Hand Crafted RRV Pinot Noir and Chardonnay
“Athair continues to step it up.” Score 94 —Pinot Report
Author Archive
New Knights Valley Winery Making Exceptional Value Wines
“These wines are FANTASTIC!!!”
−Mathew Nicoson, Wine Specialist
StellaReese 2007 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon
When you grow up in northern Napa Valley, around St. Helena and Calistoga, it’s only a matter of time before you get bitten by the “I need to make my own wine” bug. That’s precisely what happened to Rachel and Geoff Davies. To propel them on their journey that led to this first release of [...]
Dogwood Cellars – 2007 Zinfandels Worth Finding
Doug Hackett has quietly been making some killer wines that up until recently have been completely under the radar. Maybe it’s that Mendocino wines have not been featured very prominently in the wine press, but word seems to be spreading all across the country about Dogwood Cellars. Doug was in the office last week and [...]
FREEMAN Continues Steady Climb to the Top
Ken and Akiko Freeman took their love of Burgundy to the next level and built a winery with the focus on creating world-class Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. To help them on their journey to producing wines worthy of bearing the FREEMAN moniker, they enlisted the winemaking talents of Ed Kurtzman, a “Rock Star” Pinot Noir [...]
Baxter Pinot Noir – As Boutique As It Gets!
BAXTER – Memorable Mendocino County Pinot Noirs Despite his easy going and laid back demeanor, Phil Baxter is making his mark with tiny quantities of vineyard-designated Pinot Noirs that exhibit power and finesse. The young, talented winemaker makes Anderson Valley Pinots from the Toulouse and Run Dog Vineyards, and one from the famed Oppenlander Vineyard [...]
Mueller – A Local Treasure
Making Consistent and Classic Russian River Wines for Two Decades Robert Mueller’s resume includes working at many notable wineries, which lead him to establish a large custom crush facility servicing both Napa and Sonoma. This ultimately drove him to his true calling of making hand-crafted wines, and in 1991 Mueller released his first wine under [...]
“Always the Bridesmaid, Never the Bride”
Bridesmaid 2006 Napa Valley Red Wine Blend Most wineries end up with some barrels of wine that don’t “fit” the profile of the finished wine the winemaker is trying to make. This is especially true of high end wines, wines that often fetch $100 or more, where nothing but the best will do for the [...]
Meet the Winemaker from Saracina Winery
Proprietor John Fetzer and Winemaker Alex MacGregor Pour Their New Saracina & Atrea Wines John Fetzer and his winemaker, Alex MacGregor give us the inside scoop on what makes their Saracina and Atrea wines special. ATREA 2006 Old Soul Red Robert Parker called the ’05 a “bistro wine on steroids”. The 2006 is a superb [...]
Andy Erickson Unleashes His 2007 Leviathan Napa Valley Red Wine
Andy Erickson started his winemaking career at Harlan. He then became winemaker at Staglin in 2001 before founding his own winery (Favia) with his viticulturalist wife, Annie Favia. Erickson assumed the reins as winemaker for Screaming Eagle when Jean Phillips sold the winery in 2006. Quite a challenging task to follow in the shoes of Napa Valley [...]
Annie Favia, Staking Her Claim In The Vineyard
It All Starts In The Vineyard… I recently had a chance to chat with Annie Favia at a tasting at Jardiniere Restaurant in San Francisco. She was there with her husband, winemaker Andy Erickson, pouring their Leviathan 2007 Napa Valley Red Wine. Annie struck me as someone who is very passionate about what she does. [...]
In the Vineyard – Dropping Fruit
Sonoma County: San Francisco’s Wine Country
Moratto Vineyard with Agostino Gamba, Jr.
In the Vineyard – Organic Weed Control
Dan Glover and his new L’Objet Pinot Noir