WELCOME TO WINESPEED
A. Put it in a metal ice bucket and put the whole thing in the freezer
B. Bury the wine completely in ice
C. Fill the sink with cold water and submerge the whole unopened bottle in the water
D. Fill an ice bucket half with cold water and half with ice and submerge the wine bottle up to its neck
This white is stunningly delicious. There’s no other word that captures its beauty and power. You just want to keep drinking it. The following content is accessible for members only, please sign in.
97 points Karen MacNeil / WineSpeed
Punching Down
A process during red wine fermentation where the grape skins are The following content is accessible for members only, please sign in.
Wine People Close Up with Ancient Peaks’ co-owner Doug Filipponi
This week, my Wine People Close Up video features Ancient Peaks’ co-owner Doug Filipponi. The winery is in the tiny Santa Margarita appellation within Paso Robles, and the vineyards cover what was once an ancient inland seabed 14 million years ago. There are fossilized oyster shells in the soil to prove it. You’ve got to see this.
—Karen
Renowned Author & Dynamic Speaker
With a reputation for captivating audiences and inspiring wine lovers around the world, Karen is available for keynote speeches, seminars, and custom events. Reach out to book Karen for your next event.
Wine and Words
The first book on wine in the English language was A New Boke of the Natures and Properties of All Wines, written in 1568 by William Turner. Turner’s book is thought to have been a guide for William Shakespeare, who laced his texts with numerous references to wine. Then, during the 18th century, dozens of major wine books were written—many of them, interestingly by English physicians. The following content is accessible for members only, please sign in.
By the Numbers
4
Number of California wineries just awarded the prestigious 2026 California Sustainable Winegrowing Alliance Green Medal Awards. The following content is accessible for members only, please sign in.
210
Approximate drop (in millions of US$) of Italian wine export sales to the US in 2025, according to findings from the Unione Italiana Vini (UIV) Observatory. Among the factors that caused the drop: The following content is accessible for members only, please sign in.
18
Cost (in US$) of a bottle of the inaugural white wine created by Sonoma-based La Crema winery and the Women’s National Basketball Association, the first such joint venture between a California winery and a women’s sports league. The following content is accessible for members only, please sign in.
Each week, my team and I will bring you a fascinating and fun dose of wine intel. You’ll find my top wine recommendations (for every one wine we recommend to you, we taste 50 to 100 wines), plus great wine and food quizzes, my takes on happenings in the wine world, and my (hopefully thought-provoking and helpful) blogs. Plus, as always, lots more!
~ Karen MacNeil