“What is gluten, and why do I keep seeing Gluten Free options on restaurant menus and grocery store shelves?” These are just some of the questions you may be asking if you are not among the growing number of people who have been diagnosed with celiac disease or gluten intolerance. Gluten is the generic name […]

Right from the get-go, we here at Wine Peeps were supporters of Washington State’s ballot initiative, I-1183. And, as you know, we were thrilled when it passed, because it finally got the state out of the liquor business. No longer do we have bureaucrats at the WSLCB deciding what selections will be available to us […]

Getting right to the point, a high QPR Rating here on Wine Peeps means that the wine has a great price compared to wines of similar quality [i.e. same Quality Rating] within the same varietal/type. But there’s much more to the story. When we started publishing QPRs for all the wines we reviewed, there weren’t […]

There is no such thing as a perfect initiative, but I-1183 is a huge step in the right direction. Wine Peeps supported this initiative from the get-go so we were thrilled to see it pass. We finally got the state out of the liquor business (the 43rd state to do so) and defeated the Wine […]

As Yogi Berra once said, it’s déjà vu all over again. About a year ago, I wrote a similar post recommending a “yes” vote on I-1100. Now we have I-1183 on the ballot, and some of you are asking for our thoughts and recommendation again. While the two initiatives have a similar primary objective of […]

Last month in Wine Reviews: What Kind Do You Prefer? (Part I), I listed four expert reviews and two ratings for the same wine, which I can tell you now was the 2005 Columbia Crest Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, the Wine Spectator #1 wine for 2009; and asked you to share whether you preferred detailed notes […]

Besides the obvious desire to find glowing reviews for wines that you like, do you prefer detailed notes that test the English language skills of the critic, only a quick and dirty points (or stars) rating, or something in between? Legendary Washington winemaker Bob Betz says, “Consumers have a 2-point system (not a 100-point), Yum […]

Do you enjoy reading about witches, vampires, and daemons? Did you enjoy Harry Potter and Twilight? If you answered “yes” to either of these questions and are a reader of this blog (which means you should be 21 or older), A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness should be on your “must read” list. It […]

A month ago, I wrote a post analyzing Washington Ballot Initiatives I-1100 and I-1105 and concluded by saying that I was leaning toward a “yes” vote on I-1100 and a “no” vote on I-1105. Since then, I have been continuing to study the issues and have engaged in discussion with a number of knowledgeable persons […]

A month ago, I was fairly certain how I would vote on both of these initiatives. Today, I’m not as sure. How about you? Earlier this month, a good, concise summary of the two initiatives appeared in the Seattle P-I Online. It said in part, “I-1100 would eliminate Washington’s ‘three-tiered’ liquor control system, which segregates […]