Napa Valley

• Atlas Peak
• Best of Napa
• Calistoga
• Conn Valley
• Diamond Mountain
• Howell Mountain
• Mt. Veeder
• Oak Knoll
• Oakville
• Pope Valley
• Rutherford
• Spring Mountain
• St. Helena
• Stags Leap
• Yountville

Realm is one of our favorite wineries and The Bard may be our favorite (so hard to choose) especially considering price.  This is an expensive wine, but for the quality, this is a great wine.  It is a Cabernet based blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Cabernet Franc, 5% Merlot, 2% Petit Verdot, and 2% Petite Sirah .  Purple in color, ruby at the rim, opaque and bright.  The nose has cassis, black cherries, tobacco, chocolate, coffee and baking spices.  Full bodied.  Firm tannins.  Great energy and balance.  On the palate, this is young and tight but also showing complexity and depth.  Flavo

Every year Flora Springs produces holiday wines, this year with a beautiful etched bottle (and a three pack of three different holiday etchings and blends) featuring turtle doves. A cabernet dominate blend, this offers soft, bright fruit of black cherry, blackberry, huckleberry, boysenberry, with back notes of green tea leaf, sandalwood, Asian pear, vanilla, camp fire and light dusty mocha. 18 months of aging in French and American oak barrels rounds out the fruit. They don’t make much but it makes a unique gift. 230 cases. ORIGIN: Napa Valley. ALCOHOL: 14.2

Oberon is part of the  Michael Mondavi family of wines.  This wine was quite good and very interesting.  It is of course, mostly Merlot (sourced in Oakville) but there is an undisclosed amount of Zinfandel and Syrah in the wine which seems to give it a bit more structure and likely a bit of acidity as well.  The people at Oberon feel it adds more lushness.  Purple in color with ruby swirls, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose has black cherries, black raspberries, spice and chocolate.  Full bodied.  Light to medium tannins.  On the palate, this is delicious.  Flavors of black cherries, milk

Oberon is a project by the Michael Mondavi family making quality wines from California. The winemaker is long time industry veteran Tony Coltrin. This is a reasonably priced Sauvignon Blanc that tries to forge its own identity from a grape that can be very distinctive depending on where it was grown and made. It is light green in color with a bit of silvery/gold hues. Clear and bright. The nose has a nice minerality, slight tropical fruit and even slighter grassiness. Slightly oily texture. Good balance. On the palate, the minerality dominates.

The Small Lot expressions of Cuvaison (wine typically under 200 cases and a focused identity) have become some of the most exciting and anticipated wines coming out of California. This latest Chardonnay expresses both traditional and non-traditional Chardonnay notes. Typical would be citrus, lemon lime, white peach and guava. Untypical shows kumquat, amber resin, a slight sour green apple and an even slighter butter rum hard candy.

What begins as a soft and velvety Pinot Noir, light and delicate, turns to a beautifully structured wine that offers excellent fruit, acidity, light tannins and layers of flavor. Typical of many Pinots, this begins with noticeable strawberry, red raspberry and black cherry notes, but then delves into more complex, green tea leaf, cedar plank, wild grass, light earthiness, cola, rhubarb and a hint of resin. At first blush this seems like a lovely Pinot Noir to have with dinner, but upon spending time with it, you realize the various facets.

This is a field blend of Negrette, Zinfandel, Mondeuse, Petite Sirah and Carignane.  An interesting red.  Lots of cherries with some milk chocolate and a bit of cedar.  Still some tannins showing although mostly integrated.  Tasty wine that drinks well on its own and will work with with roasted chicken or Turkey.  A nice choice for Thanksgiving.  Drink over the next five years.  

Such a fun wine.  The biggest issue I have is that I tend to drink this on (or near) Halloween as soon as I get it.

This is a blend of 93% Syrah and 7% other Rhone varietals.  It is in a great place right now and seems to be at peak.  Inky purple in color, opaque and bright.  The  nose has black raspberries, bramble, gravel and smoke.  Full bodied.  Medium tannins.  On the palate, great texture.  Plenty of ripe black raspberry fruit with some underlying char.  Nice finish.  Nice on its own, this will work well with grilled or roasted foods.  Drink over the next five years.

Clearly made as nothing but an enjoyable glass of wine, which wine always should be, The Mill Keeper offers an incredibly viscous, smooth and velvety texture, leading to soft notes of blueberry, blackberry, and light mocha notes. In the background, vanilla, red raspberry, and Rainier cherries fill out the profile. What’s unusual about this wine is that it is pulled from multiple vintages and vineyard sites. The fruit is sourced mainly from vineyards in Napa and Sonoma that utilize sustainable management programs.