Searching for "grenache"


Apr
2017

Fore Family 2013 Cobb Mountain GSM

categories: Booze, Wine

I came across Fore Family Vineyards during my last excursion to Lake County. An enjoyable experience at the tasting room’s downtown Kelseyville location, I was intimately hosted by both Jim and Diane Fore. (To be honest, it was 11am on a rainy Saturday morning — no one in their right mind was out wine tasting that day.) I tasted through a full line up of their current releases, but it was this GSM Rhone-style blend that, to me, elegantly displayed what their unique plot of Lake County has to offer.

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Mar
2017

Workman/Ayer 2013 De Facto Red Wine

categories: Booze, Wine

Workman/Ayer is the story of a couple who shares a passion for California Central Coast vines and wines. They’re an extremely boutique operation, with just 100 – 200 cases each of their current releases (which at the moment consists of one white and one red wine). So when Michel Ayer kindly sent me a bottle of each, I was eager to learn a bit more about the man and woman behind the  bottle — and honored to taste what was inside.

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Mar
2017

Winery Review: Castoro Cellars

categories: Booze, Winery Reviews

When visiting Paso Robles, you’re pretty much in Rhone Ranger town. Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre are as common here as Pinot Noir and Chardonnay are along the Sonoma Coast. But if you’re looking to break away from the Paso-norm, maybe try a few obscure varietals, and have some outdoors-y fun while you taste, then your next stop is the family owned and operated Castoro Cellars: You’re in for some “Dam Fine Wine.”

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Mar
2017

Crux Winery: GSM Blending Trial

categories: Booze, Winery Reviews

GSM is a classic red wine blend from the South of France, namely the Rhône valley. The acronym “GSM” comes from the grape names that make up the primary ingredients: Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre. It also indicates the percentages of each wine that makes up the final blend; although exact percentages will vary from year to year (depending on a particular vintage’s quantity and quality of yield), traditionally there will be the highest amount of Grenache, followed by Syrah, and finally Mourvèdre.

But because wine blending (and winemaking in general) is equal parts art and science, vintners will spend days, weeks, maybe even months perfecting their final blend. If you have a chance to participate in this art project/science experiment, do it. It’s an opportunity to learn about the importance of vintage and terroir, harvest and winemaking methods, individual grapes and final blends.

Blending trial at Crux Winery, February 2017; Photo by: Emily Davis, Pure Light Photography

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Feb
2017

Zenaida Cellars 2014 Wanderlust

categories: Booze, Wine

On my last trip through Paso, I stopped by Zenaida Cellars, a winery I had come across when they kindly sent me a few bottles to sample. While their Syrah was outstanding, I truly fell in love with their Fire Sign red blend. But for some reason I held on to their GSM waiting for the opportune moment to pop the cork (or, this this case, twist the cap). And, honestly, I think it’s because of the name. I’m an itchy-twitchy girl who can’t hold still for more than a moment and wanderlust is something that’s truly in my heart. Well, I’ve come to a point in my life where I’m traveling — like, a lot. Admittedly, my recent travels are primarily taking me to various California wine regions, but in so doing I feel like I’m traveling to world as I learn and taste through each grape’s heritage, each winemaker’s journey. And so, now is the time to twist off the cap of Zenaida Cellars 2014 Wanderlust.

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