Category: Review

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Lachini The Grape Republic Pinot Noir

 

Lachini The Grape Republic Pinot Noir
Lachini The Grape Republic Pinot Noir Click here for tasting notes.
Lachini The Grape Republic Pinot Noir

Proprietor Ron Lachini’s family hails from the Tuscan town of Lucca.  At some point, his grandfather immigrated to the United States, settling in the large Italian community of San Francisco’s North Beach.  He started making wine with his father and grandfather in their garages as a child.

He and his wife Marianne both attended U.C. Davis, where they were exposed to the world of viticulture and enology.  Travels to some of the world’s esteemed wine regions and wineries cemented their love and collection of fine wines.  After college, Ron began a career in the financial industry in 1997, which he pursued until 2008.  Nearly simultaneously, in 1998, he and Marianne purchased a 45-acre property in Newberg, Oregon, approximately 30 miles southwest of Portland, with the intention of eventually owning a winery.  After clearing and natural site preparation, in June of 1999 they planted their first five acres of Pinot Noir. In the following seven years, additional blocks were planted that now entail just over 30.5 acres of Pinot Noir plus an additional one and a half acres of Chardonnay.  This land is now the Lachini Estate Vineyard. Continue reading “Lachini The Grape Republic Pinot Noir”

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Lachini Vineyards Cuvée Giselle Pinot Noir

 

Lachini Vineyards Cuvée Giselle Pinot Noir 2018
Lachini Vineyards Cuvée Giselle Pinot Noir 2018 Click here for tasting notes.

Proprietor Ron Lachini’s family hails from the Tuscan town of Lucca.  At some point, his grandfather immigrated to the United States, settling in the large Italian community of San Francisco’s North Beach.  He started making wine with his father and grandfather in their garages as a child.

He and his wife Marianne both attended U.C. Davis, where they were exposed to the world of viticulture and enology.  Travels to some of the world’s esteemed wine regions and wineries cemented their love and collection of fine wines.  After college, Ron began a career in the financial industry in 1997, which he pursued until 2008.  Nearly simultaneously, in 1998, he and Marianne purchased a 45-acre property in Newberg, Oregon, approximately 30 miles southwest of Portland, with the intention of eventually owning a winery.  After clearing and natural site preparation, in June of 1999 they planted their first five acres of Pinot Noir. In the following seven years, additional blocks were planted that now entail just over 30.5 acres of Pinot Noir plus an additional one and a half acres of Chardonnay.  This land is now the Lachini Estate Vineyard. Continue reading “Lachini Vineyards Cuvée Giselle Pinot Noir”

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Lachini Vineyards La Cruz Pinot Noir

 

Lachini Vineyards La Cruz Pinot Noir 2019
Lachini Vineyards La Cruz Pinot Noir 2019 Click here for tasting notes.
Lachini Vineyards La Cruz Pinot Noir 2019

Proprietor Ron Lachini’s family hails from the Tuscan town of Lucca.  At some point, his grandfather immigrated to the United States, settling in the large Italian community of San Francisco’s North Beach.  He started making wine with his father and grandfather in their garages as a child.

He and his wife Marianne both attended U.C. Davis, where they were exposed to the world of viticulture and enology.  Travels to some of the world’s esteemed wine regions and wineries cemented their love and collection of fine wines.  After college, Ron began a career in the financial industry in 1997, which he pursued until 2008.  Nearly simultaneously, in 1998, he and Marianne purchased a 45-acre property in Newberg, Oregon, approximately 30 miles southwest of Portland, with the intention of eventually owning a winery.  After clearing and natural site preparation, in June of 1999 they planted their first five acres of Pinot Noir. In the following seven years, additional blocks were planted that now entail just over 30.5 acres of Pinot Noir plus an additional one and a half acres of Chardonnay.  This land is now the Lachini Estate Vineyard. Continue reading “Lachini Vineyards La Cruz Pinot Noir”

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Lachini Family Estate Pinot Noir

 

Lachini Family Estate Pinot Noir
Lachini Family Estate Pinot Noir 2018 Click here for tasting notes.
Lachini Family Estate Pinot Noir 2018

Proprietor Ron Lachini’s family hails from the Tuscan town of Lucca.  At some point, his grandfather immigrated to the United States, settling in the large Italian community of San Francisco’s North Beach.  He started making wine with his father and grandfather in their garages as a child.

He and his wife Marianne both attended U.C. Davis, where they were exposed to the world of viticulture and enology.  Travels to some of the world’s esteemed wine regions and wineries cemented their love and collection of fine wines.  After college, Ron began a career in the financial industry in 1997, which he pursued until 2008.  Nearly simultaneously, in 1998, he and Marianne purchased a 45-acre property in Newberg, Oregon, approximately 30 miles southwest of Portland, with the intention of eventually owning a winery.  After clearing and natural site preparation, in June of 1999 they planted their first five acres of Pinot Noir. In the following seven years, additional blocks were planted that now entail just over 30.5 acres of Pinot Noir plus an additional one and a half acres of Chardonnay.  This land is now the Lachini Estate Vineyard. Continue reading “Lachini Family Estate Pinot Noir”

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Tooth & Nail The Fiend

Tooth & Nail The Fiend 2017
Tooth & Nail The Fiend 2017 Click here for tasting notes.

Tooth & Nail is one of four brands from Rabble Wine Company, the others being Rabble, Stasis, and Amor Fati. Rabble was founded by Rob Murray, a longtime wine grower with a vineyard-first mindset. The company has relied on four vineyards for more than 10 years, carefully overseeing all aspects of farming.

The Tooth & Nail estate vineyard is in the Willow Creek District of  Paso Robles , California. about halfway between Santa Barbara to the south and Carmel to the north. It occupies rolling slopes at the base of the Santa Lucia mountains. The gravelly soils feature the type of limestone-rich ingredients found in some of the world’s greatest winegrowing regions. The vineyard spans 10 acres, including 20-year-old Cabernet Sauvignon vines and newer plantings of a Tempranillo clone from Rioja; a Malbec clone from Bordeaux; and a head-trained block of Mourvedre. The second vineyard, Murmur, is southwest from the winery and over the mountains, just 13 miles from the Pacific Ocean.  Murray personally planted this vineyard and knows it intimately. The final two vineyards, Mossfire and Armour Ridge, are in the Estrella District, about 10 miles north of Paso Robles on Highway 101.
Continue reading “Tooth & Nail The Fiend”

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Tooth & Nail The Stand

Tooth & Nail The Stand 2017
Tooth & Nail The Stand 2017 Click here for tasting notes.

Tooth & Nail is one of four brands from Rabble Wine Company, the others being Rabble, Stasis, and Amor Fati. Rabble was founded by Rob Murray, a longtime wine grower with a vineyard-first mindset. The company has relied on four vineyards for more than 10 years, carefully overseeing all aspects of farming.

The Tooth & Nail estate vineyard is in the Willow Creek District of  Paso Robles , California. about halfway between Santa Barbara to the south and Carmel to the north. It occupies rolling slopes at the base of the Santa Lucia mountains. The gravelly soils feature the type of limestone-rich ingredients found in some of the world’s greatest winegrowing regions. The vineyard spans 10 acres, including 20-year-old Cabernet Sauvignon vines and newer plantings of a Tempranillo clone from Rioja; a Malbec clone from Bordeaux; and a head-trained block of Mourvedre. The second vineyard, Murmur, is southwest from the winery and over the mountains, just 13 miles from the Pacific Ocean.  Murray personally planted this vineyard and knows it intimately. The final two vineyards, Mossfire and Armour Ridge, are in the Estrella District, about 10 miles north of Paso Robles on Highway 101.
Continue reading “Tooth & Nail The Stand”

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Tooth & Nail The Possessor

Tooth & Nail The Possessor 2016
Tooth & Nail The Possessor 2016 Click here for tasting notes.

Tooth & Nail is one of four brands from Rabble Wine Company, the others being Rabble, Stasis, and Amor Fati. Rabble was founded by Rob Murray, a longtime wine grower with a vineyard-first mindset. The company has relied on four vineyards for more than 10 years, carefully overseeing all aspects of farming.

The Tooth & Nail estate vineyard is in the Willow Creek District of  Paso Robles , California. about halfway between Santa Barbara to the south and Carmel to the north. It occupies rolling slopes at the base of the Santa Lucia mountains. The gravelly soils feature the type of limestone-rich ingredients found in some of the world’s greatest winegrowing regions. The vineyard spans 10 acres, including 20-year-old Cabernet Sauvignon vines and newer plantings of a Tempranillo clone from Rioja; a Malbec clone from Bordeaux; and a head-trained block of Mourvedre. The second vineyard, Murmur, is southwest from the winery and over the mountains, just 13 miles from the Pacific Ocean.  Murray personally planted this vineyard and knows it intimately. The final two vineyards, Mossfire and Armour Ridge, are in the Estrella District, about 10 miles north of Paso Robles on Highway 101.
Continue reading “Tooth & Nail The Possessor”

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Alquimista Jessie’s Grove Ancient Vine Zinfandel 2016

Alquimista Jessie's Grove Ancient Vine Zinfandel 2016
Alquimista Jessie’s Grove Ancient Vine Zinfandel 2016 Click here for tasting notes.

Some winemakers and winery proprietors are born into the business. Some buy into the business. And some evolve into it. Greg LaFollette of Alquimista evolved quite successfully. He has been called a “vine whisperer,” a “cellar magician,” and a “tireless coaxer and protector of handcrafted wines.” He is one of Sonoma’s most revered winemakers, and was honored as Winemaker of the Year in 2010. He has also been tagged “Prince of Pinot” by the website of the same name.

first, a career in science

La Follette’s early years were spent as a musician. At 17, he became the bagpiper for the Queen Mary berthed in Long Beach, California. (And he plays the bagpipes to this day.)  “I wanted to be a winemaker since my teens,” admitted La Follette. “But who in Los Angeles becomes a winemaker?” Eventually he decided that neither music nor wine offered a viable way forward, and after earning degrees in Plant Biology and Chemistry, La Follette started his professional career in 1984 at the University of California, San Francisco, as an Infectious Disease  researcher specializing in HIV suppression. While there, he co-authored over a dozen papers in the field. But, he was also still feeling the pull of his early interest in the wine industry. Continue reading “Alquimista Jessie’s Grove Ancient Vine Zinfandel 2016”

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Alquimista Manchester Ridge Pinot Noir

Alquimista Manchester Ridge Pinot Noir 2016
Alquimista Manchester Ridge Pinot Noir 2016 Click here for tasting notes.

Some winemakers and winery proprietors are born into the business. Some buy into the business. And some evolve into it. Greg LaFollette of Alquimista evolved quite successfully. He has been called a “vine whisperer,” a “cellar magician,” and a “tireless coaxer and protector of handcrafted wines.” He is one of Sonoma’s most revered winemakers, and was honored as Winemaker of the Year in 2010. He has also been tagged “Prince of Pinot” by the website of the same name.

first, a career in science

La Follette’s early years were spent as a musician. At 17, he became the bagpiper for the Queen Mary berthed in Long Beach, California. (And he plays the bagpipes to this day.)  “I wanted to be a winemaker since my teens,” admitted La Follette. “But who in Los Angeles becomes a winemaker?” Eventually he decided that neither music nor wine offered a viable way forward, and after earning degrees in Plant Biology and Chemistry, La Follette started his professional career in 1984 at the University of California, San Francisco, as an Infectious Disease  researcher specializing in HIV suppression. While there, he co-authored over a dozen papers in the field. But, he was also still feeling the pull of his early interest in the wine industry. Continue reading “Alquimista Manchester Ridge Pinot Noir”

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Alquimista Hawk’s Roost Ranch Pinot Noir

Alquimista Hawk's Roost Ranch Pinot Noir 2016
Alquimista Hawk’s Roost Ranch Pinot Noir 2016 Click here for tasting notes.

Some winemakers and winery proprietors are born into the business. Some buy into the business. And some evolve into it. Greg LaFollette of Alquimista evolved quite successfully. He has been called a “vine whisperer,” a “cellar magician,” and a “tireless coaxer and protector of handcrafted wines.” He is one of Sonoma’s most revered winemakers, and was honored as Winemaker of the Year in 2010. He has also been tagged “Prince of Pinot” by the website of the same name.

first, a career in science

La Follette’s early years were spent as a musician. At 17, he became the bagpiper for the Queen Mary berthed in Long Beach, California. (And he plays the bagpipes to this day.)  “I wanted to be a winemaker since my teens,” admitted La Follette. “But who in Los Angeles becomes a winemaker?” Eventually he decided that neither music nor wine offered a viable way forward, and after earning degrees in Plant Biology and Chemistry, La Follette started his professional career in 1984 at the University of California, San Francisco, as an Infectious Disease  researcher specializing in HIV suppression. While there, he co-authored over a dozen papers in the field. But, he was also still feeling the pull of his early interest in the wine industry. Continue reading “Alquimista Hawk’s Roost Ranch Pinot Noir”

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Alquimista Convergence Pinot Noir

Alquimista Convergence Pinot Noir 2016
Alquimista Convergence Pinot Noir 2016 Click here for tasting notes.

Some winemakers and winery proprietors are born into the business. Some buy into the business. And some evolve into it. Greg LaFollette of Alquimista evolved quite successfully. He has been called a “vine whisperer,” a “cellar magician,” and a “tireless coaxer and protector of handcrafted wines.” He is one of Sonoma’s most revered winemakers, and was honored as Winemaker of the Year in 2010. He has also been tagged “Prince of Pinot” by the website of the same name.

first, a career in science

La Follette’s early years were spent as a musician. At 17, he became the bagpiper for the Queen Mary berthed in Long Beach, California. (And he plays the bagpipes to this day.)  “I wanted to be a winemaker since my teens,” admitted La Follette. “But who in Los Angeles becomes a winemaker?” Eventually he decided that neither music nor wine offered a viable way forward, and after earning degrees in Plant Biology and Chemistry, La Follette started his professional career in 1984 at the University of California, San Francisco, as an Infectious Disease  researcher specializing in HIV suppression. While there, he co-authored over a dozen papers in the field. But, he was also still feeling the pull of his early interest in the wine industry. Continue reading “Alquimista Convergence Pinot Noir”

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Alquimista Confluence Pinot Noir

Alquimista Confluence Pinot Noir 2016
Alquimista Confluence Pinot Noir 2016 Click here for tasting notes.

Some winemakers and winery proprietors are born into the business. Some buy into the business. And some evolve into it. Greg LaFollette of Alquimista evolved quite successfully. He has been called a “vine whisperer,” a “cellar magician,” and a “tireless coaxer and protector of handcrafted wines.” He is one of Sonoma’s most revered winemakers, and was honored as Winemaker of the Year in 2010. He has also been tagged “Prince of Pinot” by the website of the same name.

first, a career in science

La Follette’s early years were spent as a musician. At 17, he became the bagpiper for the Queen Mary berthed in Long Beach, California. (And he plays the bagpipes to this day.)  “I wanted to be a winemaker since my teens,” admitted La Follette. “But who in Los Angeles becomes a winemaker?” Eventually he decided that neither music nor wine offered a viable way forward, and after earning degrees in Plant Biology and Chemistry, La Follette started his professional career in 1984 at the University of California, San Francisco, as an Infectious Disease  researcher specializing in HIV suppression. While there, he co-authored over a dozen papers in the field. But, he was also still feeling the pull of his early interest in the wine industry. Continue reading “Alquimista Confluence Pinot Noir”

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Alquimista Chardonnay Manchester Ridge

Alquimista Chardonnay Manchester Ridge 2016
Alquimista Chardonnay Manchester Ridge 2016. Click here for tasting notes.

Some winemakers and winery proprietors are born into the business. Some buy into the business. And some evolve into it. Greg LaFollette of Alquimista evolved quite successfully. He has been called a “vine whisperer,” a “cellar magician,” and a “tireless coaxer and protector of handcrafted wines.” He is one of Sonoma’s most revered winemakers, and was honored as Winemaker of the Year in 2010. He has also been tagged “Prince of Pinot” by the website of the same name.

first, a career in science

La Follette’s early years were spent as a musician. At 17, he became the bagpiper for the Queen Mary berthed in Long Beach, California. (And he plays the bagpipes to this day.)  “I wanted to be a winemaker since my teens,” admitted La Follette. “But who in Los Angeles becomes a winemaker?” Eventually he decided that neither music nor wine offered a viable way forward, and after earning degrees in Plant Biology and Chemistry, La Follette started his professional career in 1984 at the University of California, San Francisco, as an Infectious Disease  researcher specializing in HIV suppression. While there, he co-authored over a dozen papers in the field. But, he was also still feeling the pull of his early interest in the wine industry. Continue reading “Alquimista Chardonnay Manchester Ridge”

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Kenwood Jack London Wild Ferment Cabernet Sauvignon

Kenwood Vineyards Jack London Wild Ferment*** Cabernet Sauvignon 2018
Kenwood Vineyards Jack London Wild Ferment Cabernet Sauvignon 2018 Click here for tasting notes.
Kenwood Vineyards Jack London Wild Ferment Cabernet Sauvignon 2018

Author Jack London (1876 – 1916) was an American novelist, journalist, and social activist. A pioneer of unabashedly commercial fiction in both novels and  magazines, he was one of the first American authors to become an international celebrity and earn a large fortune from writing. His most famous works include The Call of the Wild and White Fang, both set during the Klondike Gold Rush.

In 1905, London purchased a 1,000 acre property in Glen Ellen, California, on the western slope of Sonoma Valley which he named Beauty Ranch. He wrote, “Next to my wife, the ranch is the dearest thing in the world to me. I write for no other purpose than to add to the beauty that now belongs to me. I write a book for no other reason than to add three or four hundred acres to my magnificent estate.” Continue reading “Kenwood Jack London Wild Ferment Cabernet Sauvignon”

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Kenwood Jack London Dry Farmed Cabernet Sauvignon

Kenwood Vineyards Jack London Dry Farmed Cabernet Sauvignon 2018
Kenwood Vineyards Jack London Dry Farmed Cabernet Sauvignon 2018. Click here for tasting notes.
Kenwood Vineyards Jack London Dry Farmed Cabernet Sauvignon 2018

Author Jack London (1876 – 1916) was an American novelist, journalist, and social activist. A pioneer of unabashedly commercial fiction in both novels and  magazines, he was one of the first American authors to become an international celebrity and earn a large fortune from writing. His most famous works include The Call of the Wild and White Fang, both set during the Klondike Gold Rush.

In 1905, London purchased a 1,000 acre property in Glen Ellen, California, on the western slope of Sonoma Valley which he named Beauty Ranch. He wrote, “Next to my wife, the ranch is the dearest thing in the world to me. I write for no other purpose than to add to the beauty that now belongs to me. I write a book for no other reason than to add three or four hundred acres to my magnificent estate.” Continue reading “Kenwood Jack London Dry Farmed Cabernet Sauvignon”

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