The Carte Atlas Journal

Hola from Baja California in Mexico! This is a Mexican state that borders the United States. There is so much to share with you. The region is well known for cities like Tijuana, Ensenada and San Quentin. They bring a special vibrancy to the area. Plenty of other amazing areas exist as well. A wine […]

The Moselle carved its valley through wine country, not around it. Growers have terraced these banks with vines for two thousand years. A river cruise ship follows the river’s only navigable channel. That channel runs directly beneath Europe’s steepest vineyard slopes for nearly every mile. WHY DOES THE RIVER CRUISE ROUTE RUN THROUGH VINEYARD COUNTRY? […]

Any lover of castles, fairy tales, wine and history will have a Rhine River Cruise as a travel desire. Which does beg the question, why does one river have so many castles? The answer starts nearly a thousand years ago. WHY DID MEDIEVAL RULERS BUILD SO MANY CASTLES HERE? The Rhine was Europe’s busiest trade […]

My fellow wine connoisseurs love to chat with me about the Rhône. It keeps coming up alongside Bordeaux and the Douro as we discuss wine regions of the world. It is one of our favorites because here is a secret; it covers two completely different wine regions! WHY DOES THE RHÔNE CONNECT TWO WINE REGIONS? […]

Wine lovers, like myself, love to chat with me about river that inspire them. The Douro River is one that absolutely does. It actually helped inspire wine regions to become officially and legally recognized. WHAT MAKES THE DOURO VALLEY SO HISTORIC? The Douro became the world’s first officially demarcated wine region in 1756. Portuguese authorities […]

Many people unfortunately often use “wine region” loosely, assuming it just means anywhere that grows grapes. In the travel and wine industry, it is actually a specific idea. Often with legal borders and documentation. And exploring one of these regions can be a legendary event. TERROIR SHAPES A REGION’S IDENTITY A wine region is a […]