Wine Reviews
All Things Corked & Forked
Over two thousand wine reviews! While most of our reviews focus on great wines under $20, we also offer reviews of luxury and collectible wines. As we are located in Philadelphia, most wines reviewed here are available via wine & spirits shops in Pennsylvania. Our main reviewer is Keith Wallace, the executive director and founder of the Wine School of Philadelphia. Want to locate a specific wine? Use our PLCB Wine Finder.
The Story of Champagne
Champagne is one of those wines that every person, in every part of the world has heard about. It is the French sparkling wine that has the world in awe. Isn’t it funny though, that this sparkling wine was technically founded by the British and not by the French? A...
Wine School and COVID-19
Reschedule Codes and Options Sent Out For April Section added 4/3/2020 We have sent out reschedule codes for all classes through the end of April. This is specially for one-day classes. We have offered all Core program students options to reschedule. We...
March 2020 Newsletter
March 2020 Newsletter FLASH SALE!!! 50% Off ALL Spring Classes! Our Spring semester has been sold out for months. Wanna guess what we just did ? We released NEW seats for every class this spring! But wait... there's...
Wine Review Search
You can search our database of wine reviews for free. From Bordeaux to Virginia: there are over twenty thousand wine reviews dating back over twenty years. If you want access to the newest reviews, please register for our newsletter, the Wine Report. It’s a great free resource to find the top-rated wines currently available.
Our focus is on wines available in Pennsylvania. We feature wines in the Chairman’s Selection program and other discounted wines available in the PLCB Wine & Spirits Stores. You can also check out our reviews of Philly’s Top Wine Shops.
Buying Wine Online
I didn't have to do much research for this article. I buy around $80K worth of wine a year, for the wine school, not me. I know who really delivers, in the most literal sense. I did my due diligence, though. I spent a few hours reading the "Best Online Wine Shops" ...
Seven Beer Styles
Did you know there are over 6,000 craft breweries in the United States alone? And the phenomenon is global. People want good beer; artisanal, hand-crafted beers made with love and not by an automated factory that pushes millions of insipid beers to the market every...
Economic Assistance Guide for the Wine Trade during the COVID-19 Pandemic
HR 748/the “CARES” Act is the two trillion dollar stimulus bill that is now law. It has several key features that any business owner in the wine trade should be aware of. Most of the key points are in a subsection called "Keeping American Workers Paid and...
Wine Reviews and Features from the Wine School
February Wine Newsletter
Wine School Newsletter for February Wine School Newsletter for February Talk about 1st world problems: with the potential tariffs looming, we pulled in a crazy amount of European wines and spirits. Our wine cellars have never...
Holiday Wine Guide
Happy Holidays! We have a jam-packed newsletter for you this December. It's everything you need to survive the holidays. The only thing better would be a barrel of whiskey and a fistful of Lexapro. We opened up two classes for you, just after Christmas. The first is...
Wrap Up: November Wine Reviews
Wine Reviews Not as famous as Robert Parker's wine reviews, but a lot more useful if you live near Philly. We make sure the pricing is highly advantageous, as well. To read all our wine reviews, you can check them out here. Ulysses 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa...
Thanksgiving Wine and Cheese Pairings
The Whine & Cheeze Show! This is a fun project I worked on with Emilio Mignucci from DiBrunos and producer Jordan Sloane. This project also got me a profile on IMDb, so I am hella famous now. ...
Wine Reviews: The Essential Guide
As long as there’s been wine, there’s been wine writers. In Roman times, Pliny the Elder was very adept at identifying the best wines in the empire. A good review from the old guy could change a wine region’s destiny. Two thousand years later, not much has changed....
Wine Reviews for October 2019
Columbia Crest 2012 "Walter Clore Private Reserve" Red Columbia Valley This is a monster Merlot with a margin of Cabernet Sauvignon in the mix. Smoked chocolate and Dwayne Johnson-level muscularity. Last time it hit the shelves around here was in 2003, when we used...
The Case for Philly Wine
Specialists Vs Generalists in PA Wine Back in the day, if you wanted to be a winemaker, there were two career trajectories. You could either become a generalist or become a specialist. That meant either working for a big-brand like Gallo or a boutique winery. ...
A Guide to Wine Tasting
Spend a few minutes listening to a sommelier speak about wine and they will soon have you dazzled with their talk of aromas and bouquets, unknown wine valleys and silky tannins. It may feel like you’re a world away from their extensive knowledge, but it is actually...
Wine Reviews: Top Picks from Columbia Valley
Seven Hills 2015 Red, Walla Walla Valley A Bordeaux-style blend of mostly Cabernet Sauvignon and aged for two years in mostly older oak barriques. Cedar and wildflowers frame a classy move into old-world finesse. Flavors of Asian five-spice and sun-dried cherries...
Wine and Pizza Pairing
Okay, so John McKeever reached out to me a while back. Remember Delco Proper on Comedy Central? He was the director and star of that show. Apparently, he attended a class at the Wine School and had an idea. He wanted to do a food and wine show and wanted to do the...
Best Kept Wine Secrets: The Columbia Valley Wine Regions
Why is it that California gets all the love when Washington State makes great wines, too? The pat answer is that California has been growing grapes longer and it’s a core feature in America’s wine past. Napa Romantic What's all the fuss with...
WTF Rosé?
From the palace of King Louis XIV to the vineyards of Pennsylvania, rosé has always been apart of wine drinking culture. This article offers up the essentials of what it is, how it’s made, and what you should be looking out for. There is always a place in our...
June Newsletter
Summer in Wine Town I know most folks hit the Jersey shore summer. What fun for the kids! I hear the tidal syringes are very nice this time of year. But what do I know? Here's something you may not know: a few people have to stay in Philly, just to keep it from...
Stonehedge 2016 “Grand Reserve” Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley
I took a deep dive while trying to figure out who made this wine. I hadn't heard of Stonehedge before tasting this monolithic Cabernet Sauvignon. The label seems to have been started by Shahin Shahabi. He was cited in 1995 by Wine Spectator article, "Napa...
Terroir Daronton 2017 Roaix, Côtes du Rhône Villages
Le Terroir Daronton is a cooperative winery that includes about 200 winegrowers in the Southern Rhone. They don't make a generic "Cotes du Rhone" instead, they focus on village-designated wines. These villages include famous ones like Gigondas and Chateauneuf...
Bodegas Berceo 2013 Rioja Reserva
The town of Haro has a long winemaking history, and Bodegas Berceo is its figurative heart. Berceo's wine cellars were dug under the city streets, repurposing tunnels that dated back to the middle ages. In the 19th century, Calle Cuevas --nothing more than an...
Brittan Vineyards 2014 “Basalt Block” Pinot Noir, McMinnville
Robert Brittan is best known as the winemaker responsible for Stags’ Leap Winery's Petit Sirahs. Those inky monsters redefined the grape as a luxury Napa Valley wine. Robert was the head winemaker throughout the nineties and became the winery's president when it was...
Infinito 2014 “Winemaker’s Selection” Malbec, Mendoza
Out of nowhere, a 90-plus rated wine shows up on the wine shelves at the local wine & spirits store. As a wine critic, I like to know who makes the wine. I know there isn't a winery named Infinito anywhere in Argentina, so who should we give credit for this...
Rimapere 2017 Sauvignon Blanc, Marlborough
A single vineyard bottle of Sauvignon Blanc from the Rimapere vineyard, in the highly regarded Rapaura district of Marlborough. This is a joint venture between Bordeaux's Baron Benjamin de Rothschild (owner of Château Clarke and Château des Laurets) and New...
Vinos de Arganza 2015 “Seculo” Mencia, Bierzo
A small winery that has a laser-like focus on the Mencia grape. This is one of several they produce, much of whom have earned critical praise. These include the brands Flavium, Encanto, Legado De Farro, and Lagar De Robla. The grape itself has a long history and...
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