Red Wine

Old vine zinfandel from Lodi, California, is treasured by the wine community. This 2017 Michael Klouda Hatterle Zinfandel bottle is a great representation of a historic grape by an on-the-rise winemaker.

The 2018 Bianchi Vineyards Cabernet Franc has been getting a lot of attention lately. In April of this year (2022), at the International Cabernet Franc Wine Competition, this bottle won a silver medal in the professional judging section and a Best in Class award in the People’s Choice category.

What

The world is in love with the wines of Châteauneuf-du-Pape. So much so that about 80% of each vintage is exported to countries around the world.

Jorge Maciel first tried his hand at making wine in 2000 after a trip to Italy (and numerous bottles of Italian wine) left him in awe of the country’s winemaking abilities.

His actual impression of Italian wine was that he had the impression of “tasting happiness for the first

Chianti gets a bad rap. For so long, this dry Tuscan wine was associated with fiascos, the straw-covered bottles of yesteryear, the kind you’d find at a long-in-the-tooth Italian restaurant – it wasn’t the kind of wine that “serious” wine drinkers reached for.

Côte de Beaune is a mecca for white wine lovers. Located in the southern portion of the Côte d’Or, Côte de Beaune is home to some of the most beloved appellations including: Corton and Corton-Charlemagne, Beaune, Pommard, Volnay, Meursault, Puligny-Montrachet, and Chassagne-Montrachet.

Finesse, elegance, power, and richness. Those are just a few words wine critics have used to describe the 2016 Quilceda Creek Vineyards, ‘Palengat’ Cabernet Sauvignon. In the world of wine, it’s no secret that Quilceda Creek wines are highly regarded; they’ve even been served to foreign dignitaries visiting the White

2013 Curly St. James, “Ostentatious Parlay”, Napa Valley Red Blend

The Curly St. James “Ostentatious Parlay”, Napa Valley Red Blend is about as boutique a wine as you can get. Less than 100 cases of this Napa Valley Bordeaux-blend are produced per vintage, which makes snagging a bottle a real

Wine lovers who try the 2007 Parador Cellars Reserva may be dismayed that just two barrels of this Spanish blend are produced every year. Tempranillo is native to Spain, but the grape is rare in California. What we love about the 2007 Parador Reserva is that Tempranillo has such a

The 2014 Joseph Swan Vineyards, “Bastoni Vineyards” Petite Sirah from Sonoma County is a wine that’s firing on all cylinders. Wine lovers know how easy it is to find great wine in Sonoma County, but finding a great wine that also delivers great value, and comes from a legendary producer,

We don’t give a lot of wines a near-perfect score, but wow. Just wow. This 2018 Nicolas Catena Zapata Bordeaux blend is pretty close to a perfect wine. We had this at dinner with friends and the entire table was blown away.

There’s not much malbec grown in California, and there’s even less malbec grown in Carmel Valley, but Jack Galante’s interpretation of this French grape via his 2018 Galante Vineyards’ Malbec, is right up there with the best of the best from Mendoza.