red wine

Silver Palm Cabernet Sauvignon

Filed under: Wine

White Rocket Wine Company, the wine company created by Kendall-Jackson's Jess Jackson to create wines to attract the attention of younger wine consumers, has launched a new wine, Silver Palm Cabernet Sauvignon. The winemaker is Meliss Bates, who has worked at wineries such as Rutherford Hill and Sebastiani. The grapes are primarily from Napa and Sonoma and the first vintage is the 2005. The wine has been aged in French and American oak barrels and has dried cherry, black currant and peppercorn flavors. It sells for $30 per bottle or $10 per glass and will only be available on-premise. Sexy bottle and it seems to me that the name might also lure people who might have heard of Silver Oak...

Tags: cabernet sauvignon, california wine, red wine, silver palm, white rocket wine company, WhiteRocketWineCompany

Are All California Reds Starting To Taste Alike?

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wine

Often when people first get into tasting wines, they feel that many wines taste alike but then as they get deeper into tasting various varietals they begin to notice the differences. But are the differences between the varietals began to disappear in order to satisfy the demands of marketing wines? Roger Dial has written an interesting piece for Appellation America about varietal distinctiveness. In order to test whether or not various red wine varietals are starting to taste alike he gathered a bunch of wine enthusiasts for a tasting of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Zinfandel and Syrah. All the wines were Californian from designated AVAs, and as far as they knew 100 percent varietal. The blind tasting included one relatively high, and one relatively low alcohol version of each variety.

The results were interesting. The Pinot Noir won out with 100% recognition but even with the Pinot included in the stats, the overall varietal distinctiveness score from the expert panel was an unimpressive 43 percent. Without the Pinot in the equation, the varietal distinctiveness factor of the four remaining varietals shrunk to 29 percent. So what does this mean? Are California reds all blurring into one taste profile, a slightly sweet high alcohol fruit bomb? It may be that in the desire to make wines that appeal to a wide variety of palates that some individuality has been lost. It does make a fun tasting game to try at home with friends and see if you can determine which varietal is which. It also raises the question of whether or not varietal preference (as expressed most vehemently by Miles in "Sideways") has become more a question of brand recognition than of actual taste.

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Tags: california wine, expire-images:2008-8-9, red wine, wine, wine tasting

Jacuzzi Winery Opens

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wine

I never knew that the Jacuzzi family , famous for the Jacuzzi spa also made wine but they do. In fact they have just opened a lavish new winery in the Sonoma Valley in partnership with the Olive Press. The two businesses are setting up shop on Highway 121 in an 18,000-square-foot Italian stone villa on 190 acres along Highway 121, directly across the road from Cline Cellars. red Cline is the maternal grandson of Valeriano Jacuzzi, one of the five brothers who took part in the creation of the Jacuzzi Spa. Fred and Nancy Cline also own Cline Cellars. The wines so far are from separate vineyards but according to an article in Sonoma News the two labels may share some vineyard sources in the future.

The new winery takes its inspiration from the Jacuzzi family home in Italy and has stone buildings assembled around a central coutryard. One wing is devoted to the Olive Press which makes high-end olive oil. The Jacuzzi winery uses "Green String" biodynamic farming practices with no chemical pesticides or fertilizers. The winery produces Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Nebbiolo, Primitivo and others at prices starting around $20.

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Tags: california wine, CaliforniaWine, jacuzzi, red wine, sonoma, white wine, wine, winery

2003 Cloud View Estate Red Wine

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wine

Cloud View doesn't make a whole roster of wines, just one simple and delicious estate red. The wine which is made from Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot grapes (the 2003 is 67% Cabernet Sauvignon and 33% Merlot) grown in the Pritchard Hill area of Napa Valley, California. Winemaker Karen Bower Turjanis, formerly of Cardinale, Lokoya, and Paul Hobbs Winery and owners Leighton and Linda Taylor have created a rich and fruity wine that has an ardent fan club. The wine sells for around $65.

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Tags: cloud view, CloudView, estate red, napa wine, red wine

2005 The Catch Pinot Noir

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wine, Charity

Today's wine selection combines two of my favorite things, wine by a sport celebrity and wine for a good cause. Former San Francisco 49er Dwight Clark teamed up with Steve Ledson of Ledson winery to create 2005 Dwight Clark's "The Catch" Russian River Pinot Noir. The wine is made of 100% Pinot Noir. The wine is a blend of four different clones from the Russian River vineyards and is aged in French Oak barrels for eight months. The proceeds from the sale of the wine benefit the Harmony Foundation for Children, which provides support and resources to underprivileged children. This is the third wine in the series, the first was a 2000 Meritage made with actor Jeff Bridges and the first was a 1999 Old Vine Zinfandel made with former Doobie Brother Michael McDonald. The wine sells for $95.

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Tags: dwight clark, ledson, pinot noir, red wine, the catch

Wine And Shoes To Save Elephants

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wine, Charity

Another new entry into the rapidly growing wine-for-a-good-cause category is the Rescue Wine from Juslyn Vineyards in Napa. The owners of the winery Carolyn and Perry Butler were inspired when they visited the Four Seasons Tented Camp in Thailand, Seeing an elephant in Bangkok city traffic inspired the Butlers to create a special wine to benefit the Golden Triangle Elephant Foundation which rescues elephants abandoned in the cities and brings them back to a safe jungle environment. The Juslyn Winery's 2001 Rescue wine is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. The wine is available as either a 1.5 liter for $225, three bottles of the 750 ml size for $250 or a three liter bottle for $495. 100% of the proceeds from the sale of the wine will benefit GTAEF.

Carolyn Butler also persuaded Italian designer Cesare Casadei to create a peep-toe patent leather d'orsay pump with a black and white animal print comes with a 3.5 inch red heel. The shoes sell for $435 and there are just 60 being made.

[via Wine Spectator]

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Tags: cabernet franc, cabernet sauvignon, CabernetFranc, CabernetSauvignon, do no evil, DoNoEvil, juslyn, merlot, napa valley, red wine, RedWine, wine

Willamette Valley Vineyards Switch To Sustainable Corks

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wine

Willamette Valley Vineyards is going green in a new way. Wine Business reports that they will become the first winery in the world to use cork stoppers harvested from forestlands certified by the Forest Stewardship Council. Willamette Valley Vineyards annually produces around 100,000 cases of mainly Pinot Noir wine. Starting with the 2006 vintage Pinot Noir to be bottled in July, the winery will begin using corks that are FSC certified and imprinted with the FSC and Rainforest Alliance logo. The corks come from from FSC-certified cork forests in the Alentejo region of Portugal. The Rainforest Alliance says that cork is important to protecting the environment because the use of plastic stoppers and aluminum screw caps aren't environmentally friendly. The 2005 vintage sells for $24 per bottle.

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Tags: cork, orgeon wine, pinot noir, red wine, willamette valley vineyards, WillametteValleyVineyards, wine closures

Cuv�e Julia Collection

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wine

I've sung the praises of the Cuvée Julia from Delectus vineyard before. The pricey Cabernet-heavy, Bordeaux-like blend sells out each year since only 200 cases are made each year. Each year's vintage also has a distinctively adorable label that relates to Julia, winemaker Gerhard Reisacher's beloved daughter. Now you can pick up a vertical of the vintages 1999 through 2004. The winery is selling 40 wooden six-packs. on a first-come, first-serve basis. The collection sells for $1200 retail or $960 for their wine club members.

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Tags: cabernet, california wine, cuvee julia, delectus, napa valley, red wine, vertical

Fat Bastard Maker Refines Their Palate

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wine

I'm no fan of the Fat Bastard wine but I am curious about Click Wine Group's higher-end line called the Global Wine Collection. The wines are aimed meant to appeal to the "Millennials," people 21 to 30 years old. The portfolio continues the group's tradition of innovative naming. The wines include Flying Fish (from the Pacific Northwest), 2up (from Australia) and Mad Dogs & Englishmen (from Spain). Their Clean Slate, a German Riesling from the Mosel-Saar- Ruwer district won a Double Gold medal at the 2006 San Francisco International Wine Competition. The Clean Slate sells for around $10.

[via The Daily Report]

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Tags: cabernet sauvignon, clean slate, click wine group, ClickWineGroup, red wine, RedWine, riesling, white wine, WhiteWine

Montrachet Sells Off The Cellar

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wine, Auctions

There have been a lot of exciting wine auctions this spring. The Spring auction from Zachy's in New York on May 11 gives you the chance to own wines from the cellar at Montrachet, a wine-oriented restaurant in New York which closed last year but may yet reopen at a later date. Meanwhile they are selling off a bunch of their cellar. Decanter reports that the 536 lots Zachy's hopes to sell include 383 of red and white Burgundy, ranging through the 1980s, 1990s and the current decade. The restaurant had been open since 1985, plenty of time to stock up on a wealth of treasures. The Zachy's website has details of the lots and the absentee bidder form.

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Tags: auction, burgundy, montrachet, red wine, white wine, wine, zachys

Kono Baru Wine, Upside Down Is Right Side Up

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wine

Don Sebastiani & Sons, the folks behind Used Automobile Parts wine are at it again. This time with wine with upside-down labels. Kono Barú. The upside-down labels represent the fact that the wines are sourced from vineyards in the Southern hemisphere. The initial launch is of six varietals from three countries. A Sauvignon Blanc, unwwoded Chardonnay and a Cabernet Sauvignon from Chile; a Riesling and a Shiraz from Australia; and a Malbec from Argentina. The Chilean and Australian wines are around $12 and the Malbec is around $16. The line is meant to represent a step up from the bargain-priced wines from Chile and Australia with something a little bit more upscale. The initial launch is around 100,000 cases.

[via Wine Business News]

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Tags: australian wine, AustralianWine, cabernet sauvignon, chilean wine, kono baru, KonoBaru, malbec, red wine, RedWine, riesling, sebastiani, shiraz, white wine, WhiteWine, wine

Pahlmeyer Goes Pinot

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wine

Pahlmeyer Winery is branching out. The California winery, which specializes in Bordeaux-based reds and Chardonnay, has now created Pinot Noirs primarily sourced from a vineyard the winery purchased in 2000 in Sonoma. They will be releasing two Pinot Noirs this year, the 2005 Jayson Pinot Noir in April and the 2005 Pahlmeyer Pinot Noir in September. The Jayson is 100% Pinot Noir grapes with a Sonoma appellation. The winemaker, Erin Green describes the wine has having a nose of cherries and earth with blackberries, plum and spice on the palate. It sells for $65.

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Tags: california, jayson, pahlmeyer, pinot noir, red wine, sonoma, wine

True Earth Organic Wine

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wine

Just in time for Earth Day, the wine brand The Three Thieves have launched a new organic brand called True Earth. The wine is made from organic grapes. There are two True Earth wines, a red blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petite Sirah, and a varietal Chardonnay. Both are made from California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF) vineyards in Mendocino County, using no pesticides, herbicides, or conventional synthetic fertilizers. The wines contain minimal amounts of sulfites which are used in the winemaking process to preserve freshness. The first release is 5,000 cases of each type and the wines sell for $12.99.

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Tags: california, chardonnay, grapes, mendocino, organic, red wine, true earth, TrueEarth, white wine, wine

Barry Manilow Joins the World of Celebrity Wine

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wine, Celebrity Shopping

The latest celebrity to enter the wine business is none other than Barry Manilow. Fans of the singer can now get their hands on Manilow wines in five varietals, Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel made at several different California wineries. The Manilow wine retails for between $20 to $25 dollars a bottle. It doesn't seem like Manilow has much of a hand in these wines. Many celebrities actually work with a winemaker and/or vineyard to produce a particular type of wine but these wines seem to be Manilow in name only. Still, they will probably be a big hit with the "fanilows."
[via Wine Spectator and E Online]

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Tags: barry manilow, BarryManilow, red wine, white wine, wine, winemaking

2003 Viader V Wine

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wine

The V stands for Verdot, Petit Verdot the primary varietal in Viader's V wine. Viader, a Napa Valley winery, blends Petit Verdot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc in varying percentages each year to create an inky, spicy and seductive blend with black fruit and pepper notes. V could also stand for velvety here, the wine has mild tannins delivering a milder taste than you might expect from the dark color. The 2003 V, created by winemaker Delia Viader is 64% Petit Verdot, 16% Cabernet Sauvignon and 20% Cabernet Franc. The winery only has the 1.5 liters on hand, and the are selling for $140 each.

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Tags: california wine, napa valley, red wine, viader, wine

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