Vintage Report 2022 from Prima Materia
Prima Materia’s 2022 Vintage Report Remember the old days when people said that California didn’t really have vintages? While some things...
Vintage 2021 - The Lake County Report
As the vines started growing, it was clear that we never really had winter rains. When I was pruning vines in April, the wood was bone dry w
Sangiovese: A Couple of Attempts
Version 2.0 of the original, which is below. When asked to jot a few words down that define Prima Materia’s philosophy regarding...
2020 (Sort of) Vintage Report - Lake County
What. A. Year. The wine world is a very diverse web, and grasping the totality of it, even just within California, is a lot to ask. But...
2019 Lake County Vintage Report
The 2019 vintage was a snapshot of extremes. A cold, wet and lingering Spring dropped over an inch of thunderstorm-powered rain June 1st
The Wine Seminar
Pietro's 3-hour wine seminar covering tasting, descriptors, vineyard practices, winemaking, and food pairings.
10 Ways Fish Sauce Can Make Our Western Cooking Better
10 ways to use fish sauce to make cooking a bit better
A Fried Chicken Research Department Update
I recently spent several days deep in fried chicken R&D for a consulting project and thought I would share a few insights. This recipe...
Recipe - Pistachio Olive Oil Cake
This recipe has gone through many iterations (as have I) since I started working it in 2007. It was originally based on recipes from...
Learning in the vineyard
If you like wine, this is something cool, something almost no one ever sees. Think you know grapes do you? Well this is the modern...
Grapevine Budding and Grafting at Novavine
Vine Budding and Grafting Friday night we had a guest lecturer, the very highly respected field graft expert, Daniel Robledo. He learned...
Doomed Petition to the TTB to Recognize Greco in America
Greco di Tufo - the TTB has spoken and is wrong I have just received the TTB's judgement on my petition to recognize Greco (Bianco or...
The Restaurant Consulting Files - 10 Takeaways from a Recent Project
I recently opened a restaurant for an unprepared owner. It was an interesting project, but even a small 40-seat opening is very tough and...
On Growing and Making Nebbiolo
I did the snoopy dance when I heard about it. Deep in Napa Valley, on a warm afternoon we gathered at Silenus to discuss making - wait...
My Ode to the Oxtail
Here is a hint for those who like to cook - use oxtail. Yes, it looks like a giant denuded penis and yes, it is actually the tail which...
Espelette - The Devil and the Details
I remember my first espelette. I am only about 50% on the anniversary, and sometimes the car is not where it was left, but I remember...
Hooray! Another AVA!
Because I fear Mr. Heimoff's tattooed and sleek gym-toned forearms reigning blows upon me I will simply link to his blog exchange with...
A brief chef's biography
This is a rare personal post from 2012 - you have been warned. I hate eating and I hate food. Sometimes. I am getting over it. The best...
Arneis -
Arneis was not on the original road map for this season (see left), but being flexible is part of the fun. Based in the Roero in...
Vintage 2014 - a view from the vineyard
Yup, 17 days of 100F or above in July, so in conjunction with a little water nervousness it has been toasty here in Kelseyville.We are...