My analysis depends very much on excerpts from a detailed report by Laurence Geny and Denis Dubourdieu. Many thanks to their work, which helped me to understand 2012 - and you can read my detailed notes based on that summary HERE. What to make of Bordeaux 2012 barrel samples? Now, you can jump to my [...]
Latest from the Wine Blog
Australia’s magnificent Barossa: Ultra old vine wines and the cream of Langton’s Classification
April 28, 2013
One of many surprises whilst enjoying the great privilege of a dinner featuring 23 of the 123 “Langston’s classified wines” from Australia came from a marvelous Riesling. Another – far more profound – was discovering a wine that could be called the Petrus of Australia. Of course the majority of these wines – all from [...]
Haut (hum?) Medoc …
May 1, 2013
Tasting on the morning of Thursday 11 April at Grand Puy Ducasse. The blind samples of Haut Medoc were all OK, mainly – and in the context of the vintage. One wine I tasted non blind, later the same day, Chateau Sociando Mallet, stood out as among the best, but even the great Sociando was [...]
Moueix compared to Stéphane Derenoncourt / Nicolas Thienpont
May 1, 2013
A STUDY IN CONTRASTS Here we have two rather different styles from Right Bank Bordeaux, dominated by the Merlot grape. Compared to Moueix, I get more heat, noticeable extraction and/or dryness from Nicolas Thienpont and Stéphane Derenoncourt, but they are talented in their style of making wine – no doubt about that. It has been [...]
Australia’s magnificent Barossa: Ultra old vine wines and the cream of Langton’s Classification
April 28, 2013
One of many surprises whilst enjoying the great privilege of a dinner featuring 23 of the 123 “Langston’s classified wines” from Australia came from a marvelous Riesling. Another – far more profound – was discovering a wine that could be called the Petrus of Australia. Of course the majority of these wines – all from [...]
2012 Bordeaux from barrel: Somewhat ho-hum, but a few samples rose above the rest
April 21, 2013
My analysis depends very much on excerpts from a detailed report by Laurence Geny and Denis Dubourdieu. Many thanks to their work, which helped me to understand 2012 - and you can read my detailed notes based on that summary HERE. What to make of Bordeaux 2012 barrel samples? Now, you can jump to my [...]
Marvelous Moueix: many fine barrel samples of 2012 Bordeaux
April 29, 2013
Among the very best barrel samples of 2012 Bordeaux Tasting the wines of Moueix in Libourne on Tuesday 9 April. They included some wines from Saint Emilion, which I list here – and not on my Saint Emilion page. What a treat it was to taste with wine critic John Gilman, who is as jovial [...]
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Why Wine Connections?
First of all, welcome to my now revamped website. My name is Panos Kakaviatos and I love to drink wine. Since the past 10 years, I have been seriously writing about it, and since 2004, I have also organised wine dinners around the world in top hotel restaurants, from the Hyatt in Dubai for Château Mouton Rothschild in November 2008 to The Jefferson in Washington D.C. for Château Palmer in January 2010. If you clicked on the preceding link, you will see that I have started also to create video reports which will become an ever more important part of this website. Later on, I will create winery pages, to feature many Bordeaux châteaux but also estates in Burgundy, the Rhone, Champagne, Alsace and other wine regions. It is all about making connections and my anecdote from February 2008 during a special wine event in London remains relevant. I tasted a 1986 Mouton Rothschild – an $800 bottle of wine – as part of a vertical. Several times. Before the event started, to check each of the 12 bottles to be poured for possible defects and during the tasting, when I eagerly drank, not just sipped and spat. The tasting also featured other fine vintages of this great Bordeaux estate, some as expensive, including the already legendary 2005 and 2000, the popular 2003, a racy 1996 from magnum and a meaty and savory 1989. My connection was Decanter Magazine, which organized the event, and for which I occasionally write articles. But anyone could have attended. As I wine lover, I’ll take any connections that come my way, also for wines far less expensive – wines which I can afford with excellent quality-to-price ratios. Wines I will share with you in these pages. Thanks to my experience traveling and tasting, I have established many a wine connection to get you the wine tips you want: from finding that perfect fine wine dinner with the winemaker at a luxurious hotel restaurant to accessing hundreds of pages of copious wine tasting notes, free on this website.
Partly because of the proven health benefits when enjoyed in moderation, partly because it’s a wonderful way to pass the time with friends over a fine meal, wine increasingly fascinates consumers the world over. Cruise ships hire sommeliers – a job I am considering – and wine bars sprout like so many autumn mushrooms from Austin, Texas to Strasbourg, France. New markets in Russia, China and India to take three prominent examples ratchet up prices for popular brands, much to the dismay of many a consumer including your humble servant. And with so many wines being made worldwide – I recently tasted a Chinese wine that resembled a decent Bordeaux blend – choosing wine at stores and restaurants will become an ever more daunting affair. I hope I can help you.
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- pkakaviatos on Decanter Magazine’s Fine Wine Encounter master class features Sassicaia vs Ornellaia: no contest
- Peter on Decanter Magazine’s Fine Wine Encounter master class features Sassicaia vs Ornellaia: no contest
- pkakaviatos on 2012 Bordeaux from barrel: Somewhat ho-hum, but a few samples rose above the rest
- Miguel Lecuona on 2012 Bordeaux from barrel: Somewhat ho-hum, but a few samples rose above the rest
- pkakaviatos on 2012 Bordeaux from barrel: Somewhat ho-hum, but a few samples rose above the rest
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About Me
My name is Panos Kakaviatos.
Panos Kakaviatos
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Born, raised and educated in Washington D.C., I am a trained journalist, having worked for the Associated Press and Agence France Presse among other media. I like to drink wine, too, and so have also developed a wine writing habit, combining these two things.
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After earning degrees in Communication (B.A.) and International Political Economy (M.A.), I moved in 1996 to Strasbourg, France, in the heart of Alsatian wine country, where I began an enduring press relations career for an international organization called The Council of Europe. During that time, I joined a wine tasting club… which opened this brave new wine world.
As of April 2010, I am still working at the Council of Europe but take my spare time to taste and talk about wine, write articles and organize wine dinners in Europe and in the United States.
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Wine Dinners
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Blogroll
- Adam Lechmere A great friend and editor, Adam uses his superb writing skills to describe the wine world with originality and courage 0
- David White: The Terroirist I met David in Washington D.C. over a bunch of delicious wines Chez Ian Lipner, a fellow wine lover. David writes with great enthusiasm and covers many different angles from the world of wine. You have to love the title of his blog! 0
- Decanter Magazine A superb UK wine magazine where you can read some of my articles 0
- Dr. Christian Schiller's Wine Blogspot Christian is a wine lover who used to work at the International Monetary Fund and now devotes his free time to wine writing. He lives between Germany and the US, in Washington DC, where I had the pleasure of meeting him in 2011. 0
- Harpers Wine & Spirit Another excellent UK based wine magazine, where you can also read some of my work 0
- Izak Litwar Izak is a Bordeaux wine tasting veteran. Always a pleasure to meet him there. Read his informative tasting notes. 0
- Jane Anson, Bordeaux expert Jane is a fellow writer and fellow Bordeaux wine lover: check out her blog! 0
- Robert Parker's bulletin board I have made many wine friends from this bulletin board, which is an essential source for wine information. Alas, now closed to the public! 0
- Talk about wine An excellent German language blog on wine. 0
- The Gourmet Bachelor Chef Chad Carnes has written a breakthrough book on food and wine for bachelors. Passionate and interested in wine and food, take a look at his work! 0
- The UK Wine Forum An excellent UK based forum 0
- The Wine Cellar Insider This is a new blog by Jeff Leve, who is unabashed in his passion for Bordeaux. Filled with photos and text. 0
- The World of Fine Wine An elegantly prepared luxury publication that is packed with tasting notes and wine profiles. 0
- Wine Berserkers Ever since erobertparker closed itself to the public, Wine Berserkers has taken increasing importance in the US as a premier wine bulletin board. 0
- Wine Business International This is a fine publication focusing on the trade and business of wine worldwide 0
- Wine Talk An excellent wine bulletin board, again an offshoot from the erobertparker.com board, closed to the public. 0
Wine importers/shops
- Au Millesime My favorite wine store in Strasbourg. 0
- MacArthur Beverages An excellent wine importer and store in Washington D.C. Very friendly staff and a great selection make this a must for wine lovers. 0
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