One of the high-points of Boston’s dreary winter is the annual Wine Expo, held at the World Trade Center. It’s a chance to catch up with old reliables; discover new names, varietals, and vineyards; and have a damn good excuse to taste as much wine as possible in one afternoon.

We scoured the exhibitor list for this year’s Expo and amassed our own “hit list” for the show. You can take it to heart—or with a grain of salt.  But go to the Boston Wine Expo if you want to expand your wine knowledge and experience.

We’ll Vouch For These Vineyards
Our wine travels have taken us to Paso Robles and the North Fork of Long Island in recent years and we’re pleased to have visited—and loved—three of the exhibitors at the Boston Wine Expo.

Chumeia Vineyards        (Paso Robles, CA)
We walked into Chumeia with no expectations and walked out with a wine club membership and four bottles of incredible Zin and Cab Franc. This was by far our best tasting room experience all-around—friendly and knowledgeable staff, pleasant but not snooty environment, great wine, and free olive oil tastings to boot!  Chumeia is Greek for Alchemy, and the winemaker and his team certainly do work magic on Paso Robles' East Side.

Try if they’re tasting:
o    2002 Cab Franc
o    2004 Zin
o    2003 Barbera

Four Vines    (Paso Robles, CA)
An oh-so-hip winery with attitude, from its web site to the tasting room, to the names of its wines. Normally we'd be put off by such calculated coolness, but wouldn't you know we got sucked in. Zin is the name of the game here; we  even took home the "Zin Bitch" glass as a lovely parting gift.

Try if they’re tasting:
o    Zin/Syrah Port
o    Maverick Zinfandel

Old Field Vineyards        (North Fork of LI)
This former fruit farm switched to winemaking in the late 1990’s and has weathered the transition beautifully. It met the Lisa/Gary criteria in several ways: family owned and operated, a funky, unpretentious tasting room, and the owner in residence (is it just our luck or does everyone get to chat up the proprietors at these places?)

Try if they’re tasting:
o    1998 Pinot Noir
o    2000 Merlot
 

Our Must-Visit List
We’ve enjoyed good wine from many wineries on this list and look forward to sampling their latest vintages.  Others we’ve only read about and are anxious to see if the wine lives up to the hype. (and some are simply Marlborough, NZ Sauvignon Blancs, Lisa’s favorite quaff)

Acacia, Echelon & Provenance
Three boutique wineries from the Central Valley and Napa regions.

Apaltagua Vineyards
This Chilean winery specializes in lesser known, grape varietal – Carmenère, a Bordeaux-style grape.

Brancott
Yes, it’s New Zealand’s largest wine producer, which is something we usually shy away from. But their SB is outstanding and perhaps they produce other fine whites.

Burgess Cellars
A lesser-known Napa vineyard with a great selection of big reds.

Cambria Estate Winery
Chard, Pinot, and Syrah from a family-owned Santa Barbara County estate wine producer.

Chateau d'Arlay
They’re French and we need to learn more—c’est tout!

Chateau Julien Wine Estate
Sounds French but it’s in the Carmel Valley of CA (a fantastic wine region about 10 miles inland from Carmel.) We hope they’re tasting something from their Private Reserve.

Hardys/Barossa Valley Estates
Barossa Valley Shiraz is one of Gary’s favorite varietals.  Hardy’s is another huge Australian producer that hasn’t lost its soul…yet.

Hogue
A top producer in Washington’s Columbia Valley. We’re jazzed about Washington state wines since our summer visit to Woodinville.

Jordan Vineyard & Winery
This Healdsburg, CA winery produces two varietals, Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay, both crafted in the French style—Bordeaux and white Burgundy.


Martha Clara
During our visit to the North Fork of Long Island last year we tried to visit Martha Clara but the tasting room was closed. Now’s our chance to try the white blend “50,” consisting of consists of chardonnay, viognier, sauvignon blanc, pinot gris, Sémillon, and gewürztraminer. It’s either awesome or awful; we’ll let you know.

Monkey Bay
Another Kiwi SB. Yes, you can get it at virtually every restaurant but for Lisa, visiting Monkey Bay will be like a pilgrimage.

Pacifico Sur
Something new from Chile; much talked-about in blogs and the press.

Robert Hall Winery
One of the few Paso Robles wines we missed on our trip last summer. The Reserve Syrah has been called “a stunner” by one reviewer.  We like to be stunned.

Rosemont/Penfold
Owned by the giant Southcorp conglomerate, these two “usual suspects” continue to produce excellent wine. The Reserve and Estate offerings are outstanding and we hope they bring them to Boston from Oz.

Sandeman's Port
Port is Gary’s great indulgence. It doesn’t get much coverage at the wine expo so we always seek out the great port houses. It’s been around since 1870 and the Tawny Port is its strongest contender.

Sharpe Hill Vineyard
From the great wine state of Connecticut, Sharpe Hill produces some very drinkable wine. We tasted Ballet of Angels, a semi-dry white, at a party some years ago and remember it fondly.

Sterling Vineyards
A sentimental favorite, Sterling was on the itinerary during our first trip to Sonoma, where we got engaged. The tram to the top is stunning. Oh, and the wines are good too. Easy, drinkable, and very popular—but we don’t hold that against them.

Wölffer Estates
From the “other” part of Long Island (not the North Fork, but Sagaponack), Wolffer Estates has a German winemaker (what was our first clue?) but its style reflects a Bordeaux influence.