There were 6 big winners, the Sweepstakes Sparkling, White, Pink, Red and Dessert. That looks like 5 but we had a tie for the red honors this year. Check out the winners and I'll post my notes on the wines at a later date. Sweepstakes Winners
Girard, Russian River Valley, Chardonnay 2007 The fruit for this wine is sourced from the Dutton Ranch and the Porte Cochere Vineyard. This is a rich and thick Chardonnay that carries its weight well. The acidity maintains a spring in this wine's...
Host Tim Tim McNally judges for us every year at the San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition. He's an engaging man who always has a good story up his sleeve. The Wine Show airs Every Sunday Noon until 2 p.m. on WIST 690 AM. in New Orleans,...
I'll be on KRON 4 Weekend News tomorrow morning, live with Henry Tenenbaum. That's Saturday morning on the tele, between 9:00 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. pacific time, January 17 in the San Francisco Bay Area. Here's a link to the television channel's...
Heitz Cellar, Napa Valley, Ink Grade Vineyard, Port nv Prunes mixed with chocolate and a sense of the fortifying spirit. The grapes behind this wine are the traditional Portuguese suspects of Touriga National, Sauzao, Tinta Cao, Tinta Amarells,...
De La Montanya, Sonoma Coast, Flying Rooster Ranch 2005 This wine shines with sweet smells. There's candied fruit and perfume overlayed with earthiness. The mouth features a boatload of fruit framed by ample acidity and a rising note of brett...
Russian Hill, Russian River Valley, Estate Vineyards, Pinot Noir 2006 In the nose there's lots of sweet oak, freshly cut and laced with vanilla. In the mouth this wine is quite astringent as well as oaky. Winemaker Patrick Melley. Estate Grown and...
Willowbrook, Marin County, Pinot Noir 2007 Sweet black fruits dominate the nose with hints of vanilla. The mouth follows the same with a supple feel and ripe tannin in the background - an elegant wine. This bottling is one of the County Series of...
Paul Mathew, Russian River Valley, Rose of Pinot Noir 2007 There's cherry fruit and some spicy floral notes in the nose while the mouth of this wine has a very soft feel, some creaminess and a touch of sugar to complete the thickness. The fruit for...
I just finished an interview with one of our judges, DeWayne Holmdahl, who hosts the Wine Show down in Santa Barbara. The show will air this Saturday, January 17 at 4:00 p.m. pacific time. You can listen in online at that time by following this...