Wine of the Week: Rocca delle Macie Campo Maccione

This wine is fairly mature for its relative youth, being from the 2008 vintage. I think that sangiovese-based wines will always be a little more rustic in character, but that makes them charming in their drinkability and distinctively Italian.

Small Plates: Guy Fieri’s Vegas Kitchen & Bar and ‘Smoke & Spice’

Guy Fieri’s Vegas Kitchen & Bar opened in mid-April. Although Las Vegas isn’t his hometown (he grew up in northern California), Fieri said in an interview when the restaurant was announced last June that it was “one of” his hometowns because of the time he spent at UNLV.

Bilbray poll contends House race ‘wide open’

A poll taken by Erin Bilbray’s campaign for Congress to excite potential donors contends the U.S. House race between her and incumbent Rep. Joe Heck is “wide open” and winnable.

Microsoft unbundles Kinect from Xbox One, lowers price

In a move to spur sales of the Xbox One and catch up with rival Sony’s PlayStation 4, Microsoft said Tuesday it will start selling the console without the Kinect sensor for $100 less.

Western US home to many Rails to Trails Hall of Fame routes

In many parts of the country, abandoned train tracks have been repurposed into multi-use exercise trails. The best of them — a little more than two dozen routes in all — are in the Rail-to-Trails Conservancy Hall of Fame, and several of those are located in the Northwest region of the United States, in Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington.

State Bar president: AG wrong to drop gay marriage defense

Attorney Alan J. Lefebvre argues in a column in Nevada Lawyer magazine that Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto was wrong to drop the state’s defense of a legal assault on the state’s constitutional ban on gay marriage.

Texas lawmaker cautions against business margins tax in Nevada

A Texas senator on Tuesday warned Nevadans not to approve a proposed 2 percent margins tax on businesses, saying it could hurt mid-size companies and efforts to lure new firms to the state.

Playing stump the fifth-grader at the 51s game

Things continue to go well for the Las Vegas 51s, despite the fact many of the fifth-graders at Tuesday’s game weren’t aware of the team’s hot start.

Police: Nevada school shooter left conflicting suicide notes

A Nevada seventh-grader who went on a deadly schoolyard shooting rampage had images of the Columbine gunmen on his cellphone and told a therapist three days before the October attack that classmates were teasing him, authorities said Tuesday.

Man accused of killing Strip dancer may testify in his own murder trial

Jason “Blu” Griffith may have to take the stand in his own defense at his murder trial as early as Wednesday, after a judge said there has been no evidence so far the former Cirque du Soleil dancer acted in self-defense when he killed his ex-lover.

Nevada’s appalling support for cruel trapping must end

The Los Angeles City Council recently voted unanimously to ban snare and leghold traps, calling them “inhumane.” Should Clark County follow suit?

 
Hundreds contact FBI about pedophile teacher

The discovery of a man the FBI regards as one of the most prolific pedophiles in memory has set off a crisis in the close-knit community of international schools, where horrified parents are being told their children may have been victims of a favorite teacher. Hundreds have approached the FBI with information in the ongoing investigation.

4 defendants in Las Vegas HOA case strike deals to plead guilty

Four defendants charged with Leon Benzer, the alleged mastermind of the scheme to take over Las Vegas-area homeowners associations, have struck deals to plead guilty next week in federal court.

Panthers DE Hardy remains jailed after arrest

Panthers Pro Bowl defensive end Greg Hardy will spend Tuesday night in jail after being arrested on misdemeanor charges of assault on a female and communicating threats.

Vonn, Woods lean on each other through rehab

The power couple of sports is a rehab unit all its own. Lindsey Vonn is working her way back from a second right knee operation. Tiger Woods is recovering from surgery to relieve pain from a pinched nerve in his back.

Helldorado Days preps for 80th anniversary

Workers prepared Tuesday at the site of the Las Vegas Helldorado Days on Grand Central Parkway. The 80-year-old event opens on Wednesday.

High-end office tower underway in Summerlin (bring your golf clubs)

The Howard Hughes Corp. announced Tuesday that it’s building One Summerlin, a nine-story, 200,000-square-foot tower at 1980 Festival Plaza Drive, near West Sahara Avenue and the 215 Beltway, and next to the under-construction Shops at Summerlin.

 
Las Vegas fire chief: Department treats all calls equally

The Las Vegas Fire Department’s chief on Tuesday disputed a report that accused its paramedics of transporting more patients from wealthier neighborhoods and leaving more inner-city hospital transports to a private company.

Winter worst for fliers in 20 years, report says

It’s official: This winter was the worst for fliers in the 20 years that the government has been collecting data. During the first three months of this year, U.S. airlines canceled 4.6 percent of their flights, the Department of Transportation announced Tuesday.

Explorer says wreckage off Haiti may be Columbus’ ship

An underwater explorer said Tuesday that he may have found the long-sought wreckage of one of Christopher Columbus’ original ships off northern Haiti, but the find is far from confirmed.

 
N.H. police officer dies in shooting before house set on fire

The New Hampshire police officer fatally shot by a man who later died in a roaring house fire was invited into the home by the gunman’s father during an argument and was immediately cut down, authorities said Tuesday.