Ice wine is usually associated with places much further north but AmRhein Wine Cellars in Virginia has taken advantage of a cold snap last fall to produce a pricey ice wine. Last November, the grapes at the AmRhein vineyards froze and so the winery harvested the grapes and used them to create the sweet desert wine. It takes more grapes and more fermentation time to create an ice wine than it does for a regular wine. The Vidal Blanc ice wine sells for $45 for a half bottle. There will be 56 cases of 12 bottles each.

It's an interesting reflection on the world's changing weather since around the time that AmRhein was enjoying their first ice wine harvest last year, wineries in more northern areas were contemplating a poor harvest.

The field of organic wines and spirits is getting larger and larger. Rum,vodka and gin all have organic options and the field of organic wine continues to grow at an impressive rate, providing excellent wines that are also green. Now Dr. Vino brings good news for Port lovers, the Fladgate Partnership has announced they will be making an organic Port. The vineyard used had been farmed organically since 1992 but since Port is made also adding brandy the quest was on to find an organic distilled spirit. The Port cannot be labeled as organic in the U.S. because it contains naturally occurring sulfites and instead will be labeled as being "made with organically grown grapes." Dr. Vino reports that the ruby Port has aromas of dark cherries and blackberries and that the process of organic viticulture is much healthier for vineyard workers. The port will be sold in the U.S. starting in June for around $22 per bottle. It looks like it is already available in England.

When I told a man at the ZAP festival that I was focusing on late harvest Zinfandels and port-style wines he blanched as if I had casually said that I prefered licking the floor of the Fort Mason pavillion to tasting Zin. "I'm trying to stay away from that stuff," he said.

I explained that I had tasted other wines first but I felt a bit of censure. When I went to the tasting booths people often looked a bit surprised when I informed them I was there for the Port or the late harvest Zinfandel. In general people tend to stay away from these wines at tastings perhaps in order to not get too tipsy, perhaps because they think the sugar might mute the palate. I think they are really missing out. The chance to taste a wide variety of dessert wines is a rare and precious experience.

One of my favorite things in the world is to bring my deep dark chocolate cake and a Port-style dessert wine to a dinner party, I always delight in finding new sweet wines that are not just a big dose of sugar but also capture the complexities of the grapes used. I've heard the argument befofre that most dessert wines are all alike but I disagree.

My favorite of the day has to be the Matzin from Vino Con Brio because to me it represents the quailities I associate with zin, the big blackberry and pepper notes, the sense of brambly wildness, while still having sensuous sweetness that makes it a great dessert wine. If I were showing up somewhere with a bottle, I might spring for the EOS Port which has a lovely pewter label and is just as lovely on the inside. After the jump, my favorites of the sweet stuff.

As you may know if you read this site often, I am a sucker for a good dessert wine. A few nights ago I sampled an apple ice wine. Neige,an apple ice wine from Quebec, might best be described as the soul of an apple reduced into a perfectly golden and sweet elixir. I ordered a glass and grudgingly let others have a sip and everyone sighed deeply with pleasure. The initial scent and taste is that it is like a concentrated cider, which makes sense since it takes around 15 pounds of apples to create one small bottle, but it reveals more nuances as it opens on the tongue. It has notes of vanilla and and a dose of gentle woodsy spice. I paired it with a pear and almond tart which was topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and I have seen others recommend a creamy cheese like Brie. It actually might also be brilliant with a sharp Vermont cheddar. This ice wine sells for around $25.

Often when I talk about wine auctions I tend to just focus on the top of the sale, what's going for the truly astronomical sums. The real finds however, are often buried a bit further down the lot list. Take for example an auction coming up on Saturday, December 9 in New York at Sotheby's. This auction, "An Important New England Cellar" offers the usual suspects such as the Chateau Petrus and multiple fabulous vintages of Domaine De La Romanee-Conti but as Serena Sutcliffe points out in the auction catalog it is also a treasure trove of Ports and other wines to serve at the end of a meal.

The sellers, according to the catalog, are putting part of their cellar on the block to make room for more wines. Among the treats they are giving up are Ports from producers including Graham, Fonseca, Taylor and Dow spanning from the 1960s through the 1980s including several lots featuring the prized 1977 vintage. A lot of 12 bottles of the Fonseca 1977 is estimated to sell for $1,400 to $1,800.

Fans of  Hungarian Tokaji wine will have a rare opportunity on May 21. Royal Tokaji Wine Company will hold its first-ever vintner dinner in the U.S. on May 21, 2006, at  the Pebble Beach Resort. The dinner will take place at the Casa Palmero Resort and will be attended by Royal Tokaji Wine Company's founding partner, Ben Howkins of the United Kingdom. The seven-course meal by Club XIX Chef de Cuisine Lisa Nakamura will be paired with six wines from Royal Tokaji but the real treat comes when each guest is served  spoonful of the Royal Tokaji Essencia 1999, which sells for $500 per 500ml bottle. Beginning with the 1999 vintage, each bottle of Royal Tokaji Essencia has come with one crystal sipping spoon which bestows a neat 33 sips from the dessert wine. The wine has been described as being so different from other wines that it is like seeing a new primary color. Guests on May 21 will be given an engraved sipping spoon as a keepsake. The meal is limited to 35 guests and costs $195 per person.  Reservations will be accepted on a first-come, first-serve basis by calling Stefanie Brand at (831) 622-8761.