A rather ripe Pinot offering a nose of rich dark fruit and black cherry with hints of saddle leather and tobacco box. Give this wine a little decanter time. Once open, flavors of dark cherry, ripe plum, espresso and forest floor are integrated with notes of earthiness, bright acidity and supple tannins. Buy This Wine
A superb example of Napa Valley Chardonnay with a nose reminiscent of mom’s apple pie, complete with buttered crust and spice. The creamy mouth-feel is balanced with just enough zippy acidity. Flavors of apple, pear, spice, minerality and buttered toast are wonderfully integrated with French oak into a delicious Chardonnay treat. Buy this wine.
Ross during filming of The Winemakers
For those who are willing to make significant sacrifices to live their dreams, there are often many paths, some with more stones than others. When it comes to Ross Outon, winner of the 2009 PBS reality contest The Winemakers (Season 1), I am reminded of a quote from Morgan Freeman’s character Red Redding in the film The Shawshank Redemption, “Andy Dufresne, who crawled through a river of shit and came out clean on the other side.” Winning The Winemakers reality show may sound like an express pass to winemaking nirvana but for Outon, his rocky path included start and stop filming for two years, divorce,loss of his house to the bank, loss of his job, the unexpected passing of his beloved dog, threats of legal actions to obtain his prize money, other prizes never honored and post harvest unemployment. But though it all Ross came out “clean,” at least until his arms are elbow deep in the first bins of black Pinot Noir grapes from the upcoming harvest. Here’s Ross Outon’s story. Continue reading »
A delicious go-big or go-home Zinfandel. A rich nose of ripe plum, pepper with smokey notes. Palate pleasing Zinfandel flavors of black fruit, blackberries, ripe raspberries and dark cherries enhanced with black pepper spice and hints of toasted oak vanilla. Very well integrated and supple tannins add complexity. Buy This Wine
A big Super-Tuscan blend of 64% Sangiovese, 16% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon with aromas of dark berries, black cherry, tobacco box and a hint of campfire smoke. The palate flavors remind me of black cherry pie with plenty of dark spice combined with rustic notes of cinnamon, saddle leather and smoke. Plenty of acidity to pair with flavorful red meat or game dishes.
