A Taste of Farmhouse Wines

These are two delightful, high QPR, food friendly, everyday wines I’d recommend for both wine novices and enthusiasts. Finding a $40 bottle of wine that delights my palate is easy.  Finding an under $15 that delights my palate is much more of a challenge. Let me digress a bit. When I first started my wine…

Wine of the Day; White 2010 Lynmar Estate Chardonnay Quail Hill Vineyard

“This wine was  pure joy to drink…It’s my favorite Chardonnay this year!” The 45-acre Quail Hill Vineyard includes 4 distinct blocks of Chardonnay. The largest – Block 14 – was planted in 1972 to the Rued Chardonnay Clone – known for its stunning floral notes; the remaining vines are Old Wente Clone, adding a weighty…

Wine of the Day: 2013 Carlisle Grenache Rossi Ranch #GrenacheDay

2013 Carlisle Grenache Rossi Ranch – This delicious and distinctive wine  shows a depth I’ve seldom experienced with Grenache!  This wine is a blend of 91% Grenache and 9% Mourvèdre  sourced from the Rossi Ranch Vineyard, which was planted in 1910’s by Carlo Rossi. From the winery.…This wine is one of several surprises in 2013.  Normally…

A Taste Of Equavinity Wines

Equavinity Wines is a collaboration between two Sonoma icons — zinfandel impresario Bruce Patch and Russian River Vineyards, one of West County’s most recognizable wineries. I’ve previously featured Bruce Patch Wines on this blog (see “Additional Reading” below).  I was impressed with the wines.  So when Bruce Patch asked me if I was interested in receiving sample…

2015 Ellipsis Pinot Meunier Rose #WineStudio

2015 Ellipsis Wine Company Rose of Pinot Meunier Ellipsis Wine Company sources Pinot Meunier grapes are sourced from Christine’s Vineyard located in the Sonoma Coast AVA bordering Russian River Valley.  This is an “intentional”  rosé that’s a  blend of  90% Pinot Meunier, 5% Zin, and 5% Syrah. The grapes were picked at 24 brix and…

Wine Country Wanderlust: A Photo Essay

Spring is a great time to visit wine country. There is a rebirth underway in the vineyards. The weather is more agreeable (well at least it is in California, where I’m based;-) It’s less crowded in tasting rooms. And rore hours of daylight mean tasting rooms are open longer. Vineyards are carpeted with brilliant yellow,…

Zin-A-Palooza! Wine Tasting Club Blind Tastes Ten Zinfandels

The most recent gathering of the Pacific Pointe Wine Tasting Club (“PPWTC”) featured a Zin-A-Palooza! The PPWTC started in 2010.  Initially, we met every couple of months, but by popular demand we meet every six weeks or so these days.  We typically have a non-scoring event or two each year (the most recent was a record…