Wine Regions & Grapes
Sampling of Wineries
Acorn Andrea Oberto Atlas Peak Benziger Beringer Blandy's Bodega Navarro Correas Burgans Cantina Terlano Chimney Rock Chronicle Domaine Carneros Domaine de la Mordoree Dow's Dr. Loosen Emilio Lustau Fonseca Foxen Gaston Riviere Glen Ellen Hess Collection Innocent Bystander Kendall-Jackson Korbel La Caudrina Luna Vineyards Madeira Wine Company Martin Codax Masi Merryvale Mulderbosch Navarro Vineyards Pahlmeyer Roederer Estate Ruggeri Sawyer Cellars Sbragia Six Sigma Winery St. James Steltzner Vineyards Trinchero Winery Trione V. Sattui Winery William Fevre Wilson Winery
Category Archives: Santa Ynez Valley
California Syrah
JC Cellars, Santa Barbara County, Fess Parker’s Vineyard, Syrah 2007 Give this wine a bit of air, 10 minutes or so to blow off a bit of reductive character. Then the black fruit will emerge, wrapped in a jacket of … Continue reading →
Posted in California, Santa Barbara County, Santa Ynez Valley, Syrah
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Tagged Foxen, JC Cellars
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Syrah from California and Cote-Rotie
This flight of Syrah takes us from the freshness of new fruit in California, to the development of bottle bouquet in wines from 2003 – excellent all around, featuring different expressions of the same grape over time and over both … Continue reading →
Posted in California, Cote-Rotie, Russian River Valley, Santa Barbara County, Santa Ynez Valley, Sonoma County, Syrah
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Tagged DuMol, Foxen, Pierre Gaillard
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Firestone Sauvignon 2008
Firestone Vineyard, Santa Ynez Valley, Sauvignon Blanc 2008 This wine delivers full-on grassiness and gooseberries in the nose. In the mouth there is plenty of citrus and citrus peel and very vibrant acidity – refreshing. P&B in Los Olivos 13.5% … Continue reading →
Curran Grenache Blanc 2007
Curran Wines, Santa Ynez Valley, Santa Barbara County, Grenache Blanc 2007 The nose combines flowers and herbaceous notes while the mouth is reminiscent of biting into a plum that isn’t fully ripe, bursting with fruit yet ripping with tart acidity … Continue reading →
Foxen Williamson-Dore Syrah 2006
Foxen, Santa Ynez Valley, Williamson-Dore Vineyard, Syrah 2006 This vintage exudes sweetness, like berry jam and raspberry liqueur. In the mouth it is supple and warm, oaky and smoky – a very rich and ripe style of red wine. The … Continue reading →
Posted in California, Santa Barbara County, Santa Ynez Valley, Syrah
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Tagged Foxen
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Zaca Mesa Viognier 2008
Zaca Mesa, Santa Ynez Valley, Estate Grown and Bottled, Viognier 2008 This wine is very peachy and sweet appearing, slippery and rich. Fermentation began in stainless and then the wine spent 3 mos in neutral fr oak; malolactic was avoided. … Continue reading →
Fess Parker Big Easy Syrah
Fess Parker, Santa Barbara County, The Big Easy, Syrah 2005 The nose features stewed black fruits, prunes and a heavy wack of oak. In the mouth, the wine is soft, oaky, lowish in acidity and warm. There’s a sense of … Continue reading →
California Viognier
This flight provides an interesting contrast in California Viognier. Both are well-made but different animals entirely. The Preston is lighter, fresher, with aromatics that might remind one of a dry California Gewurztraminer. The Cold Heaven is rich, thick and buttery, … Continue reading →
Foxen Toasted Rope Syrah 2006
Foxen, Santa Ynez Valley, Toasted Rope, Syrah 2006 There are raisins and freshly stewed fruits in the nose, like the smells you get when making a warm compote in the winter. The mouth is extremely supple and sweet appearing, with … Continue reading →
Zaca Mesa Santa Ynez Valley Viognier 2007
Zaca Mesa, Santa Ynez Valley, Estate Grown and Bottled, Viognier 2007 This wine is peaches on steroids all the way through with a rich, very viscous mouthfeel that emphasizes fruit rather than oak or butter, as is seen in some … Continue reading →
Roaming for Rhone
Le Clos du Caillou Cotes du Rhone Vielles Vignes Cuvee Unique 2005 This is a solid wine, balanced in medium weight with ripe fruits and structure. The ripeness is such that there are liquer-like black fruits. The alcohol is showing … Continue reading →
Posted in California, Crozes-Hermitage, France, Rhone Blend, Rhône, Santa Ynez Valley, Syrah
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Red Rhone Recipe
The red wines from the Southern Rhone follow a recipe that emphasizes Grenache. The wines of this flight highlight this underdog grape. Unti Dry Creek Valley Grenache 2005 Pretty funky at first opening but after an hour, the smell improved … Continue reading →
Posted in Albariño, Dry Creek Valley, France, Grenache, Rhône, Santa Barbara County, Santa Ynez Valley, Sonoma County
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Rhone Whites
Verget du Sud Vin de Pays du Vaucluse Roussanne 2006 Jean-Marie Guffens’ impressive work with the grapes of Burgundy continues with grapes sourced further south, in this case from the Vaucluse, a department on the east side of the river … Continue reading →
Posted in California, France, Rhône, Roussanne, Santa Barbara County, Santa Ynez Valley, Viognier
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