Maggie Mahboubian is on a mission. A mission to make the world a more fragrant place. A mission to introduce the world to the independent, artisan perfumers working in this country and Canada. A mission to create a place...

"New Jersey was a revelation."  Linda Murphy is talking about wine.  American Wine to be exact, which is the name of the book she has just co-authored with Jancis Robinson, a Master of Wine and leading authority on all things grape related around the world.  Linda is a well-respected wine...

Talk about off the beaten path. This has to be one of the most scenic drives to a winery I've ever been on.  I'm not talking sweeping, panoramic views. Instead the road is shrouded in morning mist, and the oak...

"In all my life I have been associated with two W's."  The beret clad Miljenko "Mike" Grgich is standing in front of us, a group of wine press gathered at the Grgich Hills Estate winery in...

I'm sitting in the living room of my friend's home, where she's gathered a small group of friends for a wine tasting. Betty Kaufman is pouring a sparkling wine.  While my friend is the host for the evening, Betty is our wine guide and will be taking us through five...

On a recent sunny Sunday, a small group of sommeliers gathered at the Andaz hotel in Napa Valley to take part in a wine tasting.  That's not unusual; somms have tasting groups and often attend...

Blue and green glass bottles fill shelves against a stark white backdrop. Mixologists hold bottle stoppers out for people seated at the bar to smell. They wear white lab coats that say "Be Original Be Fabulous." They...

On International Women's Day, the courtyard of the Westin Versa in Napa Valley is a lively scene with people having a great time sipping, eating and talking. As you walk around to the 30 or so tables where wines are being poured, you don't see any men. These are the...

Signorello Estate is a boutique family owned winery that sits on a west-facing hillside overlooking the Napa Valley.  It is nestled between the appellations of Stag's Leap District and Oak Knoll on the Silverado Trail and is...

When you're really passionate about wine, there's nothing better than getting an opportunity to visit one of your favorite wineries, meet the winemaker and then have a blending session led by that winemaker. By learning the basics...

Ah gardenia. This white flower's creamy, milky fragrance is a heady scent. There have been many interpretations of gardenia as a perfume. The venerable fragrance House of Creed has created Fleurs de Gardenia, the latest scent in the repertoire of Creed's perfumes. With Valentines Day coming up, should you need a gift,...

What's more romantic than Champagne?  Pink Champagne or sparkling wine.  I've been pitched all sorts of wines to recommend for Valentine Day celebrations, but most of the wines are still wines.  None of those will do.  For me, it's bubbles or nothing.  And they should be pink.

First we had "critter" labels for wine -- you know, Yellow Tail, Little Penguin, Dancing Bull, Smoking Loon.  Then came what I call "dessert" labels -- Cupcake, Layer Cake. Let's not forget the "mommy" labels -- MommyJuice, Mommy's Little Helper.  Now we have what I'm calling "identity" labels -- Middle...

With less than a week to go until Christmas Day, have you done all of your holiday gift shopping? Have you even started? If not, don't despair. To the rescue, a list of the 10 best wine gifts that you can snap up at the last minute -- and it...

Eric Asimov, New York Times wine critic, is still learning about wine.  "Absolutely," he says.  He's in Berkeley, CA at Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant, about to do a reading from his new book How...

"I love our plats du jour at all our restaurants, we've been doing it forever." Restaurateur Sondra Bernstein is perhaps best known for her iconic Sonoma wine country restaurant the girl & the fig. She first opened it in the charming...

If you had told John Shafer in 1973, when he moved from Chicago to Napa Valley in 1973, that his winery and one specific vineyard would earn the highest critical acclaim, bring in top bids at wine auctions and create a formidable fan following, he would probably have scoffed, being...

Fragrance is having its moment. You expect to find perfume on display in drug stores, department stores and high-end boutiques. You even find it in airports at duty-free shops. But in a museum? That's probably the last...

Once again, the holiday season is upon us, and with that, lists and lists of wine recommendations.  The suggestions are getting to be more adventurous - recommending Syrah or  Gerwurztraminer make.  But I kind of cringe at the lists that endorse wines other than American wines.  It's not like there's...

It's not easy to make a film or a video around the subject of wine.  I should know, I produced the TV show In Wine Country on NBC for nine seasons.  Wine on the big or little screen gets super boring.  Our challenge was always 'how do we make wine...