Tag: Cooking

Philanthropists and DuMol Winery owners Jeff and Laurie Ubben are opening a new Sonoma restaurant, Little Saint, on April 22 (Earth Day), working with well-known members of the Healdsburg dining community: chef Kyle Connaughton and Katina Connaughton, co-owners of Wine Spectator Grand Award winner SingleThread Farms, located just down the street.

Little Saint is operated by the Connaughtons’ management company, Vertice Hospitality Management, with Jenny Hess as the restaurant’s director, Akeel Shah as the general manager and Alex Sarovich, a SingleThread veteran, as the wine director.

For the completely plant-based menu, chef Bryan Oliver is using ingredients sourced from Little Saint’s farm, as well as SingleThread’s farm and other local producers, emphasizing how a restaurant can help maintain a healthy ecosystem that delivers quality produce. The results, many shareable, are dishes like cauliflower biryani with basmati rice, potato–green garlic soup, mokum carrots with shaved red cabbage and carrot cake with walnuts.

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Sarovich’s 300-label list aligns closely with Little Saint’s meatless menu and focus on eco-friendly practices; she checked that every wine has been made from grapes farmed at least sustainably. Little Saint’s environmental ethos was, in fact, one of the reasons Sarovich wanted to join the restaurant’s team.

“[The Ubbens] really empowered me to build a program that I felt would encompass everything that we all are passionate about, from farming to highlighting female and minority winemakers, and sourcing wines that offer a sense of place,” Sarovich told Wine Spectator.

Sonoma features prominently in the 3,560-bottle inventory, not surprising given Little Saint’s location, with additional strengths in other Golden State regions like Mendocino, Central Coast and Napa Valley. Beyond California, the program spotlights Champagne, Burgundy and Loire Valley, as well as Italy. Sarovich’s aim is to feature wines and categories that are loved by local winemakers in the Healdsburg area, and guests can expect bottles from wineries like Sonoma’s LaRue, Oregon’s Niew Vineyards and Champagne’s Gamet. Natural wines and skin-contact wines are featured too. Little Saint’s cocktail program, led by Matthew Seigel, will also emphasize sustainability, as well as local ingredients.

“Little Saint is a community gathering place,” Sarovich explained. “It’s an elevated wine experience, but in a super-casual, communal way.” The wine director is hoping that guests will be able to move past traditional wine-drinking practices thanks to Little Saint’s vegetable-based menu, easily shifting between reds and whites over the course of the meal. “What I would love to see is a bottle of white and a bottle of red at every table,” she said. “‘Let’s pass it around, let’s have a glass of each with every dish that comes by.’ Just having fun.”

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Based in a 10,000-square-foot space that formerly housed a restaurant-market called Shed, Little Saint will also premiere with a café, a grocery called Little Provisions and a wine shop also overseen by Sarovich. About 80 percent of the restaurant’s list will be available at retail so diners can take home a bottle they particularly enjoyed. Little Saint will host wine tastings, visits from guest chefs, book signings and live music as well. Some events will be held with nonprofit Saint Joseph’s Art Foundation in support of sustainable viticulture and agriculture.

Little Saint creative director Ken Fulk brought in local artists and artisans to help create many of the space’s design elements, including wood tabletops, handmade tiles, salvage denim upholstery and the building’s exterior murals.

“We live here, farm here and are part of the community of amazing winemakers, farmers, and artisans,” said Kyle Connaughton in a statement. “We really wanted to reflect that and create exciting offerings for our local community and at the same time share with the visitors how special this place that we call home is.”—C.D.

Silver Oak Celebrates 50th Anniversary with Some of America’s Best Chefs

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Fifty years is a significant milestone. So when the Duncan family of Napa and Sonoma’s famed Silver Oak started thinking about celebrating their big anniversary, they decided to take their party on the road and celebrate with their fans at some of the nation’s most exciting restaurants, helmed by culinary stars.

The 12-city tour kicks off April 24 in Los Angeles at chef Nancy Silverton’s Wine Spectator Award of Excellence-winning Osteria Mozza. “When we first started talking about a 50th-anniversary dinner series, we knew we wanted to open with Nancy. Not only is she an icon, but she and the team at Osteria Mozza demonstrated incredible leadership, perseverance and resiliency over the last couple of years,” said Silver Oak CEO and proprietor David Duncan.

The menu pairs offerings such as gnocchi with duck ragu and veal stracotto with funghi misti with bottlings from the Duncan family wineries, including Silver Oak, Twomey, Ovid and Timeless. “Silver Oak Cabernets were really a California treat for me, back in the day and now,” said Silverton, recalling a memorable wine shared with a significant other shortly after Silver Oak co-founder and winemaker Justin Meyer passed away in 2002. “He brought along a 1985 Silver Oak Bonnie’s Vineyard, and let’s just say it was the right wine to bring. It’s so nice to know the Duncan family has upheld the strong, proud tradition of world-class wines,” she added.

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After Mozza, the Silver Oak crew will journey to New York, Chicago and Nashville before returning home for two local dinners, including one with chef Christopher Kostow (whose Grand Award–winning Restaurant at Meadowood was destroyed in the 2020 Glass fire) at his Charter Oak location in St. Helena. More than wine will be flowing, as Silver Oak teamed with local Russian River Brewing Company for a special beer. “The grape-pomace beer collaboration is one of the more exciting hidden gems on our 50th-anniversary tour,” said Duncan, explaining that the brewery took 1,000 pounds of pomace and fermented a beverage that blurs the lines between wine and beer.

The official celebration on Aug. 6 will include the release of 50th-anniversary magnums and the debut of the 2018 Silver Oak Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. The day’s events will combine Silver Oak wines with live music from soul musician Lee Fields and bites from Grand Award–winning SingleThread Farms, Little Saint, Best of Award of Excellence–winning Luce in San Francsisco, AlaMar in Oakland and the Silver Oak culinary team.

Then it’s back on the road with stops at Award of Excellence–winning Bell’s in Los Alamos in Santa Barbara County and events in San Francisco, Minneapolis and Austin, concluding in New Orleans at Nina Compton’s Compère Lapin. “When we first created our shortlist of chefs and restaurants, we wanted to showcase a wide range of chefs who are pushing American food culture forward and introducing new pairing concepts for California wines,” said Duncan.—A.R.

Ben Calais, founder and winemaker for Calais Winery in Hye, Texas, has a simple question: “Are we in the process of killing our vines slowly but surely?”

Calais Winery is one of the dozens of Texas wineries and vineyards that have been impacted in recent years by herbicide drift from cotton fields in the High Plains region. The impact varies from vineyard to vineyard, but nearly every property in the 12,000-square-mile appellation has suffered some damage, including stunted development, reduced yields, poor-quality grapes and even vine death. “If the vines die, then what?” asked Calais.

The owners of 57 vineyards in the High Plains say they are trying to prevent a catastrophic ecological ruin of the state’s $13 billion wine industry. They filed a lawsuit last summer against Bayer Crop Science and Monsanto Company (Bayer purchased Monsanto in 2018) and the BASF Corporation, the developers behind a “seed system” that pairs dicamba-tolerant seeds and dicamba herbicides used by cotton farmers in North Texas. The plaintiffs are seeking $560 million in punitive and economic damages.

In a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) encouraging the agency to revoke the registration that allows farmers to use dicamba products, the Texas Wine and Grapegrowers Association (TWGGA) said, “This lawsuit hopes to reveal the demonstrable damage caused by the use of dicamba-based products not only on the quality of grape production but ultimately how it impacts our final product, Texas wine and ultimately the Texas wine consumers. The long-term impacts have yet to be revealed, but no doubt it will be costly to grapegrowers, winemakers and our consumers.”

The lawsuit comes as the Texas wine industry is growing and gaining attention. “[The Texas wine] industry depends on the High Plains, and we can’t grow an industry unless we have grapes,” said Kirk Williams, owner of Williams Ranch Vineyard. Many Texas winemakers from other areas source grapes from the appellation. Roughly 85 percent of grapes used by Texas winemakers come from High Plains vineyards, making it the cornerstone of the fifth-largest wine industry in the nation, now in danger of withering as a result of dicamba’s destruction.

Cotton v. Vines

The lawsuit and accompanying documents accuse Bayer and BASF of knowingly encouraging the use of products that could kill grapevines in the High Plains. The region near Lubbock is one of the world’s largest cotton-growing areas. For decades, Monsanto sold the herbicide Roundup and Roundup-resistant seeds to farmers—the idea was Roundup would kill the weeds but not the Roundup-resistant crops. When weeds in farm regions like the High Plains grew resistant to Roundup and other sprays, the companies responded with herbicides that pack a bigger punch, including Monsanto’s dicamba.

Monsanto and BASF began selling dicamba-based herbicides and dicamba-tolerant cotton seeds to Texas farmers in 2016. The problem? Dicamba is highly volatile, easily drifting over neighboring fields planted with non-resistant plants if not applied correctly.

The grapegrowing plaintiffs allege that internal records show that Monsanto and BASF knew a dicamba-based seed and herbicide system and the resulting dicamba drift would lead to damaged crops for farmers who did not buy their products, forcing cotton farmers to buy the Monsanto/BASF dicamba-based seed system or see their crops destroyed.

“Grapes, however, are extremely sensitive to dicamba. And grapevines cannot be made dicamba-resistant,” the plaintiffs argue, which means the resulting dicamba drift is crippling the wine industry. The lawsuit quotes an expert with the Texas A&M Agrilife Extension Service who estimates that 90 percent to 95 percent of the grapevines in the Texas High Plains region have been damaged by dicamba.

The damage done

Growing conditions in the High Plains can be challenging for winemakers. Vines are planted at elevations ranging from 3,000 to 4,000 feet, and the climate is often hot and dry during the summer with some extreme cold spells during the winter. Frost and hail can impact fruit set during spring flowering, while punishing summer heat and dry soils can stress the vines, lowering yields.

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But the suspected impacts of dicamba have been especially devastating. First the leaves start to shrivel and shrink. With smaller leaves, the vines cannot get enough sunlight, which leads to smaller crops and grapes that taste unusual. Struggling for energy, the grapes are more vulnerable to heat spells and cold snaps.

Calais is not part of the lawsuit because he doesn’t own any vineyards—his winery is located 60 miles west of Austin. But he sources grapes from 11 vineyards in the High Plains and all show the effects of dicamba. Several years ago he started noticing issues, namely leaf cupping, a condition by which leaves shrivel into a cup shape, inhibiting normal ripening, and it’s been getting increasingly worse year after year.

“We have canceled plantings because we don’t know what happens when vines are repeatedly exposed to dicamba,” he said. Rhône grape varieties are popular in the High Plains, and Calais says those vines seem particularly susceptible to dicamba damage. “Mourvèdre was a huge part of my plans. Now it makes farming tricky.”

Williams started seeing dicamba-related damage in his 7.5-acre vineyard as far back as 2016. Then, in 2019, a cold snap devastated his Cabernet Sauvignon vineyard. “We’ve had cold weather before, and early fall freezes are not unusual, but up until then, the vines had survived for 20 years,” he said. He believes that dicamba weakened the vines, and the freezing temperatures dealt the final blow.

Poison or punishing weather?

The lawsuit states that several vineyard owners have suffered widespread vine death. Some have had relationships with grape buyers ruined because of damaged vines and failed crops. Many young vines have withered before ever producing fruit.

But the defendants question whether dicamba played a role. “We have great sympathy for any grower who suffers a crop loss, but there are many possible reasons why crop losses might occur,” a company spokesperson for Bayer told Wine Spectator in a statement, noting that plaintiffs have previously acknowledged these possibilities, including extreme winter weather conditions and other herbicides used off label that can have harmful effects on perennial plants like vines.

The plaintiffs reject that argument. They point out that more than two-thirds of the 3 million acres of cotton grown in the High Plains are now planted with dicamba-resistant seed. Thus, every summer since adopting the dicamba seed system, cotton farmers have applied the herbicide multiple times during the early summer growing season. They also point out that dicamba is more than 300,000 times more volatile than glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup, meaning it is much more likely to drift.

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“When we were getting exposure to Roundup, or other products, it was just on the borders of vineyards and [we] knew it was coming from a specific neighbor,” said Calais, noting that a simple conversation would usually resolve the issue. “It was clear where it was coming from. But now it seems like the product floats everywhere, creating a farming nightmare for us.”

Something in the air

Dicamba is not a new product. It has been used by farmers since the 1960s, though it was sparsely applied because of its tendency to volatilize into gas and drift, damaging other crops.

But in 2016 the EPA granted BASF permission to market a new dicamba-based herbicide that included a chemical additive designed to reduce volatility. A year later, Monsanto started selling and distributing a system of dicamba-tolerant seeds and dicamba-based herbicides to farmers across the country. As a result, many Texas cotton farmers adopted the dicamba system. In 2018, the EPA permitted a conditional registration for several dicamba products. The agency required the products include instructions for limiting drift, including avoiding application when winds were high.

The plaintiffs contend that calm winds might minimize drift, but temperature inversion spreads it. When dicamba is sprayed during a temperature inversion—a period where air close to the ground is cooler than normal—the fine particles become suspended in the mass of cool air that hangs above the soil line. Then, the slightest breeze blows the dicamba particles away from the target location, potentially miles away. The dicamba eventually falls out of suspension when the air warms hours later, potentially settling on nearby vineyards.

Calais comes from a family of farmers and understands the financial hardships. “Those [seed] systems are part of being successful, and you don’t have a choice about how to go about it, he said. “I think farmers are trying to be responsible, but even if applied the right way, it’s exposing vineyards.”

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Williams concurred. “Our vineyard has been really affected even though we’re isolated on two sides by miles of grazeland. It’s clear that the product doesn’t stay where it’s applied, even on a perfect day,” he said. “Is that the farmer’s fault or the applicator’s fault? It’s hard to hold the farmer to blame. It’s a defective product.”

Williams says many grapegrowers are frustrated because they understand that the cotton farmers, many of whom are friends or relatives, are just trying to control their weeds. “It doesn’t do much good to go around and yell at neighbors.”

Still, since the products were introduced, grapegrowers and other farmers have been reporting damage to their crops, not just in Texas but throughout the U.S. An EPA report showed that nearly 5,600 farmers, growing a wide variety of produce—peaches, tobacco, tomatoes, sunflowers, even cotton—reported dicamba damage from 2017 to 2019.

The Bayer spokesperson said the company believes their dicamba herbicide (XtendiMax) is a valuable tool for growers. “We continue to hear from growers that XtendiMax is an effective and vitally important tool, and we believe the vast majority of our customers have had success with weed control. Bayer stands strongly behind the safety and utility of our herbicide and has continued to enhance training and education efforts to help further ensure growers can use these products successfully.”

In 2020, a ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit canceled the EPA’s registration of dicamba products, citing damage to crops, including soybeans, and general harm to numerous farming communities. The cancellation was temporary. A few months later, dicamba products were restored, this time including label instructions and tighter rules for application. But enforcing those rules is near impossible.

In December, the EPA announced that it was considering further restrictions on the herbicide, stating that measures imposed had failed to reduce complaints of herbicide drift. But the registration has not been pulled for 2022.

How do you fight an invisible force?

There’s not much grapegrowers can do to combat the effects of dicamba. Williams says there’s no exposure risk early into the growing season, since dicamba is sprayed in summer, so he is encouraging vigor to establish an abundance of leaf cover to help protect the grapes for the season ahead. “We’ve learned that you have to fertilize as early as possible and try to maximize early-season growth,” said Williams, noting that it’s not an ideal strategy, but he feels like he doesn’t have a choice.

He is also planning to experiment with Surround, a crop protectant. Made from modified Kaolin clay, it’s designed to be sprayed on plants, forming a barrier that protects from many pests, fungal spores and sun damage. “We’ll see if it can intercept some of [the dicamba] before it gets to the leaf surface. I have no idea if it will work.”

Calais adds that it’s not just the vines that are impacted—the resulting wine changes as well. “Wine is about balance, but you’ll get issues in the wine if you put the vine off balance.” Because some grapes haven’t been able to develop fully, Calais has pivoted to making a lot of rosé in recent years. “It’s better than not being able to pick grapes.”

For now, Williams has been able to keep his brand alive by purchasing grapes from other growers. “It’s not a preferred way to make money, but it’s the only way to keep going.” Earlier this year, he was in the process of putting out grow tubes to help retrain some of his vines that had died back. “I’m not going to make any money for another year or two off those new blocks. So, if we ever get any settlement, that’s where the money would go.”

At press time, the court has yet to schedule a hearing. For now, Texas grapegrowers are bracing for another year, with summer quickly approaching. “No matter what we do, we keep getting hit, in some instances harder than before,” says Williams. “We know the registration didn’t get pulled for the 2022 growing season, and our hands are tied.”

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Researchers from Tulane University’s School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine found evidence linking moderate alcohol consumption during meals with a lowered risk of type 2 diabetes. The team presented preliminary research at the American Heart Association’s Epidemiology, Prevention, Lifestyle & Cardiometabolic Health Conference earlier this month.

“The effects of alcohol consumption on health have been described as a double-edged sword because of its apparent abilities to cut deeply in either direction—harmful or helpful, depending on how it is consumed,” said study author Dr. Hao Ma in a statement. “Previous studies have focused on how much people drink and have had mixed results. Very few studies have focused on other drinking details, such as the timing of alcohol intake.”

Past studies have found evidence that wine consumption, particularly red wine consumption, can decrease the risk of developing diabetes. Some research has also found that those who have diabetes can reduce the health risks of the disease with wine and a healthy diet.

Gathering data from the UK Biobank, a study collecting health information on several hundred thousand participants, Ma and his team followed the progress of 310,000 participants over the course of 11 years to determine whether drinking during meals could affect type 2 diabetes. Of the tracked participants, about 8,600 developed diabetes.

The Tulane team found that participants who regularly consumed moderate amounts of alcohol—one to two standard-sized drinks—during meals had a 14 percent lower chance of developing diabetes. What’s particular about these findings is the emphasis on the timing of wine consumption. Although moderate levels of drinking any alcoholic beverage at any time were beneficial, participants who consumed, on average, a glass or two of wine with a meal each day were the least likely to develop diabetes. Participants who consumed higher levels of beer and liquor were more likely to develop diabetes than non-drinkers or those who consumed higher amounts of wine.

As Ma notes, this could be attributed to other factors, such as the fact most wine drinkers also eat well and exercise regularly. It could also be due to health-beneficial components found in wine such as polyphenols, he says. (One limitation of the study? It relied on self-reported data.)

While Ma affirms that the reasons for this correlation are still unclear, he cites his findings and a previous clinical trial that showed alcohol consumption during meals lowered post-meal spikes in blood sugar as hopeful markers. “In addition to slowing the absorption of alcohol, previous clinical trials showed that consuming alcohol with meals might more effectively reduce the oxidative stress caused by meals as compared with consuming alcohol outside of meals,” Ma told Wine Spectator. “And it is known that oxidative stress is closely related to type 2 diabetes risk.”

Want to learn more about how wine can be part of a healthy lifestyle? Sign up for Wine Spectator‘s free Wine & Healthy Living e-mail newsletter and get the latest health news, feel-good recipes, wellness tips and more delivered straight to your inbox every other week!

The Southwest Florida Wine and Food Fest charity auction is back on track after going virtual in 2021, hosting an in-person event and raising $2.1 million for local pediatric healthcare programs, with more than half of the money coming from live auction bids. The last time this top annual charity event bested the $2 million mark was in 2018, when it raised a total of $2.6 million.

The 14th annual live auction was held Jan. 22 at Fort Myers’ Florida SouthWestern State College. More than 300 guests helped raise $1.1 million in live bids. Although the auction had to be moved indoors with less than 24 hours’ notice due to weather conditions, SWFL Children’s Charities executive director Heidi Davis said guests were excited to finally be able to attend in person.

“Raising over $2 million for the first time in a few years to enhance pediatric healthcare in our region for children and families was the highlight of the event,” Davis told Wine Spectator. “There was a ton of excitement throughout the day, including the great cuisine, amazing wines, celebrations for winning auction lots and pyrotechnics.”

Davis added that her team has reduced the number of live auction lots over the years (there were 26 lots for this auction) and it seems to have helped raise more money. She credits this to focusing on offering unique travel experiences rather than numerous lots of wine only. It’s a model used by Naples Winter Wine Festival, the top charity wine auction in the nation, that many others have adopted.

“Wine High on That Mountain” was the top wine lot of the night, selling twice at $55,000 for a total of $110,000. The lot included a three-night stay for three couples at Napa’s Diamond Mountain estate, plus 12 bottles of Lerner Project’s RMS Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon (2018, 2017 and 2016 vintages). Another top seller was a four-night trip to a private island in Belize, along with eight bottles of Patz & Hall Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, which sold for $75,000. A wine-only lot of four magnums of Sonoma’s Verité red blends, specifically one bottle of La Desir, one bottle of La Muse and two bottles of 2006 La Joie, sold for $3,500.

Since its inception in 2008, the SWFL Wine and Food Fest has donated over $25 million to its three primary beneficiaries: Golisano Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida, Florida Gulf Coast University and Florida SouthWestern State College.

One of Napa’s iconic wineries is changing hands. Doug Shafer, president of Shafer Vineyards, announced this morning that Shinsegae Property, a luxury brand firm based in Seoul, South Korea, with department stores, shopping centers, golf resorts, hotels and other interests, has acquired his family’s winery. While neither side disclosed details, the price tag is a reported $250 million and includes 225 acres of vines. Shinsegae acquired the winery through its U.S. subsidiary Starfield Properties, lnc. Shafer winemaker Elias Fernandez and the core winemaking and vineyard staff will continue with the winery for the foreseeable future.

Doug Shafer, who also will stay on, said in a statement to longtime customers that he hopes the sale will allow him more time to explore projects and focus on the things that made him fall in love with the wine business.

“For those who are fans of our wines and our team, you’ll see a continuation of everything you love about the winery,” he said. “There may be some new things down the road that I think you will love and embrace as well.”

John and Betty Shafer were pioneers in Napa’s Stags Leap District when they purchased a rugged property with old, unkempt vines in 1972, transforming it into one of Napa’s cornerstone estates. Today, its 225 acres of vines are spread over four ranches (two in Stags Leap District, one in Oak Knoll District and one in Carneros). The winery produces around 33,000 cases annually, with 85 percent hailing from those estate vines, a rarity in today’s modern Napa. The winery’s Relentless 2008 was Wine Spectator’s 2012 Wine of the Year. John passed away in March 2019.

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“It’s been the privilege of a lifetime to have joined my dad here as winemaker in 1983 and to have taken over as president in 1994,” said Shafer. “The Shafer hillside estate has been the site of grapegrowing and winemaking for more than 140 years, and it has been an incredible honor to act as the latest stewards of this land and to produce wine from the gifts these vineyards have given.”

Shinsegae Property is one of Korea’s major retail groups. In a statement, the company said executives plan to diversify its existing real-estate portfolio centered on domestic distribution and commercial facilities into high-quality overseas assets in developed countries.

“It’s been a real pleasure to get to know their team, and I’m very excited about this new chapter for our vineyards and winery,” said Shafer. “I have a lot of confidence in this new team. Their focus and the long-term focus at Shafer are very much in alignment—it’s all about quality. Quality vineyards, quality wines, quality customer care. Shafer remains in good hands, and if my parents could be here for this moment, I know without question that they would agree.”

Chef and restaurateur Marc Forgione opened Peasant Wine Bar in New York’s Nolita neighborhood on Jan. 25. Occupying the wine cellar of Forgione’s Peasant restaurant, the new concept combines the chef’s spin on Italian cuisine with a similarly focused wine list. Forgione is also the restaurateur behind Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence winner Restaurant Marc Forgione.

“It’s such a beautiful and unique space,” Forgione told Wine Spectator via email. “I always wanted to do something fun down there.”

The 70-label wine list, shared by Peasant and the wine bar, is overseen by beverage director Scott Woltz, formerly of Restaurant Award winners Babbo and Eleven Madison Park, who has collected bottlings from up and down the Italian boot. Italian wine fans will find everything from Lambrusco and Piedmont Nebbiolo to reds from Sicily and Basilicata to Pinot Grigio and Sauvignon Blanc from the north; 20 wines are available on a by-the-glass list unique to the wine bar. “Our goal is to create opportunities for every type of wine lover out there—from the novice to the collector, industry or enthusiast—to have a blast,” Woltz explained. “It’s about having a great time, finding something exciting to try no matter who you are, in an alluring setting.”

Woltz has focused on highlighting smaller, family-owned wineries using sustainable practices, as well as lesser-known indigenous varieties. Diners will also find older vintages, plus Amaro and digestif choices for after the meal. Available only in the wine bar is a new “Ultima Bottiglia” (last bottle) list of single bottles of rare riserva wines. Altogether, the wine inventory currently sits at 700 bottles, but Woltz is planning to grow the program. “Our goal is to make sure guests get the chance to travel [to] any and all of Italy’s regions through the wines,” he said.

Alongside Woltz’s list, Forgione offers many of the wood-fired classics and pastas that guests can find upstairs at Peasant, including oxtail bone marrow, rotisserie lamb ragù and rigatoni with vodka sauce. The wine bar sets itself apart with an additional menu of quinto quarto (“fifth quarter”) dishes inspired by traditional, offal-based Roman cuisine: Tripe with pecorino and mint, beef tongue with horseradish and wood-roasted oysters with marrow. A late-night menu of small cicchetti plates is also available, along with dishes paired with Woltz’s wine picks.

In keeping with the aesthetic of a wine cellar, Peasant Wine Bar offers a rustic ambience meant to evoke a traditional Italian enoteca, with candlelit stonework, columns, antique tables and wooden benches, with seating for 35, as well as a barn door entrance.

“I hope this can be a wine bar for the people, not just industry,” Forgione said. “That’s how I look at Peasant as a restaurant as well. I like to make ‘cheffy’ dishes and ingredients approachable to everyone, and I hope that’s what happens with the wine bar.”—C.D.

Victoria Blamey’s Mena Restaurant Debuts in Tribeca

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Chef Victoria Blamey, known for her work at Chumley’s and more recently at the revamped Gotham Bar & Grill, is continuing her run in New York City with a new restaurant in Tribeca. Opened Jan. 27, Mena draws inspiration from Blamey’s childhood in Chile.

Named after her great-aunt, Mena is Blamey’s first venture as an owner and chef. Her five-course tasting menu ($115) showcases creative dishes like Maine Snow Island oysters with seaweed gremolata, Upstate Abundance potatoes with morcilla (a pork sausage), yellow onion and sauce au poivre and cholgas secas (dried mussels) with charred caraflex cabbage, onion glaze and fermented potato bread.

Blamey began laying the groundwork for the project after Gotham Bar & Grill closed in March 2020 for more than a year and a half, due to the pandemic; she followed that stint with a residency at Grand Award winner Blue Hill at Stone Barns in spring 2021.

Wine consultant Lee Campbell built the list of 80 selections, 16 of which are offered by the glass. Much like the menu, the wines were selected with sustainability in mind. “I was very excited to work with such a singular culinary mind like chef Victoria Blamey,” Campbell told Wine Spectator via email. “Her flavors are complex, dynamic and very alive. It has been fascinating to curate a group of wines that would stand up to these flavors and also not distract.”

As a nod to Blamey’s heritage, the wine list is strong in South American wines, while crisp whites and light reds from around the globe round out the selection.—T.M.

Mirazur Chef Mauro Colagreco Starts Residency at Montage Los Cabos

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Mauro Colagreco, the chef behind acclaimed French restaurant Mirazur, is taking up residence this month at Award of Excellence winner Mezcal in Mexico’s Montage Los Cabos hotel. Titled “Mirazur Beyond Borders,” the residency will blend the Argentinian chef’s distinctive style with local ingredients and flavors.

“We are planning to use some of my favorite Mexican produce, such as chile peppers, corn, [bell peppers] among others, to mix in with my cuisine at Mirazur,” Colagreco told Wine Spectator via email. “I want to show my team and guests of Montage Los Cabos just how versatile Mexican produce can be and how it can be easily incorporated into cuisine.”

Beginning Feb. 9, this is the first of three dining experiences Montage Los Cabos will be hosting in 2022; it’s scheduled to run for 10 days, with exclusively outdoor seating. Each night, Colagreco and his team are developing a new tasting menu ($550, plus $160 for wine pairings), combining seasonal ingredients with Mirazur techniques. (Mezcal’s kitchen has been adjusted for the task.) “I always try to keep an open mind,” Colagreco said, “since it gives me the flexibility to change the menu freely and offer spontaneous cuisine in Mirazur.”

As a match for Colagreco’s diverse selections, Mirazur Beyond Borders will be offering wines that encompass a range of regions and styles. Mirazur sommeliers Magali Pichari and Noemi Mattachione are overseeing the wine program, which emphasizes the shared grape varieties and histories of Mexico, California, Italy and southern France. Wines from Montage Los Cabos’ cellar will also be available, beefing up the Mexican selections.

“[Chef Mauro] is known for taking diners on sensory journeys, and we are honored to host this unforgettable culinary experience,” said Montage Los Cabos managing director Marco Ortlam in a statement.

Mirazur’s gardening team is working with regional farmers, fishermen and producers to source ingredients, observing sustainable techniques used in Baja California while integrating the French restaurant’s own eco-friendly practices. Colagreco’s team is also collaborating with Italy-based company Plastic Free Certification to enhance the project’s sustainability. “Collectively, we are working toward a solution regarding the global plastic pollution crisis,” said Colagreco, “and we hope our partnership will encourage others to become more aware of their plastic usage.”

Colagreco and his team are focusing on reopening Mirazur as well, where renovations began Jan. 3, primarily in the kitchen; the restaurant is set to reopen in April. In the meantime, much of the Mirazur team will be participating in the Mezcal project. Past chef residencies at Montage Los Cabos include chefs Dominque Crenn and Christopher Kostow.—C.D.

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America’s top charity wine auction outdid itself over the weekend, raising $23 million for children’s charities. The Naples Winter Wine Festival (NWWF), which has consistently held the top spot among charity wine auctions in recent years, was held in-person on Jan. 30 after going virtual last year. All the funds help support underprivileged children in Collier County, Fla., through the Naples Children & Education Foundation (NCEF).

The 22nd annual live auction was held at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort, where hundreds of wine lovers packed the tent to bid on 43 experiential-focused lots. Several world-renowned vintners also joined the crowd, including Piero Antinori, Olivier Krug, Veronique Boss-Drouhin and Laura Catena.

“On a scale of 1 to 10, the energy under the tent broke the meter,” NCEF CEO Maria Jimenez-Lara told Wine Spectator. “Although we had fewer attendees and fewer auction lots, the lots were some of the most appealing ever. We were amazed to set a new [NWWF] record and thrilled for what it means to the children we serve.”

The top wine-related lot included a six-night Italian excursion to visit the Antinori estate, along with three double magnums of Tignanello (2011, 2015 and 2017) and three magnums of Guado al Tasso Bolgheri Superiore (2012, 2014 and 2018). The lot sold to two couples for $580,000, then was doubled and sold to another two couples, for a total of $1.16 million.

A trip to Tennessee’s Blackberry Farm hotel and Grand Award–winning restaurant and Napa’s Staglin Family Vineyards sold twice as well for a total of $1.05 million. The lot also included an etched 3-liter bottle of 2015 Staglin Family Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon and a case of a personalized Cabernet blend.

“Our family motto is great wines for great causes and our goal is to help that as much as we can,” said Staglin Family Vineyards president Shannon Staglin. The Staglins have worked extensively to help support brain health research. “Since the Naples Winter Wine Auction started in 2001, we’ve connected to the cause and that’s the most important thing.”

Tuscany and Napa weren’t the only destinations that helped raise big sums. A six-day Argentinean excursion through Buenos Aires and Mendoza sold to two couples for $280,000. The lot also included more than 50 bottles of Catena Zapata’s flagship labels, plus 12 bottles of custom-made wine.

“Our lot provides a one-of-a-kind experience in Argentina,” said Catena managing director Laura Catena. “From meeting the most famous local chefs, to a night of opera to learning how to tango to making your own wine, it will certainly be unforgettable for the two lucky couples.”

Since its 2001 debut, NWWF has raised nearly $245 million for NCEF.

Where can you order wine from? Check out Wine Spectator‘s comprehensive guide to state shipping laws.

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A few hours after a long workout, do you like to reward yourself with a glass of wine? Past research has shown a link between regular exercise, moderate drinking and a longer life, but a new study has found that people who exercise more tend to drink more as well.

The study, published in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, was led by Dr. Kerem Shuval of the Dallas-based research center the Cooper Institute. He and his team surveyed nearly 40,000 participants who enrolled in the Cooper Center Longitudinal Study, comprising patients ages 20 to 86 who visited the clinic for preventive medical examinations between 1988 and 2019. The study’s mean age was 45.9 and about two-thirds of participants were men.

Cardiorespiratory fitness was measured with a maximal treadmill test—participants run on a treadmill while a machine measures how much oxygen they use. Based on the final speed and grade, researchers computed participants’ maximal metabolic equivalent (the amount of oxygen their bodies require during rest). Subjects were then grouped into low, moderate and high fitness groups.

Alcohol consumption was measured via questionnaire, focusing on how many drinks per week participants consumed. (One drink was defined as 12 ounces of beer, 5 ounces of wine or 1.5 ounces of hard liquor). Researchers separated the participants into three groups: light drinking (three or fewer drinks per week), moderate drinking (more than three and up to seven drinks for women and more than three and up to 14 drinks for men) and heavy drinking (more than seven drinks for women and more than 14 drinks for men). In addition, alcohol dependence was measured via a separate questionnaire, aimed at screening for clinically relevant alcohol problems.

The results showed that fitter study subjects were more likely to drink. Women within the moderate fitness category were 1.58 times more likely to drink moderately or heavily in comparison to their low-fitness counterparts, and those classified as high fitness were 2.14 times more likely to drink moderately or heavily. Men in the moderate fitness category were 1.42 times more likely to fall into the moderate or heavy alcohol consumption groups, and high-fitness men were 1.63 times more likely to drink moderately or heavily compared to the low-fitness group.

Despite their higher odds of drinking more, men who were classified as higher fitness were less likely to suffer from alcohol dependency issues. Among male heavy drinkers, low-fitness subjects had a 45.7 percent chance of alcohol dependency, while moderate fitness subjects had a 41.7 percent chance and high fitness subjects had a 34.9 percent chance.

“The study findings indicate that current drinkers with higher fitness levels exhibited an increased tendency for alcohol consumption,” the authors write. “Interventions focusing on increasing fitness might consider concurrently aiming to reduce alcohol consumption.”

The authors add that this relationship between exercise and alcohol could be explained by a psychological mechanism called “licensing effect,” where achieving goals provides a “license” to drink as a reward mechanism. More research is needed to confirm this hypothesis.

One limitation of the study is that participants were self-reporting their alcohol consumption, which can often be subject to inaccurate measurements. (It may be that higher fitness participants felt more comfortable sharing their drinking habits.) Another limitation is that the study population was predominantly white and with high education levels. Further studies would need to look at a more diverse population to see if these results stand up.

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Early this month, Geordie’s, the Wine Spectator Restaurant Award winner housed inside Phoenix’s historic Wrigley Mansion, named CJ Kahley as its new chef de cuisine. Kahley joins the team with experience from fellow Restaurant Award–winning destinations like Thomas Keller’s Bouchon in Las Vegas and the now-closed Michael Mina in San Francisco.

Kahley cites the history of the Wrigley Mansion, which opened in 1930, as a big draw for joining the team. “Geordie’s has been building a following since it opened, and I wanted to challenge myself to not only keep the existing standard but to run with it and continuously improve things,” Kahley told Wine Spectator. “Chef Christopher Gross set the bar high, so I wanted to see where I could take the menu and what my story here could be.”

Kahley will follow this with new additions to the menu like caramelized scallops and octopus fritto, a dish made with squid ink tempura, fennel purée and salsa peperoncino. Previous menu highlights are still available like Prime steak frites, whole branzino and creste di gallo pasta served with duck confit and baby kale.

The wine program, which boasts 1,200 selections, has also seen some recent updates. Led by wine director Paola Embry, the Best of Award of Excellence–winning cellar was recently expanded from 7,500 bottles to 12,000 bottles that span regions like California, France, Italy, Bordeaux, Burgundy, Champagne and Spain.—Taylor McBride

New York’s Sant Ambroeus Group Brings Felice to Brooklyn

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After adding a new location to Manhattan’s Upper West Side last year, New York City–based SA Hospitality Group brought Felice to Brooklyn Heights on Jan. 17. Named Felice Montague for its location on Montague Street, the Italian restaurant and wine bar joins other SA Hospitality spots like the celebrated Sant Ambroeus and Best of Award of Excellence winner Casa Lever.

“We have always felt that Brooklyn Heights would be a perfect neighborhood for Felice,” partner and chief operating officer Jacopo Giustiniani told Wine Spectator via email. “When the space at 84 Montague Street became available, we knew it was a perfect fit.”

Giustiniani’s 140-label wine list is packed with wines from up and down the Italian boot, from Franciacorta to Etna reds. “We carry a variety of producers, many which follow organic and sustainable agriculture methods,” Giustiniani said. The program’s heaviest focus is on Brunellos, Chianti Classicos, super Tuscans and Nebbiolos. Italian wine lovers will recognize many celebrated names among the 1,000-bottle inventory, including Antinori, Avignonesi, Tenuta San Guido and Borgogno. The restaurant also offers its private Tuscan label, as well as 24 wines by the glass. “We hope to offer a wide range of options to our guests, and that all of our clients are able to find a wine on the menu they can enjoy for any occasion,” Giustiniani said.

Like the other Felice locations, Felice Montague’s cuisine is inspired by Tuscan cooking. Chef Fausto Ferraresi prepares a menu centered on locally sourced ingredients and products imported from Italy for dishes like arancini, ricotta crostone and many distinctive pastas. The location is premiering a few new plates too. “I worked closely alongside [Ferraresi] to add special menu items that are unique to this location,” said culinary director Iacopo Falai. These include pasta al forno (baked pasta) dishes like penne ai quattro formaggi, as well as gnocchi alla Sorrentina and chicken pizzaiola.

Felice Montague is located in a 1930s art deco building and features preserved design elements like colorful tile and geometric details across the restaurant’s open floorplan. These mingle with Tuscan touches added by designer Samantha Tannehill. Looking ahead, SA Hospitality will be opening a new Sant Ambroeus in East Hampton, N.Y., in the spring, and a new Felice location in West Palm Beach, Fla., in the summer.—Collin Dreizen

New York’s Danny Meyer–Driven Intersect by Lexus Closes

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Intersect by Lexus closed Jan. 15 after a three-year run in New York City’s Meatpacking District. The three-story, multifunctional space featured a café, restaurant and cocktail bar run by Danny Meyer’s Union Square Hospitality Group, which owns several other Restaurant Award winners including Grand Award winner the Modern. The space also included a retail area and a public gallery.

According to an announcement on Intersect’s website, the restaurant’s closure was unrelated to the COVID-19 pandemic. The announcement notes that the restaurant was able to pivot to a to-go model during indoor-dining shutdowns and has been solidly booked for reservations since reopening. “Intersect was intended to enhance the Lexus brand in an impactful and meaningful way, and it did just that,” it read. “We are proud of what we have accomplished, and we consider Intersect by Lexus NYC a great success.”

In its main dining room, Intersect hosted a diverse roster of chef residencies for four to six months each. Guest chefs included names like Victoria Blamey of New York’s Gotham Bar & Grill, London-based French chef Gregory Marchand and New Orleans’ Nina Compton. Beverage director Andrea Morris kept the wine list around 100 selections, but rotated the offerings to complement the cuisine of each residency. Value was a consistent priority for the wine program, which listed plenty of bottles under $100 and a robust by-the-glass page.

Though there are no further details on a future iteration of the retail-restaurant hybrid, the announcement also shared that “the Lexus brand will continue to develop creative and innovative lifestyle experiences … for years to come.”—Julie Harans

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