Expert articles and wine tasting videos profiling wines from California, California wine regions, Napa Valley, Sonoma County, & more.
Heritage School is what used to be known as Harris Estate Wines. David and Linda Jenkins purchased the property in 2014 and renamed the winery and the three vineyards on the property. Thomas Rivers Brown is the winemaker.
Heritage School is what used to be known as Harris Estate Wines. David and Linda Jenkins purchased the property in 2014 and renamed the winery and the three vineyards on the property. Thomas Rivers Brown is the winemaker. I was able to taste a couple of these wines and both were excellent. Purple in color, ruby at the rim. The nose has black cherries, cassis and baking spice. Maybe a touch of soy sauce. On the palate, this has a pretty texture. Cassis and black cherries over an interesting chalky base along with some baking spices. Good balance. Firm tannins. Nice finish. This w
This was my first time trying a wine from this vineyard. It is excellent. Purple in color, ruby at the rim. The nose has cassis, blueberries, slight coffee, and spice. On the palate, this has a great texture. Firm tannins. Lots of cassis, some blueberries with underlying minerality and dry earth. Good finish. This needs seven to ten years and should be good for a decade after that. It will work with medium and heavier meats and fowl.
This is the basic (non-single vineyard) wine from Rivers-Marie. To me, this is usually only a notch or two behind the amazing single vineyard releases and priced a bit better. It probably doesn't get the respect it deserves because of that. Deep purple in color, ruby at the rim. The nose has cassis, slight blueberries, spice and slight fresh lumber. On the palate, this has firm tannins. Good cassis fruit with underlying minerality and spice. Good finish. This needs time of course to develop. About five to seven to get close to peak and should have ten to fifteen after that. Nice f
This is the basic Napa Cab from Mending Wall. In general, I found it to be a bit tighter and less opulent than the single vineyard ones. It is still an excellent Cabernet and, of course, a bit less expensive. Inky purple in color. The nose is tight but shows some cassis and spice. On the palate, this is medium to full bodied. Firm tannins. Deep with tight layers of cassis, spice and slight earthiness. Good finish. This needs about seven to ten years until peak and should be good for another ten after that.
Oakville Ranch Vineyard is a gorgeous place and I always wondered why the wines were not more consistently great. This is my first time trying a Mending Wall utilizing their fruit and it is great. Inky purple in color. The nose has cassis, blueberries, baking spices, and slight pencil lead. On the palate, this is deep and somewhat concentrated. Lots of cassis fruit with some blueberries over a bit of dry earthiness. Firm tannins. Good finish. This will need five to seven years and then should be good for another ten to fifteen. There is a nice complexity to this wine as it unwinds
Inky purple at the core, ruby at the rim. The nose has raspberries and black raspberries with spices and a bit of char. On the palate, this is medium bodied. Nice black raspberry fruit over baking spices. Lively acidity gives this a nice energy level. Medium tannins. Good finish. This probably needs another five to seven years until peak and then should be good for at least ten after that. It will drink well on its own or with medium and heavy foods.
Another wine made by Thomas Rivers Brown. This one is a bit more elegant than many of his wines but it is still a powerful wine. Purple in color, ruby at the rim. The nose is dusty with cassis, a bit of cedar, slight plums and a bit of char. On the palate, this is more advanced than many of the TRB 2017's I have tasted so far, but still needs another five to seven years. Once there, it should have another ten years or more. Cassis over cedar and slight dry earth. Good balance. Nice finish. This will work well at a steakhouse or with roasted fowl or vegetables.
This is another new wine for me that is made by Thomas Rivers Brown. The winery is owned by Joe and LeeAnn Blanton up on Howell Mountain in Napa. Purple in color. The nose is a bit dusty with cassis, black cherries, an interesting orange peel note, and mint. With air, the fruit seems a bit darker on the nose. The palate has firm tannins. Plenty of depth although concentrated. Cassis with underlying tea and leather. Good balance. Long finish. I think this will still need another four to six years to really open. It should be good for another ten to fifteen after that. This will g
This is a new winery for me. It is in the newly established Pine Mountain - Cloverdale Peak AVA which is on the Sonoma side of Pine Mountain. The wines are grown at between 2,200 and 2,800 feet above sea level. The winery is owned by Hien Nguyen who grew up in France and made by Thomas Rivers Brown. The wine is inky purple in color. The nose has cassis, black cherries, slight minty notes and a bit of baking spices. On the palate, this is very concentrated. Tannic. Lots of depth. Cassis with underlying baking spice and slight forest floor notes. It is hard to say how this would evo
