Randy Caparoso

Just minutes before the virtual awards webinar showcasing the 2024 Old Vine Hero Awards presented by the London-based The Old Vine Conference on March 25, 2024, distinguished journalist and JancisRobinson.com's Sustainability and Senior Editor Tamlyn…

My general impression of the 120 or so Pinot noirs that I managed to taste at the 2019 World of Pinot Noir – taking place at Santa Barbara’s The Ritz-Carlton Bacara this past March 1-2, 2019 – was: Still lots of full bodied wines, with alcohol levels…

California grown Petite Sirah (a.k.a. Durif) has never been counted among the world’s “great” red wines; despite an evidently fanatical fan base, driving steadily growing production (there are now over 1,000 brands of California Petite Sirah, which…

It was not surprising to find, at the 2018 World of Pinot Noir in Santa Barbara this past March 2-3, that American Pinot noirs are more impressive than ever. 15, 20 years ago, I would attend a 2-day event like this (such as the IPNC in McMinnville,…

2017 marks my seventh year living in Lodi wine country. Although I am originally from the Hawaiian Islands, Lodi has become my adopted home; and in many ways, this residency represents a culmination of a career as a full-time wine professional…

This post is a combination of two "Bottom Line" columns previously published in The SOMM Journal and Sommelier Journal Is it okay to talk about terroir in terms of minerals? When you become a working sommelier, and are privy to tastings of wines from…

A revision of a column originally published in Sommelier Journal For me it was always easy, when word started getting around eight, nine years ago, to dismiss the notion that wines over 14% alcohol or picked “overripe” are somehow inferior, or less…

It was very easy to be impressed by the overall quality level of Pinot Noirs at the 17th annual World of Pinot Noir, taking place at Bacara Resort in Santa Barbara this past March 3-4, 2017. As in previous years, I took detailed notes on some 50…

First things first: Amador County and its wines are unique unto themselves. That’s the beauty of this Sierra Foothills Viticultural Area region. Let us count the ways in which Amador County wines are now distinguishing themselves among other wines of…

This is the Big Week for Zinfandel Advocates & Producers (a.k.a. ZAP): their annual Experience in San Francisco, self-billed as “the world’s largest single varietal wine tasting event.” This year, three days of seminars and parties are capped by a…

Is there such a thing as “Grand Crus” rankings of California wines? No, there isn’t, and for good reason: the California wine industry is continuously discovering “new” vineyards of undeniably wonderful quality and interest. We’re not like places in…

Letting a grape finally sing Earlier in the month (May 2015), I endeavored to take a measure of California grown Grenache in a tasting of the very best varietal bottling of said grape. The tasting was a long time coming – I first thought about doing…

Part 2 of my telling of Amador County’s heritage, in collaboration with the organizers of the upcoming Amador Four Fires (please see Part 1 – The Original Grandpère Vineyard: Powerful Women, Grapes and Wines) DickCooper, whose family originally…

This is Part 1 of my telling of Amador County’s heritage done for the organizers of the upcoming Amador Four Fires; a culinary and wine celebration taking place in Plymouth’s Amador County Fairgounds on May 2, 2015. Amador County’s heritage is all…

I was contemplating a 2013 Failla Pinot Noir from Occidental Ridge Vineyard (Sonoma Coast) at the most recent World of Pinot Noir – a yearly two-day event that took place in Santa Barbara this past March 2015. The Failla’s color was a deep, vivid,…

In an 2014 piece published in The Washington Post, longtime industry observer Dave McIntyre projected the evolution of what he calls “the new American wine,” strongly influenced by steadily growing consumer interest in wines grown and produced in…

This past January 28-31, Zinfandel Advocates &Producers (a.k.a. ZAP) held its 24th full-scale “Experience” in San Francisco’s Presidio. ZAP 2015’s theme: Zinfandel is a rising star... reach out and grab it. Zinfandel, of course, is not exactly a…

No winemaker is as widely known, and often misunderstood, as Greg La Follette This profile and interview was originally composed for Sommelier Journal (Nov. 2011), where it appeared in abbreviated form as a winery profile. A version of this article…

Another outstanding Hospice du Rhône – America's premier Rhône style wine festival, taking place each spring in Paso Robles, CA – has come and gone this past April 28-30, and thus another good reason to stop and assess the progress of the…

I was entertaining a little girl up in my room, lord California wine and French perfume, lord She started talking about the war, lord I said, I don't want to talk about the war... - Randy Newman (Lover's Prayer) Why is it, recently, that every time I…