Rise and Fall of a Wine counterfeiter:  Wine journalists continue to fixate on the wine fraud scheme allegedly perpetrated by Rudy Kurniawan, and some pretty good investigative reporters are weighing in as more information surfaces about the multi-million dollar scandal.  Rumor is there is a movie in the offing, based on Mike Steinberger’s recent article in Vanity Fair. (No, Brad Pitt isn’t starring…)

Doug Barzelay is an attorney and Burgundy hound who, as much as anyone, set the ball rolling that ultimately did Kurniawan in.  His recent essay gives an insider’s view into not only Rudy himself but the collector culture that was duped by Rudy and his fakes.  Great writing and fascinating reading.

Vee-yoh-N’YAY  anyone?  A lot of us struggle with hard to pronounce wine names, so our friends across the pond at InterWine.co.uk compiled a glossary of pronunciation for many wine tongue twisters, including viognier.  The one we always choke on is Bourgueil, the cabernet franc based wine from the Loire.  Wait for it…boor-GOY.

 Wino Beach Reading:  Decanter Magazine calls “Drops of Gold” more influential than Robert Parker in Asia.  It’s a Japanese Manga comic that has been translated into English and continues to grow in popularity.  Read about the plot and how to buy the series at Dr. Vino’s wine blog.

Wine Tipping:  Jon Bonné is a San Francisco based wine writer we always click on.  Here he gives his take on what’s the proper etiquette for wine tipping, and how to be both fair and reasonable.

From the Sublime to the Ridiculous Department:  Talk about wretched excess, six bottles of Screaming Eagle Sauvignon Blanc recently sold at auction for $13,000, or $2,500 a bottle when you include the 19.5% buyers premium.  Release price was $250/bottle, already a pretty heady number.  Rather than say a fool’s born every minute we’ll just remain speechless…