Terroir Review

Four wine bottles against a background of a mountain stream in winter

Features, Review Articles

Festive Flights and How to Take Them

by Meg Maker

Relax. It’s just dinner.

Essays, Features, Wine Writing

Cider Can Learn From Wine’s Lexical Missteps

Pastry shop in Florence’s Mercato Centrale

Essays, Features

Food’s Five W’s

Features, Portugal, Visual Essays

Whither Port?

Reference, Wine Science

What is Malolactic Fermentation?

Reference, Wine Science

Acidity In Wine

Essays, Features, Wine Writing

We Need to Talk About Wine Talk

Joško Gravner in his fermentation cellar in Oslavia

Features, Italy, Visual Essays

The Gravner Notebook

Barefoot in the Douro

Essays, Features, Portugal, Travel

Barefoot in the Douro

Terroir Review

A journal of nature, culture, food, wine, and place About Terroir Review

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Profiles, essays, travelogues, tasting roundups, and more

Whither Port?

Two Men And A Village: The Launch of Joseph-Jibril

Two bottles of Ryme Cellars wines on a table, with wine in a glass and a small cheese plate.

Tasting Ryme, Again

We Need to Talk About Wine Talk

Wine glasses in the sunlight sitting atop a quilted runner with orange, gold, and yellow fabric

Thanksgiving Wine Pairing

Joško Gravner in his fermentation cellar in Oslavia

The Gravner Notebook

Torrone from Caffèsicilia - Pistachio and Almond

Torrone, The Sicilian Not-Too-Sweet Treat

The Curiosity of C.V.N.E. Monopole Clásico

The Curiosity of C.V.N.E. Monopole Clásico

Deirdre Heekin setting the table in her home in Barnard, Vt.

Cider, or Wine? Both, Says Deidre Heekin. Also: Same Thing.

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Essays

Award-winning narratives on wine, food, and place by Meg Maker Read more

Wine Reviews

Small-batch, old-fangled, organic, indigenous, or otherwise interesting wines

Four wine bottles against a background of a mountain stream in winter

Festive Flights and How to Take Them

2011 Jean-Marc Brocard Vau de Vey Premier Cru Chablis

2011 Jean-Marc Brocard Vau de Vey Premier Cru Chablis

2020 Bigagnoli Eocene Montebaldo Bardolino

2020 Bigagnoli Eocene Montebaldo Bardolino

2017 Collavini Ribolla Gialla Spumante Dosaggio Zero Millesimato

2017 Collavini Ribolla Gialla Spumante Dosaggio Zero Millesimato

2016 Bovio Parussi Barolo

2016 Bovio Parussi Barolo

2018 Pisoni Millesimato Nature Trentodoc

2018 Pisoni Millesimato Nature Trentodoc

Jeeper Grand Assemblage Brut Champagne

Jeeper Grand Assemblage Brut Champagne

2021 Collavini Rosé Rame Venezia Giulia

2021 Collavini Rosé Rame Venezia Giulia

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Travel

A passion for place and people read all travel stories

PRESS, AWARDS & SPEAKING

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Food

Terroir-driven foods (including lots of cheese) READ ALL FOOD STORIES & REVIEWS

megmaker

I started gardening in this town in the early 1990

I started gardening in this town in the early 1990s. At that time we considered ourselves somewhere between USDA zones 4a and 4b because our winter temps sometimes dipped to -30F or even -35F (-28C to -35C). The USDA’s new map now places us in zone 5a — essentially an entire growing zone warmer. Zone 4 has upped stakes for Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom and New Hampshire cold topknot.

But the USDA zone map does not (and never has) captured all of the nuances of climate change. That’s largely because the model is built on minimum temperatures, which is good litmus for perennial plants that can or cannot tolerate certain extremes. But the growing season for a vegetable gardener is much more about annual cycles, annual plants, making last and first frost dates and the season’s heat, rain, and storm impacts far more critical.

And what I can report is that in the last thirty years, those factors have become far more variable. Sometimes last frost is very early and I can plant (or could have planted; hindsight is 20/20) three or four weeks sooner than historical norms. Ditto first frost; this year many of my annual plants died of old age (not kidding; my basil and cucumbers simply went kaput) instead of being wiped out by a freeze, which we didn’t see until at least one month later than normal. And, it rained and rained and rained, the most rain I’ve ever observed here, after a couple of extremely dry seasons.

So, yes, the USDA map suggests “it’s warmer now,” but boots-literally-on-the-ground experience suggests that farmers and gardeners need to continue to do what we’ve always done: Keep an eye on the weather and a hand on our heart.

#gardener #gardening #climatechange #backyardfarmer #growyourownfood #growit

I was invited to contribute an essay on cider lexi

I was invited to contribute an essay on cider lexicons to the print zine Malus. It’s a topic I’ve been following closely in those pages, and was happy to share my own work on evolving wine lexicons with the cider community.

With the editor’s blessing, I’ve just published the essay on my own site, too. Link in bio. Enjoy.

https://terroirreview.com/2023/11/26/cider-can-learn-from-wines-lexical-missteps/

#cider #pickcider #wine #cideriswine #winewriting #winewriter #winelexicon #wineeducation #wineeducator #wineexpert

Quick little sketch, experimenting. #artist #illus

Quick little sketch, experimenting.
#artist #illustrator #selfportrait

I’ve evidently done two hundred and ten fine art

I’ve evidently done two hundred and ten fine art paintings on the iPad since I got it a bit less than two years ago. I’ve also done countless illustrations and experiments, plus reams of life drawings from live models. But each of these paintings is an embodiment of time and reflection, learning, discovery, probing. I’m proud of them, of that effort. Of all the things I do, this, along with growing food, makes me feel most like myself, alive.

#art #artist #fineart #abstraction

Accidental Thanksgiving for one. I flaked out of a

Accidental Thanksgiving for one. I flaked out of a gathering because I wasn’t feeling well, but I waved my husband off and cobbled dinner from this and that. There’s roasted squash with leeks, feta, pecan, and dried cranberry, dressed with a cider reduction vinaigrette, also kale with shallot, and cranberry sauce. It’s all local or my own produce (not the pecan, obvs, nor the feta which is ewe’s milk and Greek), and the flavors are seasonally on point.

The fire is crackling, the ibuprofen is working, and I’ll be asleep before my spouse gets home, for sure. Happy Thanksgiving, all.

Happy Thanksgiving from all of us in the #hometerr

Happy Thanksgiving from all of us in the #hometerroir.

#thanksgiving #🍁 #🦃 #🦌 #🐿️ #🦉 #🐆

Added my 2p to the holiday picks made by the wine

Added my 2p to the holiday picks made by the wine shop at @coopfoodstores, trying to offer a bit of context to their selections.

I’ve rarely been invited to contribute to the local wine scene, but things seem to be changing as the retail landscape here experiences some tectonic shifts and I, too, shift my focus toward education. It would feel nice to be known in my community as someone who knows a bit about wine.

#wine #wineexpert #wineeducation #wineeducator #winewriter

Yes it’s early no I don’t care. #seasonoflig

Yes it’s early no I don’t care.

#seasonoflight #winter #lights #tree #🌲 #⭐️

Did all the drawings before writing the story that

Did all the drawings before writing the story that wasn’t going to include this guy but then there he was in the opening line so yes I went back to the drawing board.

Last (maybe?) big garden chore done. See you in Ma

Last (maybe?) big garden chore done. See you in March, little greens! 🥬

#gardening #backyardfarm #fourseasonharvest #lettuce #greens #wintergarden #hometerroir

The map is not the territory, people make a place,

The map is not the territory, people make a place, terroir is contingent, and tradition and modernity are in constant dialogue.

I took few photos but many pages of notes at last weekend’s @territorioterroirterritory conference at @dartmouthcollege. It was great fun confabbing with old friends and new about this difficult and beautiful topic: @hawk_wakawaka @cjnb @moverstromcoleman @elenavaleriote @sl.ferrari @drcallegariscabinet @katieparla and more.

This was the first such conference but I’m hoping it’s not the last.

#terroir #hometerroir

The recording of my talk on wine lexicons is now u

The recording of my talk on wine lexicons is now up on @winescholarguild. (Link in bio.) To watch for free, click the orange “watch now” button, then select the option on the right to create a free account. Wine Scholar Guild members can simply log in as usual.

I hope you enjoy this material and will share your thoughts on the topic with me after watching. 🌞

#wine #winelexicon #winewriting #winewriter #wineeducator #winespeak

#organic #organicgardening #vegetables #leeks #car

#organic #organicgardening #vegetables #leeks #carrots #kale

First light, first frost, four weeks later than us

First light, first frost, four weeks later than usual.

#climatechange #hometerroir

A few slides from my next talk on the evolving lan

A few slides from my next talk on the evolving language of wine. 🍷

This Wednesday I’ll once again present my research on wine discourse, lexical norms, and transforming our communications strategies to make wine feel more open-hearted.

@winescholarguild Studio, Wed. 1 Nov., noon ET. Link in bio.

#wine #winewriting #winelexicon #winespeak #language #lexicon #colonialism #diversify #inclusivity #wineexpert #wineeducator #winewriter #winecommunity #winecommunication

I’m only planting 80 cloves this year because th

I’m only planting 80 cloves this year because they’re huge so the heads will be, too. 🧄

#garlic #organic #🧄

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