Expert articles and wine tasting videos profiling wines from California, California wine regions, Napa Valley, Sonoma County, & more.
Inky purple in color, opaque and bright. The nose is tight at first but opens to shows cedar, cassis, graphite and slight chocolate. Soft texture. On the palate, dark cherries and cassis with some chocolate and char. Some black licorice on the finish. This is drinking well right now. It should drink well for another ten to fifteen years. A nice with a chunky stew.
One of our favorite wines! This vintage gets dismissed, but it really is a great vintage (Bordeaux would love to have a vintage like this). Inky purple in color, opaque and bright. The nose is great with cassis, tobacco, spice, graphite and char. Full bodied. Firm tannins. Great energy. On the palate, this is open and delicious. Deep. It is still young but is open and showing well. It will still improve. Flavors of lush cassis, with spice and leathery earth. Long finish. This is great on its own, but would work well with fatty foods (not seafood). drink over the next fifteen t
Inky purple in color, opaque and bright. The nose is great with cassis, graphite, slight cedar, spice and char. Full bodied. Firm tannins. Great balance. On the palate, this is developing nicely. Not yet at peak but not a baby either. Great texture. Flavors of cassis, spice and earth. long finish. Delicious. Drink over the next twenty years. Great on its own, this would work well with roasted or grilled beef or poultry.
This is 100% Carricante grape grown 12 miles from the Pacific Ocean on the Sonoma Coast. Light golden in color, clear and bright. The nose takes some time to open and then shows peach, minerality, slight lemon, floral notes and salinity. Medium bodied. Round but with acidity. On the palate, this is deep. It really works better with food. It went nicely with a vegetarian Hungarian Vegetable Stew. Drink over the next five to ten years.
Such a great value! This is a blend of 43% Syrah, 28% Grenache, 23% Mourvedre, and 6% Counoise. This is garnet in color, mostly opaque and bright. The nose is great with black raspberries, black cherries, roasted meats and earthiness. Medium to full bodied. Light tannins. Good acidity. On the palate, this is drinking quite well. Varietal complexity with an excellent texture. Flavors of black raspberries, black cherries and some plums. Nice finish. This is drinking well and would be an excellent choice for a weekday meal be it pizza, meatloaf or veggie wraps. Drink over the next
Rhys makes some of the best Pinot Noir's (and Chardonnays) anywhere. Purple in color with some ruby hues, mostly clear and bright. The nose has cherries, spice, char and slight earthiness. Medium bodied. On the palate, this is complex and layered from the first sip. Cherries, earth and smoke. Long finish. This took a while to get to this point, but it is drinking well. It should continue to drink well for another ten to fifteen years. Great on its own but better with food. Roasted duck would be perfect.
While this is the 38th year of this bottling, it represents a sort of reboot as their vineyard sources have changed. In addition, they brought in winemaker Mike Smith as a consultant. Of course, the proof is in the pudding, er, wine. This is a blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Petit Verdot and 5% Malbec. Purple in color, opaque and bright. Pop and pour, this took about an hour to start to open and really got going at the two hour mark. The nose has cassis, blueberries, plums, black cherries, spice, and a slight minty (Eucalyptus?) note. Full bodied. Firm tannins.
This is a blend of 78% Petite Sirah, 18% grenache, and the remainder Syrah and Roussanne. It is a big, bold wine that is drinking well. Inky purple in color, opaque and bright. The nose has black raspberries, gravel, black cherries, and spices. Full bodied. Medium tannins. On the palate, lots of black cherry fruit with some black raspberries and char. Long finish. This is nice on its own and would work well with meats or poultry off the grill. Drink over the next six to ten years.
This is Cabernet Sauvignon from Mt. Veeder and St.
Cole Ranch AVA is the smallest AVA in the United States. It is west of Ukiah in Mendocino County. The vineyard was planted in 1973. It is a very interesting take on Riesling and certainly one of the better ones tasted from California (yes, that is a bit of a back handed compliment). Light golden in color, clear and bright. The nose has peach, some ginger and plenty of minerality. Medium bodied. Good acidity. On the palate, this is dry. Minerality dominates but also some ginger and slight peach. Good finish. It is nice on its own, but really, better with good. It was perfect with
