On June 24 our friends at Artisan Wine Depot hosted winemaker Philippe Secondé from Champagne Barnaut (founded 1874). M. Secondé brought three champagnes with him, each from Barnaut’s vineyards...
We discovered Loring Wine Company at the 2014 Santa Lucia Highlands Gala. They specialize in pretty good pinot noir. When our friends at Artisan Wine Depot invited us to come taste the latest...
Tonight we cracked open a bottle of 2007 Passalacqua Dry Creek zinfandel that had been hanging around in our cellar. The notation on the bottle said we should have opened it in 2011. Luckily we...
After exhausting the pinots we made another circuit to taste other reds. We were delighted to discover that many wineries have followed the lead of Roger Nicolas, producing eclectic blends that would...
We spent the first hour plus at the Saturday Garagiste grand tasting doing a tour of pinot noirs. And we found two to watch: Vinemark Cellars and Vino Vargas. We’ll review each in detail as...
Atop the Santa Cruz Mountains at the end of a long, winding dirt road you’ll find Ridge Vineyards. They have been around as long as we’ve been in California. In fact, their website says...
We hesitated before accepting this invitation from our friends at Artisan Wine Depot. As members of the baby boom generation, our taste buds have deteriorated along with some of our other faculties...
[Edited May 18 per a correction from Steve Burman of 3Steves Winery.] On June 1, we traveled to the Livermore Valley. Our excuse was that we needed to pick up six bottles of Steven Kent Cabernet...
If you’ve been reading this blog with any regularity, Roger Nicolas’s RN Estate Winery in Paso Robles will be familiar. Dante Robere in Livermore Valley, however, is a new discovery for...