Wine ChroniclesOver 20 years of tasting together
First growths and more, including 1966 vintage Port By Panos Kakaviatos for Wine Chronicles 17 January 2026 Some dinners are memorable for the bottles. Others linger because of the company. Few manage both, while reminding you why you started cellaring wine in the first place. At 1789 in Georgetown, ten friends gathered for a bring-your-own […]
Margaux, Latour, Trotanoy and so much more
New Year Wine Dinner with Friends By Panos Kakaviatos for Wine Chronicles 5 January 2026 Thanks to Tamar and Keith Levenberg for hosting an excellent dinner with Maureen Nelson, Joel Davidson and myself. I had not seen Maureen in ages, so it was especially great to see her: You haven’t changed one bit, Maureen! Each […]
Revisiting Weingut Bernhard Huber
Malterdingen, Baden-Württemberg: Burgundy Precision, Baden Soul By Panos Kakaviatos for Wine Chronicles 29 December 2025 A visit to Weingut Bernhard Huber in Malterdingen is never just a tasting; it is a lesson in continuity, restraint, and conviction. I visited the estate on 11 November, in the calm that follows harvest – and a bank holiday […]
What’s in a Name?
Why wine origin still matters By Panos Kakaviatos for Wine Chronicles 27 December 2025 Every so often, the wine world is reminded that names are not neutral. They carry weight, memory, and meaning that must be defended. Just before Christmas, Burgundy’s trade body, the Comité des Vins de Bourgogne, intervened after a major discount retailer […]
What Is Politics?
Reading a friend’s book, thinking politically Book review by Panos Kakaviatos 26 December 2025 There is a challenge to review a book edited by a friend, especially when that friend is a political scientist and one’s own professional life unfolds in a different, if adjacent, register. Colin Hay and I have known each other for […]
Just in time for the holidays: Dinner at Giscours
Biodiversity contributes to Margaux Renaissance By Panos Kakaviatos for Wine Chronicles 12 December 2025 It had just rained when I arrived at Château Giscours – the eve of my birthday on 5 December this year. Under a veil of evening mist, the estate had fallen into contemplative quiet. As my car that early evening rolled […]
Bordeaux : Welcome 2023
Initial reflections on Bordeaux 2023 – from Zürich to Bellefont-Belcier By Panos Kakaviatos for Wine Chronicles 30 November 2025 After a comprehensive tasting organised by the Union des Grands Crus de Bordeaux (UGCB) of the recently bottled 2023 vintage in Zürich earlier this month, I left less impressed than expected. One often hears winemakers praise […]
Sugar in Wine? Check Your Latte First.
We often fixate on “sugar in wine” as if it’s a dire dietary culprit, but the comparison is rarely fair. By Panos Kakaviatos for Wine Chronicles 24 November 2025 While tasting excellent wines from Domaine Wach in Northern Alsace, co-owner Jessica Ouellet – wife of seventh generation owner Pierre Wach – explained to me the […]
Alsace Clarity
From Rivalry to Revelry By Panos Kakaviatos for Wine Chronicles 12 November 2025 It was a night to remember in Colmar! 🌟 The 6th annual post-harvest dinner – known as Widderkumme – gathered representatives from 19 top Alsace wineries, see above photo — each devoted to expressing the soul of their terroirs, from crystalline Riesling […]
Château Lafon-Rochet
A New Chapter of Freshness and Finesse By Panos Kakaviatos for Wine Chronicles 30 October 2025 When Vincent Bache-Gabrielsen (photo above, credit to Château Lafon Rochet) took charge of Château Lafon-Rochet last year, it marked a quiet but meaningful shift for this celebrated classified growth in the Bordeaux appellation of Saint-Estèphe. Having worked within the […]
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