Blog Archives

Love That Mountain Fruit

Look, the region is called Napa VALLEY. You’d expect there’s plenty of good stuff at low elevations. But I’ve always been excited by the uppermost regions, which I first explored at Cain and Smith-Madrone on Spring Mountain. So I was excited to be invited to a tasting of wines from Antica Napa Valley, located on Atlas Peak. [More]

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Illumination Sauvignon Blanc is Awesome

I sat down for breakfast with Augustin Fransisco Huneeus, proprietor of his family’s eponymous Huneeus Vineyards a while ago. He was an energetic fountain of early-morning conversation the likes for which I was mentally unprepared. If the name Huneeus isn’t familiar, I’d point you to the family’s historic organic and biodynamic estate in the Rutherford [More]

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Chateau Montelena Dream Tasting

Few wineries have played as large a part in American wine history as Chateau Montelena. When I was invited to attend a tasting including five decades of the Napa Valley winery’s Cabernet Sauvignon, I couldn’t say “yes” fast enough. So earlier this summer I buckled up for a wine event of a lifetime. Our Master [More]

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Freemark Abbey Cabernet Bosché is a Napa Valley Classic

I’ll admit that I spend my wine days and nights in New York chasing the obscure. Bring me all your wonderfully weird wines! Sometimes, though, this is at the expense of the classics. Case in point would be the Freemark Abbey Cabernet Bosché. I had the pleasure of tasting this wine with Ted Edwards, director [More]

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Do You Know Petit Verdot?

Primarily used as a component in Bordeaux-style blends, Petit Verdot could use a champion or three. I found a trio of winemakers who take this grape beyond the blend, making it the star of the show. My first article for SevenFifty Daily takes a look at Petit Verdot through three winemakers: Kevin Morrisey, Ehlers Estate, [More]

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Loving the Clos du Val Napa Valley Merlot

Seeing “Napa Valley Merlot” on a wine label may cause some snap judgements, but Clos du Val is making (and has been making) one of my favorite expressions of this grape. And not just a favorite Napa Valley Merlot, but a favorite Merlot, period. What are the myths about Merlot? Bland and boring. And what [More]

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