When you’re tasting wine, it’s tempting to focus on smells and flavors to the exclusion of all else. After all, noting what a wine smells or tastes like lets us compare it to things that are already familiar — “that reminds me of grapefruit!” or “does anyone else taste blackberries?” But it’s just as important to think about a wine’s structural elements, too.

Last night we (OK, my husband) grilled up some Newport steak and zucchini, and a friend brought over this Sy Substance Syrah from Washington. I always forget about Washington State wines, a big oversight on …

A few weeks ago I traveled down south to Asheville, North Carolina for a friend’s wedding. A few nights before the blessed event, my husband and I had dinner at an upscale-ish restaurant near our hotel. I ordered shrimp and grits and a glass of Murphy-Goode Sauvignon Blanc. I was initially put off by the fact that the wine list didn’t list vintages – full disclosure is always a must, even if vintages don’t matter a whole lot with the kind of New World, moderately priced wines that populated the list – but then discovered a bigger problem.