the county has to offer.

In this video, Wine Virgin talks with Klaus Reif of Reif Estate Winery in Niagara wine country. Reif explains his wine program and specifically the making of ice wine, which he believes reaches its fullest expression in this Canadian region.

For better or worse, the image of Sonoma is defined largely by the marketing campaigns of big brands or corporations owning a portfolio of wineries. As a result, most visitors do not experience the best the county has to offer.

Staying in Beirut’s top-tier hotels means shopping in the downtown area, rebuilt as an exact replica from before the war destroyed it. Nights in the nation’s capital should be spent bar-hopping and waking up to a bounty of local street foods with Arabic coffee on every corner. English, French and Arabic is everywhere in the cities -- language is no barrier until you reach remote areas, so take a local if you are planning a day trip to off-the-beaten-path locales. Beirut is a city of decadence, but the charm of old Lebanon lies in the mountains.

Every wine lover I spoke with, or at least those who knew if it, were telling me that “Opificio del Pinot Nero” is one of the local wine scene’s highly treasured, hidden gems.

The Valtellina region is located on the extreme north of Lombardy, close to the Swiss border. The valley, crossed by the river Adda, is limited to the West by the Lake Como and to the East by the Bormio Mountains. Wine producing in the area dates back as far as the first human settlements in the region. Before the Romans, the Etruscans were already fermenting grape juice in the area.

A weekend in wine country is always the perfect getaway, and when you think “wine country,” you probably think Napa, Sonoma, Santa Barbara, Paso Robles. What about New York?  Did you know they make wine in New York? This may not come as a surprise to some people, but New York offers some great getaway options, as I recently discovered

Napa wineries are also great innovators and regional trends are frequently imitated in other parts of the globe. So even if you think you know Napa, it is a region that is continually evolving. During a conversation with Karen Rowley, co-founder of Curated Journey’s, we discovered five reasons to begin planning our next Napa visit.

Zina is an advocate for Bulgaria, which also happens to be the European Union’s poorest member. Her itineraries include much more than a string of tastings. Of course Zina is passionate about educating her clients about the quality of Bulgarian wine, but she is equally dedicated to sharing insights about the nation’s rich history and culture.

If you have not previously perused one of the Exotic Wine Travel guides, they are among the best regional wine references available.

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