rae phillips

Corks and Stoppers

The cork oak, quercus suber, is the most highly regarded closure used in wine bottles. The exact period when wine markers started using cork is but a mystery. One can only hypothesize that it was utilized even before the radical changes in the European cl... Read >

The Art and History of Wine: Cracking a Bottle

First recorded in H. Kelly's School for Wives (1773), the "cracking a bottle" expression mean something more thrilling than what we perceive it now. During the earlier times, cracking a bottle means removing the main part of the neck of the wine by making... Read >

The Great Wine Plague

Wine-growers across the globe are familiar with the great wine plague, the Phylloxera vastatrix, a pest that attacked the roots of vines during the middle of the nineteenth century. Phylloxeras are small, pale yellow sap-sucking insects that feed on the ... Read >

Beyond Mortality: The Gods and Saints of Wines

Since time immemorial, cultures have kept a list of personas that look beneficently upon wine. They are the ones who grew, produced this enticing elixir. In Greece we have Dionysus, the god of vegetation, ecstasy and wine. He is the son of Zeus to Semele.... Read >

How the Clink Got into the Drink

In my unending quest to learn everything about wines, I recently bought a book entitled "Curiosities of Wine" by Pamela Vandyke Price. It was displayed in this local bookstore I frequent, and cost less than my usual cup of joe. As a browse through its pag... Read >

Wine Match Making

What wine goes with what? One of the most common concerns of people is determining the wine that perfectly goes with a specific cuisine. Well I got news for you: trust you're extinct about your selection. You can never ruin a good meal if you choose a win... Read >

Wine and Movies

Versatile. Splendid. Classy. Comical. Ghastly. Alluring. Wines play a significant role in movies. They are cast with either good-guy or bad-guy roles. Take for instance movies like James Bond, Casablanca, the Silence of the Lambs and Interview with the Va... Read >

Grappling with the Grape

I am a frustrated sommelier, meaning that I am not a sommelier in profession. I rather think of myself as an individual who is wholly passionate about wines. I like reading about them. My coffee table is stocked with wine-booklets and guides. I have also ... Read >

Grappling with the Grape

I am a frustrated sommelier, meaning that I am not a sommelier in profession. I rather think of myself as an individual that is wholly passionate about wines. I like reading about them. My coffee table is stocked with wine-booklets and guides. I have also... Read >

Woody Point Lighthouse

Stability and Light. I have long been fascinated with lighthouses. Despite their robust structure, lighthouses are indispensable to sailors and travelers. Lighthouses mark dangerous coastlines and shoals. They enable the safe entry, as well as exits to ha... Read >

5 Things I Hate about Flying

A week ago I can't seem to remember why I hate taking business flights so much. Now, everything is all going back to me. I am here in a crowded passenger lounge somewhere in United States, waiting for my next plane to arrive. With my laptop on hand, I am ... Read >