Randall Grahm’s Uncle Louie Vineyard Zinfandel 2013 Contra Costa Country, California My first thought on looking at that label is that Uncle Louie bears a remarkable resemblance to the Monopoly Man. Thought #2 is “Wow, you can really smell that floral and cedar nose the moment the bottle opens.” Remarkably, the nose is not as
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Casa Nuestra Tinto St. Helena 2011 Oakville, Napa Valley, CA Open up this wine, and you’ll be with your sweetie in your private cabana on the beach, stomachs full of sticky rice and pork steamed in banana leaves. You pick up your glass and share one more smile before wandering over to the bonfire where
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Akiyoshi Cabernet Sauvignon 2013 Clarksburg, CA David Akiyoshi is one of NakedWines.Com’s go-to winemakers in California. So far, I’ve tried his 2013 Sangiovese Rosé, and it placed firmly in my second-best grouping, the Avocados. That’s a 69/100 on the Quini scale. All that means is I expect a pretty good, though probably not exceptional, wine
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Bandit Wines Cabernet Sauvignon California Bandit Wines is a boxed wine company that you can find on Safeway’s lowest shelf. I haven’t had much boxed wine in my life. But when I tap into the foodie party line, I hear from craft enthusiasts that beer in a can has no metallic aftertaste and that boxed
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Crowdpleazin 2013 Sonoma Valley, CA Crowdpleazin is a fantastic, affordable option from celebrated winemakers Ken Deis and Derek Rohlffs. It’s manufactured under the NakedWines.Com label, which I’ve talked about in the past, although it’s been a bit since my last review. I’m also an affiliate with NakedWines.Com for full disclosure purposes. Being an affiliate doesn’t
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Maryhill Proprietor’s Reserve 2011 Tavola Rosso Columbia Valley, WA Last time I reviewed a Maryhill wine, I pledged to have my pictures edited from our winery visit before the next one. I am happy to say I completed that mission! And wow, Maryhill is a breathtaking winery (9774 Hwy 14, WA). It’s hard not to
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At the tail-end of my 2014 Wine Bloggers Conference experience, I stopped in at Cimarone Winery. I’d heard of them through Twitter, as the winery’s social media (@cimarone) did a great job letting us bloggers know they were in nearby Los Olivos and would be offering a special tasting for us if we ever had
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My favorite educational session at the Wine Bloggers Conference 2014 (WBC14) was assuredly our introduction to the Ballard Canyon AVA. This region of Santa Barbara County was just designated as an appellation in October 2013. If this panel and tasting were any indication, Ballard Canyon’s winemakers and their syrahs are ready to prowl. Patrick Comiskey
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Fat Grape Winery 2010 Merlot Northern California I posted recently about what I’d recommend for a foodie day trip to Treasure Island. Fat Grape was the sulfite-free winery we visited that offers a zillion different types of wine to taste for free. The Fat Grape 2010 Merlot was one of two wines that impressed me,
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Edna Valley Vineyard 2011 Merlot Central Coast, CA This merlot’s nose has plastic overtones, but that doesn’t stop me from enjoying its raspberry and pepper notes. It’s thin to medium bodied and meatier than expected on drinking. Think nicely seasoned duck with a spicy raspberry and stewed tomato sauce. That pepper will tickle your nose!
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