Tag: red wine


Jun
2017

Tercero Wines 2016 Aberration: Cabernet Franc

categories: Booze, Wine

Aberration: A departure from what is normal or expected…

Usually one for Rhône varietals, it certainly is a “departure from what is normal” to see a Cabernet Franc from Larry of Tercero Wines. But, as is his nature, if something is interesting to him, he’ll experiment with it, not letting a “reputation” or a “theme” hold him back.

“This is my first year with Cab Franc,” says Larry, “a variety that I’ve been intrigued with for quite some time, especially those coming out of Chinon.” Chinon, is another “unexpected” when it comes to influencing New World wines. It’s a small town just outside of the Loire valley whose red-centric wines are marked by a gritty rusticity due to the mountainous terrain. And that’s just what Larry loved when he tasted those wines and what he’s re-created — California-style.

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May
2017

Tercero Wines 2011 Verbiage Rouge: Rhône Red Blend

categories: Booze, Wine

“I love to talk – a lot! I also love to make wine – a lot! This label pays homage to the fact that every wine tells a story.” So reads Larry’s 2011 Verbiage Label. He’s a lover of words who’s eager to share the story of each vineyard, grape, bottle, and vintage. So it’s a heart-warming sentiment when, instead of describing Verbiage on the back of the bottle, he pauses, takes a step back, and acknowledges us as lovers of wine ourselves. “Share your story,” he says.

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May
2017

Illahe Vineyards 2014 Project 1899 Pinot Noir

categories: Booze, Wine

Brad Ford, winemaker at Illahe Vineyards, is the fourth generation to live on the Dallas, Oregon property. His family settled here in the 1880s, around the same time grape farming and winemaking was first established in the Northwest. But the Ford’s main business was dairy farming and cherry orchards — that is until Brad’s father, Lowell, planted an experimental acre of müller-thurgau (a sort-of Riesling hybrid) in 1983. From that time on, the Fords became a successful grape growing and selling family business, pioneering modern Northwestern wine education.

It wasn’t until Brad decided to completely change careers that Illahe turned to winemaking. The former carpenter turned grant writer turned English instructor ultimately transformed into a winemaker — a career he finds satisfies him mentally, physically, and creatively. In 2004 he worked his first harvest alongside his father and in 2006 Illahe Vineyards bottled their first vintage.

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May
2017

Cooper Vineyards 2013 Estate Barbera

categories: Booze, Wine

The Cooper family has been farming in Amador County since 1919, when “Grandpa Cooper” left his San Francisco medical practice to tend a walnut orchard. Not until current owner Dick Cooper graduated from UC Davis in the 1970s did the Coopers consider grafting grapevines. But they wanted to think outside the Zinfandel box. Friend Darrell Corti, of Sacramento’s famed Corti Brothers grocery store, gave the Coopers a tip. “Mr. Corti pulled his pocketbook out, retrieved a $1 bill and wrote ‘Barbera’ and ‘Nebbiolo’ on it,” remembers Dick Cooper. With no Nebbiolo to be found, the Coopers turned to neighbor Cary Gott of Montevina Winery, who was willing to sell a bit of Barbera rootstock.

Today, Barbera is Cooper Vineyards’s’ flagship wine, the one that customers flock to the tasting room to buy in bulk.

(Read the full Amador County article on SF Chronicle)

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May
2017

Red Stitch Single Vineyard Pinot Noir

categories: Booze, Wine

We all know the story. Former SF Giants baseball teammates Rich Aurilia and Dave Roberts have teamed up once again — this time in the vineyard field. Alongside winemaker, Rolando Herrera from Mi Sueño Winery and Herrera Wines, Red Stitch serves up some classically-styled Napa Cabs. Their latest game-changer is their somewhat recent addition of Santa Lucia Highland vineyards, Soberanes and Sierra Mar, to craft what, to my palate, are two completely polar opposite Pinots.

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