Jameson Fink
Writer, Editor, Content Strategist
As a writer and editor, food, drinks, travel, and lifestyle are my areas of expertise. I focus on content strategy, design collaboration, image curation, and editorial tone.
PROJECTS
vinepair.com
For Rosé Drinkers, Is It Pale Pink or Nothing?
America’s well-documented thirst for rosé is expanding, but our sight lines seem to be tapering off.
Wine Enthusiast
Memoir, With Mop Bucket: Bordeaux in the Back Room
As a grocery-store wine steward, I was accustomed to introducing customers to wines. But what happened when one of them returned the favor, with a legend no less?
jamesonfink.com
17 Things I’ll Miss About Seattle
As I’ve packed up my life in Seattle, waves of nostalgia have overtaken me. I’ve combed through boxes of letters, photos, and memories that brought up all kinds of feelings. It’s been very emotional. On that note, here are images conveying all the things I’ll miss.
jamesonfink.com
Podcast: Summer Wines With Marissa A. Ross
I did a lot of things while in New York to attend the SAVEUR Blog Awards. But at the top of the cool list was hanging out with fellow nominee, Marissa A. Ross.
jamesonfink.com
Tinder, Oak, and Chardonnay
Let me couch it in the terms of our world of smart phones and dating:
It's like Chardonnay is on Tinder, swiping hella left, and feeling very fussy, finicky, and unfulfilled. (UNLIKE ME, OF COURSE.) Until coming across an oak barrel. Which not only had natural good looks, an upright nature, and curves, but also some words of interest:
Looking to add richness and texture to your world without stifling your true nature. Battonage, lees, and stirring things up? Yes, please. NO FLAKES AND NO HOOKUPS!*
And Chardonnay swipes right and it's totally a match.
Wine Enthusiast
Personal Essay: Traveling With My Mother
In 2007, my father dropped dead while standing in a lift line at a ski resort. I heard a similar refrain from a lot of well-intentioned people, “At least he died doing something he loved.” Which was no consolation to me because, well, dead is dead.
I was upset and cynical, mostly because my dad had just
retired and looked forward to years of travel with my mother. She posed a question: Would I travel with her instead?
I said yes, though we weren’t close at the time.
sip northwest magazine
Travel: Touring British Columbia's Saanich Peninsula
Where can you spend one breezy, scenic afternoon tasting hemp vodka, wine made from Austria’s signature white grape, Grüner Veltliner, and talking local varieties at an artisanal cidery? Just a short drive from British Columbia’s charming capital, Victoria, will get you to that place: the Saanich Peninsula.
MSN
Wine Questions You Were Afraid To Ask...Answered
Where's the best place to keep wine in your house? Is it always white wine with fish? When the label says "hints of chocolate and raspberry" what does that mean? These questions and more answered.
Wine Enthusiast
Editorial: Defending the Champagne Flute
Why the much-maligned Champagne stem is the perfect vessel for sparkling wine.
daily.sevenfifty.com
The Challenges and Rewards of Making Petit Verdot
Of the red wine grapes that make up classic Bordeaux blends, Petit Verdot seems to have the fewest fans. It ripens late and can produce wines with overwhelming tannins. Petit Verdot has been judged to be a supporting actor, a component for boosting color and body. It rarely gets to be the star. But every grape has its champion—or at least a winemaker willing to work with one often relegated to a minor role.
jamesonfink.com
Fol Epi in Victoria, BC: Does a More Perfect Sandwich Exist?
In a past life I was a baker, so while recently in Victoria, BC, I was excited to check out Fol Epi. I got a hot tip from my friend Jay Friedman that the smoked albacore tuna sandwich was not to be missed.
jamesonfink.com
5 Graphic Designers Critique a Wine Label: Castaño Monastrell
I have looked at so many wine labels in my decade-plus career in wine as someone selling it, tasting it, buying it, and writing about it. The good, the bad, and the ugly have all come across my path. One wine and label I’ve been fond of belongs to the Castaño Monastrell.
But so what if I like the label? What do the pros think? I contacted five of my pals who are professional graphic designers with a passion for food (and wine) to chime in
edible Seattle
Travel: A Month on an Olympic Peninsula Family Farm
“You’re going to live on a farm?!? YOU?!?”
This was my family’s incredulous reaction when we gathered at Christmastime and updated each other on our lives. I hadn’t realized how thoroughly I had cultivated my reputation as a soft city boy. You see, I had just announced that I was going to live (and volunteer) at Finnriver Farm and Cidery for the month of January.
Wine Enthusiast
Nashville Musicians Get Their Wine Questions Answered
During a recent visit to Nashville, my guide was Susan Ruth. A performing songwriter, she not only put live music on the menu, but also offered a wine-centric tour of the city. Particularly memorable was a bottle of COS’s 2013 Pithos Rosso during dinner at City House.
Upon returning home, I thought it would be great to have Ruth and five Nashville musicians (and one group) send me their burning questions about wine. I picked one query from each act to answer.
Wine Enthusiast
Celebrity Interview: Eric Wareheim
Comedian Eric Wareheim’s new wine venture is anything but a joke.