Sonoma Coast

This wine was not a huge wine but still much bigger, less austere, than expected (in a good way).  Ruby in color, purple core, mostly clear and bright.  The nose has cherries, slight black cherries, slight cranberries with a nice earthiness to it.  Medium bodied.  Good acidity.  Light tannins.  On the palate, this has depth and complexity.  Flavors of cherries and black cherries with just a bit of tart cherries/cranberries.  Long finish.  This is nice on its own but would be better with food.  It would work well with Roasted Chicken or Duck.  Drink over the next ten to twelve years. 

Another great Chardonnay from Rivers Marie.  Golden in color, clear and bright.  The nose is great with lemon, vanilla, oak spice, and slight minerality.  Full bodied.  Light tannins.  Great balance and acidity.  On the palate, this is delicious.  Vanilla, lemon cream, slight grapefruit, spice and slight char.  Long finish.  Delicious.  This is very young and will improve its score by a couple points with ageing but it is still very enjoyable right now.  Great on its own, it would work well with Salmon grilled on a Cedar Plank.  Drink over the next ten to fifteen years.

Anthill is a quality producer that makes wine at the more "elegant" side of the spectrum of California Pinots.  Ruby in color with some blue hues, a bit cloudy but bright.  The nose is nice with cherries, raspberries, slight hay, and spice.  Medium bodied.  Light tannins.  On the palate, this is showing a nice complexity.  Flavors of cherries, black cherries and raspberries with a moist forest floor quality and some minerality.  Good finish.  This seems to be close to peak but may evolve as it matures further.  Drink over the next five to eight years.  Nice on its own but better with food,

One of the best "Classic" producers of California Pinot Noir.  Deep ruby in color, mostly clear and bright.  The nose is great with cherries, cherry blossoms, spice, slight fennel and char.  Medium bodied.  Light tannins.  Great acidity.  At age ten, this is getting close to mature but still very fresh, vibrant fruit.  Flavors of cherries, black cherries, spice and slight rose notes.  Long finish.  This should have another five to eight more years before it slowly fades.  Great with some cheeses, this will work on its own, but better with food.  A nice choice would a creamy Mushroom Chicken

The allure of Kosta Browne wines has been that, though they are very expressive wines, they are subtle. Shunning the in-your-face-Pinot-with-a-dash-of-Syrah, these wines are meant to reflect the place where they are grown, and the proof of this is that they taste like it. To further this point I received five Pinot Noirs to sample and opened one blind and tasted it. My first thought this was Sonoma Coast, and after looking at the label, it was.

This is a Syrah from the Sonoma Coast made in Helen Keplinger's home winery.  It drinks with a cooler climate profile and comes across beautifully.  Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is nice with boysenberries, dark chocolate, slight bacon fat and violets.  Medium to full bodied.  Medium tannins.  On the palate, this is the elegant side of California Syrah.  Boysenberries, white pepper and roasted herbs.  Deep.  Still young but starting to show some maturity.  Drink over the next ten to fifteen years.  This is great on its own but better with food.  Grilled Lamb Chops would work