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The SOMM Journal

The SOMM Journal is the hospitality industry's go-to resource for the best new releases, most influential faces, and most exciting regions.

Subscriptions are free to members of the trade: [email protected]

11/12/2025

When actress launched this year, she immersed herself into the world of winemaking wholeheartedly. “Before becoming a vintner, I was just drinking wine for the taste or [because] it paired well with something. But understanding the alchemy, the chemistry, how it affects my body, how it affects the Earth, has been really fascinating and exciting,” she says. The inaugural vintage of MianU was a resounding success, selling out completely. So what’s next? “The process of making
the next vintage is like making a film: You gotta wait. The grapes have been picked, the film has been shot, but we still have to edit. . . . There are a lot of little steps along the way,” explains King.

Read more from in the digital edition at the link in our bio.

09/12/2025

The prevalence of limestone in the soils of the Adelaida District was key to founders Daniel and Georges Daou’s decision to move there, and the results have been impressive for the winery. our December cover story tells a story of terroir and the business of wine in Paso Robles with one of the most influential families in the region. Swipe to read more.

08/12/2025

While has long been known for its flagship Chardonnay sourced from both sides of the Carneros AVA, the brand also has a rich history of producing Bordeaux varieties. For these offerings—
Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc—Director of winemaking Niki Williams works with the aforementioned variety of Napa terroirs to ensure balanced expressions from vintage to vintage.

Cakebread’s home ranch in Rutherford, purchased back in the 1970s, offers the classic finesse and richness of the valley floor. Up on Howell Mountain, Dancing Bear Ranch provides “more mountain tannins—fine-grained and structured—and pushing toward that darker, riper fruit profile,” according to Williams, while “our Maple Lane Vineyard in Calistoga grows these tiny berries that create a fruity style but with solid density.”

But it’s Cakebread’s vineyards in the southeast corner of Napa Valley that Williams finds especially intriguing after two vintages of working with estate fruit. “Our Suscol Springs and Suscol Mountain vineyards express the Bordeaux varieties in a unique and interesting way,” she says, noting that moderate temperatures, high
elevation, and rocky slopes yield a high level of concentration thanks to a slower ripening process. “It’s a very savory style with cigar box and leather, combined with rich, dark fruit. It’s a fun yet classic expression of a cooler pocket of Napa.” Swipe to read more.

04/12/2025

Our December issue is here, and if this weather already has you dreaming of warmer days, ’s announcement about next March’s Summit in the Sun, which will be a
blockbuster of wine edutainment featuring a roundup of exquisite selections from around the globe. Hosted
by the Miami Culinary Institute at Miami Dade College, this two-day event will include seminars and meals free to qualified on- and off-premise sommeliers,
wine buyers, general managers, and wine directors. Swipe to read more and email [email protected] to get on the list now.

24/11/2025

Kim Chalmers of , Legend Imports
owner Jane Lopes, and Estate winemaker Molly Lippitt were among the panelists who led SOMM Campers through a tasting of terroir-driven wines at MacMurray Ranch. Swipe to read more.

20/11/2025

Our Sonoma SOMM Campers continued with a comparative tasting that explores the styles of Sonoma wines and those from Victoria in Australia. At times in recent history, both California and Australia have been pigeonholed as producers of big, broad, even bombastic wines. But that overgeneralization doesn’t account for—well, a lot of things, including relatively cool growing regions like Sonoma and Victoria; as guest Shannon Saulsbury, wine and saké program
manager for the multistate Flagship Restaurant Group, put it, “If you are a lover of restrained, complex, and refreshing wines, the wines of Victoria and Sonoma ought to delight you all the same.” Swipe to read more about the similarities and differences between these regions with host winery .

19/11/2025

During our stop at in the Alexander Valley, SOMM Campers got an up-close look at the winery’s sustainable and terroir-focused approach to site-specific vineyard management. Swipe to read more.

17/11/2025

This week, we’ll be recapping the epic journey that was this year’s Sonoma SOMM Camp, which featured stops at some of the region’s most famed properties. Stay tuned from more, and raise a glass to this year’s attendees, pictured here at .

Jeff Atchison, bar manager/sommelier, Gather, Chandler, AZ
Edan Ballantine, VP of operations, Americas, Hyatt Hotels
Elina Brager, owner, Atlanta, GA
Jenny Carr, senior corporate director, food and beverage operations, Davidson Hospitality
Krishna Chapatwala, owner, , Atlanta, GA
Carlos Cisneros, sommelier/beverage director, Bocca Ristorante, Bistro 218, and Sloanes Whiskey Bar, Birmingham, AL
Dwight Cunningham, owner, .atl, Atlanta, GA
Jonas De Maere, sourcing wine manager, Ahold Delhaize USA, Charlotte, NC
Jeff Degner, corporate wine buyer, Spec’s, Texas
Thomas Delasko, general manager/sommelier, Via Sophia, Washington, D.C.
Thomas Gallagher, owner, The Wine Authority, Dallas, TX
Daniel Gauthier, food and beverage director, Kona Village, A Rosewood Resort, Kona, HI
Lance Goldberg, wine buyer, GourmetPhile, Boca Raton, FL
Nicole Haarklau, wine expert, Dallas, TX
Stefania Lopez, general manager/sommelier, Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Tampa, FL
Michael Loveisky, head sommelier, , Chicago, IL
Zac Manning, corporate wine director, Two for Seven Restaurant Group
Tony Pecoraro, beverage director, , Dallas, TX
Arthur Pescan, manager/sommelier, Maxwell Park and , Washington, D.C.
Stevie Raeann, beverage manager, Chef Carter Concepts, Phoenix, AZ
Shannon Saulsbury, wine and saké program manager,

14/11/2025

Jacob Gragg is and portfolio
wine senior manager for HERITA USA, and recently joined The SOMM JOURNAL at DC for a dinner featuring Italian wines from the Veneto and Lombardy. Swipe to learn more about the wines and how somms from across the country experienced pairings and education at Michelin-starred in Washington DC.

11/11/2025

In our November issue, .wineauthor writes, “Brands come and brands go—more and more fantastic California Cabernet Sauvignons are produced each year—yet continues to hold its own. Through thick and thin, it’s absolutely dominated
the on-premise market as a fixture on fine-dining wine lists in every state of the Union for multiple reasons, some of which you may be surprised to learn. First, sommeliers and restaurant buyers well know the sensory profile of a Jordan wine: It’s a true medium-bodied Cabernet Sauvignon, never over-the-top “big” yet never exactly “light.” It has plenty of tannin and restrained oak (100% French oak since the 2015 vintage, to be exact) to bolster the palate feel, but more than anything, it’s driven by perceptible acidity. That has been the case for every vintage since the 1976, through all the phases of the category’s evolution in the state—even when the most ultra-ripe, massively dense and oaky Cabernet Sauvignons grabbed
all the accolades.” Swipe to read more about how this icon is staying true to its roots.

10/11/2025

Our November issue recounts how recently hosted a dinner paired with eight single-vineyard wines from its portfolio that—like all offerings from Quintessential—had a point of differentiation in that they were entirely produced
by family-owned and -operated wineries. Founded in
2003 by Steve Kreps Sr. and Dennis Kreps, Quintessential shares the same overarching philosophy as many of the 50-plus multigenerational producers it works with from 12 countries around the world: Place is everything. Swipe to read more.

06/11/2025

When Elisabetta Gnudi Angelini (right) took the
reins at in 1998, she brought both vision and substantial investment to a property primed for evolution. Working alongside her children, son Igino and daughter Alessandra (left), she pursued an ambitious goal: combining time-honored traditions with cutting-edge innovation to make wines that express the estate’s terroir with uncompromised precision.
Gnudi Angelini’s influence extends far beyond Caparzo, however. As one of the few women to own multiple top estates in Tuscany—including Borgo Scopeto and Doga delle Clavule—she has demonstrated that female leadership can drive progress in Italy’s traditionally male-dominated industry. For instance, long before
sustainability was mainstreamed in the wine world, Caparzo was implementing comprehensive environmental practices that would set new standards for responsible production. The estate was among the first wineries in Montalcino to install solar panels, reflecting its early recognition that renewable energy was the only path forward. Swipe to read more.

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