Author: girlsongrapes

Spring has sprung, and you know what that means - it's porch pounding time! You know what we're talking about: that glorious season when you grab some plastic cups and best friends, head outside, and get into the most refreshing wines. Whether sitting on the porch with some blue crabs, or hanging out around the fire pit, you're bound to feel your thirst quenched with these porched pounders! It doesn't matter where the wine is from, or even the grape varietal. There are two main features that qualify a wine for Porch Pounder status: drinkability and value. By "drinkability," we mean something that goes down easy: smooth, low-tannin reds,

The Oregon Trail was a roughly 2,000-mile route from Independence, Missouri, to Oregon City, Oregon. Hundreds of thousands of American pioneers used this rather arduous path to emigrate west in the mid-1800s, passing through Kansas, Nebraska, Wyoming, and Idaho. Although all of these states make wines, the Pacific Northwest is where some of the country's finest wines are produced. The Pacific Northwest includes Washington, Oregon, Idaho (good for more than just potatoes, ladies!) and Canada's British Colombia, and turns out world class examples of classic varietals like Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Riesling and Pinot Gris, among others. The wines encompass a wide range of styles and stand

February's here, which means it's cold outside. How better to warm up than with a big, bold red? We're thinking Malbec is the perfect winter companion. Malbec is a high-quality grape capable of demonstrating a variety of characteristics, from medium-bodied and red-fruited to dark and smoky with loads of spice. Although Malbec is one of the five Bordeaux varietals (along with Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Petit Verdot), it is most recognizable as a wine from Argentina, where it is the most widely planted grape in the region. Time to get ready for some bold, rich, juicy Malbec! About the Grape When folks think about Malbec, they immediately associate the

How do you make pizza- a near perfect food- even better? Wine, of course! What you sip on with your pizza can be determined by the toppings. From meat lovers, to BBQ chicken, to Hawaiian pineapple and ham – there are a multitude of wines that will match. Cheese Pizza: For the pizza minimalist, a slice of plain cheese is a classic comfort food. The red sauce will be the main focus point when wine pairing because of the acidity and intense flavor. You don’t need to get too complicated – a wine that is simple and pure will complement the basic slice of pizza just fine. Suggestions: Montepulciano d’

Ah, Italia! One of the world's leading producers of wine, Italy is unique among wine regions because vines are cultivated nearly everywhere in the country. We often associate Italy with red wines – Chianti, Brunello, Barolo, Valpolicella – but the country’s white wines are as diverse as their reds.   The range of Italian whites is rather staggering, and range from top quality sparkling wines, to beautifully balanced dry wines and rich dessert wines. There is certainly an Italian white for every occasion. Too often when we think about Italian whites, we think Prosecco and Pinot Grigio. While they are important to the Italian wine scene, they are not Italy’s

Most of the time, we spend each month discussing a specific varietal or region. However, this month we are going to do something a little different, but is so perfectly in line with the message of Girls on Grapes – celebrate the history of women as winemakers! Some of the world’s top winemakers are women – join us this month as we find out why. Women, as they do in most industries, have a long history of innovation in both the vineyard and the cellar for as long as wine has been made.  This month, our featured winemakers come to us from around the globe – from California to

Sure, winter officially starts in December, but we’ve all been in Baltimore long enough to know that the real weather hits in January, which is why we’re looking at richer reds and warming whites. Come, escape with us to the Rhône Valley. Following southeastern France’s Rhône River, the Rhône Valley runs north to south and drains into the Mediterranean Sea. Divided into North and South regions, each producing distinct styles of wine, and though there are stellar rosés and white wines from top notch sites, the vast majority of Rhône wines are red. The Rhône is an Old World producer of wine, meaning location and producer take precedence on the

It’s the most wonderful time of year, when Girls on Grapes devotes a magical month to the most festive, joyful wines in the world - bubbly! Get ready to pop some corks, ladies, because we’re gonna be drinking some sparkling wine. But don’t let the timing fool you into thinking that bubbles are only appropriate for holidays and celebrations - sparkling wine is the perfect beverage anytime, anyplace. (And we mean anytime - don’t underestimate the breakfast pairing abilities of Champagne!) We at the Bin have dedicated our lives to fighting that unfortunate misconception, and promoting the versatility of these astounding wines. Our manifesto is, simply put, that

Marvelous May to you ladies! This month we will dive into one of the most important and significant wine regions in the world, Bordeaux! Located in Southwest France, Bordeaux is the world’s largest fine-wine district on earth and it is the largest supplier of profoundly complex, high-quality, and age-worthy wines. Many Bordeaux are known to have great intense flavors, elegance, and personality. We know Bordeaux can be a slightly confusing and a bit intimidating, but this month we’ll show you that it doesn’t have to be! And sure, they can be very expensive, but we will focus on getting to know some of Bordeaux’s good everyday value wines -

This month we are traveling to the land of castles, romantic hills covered in mist and quite possibly Italy’s finest red wines! Piemonte, often described as “the Burgundy of Italy,” is home to more DOC zones that any other Italian region, the two most notable and revered being Barolo and Barbaresco. But there is much more to this region that we can’t wait to show you! The region is often referred to as Piedmont or Piemonte and it is not uncommon to see it spelled both ways on labels, but in Italy, it is referred to as Piemonte (pee-ay-MON-tay) Piemonte translates to “at the foot of the mountains,” referring