An Idea Whose Time Has Come
The Story Behind Come Over October By Karen MacNeil September 18, 2026 I am a professional speaker and writer. I spend my time in front of corporate audiences and giving keynotes or typing away on my...
View ArticleWater with Steak
Are Restaurants Shooting Themselves in the Foot? By Karen MacNeil September 25, 2026 A couple of months ago, I interviewed Eric Asimov, wine critic for The New York Times, and during the interview,...
View ArticleIt is Time to Come Over
By Karen MacNeil September 18, 2026 In 2024, I dreamed up what would become the largest pro-wine grassroots campaign ever launched in the United States. It is called Come Over October. Now in its...
View ArticleFrom Tannin to Velvet
The Wines of Napa Valley’s Cardinale By Karen MacNeil September 11, 2026 “I like sitting in cathedrals and feeling the atmosphere,” he says. “Then again, I also like being in a good bar.” Chris...
View ArticleThe Unknowable Place
By Karen MacNeil August 21, 2026 The Power of Place in Wine This is where all wine communication breaks down: at the place of place. Place, and its meaning within a wine, can never really be...
View ArticleThe Unknowable Place
By Karen MacNeil August 21, 2026 The Power of Place in Wine This is where all wine communication breaks down: at the place of place. Place, and its meaning within a wine, can never really be described....
View ArticleThe Perfect T Shirt + Michelin Personality Points + Burned Into Memory
By Karen MacNeil August 7, 2026 The Perfect T-Shirt of Wine Is Pinot Grigio supposed to taste like air with alcohol in it? Not to me, it isn’t. For as simple as Pinot Grigio can be, it should still...
View ArticleAndy Beckstoffer—The Man No One Knows
How the Crown Jewels of Napa Became His Andy Beckstoffer is one of the most influential figures in Napa Valley—yet few wine drinkers know his name. In this feature, wine writer and speaker Karen...
View ArticleAndy Beckstoffer—The Man No One Knows
How the Crown Jewels of Napa Became His By Karen MacNeil July 31, 2026 There are men behind the Napa Valley wine industry that few wine consumers know. Men (and they are mostly men) with huge sway. Men...
View ArticleLove to Hate
By Karen MacNeil July 10, 2026 Originally 3/18/2026 (A version of this piece originally appeared in Decanter magazine in May 2026.) It takes a long time to become hated. First you have to become...
View ArticleLove to Hate
By Karen MacNeil July 10, 2026 Originally 3/18/2026 (A version of this piece originally appeared in Decanter magazine in May 2026.) The Wine Bible author Karen MacNeil analyzes the paradox of...
View ArticleRelighting Passion
Wine and America on the 250th Anniversary of the United States By Karen MacNeil June 30, 2026 The Statue of Liberty was crumbling. But in 1986, after five years and $250 million, the statue—an...
View ArticleThe Return of a Revolutionary Wine
By Karen MacNeil Insignia Rising From a tiny seed of an idea, a whole new garden can flourish. And so it was that in 1974 Joseph Phelps created Insignia, Napa Valley’s first premier proprietary red...
View ArticleWhat the Wine World Can Learn from #PerfumeTok
Guest Blog By Jacqueline Strum Introduction from Karen: Jacki Strum is the President and Publisher of Wine Enthusiast Media. In this guest blog, she makes a fascinating and compelling case for using...
View ArticleThe Best New Super Sauvignons
Don’t Miss This Dozen By Karen MacNeil May 29, 2026 I wish there had been a “Judgment of Paris” for Sauvignon Blanc. That legendary blind tasting in 1976 (this month marks the 50th Anniversary)...
View ArticleWhat’s the “Secret Sauce” Behind a Successful Corporate Event?
By Karen MacNeil Summary: Karen MacNeil argues that the “secret sauce” behind a successful corporate event is collective inspiration, creating a shared emotional experience that connects and energizes...
View ArticleDangerously Old
By Karen MacNeil In this week’s wine news, nearly 50% of the stories from writers and critics were about age. Here are some headlines: Can X Wine Age? Tasting of B Reveals B Can Age! The Question of...
View ArticleThe Hero of Her Own Story
By Karen MacNeil She thought she’d stay in France. After Château Haut-Brion, why think of being anyplace else? Wine, she felt, was in her core. From the age of 14, she knew she wanted to be a...
View ArticleSOMETIMES A GREAT NOTION
Summary: Founded in 1967 on the rugged slopes of Pritchard Hill, Chappellet Winery helped define Napa Valley mountain wines long before the area became iconic. Through vision, grit, and striking...
View ArticleSometimes a Great Notion
By Karen MacNeil February 13, 2026 It began with a mountainside. A mountainside so remote and rocky that few believed anything would thrive there except for the old oaks that twisted themselves along...
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