Taylor Eason | March 12th, 2012
The 2010 vintage in Sonoma County was super cool. And I don’t mean it wore awesome shades and sported the latest fashions — but cold like in France’s Bordeaux region. The heat index just didn’t quite get high enough to ripen grapes to the point of super fruitiness with floral aromatics (like Dry Creek Vineyards’ 2007 SB). So if you like New Zealand style Sauv Blancs (like me) then you’re in heaven with the 2010 wines (read more about Sauvignon Blanc, including how to pronounce it). And you’ll also have something to look forward to in the 2011 vintage, which had similar weather in Sonoma County.
Read more: Wine review: Dry Creek Vineyards 2010 Sauvignon Blanc Dry Creek Valley
Taylor Eason | March 7th, 2012
In my opinion, Rosa Regale is the quintessential romantic wine and chicks seriously dig it — a sweet, rich dessert sparkler from the Piedmont region of Italy. It’s an absolutely perfect sparkling wine for a wedding, served with a decadent wedding cake, or to accompany berry-laden tarts… even ice cream sprinkled with raspberries.
Read more: Sweet sparkling wine review: Banfi Rosa Regale Brachetto d’Acqui
Taylor Eason | February 27th, 2012
Years ago, a sommelier friend of mine described Bogle wines as “mass-produced, and you can find them at [the grocery store], but for the money they’re the best damn grocery-store wine you can buy.” I still agree.
Read more: Good cheap red wine review: Bogle 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon California
Taylor Eason | January 16th, 2012
When people talk about “everyday” wine, I’ve sometimes wondered exactly what they mean. Is it a wine that goes with all sorts of food so it can be consumed without care? Is it a simple wine that that can appeal to many different palates? Or is it an inexpensive wine that you can afford to sip everyday? Family-owned by Sonoma County’s Sebastiani and Sons, Smoking Loon wants to be all that and more.
Read more: Affordable everyday Wine review: Smoking Loon 2009 Zinfandel California
Taylor Eason | December 30th, 2011
A dear friend gave me a 1.5 liter magnum of this elegant sparkling wine for Christmas and I almost peed my pants. (Available to buy online only, by the way). There’s nothing quite like looking at a family-sized bottle of bubbly and savoring the ensuing drinking fantasies. I haven’t opened the behemoth yet but the little 750-milliliter brothers of the California sparkler are a staple in my house. A blend of 49% Chardonnay, 49% Pinot Noir and 2% Pinot Meunier grapes, Cuvee 20′s new, sleek packaging celebrates Judy Jordan’s 25 years of making sparkling wine in Sonoma’s Russian River Valley. They’ve had some time to get it right using the same production methods and grape varietals established in France. Sure, not that long in French Champagne terms but, hey, we’re a new country full of zeal, still finding our wine way.
Read more: Sparkling wine review: J Winery Cuvee 20 Brut
Taylor Eason | August 29th, 2011
Even generic, corporate-owned wineries like Estancia can make good wine if they have great fruit from Monterey, specifically their Pinnacles Ranch vineyard. And another thing corporate wineries have to offer is lower prices. Like under $15 for a pretty decent Pinot.
Read more: Wine review: Estancia 2009 Pinot Noir Monterey Pinnacles Ranch
Taylor Eason | August 22nd, 2011
Established in 1986 as the California home of Spain’s Ferrer family (who own Freixenet), Gloria Ferrer embodies the winning result of a large gamble placed 29 years ago. Sure, the Ferrers likely had some money to burn, but to throw down cash to buy 160 acres of land in Sonoma County’s unproven Carneros Valley takes some courage. However, they did have some experience in the bubbly arena.
Read more: Wine review: Gloria Ferrer Blanc de Noirs Sparkling
Taylor Eason | June 20th, 2011
Chardonnay has become the whipping child of the wine world — the veritable before-the-ball Cinderella or Joan of Arc. But this unfortunate rep has a reason behind it. There are a crapload of disgusting, woodchipped and buttered Chardonnays lining shelves of every American retailer. And, like Merlot before Sideways busted its ass, the quality level simply plummeted into the deep sea of average wine. Sweet-lovin’ consumers fleeing White Zin, after the populist mocked them, found solace in the softer, fruitier Chardonnay grape. It was comforting and easy to drink, like a cold bottle of Kendall Jackson on a warm summer day. But enter the un-oaked Chardonnay.
Read more: Rediscovering Chardonnay wine: The unoaked version
Taylor Eason | June 7th, 2011
 I’m rarely a fan of the lower level Blackstone wines, seeing them as bland, sweet and too commercial. And, like most Rhianna songs that get played too often on the radio, I grew tired of hearing about and seeing Blackstone Merlot like everywhere when there were so many others of better quality for the same price. But Blackstone’s Rubric Reserve always intrigues.
A blend of seven red grapes with Cabernet Sauvignon predominant, the hand-crafted, loving quality completely shows through this wine. It’s like Blackstone opened up the sandbox for winemaker Gary Sitton to play in. With the 55% Cabernet, he adds Malbec for fruitiness, Cabernet Franc for earthiness, Petit Verdot for depth, Tannat (an obscure grape originally from the south of France) for tannin structure, Merlot for softness and Petite Sirah for a ‘lil color and dark fruit flavors. The result is a lovely, full-bodied sexy wine layered with black cherry, sweet vanilla, a smidge of cocoa, blackberry and earthy tobacco. Supple tannins, balanced acidity and long, fruity finish of oaky black cherry. If you like Cabs, this might be a good change of pace.
Read more »
Taylor Eason | May 16th, 2011
Snoqualmie is owned and operated by the fine folks who bring us Columbia Crest and Chateau Ste. Michelle wines in Washington State. Per their corporate mantra, this is a good value wine that’s well made but there’s one added benefit to this brand: Snoqualmie practices sustainable and organic grape growing.
Read more: Wine review: Snoqualmie Naked 2008 Merlot Columbia Valley
|
Free Weekly Food/Drink Newsletter
Support the Writers of this Site – Donate Today!
|
You talk back