Yes -- the wine's first date. I'd like to introduce a new way to take wine tasting notes - and also a great winery I recently visited.

I recently did a podcast with Paolo of www.disgracesonthemenu.com – a blog by this Italian expat living in Canada that details the differences between authentic Italian food and the heinous mistakes found on menus like “quatro fromaggi.” 

I was going to take the metro and head home for lunch when someone suggested we eat at the cat café. I changed my plans immediately.

A wine that surprises you in a good way is the best kind of wine -- like Freisa di Chieri.

For anyone staying in Turin, an excellent, half-day trip out of the city to breathe fresh mountain air and walk through spectacular terraced vineyards is to Carema.