Wine

From: Rheinhessen, Germany Price: $18 Serve with: Pork roast, poultry, grilled tuna If you have any doubts about global warming, here's evidence of its existence: a fully ripe, delicious red wine from up north in Germany. The label is a mouthful, but it helps to know that Herr Schneider have his name to a well-regarded winery, Dornfelder is a red grape that typically produces much weaker wine and trocken is the German word for "dry. " This wine is simply delicious – not heavy but full of intense cherry and wild berry flavor.

Amazon.com customers in Maryland are now able to cozy up with both a book and a bottle of wine purchased from the online retailer. On Friday, Maryland joined the 12 other states (and Washington, D.C.) that have access to delivery from "Amazon Wine," a service launched last month that "features easy-to-use shopping tools to help customers ... explore great wines at a modest price point," according to a statement from Amazon. "When customersshopon Amazon Wine, they can narrow search results to meet their personal tastes, enabling them to discover new wines and find long-time favorites," Amazon's statement said.

Wine is subjective. It's a matter of personal taste and everybody's tastes are different. This is not just a question of personal preference. It has a lot to do with how we are hard-wired. For example, the average recognition threshold for sugar is 1percent. At 1 percent sugar, half the population will recognize a wine as "sweet" while the other half will either have recognized sweetness below that concentration or need additional sugar to acknowledge its presence. This is why two people drinking the same wine can have markedly different perceptions.

Nearly 35 years after founding Wine Advocate, Robert M. Parker Jr. shocked wine enthusiasts this week with his announcement that he was stepping down as editor in chief of the the seminal newsletter he ran from his Maryland home. Parker posted on the Wine Advocate website Sunday that he had brought in a new investment group and was handing over the reins to Lisa Perrotti-Brown, a master of wine and reviewer for Parker, who will run the publication from Singapore, where the Wine Advocate would establish a second office.

Jeffrey B. Holmes, who worked in wine sales and had been a waiter at Baltimore restaurants, died of undetermined causes Nov. 29 at his Ednor Gardens home. He was 42. Born in Baltimore, he spent much of his youth in Wilson, N.C., where he attended public schools. He worked as a waiter at Gertrude's at the Baltimore Museum of Art , the old Brasserie Tatin in Tuscany-Canterbury, Petit Louis in Roland Park and Pazo in Harbor East. "He was a gregarious guy who engaged everyone," said Gertrude's co-owner, John Shields.

German wine. It's one of the most magical wines on earth. It is delicate yet full-flavored. Aromatic, yet firmly chiseled. Like scrimshaw, it is etched. Unfortunately, so many of its low-end offerings still give the entire category a bad name. German wine is not sugar water. Far from it. And the good stuff is not coming at you at $10 a bottle. Take the Donnhoff Estate Riesling Trocken 2011, Pfalz ($23) The nose is all talc, delicate and slightly pollen. On the palate there is jasmine.

This wonderfully made red blend of cabernet sauvignon, merlot, syrah and other varieties is immensely appealing in a purely sensual way. It's not a wine for contemplation but sheer enjoyment with its medium-full body and lush fruit. It offers a rich variety of flavors including black cherry, raspberry, herbs and winter mulling spices. It gives the impression of sweetness without actually being sweet — a wonderful characteristic in a wine. From: Columbia Valley, Washington Price: $15 Serve with: Hearty stew, red meat

There are a few spots left at Thursday night's Casanova di Neri wine dinner at Aldo's. The dinner celebrates the re-release of the Brunello Tenuta Nuova 2007 from Casanova di Neri. A small, family company run by Giacomo Neri, Casanova di Neri has only 48 hectares of planted vineyards. In 2006, the Wine Spectator named their Brunello di Montalcino Tenuta Nuova 2001 the world's top wine, calling it "one of the best examples of the recent winemaking renaissance in Tuscany. " If that sounds like something you'd like to sip, give Aldo's a call.

Metropolitan Coffeehouse & Wine Bar has a certain je ne sais quoi . The eatery - a Federal Hill mainstay, serving three meals a day since 2004 - is excessively charming, with a look lifted right out of Paris' Left Bank. Dark painted wood, golden walls and twinkling lights decorate the petite space. It would be no surprise to spy Hemingway, tucked in a corner, scribbling away. Despite the distinctly Parisian feel, Metropolitan's menu and drinks list tell an international story, representing flavors from all over the world.

Maryland will host the fifth annual Drink Local Wine Conference. The event will be held the weekend of April 12-14 in Baltimore. Created by Washington Post wine columnist Dave McIntyre and wine blogger Jeff Siegel, a.k.a. the Wine Curmudgeon, the Drink Local Wine Conference brings attention to wine made in the 47 states and Canada that aren't California, Washington and Oregon. Maryland's wine industry is one of the fastest growing in the country, nearly doubling in size over the past two years with more than 60 wineries, according to the Maryland Wineries Association.