Obligatory disclaimer: These wines from Bravante Vineyards were free for my review. The Winery Bravante Vineyards has been producing wine for nearing twenty years on Howell Mountain, in the eastern Napa Valley. Their small selection of wines is all estate-grown, from either the Stone Ridge or Black Oak vineyards. Duane Dappen, who owns D-Cubed Cellars
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Dow’s 2012 Late Bottled Vintage Porto Douro, Portugal The Review Obligatory disclaimer: This bottle was free to me for review. Ports like the Dow’s 2012 Late Bottled Vintage Porto are why I know I must take a tour of the Douro Valley someday. Rosy floral notes wind through the labyrinth of a cut open fig—you
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Southie Rockridge, Oakland Website $9-$20 Readers, this is the first of several posts I have planned on my favorite haunts around the Bay Area. It has been too long since I’ve done restaurant, cocktail, and specialty shop reviews, and I miss them. These posts will generally be cumulative ones spanning my experience over several months
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The History Last spring, I had the pleasure of visiting Bodegas Aguirre Winery for the first time. Obligatory disclaimer: This was an invitation extended to media, and thus, free to me. Located in the Livermore Valley, which is a historic Californian wine region, Bodegas Aguirre is the passion project of cardiac surgeon Ricardo Aguirre. Dr.
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McCay Trulux Zinfandel 2014 Lodi, CA If Anne Shirley’s cherry cordial was blackberry instead, this is exactly how I imagine it. Medium-bodied with a nose full of very dark, extra ripe berries. I want to make a syrup with it and pour it over pancakes or maybe reduce it with vinegar for a tasty drizzle.
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Stellina 2012 Reserve Old Vine Zinfandel Lodi, CA Stellina 2012 Reserve Old Vine Zinfandel comes from Estate Crush, a custom crush facility producing a great many small lot wines from grapes in the Lodi area of California. They sell wine from the Stellina Estate Vineyard under their own Estate Crush label. Its nose offers a
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Obligatory disclaimer: This tasting of Turiya Wines was free to me. I spent my formative years on the Central Coast, in Santa Maria, California. While I lived there, I had no idea it was a wine-growing region. My family is conservative, religious stock – having a drink is as likely to bring forth admonitions about
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Chateau Montelena Calistoga Zinfandel 2014 Calistoga, CA Obligatory disclaimer: I received this bottle of Chateau Montelena Calistoga Zinfandel 2014 as a free sample for review. The Wine This Napa Valley zinfandel was aged in Irish oak barrels, which is a highly unusual choice for Californian winemaking. It smells like a candy that doesn’t exist but
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Milk & Honey Cream Liqueur ABV: 12.5% The Liqueur I first heard about Milk & Honey in 2015, when Justin Lubin, who developed the liqueur, contacted me to taste test it. Obligatory disclaimer: The bottle I’m reviewing was sent as a thank you gift from Lubin for my participation in that early stage of its
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Liveblogging sessions are always a highlight of the Wine Bloggers Conferences I’ve attended since 2014. So it should come as no surprise that I found the liveblogging session at my first International Food Bloggers Conference (IFBC) to be the most exciting event there as well. The IFBC took place in Sacramento, CA, at the end
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