"What all did this involve?" is a question many curious family members, friends, and fellow wine professionals ask about certification.

The standard fair fare of corn dogs and funnel cakes can be found at countless stands, but certain pioneering purveyors push the envelope!

For the next few installments of the Maestro's "Clues for the Clueless," allow me to answer some of your most pressing wine questions.

Until this spring, I’d never done a wine tasting visit to Europe. In fact, until January, I’d never formally gone wine tasting outside of...

When you visit a locale that happens to make excellent wine, make sure you leave room in your suitcase. When I booked my January trip to...

A few years back, the art world was shaken to its core when Italian absurdist artist Maurizio Cattelan duct taped a ripe banana to a wall...

I like to think I am knowledgable about food and beverages. But sometimes one has an experience that reminds you just how little you...

Tucked in the belly of the glistening skyscrapers of Shinjuku is Tokyo's own "Memory Lane," or Omoide Yokocho, a narrow alleyway housing...

Car Talk, my very favorite old NPR show, took calls from all over the country, and whenever Tom and Ray got a call from DC, Tom always...

Once I'd dropped off my friend's new Bernedoodle puppy in Boston and enjoyed some culinary offerings in one of my favorite cities in the...

Oooo kiddos––it's been a busy time in the Maestro's life, and I have a backlog of blogs that resembles a California freeway at 4pm. So...

Perhaps it was the sense of impending doom resulting from waking up every day in this pandemic, now again in a terrible phase, that...

I am woefully behind on blog posts owing to the end of the semester at Davidson and the ensuing whirlwind travel schedule. I know both of...

Years before I came to understand what fine dining really meant––or rather, what it really could mean––my attraction to the best...

I have few particular complaints about my single lifestyle. It allows me to be nimble and spontaneous, easily adapt to new circumstances,...

The Maine coast has approximately 24,398,423,876,323,907 restaurants serving lobster. This is the land of “lobstah,” especially this time...

Back in the era of big name European celebrity chefs establishing outpost restaurants, in the heyday of places like the Bellagio, when...

North Carolina is the land of beer. I have five breweries within a five minute walk of my apartment. Charlotte has dozens in its city...

Lima, Peru, a vibrant city of nearly ten million people, has earned a reputation as one of the culinary epicenters of the Americas, if...

I really enjoyed issuing a series of absolutely meaningless "Big Drunk Gay" awards last year, highlighting the very best things I ate,...

Yep, Chile! Here I am (or rather, there I was)! Many on social media were surprised to see that I had managed to get out of the country,...

I gave myself a fairly open itinerary in Utah so I could sort of go where the wind blew me, as it were, originally planning to rent a...

Well kids, what can I say? Life is crazy, and my dearth of posts this past month was due in part to my grand adventure in Alaska, yes,...

I have been spending a lot of time longing for the days when we could freely travel and see wonderful new places, and was reminded of my...

Well folks, we have entered a new year, and even though I am one month late on the new year, it was just over one year ago that I created...

It’s been a while since I have had the opportunity to blog! Travels have been busy, and the bit of downtime I had in the last little...

Y'all may know that I am a major nerrrrrd for aviation. Ever since I was a kid, I couldn't wait to get on my next plane. I made paper...

The first UT Alumni Choir tour has sadly come to a close, and in the absolutely stunning city of Venice. We were up bright and early in...

The party continues in Florence, where we spent the last three marvelous days touring, singing, and (of course) eating and drinking....

A delayed start to my trip blogging! We have been having a marvelous time in bella Italia, and it’s been difficult to have time to sit...

As many of you know, I've just graduated with my doctorate! As a little gift to myself, I've combined the planned UT Choirs tour to Italy...